The Five-Tails of Iwagakure had escaped.
To the rest of the shinobi world, this news was far more enticing than the report of Sunagakure abruptly tearing up their newly signed treaty to launch a fierce assault on the Land of Fire.
After all, the hidden villages had emerged from the Warring States Period; they had seen it all—unannounced declarations of war, backstabbings, bizarre justifications for conflict, and the most brutal of battlefields.
However, ever since Hashirama Senju, the "God of Shinobi," had thoughtfully distributed the captured Tailed Beasts to the various villages during the first Five Kage Summit, this was the first time a Tailed Beast had actually escaped its village's grasp. Every hidden village, without exception, harbored a deep-seated greed for such immense power.
In the shinobi world, an unclaimed treasure belonged to whoever snatched it first.
Villages without a Tailed Beast wanted one; villages that already had them craved more. When it came to power, no one ever complained about having too much.
Among them, Kumogakure was undoubtedly the most invested. They were the ones who had previously sent spies to infiltrate Konoha in an attempt to kidnap the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki. This obsession was precisely why Kumogakure had remained quiet while Kirigakure was already drifting off the coast of the Land of Fire, eyeing the mainland like a predator ready to strike.
It was exactly the scenario Ohnoki had feared.
In this world, few interests outweighed the acquisition of a Tailed Beast. Furthermore, the cost of capturing a Tailed Beast was significantly lower than the price of waging a full-scale war between two Great Nations.
So, while the smaller hidden villages were still hesitating—fearing that organizing a hunt for the Five-Tails would invite Iwagakure's retaliation—Kumogakure, a fellow Great Nation, moved with terrifying speed. In less than a day, they had assembled an elite team of a hundred shinobi.
"A, Dodai—I am entrusting this capture mission to you."
The son of the Third Raikage (the future Fourth A) and the equally young Dodai were appointed as the captain and vice-captain of the capture force. Evidently, beyond their desire for the Tailed Beast, the martially-inclined Kumogakure and their Raikage viewed this mission as a trial for their successor.
"Father, rest easy. I will definitely bring the Five-Tails back to the village."
At this time, the future Fourth Raikage was still a young man with barely any stubble on his chin, yet the fearless temperament he would later be known for was already beginning to shine through.
"Ha! Then I'll be waiting in the village for your good news."
While Kumogakure was dispatching their team with lightning efficiency, Ohnoki—who had already returned to Iwagakure from the front lines—had also organized his own pursuit force.
Much like Kumogakure, Ohnoki's team was led by his son, Kitsuchi. Roshi had initially wanted to join the team, but Ohnoki had sternly refused. He remembered how the Four-Tails had nearly been influenced by the rampaging Five-Tails on the battlefield, almost causing a dual catastrophe.
Of course, compared to the Third Raikage, who was mostly focused on tempering his son, the pressure on Ohnoki and Kitsuchi was far greater. Every shinobi in Iwa, Ohnoki included, knew that the Five-Tails had to be brought back, no matter the cost.
Consequently, the scale of Iwagakure's capture force was massive, numbering nearly two hundred. Aside from a large number of powerful Earth Style users, the team consisted heavily of specialists from the Sealing Corps.
As Kumo and Iwa sprang into action, Kirigakure was locked in a heated internal debate.
The village was split into two factions.
The first faction consisted mostly of the Mizukage's direct subordinates, those who had been involved in the initial reconnaissance and harassment of Konoha. Unwilling to see their prior efforts go to waste, they strongly urged the village to stick to the original plan and launch an invasion of the Land of Fire.
After all, Konoha currently looked like it was swaying in the wind, so weakened that it seemed they only needed to pounce to tear off a massive piece of prime territory. For a village like Kiri—isolated from the mainland, lagging in population and revenue, and rarely finding such a perfect opportunity for a large-scale landing—this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.
However, the other faction, led by the village Elders, shared Kumogakure's perspective. They believed a Tailed Beast was a prize that far outweighed any territorial gain.
Moreover, they argued that a capture mission—which required elite, small-scale precision rather than sheer numbers—played perfectly to the strengths of Kirigakure's "Bloody Mist" policy of elite education.
If they succeeded, they could either train a compatible Jinchuriki or use the beast as leverage to extort massive concessions from Iwagakure. For Kiri, this plan offered lower risks and higher rewards than a full-scale war.
Neither the Mizukage's faction nor the Elders' faction could sway the other. In the end, the Mizukage made the final call.
"Only children make choices—I'll take everything!"
The Elders' faction would assemble a team to hunt the Five-Tails, while the shinobi previously assigned to reconnaissance would continue with the original plan, making final preparations to invade Konoha.
Kumogakure's attitude was: If we get it, we're lucky; if not, it's fate. They were treating the hunt as a training ground for the future Fourth Raikage.
Kirigakure's attitude was: Cast a wide net and see if we catch anything. They figured they might as well try.
At the end of the day, both villages already possessed two Tailed Beasts, so their obsession wasn't overwhelming.
But Sunagakure? They only had the One-Tails—which they had captured themselves long ago. Upon hearing this news, they became utterly obsessed, their eyes turning green with envy, wishing they could teleport the Five-Tails into their hands immediately.
Many Suna shinobi actually harbored a bit of a grudge against the First Kazekage. Back then, when the five Great Villages sat down to divvy up the spoils, Hashirama Senju was basically shoving meat into everyone's mouths. Yet, the First Kazekage had essentially spat it back out in a fit of pride.
Sure, he had "spine," but the village's stomach had been suffering ever since.
If they could do it all over again, at least seventy percent of the Suna shinobi would have wished the First Kazekage wasn't so stubborn and had taken a second Tailed Beast.
And now, suddenly realizing they had a chance to obtain a second beast without needing to turn back time, the Suna leadership was electrified with excitement.
However, because their hatred for Konoha was too deep—and they were so desperate to wash away the shame of their two previous defeats while snatching resources—they had already launched their surprise attack. They were currently locked in a fierce, deadlocked struggle with Konoha, and they didn't dare pull enough elites away to organize a Five-Tails capture team.
This realization left many Suna high-rankers in a state of profound regret.
They felt the opportunity to seize the Five-Tails slipping through their fingers like sand; no matter how hard they tried to clench their fists, it escaped them.
And that deep regret quickly curdled into bitter resentment.
They resented Konoha for being so "detestable," accusing them of intentionally acting as "bait" to ruin Sunagakure's chances of capturing the Five-Tails.
Driven by this irrational spite, Sunagakure's offensive grew even more violent.