At the border of the Land of Fire, on the battlefield where Konoha clashed with the Kiri-nin.
The Konoha ninja were now far more relaxed, as the Kiri-nin had been driven back.
In recent days, Tengen had little to do. Both he and Minato received a letter from Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The letter outlined matters they were already aware of.
If the Kirigakure sent envoys for peace talks, Tengen would prepare to head to the Land of Hot Water's battlefield.
Minato would remain in charge here.
The remaining tasks were mostly cleanup. Once everything was settled, Konoha's ninja here would reinforce other fronts.
Victory on one battlefield fueled the Konoha ninja's hunger for further triumphs.
To many, Tengen symbolized victory itself.
One day, envoys from the Kirigakure arrived, claiming they came to negotiate peace.
"Come with me. Minato-sama, Tengen-sama… they're waiting for you." A Konoha ninja said, leading Ao and the other Kiri-nin to a tent.
"Please, enter." The Konoha ninja said, lifting the tent flap for the Kiri-nin.
Ao stepped inside without hesitation. Konoha wouldn't resort to assassinating them, and even if they did, the Kiri-nin had no strength to resist.
This was Konoha's stronghold, teeming with their ninja.
Not to mention, it housed Kage-level shinobi, and even those surpassing Kage-level strength.
Inside, the Kiri-nin saw Minato, Tengen, and Nara Shikaku, just the three responsible for this front.
"Tengen-sama, Minato-sama, Shikaku-sama." Ao said slowly.
Having fought Konoha for so long, Ao knew of these three, even if only by reputation.
Tengen, in particular, was the most legendary, and likely the strongest, among them.
The memory of Tengen's actions in the Kirigakure was still vivid for Ao.
It made him acutely aware of Tengen's terrifying power, which far exceeded Kage-level.
To suppress an entire ninja village single-handedly was no small feat.
"Ao, isn't it? I know you. You're quite a skilled ninja in the Kirigakure." Minato said with a slight smile.
"You flatter me, Minato-sama." Ao replied with a smile. "Your Flying Thunder God Technique is what's truly fearsome. Our ninja dread encountering you."
"Haha, no need to praise me." Minato laughed. "Tengen's right here. Speaking of the Flying Thunder God Technique, he's even better than me."
"Tengen-sama is naturally exceptional." Ao said.
"So, you're here for peace talks?" Tengen asked, his gaze steady on Ao.
A chill ran down Ao's spine.
Though Tengen emitted no killing intent, Ao felt as if he faced a monstrous beast.
A single, simple attack from this monster could leave him powerless.
"Yes, Tengen-sama." Ao said, quickly composing himself.
"Good. Let's discuss the terms here for now." Minato said.
"Yes, my lords…" Ao replied, while the Kiri-nin behind him barely dared to breathe, avoiding Tengen's gaze.
The detailed negotiations stretched over several days.
Yes, that long. Both the Hokage and Mizukage had granted their representatives authority to negotiate within certain limits.
When terms were unacceptable, they had to consult their respective Kages.
Naturally, Ao communicated more with the Mizukage, as they were the defeated party, unlike Konoha.
After finalizing the agreements, Ao returned to his village. The formal signing between the Mizukage and Hokage would wait until Konoha secured a definitive victory.
For now, Konoha had no time for such matters.
Of course, the Kirigakure still had to provide the agreed-upon reparations, or Konoha wouldn't release the captured Kiri-nin.
Thus, the Kirigakure had no choice but to hand over the resources.
The aftermath involved many minor details.
But Tengen didn't need to worry about those. His next task was to lead a group of Konoha ninja to the Land of Hot Water to bolster their forces against the Kumo-nin.
Due to its sea-locked isolation, the Kirigakure's defeat was still unknown to the other ninja villages.
Konoha kept it quiet, and the Kirigakure certainly wouldn't announce such a humiliating loss.
Why would they broadcast their shame?
This created a strange situation: despite the passage of time, the other three great ninja villages believed Konoha was still fighting the Kirigakure.
Even Konoha's ninja on the other three fronts were unaware.
At the Land of Fire's coastal border.
"Minato, this is where we part. We'll meet again in Konoha, and by then, it'll be Konoha's victory." Tengen said.
"I'm looking forward to it. You must win, Tengen." Minato said with a smile.
"Alright." Tengen nodded. "Kushina, prepare to move out."
"Yes, Captain Tengen." Kushina Uzumaki replied.
"Konoha ninja, depart!" Tengen commanded.
"Yes, Tengen-sama!" The Konoha ninja responded, following him closely toward the Land of Hot Water's battlefield.
---
At the Land of Hot Water's battlefield.
The Kumo-nin's encampment.
"My comrades, now is the perfect opportunity. Konoha is fighting on four fronts and likely can't hold out much longer." The Third Raikage said to the Kumo-nin. "Tomorrow, we launch a full assault on Konoha. This time, we will crush them."
"Yes, Raikage-sama!" The Kumo-nin shouted.
Having been stalled by Konoha on this front, the Kumo-nin were frustrated. This time, they were determined to defeat Konoha.
The air grew thick with the scent of war. The life-and-death struggle between the two great ninja villages had ignited.
***
Every 5 reviews and 200 power stones, a bonus chapter will be dropped.
(5,10,15, 200, 400, 600, and so on then two bonus chapters will be dropped, 1 for 5 reviews and 1 for 200 power stones, so that's 2 bonus chapters!)
And if you want to read more than 50 chapters early, feel free to visit pat re on. com / Xelenea (remove space).