Iwagakure, Tsuchikage's Office.
This was an absolutely confidential meeting, with only four attendees.
Even their respective trusted aides were limited to standing guard outside the door.
The Daimyō of the Land of Earth, the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning, Fourth Raikage A, and the host of this place, the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki.
"Thank you all for coming here. Please take a look at this."
The Daimyō of the Land of Earth broke the silence first, pushing a scroll to the center of the table.
The seal on the scroll bore the crest of the Daimyō's Palace of the Land of Fire.
"This is a secret letter sent by that one from the Land of Fire..."
His phrasing was cautious, though his contempt was obvious.
In excruciating detail, the letter described how Fujiwara Hidemasa, the chief adviser, had been completely controlled by a shadowy manipulator named Naruto Uzumaki through methods that were practically thuggish.
His family was under surveillance, his privacy had been thoroughly exposed, and his entire residence had become a lavish cage.
And so, the entire Daimyō's Palace of the Land of Fire had become Konoha's puppet.
"Bastards!"
The Daimyō of the Land of Lightning slammed his palm onto the table, and spiderweb cracks instantly spread across the hard stone surface.
"Cowards! Worthless trash! To let a ninja ride roughshod over them! This is an insult to every daimyo!"
His roar echoed through the office.
"This is no longer a threat. This is a declaration of war!"
"Daimyō, the issue is not whether ninja should be riding roughshod over daimyos."
A trace of helpless exhaustion appeared on Ōnoki's aged face. He spoke slowly, cutting off the Daimyō of the Land of Lightning's tirade.
"Nor is it whether the Daimyō of the Land of Fire is a coward."
"Then