Two individuals exited the Sunagakure Council Room while deep in thought. As they walked, one of them sighed and muttered, "To approach the Wind Daimyo at this time. Sigh, will it work? It's no secret that the Daimyo doesn't like Sunagakure and prefers good relations with Konoha instead."
The lady next to him replied, "He may prefer Konoha, but he is the Daimyo of the Land of Wind. He wouldn't like to see his country being invaded by Konoha. He'll be even more desperate than us for peace. So, we don't need to worry about whose side he'll be on, Yura.
Of course, that isn't entirely good news as he may try to force us to accept some unfavorable terms. However, anything is better than an all-out war against Konoha at this point."
Yura replied, "That is exactly what I'm worried about, Arisa. Our economy is already in bad shape due to his preferences. It'll be even worse if more restrictions are imposed upon us.
Anyway, I suppose the council already considered these aspects before making the decision. We can only hope that we apply enough pressure on Konoha to stop them from making another audacious move. We need to prepare for the negotiations."
Arisa nodded. She and Yura were the two new members of the Sunagakure Council. Tenma Arima was from a civilian background but had considerable influence due to being a Strategist and an Elite Jounin. Yura had a significant influence among the Sunagakure ninjas too. Unfortunately for Sunagakure, he was Sasori's spy.
Within minutes of the end of the Sunagakure Council Meeting, two squads left their village and traveled at high speed. One squad was headed to Iwagakure, while the other was headed to Kumogakure.
At the same time, a news spread throughout Sunagakure which brought relief to most of their ninjas.
"Thank god! I was so worried!"
"Yeah, me too! I'm so glad the Council made this decision. My wife and kids were so worried for me!"
"Yeah, we don't have to fight that monster! We can flee as soon as we see him even if we are at war!"
Realizing the fear of Fujin that had penetrated into the bones of the Sunagakure ninjas, the Council finally issued a flee-on-sight warning for Fujin, just like Iwagakure did a long time ago. It restored the morale of their ninjas to an extent.
However, there were a few hundred ninjas who weren't relieved. Instead, they became even more worried.
"Shit! Does this mean that we will go to war with Konoha?"
"Fuck! What use is the 'Flee on sight' order? How the fuck are we supposed to run from that demon?"
"Exactly! That monster slaughtered two hundred of our comrades in the blink of an eye. Poor guys didn't even know what hit them!"
"What the hell is the council thinking? They should avoid war at all costs. This was a short conflict. If we start an official war, he'll make White Fang look like a saint! I don't even want to imagine him hunting our forces for several weeks, let alone several months!"
Needless to say, the council was well aware of this when Baki spoke up. Unfortunately, they were out of options. They could only be thankful for the fact that they had dispatched nearly 3,000 ninjas before Baki's group returned to Sunagakure and spread Fujin's infamy. As such, they were unaffected and still in good morale.
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A similar order was passed by Ay in Kumogakure. However, their ninjas had a very different reaction. Instead of relief, most ninjas had solemn expressions. Ay's orders were very different from Sunagakure's Council.
Mabui sighed and thought, 'To send such an order in such tumultuous times… Raikage-sama's reputation will drop even more. Unfortunately, there was no choice. Trouble doesn't seem to stop. If we delay, who knows how many more ninjas would go missing!'
Instead of fleeing from Fujin, Ay ordered his ninjas to attack Fujin and blow themselves up as soon as they encountered him if Fujin or his subordinates showed any signs of hostility.
Of course, such a drastic order resulted in an immediate backlash and opposition from the council. The Raikage and his close aides braced for another political shitstorm. At the same time, he dispatched one squad to get in touch with Iwagakure.
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A kilometer away from the Fire Capital, the three divisions met once again. Fujin let the army set up camps and rest. After all, they had been very active for over a week without much rest. In addition, Fujin needed them to be ready for the future.
The leaders of the army met in the main tent. Fujin glanced around and said, "It's good to see everyone here is safe and sound. How did the war go?"
Hoka sighed and said, "It was going well initially, but we fell into a trap. Though their forces were far weaker, we lost several ninjas due to their momentum. 26 ninjas in my division lost their lives. Another 84 ninjas were seriously injured, but their lives aren't in danger anymore. They should make a full recovery soon. We sent them to Konoha on our way. Nearly 700 other ninjas took some injuries due to their suicidal assault, but most have been healed so far. The rest should be healed in a few days."
Illumi added, "Since Hoka's division was attacked first, we didn't completely fall into their trap. So, our losses were lower. Still, we lost 11 ninjas and another 46 were seriously injured. Luckily, they'll make a full recovery too."
Fujin replied, "Kagero was a very experienced and shrewd commander. So, this isn't surprising. Had his forces been stronger, I would have been forced to shelve my plans for Otogakure. Regardless, I hope the two of you gained valuable experience."
Hoka and Illumi nodded. Fujin sighed and muttered, "That's good. Life must go on, but it's a shame that 40 of our ninjas died."
The tent stayed silent for a few moments. Hoka, Renjiro and Illumi realized, 'So, he only lost 3 ninjas in the campaign against Otogakure?'
Fujin continued, "Anyway, considering the dead and the wounded, our army has lost 170 ninjas. We still have nearly 2900 ninjas and can act if need be."
Hoka asked, "Who will we make a move against next?"
Fujin answered, "The negotiation team will soon begin talks with Sunagakure in the Fire Capital. I'll be joining them too. What we do next will depend on how the talks go. If they go well, the army will likely be recalled or transformed into patrol units to maintain order in the Land of Fire. If they don't…"
Everyone became serious as Fujin paused. He looked at everyone and continued authoritatively, "If they don't, we'll act as the Vanguard and begin our assault on the Land of Wind."
Fujin's statement was like a bomb dropped in the main tent. Even Renjiro didn't expect that Konoha would actually attack Sunagakure. He thought, 'Is the council serious about attacking? What changed? From the talks I had with the clan leader, it felt like the council had no interest in continuing the war.'
Renjiro's thoughts were accurate. Fujin didn't have any official orders to attack Sunagakure. In fact, he wasn't even asked to prepare for an invasion. It was just Fujin taking the initiative to prepare. And, it had something to do with the role he was supposed to play in the negotiations.
Konomi asked gravely, "Would we really invade one of the Great Villages?"
Fujin answered, "It is unlikely. The council is opposed to war, especially considering that the Fifth Hokage has yet to take power officially. Whether it is Lord Jiraiya or Lady Tsunade who takes charge, neither supports unnecessary wars. In addition, I doubt Sunagakure wants a war right now. However, there is no reason for us to not prepare for the worst-case scenario.
So, prepare the army assuming you'll receive orders to march out at any moment. No need to train right now, just let them get sufficient rest and ensure that even the minor injuries are healed."
The three generals nodded. Renjiro asked, "Will you leave for the Fire Capital right away?"
Fujin shook his head and answered, "No, our team will arrive tomorrow morning. I'll rest with the army and join them tomorrow."
Renjiro smiled and thought, 'Not bad. Being with the army for as long as he can is a good way for any commander to increase their morale.'
The group discussed some more important topics before being dismissed. Fujin spent the remaining day catching up with Hoka and Renjiro while interacting with the army following Renjiro's suggestions.
In the night, Fujin stayed up in his tent while writing a report on a scroll. The report looked strange and unreadable because it was encoded in a cipher. Very few ninjas knew how to decode this cipher, as its secrets were taught only to a handful of elites in Konoha.
Fujin went through his reports once while thinking, 'Shikaku won't come to the negotiations. A bummer, it could have been fun to negotiate alongside him. Oh well, since he's being lazy again, I need to be a responsible Konoha ninja and give him a few sleepless nights. After all, our Jounin Commander and best strategist has to be in top shape all the time!'
Without wasting any time, Fujin dispatched a messenger bird to Konoha before sleeping soundly.
[A/N: Please vote in the poll. I'll follow that format from here onwards.]