"Iwagakure?"
"I actually failed to account for that move!"
From Uzumaki Shinji's account, Uchiha Makoto finally learned what had happened.
The First Tsuchikage was indeed shrewd.
Although Uchiha Makoto had focused most of his attention on Kumogakure, he had in fact been tracking news from the other villages all along.
What he hadn't expected was this.
The First Tsuchikage was bold. He didn't mobilize a grand army, but he did bring his very best.
He led a strike company of over a hundred elite Iwa jōnin, lurking in the dark and watching the battlefield, then stepped in at a perfectly chosen moment and completely swung the course of the war.
A hundred jōnin are nothing to scoff at—especially with a Kage personally in command.
With them present, even the combined Akatsuki–Uzumaki main force, attacking with all their might, would be hard-pressed to take the undefended Third Line in short order.
The two sides hadn't even clashed in full. The First Tsuchikage was extremely restrained, mostly holding a defensive posture.
Warned in time, the Kumogakure main force that had been waiting to ambush returned in a rush to the Third Line… ruining Akatsuki's strategic objective of seizing it.
"What's Iwagakure's goal?"
That was what Uchiha Makoto cared about most.
If it were only Kumogakure, Akatsuki could still manage.
But if Iwagakure joined in, the trajectory of this war would…
"A ceasefire."
"Iwa wants Akatsuki and Kumo to accept an unconditional ceasefire. The First Tsuchikage believes ninja blood has flowed far too much already, and many conflicts can be solved by dialogue, negotiation, and discussion. At the very least, we don't need war's extremes."
"He says he'll hold back the Kumogakure faction seeking vengeance for the First Raikage and eager to continue. And he's already sent word to Konoha, expressing the same view."
"So he asked me to bring you this message: he hopes Lord Makoto can, for the peace of the ninja world, consider his proposal carefully… and not become the sinner who destroys that peace."
Uzumaki Shinji relayed everything that had happened while Uchiha Makoto was unconscious.
The moment the First Tsuchikage appeared at the Third Line, he made his stance crystal clear.
He was there to mediate—he wanted an unconditional ceasefire between Akatsuki and Kumogakure. Too many ninja had died; too much blood had been shed. Conflicts could be handled by talking, negotiating, discussing…
In short, Iwa wanted Akatsuki to stop here and end the war, all in the name of peace for the ninja world.
He was even ready to slap a big hat on Akatsuki—"the sinner who breaks the peace."
As if Uchiha Makoto couldn't see through the First Tsuchikage's little calculus.
Akatsuki had the advantage now; the war was already at its endgame.
So long as Akatsuki took Kumogakure's Third Line, the war would end just the same.
Once Kumo's main force had its logistics cut, they couldn't keep butting heads to the bitter end. Aside from surrender, there was no better road left.
This was about balance.
Konoha and Akatsuki together were too strong. No matter how just Akatsuki's casus belli looked in the court of public opinion, today it was Kumo's misfortune; tomorrow it could be Iwa's turn.
Iwagakure was scared.
He'd picked a very clever moment to step in. He not only saved Kumo's main force, he also sold Kumogakure a colossal favor.
The two could even seize the chance to form an alliance—an intimate one—nothing like Konoha and Akatsuki's plastic alliance.
"Sigh… all of you go. I want a moment alone."
Freshly awakened and full of hope, only to be slammed by cold reality, Uchiha Makoto waved the Akatsuki brass and the medics out of the tent.
He needed silence.
Everyone saw his foul mood and took the hint.
Damn it.
Who could swallow this?
Just a little more.
Akatsuki could have rolled the credits on this war and taken final victory.
War indemnities, ceding core advanced jutsu, ceding territory, capping ninja numbers, cross-village tribunals…
Have the Second Raikage come to Akatsuki and dance for him.
…
He had a whole gallery of defeat CGs lined up for Kumogakure.
One smooth combo would've put Kumo on AFK during the First Great Ninja War. That decade-long on-again, off-again gnawing at Konoha from the original timeline was not happening.
But Iwa's meddling smashed his plan.
Iwa's strength was hardly small.
Right now they were near their peak.
The First and Second Tsuchikage were both present. And that was just the visible high end; the original story never counted all those elite jōnin whose power could touch Kage tier.
Akatsuki had taken heavy losses and was fighting far from home. In such a state, if they kept grinding, the end result would be highly unfavorable.
As for their plastic ally, Konoha…
Help from Senju Tobirama? Don't even think it. At most, Konoha's troops could give Akatsuki some borrowed prestige; that paper window would tear at a touch. If he didn't trip Akatsuki in the dark, it'd be a miracle. And… Iwa had already gone to poke them.
The true shot-caller—First Hokage Senju Hashirama—wouldn't allow Akatsuki to expand the war either and would surely side with the First Tsuchikage.
"A ceasefire… is the best choice for now. But unconditional is out of the question."
Staring at the tent's ceiling, Uchiha Makoto ran the math.
A ceasefire was indeed best.
But not unconditional.
The fruits Akatsuki had bled for had to be converted into real gains. Kumogakure had certainly suffered: the First Raikage was dead. But with the Second Raikage in place and overall losses only at the "torn muscles and broken bones" level, their vitality wasn't shattered.
If it were unconditional…
They'd recover in a few years.
Given Kumo's track record in the original timeline…
They'd probably chase Akatsuki through the First Great Ninja War, if not for the whole run then half of it. That was always in the cards. The nail that sticks up gets hammered; the grandson who shines in the village gets smacked by grandpa—Uchiha Makoto understood.
He never expected Akatsuki to keep every good thing.
But to take no benefit now and still tank the lightning for Konoha?
No.
Don't even dream it.
"Think… how to keep stoking the fire… Tsk… I can't very well stage an assassination attempt on myself, can I…"
"Hiss… maybe I can."
…
A few days later.
Kumogakure and Iwagakure held deep talks.
They aligned on the ceasefire and reached a unified position.
Kumo would swallow the loss of being ambushed by Akatsuki. They'd swallow the First Raikage being blasted to pieces by Uchiha Makoto. Thirty years east, thirty years west—one day they'd wash away this shame.
This war could end.
Unconditional ceasefire.
With Iwa backing them, Kumo suddenly spoke much harder.
Uchiha Makoto didn't answer them yet. He was waiting on Konoha.
Senju Tobirama had clearly gotten the news. With the war's situation changing rapidly, dawdling any longer could cause trouble.
So the Konoha force that had been dragging its feet on the road suddenly sped up and finally linked up with Akatsuki.
By rights, as allies, Uchiha Makoto should have personally greeted Senju Tobirama, but he didn't show so much as a shadow.
The reason was simple.
He was injured—too gravely to get out of bed.
In truth, he was hurt, but not that badly. He just didn't want to look at Tobirama's face.
Just thinking about it…
Uchiha Makoto could already hear what Tobirama would say.
From Konoha's standpoint—this naturally evil Senju old ghost—the man would never agree to Akatsuki pressing the advantage for total victory.
He also knew that picking Akatsuki's peaches wouldn't be easy. It would be hard.
But for Konoha, he had to try.
Then the First Tsuchikage jumped out and handed him the perfect excuse. An unconditional ceasefire meant Akatsuki would get nothing from Kumo, yet pay the cost of having launched the war. How convenient.
Senju Tobirama would absolutely endorse the First Tsuchikage's line about an unconditional ceasefire.
Even the distant First Hokage Senju Hashirama approved.
With Hashirama behind him, Tobirama had a free hand. He wasn't afraid of anything.
Even the moral high ground was his: Konoha wasn't playing favorites; they were safeguarding the peace of the ninja world.
"No matter. Makoto is my sworn brother, my dear friend. Since he's hurt, how could I make him come greet me? I should go visit him."
"Lead the way."
Senju Tobirama was in high spirits, the corners of his mouth tilted. If not for the crowd, he might have hummed a tune. This was one of those pillow-delivered moments—the First Tsuchikage had done splendidly.
Inside the tent.
Uchiha Makoto lay wrapped in bandages, looking seriously injured. Surrounded by attendants, Senju Tobirama entered with the Konoha and Akatsuki executives.
"Makoto, how did you get hurt like this?"
"Is it serious?"
Tobirama stepped up with a face full of concern.
To be honest—
When he learned Uchiha Makoto had soloed the First Raikage, even Tobirama was startled.
Just a few years ago, Makoto had been a nameless Uchiha.
Now his strength had grown to something outrageous.
The First Raikage wasn't a lightweight. Even Tobirama had no confidence in guaranteeing a kill on such a foe. At parity, veteran ninja knew how to protect themselves when things got dangerous. Wounding was easy; killing was hard.
Makoto had managed it largely because the First Raikage gambled his life to try to kill him and flip the war.
If the Raikage had wanted to run, just tangle and delay, he wouldn't have died. But in that situation, from his perspective, once Makoto pinned him down, Kumo's Third Line would fall, their logistics would be cut, and Kumo would lose anyway—so he risked it all.
Fate is fickle. The Raikage never imagined Iwa would step in; he died for nothing, and unjustly. Tobirama knew none of that.
From his point of view there was only one explanation.
The naturally evil Uchiha brat must have awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
He wasn't wrong.
Makoto had "awakened"—by flipping a switch.
"A little rest and I'll be fine."
"Your eyes—they're okay?"
"Nothing major."
"Good, good."
With Konoha and Akatsuki seniors watching, Makoto couldn't very well throw a tantrum. This naturally evil Senju old ghost—he just wants to know if I've gone blind, doesn't he.
Makoto waved it off with ambiguity; Tobirama looked even more concerned. Really not blind?
I don't buy it.
They both knew the other was acting; they played along.
After a few pleasantries—
Tobirama stopped probing about Makoto's eyes. This naturally evil Uchiha brat wouldn't tell the truth. With both leadership groups present, it was more important to nail down an unconditional end to the war between Akatsuki and Kumo.
This couldn't be delayed.
Otherwise—
This naturally evil Uchiha brat would definitely make trouble halfway through.
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