Iwagakure~
Inside Tsuchikage Hall~
Bang!
An aged hand covered in wrinkles slammed hard onto the sturdy stone desk. Dense, fine cracks instantly spread across its surface, and fragments of stone rattled down.
Seated in the Kage's seat, Ōnoki's hair and beard bristled. Towering fury surged through his cloudy old eyes, and dense Earth Release chakra raged around him, making the entire hall tremble slightly.
"Useless! Every last one of them!"
Ōnoki roared, his aged voice filled with utter resentment and frustration.
"Suikazan Fuguki was an elite Jonin of Kirigakure! He wielded Samehada and possessed exceptional fighting strength, yet some nameless youngster from Konoha killed him!"
"More laughable still, after his death, his own subordinate, Kisame Hoshigaki, seized Samehada and defected outright! Kirigakure is utterly worthless as an ally!"
The Iwagakure leaders on either side of the hall all bowed their heads in silence. No one dared respond, and the atmosphere throughout the hall was suffocatingly oppressive.
Just then~
Whoosh!
The pitch-black silhouette of a ninja hawk streaked across the sky and landed precisely on the hall's windowsill. Its wings fluttered lightly as it delivered a secret letter proposing cooperation from Kumogakure.
An attendant hurried forward to remove the scroll from the ninja hawk's leg, then quickly approached and respectfully presented it.
"Lord Tsuchikage! Kumogakure has sent a secret letter. They are willing to ally with Iwagakure and join forces against Konoha!"
Ōnoki's gaze sharpened slightly. Suppressing his anger, he swiftly unrolled the scroll and scanned its contents. In an instant, a sinister, calculating smile crossed his gloomy old face.
"Heaven's will! This truly is a heaven-sent opportunity!"
His fingertips tapped lightly against the damaged desk as calculations raced through his mind, forming a splendid scheme to his own advantage.
A joint Kumogakure-Iwagakure campaign against Konoha might appear to be an