After Mifune's death, the Hidden Cloud Village ninjas, led by A, Hatake Sakumo, and Uchiha Fugaku, swiftly occupied all the territory of the Land of Iron.
Just as Yuzuru had predicted, the samurai of the Land of Iron showed no intention of submitting. Instead, they rallied together, determined to fight the Cloud Village to the bitter end.
However, compared to shinobi, the strength of the samurai was simply too far apart. With Cloud Village fielding overwhelming high-level combat power, the battlefield was essentially one-sided.
On top of that, the ordinary citizens of the Land of Iron actively reported samurai hideouts. In the end, every samurai within the country was eradicated without exception.
As for why the citizens cooperated so readily…
Those so-called "samurai lords," whether in anger or drunkenness, would draw their blades on commoners at the slightest provocation.
So once the people realized they finally had a chance to overthrow samurai rule, they betrayed them without hesitation.
But unlike the takeovers of Amegakure and Kusagakure, this incident caused too much uproar. News of what happened in the Land of Iron swiftly spread across the entire shinobi world.
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Iwagakure.
Tsuchikage Building.
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, stood with his hands behind his back, gazing out the window in deep thought.
Behind him, Kitsuchi stood silently like a stone pillar.
After a long while, Ōnoki finally sighed: "Kitsuchi, do you think the forceful removal of all our strongholds in the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass has anything to do with the Land of Lightning?"
Kitsuchi nodded. "Father, I agree. Something about this is definitely suspicious."
Ōnoki turned around. "Then what do you think we should do?"
Kitsuchi scratched his head, troubled. "But… didn't you say we shouldn't provoke the people from Cloud Village?"
"I did." Ōnoki's expression twisted with helpless frustration. "This is all that fool Sarutobi Hiruzen's fault. If not for him, the shinobi world wouldn't be in this mess."
What was so bad about letting the Uchiha maintain order quietly in Konoha?
If they wanted the Hokage seat, they could have given them one. Becoming Hokage didn't mean being free from restraints anyway.
But now, Konoha had pushed the Uchiha out—straight into the hands of those reckless brutes from Cloud Village.
And now look—no one gets to enjoy peace anymore.
If it weren't for the current inability to pass through the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass, Ōnoki truly wanted to take men to attack the Land of Fire just to vent his anger.
After thinking for a moment, Ōnoki said firmly, "Take a group to Sunagakure. Tell the Kazekage that we want to form an alliance."
"Our goal is to protect the small nations between the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind. We cannot allow the Land of Lightning to swallow them."
Kitsuchi responded immediately. "Yes!"
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Sunagakure.
The newly instated Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, tapped a finger lightly on his desk, deep in thought.
After a moment, he looked at Chiyo, Ebizō, Pakura, and the others before speaking. "Iwagakure wants to form an alliance with us to jointly resist Cloud Village. What do you think?"
Chiyo answered without hesitation. "We should accept. Everyone knows what happened in the Land of Iron. I doubt the Raikage intends to stop there."
"It's better to prepare early than be caught off guard."
Ebizō nodded in agreement. "I support Chiyo. Cloud is too dominant right now. Sunagakure alone cannot stand against them."
Hearing them both agree, Rasa nodded. "Then it's settled."
"I intend to hold a formal alliance ceremony—one that the entire shinobi world will be aware of."
Chiyo immediately said, "No problem. Leave that to me."
Rasa nodded, then shifted his gaze to Pakura.
As one of Sunagakure's most renowned kekkei genkai shinobi, Pakura's Scorch Release was extremely powerful.
Back during the Shinobi War, her achievements rivaled his own.
When the position of Kazekage was decided, Pakura had many supporters.
If not for his Magnetic Release and his ability to gather gold dust in the desert, the seat of the Fourth Kazekage might have gone to her instead.
With that in mind, Rasa spoke calmly. "Pakura. I heard that Karura has become Yuzuru's woman. You will go to Cloud Village in secret and meet her. See if she'll reveal any information."
"Konoha is no longer a threat. Our greatest enemy going forward is Cloud."
Pakura blinked in disbelief and pointed at herself. "Me?"
Rasa's expression darkened slightly. "Why? Is there a problem?"
Pakura nearly groaned. She wanted to refuse but could only give an excuse. "Karura is Yuzuru's woman now. She won't betray him or Cloud Village. If I go, I'll just be walking into a trap."
"She won't." Rasa smiled coldly. "You've forgotten—Yashamaru is still in our village."
"Karura dotes on Yashamaru. Threaten her with his life, and she'll comply."
"But…"
Pakura tried to argue, but Rasa's face instantly hardened. "Pakura. This is an order."
"Remember—I am the Kazekage."
Feeling the icy pressure in his eyes, Pakura could only nod. "Understood."
"You depart today. Prepare yourself."
After she left, a thin smile formed on Rasa's lips.
Once Pakura was outside the village, he could finally purge her remaining supporters.
The disappearance of the Third Kazekage was still a raw wound. He would not repeat the same mistakes.
In Sunagakure, anyone who could threaten his position had to be eliminated.
Chiyo, watching from the side, sighed and spoke softly. "Kazekage-sama, Bunpuku's condition worsens every day. You must choose the next jinchuriki soon."
Rasa nodded. "I know."
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Konohagakure. (T/N: long time no see…)
Hokage Office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen puffed heavily on his pipe, face dark with frustration.
News of the Iwa–Suna alliance had spread across the entire shinobi world. No one had stated the reason outright, but everyone understood.
They were joining forces to oppose Cloud Village.
For the same reason, he had recently sent envoys to both Iwagakure and Sunagakure, hoping to form an alliance with them.
But to his shock, both Ōnoki and Rasa refused.
They claimed it would be improper to get involved given Konoha's relationship with the Uchiha—lest they draw trouble upon themselves.
The Uchiha again!
Hiruzen simply couldn't understand. What was so frightening about the Uchiha? Back when they were still in Konoha, did any of them dare challenge him?
It was all that idiot Third Raikage's fault. For the sake of a bit of petty advantage, he insisted on supporting the Uchiha clan.
Utter stupidity.
Did he not consider that once the Uchiha grew stronger, his own position as Raikage would be at risk?