Konoha.
The original Konohagakure had been thoroughly destroyed by the Konoha Crush. The only thing left intact in the village center was a small shop called Ichiraku Ramen. Apart from that, only the Uchiha Compound, situated far from the bustling center, had been unscathed. Consequently, to facilitate the administration of the rebuilding village, they had temporarily relocated to the Uchiha Compound to handle government affairs.
The former Konoha Military Police Force headquarters became the new Hokage Building.
If the Second Hokage found out about this, who knew what he would think.
But this was only temporary, it wasn't even certain if the settlement would still be called Konoha in the future.
"Kumo-nins want to hold a Five Kage Summit?" Naruto looked through the letter on the desk sent by the Kumogakure messenger, his voice laced with genuine surprise.
He had been in the middle of a grueling training session when Minato called him over, only to see the breaking news about the Summit convened by Raikage.
"What's the reason?"
In the original plot, the Fourth Raikage convened the Five Kage Summit because the Taka Squad, having joined the Akatsuki, had captured the Eight-Tails. Additionally, since the Akatsuki members had historical ties to the other four Great Ninja Villages, he intended to hold the other Kage accountable.
Yes, you read that right.
Raikage convened the Five Kage Summit to boldly hold the other four Great Ninja Villages responsible. He was completely aggressive.
The problem was that the Akatsuki hadn't captured any Tailed Beasts at all right now, they simply existed as high-level mercenaries in the Shinobi World. Aside from the Two-Tails Jinchuriki being forcibly taken away by Naruto himself, the other Jinchuriki were staying put safely in their respective villages.
So why did Raikage call for a Summit?
He couldn't possibly just be bored and wanting to chat with his peers.
"Huh?" Minato paused, looking up at Naruto in surprise. "Wasn't it you?"
"Huh?", Naruto tilted his head in confusion.
"What did I do?" Naruto paused at Minato's confused gaze, then quickly realized what he meant. He insisted firmly, "It wasn't me."
It definitely wasn't something Naruto had stirred up. He was just sitting at home, and disaster had abruptly fallen from the sky.
Naruto swore that ever since Goku arrived, he had devoted himself wholeheartedly to training. Day and night, it was nothing but brutal spars and meditation. He hadn't even stepped out the Konoha gates. It definitely wasn't him.
Even his shadow clones hadn't left the village.
Seeing that Naruto was truly bewildered, Minato finally slowly shared the encrypted information he knew.
"Kumogakure was attacked by unknown persons and suffered heavy losses."
"The Fourth Raikage's Guard Platoon was completely wiped out."
"Even the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki was beaten to the point of critical injury."
"The Fourth Raikage convened this Five Kage Summit on the grounds that it concerns the safety of the entire Shinobi World."
Kumogakure suffering heavy losses, the Guard Platoon being wiped out, and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki being heavily injured, every single point was shocking news.
Especially the detail regarding the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. Killer Bee was a perfect Jinchuriki. His taijutsu rivaled the Fourth Raikage's, and he possessed immunity to most genjutsu. Aside from those old fossils who were already dead or hadn't made their move yet, there was almost no one in the world capable of inflicting such heavy injuries on him.
"Naruto, really, was it not you? It's just the two of us here," Minato asked again. Given his deep understanding of Naruto, it simply defied logic that he wouldn't be involved in stirring up trouble in a situation exactly like this.
Moreover, the target was Kumogakure. He had messed with them aggressively before, so given Naruto's petty personality, it wouldn't be strange for him to do it again.
Thinking about it, it was perfectly reasonable. It was no wonder Minato suspected him, his arguments were convincing enough to make Naruto suspect himself a little.
But it definitely wasn't him.
Naruto spread his hands in exasperation. "If I were really free, then yeah, it would be me. But I train during the day and I train at night. I really couldn't spare the time."
Naruto also felt the situation was baffling. Shouldn't these three years pass peacefully? In the end, it turned out he really didn't possess that protagonist-specific passive trait of being left alone as long as he was training.
'Could it be that Obito had gone crazy and launched a full-scale surprise attack on Kumogakure with Black and White Zetsu?'
Unlikely.
It wasn't that Naruto looked down on Obito, but unless he possessed Dual Kamui, with Obito's current abilities, he really couldn't handle Killer Bee.
Killer Bee was no Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage who claimed to be a perfect Jinchuriki and immune to all genjutsu, yet had been controlled instantly by Obito with just a single look.
Killer Bee, who was in perfect sync with the Eight-Tails' heart and mind, could bring out its power to the absolute limit. He was much harder to deal with than the massive beast alone.
If Obito had the ability to control Killer Bee, he would have controlled him way back in the Fourth Great Ninja War of the original timeline. Why would he have bothered going through the immense trouble of releasing the One through Seven-Tails to fight him?
The underlying question was, what did Obito gain from attacking Kumogakure ninjas? There was no motive, no reason, and no benefit.
There were only so many people in the Shinobi World capable of such an assault. If it wasn't Obito...
Then it could only be...
"Did the Hannya Black Ops have any intel?" Naruto asked, leaning over the desk.
The full name of the organization was the Hannya Black Ops of the Land of Woods, a notorious assassination unit.
The Land of Woods was a small country bordering Konoha. Initially, they had dealings with Konoha. However, they didn't just maintain friendly relations with Konoha, they were also secretly close with Iwagakure. Back then, Iwa and Konoha were bitter enemies. So, when the two major powers clashed, the Land of Woods was wiped out in the crossfire.
That was the enduring tragedy of a small nation. Thinking you could play both sides between major powers? They'll destroy you first if your loyalty isn't absolute.
This assassination unit had survived against the odds for various reasons. Currently, it functioned under the guise of a shipping company, gathering intelligence across the Shinobi World while answering directly to the Fuma Clan.
Minato shook his head. "Kumogakure has firmly locked down the information. We haven't been able to dig up any useful intelligence yet."
"It will likely be discussed at the Five Kage Summit."
"Raikage has officially invited the Fifth Hokage to attend. The location is set for the neutral Land of Iron." Minato paused for a moment, then added softly, "Do you need me to go?"
It was the Five Kage Summit, after all. Konoha had to send a Kage, at the very least, to maintain appearances.
And the Fourth Hokage, even if he had died once, was still a Hokage. He just wondered if the international leaders would be shocked to see him walking around.
Naruto firmly declined. It was better to keep the fact that a dead man had returned to life a secret for now. Otherwise, it would cause too much hassle. After all, who didn't have a few deceased relatives? If they all came flooding into Konoha looking for revival...
"I'll go. Sasuke, Neji, and I will be enough."
"It's a good chance to meet the Kage of the other three Hidden Villages," Naruto added, a glint in his eye.
"In what capacity?"
It was called the Five Kage Summit, which as the name clearly implied, required the attendance of a Kage.
"I will not become Hokage," Naruto stated categorically, sensing the unasked question. "Even if I were to become Daimyo, I still wouldn't take the position of Hokage."
Become Hokage? He wasn't interested in the slightest.
If you offered him the title of God of Destruction, on the other hand, that would be kind of interesting.
"My identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is sufficient standing."
"Besides, our Great Fifth Hokage is currently recuperating and can't be seen by outsiders for the time being."
"Very well." Seeing that his mind was thoroughly made up, Minato didn't try to persuade him further. He simply cautioned his son, "Be careful on the road. There aren't many beings capable of defeating the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki."
"Don't worry. We have 'Super Sasuke' with us."
"There aren't many people in the Shinobi World right now who can beat him, either."
Under normal circumstances, Naruto wouldn't even need to lift a single finger. With Sasuke's current, terrifyingly honed strength, he was enough to crush almost anyone else in their path.
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