The Land of Rain was raging with war, but Konoha remained peaceful.
Thanks to Kizaru's strike against Kumogakure, there had not been much fighting near the village lately.
After returning to Konoha, Kizaru also slipped back into his leisurely routine.
Drinking tea, fishing, and petting cats had become the things he did most every day.
Matatabi's existence had also been discovered by the elders and shinobi of the clan.
At first, everyone had been worried and curious, but after three days passed without incident, the clan members gradually relaxed around Matatabi.
Some of the bolder children even dared to run up to her, circling around her curiously and asking all sorts of questions.
Matatabi was thoroughly annoyed by the noise. Since Kizaru had forbidden her from revealing her true form inside the village—let alone hurting anyone whenever she pleased—she could only storm off to complain to him.
"Hey, you! Can't you control your people a little? They're annoying!"
She walked into the courtyard where Kizaru lived and saw him sitting beneath a tree, drinking tea with a book in hand. That only made her irritation worse.
"Oh my, doesn't that just mean they like you, Matatabi-chan?"
Kizaru answered lazily as he lowered the book and took another sip of tea.
"They're still annoying!"
Still grumbling, she hopped lightly onto the armrest beside him.
Standing there, she stretched out a paw, grabbed a piece of pastry as if it belonged to her, and began eating in big bites.
"Matatabi-chan, why don't you come outside the village with me this afternoon? We can spar a little."
The paw holding the pastry trembled.
The next second, Matatabi jumped off the armrest so fast that the half-eaten pastry dropped straight to the ground.
"No!"
Standing on the ground, she shook her head furiously.
It was no wonder Matatabi reacted so strongly. The last two sparring sessions had left her with very deep memories.
The first time, Kizaru had suggested they wrestle without using chakra, relying only on physical strength.
She had been knocked unconscious.
The second time, Kizaru said he had just learned a new technique and wanted her help testing it.
Having learned from the first disaster, Matatabi had originally planned to refuse.
But when Kizaru tempted her with a huge meal and a chance to leave the village for a while, she had reluctantly agreed.
Then she got punched so hard by his monstrous strength that she nearly started doubting her entire existence.
At the moment the blow landed, Matatabi had honestly thought she was about to see the Sage of Six Paths.
Those two brutal lessons taught her one truth very clearly.
Never go looking for death.
And never, ever spar with Kizaru.
"What a shame."
Matatabi looked unwilling, but Kizaru was the one who sounded genuinely disappointed.
Lord Third was too busy, and Hatake Sakumo was away on another mission.
For the first time in a while, Kizaru found that there was not a single suitable sparring partner for him in the village.
Smiling faintly as he rubbed his chin, Kizaru—who had just fused with the peak physical strength of an admiral and mastered monstrous strength—suddenly found himself looking forward to the Third Raikage's arrival even more.
After all, in the current shinobi world, other than the tailed beasts and the still-living Uchiha Madara, only the Third Raikage could really take a punch from him head-on.
Just as Kizaru was looking forward to the Third Raikage's arrival, another piece of news reached Konoha first.
After repelling Sunagakure's forces, Hanzo of the Salamander publicly declared war on the Land of Fire.
When the news reached Konoha, nearly everyone was stunned.
Other than Kizaru, who already knew how things would develop, even the village's senior officials and the heads of the major clans were caught completely off guard by Hanzo's audacity.
Even the Uchiha elders—who had always been arrogant, ambitious, and full of pride in their own strength—could not help but feel a trace of admiration for Hanzo's nerve.
Who exactly gave him that kind of confidence?
Ōnoki?
Yes. That was the only explanation that made any sense.
The Land of Earth bordered the Land of Rain. If Iwagakure was backing Hanzo from the shadows, then Hanzo's reckless declaration of war at least became understandable.
After receiving the news, Hiruzen Sarutobi treated the matter with great seriousness and immediately called for a high-level meeting.
As Konoha's newest hero and the one who had led the village to victory against Kumogakure, Kizaru was naturally invited as well.
There were seven people attending the meeting in total.
Other than the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, everyone present represented a different faction within the village.
From the Hokage's side were Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, and Kizaru Shimura.
Then there were the heads of two powerful clans, the Hyūga and the Uchiha.
Finally, there was the head of the Nara clan, representing the small and medium-sized shinobi clans.
"Hanzo would never make a move like this without support from one of the great nations behind him."
The first to speak was Homura Mitokado, one of the Hokage's advisors.
"Considering Kumogakure was just defeated by us, and the Raikage himself was captured by Kizaru, we can set the Land of Lightning aside for the time being."
As he said that, Homura instinctively glanced toward Kizaru, who sat beside Hiruzen with his usual easy smile.
"That leaves the Land of Earth and the Land of Water as the most likely possibilities. Kirigakure has been isolated for years and rarely interferes in outside affairs.
"So the most likely answer is the Land of Earth. The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, is both powerful and cunning. He is not someone to be underestimated.
"This sudden declaration of war from Hanzo is most likely the result of Ōnoki pushing him from behind."
Homura was extremely confident in his analysis.
Once he finished speaking, he looked around and saw several people nodding in agreement. Satisfied, he sat back down.
"What do the rest of you think?"
As the one presiding over the meeting, Hiruzen looked calmly at the shinobi seated around him.
"I agree with Homura's analysis."
Koharu Utatane, his long-time partner, was the first to support him.
Hiruzen nodded, then looked at the others.
The heads of the Hyūga and Uchiha clans stayed silent in tacit agreement, clearly with no intention of speaking first.
So Hiruzen turned toward the clan leader of the Nara, an ally of the Sarutobi faction.
"Elder Homura's reasoning is sound," the Nara clan head said first, before continuing in a measured tone. "The Tsuchikage is indeed the most likely candidate. However, the Land of Wind cannot be ignored either.
"The Third Kazekage is ambitious and powerful, and Sunagakure has always coveted the Land of Fire. I believe there is a possibility that Hanzo's conflict with the Land of Wind was only for show, and that Konoha is the true target."
"I did overlook that possibility," Homura admitted with a nod. "The Land of Wind cannot be ruled out."
Kizaru sat there quietly, his hands folded before him, one finger resting lightly against his chin.
Truthfully, he felt Homura's analysis was not entirely wrong.
Ordinary people simply did not do the kind of thing Hanzo was doing. Calling it bold was being polite. It was madness.
In the original course of events, the Lands of Earth, Lightning, and Water had barely taken part in the Second Shinobi War.
Hanzo really had been arrogant enough to declare war on both the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire almost at the same time.
But now, there was a very large butterfly flapping its wings in this world.
And that butterfly was him.
The plot had already changed.
The Land of Lightning had entered the war, only to be crushed immediately.
Ōnoki, cautious as ever, might decide that Konoha had grown too dangerous and secretly support Hanzo from the shadows in order to wear down the Land of Fire.
But looking at it from another angle, the same Ōnoki might also choose the opposite approach.
After seeing Kumogakure collapse so quickly, he might decide that provoking Konoha now was a terrible idea and focus instead on quietly building up Iwagakure's strength.
"Say," Kizaru finally spoke, still smiling as he raised his head, "has anyone considered the possibility that no one is backing Hanzo at all? Maybe he's just that bold."
The room fell silent for a moment.
"Impossible," Homura said at once, rejecting the idea without hesitation. "No one would do something that foolish."
"In my view, the Tsuchikage is still the most likely force backing Hanzo," he added firmly, sticking to his original judgment.
Kizaru smiled and rubbed his chin.
"If Elder Homura is that confident, why not let me bring the Tsuchikage back to the village? Then we can ask him ourselves, hmm?"
The room froze.
Homura's face stiffened on the spot, his mind momentarily going blank.
The others were just as startled.
But once the shock passed, they all had to admit the same thing.
Given Kizaru's record, it was not completely impossible for him to actually do it.
"Kizaru, don't be rude."
Worried that his student might be getting carried away after defeating the Raikage, Hiruzen seized the chance to correct him.
"Iwagakure is not our enemy yet."
Then his tone became more serious.
"The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, has mastered Dust Release, the only kekkei tōta in the shinobi world. His strength is not to be underestimated. You must never look down on an opponent."
"Oh my, I was only joking, Sensei."
Faced with Hiruzen's warning, Kizaru simply replied with his usual lazy smile.
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