"Bastard, the Land of Fire is so arrogant."
Ohnoki slammed the interrogation papers from the Daimyo Prefecture of the Land of Fire onto the table. The document bore the official seals of the Hokage of Konoha and the Kazekage of the Sand Shinobi Village—clear proof that the Sand Village had aligned itself with the Land of Fire and was privy to the same intelligence.
Although Sand Shinobi Village currently appeared to be focused on internal reforms and dealing with the Land of Wind, there was no guarantee they wouldn't launch a surprise offensive against Rock Shinobi Village. Anything could happen in war.
If Rasa led the Sand forces in a flanking attack on the Land of Earth, Rock Shinobi would suffer heavy casualties.
"Lord Third Tsuchikage, what did the Land of Fire say?"
A senior Rock Shinobi officer asked anxiously. The document had been in Ohnoki's possession since its arrival, and the rest of the council was eager to know its contents.
"See for yourselves," Ohnoki said coldly, handing over the document.
As it passed through the hands of the Rock Shinobi executives, expressions of outrage spread across their faces. The tone of the Land of Fire was nothing short of domineering.
It accused Rock Shinobi of harboring Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito within their territory and ordered Ohnoki to surrender them immediately.
The document also claimed that the Akatsuki organization—of which Obito was a member—was currently operating within the Land of Earth. It even cited the presence of Sasori of the Red Sand, a former Sand Shinobi turned rogue.
Furthermore, the Land of Fire demanded that Rock Shinobi hand over Konoha's traitor, Namikaze Minato, and issue an official apology along with compensation for sheltering him. Failure to comply would result in an imminent military offensive.
A furious Rock Shinobi officer shouted, "Unbelievable! The Land of Fire isn't even pretending to negotiate! Do they think Rock Shinobi Village will just roll over?"
Another officer, slightly more composed, added, "They may be pushing for war. And if we don't comply, they'll claim justification."
"If it's war they want, then let it be war!" another bellowed. "Rock Shinobi has never feared a fight!"
"Just don't go hiding when the battle comes, old Zimu..." one muttered.
"Enough! What are you all arguing about?!" Ohnoki snapped, silencing the room. "This is no time for internal bickering."
"The Land of Fire claims that Akatsuki has collaborated with Rock Shinobi on several occasions, but I had no idea they were even in our territory. Send Anbu to investigate immediately. Also, dispatch an envoy to Cloud Shinobi Village—but don't inform Namikaze Minato. And notify Taki Village and other smaller nations as well."
The ambitions of the Land of Fire were becoming harder to conceal. If the Land of Lightning didn't act soon, they might be next once Rock Shinobi Village fell. For now, they had to survive.
The Land of Fire now loomed over them like an oppressive mountain. Under its pressure, both Rock and Cloud Shinobi Villages found it hard to even breathe. Especially troubling was the Fire Nation's apparent goal of annexing multiple great nations.
However, this aggressive posture from the Fire Nation had led the Earth Daimyo to increase financial support for Rock Shinobi Village. But money was useless without the means to spend it—trade routes had been largely cut off by the Fire Nation, and they had monopolized major agreements with the Craftsman Country.
If Rock Shinobi had no plans to immediately launch a counteroffensive, their only option would be to import essential goods from the Land of Lightning.
Even before receiving this document, Ohnoki had been leaning toward war. If they dragged things out any longer, the Earth Country might collapse first.
He was well aware of the Land of Fire's potential for development. Judging from the growing number of civilians desperately trying to cross the border and live under Fire Nation control, the truth was clear—many people longed for life under the Fire Nation's banner.
If they remain indifferent, the Land of Earth will collapse within ten years.
While there is still room to counterattack, the only viable path is war—to unite the forces of all the ninja villages: Rock Shinobi, Cloud Shinobi, Kusanagi, and Taki Ninja, and strike down Konoha.
By seizing the benefits of victory, they can fuel their development and begin transforming their country. Only by becoming like the Land of Fire can they hope to catch up.
Although it's a difficult path, Ohnoki saw a glimmer of hope—as long as Rock Shinobi and Cloud Shinobi can work together.
"Lord Third Tsuchikage! We've received news from the border—Konoha's ninjas suddenly crossed into the Land of Earth, attacked one of our hidden strongholds, captured several of our people, and left.
Because the Konoha Shinobi who infiltrated were quite strong—mostly from the Uchiha clan—the border patrol didn't engage them in direct conflict."
As the Rock Shinobi Anbu finished reporting, Ohnoki immediately recalled the warning in the document about Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito.
"Those bastards from Konoha… It looks like they really are preparing for war. Send an envoy at once. This time—we fight!"
Under Ohnoki's orders, Rock Shinobi Village mobilized swiftly.
However, what Ohnoki didn't know was that everything said in the council room had been recorded by a computer placed nearby.
The footage was quickly spread across other countries after gaining popularity in the Land of Fire—thanks to the fiber optic network installed by the Kain Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with local nobles from the Land of Earth.
Ohnoki had thought these devices were trendy and bought dozens of them for Rock Shinobi Village.
They really were convenient—he even used them to play small games.
But all the computers sold through the Kain Chamber of Commerce's vassal merchants came with backdoors.
Once powered on, they constantly collected data throughout the day.
Not long after, another piece of news came that made Ohnoki furious: Han, who had been under tight surveillance, was taken away without a trace. The surrounding Anbu hadn't even detected a struggle.
And it wasn't just Rock Shinobi Village.
Cloud Shinobi Village's Two-Tails Jinchūriki and Kirigakure's Six-Tails Jinchūriki had also been taken by Kain.
After extracting their Tailed Beasts, Kain returned them—alive, but weakened.
They would never again become powerful shinobi, but they were still far stronger than average people.
Once a Tailed Beast is extracted, there are always aftereffects—unless the host has an exceptionally strong life force, like Kushina.
When Rock Shinobi and Cloud Shinobi realized that Han and the others had returned without their Tailed Beasts, it became clear who was behind it.
Only the Land of Fire had the ability to pull this off.
The Fourth Raikage, upon receiving Ohnoki's request for an alliance, agreed almost immediately.
The Land of Fire had gone too far. At this point, war was the only option.
"This is your problem, Kushina."
Kain said with a smile.
Kushina rolled up her sleeves and replied impatiently,
"Don't worry. They tried to kidnap me when I was a kid. Now? It's payback time."
Although Kushina performed excellently during the Third Ninja World War, even she wouldn't have dared to face the Cloud Shinobi army alone like she is now.
A flying fortress combined with Kushina—that's the lineup prepared to counter the Cloud Shinobi forces.
The sky fortress alone might be detected by Cloud Shinobi, but with Kushina accompanying it, the operation becomes nearly foolproof.
"I heard today is the public execution of Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito. I didn't expect them to have done so many terrible things… Mikoto must be heartbroken. I wanted to stay with her for a while,"
Kushina said, grumbling to Kain. She was clearly annoyed by his lack of concern.
But Kain stayed silent—because if Kushina found out Uchiha Mikoto wasn't actually upset, she'd immediately sense something was wrong.
Recently, Uchiha Mikoto hadn't been easy to approach. The news of her pregnancy had quickly reached Kain—not because Mikoto had told him, but because she accidentally revealed it herself.
One time, when Kain went to see her, Mikoto not only dressed casually around him but also instinctively held her belly in a protective gesture. Her behavior was so telling that Kain figured it out instantly.
Originally, Mikoto had planned to quietly end the pregnancy. She was deeply conflicted and unsure. But now that Kain knew, he encouraged her to keep the child—and helped her come to a decision.
Mikoto was already wavering, but with Kain's persuasion, she resolved to go through with it.
As for the execution of Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito, Mikoto wasn't particularly concerned. Her only worry was Sasuke—she wanted to protect him from the truth until he was old enough to understand. If the truth came out too early, it would ruin all her efforts in raising him.
In reality, Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito were still alive, trapped inside Kain's Kamui space.
At first, Kain had considered replacing them with clones, but later decided it was too much trouble. Killing them outright was simpler.
Still, Kain made sure the two witnessed their own "executions."
"Itachi-kun, Obito-kun, you've had a hard life, haven't you?"
Kain spoke to them in a gentle tone.
Obito had recovered somewhat after taking a potion to stabilize his mind, but neither of them had eyes anymore—they couldn't even see Kain's face.
"It's almost time to send you off. Oh, one last piece of good news: Mikoto is pregnant—with my child.
Rin isn't pregnant yet, but don't worry—we're working on it."
"Mmmph!!"
Big drama bomb dropped!
Both Itachi and Obito tried to curse and struggle after hearing the news, but before they could react further, a green light flashed—and their lives ended peacefully.
Their corpses were then reduced to ash by the Fiercefire Curse.
After returning to the Daimyo's mansion, the steward came to report that a new batch of maids had been recruited. Among them was a suspicious individual—someone from the Hyuga clan.
Kain took a sip of tea and nearly choked upon hearing that.
He questioned the steward, who confirmed it: the girl had lost one eye and had been sent by the Hyuga clan to serve as a maid.
Kain contacted Hyuga Hiashi to confirm that this wasn't some kind of punishment from the family. Once assured it wasn't, he let it slide—but the girl's name sent a chill down his spine. Apparently, it was Qing Mi.
Besides the Hyuga girl, the Guardian Shinobi discovered another maid who failed the Veritaserum inquiry.
Through Legilimency, Kain learned she was none other than Kato Shizune, the niece of Kato Dan. She had been secretly trained by Danzo for years.
If she hadn't shown up today, Kain probably wouldn't have remembered she even existed.
Her purpose in infiltrating the Daimyo Mansion was revenge. In the end, Kain directly placed her under the Imperius Curse, and to ensure its effect wouldn't wear off, he carved a magic rune onto her body. With that, he handed her over to Nono for use.
Kato Shizune wasn't acting alone—she had several subordinates as well, who could now be utilized as a dark networkwithin the Daimyo Mansion. All of them were placed under Nono management. Neither Kushina nor Tsunade had any involvement or knowledge of this arrangement.
The nine tailed beasts had essentially been gathered by Kain, but the more he absorbed, the longer it took to digest their power. The gathering of all nine Tailed Beast Chakras wasn't just a matter of quantity—it was a transformation of life itself.
So, Kain was in no rush. After spending some time in the Ninja World, he returned once again to the Marvel Universe.
…
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