The Ninja Tools possessed by Kinkaku and Ginkaku are among Kumo's most valuable possessions. In fact, some of those artifacts are specifically used for controlling the two tailed beasts within the village... Therefore, if they return all these items, Konoha will be in a much stronger position during the upcoming negotiations.
So although they fully understood the tremendous power of these Ninja Tools, Sansho and others had never planned to bring them back to Konoha in the first place. However, they also didn't choose to directly deliver those artifacts to Kumo either; instead, they hid both the Ninja Tools and the bodies of Kinkaku and Ginkaku on the spot.
Then, the group headed toward the Land of Lightning.
"Sensei Sansho, I have a question," Haseo thought carefully before finally asking. "Although the rebellion that occurred during the previous alliance ceremony was clearly not Kumo's intention, essentially this still constitutes a breach of trust by Kumo toward Konoha. Therefore, even though both sides need to rebuild their relationship, it should be Kumo taking the initiative to reach out to Konoha instead of us going to Kumo?"
"Hmm, logically speaking, yes, it is indeed Kumo who should take responsibility. But now isn't the time to argue about logic," Sansho replied. "In that previous incident, Konoha's loss was limited to the death of the Second Hokage. By comparison, Kumo suffered much greater losses. The rebellion was led by Kinkaku and Ginkaku along with many elite Kumo ninja—those who were the elite and core strength of the village. During their mutiny, numerous fellow villagers were killed or injured. Then afterward, considerable sacrifice was inevitably required to suppress the rebellion itself... In fact, the administrative structure of Kumo has nearly been paralyzed due to this turmoil. So maintaining stability under the Third Raikage will prove far more difficult than it has been for our own Third Hokage... At times like this, we must send envoys once again."
This explanation sounded logical enough, but Haseo couldn't help noticing that Sansho seemed rather resentful when saying something like, "Konoha's loss was limited to the death of the Second Hokage."
Indeed, Kumo's situation was clearly worse than theirs. Overall, compared to Konoha—the hidden village located in the prosperous and well-rounded Land of Fire—Kumo and the Land of Lightning are typical examples of a military-focused superpower. For such a hardline nation, failing to ensure the safety of visiting allies during an alliance meeting undeniably harms its reputation and national credibility significantly.
Thus, Sansho and his team's mission carried a sense of swallowing pride to shoulder responsibility.
"Considering that both nations had already agreed to form an alliance beforehand, even simply considering the mutual losses suffered and the instability created inside each village, both Konoha and Kumo naturally share the goal of stabilizing internal affairs. Plus, external threats like Iwagakure loom nearby like watching tigers ready to strike. Now is no longer the time for friction and wasting precious vitality between allies... Given the leverage we hold, we can actually assist the Third Raikage in stabilizing Kumo internally. Therefore, renewing this alliance shouldn't pose any significant problem," Sansho assumed Haseo might be worried about security matters ahead and offered this additional clarification.
There was someone from the Uchiha clan in this group. Considering their previous stop in the Land of Rice Fields, Haseo had a rough idea about how they planned to help the Raikage stabilize internal affairs in Kumo. After a brief pause, he went on, "Because of their earlier betrayal, Kumo has seriously damaged its credibility with Konoha. Plus, if we make helping the Raikage consolidate control over internal affairs in Kumo our condition, our demands shouldn't be as simple as just forming an alliance either..."
"How so?"
Haseo gritted his teeth and finally spoke out his suggestion, "Demand that Kumo withdraw its defensive lines facing Konoha, and order their ninja to infiltrate toward the Land of Frost, the Land of Waterfalls, the Land of Grass, and the Land of Rain."
As soon as his words fell, the rapidly advancing group came to an abrupt halt. Sansho, Homura Mitokado, and Kagami Uchiha all turned their gazes sharply toward Haseo.
The Lands of Frost, Waterfalls, Grass, and Rain were all tiny countries sandwiched between the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire. According to Haseo's suggestion, if Kumo's ninja continuously pushed into the Land of Rain, they would directly oppose Iwagakure, simultaneously severing Konoha's connection with Iwagakure.
With Konoha re-establishing an alliance with Kumo, the only remaining enemy for Konoha in this Great Ninja World War would then be Sunagakure alone—turning a three-way confrontation into a one-on-one match—the entire strategic situation for Konoha suddenly became much clearer.
Such a strategic plan was actually proposed by Haseo—a "child" whose beard hadn't even grown in yet... As the saying goes, those involved are often blind to the truth. Previously, Konoha had been scrambling to patch things up with Kumo, yet somehow overlooked the possibilities hidden within that relationship.
However, under everyone's sharp gazes, Haseo now slightly regretted having spoken up.
"Go on."
Yet since he had already started, he had no choice but to continue, "If our presence is truly valuable to Kumo, this condition wouldn't be hard to achieve. After all, Kumo and Iwagakure have always been bitter enemies; such a tactical arrangement wouldn't cost them much. The reason they previously avoided such a stance was merely because they didn't want Konoha to profit from it. Furthermore, this deployment would cause Kumo to worry about Konoha cutting off their overly extended frontlines and supply lines at any moment… But if the two villages form an alliance, these concerns disappear."
"Of course, to strengthen mutual trust, Konoha should also reduce the number of ninja stationed along Kumo's border, maybe even hand over control of the entire frontline bordering the Land of Earth to Kumo entirely... As long as Kumo's ninja don't cross into the Land of Fire, anything's negotiable. In exchange, Konoha can assist Kumo in monitoring Mist's movements, and perhaps establish a new joint intelligence system regarding the Land of Water, sharing information from that direction."
It was impossible to demand the complete withdrawal of forces between Konoha and Kumo—it would be unrealistic to expect full trust even after forming an alliance. However, according to Haseo's suggestion, both sides could simply station small reconnaissance units along the border to keep an eye on each other, preventing the other side from breaking the treaty secretly.
"That makes perfect sense, but... our mission wasn't arranged that way. It's not wise to stir up trouble we didn't plan for. However... well..."
Homura Mitokado struggled deeply with Haseo's strategy.
What surprised everyone even more than Haseo genuinely displaying tactical insight was his current strategic thinking, because... these kinds of issues should have been the responsibility of the Hokage to consider and resolve. The questions Haseo was contemplating were neither about ninjutsu nor tactics, but genuine "strategy."
Before anyone could decide, Sansho—being the eldest—made the first decision. "Let's follow Haseo's suggestion and attempt negotiations. Although this will add certain risks to our original mission, when compared with the potential benefits, such risks are negligible."
This could flip Konoha's position in the war. No one could resist its allure.
And just like that, before entering the Land of Lightning, a new negotiation plan and mission objective was proposed. Everyone stopped at their current location, racing against time to refine the specific negotiation strategy.
Half a day later, the team set off again.
As they approached the Land of Lightning's border, a Kumo ninja appeared—the official envoy sent to greet the Konoha delegation.
"Your count's off. There's one extra person compared to the original report," the ninja scanned through the Konoha ninjas and immediately discovered the problem. This squad should originally contain only four members, but now there were five.
"The extra person is my apprentice. He's a talented young man who can contribute to our mission, so he joined this classified operation... It should pose no real concern. Regardless, our sincerity toward peace talks and alliance remains unchanged," Sansho stepped forward to address the ninja.
Praise usually felt good, but having it aimed at him from an enemy's mouth left Haseo oddly unsettled.
He kind of regretted opening his mouth earlier than he should have. Who knows if Kumo would start paying too much attention to him just because of Sansho's explanation?
Sansho noticed the subtle change in Haseo's expression, so she knew the young man was feeling pressure.
Perfect.
[Poll time!]
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