Inside the Tsuchikage's office in Iwagakure, Ōnoki was buried behind a mountain of paperwork. From the doorway, all you could see was the top of his bald head and that single stubborn tuft of hair.
The door suddenly slammed open.
"Father! Quick—something terrible's happened!"
"Watch your mouth, brat! And in here you call me Lord Tsuchikage!"
A loud bang came from behind the desk as Ōnoki shot to his feet, furious. But from Yellow Earth's angle, all he could see was the Tsuchikage's shiny bald head and that ridiculous little ponytail. The sight instantly killed the panic in his chest. His mouth twitched despite himself.
Ōnoki shoved the papers aside and glared at his son. "What the hell are you here for?!"
Yellow Earth snapped out of it and remembered why he'd come running.
"Lord Tsuchikage—the forces we sent into the Land of Wind were defeated! Yesterday they were driven out completely. They're being reorganized by the border units right now!"
"What?!"
Ōnoki slammed his hands on the desk and stood up so fast that a loud crack echoed through the room. His face twisted in pain as he grabbed his lower back.
"Ow—damn it—my back!"
Yellow Earth rushed forward without thinking and helped his father sit back down. "Easy, easy…"
"Stop fussing and talk! Tell me everything again, clearly this time," Ōnoki growled, waving off the concern.
Yellow Earth quickly relayed everything the surviving Rock shinobi had reported.
"Two days ago the Fourth Kazekage personally led a surprise attack on our camp in the Land of Wind. According to the initial count from the front lines, we lost at least eight hundred shinobi. Father… should we gather our forces and strike back?"
Ōnoki shot him a cold look. The initial shock had already passed. Now he was thinking about how to clean up the mess.
"Strike back? For what?" He straightened in his chair. "You still don't understand why we attacked the Land of Wind in the first place, do you?"
Yellow Earth blinked. "Wasn't it because the Third Kazekage disappeared and Sunagakure was in chaos? We wanted to take advantage and grab some land while we could."
Ōnoki's face darkened. He raised his hand to smack his son, then winced as pain shot through his back and gave up.
"That was only part of it. Taking territory would've been nice, but even if we didn't, the real goal was to plunder resources—especially those rare concentrated ore deposits Wind Country is famous for."
Yellow Earth's eyes lit up with sudden understanding. No wonder so many supplies had been flowing back from the front lines lately.
"Then… are we just giving up on those resources? And the shinobi we lost—aren't we going to avenge them?"
Ōnoki's body slowly floated up before settling back into his seat. "Of course we'll get revenge. But we don't need to go all-out anymore."
"When I heard Sunagakure had already chosen their new Fourth Kazekage so quickly, I was already thinking about pulling our forces back. I just didn't expect them to collapse this fast. That front-line commander was completely useless!"
Yellow Earth ignored the complaint and pressed on. "So what do we do now? The border units should already be inside the Land of Birds picking up the survivors, right?"
Ōnoki's voice turned cold and decisive. "Send orders immediately. Tell the border forces to set up camp in the Land of Birds. Their priority is recovering our retreating troops. Do not launch any attacks on Sunagakure for now. Wait for further instructions from the village."
Yellow Earth frowned. "You mean…?"
Ōnoki unrolled a map of the ninja world and pointed at a specific spot in the Land of Birds.
"The Fourth Kazekage isn't a fool. I'm sure they've already set up a forward base right in the middle of the Land of Birds."
Yellow Earth still looked confused.
Ōnoki sighed. His son was reliable in every way except when it came to reading between the lines.
"Neither side wants to keep fighting. The real prize has always been right here."
His finger stabbed the center of the map—the Land of Fire.
Yellow Earth's eyes widened. "You're saying… Sunagakure wants to attack Konoha? But they just signed an alliance with them!"
Ōnoki let out a dry laugh. "Alliance? That's nothing but a scrap of paper. Just wait. Sunagakure will be sending people to talk with us soon enough."
---
One week after Sunagakure's successful counterattack.
Taiichi had been flying around the Land of Birds like a busy little bee, but lately he'd been getting nowhere. There simply weren't enough "flowers" left to turn into honey.
After the big counteroffensive, Iwagakure had launched two half-hearted counterattacks. Both times they were easily repelled. After that, both sides had gone strangely quiet. Besides routine patrols, neither village sent out any significant forces.
Taiichi was starting to get a headache. If both sides were playing it this safe, how was he supposed to stir up trouble? Should he even keep going with the mission?
He was sitting on a rock eating lunch and thinking about his next move when a sudden fluctuation appeared behind him.
Years of battle instinct kicked in. Taiichi spun around, short sword already halfway out of its sheath—
—only to freeze mid-swing.
"Minato-sensei?! You scared the hell out of me!" Taiichi dramatically wiped his forehead and slid the blade back into place.
He was about to crack a joke when he noticed the usual warm smile was missing from Minato's face. Instead, there was a rare look of concern.
"Sorry, Taiichi," Minato said quietly, voice unusually heavy. "I just got back from the north. Something feels off."
Taiichi's stomach tightened. So he wasn't the only one who'd noticed.
"You felt it too? Iwagakure's been acting weird the last few days. They've barely sent out any scouts, and their patrol routes are ridiculously predictable. At first they were still clashing with Sunagakure patrols, but now the two sides aren't even making contact anymore."
Minato's blue eyes were sharp. "Exactly. I've been watching several of their outposts and supply points. Their movements look purely defensive. There's no sign of any offensive intent at all."
"And Sunagakure's the same," Taiichi added. "They won a big victory and set up a solid base in the Land of Birds, but they're not pushing forward either. After how bloodthirsty they were just a week ago, this is way too quiet."
The two of them exchanged a long look.
"Something's definitely wrong," Minato said. "If both sides suddenly stop fighting after losing thousands of shinobi… there's only one real possibility."
Taiichi finished the thought for him. "They've reached some kind of secret agreement."
Minato nodded grimly. "And if that's true, then their next target is obvious."
"Konoha."
Neither of them needed to say anything else. They both understood what this meant.
Minato's expression turned serious. "There's no point staying here anymore. We're ending the mission and heading back to camp right now."
"Got it."
Without another word, the two of them took off at full speed toward the Land of Rivers.
---
One day after Taiichi and Minato left the Land of Birds, both villages had finally confirmed what the other wanted.
In the middle of the Land of Birds, the commanders of the two camps met for the first time.
Each side brought only a small number of jonin. Neither trusted the other enough to bring lower-ranking shinobi.
The dry wind kicked up dust across the scarred battlefield. Twenty meters of empty space separated the two groups like an invisible wall.
On Sunagakure's side stood Ebizō, slightly hunched but eyes sharp as ever, surrounded by several jonin.
Facing them was Magira, the bulky Iwagakure front-line commander, his face set in that typical Rock shinobi stubbornness.
The silence was heavy.
After nearly a month of pointless fighting and heavy losses on both sides, the fact that they were even standing here said everything.
Ebizō took one step forward, his raspy voice cutting through the tension.
"Magira. We both know this war is going nowhere. If we keep bleeding each other dry, the only ones who win are the people sitting back and watching. The real prize isn't here."
Magira stared at him for a long moment, then gave a single, slow nod. If he didn't agree, he wouldn't have come.
Ebizō didn't waste time. "Sunagakure proposes an immediate ceasefire. We keep the territory we currently control. No more attacks on each other's bases, outposts, or supply lines. We both turn our eyes—and our forces—toward the real target."
Magira's voice was like stone. "No written treaty, Ebizō. We both know how little those mean to your village. And I'm not stupid enough to sign anything that could be used against us later."
Ebizō's eyes narrowed slightly.
Magira continued, calm and direct. "From this moment on, as long as Sunagakure doesn't attack our bases or logistics, Iwagakure shinobi will not move one step west. The same goes for you. We both wait until the time is right."
Ebizō was silent for several seconds. Then a small, cold smile appeared on his face.
"Captain Magira… you've thought this through."
He nodded. "Sunagakure accepts. From today onward, we stop fighting. We respect the current lines. Neither side crosses them."
Magira gave a short nod. "Good. We'll wait… until the fruit is ripe."
The two groups stared at each other for a moment longer, then turned and left without another word.
They had their orders to deliver.
The real war was about to begin.