Konoha's Crisis

As night grew deeper, the Hokage Building in Konohagakure remained brightly lit.

Konoha outside the Hokage's office had already fallen asleep. Only a few scattered lights remained, like stars that had fallen from the sky.

Sarutobi Hiruzen stood by the window, clutching a newly delivered report. His fingers trembled slightly. He couldn't rest, and he didn't dare to.

The report contained a few lines, each one like a nail driven into his eyes: Kumogakure and Iwagakure had begun massing troops at the borders.

This wasn't a small-scale probe. It was a large-scale mobilization! According to estimates from the Anbu on the front lines, Kumogakure had assembled at least three battalions, and Iwagakure had about the same.

Worse still, the garrisons facing Kirigakure and Sunagakure had also sent back warnings: they had spotted signs of the two villages' shinobi gathering at the borders. The numbers weren't as large as those of Kumogakure and Iwagakure, but they were enough to warrant concern.

All four great ninja villages were baring their probing claws at Konoha at once!

Sarutobi Hiruzen clenched the report tightly in his right hand and raised his left to rub his temples. His head was throbbing, as if someone were striking it with a hammer.

Too much had happened lately, so much that the old man, nearing seventy, was struggling to keep up: the Uchiha Clan Massacre, the Hyuga retreating into isolation, the Jinchuriki going missing, Orochimaru escaping, Tsunade's return... One thing after another, coming in quick succession and giving him no chance to catch his breath...

And now, war had come again!

For the third time during his tenure, Sarutobi Hiruzen was witnessing the approach of war!

Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep breath, turned, and looked at the Anbu waiting for orders in his office. "Pass on my order. Summon every jonin in the village to the Hokage Building for a meeting immediately!"

His voice was calm, but he spoke a little faster than usual. "Even the Hyuga—send someone to tell Hyuga Hiashi that someone must attend this meeting! Whoever it is, the Hyuga must send someone!"

"Yes." The Anbu received Sarutobi Hiruzen's order and vanished from the office with the Body Flicker Technique.

Sarutobi Hiruzen returned to his desk and wearily dropped his aging body into his chair. He picked up the pipe on the desk again, struck a match, and brought it close. The flame flickered twice before catching the tobacco.

Smoke rose and spread above his head like a small cloud. He took a deep drag, choked, and coughed twice, but didn't stop...

The Anbu worked quickly. In less than the time it took to burn one incense stick, the conference room in the Hokage Building was packed.

Jonin filled both sides of the long table. Some hadn't had time to change into their flak jackets and had come in their casual clothes; others still had the greasy sheen of dinner on their faces, clearly having just put down their chopsticks.

Everyone wore a different expression, but one thing was the same: they were serious, even grim.

Jiraiya was among the first of the jonin to arrive. He sat at one end of the long table, staring into space out of boredom. The Anbu had already told him why the meeting had been called, but he figured all he could do was follow orders, so he couldn't be bothered to think too hard about it.

The spot beside Jiraiya that had always been empty was finally occupied today. Tsunade sat there with a scroll in front of her and both hands resting on it. Ignoring everyone in the conference room who tried to greet her, she studied the scroll intently.

Not far from Tsunade, Hyuga Hiashi sat midway along the long table, dressed in a dark kimono, his hair neatly combed. He had obeyed Sarutobi Hiruzen's order and come to represent the Hyuga Clan.

This was his first public appearance since the Hyuga had withdrawn into isolation. But the cold expression on his face made it clear that although he had come out, he wasn't there to make amends or cause trouble. He was simply there to hear news about the village's war.

The Ino-Shika-Cho families had, as usual, sat together.

Nara Shikaku sat opposite Hyuga Hiashi, his hands clasped on the table and his head bowed. He had learned about the border situation on his way over and was now trying to figure out how Konoha could survive the crisis, given its current military strength:

After all, the village's two strongest clans had been hit hard: one had been wiped out, and the other crippled. If they were facing only one ninja village, that might have been manageable. But now four villages were eyeing Konoha with weapons drawn. The forces Konoha could deploy while still maintaining its defenses were stretched terribly thin;

Yamanaka Inoichi sat beside Nara Shikaku, endlessly twirling a pen between his fingers as he stared blankly at the open, empty notebook in front of him. Not long after arriving home that morning, he had heard that Tsunade had returned to the village. Then he had met with Shikaku and Choza to discuss the situation.

He had finally gotten a chance to rest that afternoon, but barely had time to sleep before he was summoned to the Hokage Building for a meeting. Inoichi felt as if his head had been buzzing nonstop, and he was about to collapse from exhaustion;

Akimichi Choza had noticed how tired his friend looked, but there was nothing he could do to help. All he could do was take some snacks from his sleeve and secretly pass them to Yamanaka Inoichi under the table, so he could get some energy and not actually faint in the conference room.

Sarutobi Asuma sat at the end of the long table with an unlit cigarette in his mouth and his legs crossed. His eyes were half closed, and he looked lazy. But he kept surreptitiously watching one person in the conference room. That person had been reading a scroll ever since entering, which puzzled Sarutobi Asuma immensely.

Yuhi Kurenai sat beside Sarutobi Asuma, her arms crossed and her expression troubled. Her father, Yuhi Shinku, had been a Konoha jonin and died in the Nine-Tails Incident several years ago. Though she knew it had been an accident, she had never trusted Konoha's leadership much. That distrust had only grown stronger since the Uchiha Clan Massacre.

Hatake Kakashi leaned against a corner of the wall, his mask covering most of his face and leaving only one lifeless eye visible. He held a copy of Icha Icha Paradise, open halfway with a bookmark tucked inside. Instead of reading as usual, he gazed over the top of the pages at the empty space in the middle of the conference table.

Might Guy stood right beside Kakashi, wearing his signature green jumpsuit. He clenched his fists on his knees and sat ramrod straight beside his friend. His bowl-cut hair gleamed in the light, making him look a little ridiculous, but no one laughed.

Besides them, there were other jonin, some from civilian backgrounds and others representing small clans. Both sides of the long table were packed, and even the extra seats were full.

Kazamatsuri Saemon stood not far from Might Guy. He represented the Kazamatsuri Clan and usually had no voice in gatherings like this. Some meetings didn't even bother to invite him.

As the time drew near, most of Konoha's available jonin had gathered in the conference room. The door leading toward the Hokage's office swung open.

Sarutobi Hiruzen entered the conference room, and everyone's gaze instinctively turned to him. They also noticed the three people following behind him: Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu.

Danzō walked in front. His single eye was covered with bandages, and his arms hung at his sides. The bandages that had been wrapped around his chest had been removed, but he still couldn't move his hands. His expression was as gloomy as the sky before a storm, his mouth turned down. Without looking at anyone, he went straight to his seat and sat down;

Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu followed behind him, both looking troubled. While they had been waiting for the jonin to assemble, they had read the report in Sarutobi Hiruzen's office. They, too, found the situation difficult to handle.

Sarutobi Hiruzen took his seat at the head of the table and looked around. His gaze lingered on Tsunade for a moment. When she didn't even look up at him, he shifted his gaze without showing it and spoke. "Everyone's here."

No one spoke.

"I called you all here today to discuss one thing." Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice was hoarse and weary. "War!"

He gestured to the Anbu behind him, who had prepared multiple copies of the report, and ordered them to distribute them to everyone. "Read them quickly."

The Anbu followed his orders and quickly handed out the reports to the jonin present. There wasn't much written on the pages, but every word weighed heavily on those in the room.

"Kumogakure has gathered troops on the border with the Land of Hot Water. Initial estimates put the force at three battalions, around three hundred people. They are led by elite shinobi from the Raikage's personal Anbu. The exact numbers are still being verified."

"Iwagakure has gathered troops on the border with the Land of Grass. The force is about the same size as Kumogakure's, around three hundred people. They are led by the Tsuchikage's son—Kitsuchi."

"There has been movement from Kirigakure and Sunagakure as well. Suspicious ships, possibly carrying reconnaissance teams, have been spotted in the waters near the Land of Waves. Meanwhile, Sunagakure has increased the number of patrols on the border with the Land of Rivers to three times the usual amount."

Everyone quickly skimmed the report in their hands, and the atmosphere in the conference room grew heavier and heavier.

A civilian jonin from the village, Yamagami Aoshu, read the report and exclaimed in shock, "All four ninja villages are mobilizing troops at once? That's too much of a coincidence, isn't it?"

"It's no coincidence." Mitokado Homura shattered Yamagami Aoshu's hopes. "It was coordinated."

"Coordinated?" Yamagami Aoshu furrowed his brow. He had only recently returned from a rotation at the border. Although he had some idea of what had happened in the village recently, he still chose to believe Sarutobi Hiruzen had his reasons. "We can understand Kumogakure and Iwagakure coming after us. After all, they suspect we did something to their Jinchuriki. But why are Kirigakure and Sunagakure joining in?"

"They're taking advantage of the chaos." Mitokado Homura's voice was calm. "If Konoha really goes to war with Kumogakure and Iwagakure, Kirigakure and Sunagakure won't stand by. They won't help either side, but they'll stab us in the back when the fighting is at its fiercest. After all, they've always coveted everything Konoha has."

Aburame Shikuroo's voice came from a corner, low and slow. "Can we be sure they'll actually attack? Perhaps they're only trying to intimidate us."

"We can't be sure." Mitokado Homura was in charge of Konoha's foreign affairs and often acted as a spokesperson for Sarutobi Hiruzen, so everyone knew his answer was Sarutobi Hiruzen's answer. "But we can't take that risk."

When Mitokado Homura finished speaking, silence fell over the long table. Everyone began seriously considering how to respond to the war.

Hyuga Hiashi had said nothing. He kept his head lowered, gazing at the tabletop as if studying the wood grain. But his hands rested on his knees beneath the table, his fingers curled slightly. He was afraid.

Seeing that no one was speaking up, Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded and cleared his throat.

"Today's meeting isn't about asking you to declare your allegiance. I want to hear your opinions. You all know Konoha's current situation. I need to know what you think we should do."

The conference room remained silent.

Everyone knew Konoha's current situation: the Uchiha had been wiped out, the Hyuga had withdrawn into isolation, and Tsunade was the only one left of the Senju. The other clans were on edge as well.

Everyone understood that Konoha's strength had now fallen far behind that of the other four great villages.

With all four coming at them at once, there was no way to resolve things just by deciding to "fight." But they couldn't "not fight" either! Not fighting meant surrender! And if Konoha surrendered, it was finished!

No one dared to speak first. No one dared to take responsibility.

Sarutobi Hiruzen knew what everyone was thinking. His gaze moved from one person to another, finally settling on Jiraiya.

He needed someone to take the lead, so he called on him directly. "Jiraiya, you go first."

Hearing his teacher's question, Jiraiya set down Icha Icha Paradise and sat up straight. His hair was a little messy, and he hadn't shaved, making him look as if he'd just been dragged out of bed.

"Sensei, I don't have much to say." Jiraiya's voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the conference room heard him clearly. "Konoha's in trouble, so I'll fight! Tell me which unit to lead, and I'll lead it. Tell me which side to defend, and I'll defend it. Front lines or rear, either is fine."

A gratified smile appeared on Sarutobi Hiruzen's face. Jiraiya's answer had been exactly what he expected, and it had given the others a good start.

Taking advantage of Jiraiya's words, he turned everyone's attention to Tsunade, who sat beside Jiraiya with her head down, still studying the report.

"Tsunade, what do you think?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked gently, his voice full of hope.

The conference room fell silent again, and everyone's gaze shifted to Tsunade.

After a day for the news to spread, everyone knew what had happened since Tsunade returned to the village. They were all watching her, eager to know what she intended to do...

To everyone's surprise, Tsunade didn't look up to answer Sarutobi Hiruzen's question.

She kept her head bowed, studying the scroll in her hands. She had been holding it ever since entering the conference room and had already read it over and over. The edges of the paper were creased where she had gripped them, and the scroll was covered in dense writing, though its contents couldn't be made out from a distance.

"Tsunade?" Sarutobi Hiruzen called again, his voice a little louder this time. Everyone could hear a hint of anger in those two syllables.

But Tsunade acted as if she had a hearing problem. She still didn't look up or pay Sarutobi Hiruzen any attention.

The strange silence made the atmosphere in the conference room feel a little awkward.

Sitting beside Tsunade, Jiraiya seemed to sense the restrained emotion beneath Sarutobi Hiruzen's calm exterior. He nudged Tsunade with his elbow and lowered his voice. "Tsunade, Sensei's calling you."

Tsunade raised her eyelids and glanced sideways at Jiraiya. She suddenly gave a mocking laugh, then lowered her head and went back to reading her scroll.

Jiraiya's face instantly turned unbearably awkward! He opened his mouth, unsure what he had done to upset Tsunade or what her mocking laugh meant. He wanted to say something, but when he saw her expressionless profile, he swallowed his words.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and everyone present had heard Tsunade's mocking laugh. Sarutobi Hiruzen coughed, but this time he said nothing. Instead, Utatane Koharu beside him stepped forward.

"Tsunade, the Third Hokage is speaking to you. What do you mean by this? Are you refusing to obey the Hokage's orders?!"

"The Third Hokage?" Tsunade finally raised her head...