Mifune, the leader of the Land of Iron, was presiding over the Four Kage Summit.
As the only permanently neutral nation in the ninja world, and the only country without shinobi—having only samurai instead—
"Tsuchikage, Mizukage, Raikage, Kazekage, your meeting may now begin."
After saying that, Mifune left the conference room.
What came next was not something he should know, nor something he could know.
Otherwise, the Land of Iron would no longer be able to maintain its status as a permanently neutral nation.
"So, Tsuchikage, why exactly did you summon us here?"
A spoke first.
Even though Dodai had repeatedly warned him before the trip to speak less, he genuinely couldn't stand all this beating around the bush.
A straightforward brute sitting in a gathering full of scheming old foxes—it was torture.
"The Raikage is indeed refreshingly direct. In that case, Tsuchikage, please get to the point quickly."
Rasa chimed in as well.
He didn't mind exchanging a few pleasantries with Ōnoki, but since someone else had already spoken up, why not go along with it?
Karatachi Yagura merely smiled faintly.
He neither agreed nor objected.
But in the ninja world, people who avoided standing out were often the ones who survived the longest.
Of course, that was assuming they hadn't already caught someone's attention.
"Since that's the case, I'll be direct. Hidden Leaf Village destroyed Takigakure."
"What?!"
"How is that possible?!"
"Tsuchikage-sama, surely you're mistaken? How could Hidden Leaf Village possibly do something like that?"
A, Rasa, and Yagura were all stunned.
It wasn't that they pitied Takigakure's destruction.
The ninja world was only so large—having one less fairly powerful competitor was something they'd gladly celebrate.
The real problem was that the culprit was supposedly Hidden Leaf Village.
If they could wipe out Takigakure, what was stopping them from wiping out the rest of them too?
As unpleasant as it sounded, it was the truth.
Hidden Leaf Village possessed enough power to destroy any one of their villages on its own.
After a brief silence, the first one who could no longer hold back was Yagura.
Hidden Mist Village was isolated overseas. If Hidden Leaf Village ever surrounded them without warning, they'd be utterly helpless.
"Tsuchikage-sama, do you have proof?"
"Of course. Akatsuchi."
At Ōnoki's call, a large, heavyset Iwagakure shinobi stepped forward.
He carried a tray containing several massive strands of dog fur.
Each strand was roughly the length of a human forearm.
"Other than the Inuzuka Clan, is there anyone in the ninja world capable of raising ninja hounds this large?"
"Hmph. A few strands of dog fur prove nothing. Tsuchikage, are you just trying to alarm us?"
A shot back immediately.
The Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki's lack of credibility was famous throughout the ninja world.
"That's right. Tsuchikage, can you provide more convincing evidence?"
Clearly, Yagura wasn't willing to believe Ōnoki's claims based solely on a few strands of fur.
"No."
"Are you playing with us, Tsuchikage?!"
A slammed his hand onto the table and stood up.
"Raikage, please calm down. Tsuchikage, give us an explanation."
Rasa stepped in to ease the tension, while continuing to pressure Ōnoki.
Yagura also stared at Ōnoki with a dangerous look in his eyes.
If Ōnoki failed to provide a reasonable explanation, then Hidden Mist Village attacking Hidden Stone Village would simply be continuing tradition.
"Does it really matter whether Hidden Leaf Village did it? Even if they did, what exactly could we do about it?"
Ōnoki spoke meaningfully.
Takigakure had never been the true focus of this meeting.
"Tsuchikage, explain yourself more clearly."
Rasa had already begun to suspect Ōnoki's intentions, but he still needed the old man to say it out loud himself.
There was no way he'd take the blame for this.
A also sat back down.
He had already figured it out—Ōnoki's target was definitely Hidden Leaf Village.
And in that case, he didn't care anymore.
Whoever wanted to attack Hidden Leaf Village, Hidden Cloud Village would gladly help stir up trouble.
"Whether Hidden Leaf Village destroyed Takigakure isn't important. What matters is that Hidden Leaf Village truly possesses the strength to destroy any one of our villages. No one disagrees with that, right?"
"Fine. Tsuchikage, what exactly are you proposing?"
"What proposal could I possibly have? Hidden Leaf Village now stands alone above everyone else. Compared to them, Hidden Stone Village is nothing more than a slightly larger grasshopper. How could we dare harbor any ambitions?"
Even while pretending weakness, Ōnoki still refused to say the crucial words.
A, Rasa, and Yagura all cursed him inwardly.
"Raikage, why don't you say it?"
"No, no, this kind of thing should come from the Kazekage."
Rasa wanted A to take the risk, but A had been thoroughly lectured by Dodai beforehand. There was no way he'd make such an obvious mistake.
So he firmly refused.
Since A was hopeless,
Rasa turned toward Yagura.
Yagura immediately lowered his gaze, staring at his nose and then the floor, looking like someone who hadn't noticed anything at all.
Seeing this, Rasa couldn't stop himself from cursing internally.
With people like you, and we're seriously trying to scheme against Hidden Leaf Village? Can't any of you show a little responsibility?
You're all too scared to speak, but you expect me to do it?
Inuzuka Ryoha had visited Hidden Sand Village countless times already. The entire Land of Wind was filled with stores opened by the Konoha United Commerce Association.
Fine. If none of you want to talk, then neither will I.
Let's see who loses patience first.
There's no way Hidden Leaf Village would target Hidden Sand Village before the rest of you.
After all, we're practically one of Konoha's biggest customers.
Once he thought it through,
Rasa stopped worrying about it altogether.
The ones in the greatest danger weren't Hidden Sand Village anyway. Why should he trouble himself thinking on behalf of others?
So Rasa calmly sat back down and quietly observed the situation.
The moment he sat down, Ōnoki was completely dumbfounded.
What was wrong with this younger generation of Kage? Couldn't they see the state of the ninja world at all?
Hidden Leaf Village had already become this overwhelmingly powerful, and yet they still refused to unite.
Were they really planning to completely bow their heads to Konoha?
"You're all willing to just watch Hidden Leaf Village continue acting this arrogantly? While there's no conclusive proof they destroyed Takigakure, how many forces in the ninja world are even capable of doing such a thing?"
A closed his eyes to rest, not even glancing at Ōnoki.
Of course we understand the threat Hidden Leaf Village poses.
But you're Ōnoki. Who the hell would trust you?
You've talked all this time, but if you'd just say one sentence—'I'll lead the charge against Hidden Leaf Village'—I'd support you immediately.
Seriously, what's the point of all this rambling?
"Tsuchikage, we fully understand just how powerful Hidden Leaf Village has become. But we simply can't trust you."
Yagura bluntly stated the summit's greatest internal problem.
Ōnoki froze.
His face even reddened slightly.
"Bullshit! Didn't you see how brutally we fought Hidden Leaf Village during the Third Great Ninja War? What reason do you have to doubt us?"
"During the Second Great Ninja War, Hidden Stone Village voluntarily withdrew without ever engaging Hidden Leaf Village in any major battles. How does Tsuchikage-sama explain that?"
The boomerang from years ago had finally come back around and struck Ōnoki squarely in the face.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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