Chapter 646: Meeting of the Four Ninja Villages

“He’s at the Village gate right now, saying Ōnoki has something important to discuss with you.”

“Tell him I’m in a meeting, then bring him into the Village and find out exactly what it is.”

Although the Third Mizukage was curious about Ōnoki’s intentions, he wasn’t prepared to meet with Iwagakure personally, even if he wasn’t in a meeting.

If Ōnoki had come himself, that would have been different.

The Hidden Mist Anbu nodded and exited the conference room.

Once the door was closed again, the conference room fell into an eerie silence once more.

The Advisor simply closed his eyes to rest, looking like an elderly man with low spirits.

At his age, he really didn’t want his reputation to be affected by such matters.

The Jonin Squad Leader looked thoughtful, but his mouth was tightly shut, not daring to make a sound.

There were differences even among the higher-ups; as the Jonin Squad Leader, he was nominally the leader of all Jonin in Hidden Mist, but he was the last one on the list of high-ranking officials.

In other words, he was the most likely to be pushed out to sign the treaty and take the blame.

The Advisor’s face was stern, his expression grim, seemingly displeased with the current situation, but he didn’t speak.

The Mizukage’s Advisor stood tall with his chest out, looking straight ahead, with no intention of breaking the silence.

The Mizukage’s Advisor was also considered a lower-ranking official on the high-level list, but this position was very special, tied to the Mizukage; generally, as long as the Mizukage had no issues, the Mizukage’s Advisor would be fine.

“Mizuyū, tell me your thoughts.” The Third Mizukage saw that no one was speaking and looked at the Hidden Mist Jonin Squad Leader.

Mizuyū sighed inwardly; what had to come would always come, who made his position the lowest?

Mizuyū’s mind raced, quickly formulating the most perfect answer.

Directly proposing peace talks? Impossible, that would definitely mean he’d be sent to sign the treaty.

Refusing peace talks wouldn’t work either, too easy to offend people.

Everyone knew that Yagura Karatachi was the Third Mizukage’s favored successor. If peace talks were ultimately rejected and Yagura Karatachi was killed by Konoha, the person who first proposed it would definitely be hated by the Third Mizukage, and there would be no good outcome then.

“The military strength Konoha displayed in this incident cannot be underestimated. We must investigate why Yagura was defeated so quickly and why half of his troops were captured.” Mizuyū analyzed with a serious expression.

Refuse or agree? He chose ‘or’!

The Third Mizukage showed a slightly displeased expression but didn’t say much, looking towards the Mizukage’s Advisor.

The Mizukage’s Advisor instantly felt immense pressure but had no choice but to speak.

After all, without the Mizukage’s support, his position held less power than Mizuyū’s Jonin Squad Leader.

“Peace talks are a serious matter, and many things need to be considered, such as the opinions of the Ninja in the Village, Konoha’s objectives, and the impact of the peace talks…”

The Mizukage’s Advisor said a lot but never explicitly stated whether he supported or opposed peace talks.

There was nothing he could do; he was also a bit unsure of the Third Mizukage’s thoughts at the moment.

After such a defeat, would the Third Mizukage still value Yagura Karatachi as much as before?

The Third Mizukage then looked towards the Advisor.

Since everyone else had spoken, the Advisor, not wanting to be an exception, also offered some ambiguous remarks.

After the Advisor finished speaking, the Third Mizukage did not follow the order to let the Advisor speak, but instead narrowed his eyes in thought.

Over a thousand captives was indeed no small number.

It should be known that Hidden Mist currently only had a little over seven thousand Ninja in total; if Konoha killed all the captives, their total Ninja count would instantly drop by one-seventh, and the impact would be enormous.

The key was that this wasn’t death on the battlefield, but an incident caused by failed negotiations, which would upset the captives’ families.

However, signing the peace treaty made the Third Mizukage a bit unwilling.

During his tenure, Hidden Mist had twice launched proactive attacks, both of which failed. How would future generations evaluate him?

Ambitious but untalented? Overestimating his abilities?

“Today’s meeting ends here.” The Third Mizukage rubbed his brow and said.

He was now both worried about what would happen if there were no peace talks and unwilling to let the defeat affect his posthumous reputation.

After the Third Mizukage returned to the Mizukage’s office, it wasn’t long before the Anbu responsible for communicating with Iwagakure arrived at the Mizukage’s office.

“Lord Third Mizukage, this is a secret letter from Ōnoki for you. It has been checked, and there are no issues.” The Hidden Mist Anbu handed a scroll to the Third Mizukage.

The Third Mizukage nodded, opened the scroll, while the Hidden Mist Anbu discreetly retreated outside the office door.

Initially, the Third Mizukage’s expression was calm, but after five minutes of reading, his face gradually became solemn.

“Wood Release Ninja have reappeared, and Hayate Mugetsu is expected to become the second God of Shinobi?”

After reading, the Third Mizukage rolled up the scroll and fell into thought.

Did Hidden Mist and Iwagakure have a grudge? Of course, they did; the Second Hokage of both sides had died together on the battlefield.

However, that was an old grudge; looking at the entire Ninja World, if one were to count strictly, all Five Great Ninja Villages had old grudges with each other.

The Third Mizukage believed that the intelligence Ōnoki gave him was largely true, at least partially true.

Because Ninjutsu couldn’t be faked, and Muzuki couldn’t always refrain from acting; whether he had Wood Release and what his strength was, it would be exposed sooner or later.

“Could Yagura’s capture be Hayate Mugetsu’s doing?” A sudden Flash of insight struck the Third Mizukage’s mind.

If Hayate Mugetsu truly possessed powerful Wood Release as Ōnoki claimed, and could potentially become a second Senju Hashirama with continued growth.

Then Yagura Karatachi’s defeat would be very reasonable.

It would be normal for the powerful Wood Release Ninja Hayate Mugetsu to lead a Ninja unit into battle and for Yagura Karatachi to be captured by mistake.

It wasn’t that the Hidden Mist forces were weak, but that Konoha was too strong.

Immediately after, the Third Mizukage shook his head; now was not the time to think about this.

“Should I accept Ōnoki’s invitation?” The Third Mizukage began to weigh the pros and cons.

Ōnoki hadn’t directly proposed an alliance to deal with Konoha and assassinate Muzuki; he merely invited Hidden Mist to send a representative to a meeting in the Land of Earth.

The Third Mizukage felt that he could send a reliable Jonin to test Ōnoki’s intentions.

Anyway, peace talks weren’t a matter of one or two days, and as long as Hidden Mist didn’t make any major moves, Yagura Karatachi should be safe.

…

Land of Wind, Sunagakure.

Ōnoki had also sent Ninja to Sunagakure.

“This old geezer isn’t trying to trick me into getting involved, is he?” Rasa finished reading the scroll and instinctively thought it was false information.

Hayate Mugetsu was recognized as Konoha’s strongest young Ninja in the Ninja World, but he wasn’t as exaggerated as the intelligence claimed.

Moreover, if Hayate Mugetsu had mastered such powerful Wood Release, why hadn’t he used it on the battlefield before?

Wood Release was very strong; it was not only offensive and defensive but also capable of suppressing Jinchuriki.

However, Rasa reconsidered and thought that Ōnoki wasn’t that foolish.

After all, Ōnoki wasn’t asking him to directly send troops against Konoha, but merely inviting him to a meeting, so he shouldn’t be using such obviously false intelligence to deceive him.

Connecting this with the somewhat strange situation in the Ninja World recently, Rasa’s expression became serious.

“Could it be that Hayate Mugetsu has been hiding and biding his time, and only recently showed his strength after making progress in his Wood Release training?”

After careful consideration, Rasa found that the intelligence didn’t seem so obviously false; it was just too far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

Suddenly, a second Wood Release Ninja appeared, and he even showed the potential to become a second Senju Hashirama.

If it weren’t for the Iwagakure Ninja who delivered the message being someone reputable in the Ninja World, Rasa would have suspected that someone was impersonating an Iwagakure Ninja to cause trouble.

“What is so special about this Wood Release? Is it destined that Ninja who possess Wood Release will become as powerful as Senju Hashirama?” Rasa couldn’t help but wonder.

Logically, it shouldn’t be this way.

A Ninja’s strength is comprehensive, broadly speaking, it includes their Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu levels, Chakra reserves, and physical fitness.

They shouldn’t become incredibly powerful just by mastering a certain Bloodline Limit or secret technique.

But Senju Hashirama was strong, and the second Wood Release Ninja, Hayate Mugetsu, was also strong.

The first could be a coincidence, but what about the second?

Rasa called his trusted subordinates for a discussion.

They felt that going was an option, but whether or not to take action against Konoha would depend on the situation at the time.

After all, if Konoha truly produced a second God of Shinobi, it wouldn’t have a particularly significant impact on Sunagakure.

Because current Sunagakure is relatively weak among the Five Great Ninja Villages; even without Konoha blocking the way, Sunagakure still has Iwagakure and Kumogakure ahead.

“How is Pakura’s investigation coming along?” Rasa remembered something and asked.

Rasa had never forgotten Pakura, a Ninja who had once almost affected his position as Kazekage.

“There is no evidence that could lead to Pakura’s imprisonment.” The Sunagakure Jonin shook his head.

“However, I found that Pakura seems very interested in the Shinobi Sect in the Land of Rain; she has taken time to attend Sōsuke’s lectures twice.”

“As a hero of Sunagakure, instead of focusing on missions, she’s attending lectures from a Ninja faction in the Land of Rain. If the Village were to pick the most studious Ninja, I’d definitely vote for Pakura.”

Hearing his subordinate mock Pakura for neglecting her duties, Rasa couldn’t help but show a slight smile.

“Since she likes to interact with other factions, then send her to Iwagakure.” Rasa thought for a moment and said.

He found this to be a good opportunity to suppress her; if the Iwagakure matter didn’t succeed, he could say Pakura was inefficient.

If the Iwagakure matter looked promising, then he could transfer Pakura away midway using other excuses.

…

Land of Rain, Shinobi Sect.

Kitsuchi led a team of Iwagakure Ninja into Six Paths City.

“It seems there are more people, and more Ninja.”

Upon entering Six Paths City, Kitsuchi noticed that Six Paths City seemed to have become even more prosperous.

The burning war in the Ninja World did not affect the development of Six Paths City; on the contrary, it promoted its prosperity to a certain extent.

Kitsuchi didn’t pay attention to this; even if Iwagakure valued the Shinobi Sect, they valued Sōsuke and his group, not Six Paths City or the ordinary Ninja of the Shinobi Sect.

Relying on their cooperative relationship, Kitsuchi reached Sōsuke’s office without any hindrance.

“Sōsuke, Iwagakure needs a favor from the Shinobi Sect.” Kitsuchi said directly.

Muzuki nodded, signaling Kitsuchi to continue.

“We have a need to cooperate with Kumogakure recently, and we hope you can convey some of our intentions to Kumogakure.”

Due to the declared war between Iwagakure and Kumogakure, and numerous battles since the war began, Ōnoki was concerned that directly approaching Kumogakure would backfire, so he wanted the Shinobi Sect to act as an intermediary.

Although the Shinobi Sect had some cooperation with Iwagakure, overall, the Shinobi Sect was generally perceived as a neutral force in the public eye.

The first major reason was Sōsuke’s unrestricted lectures.

Sōsuke generously imparted various advanced knowledge to Ninja from different Ninja Villages and factions, naturally giving him a neutral and friendly label.

Then there was the Youth Martial Arts Tournament held previously.

Many Ninja from various large and small Ninja Villages participated in the Youth Martial Arts Tournament, but under the Shinobi Sect’s management, no violent incidents occurred, and all participating Ninja were treated equally.

Sōsuke was famous and powerful, and the Shinobi Sect was also a well-known neutral force, making them the most suitable intermediary in the current Ninja World.

“I need to know some specific details before I can make a judgment.” Muzuki said, taking a sip of tea.

He couldn’t just help someone without knowing anything; otherwise, he’d be sold out and still have to help count the money.

“The main content is some intelligence about Hayate Mugetsu and Konoha’s ambitions.” Kitsuchi explained.

Before Kitsuchi arrived, Ōnoki had already considered this point and told Kitsuchi to just disclose the intelligence.

Firstly, when asking the Shinobi Sect for a favor, it was impossible to keep them in the dark.

Secondly, Ōnoki felt that Sōsuke had no reason to refuse.

Sōsuke had eliminated Danzo Shimura, naturally placing him on Konoha’s opposing side; given the chance to step on Konoha, he would naturally join in.

This wasn’t a deep cooperation; Iwagakure wouldn’t station Ninja troops in the Land of Rain, so there was no harm to the Shinobi Sect at all.

On the contrary, if Konoha produced a second God of Shinobi, would the Shinobi Sect have an easy time?

It was likely that as soon as the war ended, they would deal with the Shinobi Sect.

“Sorry, I refuse.” Muzuki replied with a faint smile.

What kind of international joke was this, asking his Shadow Clone to help others deal with his main body?

He had no interest in playing a spy game.

“However, looking at this intelligence, it’s possible that the main body has already dealt with Uchiha Madara, otherwise, there wouldn’t be such a big commotion.” Muzuki’s Shadow Clone thought.

He was a Shadow Clone created before Muzuki dealt with Uchiha Madara, so he didn’t have the main body’s memories from that period.

“In that case, the Shinobi Sect has fewer concerns and can be more uninhibited.”

Kitsuchi was stunned; this was different from what was predicted before he came. Why did Sōsuke refuse so directly?

“The Shinobi Sect has no intention of participating in the game of the Five Great Ninja Villages, whether it’s against Konoha or other large Ninja Villages, it’s all the same.” Muzuki explained.

Muzuki’s words completely blocked the path, and Kitsuchi and his strategist were speechless.

“Sōsuke is too naive.” Kitsuchi complained inwardly.

Although he was often called straightforward, he felt that Sōsuke was even more idealistic than him.

Is this something you can just choose not to participate in? Living in the Ninja World, and still wanting to avoid the influence of the Five Great Ninja Villages?

However, Sōsuke’s attitude was firm, and Kitsuchi and his group had no choice.

Finally, Iwagakure bit the bullet and sent envoys to negotiate a truce with Kumogakure, and incidentally gave Kumogakure the intelligence on Muzuki.

Perhaps because Kumogakure and Konoha were heavily engaged in battle and didn’t want to conflict with Iwagakure, things went surprisingly smoothly.

Ultimately, Kumogakure also agreed to attend the meeting hosted by Iwagakure in the Land of Earth.

When the agreed date arrived, the various Ninja Villages sent Ninja to the Land of Earth as scheduled.