Turning Point

Given the combined strength of the three, as long as they did not get careless, dealing with Rock's Chunin and Genin would not be as easy as chopping vegetables, but it would not be dangerous either.

Under Minato Namikaze's leadership, Konoha's high-ranking ninjas and the Konoha Ninja to the northwest held back Rock's assault.

Once the Konoha Ninja from the other directions arrived, Rock's defeat would be inevitable. Their complete collapse was only a matter of time.

Yet Rock Ninja were exceptionally tenacious. Even when faced with death, few of them surrendered.

Loyalty to Iwagakure was one reason. The limited treatment they would receive after surrendering was another. And there was also the shame their surrender would bring upon their families back in the village, leaving them unable to hold their heads high.

After roughly two hours of fighting, at five in the afternoon, the Rock Ninja were finally slaughtered to the last.

Other than the tiny number who surrendered or were captured alive, the entire battlefield was covered in corpses from both sides—more than thirteen hundred in total. The battlefield was a scene of devastation, thick with the smell of smoke and blood. Carnivorous birds circled above the forest, while an atmosphere of desolation and despair filled the air...

Rock's stubborn resistance and fearlessness in the face of death had also inflicted considerable casualties on Konoha. More than five hundred Genin had been lost.

Rock's Genin were not particularly capable, but Konoha's Genin were not much better. They were all products of the simplified Ninja Academy wartime training, far inferior to the Genin carefully cultivated in peacetime.

Konoha's truly elite Genin had already been nearly wiped out over the long years of war.

Most of the Konoha Genin who had survived since the beginning of the Third Great Ninja War had become Chunin by now, with some even becoming Special Jonin.

They were the battle-hardened elite who had remained after the tide had washed away the sand, but their numbers were pitifully small.

The battle had been won, but the Konoha Ninja were not particularly happy. They silently handled the corpses and cleared the battlefield.

The deaths of their comrades were one reason, but more than that, the accumulated years of warfare had numbed countless ninjas. Even victory was no longer stimulating enough.

Perhaps only when the war ended would the Konoha Ninja be able to feel happy again...

Though missions in peacetime still carried risks, those dangers were nothing compared to the hazards of the battlefield.

Once the battlefield had been cleaned up, everyone dragged their exhausted bodies back to camp. Those who needed to keep working continued working, while those who could rest went to rest.

Unfortunately, Uchiha Gen belonged to the group that had to continue working. As Team 7, directly under Minato's command, and with Minato not being the sort to abuse his authority for personal gain, they could not avoid doing more.

Two days later, Minato received an order from the Third Hokage to lead the remaining troops to the Land of Grass. That was the true main battlefield where Konoha and Rock were locked in fierce combat.

At the same time, far away in the Tsuchikage Building of Iwagakure, Ōnoki also received news that the Rock forces which had penetrated deep into the heart of the Land of Fire had been completely annihilated.

Although he had anticipated it ever since receiving the news that Kannabi Bridge had been destroyed, when the report truly arrived, Ōnoki still slumped weakly into his chair.

Ōnoki simply could not understand it. Why did Konoha produce outstanding talents in every generation? Why was there always someone to step forward and turn the tide whenever they faced a crisis...?

During the Warring States Period, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had dominated the world.

During the First Great Ninja War, the Second Hokage had maneuvered brilliantly in every direction. Though he had ultimately been schemed to death, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others had stepped up to lead every level of Konoha and stabilize the situation.

During the Second Great Ninja War, the Konoha White Fang and the Konoha Sannin had emerged. Overall, Konoha had still not suffered much.

And now, in the Third Great Ninja War, another Minato Namikaze had appeared. It was truly infuriating!

Since the founding of the major ninja villages, this was the first time the four great ninja villages had invaded deep into the Land of Fire. They had already forced Konoha to the edge of a cliff, yet... they had still failed.

Having missed this opportunity, it was hard to say whether another would ever come.

Was Konoha truly blessed by fate?

No. No, absolutely not!

Ōnoki shook the terrifying thought from his mind. If even he lost confidence, would Iwagakure not be suppressed by Konoha forever?

He refused to believe Konoha would always be so lucky. They would see!

"Go notify the elders to convene a meeting."

"Yes, Tsuchikage-sama."

Fifteen minutes later, in the same large conference room, Ōnoki and the major elders had gathered. Every face was grave, and the atmosphere was extremely stifling.

"First, I must make a self-criticism. Iwagakure lost this gamble, and I bear the primary responsibility."

Ōnoki floated into the air and bent at the waist in a bow.

"No, no, no. This was a decision we all agreed upon. It was not something you insisted on alone, Tsuchikage-sama. We should bear the responsibility together."

Ōnoki's foremost confidant among the elders hurriedly spoke.

When the rest of Ōnoki's confidants heard that, they hurriedly voiced their support as well. One led while many followed, and the matter of responsibility was quickly brushed aside.

After all, collective responsibility was the same as nobody being responsible.

The other elders had no objections either. For one thing, everyone truly had agreed to it. For another, they could not shake Ōnoki's position.

Since that was the case, there was no need for them to speak.

"The operation has failed, and the situation in the Land of Grass is deadlocked. Though I do not wish to admit it, Iwagakure has, in fact, lost its chance to defeat Konoha."

"Therefore, I plan to send envoys to negotiate peace with Konoha and temporarily cease hostilities."

"Tsuchikage-sama, should we hold on a little longer? What if Konoha runs into trouble on another battlefield?"

Ōnoki gave the speaking elder a strange look. "Do not drag your feet when doing things. You must act decisively."

"If we neither fight properly nor negotiate peace seriously, what benefit is there in dragging things out besides depleting our fighting strength?"

"Besides, would it not be better to preserve our strength through peace talks?"

"Oh..."

The elder suddenly understood. So Tsuchikage-sama intended to tear up the treaty when the opportunity arose.

As expected of Tsuchikage-sama. Truly... no wonder he was an elder while the other man was the Tsuchikage.

"My perspective was too narrow. Tsuchikage-sama is right."

"Tsuchikage-sama, what about Sunagakure?"

"When the war began, we agreed with Sunagakure that we would advance and retreat together."

Ōnoki wore a speechless expression. "It was merely a verbal agreement. Does that count for anything?"

"If it did, would we still need to guard against Sunagakure at the border?"

"We are close to Sunagakure. A weakened Sunagakure is the best kind of Sunagakure."

"Therefore, do not make the peace negotiations public. We will conduct them in secret."

"As long as we do not suffer a loss, agree to Konoha's demands. Konoha is under tremendous pressure, so they should not make excessive demands."

"We must conclude the negotiations as quickly as possible and let the Konoha Ninja in the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain join forces to weaken Sunagakure for us."

"Even if Konoha does not expose any weaknesses and the Third Great Ninja War truly ends, we will still have gains to reap instead of coming away empty-handed."

Hah, these elders were not very clever. Did he really have to spell everything out so plainly...?

If Sunagakure was weakened, it would benefit both Iwagakure and Konoha. There were only so many missions to go around in the ninja world.

Whether they truly had not thought of it or had already understood, the Iwagakure elders all put on expressions of sudden realization, giving their leader a full sense of accomplishment.

Thus, before Minato Namikaze could even make a move after arriving at the Land of Grass battlefield with reinforcements, Iwagakure's envoys secretly entered Konoha's military camp.

The news of Iwagakure's request for peace talks was delivered to Hiruzen Sarutobi's desk at the fastest possible speed.

Hiruzen Sarutobi truly did not want to keep fighting Iwagakure, and he keenly realized that making peace with Iwagakure would be the turning point of the Great Ninja War.

With Iwagakure leaving the field, even if they intended to sit atop the mountain and watch the tigers fight, as long as Konoha swiftly and cleanly defeated Sunagakure, Iwagakure would not dare make any rash moves.

With Iwagakure and Sunagakure withdrawing one after the other, Konoha would only need to deal with Cloud and Mist.

They could concentrate their strength on resolving Cloud first, force Cloud into peace negotiations, and then the remaining Mist would be easy to handle.

With that, the Great Ninja War would be over. Konoha could finally recuperate properly and catch its breath.

Therefore, the conditions Hiruzen Sarutobi offered for peace were extremely lenient. The main principle was that neither side would suffer a loss.

Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze on the front lines were responsible for the negotiations.

Iwagakure's envoys had also received instructions from their superiors. Both sides immediately saw eye to eye, and the negotiations proceeded very quickly.

After the peace agreement was reached, Iwagakure kept its word and withdrew most of its army from the Land of Grass, leaving behind only the small number of ninjas necessary there, so that Konoha could deal with Sunagakure without worries.

Seeing that Iwagakure had honored its promise, and before Sunagakure could react, Konoha likewise left behind the necessary ninjas and mobilized its army toward Sunagakure's main frontline base at the border between the Land of Rain and the River Country...