Gaara crossed his arms and said, "The fabricated reality you want to create is meaningless; it's just self-deception."
"Heh, this is the only path to peace. Humans are never satisfied; greed expands endlessly. Even someone as powerful as Hashirama could only maintain peace for a few years, let alone you? Trying to achieve peace through sheer force is utterly pointless!"
"Even so, we don't want to follow your will. We have to walk our own path," Tsunade said.
"As expected. Fine, I didn't think you'd hand the tailed beasts over so easily," Obito said, his eyes cold as he looked at everyone. "In that case, I'll see you on the battlefield! I, Uchiha Madara, do hereby declare war on you today and launch the Fourth Great Ninja War!"
Obito said this very calmly and then disappeared from everyone's sight.
"He's still as arrogant as ever," Onoki remarked. He had had doubts before, but seeing Obito's arrogance made him believe he was Uchiha Madara.
He then turned back to the others and asked, "Everyone, what do you think we should do?"
The prelude to the Fourth Great Ninja War had begun, and everyone, except Neji, was a bit lost.
"Five Kage, please hear the words of a neutral nation. Since things have come to this point, how about we form the first-ever Ninja Alliance in history?"
As everyone fell silent, Mifune suddenly spoke, and everyone's eyes lit up.
"Ninja Alliance... that's a good idea."
"That's right! If we're going to fight, let's fight! With the Five Great Nations united, can't we deal with this scoundrel?!" Raikage shouted.
"Yes, since no single party can handle Uchiha Madara, let's combine all our strength," Gaara said calmly.
"In that case, I think we should protect the Jinchuriki beforehand, to prevent that scoundrel from capturing them," Terumi Mei said.
"No, the Jinchuriki possess immense power, and the ones remaining now are all perfect Jinchuriki. Therefore, I believe we should send them to the battlefield," Tsunade said immediately, having already consulted Neji's opinion.
"Absolutely not. The purpose of their war is to draw them out. Therefore, deploying the Jinchuriki onto the battlefield is definitely not a good strategy," Gaara objected first.
The other Kage felt similarly, believing this was not feasible.
Neji did not insist too much. After all, when Naruto found out, he would definitely rush to the battlefield, and then it would be up to his talk-no-jutsu.
"I have a question," Onoki said. "As I recall, Uchiha Madara was incredibly powerful and wouldn't need to resort to these roundabout methods."
"Frankly, he could have easily kept us all here."
Everyone was silent.
"Is there a possibility?" Neji asked, looking around at everyone and feigning ignorance, "That after Uchiha Madara's battle with Senju Hashirama at the Valley of the End, the old injuries to his body severely affected his strength, to the point where he couldn't suppress the entire ninja world with his absolute power."
"This guess is indeed possible," Raikage said, his expression easing. If that were the case, their chances of winning this fight would be very high.
"However, who should be appointed as the leader of the Ninja Alliance?" Onoki asked, scanning the crowd calmly.
Gaara didn't have any particular thoughts. In any case, specific matters would still need to be discussed with everyone, so anyone could be the leader.
As for Terumi Mei, she had no ideas either. The true leader of the Hidden Mist Village hadn't expressed an opinion, so she couldn't be bothered to fight for it.
Thus, Onoki and the Fourth Raikage's eyes widened, and they looked intently at Tsunade, waiting to hear her opinion.
Tsunade exchanged glances with Neji and the "Kage" behind her, then smiled and said, "To be blunt, this isn't a problem at all."
Then, the group behind her stepped forward, looking proudly at Onoki and Raikage, with a simple message: whichever side won would get the position of leader.
"No wonder Hokage-sama brought so many people. It turns out she had this plan all along. However, not just anyone can be chosen as Shadow Guards," Onoki said slowly.
"You're mistaken. I brought them along just to let them see the changes of the times. I didn't know something like this would happen," Tsunade said calmly, glancing slightly at Neji. "However, it looks like I'll be giving you all a surprise."
"Oh, or perhaps it will be a fright."
"Stop with the nonsense. I've long been annoyed by their uniform clothing and masks. Since that's the case, I'll give you what you want. Kage, Darui!" Raikage, unlike Onoki, was not as composed and rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight.
Kage and Darui immediately rushed to Raikage's side, looking intently at Konoha's side.
"Although he's held the position for some time, he's ultimately too young and lacks self-control," Onoki said, raising his eyelids to look at the enraged Raikage and shaking his head slightly.
"Is it okay to send only these two?" Tsunade asked with a fox-like smile. "Honestly, if Raikage and Tsuchikage don't face them personally, I can't guarantee what will happen."
"How about this? I'll just sit here. If anyone can touch me, I'll immediately withdraw from the competition for leadership," Tsunade said confidently.
Everyone was taken aback and subconsciously looked at those in uniform, but quickly dismissed the thought. How could it be possible?
"Are you saying each of them has Kage-level strength? Don't make me laugh! Kage, Darui, go!"
"Yes!"
The two touched their toes and immediately rushed towards Tsunade. However, just as they were about to touch her, their hands were firmly grasped by someone with blonde hair.
"Although I don't want to fight you, in this situation, I can't stand by and do nothing," Minato's gentle voice came from beneath his mask.
"This speed... How is that possible?!"
Kage, Darui, and everyone else gradually became shocked. Not to mention these Shadow Guards, even they, the "Kage," hadn't seen how Minato moved just now.
"Let me do it!" Raikage shouted, his body filled with lightning chakra, emitting a bright glow. His activated body and fists attacked Tsunade.
Bang!
However, the fist imbued with lightning was blocked by Minato's arms midway, causing his arms to ache slightly.
"What?! He can match Raikage's speed!!"
"Hokage-sama, may I ask you to have this Shadow Guard remove his mask?"