Everyone looked toward the outside of the tent.
An elderly man slowly walked in, leaning on his cane.
"Second Kazekage-sama."
Everyone stood up at once.
"Sensei, why are you here? I've already arranged everything. You don't need to—"
"That's enough."
The Second Kazekage cut him off.
"I'm not deaf or blind. I know exactly what the battlefield looks like right now."
He quietly looked at the Third Kazekage—his most prized student.
"Four Kage-level fighters. Whether the Sand Village can win or not… you understand that better than this old man, don't you?"
"Sensei, we still have Shukaku."
"Whether Shukaku can be used, and whether it will harm the enemy or ourselves—you know that better than I do. And never be the first to use a tailed beast against Konoha. Aside from Shukaku, every other village's tailed beast was given by Konoha. If Konoha didn't have a countermeasure, would the Second Hokage have agreed to it?"
The Second Kazekage spoke slowly.
Senju Tobirama: I didn't agree. My brother just didn't listen to me.
Senju Hashirama: Hahahahaha.
The Third Kazekage fell into thought for a moment.
"Sensei, you're right. The Sand Village has no chance of winning this battle. We might even face Konoha's full-force retaliation. If we suffer heavy losses here, then the Stone Village—still largely intact—and the Cloud Village, whose losses are manageable, will definitely not let us go. And there's also Hanzo of the Land of Rain, who is always looking to expand."
"If you understand that, then what are you hesitating for?"
"But, Sensei…"
The Third Kazekage found it hard to speak.
The Second Kazekage softened his tone.
"Silly child. Is my curtain call really that important? Dying for the Sand Village would be my honor. But if the Sand Village fights for me alone, then I would become its sinner. In front of the village's interests, anyone must step aside—do you understand? Anyone. Including the Kazekage."
His final sentence came out sharp and firm.
"Your student understands. The Sand Village will withdraw—returning to the Land of Wind. Strategic retreat. We'll observe the situation between Konoha and the Mist Village."
"Good child."
"Hmph."
Chiyo snorted coldly and flicked her sleeve as she walked out of the tent.
"Chiyo, you—"
A senior official stood up, about to reprimand her for disrespecting the two Kazekage.
"Stop. I'm the one who wronged Chiyo this time. If it weren't for my poor decision, her son and daughter-in-law wouldn't have died."
"Kazekage-sama, no one could have predicted that the White Fang would—"
"That's enough. If a war ends without victory, then the greatest culprit is me, the Kazekage. Every Sand shinobi who died… did so because I wasn't strong enough as Kazekage. I won't run from these truths. We only need to rebuild our strength. One day, the Sand Village will become the strongest ninja village in the world."
The Third Kazekage spoke with absolute conviction.
The others looked at him with admiration.
As expected of their Kazekage.
In the cloudy eyes of the Second Kazekage, Shamon, there was also deep approval.
A perfect curtain call—did it really matter?
I already have the most perfect successor.
The Sand Village now has its best Kazekage. My life has been worth it. Lord Reto, I haven't failed your trust. The Sand Village is walking the path toward prosperity.
Just as Rasa admired the Third Kazekage, and the Third Kazekage admired the Second, the Second Kazekage also had someone he admired—the man who gathered wanderers in the desert.
...
The Sand Village retreated.
And they retreated quickly.
So quickly that Konoha was caught completely off guard.
We were ready to fight to the death—so why did you suddenly flee?
In any case…
How should I put it? Not fighting and not dying is obviously the best outcome.
But the mood had already built up to this point—if we didn't risk our lives in one decisive clash, it felt… unsatisfying. Like something stuck halfway, leaving you incredibly uncomfortable.
And besides—
"What? The Sand Village has withdrawn? Tsunade, stop, stop, stop!"
Hatake Sakumo hurriedly called for Tsunade to stop healing him.
Looking at his already healed wounds, he nearly burst into tears.
"Tsunade… can you undo this? Restore me to how I was before the injury?"
Tsunade shot him a look that clearly said: What do you think?
Hatake Sakumo felt like crying without tears.
Why didn't you retreat earlier or later—why now of all times?
Wasn't this just shaving years off my life for nothing?
It's like preparing for a massive deal—I just took out a huge loan to join in, and then the deal gets canceled. Isn't that just screwing people over?
"Tsunade… how many years of my life did this cost?"
"Uh… Sakumo-sama, you probably don't want to know."
Hatake Sakumo instantly sank into despair.
My poor, short remaining life…
My wonderful retirement…
I shouldn't have come to this battlefield.
I shouldn't have become a ninja.
I shouldn't have even been born…
...
Watching Sakumo grow more and more depressed, Orochimaru quietly asked,
"So how much lifespan did it actually cost? Why does Sakumo-senpai look like he's going to die tomorrow?"
"For that kind of wound? At most one or two years. Serves him right for acting cool before and chickening out afterward."
Tsunade said.
Earlier, Sakumo's fearless charge into battle had completely dazzled her—senior filter, strong-man filter, frontline-warrior filter…
With all those buffs stacked, Sakumo looked like a perfect figure in Tsunade's eyes.
But the moment she heard the Sand Village had retreated… that cowardly, life-clinging reaction shattered everything. Is this really the same perfect senpai from just now? Did I fall under some kind of "Infinite Tsukuyomi"? Wait… what even is that?
So when a male idol's image collapses, the consequences are brutal. Don't ask—just blame a girl's fury.
...
In any case, this battlefield had also come to an end.
Konoha's one-versus-four situation had already eliminated three opponents.
Although none had officially withdrawn from the great ninja war, at this point, the entire ninja world's attention had shifted to the Konoha–Mist Village battlefield.
And the leader of the Mist Village— inside an underground cavern—
"Hmph, a bunch of trash. But as expected of the Konoha I built—so strong. Even one against four, you still beat them. Hahahahaha!"
Uchiha Madara, with several white tendrils protruding from his back, laughed loudly.
Nearby, a spiral-faced White Zetsu said to another normal-looking White Zetsu,
"Do you think Madara-sama has gone crazy? Otherwise, why is he laughing when the plan failed?"
"Not sure. But do you know what it feels like to take a dump? I think it's like… you strain first, then feel relieved. I've seen it before."
"No, no, it should be more like straining really hard—like, veins popping on the forehead. I saw a guy like that once."
The two White Zetsu were discussing a very important philosophical question.
Meanwhile, Madara's laughter gradually stopped.
Now wasn't the time to marvel at Konoha's strength.
The real issue was how to deal with the situation ahead.
Konoha had become too powerful. The Mist Village might not be able to win.
Wait… what does Konoha being strong have to do with my plan?
As long as that Uzumaki in the Land of Rain uses Outer Path: Samsara of Heavenly Life to revive me and give me a young body again…
The rest—capturing the tailed beasts, merging them into the Ten-Tails, and activating the Infinite Tsukuyomi—I can handle all of that myself.
As long as Hashirama isn't around, the entire ninja world is nothing but fragile trash in my eyes.
So whether Konoha is strong or not… what does that have to do with my plan?
Then what exactly was I doing all this for before?