Chapter 22
On the road at the border of the Land of Fire.
This narrow path led toward the Land of Lightning. Ancient trees towered overhead, their thick branches blocking most of the sunlight, casting everything in oppressive shadow.
"Faster! Move faster!"
The two Kumo escorts gritted their teeth, racing down the trail while carrying the stretcher.
On it lay the Kumo leader—his body wrapped in thick bandages, splints, and plaster. Every jolt from the rough movement aggravated his wounds, making him twitch in agony.
Though Konoha's medical ninja had saved his life, the lingering pain was unavoidable—sharp stabs that constantly gnawed at his nerves.
"Boss, hold on! Just past the valley ahead and we'll be out of Fire Country. Our troops are waiting not far beyond!" one escort gasped.
But the leader couldn't respond. His single visible eye was still wide with terror, darting nervously toward the dark forest behind them.
As seasoned ninja who lived on the edge of death, they had already sensed someone tailing them.
The moment they leaped over the next thicket—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Dozens of pitch-black shuriken rained down from the shadows at their rear.
The attacks were precise—aimed squarely at ending the lives of all three Kumo ninja.
"Enemy ambush!!!"
The two escorts cried out in alarm.
They were elite too. The one in front scooped up the Kumo leader and dodged aside. The rear guard drew his kunai and desperately deflected the barrage.
Clang clang clang! Sparks flew.
Though he blocked most, his arms and legs were still sliced open—blood immediately welled up.
"Who's there?! We're ninja of Kumogakure!"
The rear guard ducked behind a tree trunk and shouted their identity.
No answer came.
Instead, several black shadows slid silently from behind the trunks.
They wielded short blades, wore tattered, mismatched clothing with no identifying marks, and their faces were hidden behind plain, unmarked masks.
Root's signature style—mission above all, kill rather than spare.
"It's over…"
The Kumo leader sensed the approaching blades and closed his eyes in despair.
These couldn't be rogue ninja—they were clearly Anbu in disguise.
That smiling Hokage had lied. Konoha never intended to let them leave the Land of Fire alive.
Just as the cold steel closed in—
Zzzzt—ZZZZZT—!!
A piercing, high-pitched screech—like a thousand birds shrieking at once—ripped through the forest's silence.
Everyone's eardrums stung from the noise.
Then a blinding blue-white lightning spear sliced horizontally into the battlefield!
Clang!!
Metal clashed.
The lead Root ninja's short blade snapped in half. The massive impact sent him flying backward, crashing into a tree trunk.
Dust settled.
A lean figure now stood protectively in front of the trembling Kumo ninja.
Silver-white hair danced in the wind. He wore Konoha Anbu armor and a fox mask painted with red markings.
His right hand hung low—the signature Lightning Cutter chakra had just dissipated from his palm.
Konoha's Copy Ninja—Hatake Kakashi!
His eyes held no emotion—colder even than Root's own operatives—as he stared down the Root team.
"Attacking Konoha's allies within Fire Country territory… have you considered the consequences?"
Kakashi's voice was calm, yet carried undeniable pressure.
A brief standoff gripped the forest.
The Root ninja who had been knocked back stood again—seemingly feeling no pain.
"Cold-Blooded Kakashi!"
That was the nickname Kakashi had earned in Anbu—his reputation had spread so widely it overshadowed his official codename.
The Root squad leader stepped out from the shadows.
He raised his short blade, pointing it at Kakashi. "You're alone. You can't beat seven of us."
As his words fell—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Shadows in the trees came alive.
Six more Root ninja emerged, fanning out to surround Kakashi and the Kumo survivors.
Each radiated lethal killing intent—clearly elite operatives.
The faint hope the Kumo ninja had felt shattered once more.
"One against seven… even Kakashi can't win…" one of them muttered in despair.
Yet facing this hopeless situation, Kakashi only tilted his head slightly.
"Only one person?"
He looked at the Root squad leader with utter calm.
"What?" The squad leader faltered.
The next instant—an overwhelming, suffocating pressure descended from above.
Whoosh—!!
Countless breaking-air sounds rang out simultaneously.
The Root ninja looked up in horror.
The canopy overhead was packed—dozens of animal-masked figures.
An entire Anbu squad had silently encircled the Root team.
7 vs 17.
The moment Kakashi gave the order, these seven Root ninja would be slaughtered without resistance.
Cold sweat slid down the Root squad leader's mask.
His grip on the blade froze. This was a fight with zero chance of victory.
If they fought, they wouldn't even manage one-for-one exchanges—they would simply die here meaninglessly.
Danzō's mission was to eliminate the Kumo delegation and frame rogue ninja. Clearly, the mission had failed.
Anbu had discovered Root's operation.
"…Withdraw!"
The Root squad leader forced the word through clenched teeth.
No hesitation. The seven Root ninja sheathed their weapons, leaped backward, and melted into the forest shadows—vanishing in the blink of an eye.
The crisis was over.
Only the Kumo ninja's ragged breathing remained in the forest.
Kakashi turned to face the three broken Kumo survivors.
The Kumo leader now felt deep awe toward Konoha.
After all—he had nearly died here twice.
"Leave."
Kakashi's tone was cold. "Keep going forward and you'll reach your own forces."
"Y-Yes… thank you!"
The escorts felt as though they had been granted amnesty. They quickly tended their wounds, lifted the stretcher, and fled toward the border at full speed.
...
Land of Lightning, Kumogakure.
BOOM!!
A thunderous crash echoed through the Raikage Tower.
Fourth Raikage A smashed his desk into splinters with one punch.
"Damn you, Hiruzen!!"
He clutched Hiruzen's personal condemnation letter, hair standing on end in fury.
"You crippled my subordinate and dare send me a lecture?! You've gone too far!"
"Lord Raikage, please calm down."
His secretary cautiously offered a report. "This is… the medical ninja's injury analysis."
A snatched the document and flipped it open roughly.
As he read, his face grew darker and darker.
"Residual high-density chakra reaction at the wound site…"
The secretary spoke softly: "Judgment confirms it is Nine-Tails chakra residue. The injury was not from a rampaging tailed beast attack… but from controlled taijutsu strikes."
"Confirmation from the leader himself—regrettably, the intelligence is accurate. That child is indeed the Nine-Tails jinchūriki."
Dead silence filled the office.
The letter laid it out almost openly: Kumo had attempted to abduct both the Byakugan heiress and the jinchūriki—only to be countered by the jinchūriki himself, leaving their leader critically injured.
When had Konoha's jinchūriki gained such perfect control over the Nine-Tails?
What did this mean?
It meant Konoha was beginning to re-master tailed beast power.
Judging from age alone, Konoha's jinchūriki was monstrously talented.
A three-year-old capable of controlling the strongest tailed beast—the Nine-Tails.
Every great village possessed a tailed beast—that was the foundation of balance among the great powers.
Three years ago, after losing the Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze and the previous Nine-Tails jinchūriki Kushina Uzumaki in the Nine-Tails Rampage,
Konoha had suffered heavy losses. Kumo had weighed their strength and decided to invade the Land of Fire.
If they tore up the treaty now and resumed war, Konoha would undoubtedly unleash the Nine-Tails.
Kumogakure had the Eight-Tails—and a perfect jinchūriki capable of full transformation—but that would negate any advantage in attacking Fire Country…
The Raikage's chest heaved violently. The report crumpled in his massive fist.
After a long silence,
He dropped heavily into the chair where his desk once stood and let out a long sigh.
"Pass the order."
"The alliance treaty… takes effect."
"Have the assembled ninja forces at the border withdraw."
There would be no explanation—only acknowledgment of the treaty and cessation of hostilities.
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