Escape From Konoha

Earth Country, Western Iwagakure Camp.

Compared with the military fortresses established by the Demon Kingdom in the west of the Earth Kingdom, the camps established by the Iwagakure Village still retain a quite ancient style, and most of them use the military tents carried by ancient soldiers when they marched and fought as the main resting points.

This kind of military camp surrounded by tents not only looks crude, but also has almost zero protective effect once the enemy ninja troops attack here.

The only line of defense is probably the 'wall' formed by patrolling troops.

At least for ordinary people, such a camp is unbreakable.

As the commander-in-chief of the Iwagakure front line, the third-generation Tsuchikage Onoki was sitting in a large tent dedicated to conferences. He was frowning deeply at the moment. The skin on his face had already become loose and wrinkled under the marks of time. of.

It is indeed hard for an old man who is over seventy years old to rush to the forefront of the battlefield and fight hard with a group of young and passionate ninjas. But it also happened to prove Iwagakure's long-standing weakness - the Tsuchikage had no successor.

There may have been such an heir, but the other person has gloriously become a notorious S-class rebel ninja. Not long ago, he also attacked his ally Sunagakure and almost took away Sunagakure's one-tail jinchūriki... Let's learn this Ohnoki was so angry that he almost vomited blood.

In this way, he is no longer qualified to laugh at Konoha's lax management. There are so many dangerous rebellious ninjas. Now Iwagakure seems to have embarked on the same old path as Konoha?

Ohnoki was undoubtedly angry when he saw such news.

After all, this organization captured Iwagakure's two tailed beasts. If it hadn't been like this, he wouldn't have been so passive on the battlefield with the Demon Country.

Whether it is a four-tailed jinchuriki or a five-tailed jinchuriki, they are all powerful ninjas who use the power of the tailed beasts. They will not lose their minds without completely liberating the chakra of the tailed beasts. Even in a one-on-one situation, he couldn't defeat them in a short time.

As long as the two jinchūriki use the tailed beast chakra in their bodies on the battlefield, the destructive power they can produce to the enemy will be far greater than that of his Tsuchikage.

Thinking about this, I hate this mysterious organization that targets tailed beasts even more than the country of ghosts in front of me.

If the two tailed beasts hadn't disappeared...

Just when Onoki was so upset, the curtain of the tent was opened, and Huangtu, the son of the elite Jonin of Iwagakure, walked in from the outside.

Judging from his slightly thin face, he must have suffered a lot during the recent battle with the ninjas from the Kingdom of Ghosts.

"Have you received any letters from Konoha, Sunagakure, and Kirigakure?"

There are 10,000 ninjas gathered in this camp. If the ninjas of the great powers do not dispatch, it is not a problem to wipe out the entire ninja world.

But facing a behemoth of the same level or even more powerful, even with ten thousand ninjas, Onoki did not have absolute confidence that he could defeat the Kingdom of Demons.

Because the woman Hinata Ayane appeared on the battlefield again, although she did not launch an attack, as long as the opponent came out to show off her face, it would be enough to cause a huge deterrent to Iwagakure.

It was as if this battlefield was just a stage for her catwalk, with a relaxed and leisurely attitude.

Loess looked at his old father who was irritable but still suppressing his depression. There was a look of worry in his eyes. He came over and made a cup of hot tea for his father Onoki before saying slowly: "Sunagakure said that he would contain the Kingdom of Demons. Part of the main force, but for the rest, he expressed a deep feeling of powerlessness. Konoha sent four thousand ninjas to support our Iwagakure, but when they reached the front line, they remained stationary."

Although it was not stated explicitly, this attitude of not fighting undoubtedly pointed out the intentions of Sunagakure and Konoha at this time.

They hope that Iwagakure will focus on the overall situation and that no party will be able to afford the consequences of continuing to fight.

And Onoki couldn't blame him, because Sunagakure and Konoha both expressed support, at least they didn't intend to let Iwagakure fight alone.

But as a result, the situation in the western part of the Earth Kingdom... Ohnoki became worried for a while.

"How's it going over there Kirigakure?"

"The Mizukage deeply feels that the failure of this war is attributable to several persons. He said that he will take the blame and resign in the near future, select the fifth Mizukage, and then discuss the attack with Iwagakure."

"..."

Should you still resign at this time and carry out power transfer? What does Kirigakure want to do?

Ohnoki's face turned blue and white, his lips moved twice, and he wanted to curse something, but in the end he took a deep breath and endured it.

He originally thought that Yagura's resignation was just a show of words... He didn't expect that he would actually do it, and even a formal notice was sent.

Although doing so does indeed focus the conflicts between the villages on personal mistakes, causing all the faults to be borne by the Mizukage personally... But if an apology can comfort the seven thousand ninjas who sacrificed by Iwagakure, he would It’s not that I don’t mind what Yagura does.

However, now that I think about it, Kirigakure's behavior is nothing less than rubbing salt into Iwagakure's wounds.

"He is really an excellent 'Water Shadow'!"

Onoki gritted his teeth.

Although he hated it, he had to admit that doing this would help Yagura win the trust of his subordinates and make them more loyal.

Generally speaking, if there is a major mistake in the village, the responsibility will be put on one of the people in charge, and not the shadow of the village will be responsible... because this means that it will shake the strength of the shadow's rule.

But Yagura did it without hesitation, even though the method was ridiculous and even despicable.

He's a shrewd guy.

Now it is impossible for Iwagakure to ask Kirigakure to hand over Mizukage to apologize and make up for the losses of Iwagakure and Konoha. After all, the person involved has sincerely apologized and resigned...

"In addition, it seems that the two hundred-man reconnaissance teams sent out by Kirigakure two days ago have lost contact again in the western waters of the Kingdom of Demons... The top management of Kirigakure seems to want to conceal this news and does not intend to let us These Allied forces saw the rich 'results' of their war."

Huangtu also felt helpless about this.

After being lied about the war situation last time, he was cautious about Kirigakure's information.

Kirigakure can't just say whatever he says.

"..."

Regarding such funny news, Onoki no longer even had the idea of ​​joking.

Although this news is indeed very funny, it also reveals an extremely cruel reality - the Kingdom of Oni is far more professional in water combat than Kirigakure's water escape ninjas.

Although Kirigakure's behavior of lying about the battle report was disgraceful, as a ninja village from a large country, it still had combat effectiveness, and it was not a ninja force like a small country that could be broken at a touch.

He just laughed at Yagura's cunning and shamelessness. As a five-kage, but without the responsibility of a five-kage, he would only be so sneaky and cunning, but he would not ridicule or belittle the combat effectiveness of a powerful ninja village.

Thinking of everything Iwagakure encountered on the frontal battlefield, Kirigakure was in such a dilemma in the western waters of the Kingdom of Demons, which is proof of the strength of the Maritime Fleet of the Demon Kingdom.

There is no way to determine the route of the Kingdom of Ghosts in the western sea. Entering rashly will only lead to a devastating blow.

The worst outcome is to be like Jiraiya and be made dumplings by the Demon Country. If Konoha hadn't sent Shimura Danzo out and used this unexpected method, Konoha's losses would not have been lower than Iwagakure's, or even more severe. Even Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, might have lost his life forever. Buried in bear country...

In addition, the two hundred-man reconnaissance troops were wiped out again this time. Kirigakure had lost thousands of ninjas from the beginning of the war to now just as a test. Strictly speaking, Kirigakure's losses were also not low. With this lost power, there is no problem in flattening several small countries.

However, they all collapsed in the western sea of ​​the Kingdom of Ghosts, and not a single bit of information could be found...

Onoki's eyes became serious.

Not only the land and sky, but also the sea...has it become the absolute domain of the Kingdom of Demons?

Even Kirigakure, the best at water fighting in the ninja world, found it difficult to conquer.

"It seems the situation is over..."

Ohnoki shook his head and sighed. His already old body looked even older, and his aura was decadent.

attack? Recover lost ground?

Attack with what? What can we do to regain lost ground?

Or negotiation?

Iwagakure, who cannot even win a frontal battlefield, will be even more passive when it comes to the negotiation table and cannot be expected to regain lost ground in negotiations.

Huang Tu also saw his father Ohnoki's intention to retreat, and asked tentatively: "The troops stationed here..."

"We can't retreat!" Ohnoki's cloudy eyes were red, even with a hint of ferocious color: "Not only can't we retreat, we must also take an active offensive posture! As long as the Kingdom of Oni dares to attack again, Iwagakure will The 10,000 ninjas here were broken into pieces, and they rushed into the Kingdom of Demons at all costs, destroyed their towns, invaded their territories, and died with them. Go and spread this news, and make the noise as loud as possible. !”

If the Land of Earth and Iwagakure are destroyed, then the Kingdom of Demons will not have an easy time either.

At least they will suffer hundreds of thousands or even millions of civilian losses, and their economy will be set back for decades!

That's what Ohnoki had in mind.

Now that Earth Country and Iwagakure are gone, the so-called 'bottom line' will no longer be the bottom line.

After all, if they continue to fight, this is the only way Iwagakure can use to stop the Demon Country.

Unless the Oni Kingdom doesn't care about the casualties of domestic people or the economic decline, and wants to destroy the Earth Country and Iwagakure.

"yes!"

Huang Tu's heart was trembling. Although he couldn't bear Ohnoki's decision and wanted to dissuade him, when the words came to his lips, he changed his tune and obeyed the order.

Huang Tu was about to leave. He just turned around and before he could lift his steps, Ohnoki's cold voice came from behind again: "Huang Tu, you have to remember that we have no choice in this situation. If one day I die in the line of duty, When you inherit the Fourth Tsuchikage, you must implement this determination! The world of ninjas does not require mercy or weakness. You only need to make the enemy feel fear and fear to ensure survival!"

A gambler who ends up with nothing in gambling can only gamble his life with others.

As an old man who has existed since the Warring States Period, Ohnoki deeply understands that this is not the Warring States Period, but his only bottom line is that he will not expect mercy from his enemies.

He once thought that a peaceful world would be born.

However, decades ago, when he accompanied his teacher, the Second Tsuchikage, to negotiate in Konoha and was beaten to the ground by Uchiha Madara, he understood a truth deeply.

The weak will be bullied by the strong.

The strong will not negotiate with the weak. The strong only needs the submission of the weak, while the weak can only survive.

Only by becoming the strongest person can you not be bullied by others.

Therefore, Onoki will not expect mercy and compassion from the Demon Country, nor will he put the hope of regaining the land on the negotiation table.

The so-called agreement is meant to be torn up and has no binding force at all.

As a Tsuchikage, he must use his own methods to defend the interests of the village and the country, even if it means dying together with the enemy.

There are mixed feelings in Loess's eyes. Is this his last words? He still realized that Iwagakure's crisis was urgent and he, the Tsuchikage, was needed to arrange his funeral arrangements as soon as possible.

"I understand, father... No, Lord Tsuchikage, if that day comes, I will carry out this order!"

Nodding, in response to Onoki's words, Huang Tu walked out of the tent firmly.

◎

Iwagakure's new round of threats came faster than expected.

After hearing the news, Shiraishi laughed with interest: "In the beginning, there were five thousand ninjas, but now it has become the threat of ten thousand ninjas... It seems that the bottom line of this Tsuchikage-dono is constantly bouncing. .”

As for Shiraishi's remarks that add insult to injury, Liuli could only regard it as a malicious behavior by the other party who showed no respect for the elderly and the young.

Although she has no idea of ​​respecting the elderly and caring for the young.

However, Iwagakure's attitude at this time had to be carefully considered.

After all, if Iwagakure really does this, regardless of any means, it will indeed bring huge trauma to the country of ghosts.

"I thought that swallowing up the entire western part of Earth Country would force Iwagakure down this road... I didn't expect it to come sooner."

Liuli said.

"The elderly will indeed consider the crisis more carefully and become more crazy."

Shiraishi put away the joke on his face and turned serious.

If Iwagakure really shuts down the road, Iwagakure will most likely act like this. As for the small probability behavior that is impossible to happen, Shiraishi would not dare to gamble with the lives of millions of people.

Although despicable, I have to say that this is indeed a good means of self-protection.

The cannons of the Kingdom of Ghosts have been placed at their doorstep, and they can invade the land of the Kingdom of Earth again at any time. The Tsuchikage has no choice but to follow the bottom line rules.

Human beings can do anything once they can no longer survive.

Otherwise, how could the bandits that could never be eliminated in the ninja world come from?

Although some of them do want to get something for nothing by committing evil, but more robbers are civilians who have no choice but to do so.

They cannot survive without robbing food.

Although the current Iwagakure and Earth Country have not reached that point, if the Oni Country continues to go to war, it will be a matter of time before they embark on this path.

The people of the Ghost Country are their primary targets for revenge.

"Want to fight back?"

"It's not necessary. After all, the other party's bottom line has already been opened. Just squeeze their bottom line further."

Shiraishi shook his head.

Ohnoki put up a posture of dying together, so Shiraishi would not be stupid enough to bet against him.

After all, the stakes of both parties are not at the same level.

This is a big disadvantage for the country of ghosts.

And when Iwagakure said these words, didn't it mean that they had already acquiesced in their hearts that there was no way to recover some of the land in the western part of the Earth Kingdom that was captured by the Demon Kingdom?

They did not demand the return of the land, but used these threatening remarks to force the Kingdom of Ghosts to stop attacking.

On the surface, Iwagakure has the upper hand, but in fact the bottom line is already lowering and loosening.

The Tsuchikage was also scared and worried!

At this time, it is not advisable to stimulate Iwagakure's behavior. There are countless examples of greedy and greedy snakes swallowing the elephant, and finally dying... Even if the Earth Kingdom is captured, the Demon Kingdom will not be able to occupy it all, because the territory of the big country is too large, and in the end it will only It makes other countries cheaper in vain.

And it is even more irrational to risk being retaliated by Iwagakure.

"You mean commercially?"

Liuli thought of something.

"It's not just business, there are many ways to squeeze their bottom line."

Shiraishi looked at the map of the ninja world hanging on the wall.

A dotted line is drawn on the western territory of the Kingdom of Earth. To the west of the dotted line, it has become the territory of the Kingdom of Ghosts.

There are several locations marked with red circles, which will be the mineral resource-rich areas that the Kingdom of Ghosts will focus on next.

Today's situation in the Kingdom of Ghosts and the Kingdom of Earth is similar to that of tigers and people enclosed in a secret room.

Although human beings who are trapped in a situation of no escape are weak, if they continue to be forced, they will burst out with a strong will to survive before death, chipping a few of the tiger's teeth and biting off a few pieces of the tiger's meat. Although it will not cause death, it will Let the tiger know the pain.

However, if a door is opened in the secret room, humans will avoid the tiger's edge and escape.

In this way, as the doors kept opening, humans kept escaping. In the process of escaping, they gradually became exhausted and lost the power to resist.

In the end, the tiger effortlessly devoured the human and enjoyed an extremely satisfying meal.

What Shiraishi has to do now is not to stimulate Earth Country and Iwagakure in one step, but to erode their bottom line step by step from other aspects.

After all, as long as the bottom line is broken through for the first time, it will be broken through for the second and third times, and then there is no end.

In the past, Shiraishi liked to tie forehead protectors to Ayane's eyes and play games. Ayane was very resistant at first, but after repeated requests, she couldn't withstand the hard work, so she slowly let go of her resistance and became He was extremely obedient, and finally began to consciously put on forehead protectors over his eyes.

And all of this was the result of his hard work...

"Besides, that arms agreement can almost be torn up."

A few years ago, the Ghost Country did still need to accumulate, but it is no longer needed now.

Actions to support small countries will be more rapid in the future.

It just so happened that this alliance of the four major powers gave Shiraishi a reason to tear up the arms agreement.

"Do I need to go over for the next negotiation?"

Liuli asked next.

She doesn't like so-called negotiations, but if she wants to end this war, she still needs a negotiation as a perfect ending ceremony.

However, considering that the Hokage of Konoha will also appear on the stage, Liuli feels that it would be better if he or Ayane takes the lead.

Shiraishi originally wanted to say that he would just go there by himself, and it wouldn't take long anyway, but then he thought of the same problem as Liuli.

For former teachers, I always have mixed feelings.

Moreover, with the outbreak of this war, there is no room for relaxation between the two.

No matter what expectations the two sides had for each other, under such contradictions, they could only move towards confrontation.

"Then please, I will work with Lin to re-modify the fire elf's body."

Shiraishi dropped these words and left the empty conference room.

This means that subsequent negotiations will be fully handled by Liuli.

Now that he and Tsunade are on opposite sides, they can only be treated as enemies.

◎

When the store was about to close late at night, only Sakura's family of three were left in Haruno Barbecue Restaurant, with no other customers present.

"Mother You and I don't have time to take care of you these days. How about it, Sakura, are you busy with tasks lately?"

The head of the family, Haruno Zhao, spoke normally and asked Sakura how her recent mission life was going.

Sakura had just returned from training and was already very exhausted, but after eating a piece of barbecued meat, she immediately regained her energy.

I didn't feel strange about his father Haruno Zhao's question. It was just the most normal communication between family members.

"There is no such thing as being busy. I am busy at the hospital in the morning, or doing odd jobs for the teacher, and in the afternoon and evening, I am just practicing."

Sakura replied.

Perhaps it was the cultivation of strange power that awakened the violent factor in her body. Sakura suddenly understood why Naruto and Sasuke were so keen on practicing in the past.

Now that she felt that she could break a rock with one punch, Sakura felt that the feeling of punching her flesh was so exciting that she couldn't stop.

"So, do you need to be transferred to the front line?"

Haruno Zhao felt uneasy in his heart, but asked with a calm expression on his face.

Konoha and the Kingdom of Demons are currently at war. Although the battle between the two sides has been temporarily mediated, there is still the possibility of renewed conflict.

As a medical ninja, Sakura might be recruited and sent to the front line.

Sakura also saw her parents' worries and said with a smile: "Don't worry, a group of wounded people have been sent back to the front line. The teacher said now that it's not time for me to go to the battlefield."

"That's good."

Haruno Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.

His reaction didn't strike Sakura as strange. Parents who were worried about their children's lives were basically like this.

And although Sakura has never seen the battlefield ahead, she only went to the hospital to walk around with the wounded, and she deeply understands what a cruel place the battlefield is.

Especially when you see those injured people who, as soon as they hear a loud noise, immediately squat in the corner and cry, or their eyes are red, and they smash the vase in a rage, it is obvious that they have received severe mental stimulation on the battlefield.

Sakura couldn't imagine what kind of scene would cause these ninjas to be so traumatized and their sanity collapsed.

She knew how to deal with wounds and how to perform first-aid surgery, but for psychological trauma, she really didn't know how to treat such injuries. She could only hope that time would smooth out their psychological scars.

"Ah, by the way, there is one thing I forgot to mention. A clerk who works the night shift in the store recently took a leave of absence to rest for a while. I heard that something happened to his family, and I couldn't find anyone here... Well, Sakura, if you're not busy, you can stop practicing at night for now and come to the store to help."

Haruno Zhao and his wife Haruno Meabuki exchanged glances, and then Haruno Zhao spoke.

"If it doesn't take long, I can help."

Sakura put down her chopsticks and took a sip of water. She was almost full.

"Don't worry, it'll only take more than half a month at most. It won't delay your practice."

Haruno Zhao touched his five-pointed star hairstyle and smiled at Sakura.

Sakura frowned and hesitated for a moment. Her original intention was to help for a week at most, but now it might take half a month. She wanted to refuse, but when she saw her mother Haruno Meabuki's eyes asking for help, she nodded helplessly and said: "I understand. , I will come over to help then. If there is nothing else, I will go back first."

"Well, go ahead. I'm sorry to trouble you, Sakura. I will assign a D-level mission to Hokage-sama and pay you accordingly."

Regarding her father's formal request, Sakura couldn't laugh or cry for a moment.

But she didn't refuse. As a girl, she also needs private money.

Seeing Sakura leaving, the eyes of Haruno and his wife suddenly became profound.

Afterwards, the two of them started to clear the table as if nothing had happened, mopped the floor in the store, closed the door and went home.

Everything was normal, going on calmly.