Chapter 9: Where Does That Confidence Come From
In Konoha, inside the Hokage's office, an old man sat behind the desk. Though he was already seventy-two years old, his jet-black hair was as youthful as a young man's, and his single exposed eye narrowed, clearly marking him as a shrewd and calculating individual.
The old man wore a simple black-and-white kimono, his head wrapped in bandages. He was Danzo, currently serving as the acting Hokage of Konoha.
"A Five Kage Summit, proposed by Kumogakure, to be held in the Land of Iron. Are they preparing to assign blame?"
Old Man Danzo had only a preliminary understanding of the situation, but he immediately connected it to the Fourth Raikage's intentions. This was the gap in political acumen and intelligence.
"At such a sensitive time, the other three Kage won't refuse. If I can represent Konoha at the summit, it will greatly help with future voting."
Old Man Danzo began to assess the gains and losses of this Five Kage Summit. His thinking was that Konoha had just been attacked by the Akatsuki organization. On the surface, they were the victims, but in reality, they were the beneficiaries. The Land of Rain was being coveted by multiple nations. Seizing this opportunity, he could first stabilize the other ninja villages. Once Konoha's post-war reconstruction was complete and the Land of Rain stabilized, Konoha could once again stand at the top of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
"An opportunity."
Old Man Danzo made his decision: to participate in this Five Kage Summit.
Among the successive Hokage, the Second Hokage was the most competent. Not only did he keep the Uchiha clan in line, but he also overruled opposition, withstood pressure from the various clans, established the Ninja Academy, and shared ninjutsu with commoners. In hindsight, this was a very far-sighted approach.
The Third Hokage could at best be said to have defended Konoha. As for the Fourth Hokage, he was at most a hero, bringing no substantial change to Konoha. Of course, this was related to the Fourth dying in battle so early.
Originally, the Second Hokage's chosen successor was Danzo, not Hiruzen Sarutobi. But during the Second Hokage's test, Danzo hesitated, causing him to lose this opportunity.
A loss was a loss. Danzo went underground, assisting the Third Hokage. This was also the main reason the Third allowed Danzo to establish the Root organization. Danzo's character was indeed questionable, but Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that Danzo would at least never betray Konoha. That was enough.
Danzo had been biding his time. When the Fourth Hokage took over, Danzo could barely tolerate it anymore—his mentality was collapsing. At that time, Danzo bared his fangs. But the moment he did, the Fourth Hokage sent him back with a single Rasengan. Danzo continued to endure. When the Fifth Hokage took over, Danzo's mentality completely shattered. Now, he was only one step away from becoming the Sixth Hokage.
Danzo's rise could be summed up in one phrase: a defeated dog's desperate counterattack.
...
Like Danzo, the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, also received the news and agreed to attend this Five Kage Summit. For her, it was also an opportunity, as she had only recently taken office.
Coincidentally, the Fifth Kazekage, Gaara, also needed this opportunity. Although he had been Kazekage for some time, he had only recently won the people's hearts.
Unlike the Mizukage and Kazekage, the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, was hesitating. This old man, only 1.3 meters tall, was deeply calculating. Among the Five Kage, only he could match Danzo in political acumen. If the two were to clash in this regard, it would likely be a fifty-fifty split.
Onoki gently rubbed his forehead. He had already guessed that the other four Kage would all attend. If Iwagakure alone was absent, it would inevitably be looked down upon.
"No choice. Kurotsuchi, prepare to depart."
...
All five Kage had made their decisions: to participate in this Five Kage Summit.
This was not the first Five Kage Summit. The first was convened by Hashirama Senju, with the discussion topic being the distribution of the tailed beasts. The other four great ninja villages naturally would not refuse. At that time, Konoha had the power to destroy them.
The title "God of Shinobi" was not given lightly. Hashirama Senju maintained a period of peace in the ninja world.
This Five Kage Summit, however, was somewhat shameful in the face of the previous Kage. The Kage gathered this time had basically all lost their village's tailed beasts, and the topics for discussion were not very friendly.
In fact, there was another meaning behind convening the Five Kage Summit: the balance between the great ninja villages had been broken, and war was likely to break out. All the Kage would sit down first, calmly negotiate, and try to avoid war as much as possible.
The tailed beasts were like "nuclear weapons." Sunagakure, Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure were like nations that had lost their nuclear weapons. Konoha was not much better, having just been bombarded by a "nuclear weapon"-level combatant like Nagato. Under such circumstances, the outbreak of war was not surprising.
...
The Land of Fire's neighboring country, the Land of Iron.
The Land of Iron was a neutral country. Its military force was not ninjas, but samurai. Or rather, they were a group of close-combat ninjas skilled in using long swords. They could also use chakra, but ninjutsu was not prevalent there.
A fierce wind howled, whipping up large amounts of snow. The Land of Iron was in the midst of winter.
On the snowfield, a group of people ran past at high speed, leaving a trail of footprints before disappearing into the blizzard.
This group was Su Xiao and the others. Obito and White Zetsu were temporarily missing. Deidara was riding a clay bird, already far ahead. Su Xiao, having to bring Bubu Wang and Amu, naturally couldn't ride the clay bird with Deidara.
Su Xiao was currently sitting on a snow sled. As for who was pulling the sled... of course, it wasn't Bubu Wang, but Amu.
This snow sled was originally made for Bubu Wang, but Bubu Wang would "rather die than submit." In Bubu Wang's eyes, the message was clear: "Riding me is one thing, but making me pull a sled is going too far."
Ropes were tied to Amu's shoulders as it pulled the sled. Hot air puffed from its mouth as it ran, sending snow flying. Judging by its expression, Amu was clearly very interested in pulling the sled.
Bubu Wang, on the other hand, was sprinting wildly across the snow. Once it entered a cold region, its intelligence would unlock significantly, and its thinking became unusually active.
Su Xiao sat on the snow sled, holding an apple, taking a bite every now and then. As for his traveling companions, Sasuke, Karin, and the others, they had to rely on their own legs to keep up.
Su Xiao casually tossed away the apple core and took out the map Obito had provided.
This Five Kage Summit was being held in secret. Only the high-ranking members of each ninja village or some Jonin knew about it. The location was Snow Wind Mountain in the Land of Iron.
Although it was called Snow Wind Mountain, it wasn't a place for the Five Kage to hold a meeting in the freezing cold mountains. That would be too disrespectful to the Five Kage.
Snow Wind Mountain was a peak with its central area hollowed out. At the center of the mountain, a tower resembling a military fortress had been built. The hollowed-out mountain range acted like a protective wall, enclosing the central tower. From a distance, it looked like a mountain, completely hiding the tower inside. It was only visible from a bird's-eye view.
Su Xiao certainly wouldn't arrive at Snow Wind Mountain after all five Kage had gathered. He had to arrive early and set up an ambush nearby. Of course, intercepting and killing a Kage on the way would be the best outcome.
The possibility of intercepting a Kage was slim. Even the Raikage, a reckless man, had planned his route very secretly, let alone the other Kage. White Zetsu had not obtained any intelligence on this matter.
About five hours later, snow flew wildly, and the cold wind howled. A tall mountain appeared ahead. That was Snow Wind Mountain.
"We're here."
Su Xiao signaled Amu not to get too close to Snow Wind Mountain, as it was heavily guarded by many samurai.
"What's the plan after this?"
Sasuke, who had been traveling at high speed for over ten hours, was slightly out of breath. Even as a ninja, he couldn't withstand such intense travel. Su Xiao's pace was too fast, and he didn't care whether they could keep up.
"White Zetsu."
Su Xiao seemed to be talking to the air.
Crack, crack, crack...
Snow flew up as a large pitcher plant burst out from the snow.
"Hehehe, you found me."
"Same as the plan. You'll act with Sasuke's team."
Su Xiao had already discussed the plan with Obito.
"What's the specific plan?"
Sasuke still didn't know the details.
"A plan? No specific plan. You can improvise. By the way, let me tell you something: Danzo is now the acting Hokage."
Hearing Su Xiao's words, Sasuke's gaze immediately turned cold. Danzo was his primary target. He already knew the truth about Itachi. It was because of Danzo's pressure that Itachi chose to sacrifice himself. Moreover, Danzo had always been eyeing his Sharingan. Without Itachi's protection, his eyes would have been taken long ago.
Without a word, Sasuke moved toward Snow Wind Mountain, his expression clearly showing his determination to kill Danzo. Behind him followed White Zetsu, Karin, and the others.
Bubu Wang watched Sasuke's retreating figure, a helpless look on its dog face. It looked at Su Xiao, as if asking, "Master, where does this kid get his confidence? Amu and I together could beat him half to death. I bet five Paradise Coins that without Obito threatening him from the sidelines, Danzo could definitely kill him."