The Gradual Collapse of the Shinobi World

A fan-sized hand landed on Danzo's shoulder, making his face twitch.

"Lord Raikage, what does this mean?" Danzo forcibly steadied himself, with no trace of tension in his voice.

"Nothing. We've talked for so long that my throat's dry, yet there isn't even any tea. Why are you in such a hurry to leave? Sit down and have some tea first!"

Meanwhile, at the Kumogakure encampment, Sakumo and the others were trapped inside a barrier.

Dada appeared with his hands behind his back, wearing a wicked grin like a scheme had succeeded.

The moment Tsunade saw Dada, she nearly ground her teeth to pieces. This little brat again!

With his little pigeon-toed stride, Dada walked up to the barrier and said, "Well, well, isn't this Konohagakure's famed ninja, Hatake Sakumo? Why did you sneak into our camp in the middle of the night? I thought Konohagakure had sent people to negotiate because it didn't want our two villages to become enemies. Looks like that wasn't the case. Negotiations on the surface, while you had another card hidden up your sleeve."

Hatake Sakumo looked at Dada expressionlessly and sheathed the Short Sword in his hand instead.

Sakumo said coldly, "I never expected Kumogakure's man in charge to be a child."

"No, no, no. I just offer a few ideas. After all, one must always be wary of others. Since you people from Konohagakure can attack children, isn't it perfectly normal for us to guard against you pulling something behind our backs?"

Hatake Sakumo paid no attention to Dada's provocation. He considered himself fairly proficient with Lightning Release Chakra. Chatting with Dada now was also meant to stall for time, to see whether a turning point might appear—or simply to break this barrier. With the Third Raikage absent, he still had a chance.

Was there an opportunity underground? No. There probably wouldn't be such an obvious loophole. The other side had clearly prepared for this long ago.

Hatake Sakumo recalled every detail from before, trying to find where things had gone wrong.

In fact, as early as when the Konohagakure ninja first came to deliver the message without mentioning an exchange of prisoners, Dada had guessed that they might intend to conceal Tsunade's identity. For Konohagakure, bringing Tsunade back as an additional condition without paying any extra price was naturally the best outcome.

After that, Dada joined forces with the Third Raikage to set a trap for Konohagakure.

The unacceptable terms and the Third Raikage's act of being a reckless brute were all meant to lure Konohagakure into mounting a rescue. However, Konohagakure had been extremely cautious and never acted. Only when the Third Raikage pretended to return to the village were they forced to save their people.

Most importantly, when Danzo repeatedly invited the Third Raikage to secret talks, Dada and the Third Raikage knew the other side would make its move today.

Hatake Sakumo had yet to earn the name Konoha's White Fang, but his strength was undoubtedly among the very best. Dada had no intention of testing his limits. Once Father finished up and returned to the camp, everything would be settled.

Three days later, Leaf Ninja Village received terrible news.

Shimura Danzō, Hatake Sakumo, and ten others had been captured for attempting to attack the Kumogakure encampment during negotiations. Kumogakure now demanded an explanation.

What made Hiruzen Sarutobi want to cough up blood most was that Danzo's group had been completely wiped out, without even a single person left to deliver a message. It was only when Cloud Ninja arrived at their door with one unimportant prisoner that Konohagakure learned that its own rescue team had also been captured and was now waiting for a second group to rescue them.

Hiruzen Sarutobi crushed his smoking pipe.

The key was that Kumogakure's reasoning was impossible to refute. According to the report of the Konohagakure ninja who had been brought back, their people had tried to secretly take someone away, only to be caught red-handed and wiped out.

The Hokage Office was filled with gloom. Even the Akimichi Clan and Senju Clan, who had shouted the loudest before, stopped speaking.

Everyone knew the situation was growing worse by the moment. Whoever stuck their neck out now would not end well.

This time, no one dared comment on Hiruzen Sarutobi smoking. The room was like a celestial realm, so thick with smoke that one could not see their hand before their face.

"Monkey, we need to come up with a solution. What demands does Kumogakure have?" After a long silence, Utatane Koharu, being a woman, was the first to speak.

The moment she spoke, the expressions of everyone else in the office visibly eased.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep drag, speaking through the smoke, "Kumogakure still wants negotiations."

Everyone felt as though their nerves had snapped. After all, they seemed to have discussed this very issue in this office just a few days ago.

Now even the negotiators had been captured, and they were waiting for a second batch of negotiators.

Even Hiruzen—the pacifist who preferred avoiding war whenever possible—nearly wanted to declare war outright.

But leaving aside the fact that Danzo and the others themselves were in Kumogakure's hands, Kumogakure's justification was also quite solid. Pulling tricks during negotiations was one thing, but they should not have been discovered. And even if they were discovered, getting caught was simply absurd.

Hiruzen Sarutobi could only vent his pent-up fury on Danzo, the person in overall charge. He had never expected Danzo to be so efficient inside the village yet so useless once he left it.

The Third Hokage did not know the term "brave at home, cowardly outside." For now, he could only solve the problem first.

Last time, they had already sent people at the level of advisory elders. This time, the matter was even bigger, so he, the Hokage, could only make the trip himself.

"It seems this old man must go in person. Send someone to meet with the Third Raikage and request a conference between the Kage of our two villages. The location... the Land of Iron."

For meetings between figures at the Kage level, the neutral Land of Iron was always chosen to demonstrate security.

Another three days passed, and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, set out for the Land of Iron with a sizable escort.

After all, he did not want Kumogakure to send people to Konohagakure again in a few days and say that their Hokage had been captured, so they should send someone else to negotiate.

This time, however, the negotiations could no longer be concealed. Other ninja villages and factions throughout the Shinobi World had already noticed the frequent recent movements between the Lands of Lightning and Fire. They all turned their attention over, guessing what upheaval this meeting between the two villages' Kage would bring to the Shinobi World.

At the same time, work had begun on incorporating and restructuring the Kitano Blacksmith Shop. The Yotsuki Clan would fully advance the Blacksmith Shop's development, providing massive amounts of manpower, material resources, and funding. They would also clear the way for its business and even remove obstacles.

The name Kitano Blacksmith Shop would remain unchanged for now. Hanging the symbols of Kumogakure or the Yotsuki Clan on it too early would make other forces wary ahead of time. Kitano Izumi himself held fifteen percent of the shares in the new Blacksmith Shop, and he was already very satisfied. After all, the manpower and resources invested by the Yotsuki Clan exceeded those of the original Kitano Blacksmith Shop by more than tenfold, and the Blacksmith Shop would develop even better in the future.

With ninja guarding and supporting it, the Blacksmith Shop would surely become a colossal force sooner or later.

Oh, and according to the Yotsuki Clan's rules, Dada, as the plan's proposer and participant, also gained twenty percent ownership of the project despite being only six years old.

However, this so-called ownership was currently managed by someone else, since he was still too young.

While the other ninja villages believed that the meeting between the two Kage in the Land of Iron was what required the most attention, they did not know that the thing which would truly change the Shinobi World had appeared in a tiny Blacksmith Shop.

In the capital of the Land of Lightning, inside a lavish room surrounded by incense burners and warm curtains, an official said, "My lord, Kumogakure Village and Konohagakure have had some friction. At present, Kumogakure has the upper hand, while Konohagakure has suffered considerable losses."

"Can the exact circumstances be determined?" asked a somewhat bloated figure beneath the warm curtains, a strange fan perched atop his head.

The man shook his head and Responded, "No. All those involved were ninja. We only obtained a few scattered details from the Land of Iron. Shall I go inquire at Kumogakure Village?"

"No need. I'll write a letter to the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and ask..." The figure fell silent for a moment, then added, "By the way, I recall that the Raikage had another son a few years ago, correct?"

"Yes, my lord."

"I heard he has some strange Bloodline Disease? That he cannot become a ninja?"

"Yes, my lord. That much is certain."

"I understand. You may leave..."