"Hah, that's actually a pretty solid reason," Onoki said, straightening in his seat at the head of the table. A spark of interest flickered in his eyes as he looked toward the right side of the room where Roshi sat. "Menma Uzumaki's faction already controls three Tailed Beasts. The alliance between the Hidden Waterfall and Hidden Grass is clearly built around that kid. If we strike the Cloud hard from the southeast, we remove a direct threat to our own eastern border… but we'd also be handing Menma and his people a massive lifeline. Wouldn't that just turn the southeast into an even bigger problem later?"
Roshi gave a dismissive snort.
"An even bigger problem in the southeast? Come on, Onoki—you're not the hot-headed type like that Raikage brat. If we throw our full strength at them, what are the Hidden Waterfall and Hidden Grass going to do? That Nine-Tails kid beat the Raikage, sure, he's got some skill. But you're telling me you're scared of him? Worst case, the Leaf will jump in too. Right now the Leaf is the one sweating the most over the Nine-Tails. Even if we don't get everything we want, we can still team up with them to crush the kid later. The Cloud's weakness is right in front of us—if we miss this chance, it's gone. Push the front line forward, take back the Land of Frost and Land of Rice Fields completely, squeeze the Cloud out of our sphere of influence. That's how the Stone grows stronger and claims more territory. And didn't you make an alliance pact with that brat? Why aren't you using it?"
The blunt pros and cons landed like hammer blows. Roshi's stance was crystal clear.
The other Stone jonin started exchanging looks. Even Kitsuchi and Akatsuchi frowned slightly as they seriously weighed Roshi's words.
When you thought about it… honoring the alliance and hammering the Cloud really did line up with the Stone's current interests. As for the future? Neither Roshi nor the others believed Menma could cause any real trouble. His geography was terrible—sandwiched between three major villages. The Cloud wasn't even directly bordering him.
If the Leaf, Cloud, and Mist ever decided to wipe Menma out together, the Stone ninjas were convinced his little Waterfall-Grass coalition would collapse overnight.
So right now, using Menma to cripple their biggest rival was the smartest, most logical move.
"Hahaha… Roshi, Roshi. Still got that sharp tongue after all these years," Onoki laughed openly.
Because every word Roshi had just spoken was exactly what the Third Tsuchikage was already thinking.
The two of them had clashed for decades on almost everything, yet every once in a while they fell into perfect sync like this.
Roshi hadn't mentioned one extra detail, maybe because he hadn't thought of it yet. By "helping" Menma now, the Stone would earn serious goodwill. Later, if the Cloud, Leaf, and Mist really committed to destroying Menma's faction, the Stone could simply… be a little slow with reinforcements. Once Menma's forces were mostly wiped out, Onoki could step in openly and "rescue" the survivors.
It was a win-win.
Even if Menma saw through the ploy, it was still an open, honest scheme laid right on the table.
Onoki was confident the kid was smart enough to understand.
"Roshi's right," Onoki declared, rising to his feet with real fire in his voice. "The Stone keeps its promises. We honor our alliances. Kitsuchi, send word to Menma immediately. Tell him the Cloud's future pressure is now our problem. He can focus entirely on the Leaf and Mist. Everything will be carried out according to the pact. This time we're not just reclaiming the territory the Cloud stole from us over the years—we're going to hit them so hard they'll never forget it. The northern border belongs to the Stone!"
"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage!"
Kitsuchi, Akatsuchi, and the rest of the Stone jonin bowed in unison, voices ringing with determination.
Off to the side, Roshi blinked once, then shot Onoki a sideways glare and gave a quiet, annoyed huff through his nose.
By now the Four-Tails Jinchuriki had realized he'd been played by the old man on the throne again.
Still, Roshi didn't say another word.
After so many years, he was used to it.
The decision was locked in.
Orders went out at once.
Stone ninja units began assembling from every direction, answering different summons and falling into formation.
"War again… looks like the Stone is jumping in too."
"Tsk, I heard the Cloud got crushed pretty bad. So the Waterfall and Grass—especially that Nine-Tails Jinchuriki—must actually be strong."
"I wonder what Lord Tsuchikage is planning this time?"
"I bet we're going to kick them while they're down."
"Ah… who knows."
"War again…"
"How many more of us are going to die this time…"
"Long live the Stone!!!"
The coming war was no surprise to the villagers. Over the past several decades they had lived through three Great Ninja Wars and countless smaller ones in between. A single low-rank ninja could already cause destruction far beyond normal people, and high-rank shinobi with massive-scale jutsu could flatten entire areas.
Ninja were born for battle.
The people of the Stone had grown used to this way of life. Still, each person felt it differently—some were excited, some curious, some worried.
But no matter their personal feelings, none of them could change the village leadership's decision.
The Stone's movements naturally drew the eyes of every ninja village across the continent. The first to receive the news was Menma's side—the closest and an official ally. Almost the exact moment the massive Stone force began marching eastward…
Menma, who had just finished stabilizing the new joint defensive lines between the Waterfall and Grass, received the report immediately.
It was an obvious, open scheme.
But no matter what Onoki was thinking, the Stone's actions were clearly benefiting Menma's faction.
The second he got the message, Menma called an emergency high-level meeting with Shibuki and the others.
"Is this real? Menma-kun, the Third Tsuchikage and the Stone Village have honored the alliance and are sending their army straight at the Cloud?"
In the Waterfall Village's main council hall, Agun's eyes went wide with disbelief as he stared at Menma.
"Yes. This came directly from the Tsuchikage himself. Here, take a look, Agun-san. But honestly, this was something we could already predict. The Third Tsuchikage is a pure realist. Attacking the Cloud is the move that best serves the Stone's interests right now. Everyone, feel free to read it."
Menma gave a small smile and tossed the scroll toward Agun.
Agun caught it one-handed and scanned the contents. The joy on his face grew deeper with every line.
"Plus, we don't even need to wait a full day for confirmation. You can't hide the movement of thousands of ninja. The moment the Tsuchikage sent this message, the Stone troops were already on the march. By tonight our border scouts should have eyes on them in the northern region."
In the message Onoki had sent, there was almost no attempt to hide anything. Five thousand-plus Stone ninja, led personally by Kitsuchi—this kind of force couldn't be concealed.
This wasn't a short-range surprise attack like the one Menma had used on the Cloud.
Menma wasn't worried at all that Onoki might be playing some trick. Besides, this matched the prediction he had made from the very beginning. As long as he won his battle, Onoki was extremely likely to make exactly this choice.
It was simple human nature and self-interest.
"That means we don't have to worry about the Cloud anymore," Shibuki said from the head seat, his face lighting up with excitement. "The only real threat left is the Leaf."
"Yes, we can shift our main defensive focus to the southeast. But it's not just the Leaf. According to the latest reports I received, the Mist also sent troops at the beginning. After we crushed the Cloud army—especially after news spread that the Fourth Raikage was badly wounded—the Mist forces stopped advancing. Right now their stance is still pretty vague. We should stay alert and make basic preparations. We can't focus only on the Leaf."
Menma cleared his throat lightly, his expression turning serious.
"The Mist?"
Shibuki, Agun, and the others all stiffened at his words.
Even Utakata, still a little pale from his earlier injuries and sitting near Menma, looked sharply focused.
"Yeah, this was something we already expected. It's logical. But we don't need to panic. Forget the fact that the Mist is still reeling from the Cloud's defeat—remember what I told you before. The Mist went through a huge civil war just a few years ago. They still haven't fully recovered, and they don't even have a new Mizukage yet. They simply don't have the strength to get heavily involved in outside affairs right now. We don't need to overthink them. Just keep normal vigilance. That's enough."