In the Hidden Leaf Village, inside the Hokage's office, Sarutobi Hiruzen sat rigidly at his desk, staring blankly at the intelligence report in his hands. He did not move for a long ti.
The report was brief, but its contents were devastating: "Lord Shinnosuke has been killed. His body was discovered along the border of the Land of Earth.
The assassin is suspected to be an Iwagakure spy who has since fled the area."
He stared at the parchnt for so long that the others present in the room began to grow deeply uneasy.
"Hiruzen..." Utatane Koharu called out softly.
Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly raised his head. His expression remained unnaturally calm, but his face looked as though it had aged a decade overnight. His hair, which had been peppered gray, was now completely snow-white.
"I understand. All of you may leave now."
"Hiruzen..." Mitokado Homura stepped forward, wanting to offer words of comfort.
But Hiruzen's voice cut through the air with sudden, jarring finality: "Get out!"
The two elders exchanged a look, bowed their heads, and quietly exited the office.
The mont the door clicked shut, Sarutobi Hiruzen finally let his head sink into his hands.
There were still docunts piled on his desk waiting to be reviewed today. He needed to finish his work quickly—after all, he was the Hokage.
He had to perform the duties of the Hokage. He had to keep moving forward. He had to...
He repeated the words like a mantra in his mind, but his eyes grew burning hot, and a heavy weight pressed down on his chest.
Right then, Shimura Danzō pushed the door open, storming inside. "Hiruzen!" He marched up to the desk and slamd his palm down onto the wood. "Shinnosuke is dead, and you're sitting here calmly reviewing paperwork?!"
Hiruzen looked up, his voice hollow. "I am aware."
"You're aware?" Danzō sneered. "Hmph! What exactly are you aware of? Do you know who killed him? It was Iwa! They slaughtered your eldest son. Are you truly not grieving? Are you just going to let this slide?"
Hiruzen remained silent, staring at the desk.
Danzō pressed further, his voice rising. "Issue the order to mobilize our forces. We must march on the Land of Earth. This blood debt must be settled in full!"
Hiruzen slowly lowered his brush. "Danzō."
"What?"
"Get out."
Danzō froze, his face twisting into an expression of raw fury. "Hiruzen! You—"
"I said, get out."
Hiruzen's voice was entirely level, but his eyes flashed with an absolute, terrifying authority that left no room for argunt. Danzō glared at him for several seconds, let out a harsh scoff, and spun on his heel, slamming the door behind him.
"You will regret this!"
Regret? To be honest, Hiruzen had always believed a Hokage must never look back with regret. But now, a profound sense of remorse gnawed at his heart.
He picked up his brush to resu his work, but his hand shook so violently that ink splattered across the parchnt.
Shinnosuke was the son he had placed his highest hopes upon. To achieve the rank of Jōnin by sixteen was proof of his imnse talent, yet his very first deploynt as a commanding officer had ended in tragedy.
Hiruzen didn't bla Kusagakure, nor did he bla Iwagakure. He blad himself. He was the one who had assigned Shinnosuke to reinforce the border garrison.
He was the one who believed his son could handle any challenge. He was the one...
He closed his eyes, sitting in the silence for a long ti before opening them again.
The raw grief in his eyes had been carefully locked away, replaced by an iron clad resolve born of sheer exhaustion.
To beco a shinobi was to accept a fate of conflict, and to fall on the battlefield was an inherent risk of the profession. But the son of the Hokage would not be allowed to die as a re pawn in a web of foreign conspiracies and underhanded plots!
The Bla Ga
anwhile, in Hidden Stone Village, Ōnoki's face turned as dark as a thundercloud upon receiving the report.
"The Hokage's son was murdered inside our territory?"
"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage." The kneeling ninja wiped a bead of cold sweat from his brow. "According to the reconnaissance team, the perpetrator was indeed our intelligence operative embedded within the Grass Village.
Witnesses reported hearing shouts before the clash—the operative claid to harbor a blood feud against the Sarutobi clan for the death of his family, and the Hokage's son allegedly provoked him intentionally... The operative lost control, leading to an accidental escalation.
He fled the scene imdiately after the killing, and his current whereabouts are unknown."
"Absurd," Ōnoki hissed, striking his desk. "An Iwa shinobi possesses the unyielding Will of Stone. Our operatives do not lose control over re verbal provocations."
This was undoubtedly a trap—soone was manipulating the pieces from the shadows.
As the oldest living Kage and a master of political maneuvering, Ōnoki knew that, regardless of the truth, Iwa had to reject all culpability.
The evidence was damning, but the Hidden Stone could absolutely not shoulder the bla for murdering Hiruzen's son.
"The Grass Village... Yes, it must be them!" A murderous glint flashed in Ōnoki's eyes. "When did those spineless fence-sitters cultivate the spine to orchestrate sothing like this?"
He turned to his assistant and commanded, "Issue an official decree imdiately. Condemn Kusagakure for framing our village and attempting to instigate a world war between two major powers.
Publicly declare that Iwa has no connection to this tragedy, and lay the entire responsibility solely upon the Grass."
"Furthermore, sever all economic ties, diplomatic relations, and resource aid to the Land of Grass effective imdiately.
If possible, dismantle our border depots and pull all supplies back into our territory. Leave them absolutely nothing."
As Iwa moved to distance itself, Kusagakure desperately issued its own public clarification: "The Hidden Leaf's commanding officer was treated with the highest hospitality during his three days in our care.
He was provided premium lodging, exquisite als, and the company of ten maiden attendants—three of whom have since been confird to be carrying his lineage.
As a small and modest village, the Grass harbors absolutely no hostility toward the great Hidden Leaf."
A day later, both official declarations arrived at the Hokage's desk.
Sarutobi Hiruzen issued an imdiate and ruthless counter-response.
He personally penned a formal manifesto detailing the entire tiline of events: "Kusagakure systematically abducted the son of the Hokage, orchestrating a vile plot against the Sarutobi clan to forcefully compromise their bloodline.
Upon realizing their conspiracy had been exposed, they dragged the hostage to the border of the Land of Earth and executed him, attempting to fra the Hidden Stone.
Such deceptive tactics and barbaric actions are thoroughly unpardonable."
The docunt was written with masterful, righteous indignation, but its core ssage was singular and absolute:
"The Land of Grass has deliberately sought to rupture the stability of the shinobi world. To preserve the long-term peace of our nations, the Hidden Leaf Village shall move to dismantle them entirely."
Two days later, the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Stone simultaneously declared a punitive campaign against the Land of Grass.
The news sent shockwaves through the nations.
Yet, throughout the entire escalation, Sarutobi Hiruzen never once directed his declaration of war toward Iwagakure.
Ōnoki did not want a full-scale war, and Hiruzen could not afford one either. Both old n possessed a mountain of burning fury that required an outlet—and the Land of Grass had just beco the perfect anvil for their hamrs.
A House Divided
Back in the council chambers of Kusagakure, a suffocating silence weighed heavily on the air.
The newly instated Leader, Negishi Kusanagi, sat at the head of the long table, his face devoid of color. Resting before him were the two declarations: Iwa's complete abandonnt and Konoha's formal manifesto of extermination.
For a small village with a total civilian population of a few tens of thousands and a standing force of barely five hundred active ninjas, a simultaneous assault by two Great Nations ant total annihilation.
"We are ruined..." soone muttered under his breath.
"It's over... everything is over..."
"We're dead."
Panic spread like a plague through the hall.
The surviving Jōnin, who had just finished purging the village's internal traitors and were preparing to divide the remaining resources among themselves, no longer cared about their newly acquired status.
They realized the village was a sinking ship; their best option was to dissolve the system, split the assets, and run.
Even if they spent the rest of their lives as rogue ninjas hunted by international bounties, it was still a better prospect than staying here to face the wrath of two Kage.
An elderly councilman suddenly stood up, leaning heavily on the table. "Lord Leader, we must dismantle the village. Let everyone take what they can carry and flee for their lives.
If we run now, we might still make it past the border!"
With the ice broken, voices calling for a dissolution erupted from every corner of the room.
"Yes! Dissolve Kusagakure and scatter to the winds!"
"It's better to try our luck as rogues than to sit here and wait for execution!"
Sitting at the high end of the table, Negishi felt his resolve fracturing.
Though he had only just seized the seat of leadership and hadn't even had ti to properly experience the power, the thought of abandoning the village and becoming a missing-nin began to take firm root in his mind.
Right at that pivotal mont, a faint, rhythmic whisper carried on a subtle draft of wind slipped directly into his ear...
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