Onoki was deeply distressed over the losses that the Land of Earth had suffered in the Land of Fire. His subordinates shared the sa sentint, they all wanted to vent their frustration by slaughtering the shinobi of the Land of Wind.
But Onoki knew they absolutely could not do that.
They had to form an alliance with the Land of Wind.
An alliance with the Land of Fire was completely unrealistic.
If the Land of Wind were to be destroyed, the next to suffer would undoubtedly be the Land of Earth.
If they sided with the Land of Fire, there would only be one possible outco—total annihilation.
"We must support the Land of Wind. We absolutely cannot allow them to be wiped out by the Land of Fire," Onoki declared firmly, his tone leaving no room for argunt.
"But Tsuchikage-sama, the Land of Fire is incredibly powerful. If they are truly determined to destroy the Land of Wind, even with our support, we may not be able to stop them. We could end up losing a significant portion of our forces for nothing," one of the elite jōnin of the Land of Earth said with a troubled expression.
"That's right, Tsuchikage-sama. The Land of Wind is already so weakened that even with our help, they are dood to fall," another shinobi added.
It wasn't that they underestimated the Land of Wind—it was just that their current condition was beyond saving.
Not a single Kage-level shinobi remained in the Land of Wind.
Even if they wanted to help, they were powerless to do so.
Were they supposed to send their entire elite force to go head-to-head against the Land of Fire?
That was obviously unrealistic.
"Tsuchikage-sama, are you planning to take action yourself?" one of the shinobi asked, clearly uneasy.
"Jiraiya's strength far surpasses our expectations. Even I might not be his match. I have no intention of fighting him alone," Onoki shook his head.
Hearing Onoki's cautious approach, the room of shinobi let out a breath of relief.
A prudent leader ant a higher chance of survival.
They didn't fear a cautious Tsuchikage; they feared a reckless one.
"Tsuchikage-sama, you wield Dust Release. No matter how strong Jiraiya is, he can't possibly be your match."
"If you personally take action, Tsuchikage-sama, we may face so risks, but Jiraiya will definitely die."
A few elite jōnin quickly flattered him, smiling as they spoke.
"Jiraiya must die. His existence has completely disrupted the balance of power among the great nations. I plan to travel to the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water alongside the Land of Wind's envoy to persuade them to join us in eliminating Jiraiya. If the four great nations work together, we will be able to take him down."
Onoki's tone was resolute.
"Tsuchikage-sama, wouldn't it be too dangerous for you to personally travel to the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water? Our relationships with those nations aren't exactly friendly," an older elite jōnin asked, visibly anxious.
A Kage traveling to another country unannounced was extrely risky.
The fate of the Kazekage was a clear warning—he had taken a large entourage to negotiate, only to be killed, his remains scattered to the wind.
"This is sothing I must handle personally. Only then will they take this threat seriously and agree to join forces against Jiraiya."
Onoki sighed.
He wasn't eager to take the risk, but there was no other choice.
If he didn't go himself, the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water might not even consider cooperating.
"Tsuchikage-sama, if our four nations join forces, Jiraiya will certainly be eliminated. Afterward, with the Land of Wind lacking a Kage-level protector and bordering our territory, they will have to compensate us heavily for our losses."
"Think bigger. If the four of us unite, we won't just kill Jiraiya—we'll have the power to overthrow the Land of Fire itself. Then, we can wipe out the Land of Wind as well and divide both nations' territories among the remaining three of us!"
In the conference room, many shinobi were already lost in their fantasies of conquest.
"Bring the Land of Wind's envoy. I need to discuss the details with him before heading to the Land of Lightning," Onoki ordered in a deep voice.
...
"Raikage-sama, that is the situation. I believe Jiraiya must die. What do you think?"
In the Raikage's office in Kumogakure, Onoki and the Land of Wind's envoy presented their case to the Third Raikage.
The Third Raikage was an imnsely powerful shinobi. In the original tiline, he perished during the Third Great Ninja War after battling ten thousand shinobi from the Land of Earth for three days and nights.
"We've already seen the extent of that man's power. He must be eliminated. If we let him continue to grow, he will beco another Hashirama Senju—or perhaps even surpass him. An enemy of his caliber, with such boundless ambition, is a threat we cannot ignore," the Raikage mused after a mont of consideration.
Eliminating Jiraiya aligned with Kumogakure's interests as well.
Seeing the Raikage nod in agreent, Onoki smiled.
"In that case, Raikage-sama, let's not delay any further. We should head to the Land of Water imdiately and persuade the Mizukage to join us."
Onoki urged.
The Raikage nodded. Wasting no ti, he gathered an elite force and, together with Onoki, set out for the Land of Water.
At this point, the Land of Water was still stable—Uchiha Madara had yet to seize control of the Mizukage, and the infamous Bloody Mist policy had not yet begun.
The Land of Water remained a formidable power.
When two Kage-level figures arrived at the Land of Water, they caused an imdiate uproar, prompting the Third Mizukage himself to greet them.
The Land of Earth and the Land of Water had always been adversaries.
After all, the Second Tsuchikage and the Second Mizukage had perished together in battle.
So, Onoki remained silent while the Raikage explained their purpose.
The Mizukage was already aware of Jiraiya's growing influence.
If they allowed him to continue developing unchecked, even the Land of Water wouldn't remain safe forever, despite being isolated from the mainland.
Without much hesitation, the Mizukage agreed to the proposal to eliminate Jiraiya.
Not long after, the Mizukage assembled an elite force and set off from the Land of Water, their goal clear—hunt down and kill Jiraiya!
"Are we striking imdiately?" the Raikage asked.
"There's no need to act right away. We'll wait until the Land of Fire's forces push deeper into the Land of Wind. Once both sides are heavily engaged, we'll make our move against Jiraiya."
Onoki smirked coldly.
"That makes sense. With no Kage-level shinobi protecting the Land of Wind, this is the perfect opportunity to seize their territory. Now that our three nations have joined forces, we must ensure that after eliminating Jiraiya, we also wipe out the Land of Fire—and erase the Land of Wind from the map altogether."
The Mizukage grasped Onoki's intent and fully supported the plan.
Their alliance was set. The four great nations were now poised to strike.
Jiraiya's fate was sealed.
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Pls Drop so Power Stones
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