The Third Raikage moved at terrifying speed, racing toward the Land of Hot Water.
Killer B and A followed closely behind.
"Father," A finally asked, unable to hold back,
"what was the result of the negotiations? Why are we rushing back like this?"
The moment the talks ended, his father had immediately entered full-speed retreat mode.
Something was clearly wrong.
"The Iwagakure forces have already looped behind our main army," the Raikage replied curtly.
"What?!"
A and Killer B were stunned.
"But that doesn't make sense," Killer B scratched his head in confusion.
"Wasn't Iwa supposed to be our ally?"
By all logic, Iwa should have been attacking Konoha—
so why were they stabbing Kumogakure in the back?
"Ōnoki must have secretly allied with Konoha," A said angrily.
"Damn it—those Iwa shinobi really can't be trusted."
The Raikage, however, let out a long sigh.
"In truth, we can't blame Iwa," he said quietly.
"We were the invaders."
At this point, the Raikage had thought everything through.
This war—
all four great villages were the aggressors.
Seen from that perspective, Iwa turning on them was understandable.
What worried him most now was this:
Would Ōnoki and Drake personally enter the battlefield?
If those two appeared, the Kumogakure army would face total annihilation.
That was why the Raikage was rushing back with such urgency.
"A, B," the Raikage said solemnly.
"I'll stay behind and cover the retreat. You two must bring the army back to the village."
"Wait, Father!" A said urgently.
"We can fight too!"
"That's right!" Killer B added enthusiastically.
"I can even enter Tailed Beast Mode!"
"No."
The Raikage refused decisively.
Then he turned to Killer B, his expression grave.
"B, remember this—Drake can capture Tailed Beasts.
If you join the battle, the Eight-Tails will be taken."
Killer B froze.
The Raikage then looked at his son.
"A… the future of the village depends on you.
Bring the army back—this is Kumogakure's foundation."
After a pause, he added one final warning:
"As long as Drake exists, Kumogakure must never become Konoha's enemy."
"But—"
Killer B tried to argue, but A stopped him.
"B… listen to Father."
A understood now.
This war—
Kumogakure had lost.
They had no right to blame Konoha or Iwa.
What mattered now was preserving as much strength as possible.
East of Konoha
The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, sped forward with Ao.
"Mizukage-sama," Ao asked carefully,
"how did the negotiations go?"
"We lost the war," Yagura replied calmly.
"Konoha will be compensated."
"…What?"
Ao was dumbfounded.
He clearly remembered that when they came, it was supposed to be Konoha compensating Kirigakure.
How did it turn into them paying Konoha?
"Konoha's Hokage was overthrown," Yagura revealed.
"Drake took power and rewrote the treaty."
Ao's eyes widened.
"The Third Hokage stepped down?
And Drake became Hokage?"
He remembered clearly—
Drake was only twelve years old.
Strong, yes—but Hokage at twelve?!
"Mizukage-sama," Ao said carefully,
"if the village learns about this compensation… there may be unrest."
Yagura, however, chuckled.
"Heh. We're the lucky ones."
He thought of the other villages.
Kumogakure was being ambushed by Iwa—losses were inevitable.
Even Iwa, despite allying with Konoha, would suffer casualties.
As for Sunagakure?
Even worse.
Their Kazekage was dead.
Compared to that, Kirigakure's losses were minimal.
After hearing this, Ao's expression turned complicated.
"…Now that you put it that way, our losses really are the smallest."
"Exactly," Yagura smiled.
"So why worry about unrest?"
Ao nodded.
"If we explain things clearly, the village should accept it."
Then he hesitated again.
"What about the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?
They bypassed the battlefield and attacked Konoha… but there's been no news."
"No need to look for them," Yagura said calmly.
In his eyes, they were already dead.
As long as the Seven Swords remained, new Swordsmen could always be trained.
Northwest of Konoha
Ōnoki flew leisurely toward the Land of Grass, accompanied by two guards.
He left Konoha later than the others.
Because he had finalized something big with Drake—
The joint encirclement of Sunagakure.
There were Iwa troops embedded within the Sand frontline.
Their role was simple:
Betray them from within.
Of course, Ōnoki wouldn't act for nothing.
His decisiveness impressed Drake.
In return, Drake granted him ten flying permissions at an extremely low price.
"Do you like flying, Tsuichi?" Ōnoki asked cheerfully.
"It's incredible!" Tsuichi said excitedly.
"And you, Kurotsuchi?"
"I'm already getting used to it."
Ōnoki laughed.
"Good. When we get back, pick eight more people and send them to Konoha."
He was in excellent spirits.
Drake normally charged 37 million ryō per person for flight.
Ōnoki got ten slots for one million each.
That alone saved him hundreds of millions.
More importantly—
Drake personally guaranteed:
Any attack on Iwagakure would be treated as an attack on Konoha.
Ōnoki didn't trust the Third Hokage.
But he trusted Drake.
Drake had no reason to lie.
"Ah—Kurotsuchi," Ōnoki suddenly said.
"Fly to the Land of Hot Water immediately. Tell our forces to withdraw once enough damage is done."
"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage."
West of Konoha
Baki and Pakura were the last to leave.
Baki carried a headless corpse on his back, his expression hollow.
Pakura studied the compensation treaty, frowning.
"How do we explain this to Lady Chiyo?" Baki sighed.
The Kazekage had left alive—
and returned dead.
They didn't even know the full story.
All they knew was that Sunagakure owed Konoha enormous compensation.
"What explanation is there?" Pakura shook her head.
"He's dead."
Then she pointed at the treaty.
"This agreement isn't right."
"Isn't it just compensation?" Baki muttered.
"No. Look at who is compensating."
Baki froze.
The original payer had been crossed out—
replaced with Sunagakure.
"…Did you change this?"
"Of course not."
"Then—?"
"Konoha did."
Pakura exhaled slowly.
"This treaty was originally meant to make Konoha pay us.
They backed out—and the Kazekage died because of it."
Baki clenched his fists.
"Damn the Third Hokage…
I told him Konoha had a trap. The Kazekage wouldn't listen."
Konoha Village
Hokage Conference Room
Drake declined Minato's suggestion of a formal inauguration ceremony.
"That can wait," Drake said calmly.
"The priority is wiping out the Sand forces."
Minato could only agree.
The clan heads nodded as well.
They saw this as proof that Drake prioritized the bigger picture.
"Iwa will cooperate from within," Drake continued.
"This battle has only one requirement—speed."
"We strike the Sand forces as fast as possible."
Orders followed immediately.
"All clan shinobi—assemble at the plaza!"
"I'll send a clone to accompany you."
"And finally—bring me a massive metal plate."
Uchiha Fugaku stood.
"I know a defensive summoning technique—
a gate. Will that work?"
"…You mean the Rashōmon?" Minato asked oddly.
"Summon it at the plaza," Drake replied.
"I'll take a look."
Konoha Plaza
Fugaku bit his finger.
"Rashōmon!"
BOOOOM!
A massive green gate erupted from the ground.
"So this is the Rashōmon," Minato murmured.
"The First Hokage once used it to block the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb."
Drake stepped forward.
One finger.
Tap.
The Rashōmon slowly tipped over.
Everyone froze.
BOOOOM!!
The gate slammed into the ground.
"I've engraved flight onto it," Drake said calmly.
"Clan heads—move out."
The crowd finally snapped out of it.
Only Minato remained.
"Drake… how did you train such strength?"
Drake replied honestly.
"Sensei, my strength is actually still very weak."
Minato: "..."
"I'm glad the First Hokage wasn't born in your era," Minato muttered.
"Of course," Drake smiled.
"How could the First Hokage compare to me?"
"…I knew it," Minato sighed.
"By the way," Drake added casually,
"when you return, you'll serve as Hokage Assistant."
"Me?" Minato blinked.
"Done deal."
Hokage Office
Everyone had left.
Drake sat alone, staring at a file.
[Sarutobi Asuma Resisted Arrest]
[Stole flowers without payment]
[Clashed with the Uchiha Police Force]
Drake rubbed his chin.
"Summon ANBU."
A figure appeared instantly.
"Kakashi," Drake said calmly, eyeing the silver hair.
"You've been hiding next door for a while."
"I was waiting to be called."
Drake tossed him the file.
"Arrest Asuma."
"…And then?"
"Hand him over to the Uchiha Police Force."
Kakashi hesitated.
"Trouble?"
"If I go alone… it'll be difficult."
Drake smiled, wrote a short order, and tossed it over.
Kakashi read it—and froze.
"…This is enough."
And vanished.
Sarutobi Clan Compound
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat in silence.
Across from him, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado tried to persuade him.
"Daylight has passed, Hiruzen.
A new generation has arrived… let it go."
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