The representatives from the minor ninja villages met in an intensely debated conference.
Each representative championed their own village's interests fiercely.
Reaching a genuine and reliable alliance would be no easy task!
"Bullshit!"
"You're talking nonsense! If we really gathered all ninja from every minor village, who'd be left to defend our villages and countries?"
A representative from one of the smaller ninja villages shouted loudly.
As the main facilitator of the meeting,
the main representative of the Hidden Grass Village's pro-war faction and Lord of the Hozuki Castle, Mui,
merely smiled, then calmly continued explaining:
"Everyone must understand—the goal of this summit and alliance is to seek ways for our minor ninja villages to gain recognition and respect from the Five Great Nations. We must make them fear us so that we can protect our villages when faced with the military might of the Five Hidden Villages."
"That's why we must unite our forces!"
"If we gather all the ninja from every minor village, we will become a force the Five Hidden Villages wouldn't dare ignore—perhaps even fear!"
"All we must do afterward is follow the treaty."
"We shall announce to the Five Great Nations: should any of you dare attack even one of our villages, we will unite all our ninja forces and strike back!"
"Make that great nation pay a price they'll never forget!"
"Even to the point of destruction!"
"In that case, the Five Great Nations will fear each other too much to keep oppressing us smaller villages..."
"And only then will we truly possess power equal to the Five Great Nations!"
"And bring longer peace and protection to our villages and countries!"
Lord Mui called out passionately.
This was his plan: to unite the power of all the smaller villages into a single force capable of rivaling the Five Great Nations—an entity they would fear.
It's just like in Shimoku's former world—where dozens of European nations, when divided, couldn't satisfy even the 'Northern Bear Nation' one by one...
But if united as the EU,
they turned into a colossus that terrified all global superpowers.
Right now, the [Hidden Grass Village] sought to create such a new superpower!
Upon hearing this,
the other representatives fell silent, their minds clearly turning over the possibility...
After all, this suggestion was undeniably attractive.
And could finally free their villages from years of oppression by the Five Great Nations!
Certainly many benefits came with it!
However, among the dozens of representatives from various villages, not all were fools.
There were still several intelligent ones.
They immediately raised new objections:
"Wait a second!"
"I have a question!"
"Even if this alliance forms and combines all our minor villages' strength, success isn't guaranteed, is it?"
"We've heard something important recently—the Hidden Leaf Village apparently used ninjutsu to resurrect its legendary ancestor—the First Hokage himself!"
"He was a mighty warrior honored across the Warring States period (senso jidai)!"
"Just with us, even combined, we probably won't be strong enough to face him alone."
"What makes you think the Hidden Leaf Village would fear us?"
Such a blunt question startled all the representatives.
Absolutely!
The Five Great Hidden Villages were simply too powerful, with deeply rooted strength.
Especially their Kage, whose power far exceeded that of Jonin!
Who could guarantee?
After forming an alliance, would they truly be able to match them?
If this failed, it would literally cost lives!
Facing this, Lord Mui remained calm and confident as always,
as if he had a plan ready in advance.
"Just a moment, everyone."
"Shortly, we will demonstrate how to obtain true power capable of rivaling the Five Great Hidden Villages!"
After saying this, Mui immediately gave a knowing glance toward the representative from the Hidden Waterfall Village beside him.
The representative from the Hidden Waterfall Village caught on immediately and wasted no time.
He immediately stepped aside and, along with several other ninjas from his village, carried someone in from outside the room.
It was a sleeping child, around seven or eight years old.
With short blue-green hair, dark skin, and orange eyes, she looked frail and innocent.
"What is this?"
"This is our Hidden Waterfall Village's Seven-Tails Jinchuriki!"
Upon hearing this, chaos erupted inside the room.
"What? Actually a Jinchuriki?"
"The Hidden Waterfall Village actually dared to bring out their Tailed Beast?"
"This is the ace card of the alliance?"
"This Jinchuriki is so young; can she even harness the power of the Tailed Beast?"
"One single Tailed Beast won't be enough anyway! The Five Great Hidden Villages control more than just one Tailed Beast!"
"And even if it is a Tailed Beast, could it defeat The First Hokage?"
Everyone spoke over each other loudly and noisily.
Clearly, after going through multiple Great Ninja World Wars,
The once-feared reputation of the Tailed Beasts and Jinchuriki had lost its intimidating power.
Depending solely on such a young Jinchuriki would simply lack sufficient deterrence.
Moreover, many eyed the young female Jinchuriki Fu hungrily, eager to claim her for themselves.
...
"Hehe!"
"You're worrying unnecessarily. This Jinchuriki isn't actually our strength."
"She's merely a key."
"A means to unlock true power!"
With a proud smile, Mui clapped his hands twice.
Clap clap—
Instantly, the conference table at the center of the meeting room split open, as an elevator platform slowly rose upward from beneath the floor.
On this platform lay a massive, square-shaped, hideous box.
Four human faces were carved onto its four sides, representing 'Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Happiness'—exuding a wild yet eerie twisted vibe.
"What is this?"
"It's a divine treasure our clan has protected generation after generation: The Box of Paradise!"
"As long as it's opened, any wish can be fulfilled! Immense power beyond comparison can be obtained!"
Mui excitedly explained.
"A real divine treasure?"
"There's actually such a precious item?"
"It can really fulfill all wishes?"
"How do you activate it?"
Eager voices rushed forth with questions.
Mui smiled faintly as he picked up the nearby Jinchuriki girl, placing her before the box.
Then he began to [perform jutsu].
"To open this box, an enormous amount of chakra (spiritual energy) is required. After years of research, we've determined that only the immense chakra of a Jinchuriki will suffice!"
"Now, it's time to open it!"
In the next moment, as Mui initiated the ritual,
The enormous tailed beast chakra within Fu, the Seven-Tails' Jinchuriki, was forcibly extracted and injected into [The Box of Paradise].
That was exactly why the Hidden Grass Village had chosen to cooperate with the Hidden Waterfall Village.
To borrow the Jinchuriki from the Hidden Waterfall Village
To activate the artifact and obtain the ultimate power!
Originally, the Hidden Grass Village hadn't planned to reveal this artifact prematurely.
They preferred to conduct gradual tests in secret, eventually opening the box alone and gaining the power to directly dominate the Ninja World.
But lately, the turbulence across the Ninja World had grown too intense.
With the return—through dark techniques—of figures like the First Hokage...
They truly feared that a new Great Ninja War could erupt before they even got the chance to open the box,
Which might lead to their own destruction...
If that were going to happen anyway, better to ally with the Hidden Waterfall Village early, open the box, and gain the ultimate power!
That was the true purpose behind this secret conspiracy.
After all, without the power of this artifact, even if all the smaller villages joined forces, they wouldn't stand a chance against the Five Great Hidden Villages!
...
Fu's chakra, the Seven-Tails' Jinchuriki, was soon completely drained.
And the artifact [The Box of Paradise] had now received enough chakra to be activated.
Instantly, a massive pillar of chakra shot straight into the sky, stirring up wind and clouds.
It formed a spiraling vortex high in the atmosphere, an astonishing sight.
It even startled the representatives from the smaller ninja villages, causing them to tremble and gasp in shock.
"Boom!"
At the same time, sensing something was wrong, Jiraiya and Tsunade shattered the stone wall,
Rushing directly into the meeting room from the adjacent chamber.
They weren't naïve. Witnessing how strange this artifact was, and seeing the magnitude of its manifestation,
If Lord Mui was allowed to make his wish and fully open it, what kind of disaster could be unleashed?
They had to subdue this lord immediately and stop that box from opening!
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