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Fear grew in the village next to the camp.
Every household had its doors and windows tightly shut, even the lights put out, as if this could keep away the slaughter.
But behind a dozen windows, pairs of eyes stared hard at the distant fire and blood.
Half an hour ago, they were still carrying hot meals, grateful to comfort the Konoha shinobi.
Who could have imagined that those Kumogakure prisoners would suddenly attack?
If not for the three Konoha chunin who desperately escorted them back to the village, they would have likely been dead by now.
They couldn't see the battle at the camp clearly, only hearing constant roars and screams, along with ninjutsu flying everywhere.
Their hearts were filled with worry for the Konoha shinobi who were fighting in a bloody battle.
And there was a deep-seated hatred for those prisoners.
The battle at the camp was now nearing its end. The sounds of fighting had greatly lessened.
"I surrender! I surrender!" Watching his companions fall one after another, a young Kumogakure shinobi whose chakra had been sealed broke down.
He threw away the stone in his hand, knelt on the ground, and raised his hands.
What greeted him, however, was a cold kunai.
Pfft!
A Konoha shinobi, whose eyes were bloodshot from killing, stabbed him through the head with a single strike, his face twisted in a fierce grimace.
"Surrendering now? Too late!"
Once killing begins, it's hard to stop.
More and more Kumogakure gave up resistance, wanting to kneel and beg for mercy.
But the shinobi of Konoha were no longer listening.
Except for those who deliberately stirred up the Kumogakure riot, everyone else was enraged by the Kumogakure uprising.
Hiruzen watched this scene and did not step in.
He needed this slaughter.
Because this was the Land of Fire daimyo's order.
The slaughter continued.
The wails and pleas for mercy slowly faded.
A thick smell of blood filled the entire night sky.
Finally, when the last standing Kumogakure shinobi was pinned to the ground by several kunai, the entire camp finally fell silent.
Three thousand prisoners, none survived.
Hiruzen stood in this mountain of corpses and sea of blood, constantly gasping for breath.
It wasn't because he was tired.
It was an internal struggle.
He slowly took off his mask, his aged face filled with grief and determination.
"Clean this place up." His voice was full of tiredness as he motioned for an Anbu, instructing, "Report to the Land of Fire daimyo that all Kumogakure rebelled and have been completely wiped out by us."
"Yes!" The Anbu nodded silently.
With that, he disappeared into the night after a few leaps.
Hiruzen looked up, gazing in the direction of the Land of Hot Water.
Daimyo of the Land of Fire.
This is my answer.
Are you satisfied?
In the Land of Hot Water, a small town famous for its hot springs and tourism, the atmosphere was now grim.
There were few people walking on the streets.
Most of the usually bustling hot spring inns were closed to guests.
Throughout the town, shinobi from the Land of Earth, Land of Wind, and Land of Water were carefully watching their surroundings.
A sense of pressure filled the air.
Because the daimyo of the Five Great Nations were going to hold a daimyo meeting here.
A top-tier inn had been cleared out to serve as the venue for this daimyo meeting.
Outside the inn, defenses were strict.
Guards every three steps, sentries every five steps.
"Have you heard? The Land of Earth daimyo and the Land of Wind daimyo have already arrived!"
"More than that, the Water daimyo has also come!"
"Gods above, has something big happened?"
The residents of the town hid behind their windows, discussing in low voices, their faces filled with worry.
Inside the inn, in a luxurious reception room, the short Third Tsuchikage Onoki was floating in mid-air, arms crossed, his face gloomy.
Next to him, the Land of Earth daimyo slowly sipped his tea, looking completely at ease.
"The Land of Fire daimyo, what airs he puts on." The Water daimyo couldn't help but speak. "He calls for a daimyo meeting, yet he makes so many of us wait for him."
The Land of Earth daimyo put down his teacup and said flatly, "He is the victor now. He has the right to put on airs."
"Hmph!" The Water daimyo snorted and stopped talking.
Onoki silently watched the daimyo's conversation, calculations flickering in his clouded old eyes.
Kumogakure's sneaking in method, the Land of Fire daimyo's strength—these were all heavy stones weighing on his heart.
On the other side, the Fourth Kazekage Rasa sat upright, his face as calm as still water.
The Land of Wind daimyo next to him kept fanning himself with a fan, his eyes wandering, not knowing what he was thinking.
Rasa's mood was mixed, both happy and worried, very complicated.
On one hand, Kumogakure's crushing defeat made him feel a huge threat.
Especially the news of the Eight-Tails being captured, which made him restless.
But on the other hand, Kumogakure's weakening was not necessarily a bad thing for Sunagakure.
Just then, a Sunagakure shinobi rushed in and whispered a few words in Rasa's ear.
Rasa's expression hardened. He waved him away, then went to the Land of Wind daimyo and said, "My lord, intelligence from the Land of Fire!"
Intelligence?
Onoki's ears perked up when the Sunagakure shinobi entered.
"Speak!" The Land of Wind daimyo said in a deep voice.
"Yes!"
"Three days ago, Konoha's former Hokage, Hiruzen, personally escorted three thousand Kumogakure prisoners, setting off for the Land of Hot Water."
"The Third Hokage personally escorted them?" Onoki frowned, unable to help but ask.
"Yes! However, that's not the main point." Rasa said with a serious expression. "The main point is that they didn't take the shortest route."
"Instead, they went around through some of the most wealthy towns within the Land of Fire."
"All Kumogakure prisoners were paraded through the streets in shackles!"
What?
This intelligence was absolutely shocking!
The entire reception room suddenly became quiet.
Onoki's floating body trembled violently, almost losing his balance.
Even the daimyos of the three nations, who had always been calm, had their expressions frozen.
Paraded through the streets?
To make three thousand Kumogakure elite wear shackles, like livestock, to be watched and cursed by civilians?
This, this was stepping on the dignity of the Land of Lightning, of Hidden Cloud Village, completely underfoot, crushing it to dust!
"He's completely mad!" Onoki swallowed his saliva.
"Yes, such a ruthless method." Rasa muttered to himself, feeling a sudden chill. "For the Third Hokage, that kind-hearted old man, to personally escort them, it must be the Land of Fire daimyo's idea!"
That Land of Fire daimyo, not only terrifying in strength, but his style of action was even more controlling and cruel!
In the previous three wars, nothing like this had ever happened.
Unlike the shock of the kage, the faces of the several daimyo showed not much change.
The Land of Wind daimyo even chuckled lightly. "This new Land of Fire daimyo is quite interesting."
"Indeed." At this moment, the Water daimyo also lost his earlier impatience, echoing, "Quite interesting!"
The Land of Earth daimyo chuckled, saying nothing.
The daimyo's words were light, but they immediately silenced Onoki and Rasa.
Just then, a noise came from outside the village.
They're here!