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With Qianyu in power, the colossal war machine that was Konoha roared to life once more. Army after army crossed the Land of Grass, pushing straight for Iwagakure with startling efficiency.
Sunagakure and Kirigakure dispatched their forces as well. The armies of the three great villages now surrounded Iwagakure in a pincer formation, cutting off the main Iwagakure force still engaged with Kumo on the distant front.
Iwagakure had the dubious honor of becoming the first village in shinobi history to be targeted by four great villages simultaneously.
The Land of Earth. Iwagakure.
Beyond the towering mountains that cradled the village, a sea of allied forces from three nations choked the passes. As far as the eye could see, armored shinobi bristled with weapons, outnumbering the Iwagakure defenders left in the village by at least five to one.
That wasn't even counting the elite. Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swordsmen were here. Konoha's Platinum Star. Suna's own Kazekage and his aide had come personally…
"Tsuchikage-sama! What do we do now?!"
Inside the Iwagakure war council room, the faces of the gathered high command were pale. One younger member's voice trembled as he asked.
Iwagakure's main force was tangled up with Kumo on the front lines. In its current state, the village stood no chance against the elite, battle-hungry troops of three great nations.
If the enemy launched their assault… it would be the end of Iwagakure.
"Do not panic. They are nothing but a rabble of opportunists, temporarily united by perceived gain."
Ōnoki, a man who had weathered countless storms, waved a hand dismissively. A few calm words steadied the room.
"All we need to do is offer some bait for them to fight over, then stand firm. Make them understand that crushing Iwagakure will cost them more than it's worth. Their alliance will crumble from within."
The tense expressions around the table eased somewhat. Murmurs of agreement followed.
"You mean… divide and conquer? As expected of the Tsuchikage. Our judgment pales before yours."
"Indeed. For now, we must endure the pain and sacrifice some interests to break their unity from within. Otherwise, our village is doomed."
"Hmph! A bunch of opportunistic thieves. Once Iwagakure survives this, we will make each of them pay!"
Just as the Iwagakure council was fervently discussing countermeasures, a voice amplified by chakra boomed across the sky above the entire village.
"My patience is limited. Hand over Ōnoki, and I might let you live."
"Otherwise, in fifteen minutes, I raze Iwagakure to the ground. I'll shake your eggs until the yolks break, bisect every earthworm, and pour boiling water down every anthill five times over!"
The arrogant declaration made the council members flinch. Their eyes slid toward Ōnoki, their gazes turning complicated.
Ōnoki didn't react. His eyes went distant. That familiar phrasing… it dragged his mind back to that rainy night.
"My patience is limited. Hand over the one responsible for killing my nephew, and I might let you live."
"Back then… he was just a nobody I could have crushed with a finger. How did it…?"
Whoosh!
Ōnoki's figure shot into the air. He flew straight out the window, streaking over the heads of countless panicking Iwagakure villagers, heading directly for the allied forces outside the village walls.
"Quickly! Send orders! All units, prepare for combat! Protect the Tsuchikage-sama!"
"Yes, sir!"
As Ōnoki reached the village outskirts, several figures hovering in the air came into view.
One of them was Qianyu. The very man who had just issued that arrogant ultimatum. The source of Ōnoki's sleepless nights and grinding teeth.
"Well, well. You came, old man." Qianyu's laugh was pure Uchiha madness, a sound that felt oddly familiar and comforting to the many Uchiha shinobi in the ranks below. "Here to offer yourself up? Trade your life for a sliver of hope for Iwagakure? Hahahaha!"
His laughter cut off. His gaze turned icy as it locked onto Ōnoki. "You bullied me when I was weak. Did you ever imagine it would bring utter ruin to your village today?"
A man who doesn't seek revenge is no gentleman. Today, Qianyu was here to be a gentleman.
"Of course not," Ōnoki shot back, meeting Qianyu's aggressive gaze without flinching. "If I had, I would have paid any price to kill you back then!"
A born warlord, he had no intention of martyring himself. He turned his attention to Rasa and the others hovering nearby.
"I do not recall offending Sunagakure or Kirigakure. Why let yourselves be used as this brat's pawns? Why be Konoha's spear?"
Rasa and the others remained unmoved. After a pause, Ōnoki spoke slowly. "Very well. To show my sincerity, Iwagakure is willing to relinquish thirty percent of our interests in the shinobi world. We will share them with your two villages. Withdraw now. What do you say?"
Under Ōnoki's expectant stare, Rasa shook his head. A mocking laugh escaped him.
"Foolish. If we wipe Iwagakure off the map, all those benefits are ours anyway. Besides, I've never been interested in such worldly things."
He, the Value King, could conjure endless gold dust with a simple clap. What he truly valued was the sincere bond between him and Qianyu!
The Fourth Mizukage on the ground remained silent. He was a new puppet installed by Madara Uchiha himself. Betraying Qianyu? Unthinkable.
"I have advised you in good faith. Do you truly believe Iwagakure is easy prey?" Ōnoki's heart sank like a stone. His only hope now was that Iwagakure's fierce resistance would expose the cracks in this alliance of convenience, make them see the cost and retreat. "If you wish to be Konoha's tools, then come! Iwagakure fears nothing!"
"Big words. Then die!"
Rasa, never one for patience, sent a tidal wave of golden sand crashing toward Ōnoki.
"The Third Great Shinobi War… I, Qianyu, declare it here and now!"
Qianyu blurred into motion, closing in on Ōnoki. With his current power, it wasn't him who should fear the old Tsuchikage. It was the other way around.
"Warriors of Suna! Charge!"
"Konoha! Attack!"
"Bloody Mist's brave souls! The time for slaughter is upon us!"
As Qianyu and Rasa engaged Ōnoki, Suna's Shigure, Konoha's Shikaku Nara, and the Fourth Mizukage simultaneously gave the order to advance.
"Kill them all!"
The allied forces of three nations roared like a tidal wave, surging up the steep mountain slopes. A kaleidoscope of ninjutsu lit up the sky, instantly tearing through Iwagakure's outer defenses.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
The sight made Ōnoki's eyes nearly burst from their sockets. He twisted away from Qianyu and Rasa, raising a hand. A transparent cube of terrifying energy formed and shot toward the dense ranks of attackers below.
In the original history, with this single technique, Ōnoki had obliterated the Susanoo of twenty-five of Madara Uchiha's wood clones.
"Minato!"
"Gale Black Ultra Vortex Howl—Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder, Model Zero!"
At Qianyu's shout, a golden flash met the rapidly expanding transparent cube. The technique's full name wasn't even finished before the Detachment of the Primitive World Technique was whisked away to another location.
BOOOOM!
A massive transparent cube detonated over a distant, uninhabited mountain range, instantly swallowing countless tons of rock and earth. Ōnoki's Detachment of the Primitive World Technique.
"Rōshi!"
"Coming!"
Ōnoki bellowed in response. A man wreathed in molten rock leaped from the high cliffs, falling like a meteor into the heart of the allied forces. The Four-Tails Jinchūriki—Rōshi.
Though Rōshi and Ōnoki had never seen eye to eye, with the village at stake, they stood united.
"Tailed Beast Bomb!"
"Super Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"
A spectral form of a tailed beast manifested behind Rōshi, its maw opening to gather dark energy. Qianyu didn't hesitate. He hurled a parting gift.
KABOOM!
A terrifying storm of wind chakra erupted. Qianyu had tried to adjust the angle, but several allied troops were still caught in the blast. A necessary sacrifice to prevent a Tailed Beast Bomb from claiming far more lives.
When the storm cleared, Rōshi had transformed into a several-story-tall red giant ape. It roared, charging headlong into the allied lines, swatting shinobi aside like flies.
"Ohohohoho! Finally, it's Lord Shukaku's time to shine!"
A strange, cackling laugh rose from the Suna ranks. Then, a massive yellow tanuki, easily matching the Four-Tails in size, materialized and slammed into the charging beast.
"Hey, Jinchūriki! Lord Shukaku doesn't get out much! Hurry up and let Son Gokū out to play with me!"
Shukaku locked arms with the Four-Tails, sounding almost petulant. It could tell the human, Rōshi, was in control.
"Get out of my way! Get lost!"
Rōshi roared. Flames erupted over the Four-Tails' body. A massive fist smashed into Shukaku's head, pulverizing it into sand. The Four-Tails stomped forward, aiming for the troops behind.
"You bastard! I was trying to have a civil conversation, and you blew my head off! Now I'm pissed!" Shukaku was furious. Its head reformed from swirling sand. It opened its maw wide, aiming at the Four-Tails.
"Wind Release: Sand Shotgun!"
Dozens of wind-accelerated sand bullets shot toward the Four-Tails. The beast's crimson tails swept around, effortlessly batting the projectiles aside.
But as they shattered, the dispersed yellow sand clung to the Four-Tails' body, forming curse-mark-like patterns identical to the ones on Shukaku's own form.
"What?!"
Rōshi's heart clenched. He desperately tried to burn away the invading curse-mark energy with Lava Release. But Shukaku just wrapped its massive arms around the Four-Tails in a bear hug, ignoring how its own sandy body sizzled and melted against the heat, pouring on the sealing power in angry retaliation.
"You hit my head! You hit my head! Even that stinky fox doesn't dare hit my head!"
Shukaku grumbled and chanted, stubbornly enacting its petty revenge.
As the only tailed beast proficient in sealing techniques and not composed of flesh and blood, Shukaku was unique. Even the mighty Nine-Tails found the sand tanuki's mouth and sheer stubbornness impossible to deal with.
"Damn you!"
Rōshi howled in frustration. Shukaku's offensive power wasn't the highest, but its unique nature made its defensive power monstrous. It had him pinned, locked in a grinding stalemate.
Of course, it wasn't just Shukaku. Powerful shinobi from the alliance were converging, layering on different sealing techniques.
"Boil Release: Steel Release: Storm Release: Thunderclap Hot Blade!"
A short figure squeezed through the chaos. In the confusion, its arm morphed grotesquely into a blade. It flashed—shink!—severing one of the Four-Tails' tails. The figure snatched the thrashing appendage and scampered away like a thief making off with the goods.
"Hahahaha! Ōnoki! Any more trump cards? Show them now."
Rōshi was held fast by Shukaku and the sealing squad. Qianyu turned his mocking laughter back to the Tsuchikage, still pinned down by himself and Rasa.
"If not… then open your eyes wide. Watch closely what happens next."
Qianyu's voice dropped, cold and final.
"This is my repayment to you."
"As of today, the name Iwagakure… is erased from the shinobi world."
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