Cloud Shinobi Village - Emergency Council
The elderly Cloud Village council member slammed his walking cane against the stone floor with a resounding crack, pointing his index finger accusingly at the medical ninja kneeling before him. His weathered face contorted with barely contained rage and frustration.
The Cloud ninja, still maintaining his respectful one-knee position, offered no excuses or explanations. Instead, he simply lowered his head further in shame, accepting the elder's righteous anger.
"Summon everyone immediately! I want to hear the most comprehensive and detailed report possible!" the elder commanded, his voice echoing through the medical facility.
"Yes, sir!" The medical ninja quickly rose to his feet and hurried away to gather his colleagues, while Dodai gently assisted the elder in finding a place to sit down.
"Dodai, what's your honest assessment? Do you believe our medical ninja have the capability to successfully treat Killer Bee?" the elder asked, his voice heavy with concern and exhaustion.
Dodai shook his head solemnly and spoke with brutal honesty. "To be completely frank, the medical expertise within our village is severely lacking. One of our primary objectives in launching this recent war was to address our relatively underdeveloped medical capabilities. Unfortunately..."
Unfortunately, the war had ended in defeat. No matter how well-conceived their pre-war strategies had been, everything became meaningless without victory to back them up.
The leadership of Cloud Village could clearly identify what their village lacked, but medical standards couldn't be improved simply through desire and determination alone.
The Land of Lightning didn't possess the favorable natural conditions that blessed the Land of Fire. More critically, they lacked medical ninja with extraordinary talents and exceptional skills, making the development of advanced medical techniques extremely challenging.
Both the Cloud Village elder and Dodai released heavy sighs of frustration. This medical crisis wasn't the only serious problem currently facing their village.
Soon, the assembled medical ninja began presenting their comprehensive treatment summary to the two senior Cloud Village officials, their voices carrying a mixture of professional dedication and personal disappointment.
"Although the effectiveness of our treatments hasn't shown dramatic improvement, we have successfully determined that Master Killer Bee is indeed in a comatose state due to severe damage inflicted upon his soul. If we can somehow address this fundamental issue, there would be significant hope for his complete recovery!"
After listening carefully to the medical ninja's detailed summary, lines of deep worry appeared across Dodai's forehead. This revelation wasn't encouraging news by any measure.
The Cloud Village elder's frown deepened, his expression showing obvious dissatisfaction with the lack of progress. "That's it? That's all you have to report?"
"We sincerely apologize, Elder," the lead medical ninja responded with genuine remorse.
"Our capabilities are extremely limited, and what we've accomplished so far represents the absolute extent of our current abilities..."
The medical ninja were too ashamed to raise their heads, resigned to accepting whatever criticism their superiors deemed appropriate.
"We cannot continue like this!" Dodai declared firmly, shaking his head while suppressing his inner frustration. He issued his orders with authority: "Continue the treatment protocols immediately, and ensure that Killer Bee recovers as quickly as possible."
"Yes, sir!"
After watching the medical ninja depart to resume their duties, Dodai and the elder also left the facility, returning to Cloud Village for an emergency high-level meeting.
Until the Fifth Raikage officially assumed office, these high-level council meetings remained responsible for managing all critical village affairs and making strategic decisions.
The meeting participants included not only the department heads from various village divisions, but also experienced elders, senior advisors, and other influential figures within the village hierarchy.
"Following the signing of the armistice agreement, the Fire Country border situation has returned to normal operations. Currently, there are no detected signs of large-scale shinobi mobilization from Konoha's forces."
"We don't need to worry about Konoha's intentions for the immediate future. Kirigakure remains deeply embroiled in their ongoing internal conflicts, so the Water Country shouldn't pose any threat to us either."
"The real concern is Iwagakure. That crafty old bastard Ōnoki suffered a devastating loss at the hands of Jiraiya and Shihouin Naraku. He might be looking to recoup some of those losses by targeting us."
"Exactly. We need to remain extremely cautious of that sneaky bastard Ōnoki and his potential schemes."
"We must ensure that the ninja responsible for border defense maintain constant vigilance regarding Iwagakure's movements. If any unexpected or suspicious activity occurs, they must relay that information to us as quickly as possible."
"Don't worry, those arrangements have already been implemented."
"What's the current status of Killer Bee's condition? Is there any realistic possibility he can recover in the near future?"
"The situation is quite serious! We must prepare ourselves for the worst-case scenario!"
"Damn it all! The Two-Tails and the Fourth Raikage both died in that catastrophic battle, Killer Bee is now unconscious and unresponsive, and Cloud Village has suddenly lost three of our most powerful fighters. Our strategic position has become incredibly dangerous!"
"It will take several years for the Two-Tails to naturally revive and return, so we should begin the process of selecting a new Jinchūriki immediately..."
"But what about the Eight-Tails? With Killer Bee in his current condition..."
"Should we consider releasing the Eight-Tails early and finding a replacement?"
"Absolutely not! That action would definitely result in Killer Bee's death!"
"But consider this... if something fatal happens to Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails will die as a direct consequence, leaving Cloud Village completely without any tailed beasts for several years. That scenario is far too dangerous! I cannot and will not allow that to happen!"
"No! Your proposed plan is completely untenable! First of all, how do you expect us to locate a Jinchūriki suitable for containing the Eight-Tails in such a short timeframe? If the Eight-Tails goes on a rampage, who exactly will stop it now that the Fourth Raikage has tragically died? How much collateral damage are we willing to accept?
Furthermore, Killer Bee represents the most perfect Jinchūriki that Cloud Village has produced in decades. His relationship and bond with the Eight-Tails is extraordinarily rare - something we might see once in a century. Even Yugito and the Two-Tails couldn't match their level of cooperation and mutual understanding.
If we force the Eight-Tails into a different Jinchūriki, can you guarantee we'll still be able to utilize the Eight-Tails' full strength effectively? Even if that's possible, do we really have the luxury of time to wait for a new Jinchūriki to develop the same level of rapport with the Eight-Tails?"
The room fell into contemplative silence as the weight of these arguments settled over the council members.
"We need to focus our efforts on finding a way to wake up Killer Bee!"
"I agree completely!"
"I support this approach!"
"I have a potentially viable suggestion," interjected the head of the intelligence department, drawing everyone's attention. "According to the information we gathered previously, Konoha's notorious missing-nin Orochimaru engaged in combat with Shihouin Naraku, and Orochimaru was reportedly killed during that encounter. Given Shihouin Naraku's demonstrated strength and his status within Konoha, I believe the village would have no reason to fabricate such information.
However, Orochimaru was somehow resurrected!
This means that Orochimaru likely possesses knowledge about Shihouin Naraku's techniques and methods. Perhaps he might be capable of addressing the Killer Bee situation?"
The ongoing Cloud Village high-level meeting took an interesting turn as the intelligence department head's proposal caused the eyes of every official present to light up with renewed hope.
Indeed, if Orochimaru had somehow managed his own resurrection, perhaps he possessed the knowledge necessary to repair the soul damage that Shihouin Naraku had inflicted upon Killer Bee!
However, someone quickly raised a practical concern: "Orochimaru is a traitor to Konoha. Even if we set aside Konoha's potential reaction, we might not be able to convince him to cooperate with us."
"Convince him?"
"Send someone to bring Orochimaru back here immediately!"
"Don't resort to aggressive tactics initially. Send someone to attempt persuasion first. If Orochimaru refuses our generous offer, then we can abandon politeness!"
"Agreed, let's proceed with that approach!"
"Before Orochimaru arrives, we need to transfer Killer Bee back to the village from Turtle Island. We cannot risk any information about Turtle Island's location being compromised!"
"Absolutely correct. That security concern cannot be overlooked!"
After the Cloud Village leadership confirmed their strategy, they immediately dispatched teams to begin searching for Orochimaru's whereabouts.
However, the meeting continued as the village leadership still needed to discuss the crucial matter of selecting the Fifth Raikage!
Iwagakure - A Village in Crisis
Every village faced its own unique troubles, and Iwagakure was currently dealing with its own severe problems.
The massive loss of personnel had significantly weakened Iwagakure's overall combat capabilities and strategic position.
The demolition corps, which had been trained at enormous cost and effort over many years, had been completely annihilated. The elite combat forces led by Kitsuchi had all perished. These devastating losses caused widespread shock and dismay throughout Iwagakure.
If it weren't for the unshakeable prestige and authority that Ōnoki had carefully established during his long tenure as Tsuchikage, any other leader would have faced severe condemnation from the entire village population long ago.
However, Ōnoki's internal anguish ran far deeper than anyone could imagine. The catastrophic losses suffered by the village, the death of his son Kitsuchi upon whom he had placed such high hopes, and the serious injuries sustained by his granddaughter Kurotsuchi, who had only recently begun her battlefield career - these continuous devastating blows caused Ōnoki to experience overwhelming emotional pain.
Although he hadn't completely surrendered to despair, Ōnoki had begun seriously questioning whether he remained suitable for the position of Tsuchikage.
Perhaps the time had finally come for him to retire and pass the responsibility to younger, more capable hands?
This internal conflict became especially intense whenever he visited his granddaughter lying motionless in the hospital bed, her condition appearing hopeless. Seeing her like this, Ōnoki finally made his difficult decision.
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