Uchiha Gakugyo raised an eyebrow as he read the agreement. "Compared to the terms we proposed earlier, these have been watered down far too much, haven't they?"
Only the first term matched what both sides wanted. The second and third had both been significantly watered down.
Full compensation had become twenty percent, and a five-year truce had become a two-year one.
Senju Takeuma snorted without hesitation. "Did you really think those terms of yours could ever be met?"
That was how it worked. When it came to war reparations, the defeated paid compensation to the victor.
If this battle had continued, there was no doubt the Senju would have won.
The Uchiha had just gotten lucky and happened to capture Tobirama. And now they expected us to pay them in full? Dream on!
Uchiha Gakugyo and the other hardliners hardened their expressions. The Senju opposite them glared right back without holding anything back.
A century of enmity had left both sides eager to destroy each other. It would take only a spark for them to clash again.
"Twenty percent, then."
Izuna spoke up. "But the truce must be extended to three years."
"This..."
"Hashirama, what do you think?"
Senju Takeuma had just started to reply when Izuna turned the question toward Hashirama Senju.
On the surface, the truce applied equally to both sides, so the Senju and Uchiha should have had equal stakes in it.
But the longer it lasted, the more it benefited the Uchiha, and the less it benefited the Senju.
This battle had inflicted more severe losses on the Uchiha.
It was like two wounded beasts: naturally, the one that was more badly hurt would want a longer time to rest.
That would give it a better chance to recover and fight again.
Hashirama clearly hadn't expected Izuna to suddenly toss the decision his way.
As Hashirama hesitated, Izuna suddenly spoke again. "You haven't forgotten what you and my big brother said by the lake ten years ago, have you?"
Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju both changed expressions at his words.
Back then, they had met without knowing each other's surnames and made a promise to "build a village together."
Now, driven by their clans' bitter enmity and the circumstances of the war, they had no choice but to face each other with blades drawn.
Had ten years really passed in the blink of an eye?
Hashirama couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with emotion. He tilted his head back, took a deep breath, and his eyes glistened.
"Big brother, don't fall for it!" Tobirama Senju shouted anxiously.
He had witnessed it too, but he knew Izuna's tricks even better.
He's trying to play on our sympathy!
And yet, while such an appeal to emotion might seem foolish, it was perfect for someone like Hashirama.
Sure enough, after taking a deep breath, Hashirama replied, "I... agree with Izuna's proposal. Our clan needs time to recover, too."
"Lord Hashirama!"
"Lord Hashirama!"
The Senju ninja erupted in an uproar, and more than a few of them looked furious.
Hashirama shook his head. "I've made up my mind. That's enough."
Izuna's lips curled up. "Hashirama Senju always keeps his word. Since that's settled, let's sign the agreement."
"Uchiha Izuna, you despicable bastard."
Bound by Izuna's technique, Tobirama Senju gritted his teeth.
Izuna met Tobirama's furious glare and curled his lip in disdain.
Despicable?
I can't hold a candle to you.
Hashirama Senju was now the second most important figure in the Senju Clan, and he had spoken. Even though Senju Takeuma wanted to object, he saw the resolve in Hashirama's eyes.
Not wanting to offend the young man who would surely shoulder the future of the entire Senju Clan, he ultimately accepted Hashirama's decision without protest.
With Tajima Uchiha and Butsuma Senju dead, their Vice Clan Leaders, Uchiha Gakugyo and Senju Takeuma, would naturally sign the agreement.
Once each side held a scroll bearing both parties' signatures and handprints, Hashirama Senju said impatiently, "That should do it, right? Let Tobirama go."
Under normal circumstances, Izuna would have said, "You leave Mount Kumogakure first, and then I'll let him go."
But since he had just managed to trick Hashirama, Izuna decided to do him a favor this time and immediately released the binding technique.
Tobirama Senju hurried back to the Senju lines, his face dark. "I'm sorry, everyone."
The outcome was entirely because he had been captured.
"It's all right, it's all right. Anything can happen on the battlefield," Hashirama Senju quickly reassured him, the doting big brother.
"Let's return to our clan's territory. You can't be blamed for this, Tobirama. The enemy was simply too despicable," Senju Takeuma added.
The two strongest clans of the Warring States had agreed to a three-year truce. That meant the whole Shinobi World would see considerably less upheaval during those three years.
Using Mount Kumogakure as the boundary, the two clans began withdrawing to their respective territories.
The deaths of Tajima Uchiha and Butsuma Senju also meant that both clans would choose new clan heads.
In most people's eyes, the positions would go to the two Vice Clan Leaders: Uchiha Gakugyo and Senju Takeuma.
Or so they thought...
At the Uchiha camp on Mount Kumogakure,
the Uchiha ninja were cleaning up the battlefield. They gathered weapons, the remaining food, cloth, and other supplies, preparing to take them back to their clan's territory for the next war, which could come at any time.
And that wasn't all. There were also...the bodies of their dead clan members.
They would take them home to the wives and children waiting for them back in the clan's territory.
Izuna found Madara Uchiha and asked, "Big brother, why are you here by yourself?"
Ever since the truce agreement had been signed, Madara hadn't said a word, which made Izuna curious.
Madara glanced at Izuna. After a long pause, he said, "Ah... it's nothing. I just didn't think that guy Hashirama would still remember what happened when we were kids."
It had been more than ten years since then...
Izuna froze for a moment, then shrugged and prepared to leave.
As for the friendship between Indra and Asura, those eternal best friends, he didn't care to understand it.
But just as Izuna was about to leave, Madara called out to him. "Izuna, do you think it's possible to create a village where all ninja can live together?"
That question didn't sound like you at all...
Izuna nearly blurted it out. Instead, he gave a half-hearted reply. "Let's find a way to put an end to the hatred between the Uchiha and Senju first."
That one problem alone was enough to give Madara a headache.
Put an end to the hatred between the two clans?
How could that be easy?
Forget the century of bloodshed. His father, younger brother, and countless other family members had died at the hands of the Senju Clan.
And it was the same for them. Hashirama's father, younger brother, and countless other family members had died at the hands of the Uchiha Clan.
Izuna glanced at Madara, lost in thought, then turned and left.
The storm stirred by the flapping of this butterfly's wings had begun to rise.
At the very least, one thing was certain: in the original story, the Uchiha had never been given this chance to recover.
Before you continue