Konoha was not the first to arrive, but it was not the last, either. Ninja were excellent at managing their time, and the Kage from all five villages arrived at almost the same time.
Once all the Kage had arrived, the Five Kage Summit officially began.
Mifune presided over the meeting. The old man looked stern, yet there was something inexplicably likable about him. Perhaps that had something to do with the Land of Iron maintaining its neutrality?
"At Lord Hokage's request, the Five Kage have gathered once again today. I am Mifune, your moderator. The Five Kage Summit will now begin..." Mifune solemnly delivered his opening remarks.
"Since I was the one who asked you all to come, allow me to explain!" Tsunade spoke first, but Ōnoki interrupted her the moment she finished.
"The Five Kage certainly have changed quite a bit!" Ōnoki remarked, sounding somewhat wistful.
Tsunade could not help frowning at the interruption. Though she had a bad temper, this alone was not enough to make her lash out.
"Tsuchikage, please let the Hokage finish!" Mei Terumi did not have a good impression of the Tsuchikage, either. During the battle over the Three-Tails, she would never have had the chance to launch a surprise attack if he had not brought in the Akatsuki.
Ōnoki chuckled but said nothing more.
Seeing this, Tsunade continued, "The Akatsuki's existence has become a problem we must address. At present, the Akatsuki already possesses five Tailed Beasts..."
"Six, actually. Unfortunately, Kirigakure was unable to protect the Six-Tails..." Mei Terumi added.
"I see. That truly is unfortunate," Tsunade said with a sigh before continuing. "The Akatsuki's objective is actually quite simple: to gather all the Tailed Beasts and turn them into the Ten-Tails..."
Tsunade briefly explained the relationship between the Sage of Six