The Old Era Ends, the New Era Arrives

Uchiha Hikari only stayed in the Land of Wind for one day.

Early the next morning, Pakura received a report from his subordinates that Uchiha Hikari had left the Land of Wind, and they had lost track of him.

After hearing the news, she did not make any statement, but simply told her subordinates to prepare the tools needed for the remote meeting.

In the afternoon, Pakura, having made all the preparations, sat down at his desk, facing the screen in front of him.

"Lord Tsuchikage, your Land of Earth ninjas have gone too far! They're leaving us Land of Lightning ninjas no way out!"

As soon as Pakura entered the meeting room, she heard Raikage Dōtai Ōnoki to Onoki.

"Raikage, what kind of talk is that? This project was awarded to us because our Land of Earth offered the lowest price, and you couldn't compete with us. How can you say we're being unreasonable?"

Ōnoki immediately retorted.

"You've achieved such a low price because you have a large number of Lava Release ninjas in your country, which allows you to cut back on the cement purchase budget."

"This is the Shinobi World. Isn't it only natural to make good use of the advantages of ninjas?" As soon as Ōnoki said this, Dodai's originally fair face immediately turned black, showing the demeanor of the Third Raikage.

"Yes, Lord Raikage, Tsuchikage is right, fair bidding is exactly what it should be—" Sakumo chimed in, trying to smooth things over.

Before he could finish speaking, Dodai forcefully interrupted him, "And Lord Hokage, you've gone too far! You actually sent Hyuga Clan ninjas to participate in the bidding, and you saw our bidding documents clearly, didn't you?!"

Upon hearing the topic involve himself, Sakumo became serious. "Lord Raikage, you can't just make things up without evidence. The reason our bid was lower than yours was purely coincidental."

"Hokage, do you even believe that yourself?" Ōnoki also sided with the Raikage.

They only secured a portion of the project; the rest was taken over by the Land of Fire.

The reason is that the other party offered a lower bid than I did.

As the first ninja power to industrialize, the Land of Fire has always been at the forefront of the Shinobi World in terms of technology.

This has led to the presence of Land of Fire construction teams in many publicly tendered projects Shinobi World.

Building roads, bridges, and skyscrapers; military, civilian, heavy, and light industries—there's nothing the Land of Fire can't do, only things you can't imagine.

"Alright, alright, everyone, don't believe those rumors. By the way, the Land of Fire's military industry has recently developed a new type of combat vehicle, and I'm preparing to provide several units to other countries—"

Sakumo waved his hand with a wry smile, changing the subject.

"On the other hand, we're all part of the Shinobi Alliance. Whether we do more or less, isn't it all for the sake of mutual progress?"

Ōnoki took the initiative to change the subject, and then he and the Land of Fire entered into a sweet, intimate honeymoon phase.

"That's right, that's right, let's make progress together, let's make progress together. But there's one thing I'm concerned about, Hokage, your battle tank didn't explode, did it?"

Dodai didn't mention the unpleasantness from earlier at all, and cautiously inquired about the strength of the chariot.

"Well..." Sakumo was speechless for a moment. Whether or not it would explode was not up to him, the Hokage, to decide.

Once all the parties had agreed on the general terms of military aid, the topic of infrastructure was completely skipped.

"Regarding the Three-Tails, there is currently no indication of its revival."

Karatachi Yagura, was the first to raise the topic that everyone was most interested in.

The resurrection of the Three-Tails is a matter of life and death for the Fifth Hokage, so the Kage present are naturally of great concern.

"The exploration of the alternate dimension is also progressing steadily, but no trace of Isshiki has been found so far, and the whereabouts of the Tailed Beast they captured are still unknown."

"Hokage, I propose a redistribution of the Tailed Beast. After all, neither the Land of Wind nor the Land of Water currently possesses Tailed Beast, which does not align with Lord Hashirama's original vision."

As Yagura said, there are currently no Jinchuriki in the Land of Wind and the Land of Water, and they urgently need the Tailed Beast to bolster their fighting power.

Of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Earth possesses the Five-Tails, the Land of Lightning possesses the Eight-Tails, and the Land of Fire possesses the Seven-Tails and the Nine-Tails. Regardless of the missing Three-Tails, the Land of Fire possesses the most Tailed Beast.

"The Mizukage is joking. There are only four Tailed Beasts in the Shinobi World now. Even if they were redistributed, one country would still be left out. Even if the Three-Tails were to be resurrected in the future, the current Tailed Beast all have Jinchuriki to seal them. Are you suggesting that, for the sake of redistribution, each country should separate the Tailed Beast from their Jinchuriki?"

Pakura was the first to stand up and object.

The Land of Wind thrives thanks to the Land of Fire and has no need for the Tailed Beast to expand its military.

"The Kazekage is right. Besides, the era of Lord Hashirama is incomparable to today. The decisions of our ancestors are not always correct. For example, Madara Uchiha was also misled by Black Zetsu and made many mistakes..."

Ōnoki echoed this, and unsurprisingly, dragged out Madara Uchiha once again to be ridiculed.

"Lord Tsuchikage, this is the twenty-third time you've mentioned the story of Madara Uchiha this year."

Yagura was speechless. Ōnoki always managed to find the perfect moment to criticize Madara Uchiha. It seemed that the shadow Madara cast on him back then was quite significant, otherwise he wouldn't still remember those things at his age.

The group exchanged a few more sarcastic remarks, especially Pakura, who focused on criticizing Yagura's unethical behavior back then, saying that they would have a good exchange with him during the next Kage Summit.

Yagura could only reply, "Whatever makes you happy."

"In short, let's discuss these matters again when the Kage Summit officially takes place next month."

Ultimately, it was Hatake Sakumo who brought this remote meeting to a close.

The Konoha is now officially known as Konoha City.

However, many long-time residents still habitually refer to the land beneath their feet by its original name.

Outside the village, Naruto, who had just finished his mission, spotted the pink figure standing at the village entrance from afar.

"Sakura?"

When Naruto stepped forward, he immediately recognized the other person. "What are you doing standing here?"

"I just finished a mission and am on my way to deliver some materials to the Medical Unit." Sakura gave a shy smile and walked naturally to Naruto's side.

"Really? I feel like I see you a lot when I go back to the village lately."

Doesn't this prove we're destined to be together?

"Haha, you're really joking."

The two chatted as they walked toward the village. Before they had gone far, Hinata emerged from behind a tree and watched their retreating figures with a complicated expression.

"Naruto..."

Hinata subconsciously extended her thumb and bit her nail.

After a while, Hinata caught up.

Shortly after Hinata left, another figure peeked out from behind where Hinata had just been—it was Otsutsuki Toneri.

"Hinata..."

Watching Hinata's retreating figure, Toneri was somewhat lost in thought. After hesitating for a moment, he followed her.

"Tch, that stalker is still bothering the young lady." Just as Toneri left, Neji, who had been secretly protecting Hinata, also came out, his eyes filled with murderous intent as he looked at Toneri's back.

"Hey, are you guys putting up these nesting dolls?"

Sasuke and Karin, who were walking at the very back, were dumbfounded.

What twisted stories are they all putting on?

Even romantic dramas airing at 8 PM aren't this complicated, okay?

"You don't understand, Sasuke. Sakura is full of courage, while Hinata lacks courage the most. As for Toneri, because he was beaten up by the Fifth Generation, he doesn't dare to express his feelings to Hinata at all."

Ino suddenly appeared out of nowhere and approached Sasuke, saying something.

Sasuke quickly distanced himself from Karin and stood on the other side.

"Tch~"

Seeing Ino was very annoyed, but she didn't pursue the matter further.

"In short, Naruto currently has two people who like him, one of whom is braver, while the other has never dared to take that step, right?"

Choji, munching on potato chips, accurately described the current situation.

"You're right, Choji!" Ino smiled and patted Choji on the shoulder.

"Hey, are you guys just going to discuss this like this in front of me?" Neji's face darkened as he looked at the group that had suddenly appeared.

"Neji, you don't understand. Love is also a part of youth." Just as Neji was preparing to distance himself from the group to find an opportunity to kill Toneri, Rock Lee appeared behind him without him noticing.

"That's right, Neji. Rock Lee said is exactly what I wanted to say: love and youth are not contradictory; in fact, they can make the color of youth burn even brighter!"

Might Guy then appeared in front of Neji, and the two of them sandwiched Neji between them.

"Ugh, those two hot-blooded idiots..."

Standing at the farthest point Tenten, I helplessly facepalm.

"Tenten, you guys went on a mission?" Ino asked, puzzled, seeing Tenten fully armed.

"No, it's all because of Teacher Kai. He said that a ninja's youth should be burned brightly, and that even without missions, training shouldn't be neglected..." Tenten complained to Ino. She didn't hate training, but with these two hot-blooded idiots around, even the best training became tinged with green.

"I heard that the reason for the recent lack of missions is the Kage Summit," Karin said, revealing the information she had heard from Minato.

"That's right, this year's Kage Summit will be held in the Land of Fire." Sasuke nodded, confirming the accuracy of the information.

"The Kage Summit, huh? That's really great. We'll get to witness the Five Kage's prowess firsthand." A look of longing appeared on Tenten's face.

She longed to meet the only female among the Five Kage, Kazekage Pakura.

In her heart, Pakura's position was second only to Tsunade, and she was one of the people she admired most.

"I've heard that the Mizukage of the Land of Water, like the Fifth Generation, looks like a young boy, but is actually already..."

Rock Lee spoke up from the side, but before he could finish, Ino interrupted him, "Hey, Rock Lee!"

"Ah, I'm sorry, I..."

Reminded by Ino, Rock Lee immediately realized he had said the wrong thing and hurriedly apologized.

A look of dejection appeared on the faces of Sasuke, Karin, and the others.

Even Might Guy's smile vanished.

"It's alright, Lee." Might Guy was also the first to recover. "This is the fate of a ninja. We were prepared for this from the moment we met."

By the way, have I ever told you the story of fighting alongside the Fifth Hokage? Back in the day, we also—"

Near the Konoha Memorial Stone, Obito, who was patrolling the area, spotted a familiar figure standing in front of the monument from afar.

"Asuma?"

"Oh, it's Obito." Asuma turned around upon hearing the voice, and nodded upon seeing that it was Obito.

Asuma is currently in charge of some affairs of the Land of Fire's military, and he rarely sees Obito.

"You guys must be very busy with your work." Obito spoke, he glanced briefly at the names on the Memorial Stone. Some were familiar, but most were unfamiliar.

"Indeed, the Kage Summit is a major event, and I imagine your work must be quite demanding." Asuma subconsciously reached into his pocket, but found nothing.

Only then did he remember that he had quit smoking for the sake of his child, and he immediately gave a bitter smile.

"If that guy were here, he'd definitely be criticizing me right now."

Obito smiled upon hearing this, "Yeah, back when we were in Ryoma -sensei's team, he was always the one making the sarcastic remarks."

"You're one to talk, but you were the one who got scolded the most back then. Only that guy could put up with your habit of being late." Asuma's eyes were unfocused as he recalled the events of that year.

"Oh right, I remember once when the two of us teamed up to make him wear women's clothes, I remember your eyes practically popping out of your head."

"You talk like you weren't engrossed!"

"What are you saying? My heart is only for red!"

"My heart belongs only to Lin!"

The two suddenly fell silent.

"Seriously, why do the best people always leave first?" Asuma reached into Obito's pocket and rummaged around.

"Don't bother looking, I don't smoke." Obito rolled his eyes and slapped Asuma's hand away.

"That's a real shame." Asuma withdrew his hand, shrugged, and turned to look at the Memorial Stone.

"If that guy doesn't come back soon, his name will be engraved on this monument."

"I'll kill anyone who dares to carve this."

"Haven't seen you in a while, Obito, you've gotten tough, haven't you?" Obito had barely finished speaking when someone slapped him on the head.

"Kakashi, you're here too." Asuma greeted the newcomer upon seeing his appearance.

Easily dodging Obito's counterattack, Kakashi nodded to Asuma in response.

"Kakashi, why aren't you in your office working on your documents? What are you doing here?!"

Obito gritted his teeth in anger as he looked at the agile Kakashi.

"Well, the higher-ups just made a decision..." Seeing that Obito had stopped chasing him, Kakashi stopped, scratching his head. After thinking for a moment, he told the two of them about it.

"After this Kage Summit concludes, the Fourth Hokage will step down."