Pakura's massive leap in strength was, logically, a boon for the Hidden Sand.
While Maki's feelings on the matter remained complicated, Shiraishi had a sudden epiphany: he fully supported Shirohebi-hime and Pakura spending as much time together as possible.
With the Snake Queen around, Pakura's attention was entirely occupied. No longer did she spend her idle hours clinging to his wife or loitering around his home; she was far too busy being "guided" by the Sage.
"Is your soul always in such a state of fragmentation?"
The next morning, seeing Shirohebi-hime had returned to her normal, singular appearance, Shiraishi asked about the incident with Haku-o.
The Sage shook her head slowly. "One day, the seven consciousnesses will unify. It all depends on who survives until the end."
The ultimate genjutsu of Ryuchi Cave granted the White Snake Sage a spiritual state that surpassed the other two Great Sages, but it also left behind a massive hidden peril.
This was precisely why Ryuchi Cave was less active in the world compared to Shikkotsu Forest or Mount Myoboku—they were often too busy dealing with their own internal "coups."
Shirohebi-hime clearly didn't want to dwell on the subject. At that moment, Pakura entered the White Snake Abode carrying breakfast.
Good heavens... is that really Master Pakura? Shiraishi stared, dumbfounded.
To please Shirohebi-hime, Pakura had traded her valiant, high-collared battle gear for a soft cherry-blossom-patterned kimono. As Shirohebi-hime took a cigarette and leaned back to let Pakura light it, Shiraishi realized he shouldn't overstay his welcome.
With the Snake Queen's domestic drama settled, Shiraishi turned his focus back to the war between the Cloud and the Mist.
"The Cloud has agreed to withdraw," Maki, acting as his assistant, reported as she handed over a stack of documents. "However, they've set a condition: the Land of Water must pay a significant indemnity."
"Indemnity?" Shiraishi looked puzzled. "Is the Land of Lightning's treasury that strapped for cash?"
"Data from the year 48 shows that the finances of both the Hidden Cloud and the Land of Lightning have shrunk by half compared to the previous year."
Maki looked at her husband with a hint of amusement. Does he really not realize why the Cloud is going broke?
In recent years, the rise of maritime trade and the influx of high-tech products from the Hidden Sand had systematically dismantled the Cloud's export economy.
Because of their affinity for Lightning Release, the Cloud's industry had traditionally focused on electrical appliances: radio communications, black-and-white televisions, and cassette recorders.
Before any other nation showed interest in this field, the Cloud held a global monopoly, using those profits to fund their massive military expansion.
Then, the Sand entered the market. Shiraishi's "high-tech" lifestyle goods—more signal-stable, higher-definition, and significantly more affordable—had rendered the Cloud's bulky, ancient tech obsolete almost overnight.
In the original timeline, Naruto's era saw a similar tech boom, but Shiraishi had forced the world into the information age decades early.
Before the Five Kage Summit, the Sand and Cloud had a brief period of covert cooperation, so Sand products rarely reached the northern continent.
But after the summit, Shiraishi took the gloves off, using market pressure as a weapon of war.
The Cloud's industrial system was now a hollow shell, but they couldn't abandon it because they were desperately trying to develop their own "Lightning Release Railgun" to maintain military parity.
With the highest number of active shinobi among the Five Nations, their overhead was crushing them.
"What is the Land of Water's stance?"
"The Daimyo of Water has already agreed to pay," Maki said with a sigh. "He's terrified the Cloud will actually make it to the capital, and equally terrified that we will use the opportunity to annex his territory."
While the Sand Navy had successfully suppressed the Cloud at sea, this was technically a war between the Mist and the Cloud. Since the Mist had accepted the terms, the Sand's reinforcements had no choice but to hold their positions.
"Since they are negotiating, accelerate the encirclement and 'cutting' of the Cloud's mercenary groups," Shiraishi ordered.
Before the Cloud could fully retreat, Shiraishi's forces in the Land of Water launched a final, violent offensive. Using the Tailed Beast Ball Cannons as a "greeting," they forced the Cloud into a passive, defensive stance.
The Raikage was currently banking on his own electromagnetic weapon system being finished within a year to counter the cannons. Until then, they had to endure.
The Third Split
While the world focused on the shifting borders, Shiraishi retreated to a secret cultivation chamber within the Sand. Dressed in deep purple robes, he sat cross-legged on a massive ritual mat. Beneath him, countless black sealing formulas pulsed like a living heart.
The curses flowed into his palms, fueled by his Yin-Yang chakra. The room grew unnaturally dark, filled with a chilling, ghostly light.
A massive scroll unrolled slowly, releasing a terrifying aura of resentment that felt like a parade of a hundred demons.
These spirits were refined from the fallen members of the Hagoromo Clan, gathered from ancient battlefields. Their hatred was far more potent than the spirits used in his previous rituals.
Thunderbolt!
Shiraishi's pupils turned a brilliant gold. The power of the "Thunderbolt" skill radiated through his body, resonating with the curse energy. He pressed his hands together, activating his most secretive and dangerous art for the third time.
"Ninjutsu: Heavenly Curse of the Five Phantom!"
Using the "Curse" skill as the core, combined with his own chakra and the lightning affinity, he began the third surgical slicing of his own soul.
A golden sphere of light illuminated the chamber, but a flicker of worry crossed Shiraishi's mind.
The hatred these Hagoromo spirits bear for the Uchiha is deep... even I might struggle to erase it. I wonder what the relationship between Uchiha Kaede and this third split will look like?
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