"Damn that Nagato from Akatsuki."
"Shit!!!"
The Raikage, fresh from a major battle, was seething with rage in their newly established camp.
The reason for his fury was simple.
After receiving word about Nagato, he had immediately gathered Kumo's high-ranking officials for a meeting. In the end, he made the painful decision to retreat.
But before they could even make a move, Ōnoki and Nawaki had already led the allied forces in an all-out assault.
Their relentless, almost suicidal fighting style was enough to make even him uneasy.
Now that the battle was over, he found himself in a dilemma, caught between advancing and retreating.
How could he not be furious?
If Nagato hadn't pulled Akatsuki out, none of this would have happened.
"Lord Raikage, please don't be angry."
"At least Ōnoki won't be getting reinforcements anytime soon."
A high-ranking Kumo-nin attempted to calm him down, but it only made things worse.
"Idiot!!!"
"Just because they don't have reinforcements now doesn't mean they won't get any!"
"They're stalling us for time—what do you think happens when their backup arrives?"
A had been itching for someone to take his anger out on, and this guy had just walked right into it.
...
Faced with the Raikage's outburst, the Kumo-nin opened his mouth but couldn't find the words to respond. He was immediately left speechless.
"Father, we still have some breathing room."
"We need to think of a solution now."
Hearing his son step in to defuse the situation, Third A's expression finally softened a little.
"Looking at the current situation, taking the Land of Earth is no longer realistic."
"Retreat is our best option right now."
"But judging by Ōnoki's stance, he's definitely already set up obstacles along our retreat path."
"How do you all propose we break through?"
As much as he hated to admit it, A knew his campaign to conquer the Land of Earth had failed.
Getting out as quickly as possible had become their top priority.
The longer they stalled, the worse it would be for them.
"Lord Raikage, what if we take a detour?"
As soon as Dodai spoke, all eyes turned to him.
"A detour?"
A frowned and glanced at the map hanging inside the tent.
"Yes."
"Trying to retreat along our original route is almost impossible now."
"Taking a detour will increase the distance, but Ōnoki might not anticipate it."
"We could return through the Land of Rivers or the Land of Hot Water."
Dodai stepped forward, pointing out two alternative routes on the map.
"It's an option."
"But you realize that no matter which route we take, we'll have to deal with Akatsuki."
"Both of these areas are under their control."
A took a moment to think, but something about the idea felt off.
The current relationship between Kumo and Akatsuki was precarious, and marching an army through their territory was bound to be a serious provocation.
"You're right."
"Even though tensions between us and Akatsuki have risen, we haven't officially severed ties."
"If we just request passage, they might not refuse, right?"
Dodai wasn't entirely confident, but at this point, he didn't see a better alternative.
"What do you all think?"
A didn't immediately respond but instead scanned the room, gauging the opinions of his subordinates.
"Akatsuki is in the middle of expanding its influence. There's no way they'll agree to let us through."
"I think it's worth a try."
"If they refuse, does that mean we can't go?"
"A mere Akatsuki—we should teach them a lesson."
"So what if relations break down? If we can't take the Land of Earth, you think we can't handle them?"
...
For a while, the tent was filled with clashing opinions, and the entire place erupted into chaos.
The Third Raikage watched the disorder unfold before him, but he didn't even have the energy to step in.
He truly didn't know what to do anymore.
Meanwhile, on the Iwa side, Ōnoki was in a far better mood than the Kumo-nin.
Minato had wasted no time in relaying the news of Akatsuki's retreat, which allowed Ōnoki to intercept the Kumo forces before they could fully withdraw.
Although the battle to halt their retreat hadn't yielded much of an advantage for Iwa, Ōnoki couldn't help but smile at the thought of Rōshi and Kitsuchi returning. Once they did, they'd be able to crush the Kumo-nin completely.
"Lord Tsuchikage, everything has been arranged."
"We have men stationed at all the key routes leading to the docks."
Since returning with Konoha's reinforcements, Daisuke Nakano had gradually regained his position at the center of Iwa's power structure.
"Excellent."
"They think they can just run? Not that easy."
"Forget a door—I won't even leave them a window."
Confidence gleamed in Ōnoki's eyes.
The battle damage reports stacked beside him did nothing to dampen his spirits.
"Akatsuki's retreat is a massive stroke of luck for us."
"Even though Rōshi and Kitsuchi were badly injured, this news came at just the right time."
"If it had been any later, the Kumo-nin would have already escaped."
One of Iwa's senior officers grinned broadly, clearly overjoyed.
"Exactly."
"When we arrived, it was obvious the Kumo-nin were preparing to withdraw."
"I'd bet the Raikage is furious enough to skin Akatsuki alive right now."
Another officer laughed, equally unable to contain his amusement.
"Kumo was blind to ever form an alliance with Akatsuki."
"They have no one to blame but themselves."
"They should've seen this coming."
Some took the opportunity to gloat, their words dripping with schadenfreude.
"Allies? What a joke."
"Only self-interest is real."
"Akatsuki didn't hesitate for a second to throw Kumo under the bus just to further their own expansion."
"That's something we should keep in mind."
As he spoke, his gaze flicked toward Nawaki, making the atmosphere in the tent turn tense.
Everyone immediately caught the underlying implication.
If Akatsuki could abandon their allies, what about Konoha?
"Heh..."
"Being the good guy is tough."
"I'll make sure to pass your words along to Konoha. Every single one of them."
Nawaki met the man's gaze with a cold smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"You misunderstand."
"I didn't mean it that way."
"We're very grateful for Konoha's support."
"I was just saying that we should be more cautious when choosing allies in the future."
Realizing he had stepped on a landmine, the man scrambled to explain himself.
"It's fine."
"Konoha will be more cautious in the future too."
"After all, not everyone is worth helping."
Nawaki showed no sign of backing down, his smile laced with mockery.
"Apologize."
"If you don't know how to keep your mouth shut, then just stay quiet. No one will think you're mute."
Ōnoki finally spoke up, knowing that if he didn't step in, this situation wouldn't end well.
This fool—how had he been stupid enough to promote him?
Saying something like that right in front of Nawaki—what was he thinking?
Even if he had those thoughts, at least have the sense to keep them private!
Internally cursing the man a thousand times over, Ōnoki still felt unsatisfied.
"I'm sorry, I misspoke."
"Lord Nawaki, please be magnanimous and don't hold it against me."
Since Ōnoki had spoken, the man had no choice but to apologize, no matter how unwilling he was.
"No need to apologize. You weren't wrong."
"I'm feeling a bit tired, so I'll take my leave."
With that, Nawaki stood up and walked out without looking back.
The time to retreat was drawing near.
After Nawaki left, Ōnoki's scolding filled the tent, and no one dared to interrupt.
What had started as a victorious debrief ended on an awkward and bitter note.