The Chunin Ninja Exams, jointly organized by the Five Great Nations, have concluded.
The Shinobi World seemed to have entered a period of calm, an eerily quiet atmosphere.
BOOM!
"There's not a trace of Amegakure! What a joke!"
In the office of the Kumogakure Raikage's Office of Kumogakure, the Fourth Raikage slammed his fist on the table and shouted loudly at Samui.
"Lord Raikage, that's the strange thing. We were acting together, and the entire Amegakure was in chaos."
Samui remained calm; the Raikage's temper was nothing new.
"It seems someone deliberately erased all traces of Amegakure's past."
"As people from Amegakure, we secretly found many people, and whether we tortured them or used secret techniques, they only used the titles 'Angel' and 'God,' without any other distinction."
The Fourth Raikage stood up and looked out the window. After a long while, he finally spoke, "What did Konoha say?"
"They just want to Rinnegan for themselves like that?"
He didn't care about the other Raikage A; he was more interested in the Rinnegan.
That eye completely overwhelmed the Five Kage that day. Although it was partly because they were preoccupied with their own thoughts and didn't contribute, it has to be said that this legendary Sage's Eye was indeed extraordinary.
Konoha has not yet responded, maintaining that they will discuss the matter again when the Five Kage Summit is held.
He stepped forward from the Dodai and spoke.
"Hmph! That old fox! Relying on Konoha's current strength, he's not worried at all."
Raikage A gritted his teeth and groaned in a muffled voice.
Samui and the others did not respond. After all, if their Kumogakure had someone with the fighting prowess of Hagoromo, they might have already started attacking the Land of Fire.
What did the other countries say?
After calming himself down, Raikage spoke.
"They've already agreed," Dodai said with a sigh.
If the other countries hadn't responded, the Kumogakure could have at least made some moves.
Unfortunately, things are different now.
"Inform Konoha that Kumogakure agrees to the Five Kage Summit, but the location will be in the Land of Iron."
Raikage A turned around. Formal talks absolutely cannot be held in any major power.
This is for both security and to save face for the major powers; otherwise, if the formal talks were held in the Land of Fire or Konoha...
How do those smaller nations view the Five Great Nations, with Konoha at the top?
Don't even think about it.
"Yes!" Dodai bowed in response and left the office.
"Have Bi stay in Valley of Clouds and Lightning and not go out during this time." Raikage turned around and sat down on the sofa, rubbing his forehead involuntarily.
"Yes!" Sam nodded in response.
--
"I'm so bored!"
On the street, Naruto rested his hands behind his head. For nearly a month, Hagoromo- sensei had been busy, so he had them carry out missions and train alone.
"Naruto-kun, that's all for now regarding the B-Rank Mission."
Hinata spoke up from the side, saying that they had been told they could not accept any A-rank missions so far.
Even B-Rank Missions are restricted to the Land of Fire.
This isn't just something Konoha does; all countries do it.
"Uncle Kakashi, how about we take another one?"
Naruto spoke to Kakashi was walking at the front.
Sasuke looked up at Kakashi, and to be honest, he was also a little annoyed.
"No, we just got back, we have to wait two days."
With a lazy expression, Kakashi closed his copy of "Icha Icha Paradise" and directly rejected Naruto.
So far, the Five Great Nations are preparing for the Five Kage Summit, and in order to avoid unnecessary conflict, they are generally not accepting cross-border missions.
To keep the system running, the remaining tasks were reassigned so that new tasks could only be accepted two days after completion.
And...
Kakashi turned to look at the Hokage Building. Hagoromo had told him to be careful, but he hadn't encountered any strange people throughout the entire trip.
Um?
Ninja Hawk flew overhead, Kakashi frowned. "Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, go and turn in the mission."
After saying that, Kakashi Body Flicker Technique away from where he stood.
"Jonin meeting is being held?"
Sasuke watched the Ninja Hawk fly past and couldn't help but ask in confusion.
"Another meeting? Wasn't there one before the last mission started?"
Naruto muttered to himself.
"It's different, Naruto-kun. Last time it was a regular meeting held every three months, this time it's an ad hoc meeting."
Hinata shook her head from the side.
"Never mind, Hinata, Sasuke. Let's go practice sparring after the handover is complete."
Naruto waved his hand, indicating he wasn't particularly concerned about the matter, and instead extended an invitation to Sasuke and Hinata.
That's exactly what I was thinking.
Sasuke smirked. His brother had left the village not long ago, and he had nothing to do back now, so he might as well spar with Naruto.
"No problem, I've recently gained a new understanding of Gentle Fist."
Hinata nodded.
"Alright! Let's go!" Naruto shouted loudly upon seeing this.
--
"Border outpost destroyed? Suspected to be the work of the Kumogakure Village?"
In the meeting room, all the Jonin were quite confused by the information Shikaku had revealed.
"Lord Hokage! I think we should question Kumogakure; this is Kumogakure provoking Konoha!"
Several of the Jonin asked the question.
Hiruzen Sarutobi ignored the Jonin who kept talking and gestured for Shikaku to continue.
"That's not the most important thing. A week ago, Kumogakure sent a message questioning them. Their team, which was on a mission outside the village, was wiped out, and traces of Sunagakure and Konoha were found at the location where they died."
Two days prior, Iwagakure publicly questioned Kirigakure about why Kirigakure pursuit force had penetrated deep into Iwagakure territory.
"The Kirigakure Village responded that Zabuza, a missing-nin from the Kirigakure Zabuza by the Iwagakure Village, and that Zabuza possessed their Kirigakure's Kekkei Genkai, Ice Release."
"And that's not all..."
After Shikaku finished speaking, everyone present looked at each other in bewilderment.
Once they got here, they all started to realize what was happening.
Some people intend to reignite the rift between the Five Great Nations.
Although it's clumsy, it's undeniably direct and effective.
Can't you see that some Jonin are already itching to get back to their old ways?
It's important to understand that while the Hokage has absolute authority, he still needs to consider the opinions of the Jonin.
"This summons is to inform everyone that this will continue until the Five Kage Summit concludes."
"Konoha is on high alert. All Jonin, unless they have a mission, are required to report daily."
"Then, in coordination with the Military Police Forces, patrol Konoha; border outposts must maintain the highest level of vigilance..."
Standing next to Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shikaku explained each point one by one.
This meeting was less of a conference and more of an announcement of orders.
Even knowing that someone is stirring things up behind the scenes, the Five Great Nations must first ensure that the Five Kage Summit is held as scheduled.
"Yes!"
The Jonin all stood up in response.
Inside the underground base.
Hagoromo stared at the Rinnegan before him, his gaze casually sweeping over Orochimaru beside him.
"What are you looking at, junior brother?"
Orochimaru glanced at Hagoromo and spoke in a hoarse voice.
"I'm just thinking about how far my own research has progressed."
The Hagoromo was casually draped over Orochimaru's shoulder.
"Not bad, at least I got what I needed to know."
Orochimaru stuck out his tongue and said without any attempt to hide it.