There was a sense of release on Tsunade's face. As far as Konoha was concerned, she had truly let go.
At this moment, she had already changed into the outfit Hagoromo found most familiar—especially the large "Gamble" character emblazoned on her back, which gave off an unmistakably bold, rough-around-the-edges vibe.
Tsunade herself carried nothing at all. In contrast, Kato Shizune, walking beside her, had a fairly large backpack slung over her shoulders.
"Konoha is a treasure my grandfathers left behind," Tsunade said calmly. "The First Hokage spent his entire life fighting for it. The Second Hokage died protecting it. The Third Hokage personally walked onto the battlefield for it. And even I have fought for it for so long…"
"In short, I've already paid too high a price for this jewel. I've lost too much. I'm tired now. This war was the last thing I would ever do to protect the village."
"My work is finished," she said softly. "It's time for me to leave."
"Help me say goodbye to Kushina for me. And… kid—don't die."
Those were Tsunade's final words to Hagoromo.
What was Hagoromo feeling at that moment?
No one knew but him. Yet his tone remained lighthearted—perhaps because part of him was genuinely glad that Tsunade was finally leaving the battlefield, a place she loathed so deeply.
"Yeah, I know," Hagoromo replied with a grin. "I just want to see whether, ten years from now, Lady Tsunade will still have the nerve to keep pretending she's a young girl—when she's clearly already an old la—"
Before he could finish his sentence, and before his gaze could complete a single sweep over Tsunade, he was sent flying by a single punch.
It was a pleasant farewell.
Ten years sounded short when spoken aloud, but whether he would ever see Tsunade again—or even could see her again—was entirely unknown.
Perhaps, to Tsunade, Konoha was no longer the Konoha it once had been. There were simply too many things here she didn't want to face anymore. That was why she left so cleanly and decisively.
That morning, only Hagoromo watched as Tsunade departed from Konoha's camp, disappearing into the distance—never to return.
With her back to him, she lazily waved an arm. From beginning to end, she never once looked back.
She was truly sick of war.
As for where she would go after leaving, Hagoromo didn't know.
No one did.
Perhaps before long, rumors would spread throughout the land—of a certain "fat sheep" who always lost whenever she gambled…
Tsunade's departure was completely silent. The ninja below weren't informed of it at all—this secrecy was intentional on the Hokage's part.
If news of this were to leak out, first, it could severely damage morale. Second, without Tsunade present, Sunagakure might attempt some underhanded moves—such as deploying Granny Chiyo.
One of the Legendary Sannin.
The granddaughter of the First Hokage.
The Slug Princess, whose medical ninjutsu stood unrivaled in the ninja world—leaving Konoha in the middle of a war.
That would have been earth-shattering news.
As long as the Third Hokage still had a brain—hell, even if he only had a brainstem—he would never deliberately spread such information.
Fortunately, everyone's attention was focused on Sunagakure's surrender and request for peace. Although a few people noticed Tsunade's absence and felt some confusion, no one paid it much mind.
They never imagined that Tsunade's disappearance wasn't temporary—
But permanent.
Within just seven days of Tsunade's departure, Konoha and Sunagakure envoys met five times in rapid succession. Only then were the peace negotiations finally settled.
The two sides reached the following agreements:
First, Sunagakure would submit a formal letter of surrender. Konoha and Sunagakure would sign a peace treaty, and from the date of its signing onward, no hostilities would be permitted between the two nations. Sunagakure would not engage in any form of provocation—otherwise, it would bear the consequences.
Second, the two villages would sign an alliance treaty. Sunagakure would become Konoha's ally, and the Land of Wind would become an allied nation of the Land of Fire. During the Third Great Ninja War, Sunagakure must ensure that Iwagakure could not pass through the Land of Wind to attack Konoha's front lines. Both sides would cooperate against Iwagakure.
Third, except for diplomatic matters, Sunagakure ninja were forbidden from crossing into the Land of Fire. They were also prohibited from carrying out any form of retaliation, attack, or occupation against the Land of Rivers. Along the border between the two nations, Sunagakure could station no more than 300 ninja, and these forces were restricted to reconnaissance duties only. Among them, the proportion of jōnin could not exceed ten percent—meaning Sunagakure could deploy at most 30 jōnin along the Wind–Fire border.
Fourth, all Konoha prisoners captured by Sunagakure during the war must be returned, and Konoha would do the same.
Fifth, for the next ten years, Sunagakure would be prohibited from accepting missions from surrounding minor nations—whether actively or passively.
Sixth, the Land of Wind would formally sue for peace with the Land of Fire and pay war reparations, with the exact amount to be negotiated by the two daimyō.
…
The first three clauses were relatively easy. Sunagakure agreed to them without much resistance—they were fully aware of their status as the defeated party. Although the treaty was severely unequal, they could only grit their teeth and accept it.
That was the privilege of the victor—and the obligation of the defeated.
Take the third clause, for example. Limiting Sunagakure to 300 ninja along the border ostensibly sounded like a measure taken for their own security—enough to monitor border activity and maintain order. But in reality, allowing only 30 jōnin was effectively the same as leaving Sunagakure completely undefended against Konoha.
Meanwhile, Konoha's own forces stationed along the border would certainly exceed Sunagakure's in number—and would vastly surpass them in quality. Given such a long border, there was no way Konoha would limit itself to just 30 jōnin.
As for the fourth clause, there was little controversy. It was merely standard postwar settlement—returning prisoners after the cessation of hostilities.
That said, once those captive ninja returned, they would undoubtedly be subjected to strict screening, to prevent enemy spies from slipping through.
Peace was nothing more than a pause between wars. Basic trust between villages that fought constantly?
Only a fool would believe in that.
Turning captured enemy ninja into spies was standard practice. Sunagakure would do it. Konoha would do it too.
The real flashpoint lay in the fifth clause.
Its meaning was simple: for the next ten years, Sunagakure was to stay inside the Land of Wind and focus solely on internal affairs—foreign "business" was out of the question.
But ninja lived off missions. Competition for commissions between villages was fierce.
For a small country like the Land of Rivers, which had no ninja village of its own, hiring ninja meant choosing either Konoha of the Land of Fire or Sunagakure of the Land of Wind. Now, with Sunagakure forbidden from accepting missions from other nations, this was practically a death sentence for them.
From Sunagakure's perspective, this fifth clause was, in essence, Konoha cutting them down at the roots—a long-term strategy to cripple their strength.
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