Treaty Under the City Walls

Kikyō Mountain City, a fortress that had just endured a decisive and brutal battle, had not yet fully settled into peace. Instead, another kind of silent smoke filled the air—the contest at the negotiating table.

After learning of the great victory at Kikyō Mountain and Sunagakure's surrender, Konoha's Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, immediately led the entire high-level decision-making group there at top speed. Accompanying him were not only his veteran advisers, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, but also Shimura Danzō, who had remained hidden in the shadows and played a disgraceful yet crucial role in this battle. Nearly all of Konoha's core leadership had gathered here, demonstrating just how seriously they regarded these negotiations.

Across from them sat the representatives of the defeated Sunagakure: the pale-faced but forcibly composed Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, along with Elder Chiyo and Ebizo, who sat beside him with complicated, weary expressions. The two sides faced one another in a temporary, heavily guarded meeting room. The atmosphere was so oppressive it seemed ready to drip with water.

The negotiations were difficult and humiliating. The two sides spent days locked in fierce arguments and tug-of-war over key issues such as responsibility for the defeat, war reparations, territorial ownership, and future relations.

Konoha held absolute initiative and advantage. Danzo took the hardest line, repeatedly proposing nearly ruinous terms in an attempt to weaken Sunagakure to the greatest possible extent, even seeking to turn the Land of Wind into Konoha's vassal. Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were comparatively pragmatic, focusing on securing tangible benefits and guarantees of safety. Though the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, outwardly upheld the relatively moderate "Will of Fire," he refused to yield an inch where the village's core interests were concerned. His moderation was more like the posture of someone looking down from above.

Sunagakure,