Thundercloud A

Any alliance between two ninja villages is merely temporary; hostility and war are the eternal, unchanging themes between different villages. Therefore, even if Konoha and Kumogakure form an alliance for the moment, it cannot change the fact that they remain potential strategic rivals in the long run.

When a country visits another nation it views as a mortal enemy, does it introduce its delegation to the other side in such a manner?

And so, Hanyu now found himself in an abnormal situation.

Sanshao's introduction of Hanyu was a way of "making a name" for him in front of the enemy, which was by no means a good thing. One must realize that in this world, a ninja with fame but no strength dies much faster than a ninja with neither fame nor strength, or one with both fame and strength.

In extreme cases, this single sentence could land Hanyu on Kumogakure's assassination list. Of course, not right now—not just because the Konoha squad included experts like Mitokado Homura and Kagami Uchiha, but also because the squad's mission was to re-establish an alliance with Kumogakure.

Although they were on Kumogakure's home turf and the hosts held the absolute advantage, if the second set of Konoha alliance envoys were to die, Kumogakure would completely lose its national credibility.

Therefore, Hanyu would not face any problems for the time being; Sanshao's introduction would only make him and the Kumogakure ninjas feel awkward.

Sure enough, that Kumogakure ninja took a deep look at Hanyu, as if trying to memorize his appearance completely, before turning around to lead the way for the group.

"Envoys of Konoha, please follow me. The Third Raikage is waiting for you not far ahead."

Sanshao and the others followed behind the man as instructed, yet the closer they got, the more vigilant the group became. Given the current chaotic situation in Kumogakure, no one could be certain whether this man was a subordinate of the new Raikage, who sought peace, or a rebel aiming to sabotage the Kumogakure-Konoha alliance.

A battle could break out at any moment.

However, this anxiety did not last long. After rushing north for only a few miles, a large-scale welcoming party from Kumogakure, including the newly ascended Third Raikage himself, appeared before them.

The Third Raikage was a dark-skinned, burly man with a powerful visual impact; to put it simply, he looked more like a berserker than a ninja.

Upon seeing the Raikage, the expressions of the Konoha group relaxed slightly. Kagami Uchiha and Mitokado Homura were able to confirm the man's identity. During the previous war, as elite ninjas belonging to Konoha and Kumogakure respectively, both sides had clashed; but now that he had succeeded as Raikage, he would have discarded his original name and should now be addressed as "A."

All Raikage shared this same name. In Hanyu's estimation, this "A" likely stood for "ACE," representing the strongest ninja in the village.

"Uchiha, Mito, thank you for Konoha's renewed trust. Welcome to the Land of Lightning." Unlike his rugged and hard-edged appearance, the Third Raikage's tone was by no means blindly aggressive when he spoke. It seemed he knew exactly what he was doing; as the shadow of a village, one could be crude, but a man who was only crude could never become a Kage.

Take Ginkaku and Kinkaku, for example—no matter how strong they were, they were nothing more than the village's thugs.

"Everything is for the sake of peace," Mitokado Homura stepped forward to respond, though his expression was rather sour. This was only natural, as Kumogakure had to bear the responsibility for the death of the Second Hokage.

"Peace is our common goal, is it not? This is not the place to talk. Let us head to our village first." The Raikage lightly brushed aside the accusations implied in Homura's words.

As he spoke, the Raikage first signaled the ninjas he brought to move ahead, then personally guided the Konoha group toward Kumogakure. After this brief contact, Hanyu could judge that this new Raikage was a man with a brain.

The Raikage had brought over twenty ninjas to welcome the Konoha party, certainly not for a superficial show of force. On one hand, because the rebellion in Kumogakure had just been quelled and not all rogue ninjas had been purged, he could hardly refuse the village's decision to dispatch guards for him. On the other hand, the Konoha party also required a large number of Kumogakure ninjas to ensure their safety.

Under such a display of strength and preparation, no one was foolish enough to launch an attack on the Konoha envoys, so Hanyu and his group arrived at Kumogakure smoothly. In this village built upon high ground and sheer cliffs, fresh signs of destruction could be seen everywhere; the Raikage seemed to have no intention of hiding from Konoha the losses Kumogakure had suffered during the previous rebellion.

Subsequently, without any pleasantries or rest, both sides went straight to the heart of the matter—in a secret basement somewhere in Kumogakure, they began negotiations regarding peace and the alliance.

In such serious negotiations, Hanyu and Hatake Sakumo had no opportunity to interject at all.

The initial negotiations went very smoothly. Restoring the alliance with Konoha was something the current Kumogakure was very eager to implement; on this point, both sides could have signed the treaty immediately.

However, the "supplementary agreement" proposed by Konoha next made the Raikage feel quite uneasy.

Because Mitokado Homura brought up the content Hanyu had previously mentioned, he demanded that Kumogakure abandon its defensive line against Konoha and instead divert its forces toward Iwagakure.

"The upcoming war deployments of Kumogakure are not something you from Konoha should be meddling in. We certainly welcome and look forward to the alliance, but if you use this as a threat to force us to change our strategy, then I can only say I am sorry," the Raikage said with a gloomy face, having seen through Konoha's intentions at a glance.

Taking a step back, reducing the number of ninjas deployed against Konoha was not unacceptable; after all, if both sides signed an alliance treaty, there would be no reason to mass heavy troops at the border.

But diverting forces toward Iwagakure was equivalent to making Kumogakure shoulder the pressure from Iwagakure on Konoha's behalf. Sacrificing oneself for the benefit of others? How could that be! Konoha's wishful thinking was truly loud. If this had been at the start of the war, Kumogakure would certainly have dared to strike directly at Iwagakure, but for the current Kumogakure, the reason and the courage to do so were lacking.

Because of the Raikage's stern refusal, the negotiations stalled. At this moment, Sanshao spoke up: "Raikage, your current situation is very similar to ours in Konoha. As someone who took on the role of Kage in an emergency due to unforeseen events, I believe there are many voices of opposition in your village as well... Compared to the predecessors, the younger generation always lacks prestige."

"Unlike Konoha, Kumogakure has just experienced a rebellion, so your situation is even more urgent. If you want to unify the village, you must gain the prestige to suppress all opposing voices... Individual combat strength is not omnipotent. If you want to gain such prestige in a short time, you must either incite Kumogakure to launch a large-scale offensive against other villages and guarantee a 100% overwhelming victory... But who can guarantee victory in an invasion? Furthermore, the contradiction lies in the fact that you currently have no way to command the Kumogakure ninjas smoothly. The other approach is much simpler, for example... eliminate the culprits who instigated the rebellion and killed the Second Raikage: Kinkaku and Ginkaku."

Yes, as long as Kinkaku and Ginkaku were taken out, the Raikage's prestige would rapidly swell, and his position would be rightfully solidified. This was a condition that was very hard to refuse. Hearing this, the Third Raikage stood up abruptly, looking at the Konoha group with burning eyes: "You know the whereabouts of Kinkaku and Ginkaku?!"

"If our negotiations can proceed, then we might know such information," Sanshao responded airily.

The implication was that if the negotiations could not proceed, then even if they truly knew the whereabouts of Kinkaku and Ginkaku, it would be as if they did not.