The battlefield, which should have been filled with the sounds of slaughter, shouts, and clashing weapons, had now fallen into an eerie silence.
"I'm not seeing things, am I? The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the Three-Tails are together?" A black-and-white, Venus flytrap-like figure, most of its body merged into the trunk of a tree, stared at the distant behemoths, its expression somewhat dazed.
"Uzumaki Naruto?"
Some Konoha ninja, looking at the young man's face, gradually matched it with the one in their memories.
"What is going on here?" Kakashi stared at the scene, his visible eye narrowing.
"Your Excellency, what is the meaning of this?" It was Ebizo, who did not recognize Naruto, who reacted first and posed the question.
Although his age made him old enough to be the boy's grandfather, the other party's strength fully warranted being addressed as 'Your Excellency.'
"Uzumaki Naruto, what are you playing at? Get your ass back here, now!" Shimura Danzo barked.
A Konoha ninja actually wanted both sides to stop fighting.
What an absolute joke!
Swoosh!
A uniquely styled kunai had just flown past him when Naruto's voice sounded right beside his ear.
"May I ask, Your Excellency, the 'Darkness of Shinobi,' by what authority, and with what qualifications, do you order me to 'get back here'?"
The pupils of the surrounding Konoha ninja constricted violently, and they swiftly formed a circle around Naruto.
"Uzumaki Naruto, you'd better think carefully about what you're doing," Shimura Danzo said, his tone still calm as he glanced down at the blade pressed against his neck.
"I am very clear." The moment Naruto's words fell, his figure once again vanished from the spot, reappearing atop Isobu's head.
The Flying Thunder God Technique? Shimura Danzo thought, looking at the kunai beside him. Where did he learn that?
"Isobu, do it!"
As Naruto's command landed, Isobu tilted his head back slightly, and a massive amount of Yin and Yang chakra rapidly converged in front of him.
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
Leaving behind a shadow clone, Naruto's main body vanished. On the other side of the battlefield, a Nine-Tailed Fox formed of golden chakra materialized before everyone's eyes.
Without a word, it too began to condense a perfectly round, jet-black Tailed Beast Bomb in front of itself.
"Withdraw your troops, or I will flatten this place and make you withdraw," the shadow clone declared.
"Why are you doing this?" Ebizo asked.
"Peace."
"A laughable method," Shimura Danzo snorted. "Those who chase peace rarely attain it."
"Like yin and yang, light and darkness, the path to peace is inevitably supported by force. Force invariably breeds hatred, and hatred breeds greater hatred. It's a vicious cycle. Peace is merely a delusion."
"You're quite right," the shadow clone nodded slightly. "But unfortunately, I'm not here to reason with you."
"One last time: withdraw your troops, or I will make you withdraw!"
The Tailed Beast Bomb in front of Kurama suddenly swelled, almost obscuring his massive form.
"What benefit is there for Your Excellency in doing this?" Ebizo hurriedly asked.
"No benefit, nor do I need any," the shadow clone stated. "You can consider me a madman, a lunatic."
"Three…"
"Two…"
"Sunagakure withdraws!" Ebizo said quickly. They were already at a disadvantage anyway; retreating would minimize their losses.
He did not doubt the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's resolve for a second.
"…" Shimura Danzo gave him a long, deep look. "Konoha also agrees to withdraw."
Under the pressure of the Tailed Beast Bombs, some ninja with weaker constitutions had already lost their ability to move.
War was merely a means to maximize benefits. In the current situation, even if they forcibly continued the war, it would only lead to increased casualties.
"I don't care how you resolve your grievances, but large-scale warfare will absolutely not be permitted."
After the shadow clone spoke, the two Tailed Beast Bombs flew off into the distance.
Everyone present felt their hearts tighten violently.
BOOM!
At the edge of their vision, the two Tailed Beast Bombs detonated. Following the blinding light was a powerful gale.
A massive amount of rubble, branches, and shredded leaves swept across the ground, leaving everyone disheveled and battered.
Because the Tailed Beast Bombs had flown far enough, the explosive aftershock didn't cause them too much harm. If those two Tailed Beast Bombs had landed in the center of the battlefield, their entire armies would likely have been annihilated.
After the storm subsided, the ninja stared blankly at the suddenly empty vista in the distance. If they remembered correctly, there had been several mountains there just moments ago.
Is this power a ninja can possess?
This thought surfaced in all their minds.
"The Dragon Heritage will be watching you."
"Do you understand what you're doing?" Shimura Danzo demanded. "You are challenging the bottom line of the Five Great Hidden Villages!"
Poof!
A vast cloud of white smoke erupted.
The forms of the Three-Tails and the Nine-Tails vanished from the spot.
"Of course, I understand. You can also try to provoke a war, though I don't believe you can bear the consequences."
Naruto held up two fingers like a sword before him. After saying this, his figure also disappeared.
"Captain Monga…" Kui's mouth opened and closed a few times, wanting to speak but hesitating.
They had envisioned Konoha's defeat, Suna's defeat, even a peace treaty between the two.
But they had never imagined the battle would end in such a dramatic fashion, threatened into a ceasefire by two Tailed Beasts and a Jinchuriki…
What in the world is happening?
Aren't Jinchuriki supposed to be the ultimate weapons of a village?
How has the weapon turned its muzzle on the wielder?
"I will report this matter to the Third," Monga said. Honestly, he also felt like his brain had short-circuited.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, a uniquely styled kunai landed in front of them.
A figure followed close behind. Seeing the newcomer, all the Iwagakure ninja tensed as if facing a great enemy. This was a ruthless character who dared to threaten both Konoha and Sunagakure simultaneously!
"What I said earlier also applies to you. Go back and tell your Kage: as long as the Dragon Heritage exists, large-scale warfare will not be permitted in the ninja world!" After Naruto's first shadow clone relayed the original's message, it vanished.
"Is he joking?" an Iwagakure ninja couldn't help but scoff.
How could the Five Great Hidden Villages be threatened by a single Jinchuriki?
"Even if it's a joke, he has the power to make it," Monga said, his expression grave as he recalled the Tailed Beast Bombs.
"…The same goes for Kumogakure." Naruto's second shadow clone finished speaking and also vanished.
"A ridiculous threat," a Kumogakure ninja commented.
"Let's head back. By the looks of it, Suna and Konoha won't be fighting anymore," Darui said, glancing at him. Why didn't you say that when the guy was actually here?
Who's really being ridiculous?
"I take back what I said earlier. Your Konoha's young talent is very strong," Ebizo stated, having overheard the conversation between the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and Shimura Danzo and gained a general understanding of their relationship.
"But clearly, you failed to hold onto him," he added mockingly.
"Konoha's affairs do not require your concern," Shimura Danzo said, then directly turned and led his forces away.
Ebizo did likewise.
They both found the Jinchuriki's threat utterly laughable, yet at the same time, they dared not directly face those terrifying Tailed Beast Bombs.
They knew better than anyone that against Tailed Beast Bombs of that scale, numerical superiority was no advantage at all…