Escape From Konoha

The Five Shadows Talks held on September 27 ended early due to various accidents that day. On the night when the meeting ended, the five shadows who came to participate in the meeting left overnight with their guards and ANBU, returned to the village, and began to make pre-war adjustments regarding the alliance.

Although the meeting lasted only a few hours, the Five Shadows had already had a heated discussion. Although they had not drawn up a detailed plan, the general work content was already very concise and clear. As for the details, you need to hold a Jonin meeting in the village after you return to complete it.

At the same time, it was agreed that at the end of this month, they would meet and talk again in the Kingdom of Iron to formulate an implementable strategic plan to deal with the Fifth Ninja War.

As for the other countries paying attention to the Five Shadows Conference, although they still don't know what happened during the talks, they can guess that no matter what was discussed at the talks, the Five Shadows have already made some kind of decision together.

The ninja world will undergo unprecedented drastic changes next.

A war that exceeds the scale of all previous ninja wars is about to come.

For a time, people all over the world were panicked.

Especially small countries that were often in war zones in the past were even more wary and began to send envoys non-stop to visit big countries. They wanted to know a definite answer and then make arrangements in advance to reduce their country's losses.

Almost when the Five Kages were on their way back, Nagato rushed back to the Land of Rain overnight, and at noon, he landed from the sky at the central tower of the Hidden Rain Village.

Wearing a black coat with red clouds and a vague look of worry on her face, Konan also stayed up all night, waiting for Nagato to return in the tower.

At this time, seeing Nagato return unharmed, the worry on her face lessened slightly, and she breathed a sigh of relief secretly.

In any case, it was the scene of the Five Kage Conference, which gathered almost most of the top ninjas from the great powers. If Nagato participated as the leader of the Akatsuki organization, he would definitely be targeted by them together, and a war might break out.

Even though she was confident in Nagato's strength, she still felt a little uneasy in the face of being outnumbered.

Every big country that rules the ninja world is a tough nut to crack. What's more, the Akatsuki organization is not perfect and has various flaws.

This is also the reason why Nagato must intervene in the Five Shadows Conference at this time.

"Xiaonan, you don't have to wait for me like this. The main purpose of my going to the Iron Kingdom is not to fight, but to negotiate."

Seeing a slightly tired look on Konan's face, Nagato knew that Konan must have been awake all night, and had been in a state of worry all night, so her spirits must not be much better.

"It doesn't matter, I can still hold on. Compared to me, it's really hard on your side. So, Nagato, what was the result of your conversation over there?"

Konan shook his head, not paying attention to his body, and looked at Nagato seriously.

Nagato opened his mouth and sighed silently.

He did not answer immediately, but walked forward towards the corridor, and Xiaonan followed suit.

"I successfully prevented the Kingdom of Ghosts from entering the Alliance of Great Powers. However, this matter is a bit strange."

Nagato paused and said this.

"strangeness?"

"Yes. The White Zetsus found loopholes in the Kingdom of Ghost's plan. Whether it was the combat readiness resources secretly raised in advance or the elite troops secretly transferred to the Kingdom of Wind and the Kingdom of Earth, the time was stuck very cleverly."

A rare human look of doubt flashed through Nagato's Rinne eyes.

"You mean...this is a trick played by the Kingdom of Ghosts on us?"

Xiaonan opened her mouth in surprise.

"Not necessarily for us, but also for the other five big countries. Although the Kingdom of Ghosts is strong, if it wants to swallow up the other five big countries in one go, it will suffer heavy losses. That man Qianba Shiraishi, even if Even when he has an absolute advantage, he will still choose to work step by step and win with minimal sacrifice. This is his consistent style."

Nagato let out a sigh of relief, frowning slightly.

"Then we can choose an unexpected way to attack by surprise."

Xiaonan thought for a moment and replied.

Nagato shook his head and vetoed: "No, it's not just that. Although Chiba Shiraishi adopts a steady advancement strategy most of the time and uses the general trend to oppress the enemy, he occasionally uses some tricks outside the chessboard, thinking To attack the Kingdom of Ghosts by surprise, this method is also very difficult to achieve. The best way is to defeat them from the front, but this is precisely the most difficult thing to do."

Xiaonan was silent.

Defeating the Kingdom of Ghosts head-on would mean huge sacrifices if this method was adopted.

Even Akatsuki, who now holds six tailed beasts, plus White Zetsu and the Dragon Beast Legion, as well as all the core members of Akatsuki, may not be able to achieve such results from the front.

Moreover, according to Bai Zetsu's mysterious investigation, the Kingdom of Ghosts still has many hidden powers that have not been used in past battlefields.

And this part of the power is vaguely related to the huge reward platform in the underground black market.

"It's a pity, if the Eight-Tails capture operation had not failed..."

Xiaonan secretly regretted it.

Now is the time for all parties to increase their bargaining chips.

The weight of a tailed beast is definitely not low.

"Don't say that. Kisame and Beilihu have tried their best. Moreover, these are just my personal guesses. Maybe Bai Zetsu noticed it. It's just that the country of ghosts was really negligent and allowed us to take advantage of it. There is nothing else. special reason."

It's just that even Nagato himself didn't believe such a reason.

But he didn't want Xiaonan to worry too much, so he was relieved like this.

"In the final analysis, in terms of intelligence, the gap between us and the Kingdom of Ghosts is too far... The more information we have, it means that there are more strategies to choose from. Therefore, even if I interfere with this operation of the Kingdom of Ghosts, it will be very difficult. Develop new strategies quickly to reduce exposure losses.”

Nagato would not naively believe that just interfering with the Kingdom of Demon's joining the Alliance this time would cause a huge blow to the opponent. The consequences would be nothing more than a readjustment of the Kingdom of Demon's strategy.

The Kingdom of Ghosts, which has an absolute advantage in information, must have prepared a variety of strategic plans that can be implemented in order to deal with this war. Although it caused some trouble, it did not affect the strength of the Kingdom of Ghosts.

"Sure enough, they are much more difficult to deal with than other big countries."

When Konan heard what Nagato said, she nodded convincingly, without doubting Nagato's judgment.

Then, Xiaonan thought of something and asked, "So, regarding the people in the Kingdom of Rain, does the other side also agree?"

This is what Xiaonan is thinking about. After decades of fluctuations in the Kingdom of Rain, although the population has dropped sharply, it has remained at more than one million. This population will be a heavy burden for them in the next battle.

Nagato nodded as he walked down the corridor.

"Don't worry, the matter of population migration has basically been settled. The date for the war will be decided by the Five Shadows. Before that, we need to move the population of the Rain Kingdom to the plains of the River Kingdom as soon as possible to avoid the next war. It affects them.”

"Then I'll be relieved, but beware of major powers tearing up treaties."

Xiao Nan didn't completely let down his guard.

Treaties, whether verbal or paper agreements, are not binding as long as you want to violate them.

Especially these superior powers, once the war becomes serious, they will adopt various extreme strategic plans without taking into account the so-called moral ethics.

The Country of Rain has experienced this kind of thing many times and will no longer believe in such a boring treaty.

"Don't worry, today is different from the past. Before Xiao fell, they would never dare to do this. If they don't follow the rules, then we can also not follow the rules. The damage caused by ignoring the rules is mutual, not just for one of them. One side.”

Nagato's face was indifferent, and he was not worried that this treaty would be torn up. At least until Akatsuki fell, this treaty was fully binding.

And this kind of binding force was brought by him, the six tailed beasts, Bai Jue and the Dragon Beast Legion.

"In other words, this war, as we thought before, is a three-party constraint between Akatsuki, the Kingdom of Ghosts, and the Alliance of Five Powers."

In Akatsuki's plan, this is the perfect balance.

"uncertain."

Nagato narrowed his eyes.

"What?"

"Chiba Shiraishi deliberately proposed unlimited Tsukuyomi at the Five Kage Conference to make the Five Kages feel terrified. After that, most of the Iron Kingdom's samurai will join the alliance of the five major nations and participate in the crusade against us."

Nagato's confident words surprised Konan.

"However, we have no plans to release Infinite Tsukuyomi."

Xiaonan was a little angry, and her voice suddenly dropped.

"The point is not whether our purpose requires Infinite Tsukuyomi to gain dominance. As long as we have the key to activate it, we will be targeted collectively. This is inevitable."

Even if there is a one percent possibility, the alliance forces headed by the five major countries will definitely be the first to stop it. They would not let outsiders get such dangerous weapons.

In order to cooperate with the actions of the alliance of the five major powers, the Kingdom of Ghosts will probably maintain the same tacit understanding.

After all, in addition to the threat of Infinite Tsukuyomi, the Alliance of Five Powers also wants to take back the six-tailed beast in Akatsuki's hands.

Therefore, Nagato feels that the next work will not be easy, and it is best to be prepared in advance to fight one against two.

The only good thing is that the Kingdom of Ghosts and the Alliance of Five Powers have parted ways, and it is even more difficult for them to cooperate.

If used well, it might become a weapon for Akatsuki to attack the enemy.

"Next, Xiaonan, I'll leave the job of relocating the population to you."

There were many things to consider, so Nagato left the task of relocating the population to Xiaonan.

This period is temporarily in the 'peace' stage, and all parties are planning to make a name for themselves, so there is no point in being sneaky.

Akatsuki's top priority at the moment is to transfer the population, and then use the Kingdom of Rain as the core of the entire battlefield to lay out the battle lines and wait for the war to come.

"I understand. I will go to the River Country to discuss it. By the way, Kisame seems to have something to ask you."

Xiaonan nodded and was about to leave when he suddenly remembered something and left these words.

After hearing this, Nagato wanted to use this free time to repair the Six Paths Pain that was seriously damaged in Konoha, but he decided to deal with Kisame first.

◎

Due to the close geographical location, Tsunade and others returned to Konoha around noon after moving at full speed for more than ten hours.

When Tsunade returned to Konoha, the first thing she did was to find Shikaku and ask him to announce the convening of a Jonin meeting. Regardless of the Jonin stationed at the border, all the Jonin staying in the village had to participate in this meeting. s meeting. At the same time, he immediately notified the Jonin stationed at the border and rushed back to the village.

The jounin meeting will be held at ten o'clock in the morning on the 29th, and there is still time for the jonins of Konoha to prepare.

"Did so many things happen during the Five Shadows Conference? It was really unexpected."

In the Hokage's office, after listening to Tsunade's detailed account of the Five Shadows Conference, Shikaku let out a sigh. Even he could not have expected that so many things would happen during the Five Shadows Conference.

The Kingdom of Ghost's military measures to secretly raise supplies and mobilize troops were exposed too timely and completely lost the trust of other major powers.

If the leader of Akatsuki hadn't intervened, the Kingdom of Ghosts would definitely have raided the border between the Kingdom of Wind and the Kingdom of Earth at some point in time.

The most suitable time is when the alliance of the great powers and the Akatsuki organization are fighting until both sides are injured. The Kingdom of Demons uses his identity as a member of the alliance to make a surprise attack from behind and reap the perfect results.

Now kicking the Kingdom of Ghosts out of the alliance is also a security measure for the benefit of all countries.

At least in Shikaku's view, at this time, the Demon Country, which still wants to target other major countries, has completely offended the public this time. After Akatsuki is solved, the alliance of the five major countries will definitely turn around and deal with the Kingdom of Ghosts as soon as possible.

Unless Shion, the shrine maiden of the Kingdom of Ghosts, is willing to remove Chiba Shiraishi from his leadership position in the military, replace him with a less radical conservative, and forcefully imprison ninjas with dangerous ideas like Chiba Shiraishi... maybe ghosts There is also the possibility of easing relations with the five major countries.

However, this is simply impossible to do.

Putting aside whether the miko of the Demon Country still has the power to change military leaders at will, Chiba Shiraishi is by no means a person who is waiting to be killed.

What's more, the current shrine maiden of the Demon Country, Shion, is Chiba Shiraishi's adopted daughter. In addition, Chiba Shiraishi is also the minister who was left behind by the previous shrine maiden to assist the current shrine maiden. One person is worth more than ten thousand people. In addition to his pure divine power being controlled by the shrine maiden, his influence is no longer limited to the military field. .

For such a figure whose fame, power and force have reached the pinnacle of the ninja world, it is not an exaggeration to regard her as another 'miko', just a 'miko' who rules the 'human world' of the ghost country.

Such a person is no longer someone who can be defeated easily.

The only option is to defeat them head-on.

"Yeah, that kid acted too fast, and I didn't expect that Jiraiya's death had a lot to do with him. Even the information about dealing with Pain was deliberately left to Konoha."

When Tsunade thought about this, she was so angry that she wanted to vomit blood, shook her head and smiled bitterly.

From this point of view, Konoha has to 'thank' the intelligence from the Kingdom of Demons to deal with Pain's weakness, and without any precautions, Konoha will suffer more casualties, and Naruto will be taken away by Akatsuki.

"From a standpoint, he is a formidable enemy that cannot be taken too seriously."

For Jiraiya's sacrifice, Shikaku could only mourn in silence.

Even if he had not gone to Amegakure at that time, Jiraiya would have been intercepted and killed by the ninjas of the Demon Country on the way, and then he would also have left a message of sacrifice in Amegakure to Konoha.

From the moment he was targeted, Jiraiya could only stay in the Land of Rain forever.

This is the Sannin of Konoha, representing Konoha's top combat power.

But the Kingdom of Ghosts was so casual as crushing an ant... Such courage and power made Shikaku extremely frightened.

Can someone as powerful as the Sannin fail to attract their attention?

It is just a chess piece used to shape the chess game. When not in use, you can throw it away at any time and replace it with another chess piece.

Shikaku felt sad for a moment, the gap between Konoha and the other party was so despairing to him.

Even though the alliance of the five major nations has now been formed, Shikaku's mood is still not at all relaxed.

"Furthermore, it was the Summoning Frog from Mt. Myoboku who conveyed Jiraiya's information to Konoha at that time... It seems that there is a problem at Mt. Myoboku."

Shikaku tried to remind Tsunade in a tactful tone.

Tsunade remained silent, naturally understanding Shikaku's underlying message.

Miaomu Mountain is no longer trustworthy.

Miaomushan, whose backbone was severed by the Kingdom of Demons, dare not say all of it, but at least part of it became an accomplice of the Kingdom of Demons in designing Konoha.

The more she thought about it, the more irritable Tsunade became.

"Forget it, let's not mention this matter. Let's focus on the affairs of the alliance. Whether it is the concentration of troops, or the acquisition and deployment of supplies, these are the tasks that need to be dealt with seriously next. In addition, after the Jonin meeting tomorrow, I still need to explain this to the daimyo, but it seems I don’t have much time for vacation.”

Although the daimyo also knew about the matter, Tsunade needed to discuss the details with the daimyo of the Land of Fire again.

In particular, the transfer of border populations requires the cooperation of Daming Prefecture.

Shikaku nodded and did not continue the discussion with Tsunade.

What he needs to do now is to collect all kinds of useful information, such as the information about the Kingdom of Ghosts and Akatsuki. He needs to reorganize it, calculate the detailed comparison of the combat power of all parties, and be fully prepared for formulating strategies in the future. .

◎

"leader."

In a quiet room, Kisame met Nagato who was looking for him after returning from the Kingdom of Iron.

Regarding Nagato's true form, Kisame could only describe it in four words: "unfathomable".

There has never been a ninja who could make him feel such a strong sense of oppression.

Even the Eight-Tails Jinchuuriki, who had fought hard, were nothing more than the light of a grain of rice compared to Nagato in terms of oppression.

If you resist at this time, you will definitely die.

This is the affirmative answer that every cell in the body gives itself.

"I heard Xiaonan say that you have something to do with me."

Nagato looked calmly at Kisame, a loyal veteran who had worked diligently for the Akatsuki organization for more than ten years, and spoke.

"Yes, I have something to ask of you, chief."

Kisame hesitated for a moment and nodded in agreement.

Nagato stood quietly, waiting for Kisame to make his request.

"I heard that Yagura's body fell into the hands of the leader."

Seeing Nagato like this, Kisame also put away his hesitant expression and looked much more solemn.

"The Fourth Mizukage? After sealing the Three-Tails, his body did fall into my hands."

Nagato didn't hide anything and told the truth frankly.

"What, you want this body?"

Then, Nagato glanced at Kisame unexpectedly.

Kisame nodded and was about to explain.

A scroll slipped out of Nagato's sleeve and handed it to Kisame.

Kisame looked shocked when he saw this scroll.

"This is the body of the Yondaime Mizukage. Since you want it, I'll leave it to you."

After saying that, he placed the scroll in Kisame's hand, and Nagato turned and left the room.

There was no doubt or question about Kisame's purpose in taking the body. He just felt that such an outstanding employee needed to be praised and rewarded.

"..."

Kisame, who had found various reasonable excuses, found that all his preparations were meaningless.

This heavy trust made Kisame feel moved or self-deprecating.

The joy of getting Yagura's body turned into a lifeless emptiness.

Deception and betrayal, disguise and falsehood...is this the life of a ninja?

Before the betrayal, whether it was the original Watermelon Mountain Blowfish Ghost, Yagura, or Nagato, they all gave themselves absolute trust.

My impression of Kirigakure still remains in the village many years ago where the air was still filled with the smell of blood.

It holds its own past.

And Akatsuki carries her own present.

"Really..."

Kisame had a headache and pressed his temples.

As a spy, I am accustomed to all kinds of betrayal and darkness, but to have such boring things interfere with my judgment is a real failure.

It's just the loss and pain that affects his heart that makes Kisame suddenly hate himself so much.

◎

The border between the Kingdom of Ghosts and the Kingdom of Earth.

As always, Sasuke led the four people, Jugo, and Uchiha Hoshino, the shrine maiden of the Nanga Shrine of the Uchiha clan, to perform border patrol missions at the border between the two countries.

There are no fierce large-scale battles here. There are only frictions between squads and assassinations that may be encountered at any time and at any time. This has become a normal development in the border area.

When he came to this place and kept running on the border battlefield, Sasuke felt as if he had forgotten the world.

It was so boring that Sasuke almost forgot how long he had been here.

Due to his outstanding performance, Sasuke has become the leading squadron leader in this area, leading about a hundred ninjas.

Not surprisingly, many of these one hundred people can be called excellent ninjas. Therefore, while performing tasks, Sasuke is also identifying capable ninjas in order to establish good relationships.

Currently, Sasuke has scouted a dozen people in total and is preparing to find time to get closer to them.

——At three o'clock in the afternoon, the team led by Sasuke took a temporary rest behind a large rock that could block the wind.

"Sasuke-sama."

Uchiha Hoshino, who is responsible for communicating with the border troops, wears a red and white miko uniform and a heavily painted fox mask. His long hair is black and straight. The overall look has a holy and noble temperament.

The eye holes of the mask show normal black pupils, not the Sharingan form. In non-combat conditions, you need to save chakra as much as possible.

"What's the matter, Hoshino?"

Sasuke sat on a stone, holding the Kusanagi sword in his hand to support his body, and asked without raising his head.

Since knowing the identity of the other person and his own race, even though he pretends to be indifferent on his face, he is still very willing to get close to and trust the other person in his heart.

Moreover, Hoshino was very good in terms of strength and medical ninjutsu, which made him very satisfied.

What's more, given the other person's age, there is still room for further improvement.

Not to mention die-hard fans like the Four People and Jugo, Hoshino is currently ranked first among all the candidates who have been scouted since.

"Headquarters sent a transfer order asking you to go back."

Hoshino answered briefly and concisely.

"Um?"

"It should be related to some changes at the Five Shadows Conference."

"……I see."

Sasuke stood up, put the Kusanagi sword back into the belt around his waist and inserted it into place, then patted his clothes and dusted them off.

"Then, Hoshino will take my place temporarily until I come back."

After leaving this sentence, Sasuke disappeared into the vast wilderness at a lightning speed without waiting for anyone to respond.