The incident in Kirigakure continued to escalate.
Every village began strengthening its defenses. Command centers at the front lines analyzed the long-term consequences of the attack, while lower-ranking ninja gathered in small groups, whispering among themselves about the terrifying strength of Konoha's Lightning Flash.
Amid all this noise, Kirigakure itself fell into an unsettling silence.
Strengthen defenses? Against whom? The village had already been reduced to ruins. There was barely anything left worth protecting.
Discuss the aftermath? There was nothing to discuss. The only option left was to send envoys to Konohagakure and negotiate peace.
As for the strength of Konoha's Lightning Flash, the surviving ninja of Kirigakure had already experienced that overwhelming despair firsthand. None of them wished to relive it.
Yet within this suffocating silence, doubts began to surface.
Where had the Fourth Mizukage gone during the attack?
As a Kage, one might not always be the absolute strongest, but they stood among the elite. Had he been present, perhaps the destruction would not have reached such extremes.
"I went to retrieve the Three-Tails."
Seated calmly, Yagura Karatachi spoke without emotion. Before him sat the elders of Kirigakure. These individuals had evacuated to safety at the first sign of danger, escaping harm.
The Mizukage's office had been reduced to rubble. This meeting now took place inside a temporary tent set up on the eastern edge of the ruined village.
"The Three-Tails?" an elderly man with white hair questioned, clearly dissatisfied. "If there was information about the Three-Tails, why not send the Seven Ninja Swordsmen to handle it? You are the Mizukage. What if something had happened to you?"
"Most of our elite forces are deployed on the battlefield," Yagura replied calmly. "If we recalled them, how would we continue the war?"
"It is precisely because of your reckless actions that the village has fallen into this state," the elder said coldly. "If you had remained, Konoha's Lightning Flash might already be dead."
"The importance of the Three-Tails is undeniable," Yagura answered, spreading his hands slightly. "No one could have predicted such timing. I did not wish for this either. It was simply… unfortunate coincidence."
"Coincidence?" another elder stood abruptly, his anger evident.
"This cannot be dismissed so easily. To speak frankly, your decision to release the Three-Tails jinchuriki to target Konoha's Lightning Flash provoked retaliation. This disaster is the result."
Yagura's gaze turned cold as it fell on the speaker.
"Elder Hozuki, are you questioning me?"
"I would not dare," said Hozuki clan representative, his tone unwavering. "But our clan leader has died. We deserve an explanation."
His reaction was not without reason. In just six years, the Hozuki clan had lost four leaders in succession. Even the strongest clans would struggle to endure such losses.
Other clans had suffered similar fates, many of their members falling during the chaotic final years of the Third Mizukage's rule.
When Yagura first took power, many believed things would improve. Instead, he had launched a full-scale war in the name of vengeance.
Few truly cared to avenge the previous Mizukage. Most had only wished for stability.
Yet Yagura proved even more unyielding, a ruler who rarely listened to dissent.
"Assigning blame now serves no purpose," another elder interjected, easing the tension. "The priority is rebuilding the village."
Yagura gave a small nod.
"The Daimyo has agreed to fully support the reconstruction of Kirigakure."
Unlike Konoha, which could rely on specialized techniques to rebuild efficiently, Kirigakure had no such advantage. Reconstruction would require enormous resources, manpower, and time. Only the Daimyo could bear such a burden.
But another problem remained.
Would Konoha allow them to rebuild in peace?
The war was not over.
"When do you intend to send envoys to negotiate a truce, Mizukage-sama?" asked an elder from the Yuki clan.
A truce, in truth, was an admission of defeat.
After the Second Great Ninja War, villages like Sunagakure and Iwagakure had been forced to pay heavy reparations for decades. No one could predict how harsh Hiruzen Sarutobi might be in negotiation.
Yet peace was necessary. Without it, rebuilding was impossible.
Though Konoha had emerged victorious, they too faced pressure on multiple fronts. This offered Kirigakure a narrow opportunity for negotiation.
The elders continued their discussion, but Yagura remained silent.
Behind that silence lay a deeper will, one unwilling to withdraw so easily. Yet reality left little room for choice.
The chaos caused by the released Saiken had nearly wiped out what remained of the village. Had Yagura not returned in time, the consequences would have been far worse.
At last, he spoke.
"We will seek peace."
For now, withdrawal was the only viable option. Once the village was rebuilt, there might still be a chance to rejoin the war under better conditions.
And this time, the Three-Tails would be sealed within him.
A faint chill flickered in his eyes.
Releasing a Tailed Beast was not a tactic unique to one side.
…
…
The aftermath of the battle was devastating.
Entire sections of Kirigakure had been obliterated. The impact of Tailed Beast Bombs had carved massive craters into the land, some sinking over ten meters deep. From above, the destruction resembled scars left by falling meteors.
Thousands of ninja and civilians had perished.
Fortunately, evacuation efforts had prevented even greater loss.
Even in ruin, the village held funerals for the fallen.
It was a solemn act of respect.
Each death represented a shattered family, a loss that could never be replaced. For Kirigakure, which had avoided the worst of previous wars, this grief felt especially heavy.
In the vast cemetery, mourners stood in ordered rows, dressed in black and holding white flowers. The contrast was stark.
Among them stood Mei Terumi, beside Ao, whose body was still wrapped in bandages.
She lowered her head and closed her eyes, mourning in silence.
The dead were unfortunate.
She, on the other hand, had survived.
She had faced Konoha's Lightning Flash. She had witnessed the devastation of a Tailed Beast Bomb. At the brink of despair, she had lived.
But that survival came at a cost.
Was it mercy?
Disdain?
Or something else entirely?
She did not know.
Whatever the reason, that moment would linger in her heart like a shadow she could not escape.
Just as the title of Konoha Sannin carried both honor and burden.
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