You inherently evil Uchiha brat, I'll...

The air in the conference room seemed to have frozen, oppressive enough to make breathing difficult. On either side of the long table, the two camps were clearly divided.

Tobirama Senju sat upright at the head of the table, his hands folded on its surface, his stern face betraying no emotion. Beside him, Shikata Nara sat with half-lowered eyelids, looking languid yet shrewd.

Across the long table, Third Raikage A sat with his arms crossed, his massive frame radiating the imposing presence of an iron tower. Beside him, the Kumogakure jonin Dodai leaned forward slightly, his gaze calm as still water as he quietly briefed the Raikage and discussed their position.

"You've come a long way, Lord Raikage. The journey must have been tiring." Shikata Nara was the first to break the silence. He spoke unhurriedly, his mild tone concealing a sharp edge. "However, since we're all sitting here for the sake of the shinobi world's peace and future, Konoha must make a few unpleasant things clear from the outset."

Dodai immediately stepped forward and replied, neither servile nor arrogant, "Please go ahead, Lord Nara. Kumogakure has come with a sincere desire for our two nations to sign a nonaggression treaty and put this conflict behind us."

"For the sake of peace in the shinobi world, Konoha is willing to sign a nonaggression treaty." Shikata Nara chuckled softly, tapping his fingers against the tabletop. "But Kumogakure must first meet the following three conditions."

He raised one finger. "First, Kumogakure must issue an official public statement to the entire shinobi world, explaining the attack by your village's rogue ninja, Kinkaku and Ginkaku, and formally apologizing for their disruption of peace in the shinobi world."

Dodai's expression instantly stiffened, and his fists clenched tightly. But he took a deep breath and held his temper.

Shikata Nara raised a second finger. "Second, the war has caused enormous losses, and Kumogakure must pay reparations to Konoha. Our preliminary assessment puts the amount at two billion ryo. Five hundred million must be paid immediately, with the remaining one and a half billion paid over ten years."

"Two billion ryo?!" Dodai finally lost his restraint, his voice trembling with the effort of suppressing his anger. "Lord Nara, this is blatant exploitation! Even if we emptied Kumogakure's treasury, we couldn't produce that much!"

"You can't?" Shikata Nara raised an eyebrow, his tone still unruffled. "Then Konoha is willing to accept other assets in payment. For example..."

He raised a third finger, his gaze sharpening. "The scientific ninja tool technology Kumogakure has taken such pride in these past few years, along with all related research blueprints and core data, must be transferred to Konoha free of charge."

At those words, the air in the conference room seemed to freeze instantly.

Dodai snapped his head toward the Third Raikage. A's face had turned utterly livid, veins bulging at his temples. He was clearly on the verge of exploding.

"Shikata Nara!" A finally ran out of patience and slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups jump. "Konoha is going too far! We came to seek peace, not to sign away our country!"

"A, calm down." Tobirama Senju finally lifted his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the Raikage like a blade, his voice low and forceful. "What Shikada said is Konoha's bottom line. If you want peace, if you want a nonaggression treaty, you'll have to pay a sufficient price."

He paused, looking the Third Raikage straight in the eye. "Kinkaku and Ginkaku may be dead, but that doesn't erase Kumogakure's wrongdoing. Those two billion ryo and the scientific ninja tool technology are the compensation Konoha demands."

Dodai took a deep breath, swallowed his humiliation, and whispered a few words into the Raikage's ear. A's expression shifted repeatedly, his chest heaving as he wrestled with an agonizing decision.

The conference room sank into deathly silence once more.

The silence lingered for a long time, with even their breathing seemingly held in check.

At last, a deep, rough voice broke through the oppressive air.

"Kumogakure can agree to the first condition." Third Raikage A spoke slowly. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable steadiness. "Once we return home, we'll issue an official apology to the entire shinobi world."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the agreement on the table, and his tone abruptly chilled. "As for the two billion ryo in compensation you're demanding, that's absolutely impossible! Even if we sold all of Kumogakure, we couldn't raise such an astronomical sum. Kumogakure can offer no more than one billion ryo. We'll pay three hundred million in the first year and settle the remainder over five years."

At that, he leaned forward slightly, bracing both hands on the table, his eyes sharp as knives. "Third, we can give you the scientific ninja tool blueprints you want. But only if you return the Six Paths Tools you seized from Kinkaku and Ginkaku, exactly as they were."

He straightened, his chest rising and falling slightly, his tone carrying a chilling resolve. "Beyond that, Kumogakure will accept no additional conditions!"

As his words fell, he fixed his gaze on Tobirama Senju across the table and ground out each word through clenched teeth:

"Then we'll keep fighting if we have to! Kumogakure doesn't want to fight anymore. That doesn't mean we can't!"

For a moment, the air in the conference room stood still.

Tobirama Senju quietly studied the face opposite him, filled with anger and resolve. A barely perceptible trace of appreciation flashed through his deep eyes. He nodded slightly, his voice steady and firm. "Very well. One billion ryo, paid over five years. Konoha accepts your conditions."

With those words, the suffocating tension in the conference room seemed to vanish in an instant.

Only a second earlier, Third Raikage A had been like a raging lion ready to devour anyone in his path. Now, miraculously, he reined in every trace of aggression. He drew a deep breath, his iron-tight muscles gradually relaxing, even his breathing becoming long and steady.

The arguments and maneuvering at the negotiating table had simply been a matter of conflicting positions. Now that the outcome was settled, as the leader of a village, he naturally had the grace to accept it and move on.

A sat upright again, his massive frame regaining its deep, immovable composure. He adjusted his slightly disheveled collar. The humiliation and fury were gone from his gaze as he looked at Tobirama Senju, replaced by the openness and poise of a powerful man.

"You certainly are decisive, Lord Hokage." A's voice returned to its usual deep resonance. He inclined his body slightly, showing Tobirama Senju respect with solemn dignity, as an equal.

Then he changed the subject, his tone taking on a note of genuine curiosity. "However, I have one request. After the last alliance ceremony in the Land of Lightning, that ninja from your village who killed Ginkaku left quite an impression. Would you be willing to tell me who this powerful man, who has kept his abilities so well concealed, actually is?"

Tobirama Senju picked up the teacup on the table, gently skimmed away the foam, and calmly uttered a name. "Kagami Uchiha."

The words had barely left his mouth when a tall, slender figure stepped slowly out of the shadows at the side of the conference room.

The newcomer wore a neat Konoha jonin uniform. Beneath his short black hair was a handsome, gentle face that still looked somewhat youthful. He appeared to be only seventeen or eighteen, with a lingering boyish softness around his eyes.

But as he approached the long table, the composed presence of a top-tier fighter instantly made the air in the room tighten.

"Kagami Uchiha, at your service, Lord Raikage." He bowed slightly, his voice clear and calm.

"Excellent! So you're Kagami Uchiha!"

Third Raikage A abruptly rose to his feet, staring intently at the young man before him, who wasn't even twenty. He froze briefly, then undisguised admiration and excitement flared in his eyes.

He strode up to Kagami Uchiha and openly looked the young man over, though Kagami stood well over half a head shorter than him. Who could have imagined that the grim reaper who had killed Ginkaku on the battlefield and made Kumogakure's elite suffer so much was this young?

"I thought anyone capable of killing Ginkaku had to be some old monster who'd weathered countless hardships." A's voice boomed through the conference room like a great bell, carrying the candor and boldness of a powerful man. "I never imagined you'd be so young! To possess such skill and composure before twenty... Konoha's reserves truly are unfathomable."

He turned to Tobirama Senju, his expression solemn. "Lord Hokage, with a young talent like this in your village, how could Konoha fail to prosper?"

Kagami Uchiha bowed slightly and answered with a smile, neither humble nor arrogant. "You flatter me, Lord Raikage. I merely did my duty as a Konoha ninja."

"Hahaha! Your duty, indeed!" A threw back his head and laughed, the sound making the conference room's window frames tremble slightly.

Yet beneath that hearty laughter, a deeply sinister shadow quietly crossed the depths of the eyes hidden in A's rugged face.

He looked at the young Uchiha before him, so gentle and polished that he could find no fault with him, yet his heart felt as though an invisible hand had seized it in a crushing grip.

Not even twenty... and he could already kill Ginkaku.

Such talent, such composure—it was downright chilling!

An indescribable chill and wariness churned in A's heart. Where on earth did Konoha find a monster like this? Even before reaching his full potential, he could already wreak bloody havoc on the battlefield. If he had another ten or twenty years to mature fully, who in Kumogakure... could possibly stop him?!

If he could kill Ginkaku on the battlefield today, could he crush Kumogakure's defenses tomorrow?!

"Konoha... has truly produced a terrifying monster."

A let out an exceptionally heavy sigh inwardly. He buried that dark apprehension deep in his heart beneath a flawless smile and bold manner, allowing none of it to show.

As the ink on the parchment dried, the negotiations that would determine the fate of two nations finally came to a close.

Tobirama Senju nodded slightly and turned to Shikata Nara beside him. "Shikada, make the arrangements and escort the Raikage and his party to the inn to rest. They've had a tiring journey. Konoha should be a proper host."

"Yes, Lord Hokage," Shikata Nara answered respectfully. He then stepped forward and gestured invitingly. "Lord Raikage, please follow me."

Third Raikage A rose, nodded to Tobirama once more, then led his Kumogakure entourage out of the conference room with long strides. As the heavy doors slowly closed, the Kumogakure delegation was at last settled in Konoha.

The atmosphere in the conference room relaxed somewhat. Seeing that the official business was finished, Kagami Uchiha bowed slightly and prepared to take his leave.

But just as he turned, someone suddenly pushed the wooden door open from outside with a creak.

"Granduncle!" With a bright, sweet cry, a little girl with twin ponytails rushed in like a gust of wind. It was Hashirama Senju's granddaughter—Tsunade.

At ten, she was at the age between early childhood and adolescence. Her hair was tied in her signature twin ponytails, and she wore a fitted sleeveless top that outlined her slender, supple waist.

She hadn't fully grown yet and had no mature curves to speak of, but the emerging liveliness and charm of a young girl already made her stand out.

Girls in the world of Naruto always matured astonishingly early. Tsunade's clear eyes had already lost some of their childish innocence, gaining a hint of youthful vivacity and charm.

She had just reached the table when her gaze shifted and met Kagami Uchiha, who was about to leave.

Tsunade's pretty eyes instantly widened, her small mouth falling open in disbelief. "Kagami... Uchiha?!"

She had never expected the older boy she had secretly slipped out to meet before to appear in her granduncle's conference room.

At her startled cry, Kagami Uchiha stopped and turned toward the girl, whose face was full of delighted surprise. A smile as warm as a spring breeze spread across his gentle face.

"It's been a while, Tsunade." His voice was clear and pleasant, with a soothing quality to it.

Looking at Kagami Uchiha's gentle smile and refined bearing, Tsunade felt a faint, barely noticeable blush rise to her cheeks.

Only then did Hiruzen Sarutobi come chasing in with Jiraiya and Orochimaru, all of them panting. Looking at his three troublesome students, he sighed helplessly, his tone carrying a stern rebuke. "You three brats, didn't I tell you to practice shuriken in the courtyard first? Didn't I tell you the Second Hokage was discussing important matters with the Raikage? How could you go running around wherever you pleased?"

Tobirama Senju ignored Hiruzen Sarutobi's apology, not even lifting his eyelids. His cold gaze passed over Hiruzen and settled directly on Tsunade.

His little granddaughter, usually afraid of nothing and no one, was now standing with her head lowered, her hands nervously twisting the hem of her shirt. Two blushes colored her fair cheeks, and her averted eyes were full of girlish shyness.

At the sight, Tobirama Senju's face instantly darkened like the bottom of a soot-blackened pot.

"..."

The temperature in the conference room abruptly dropped. Tobirama pressed his lips tightly together, his red eyes, usually so cold and rational, now fixed unwaveringly on Kagami Uchiha.

You inherently evil Uchiha brat, I'll...!

The precious little girl they'd cherished for ten years was only ten! Why was she acting so bashful in front of this scheming Uchiha?!

Tobirama Senju took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the urge to haul Kagami Uchiha outside and beat him on the spot. He spoke coldly, his low voice seeming to be steeped in ice:

"Kagami, you'd better explain what's going on with my granddaughter."

"Granduncle!"

Hearing Tobirama's voice, cold as shards of ice, Tsunade instantly grew anxious. She jerked her head up, her still-blushing cheeks puffing out with anger like a kitten guarding its food.

She planted herself in front of Kagami Uchiha, put both hands on her slender waist, and tilted her head back to glare indignantly at Tobirama Senju. "Why are you being so mean? How can you be so mean to him!"

Seeing his granddaughter siding with an outsider and fiercely defending him, Tobirama Senju's face darkened further.

"Tsunade!" Tobirama drew a deep breath, his tone filled with frustrated disappointment. "Do you know who he is? You're only ten. How could you already..."