A thunderous crash erupted from the Raikage's office, followed by a cloud of dust that billowed through the doorway and spread into the corridor.
The Third Raikage's desk—the third one this month—had been smashed to pieces in a fit of rage. Not a single intact fragment remained.
Standing before the shattered desk was a beautiful female secretary dressed in a fitted gray jacket and a matching pencil skirt. Stockings covered her slender, toned legs.
She had long since grown accustomed to the Third Raikage destroying office furniture whenever his temper flared. Her expression remained perfectly calm as she held a document in her right hand and lightly adjusted her rimless glasses with her left.
"Those fools from Iwagakure!" The Third Raikage clenched his right fist, his face twisted with fury. "Is this how Ōnoki serves as Tsuchikage? An incompetent Kage leading a pack of useless shinobi! He could not even discover that one of his closest subordinates was a Konoha spy. What right does he have to call himself the Tsuchikage?"
The Third Raikage's fury was hardly surprising.
The Allied Shinobi Villages' plan to eliminate Kizaru had been leaked from Iwagakure. It was a strategy they had spent months negotiating and refining, yet all their efforts had been rendered useless in an instant.
Anyone in his position would have been furious.
The war was about to begin. The three Great Shinobi Villages had already gathered their supplies, completed the mobilization of their senior shinobi, and made every necessary logistical preparation.
Their forces were ready to move.
Yet at this critical moment, the battle plan that the alliance had shared with Iwagakure had fallen into the hands of a Konoha spy hidden within the village—and had already been delivered back to Konoha.
What were they supposed to do now?
Should they proceed with the original strategy, or hastily devise a new one?
Even if they decided to revise it, how could they possibly create an entirely new plan in time?
Only twelve days remained before the war began.
Abandoning the war altogether was even less realistic.
The conflict had been planned for far too long, and both sides had already committed too many forces. Even if the three-village alliance suddenly withdrew, Konoha—now aware of their intentions—would almost certainly seize the initiative and attack first.
The intelligence leak had abruptly shifted the situation against the alliance of Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure.
The key to victory in this war had always been the elimination of Kizaru.
Unless they dealt with that battlefield monster—whose mobility and destructive power defied all reason—not even an alliance of five or ten shinobi villages could be confident of defeating Konoha.
"Lord Raikage, should I arrange a meeting among the three Kage so the plan can be renegotiated?"
"Prepare the teleportation formation," the Third Raikage ordered without hesitation. "I'm going to the Land of Grass. I'll speak with Ōnoki personally."
"Understood."
The secretary asked no further questions.
She knew her superior was still furious, and saying anything more would accomplish nothing. It was better to leave the office and begin making the necessary arrangements for the teleportation formation.
The Third Raikage was not the only one enraged by the intelligence leak.
When Iwagakure informed Kirigakure of what had happened, the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, was equally furious.
As for Uchiha Madara, who controlled Yagura from behind the scenes, his anger was even greater.
He had only a few years left to live—perhaps even less if one counted only the years in which his body would remain capable of moving freely.
After considerable effort, he had finally created an alliance among the three Great Shinobi Villages and guided them toward a war that would weaken the Konoha founded by Hashirama and himself.
Yet before the war had even begun, those fools had allowed their entire strategy to fall into Konoha's hands.
The chances of successfully surrounding and killing Kizaru had never been particularly high. Now that Kizaru knew their plan and could prepare accordingly, their chances were practically nonexistent.
Had Madara still been young, he would already have gone to Iwagakure and slaughtered every incompetent fool who had accomplished nothing but ruin his plans.
No—if he had still possessed his youthful strength, he would never have relied on such useless people in the first place.
He would have gone to Konoha alone and challenged Kizaru himself.
In the end, age had caught up with him.
To deal with a mere junior like Kizaru, Madara had been forced to employ strategies he once would have regarded with contempt.
Seated in the darkness of his underground hideout, Madara lowered his gaze to his withered right hand. A wave of disgust rose within him, mingling with his anger.
This body had become old and repulsive.
If not for his determination to fulfill his dream and prove to Hashirama that his path had been the correct one, Madara would have allowed himself to die long ago.
Although the intelligence leak had initially enraged him, he soon regained his composure.
Viewed from another perspective, the outcome of the war did not matter nearly as much as it seemed.
Whether the alliance won or lost, the conflict would still drain the strength of the shinobi world. Either result could ultimately serve his purpose.
What truly mattered was how much he could gain from this war—and how many preparations he could complete while the Five Great Shinobi Villages were distracted by the fighting.
Nagato, the bearer of his Rinnegan, had to be abducted from Konoha during the chaos.
He also needed to find a way to take several children from the Uchiha clan.
Kizaru's overwhelming strength did not matter.
No matter how powerful he became, he would eventually grow old.
Madara merely needed to cultivate a suitable successor. Then, Black Zetsu and that successor could wait for the proper moment and use the Rinnegan implanted in Nagato to resurrect him through the Outer Path—Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique.
Five years, ten years, twenty years—even thirty or fifty years made no difference.
Madara could afford to wait.
He could wait as long as necessary.
No matter how formidable Kizaru was, he remained a mortal human. Age would inevitably claim him. Once Kizaru grew old, the ideal opportunity for Madara's resurrection would arrive.
As long as Black Zetsu—the being Madara believed he had created with Yin–Yang Release as an embodiment of his will—remained active, and as long as his Rinnegan continued to exist, he would always possess a path back to life.
When that day came, their positions would be reversed.
Uchiha Madara would return in the prime of his youth, brimming with strength and once again standing at the summit of the shinobi world.
Kizaru, meanwhile, would either be a feeble old man or nothing more than a pile of weathered bones.
Truthfully, when Madara imagined that future, he felt a faint trace of regret.
It was regrettable that he might never have the opportunity to fight Kizaru while they were both at their strongest.
"You need not concern yourself with the war," Madara said calmly, looking down at Black Zetsu. "Focus on your own mission. Bring Nagato and several children from the Uchiha clan back to me."
"Yes, Madara-sama."
Madara's command aligned perfectly with Black Zetsu's own intentions. A smile appeared on his face as he bowed respectfully.
Madara watched Black Zetsu disappear into the dark, seemingly endless underground passage.
Once he was gone, Madara withdrew his gaze, adjusted his position, and reclined against his seat.
They were nothing more than a collection of useless fools.
They were no longer worth the effort of worrying about.
He might as well sleep.
With that thought, Madara closed his eyes and soon fell into a deep slumber.
Meanwhile, in Konoha, Kizaru returned from Mount Myōboku the day after Yoshihiko delivered the intelligence report.
Just as Kizaru had expected, the Great Toad Sage possessed information about all the Treasured Tools of the Sage of Six Paths and had shared everything he knew.
The abilities of the Kohaku no Jōhei were indeed related to spoken words and sealing, just as Kizaru had suspected.
When the vessel's wielder called someone's name, anyone who responded would be drawn inside and sealed away.
There was no denying that such an ability was particularly troublesome for someone as talkative as Kizaru.
Whether Kizaru could resist the Kohaku no Jōhei's sealing power and force his way free remained uncertain.
At the very least, if he encountered an enemy carrying the vessel without knowing its ability beforehand, there was a very real possibility that he would answer carelessly and fall victim to it.
To thank the Great Toad Sage for providing the information, Kizaru remained on Mount Myōboku and prepared an extravagant insect banquet for the three toad sages.
That was why he did not return to Konoha until the following day.
Immediately after arriving in the village, Kizaru went to see his teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and his uncle, Danzō Shimura. He told them everything he had learned about the Treasured Tool of the Sage of Six Paths during his visit to Mount Myōboku.
After listening to his explanation, both Hiruzen and Danzō visibly relaxed.
They understood Kizaru's behavior in battle all too well. Without prior knowledge of the Kohaku no Jōhei's ability, there was a very real chance that he would respond to its wielder without thinking.
"Kizaru, when you leave the village, exercise caution if you encounter shinobi from another village," Hiruzen warned him. "It would be best not to speak during battle."
Danzō's warning was considerably more direct.
"When you fight, keep your mouth shut."
"Oooh, Uncle…" Seated across from them, Kizaru looked at Danzō with an easy smile. "Isn't that a little harsh?"
"Hmph! I have no intention of receiving a report saying that you allowed yourself to be sealed away!" Danzō replied coldly.
"My, my… how touching," Kizaru drawled, his smile widening. "I never knew you worried about me so much, Uncle."
Danzō expressionlessly turned his gaze away from Kizaru and looked toward Hiruzen.
"I still have matters to handle at Root. I'll take my leave."
With that, Danzō swiftly turned around and walked out of the room.
•••
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