The Third Great Ninja War has been ongoing for a long time, and at this moment, the relationship between Konoha and Iwagakure is in a particularly delicate phase.
On the battlefield in the Land of Grass, while there are still occasional small skirmishes, large-scale combat has not occurred for nearly a month.
Yahiko and Konan, along with Kyusuke and Asahi, had their first official meeting with the high-ranking ninjas from Konoha.
Asahi quickly surveyed the group and identified their identities:
Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, Nara Shikaku, and Namikaze Minato.
However, Jiraiya, the leader of the camp, was not present. It's likely that Konoha had requested him to stay away because of his relationship with Yahiko and Konan, or perhaps Jiraiya simply chose not to attend.
Before arriving, Genma had made it clear to Yahiko what the minimum conditions for an alliance were: Amegakure must benefit in some way.
Additionally, Amegakure would not be directly involved in the war but could only agree to station troops on the border to threaten the Land of Earth at an opportune moment.
This was one point that Yahiko agreed with; he didn't want the Hidden Rain Village to become involved in the war again.
However, during the discussions, Konoha's sincerity was so lacking that it was impossible to see any genuine intent for an alliance. As someone entrusted with tasks by Hanzo, Yahiko naturally couldn't agree to such terms.
In the end, after the first round of talks ended in failure, both sides decided to rest for now and reconvene at a later date.
As they left, Namikaze Minato gave them a gentle smile, but throughout the negotiation, he had remained silent and did not voice any opinions.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu wore indifferent expressions.
On the way back to the camp, Kyusuke mumbled, "Konoha is so petty. They were the ones who sent us the letter wanting to form an alliance."
"Maybe they just don't care about us," Asahi casually replied.
"If they don't care about us, then why send us the alliance letter?" Kyusuke asked.
Seeing the others look at him, Asahi paused and said, "We set conditions that we won't directly participate in any future wars, so our help to Konoha will be quite limited. To Konoha, the biggest benefit is our mere presence, and that is enough to show our value."
"What does that mean?" Kyusuke asked, confused.
Asahi replied, "Konoha doesn't need us as allies; they only care that we don't side with Iwagakure."
Yahiko lightly furrowed his brow. Even so, he felt that Konoha's attitude was a bit too dismissive.
At this moment, he also understood why Jiraiya-sensei hadn't shown up. Everyone was only looking out for their own best interests, and personal matters were best avoided during such negotiations.
Kyusuke asked again, "But if they treat us like this, how can they be sure we won't side with Iwagakure?"
Asahi helplessly explained, "We've already come to Konoha. As long as they casually announce that we're willing to form an alliance with them, to Iwagakure, it will already seem like we're on Konoha's side."
Kyusuke understood the reasoning and couldn't help but say, "These guys from the Five Great Countries are really devious. Didn't Lord Hanzo realize this?"
Asahi couldn't say for sure what Hanzo was thinking.
Back in the camp, the others gathered to ask how things had gone. Yahiko simply stated that no agreement had been reached and they would continue discussions the next day.
Yahiko then began to record the details of the day's talks on paper.
Kyusuke started to vent to his companions about how difficult Konoha's ninjas were.
Later that night, Asahi and the others were awakened by a loud noise. Stepping out of the tent, they found that Konoha's camp was in chaos, with shouts and commotion all around.
At that moment, a Konoha ninja appeared in front of them and informed Asahi and the others that Iwagakure had launched a large-scale operation under the cover of night, sending over a thousand ninjas toward Konoha's camp. Konoha would have to respond quickly.
Before long, Yahiko and Konan were called over by Jiraiya.
"Didn't we just hear that Konoha and Iwagakure weren't fighting anymore?" Kyusuke couldn't help but comment.
"The situation on the battlefield changes in an instant. There's no such thing as certainty. It's because of all the unpredictable events that war is so brutal," Asahi said.
After some time, Yahiko and Konan returned, looking serious. They told everyone, "The people from Konoha say that a large-scale war with Iwagakure could break out at any moment, and they want us to quickly evacuate to another camp."
"Everyone, pack up quickly and prepare to move," Yahiko ordered.
Hearing this, everyone rushed back to their tents to pack their things, and within a minute or two, they were ready to leave.
Yahiko led the group to another exit of the camp, where people were already waiting for them.
Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and four Konoha ninjas dressed in Anbu attire, likely their guards, were present. Their status in Konoha was that of Hokage advisors, holding high positions and with the authority to command the Anbu.
"Lord Homura, Lord Kōharu, sorry to have kept you waiting," Yahiko said.
Mitokado Homura nodded slightly. "It's no trouble. We're heading to the southwest camp this time. There, we can continue the talks about the alliance."
Yahiko thought for a moment. "Why did Iwagakure suddenly take action? Don't they want a ceasefire?"
Mitokado Homura replied calmly, "We're not sure what Ōnoki is thinking, but if they want to keep fighting, we in Konoha are more than willing to continue."
The group immediately set off.
With Konoha ninjas leading the way, the Akatsuki members followed behind. It was deep in the night, and they were moving through dense forest, so their pace was slow.
The crescent moon hung high in the sky, casting faint shadows through the trees. Occasionally, the sounds of insects and birds filled the air. The group continued on in silence, feeling an eerie stillness around them.
After about half an hour, the Konoha ninjas ahead suddenly stopped.
Seeing this, Yahiko quickly signaled for the group to halt and moved forward to inquire, "What's going on?"
"There's someone ahead!" one of the Konoha ninjas replied.
Yahiko's heart skipped a beat. "Is it Iwagakure?"
An Anbu ninja quietly moved forward, and Yahiko scanned the dense forest ahead. He then heard a few muffled grunts, followed by two more Anbu ninjas quickly leaping forward.
Before long, the three Anbu ninjas returned, each bringing one person with them.
Yahiko carefully observed the attire of the captured individuals and breathed a sigh of relief.
They weren't Iwagakure ninjas, but Kusagakure ninjas.
Mitokado Homura looked at them coldly and questioned one of the Kusagakure ninjas, "What are you doing here?"
The Kusagakure ninja swallowed nervously and quickly responded, "Just routine patrol, nothing more."
This was the Land of Grass, where the Kusagakure ninjas were a relatively large but still much smaller organization compared to Konoha. There was a world of difference between them.
"Did you see any signs of Iwagakure ninjas?" Mitokado Homura asked.
The Kusagakure ninja shook his head repeatedly. "You're the first ninjas we've encountered."
Mitokado Homura questioned again, "Do you know where Iwagakure's camp is?"
The Kusagakure ninja replied, "We've never gotten close to your battlefields."
Mitokado Homura stared at him for a moment, seemingly realizing he wouldn't get any useful information from the Kusagakure ninja. He turned to Yahiko. "Let's keep moving."
As Yahiko was about to signal for the Akatsuki members to follow, his peripheral vision caught sight of the Anbu guards suddenly drawing kunai to three Kusagakure ninjas'.
"Lord Homura!" Yahiko began to call out, but it was too late. The sharp kunai slashed across the three Kusagakure ninjas' necks, and blood splattered into the air.
Yahiko froze in shock, unable to look away from the scene. He couldn't help but say, "They're just Kusagakure ninjas, they're not your enemies!"
Mitokado Homura seemed somewhat surprised that Yahiko would speak out, but he still explained, "We don't have detailed information about Iwagakure's movements right now. If we let them go and they get caught by Iwagakure, our position could be exposed."
Yahiko felt a chill run through him. "But... they're innocent."
Innocent?
Mitokado Homura frowned slightly, but didn't bother explaining further.
"Yahiko, let's leave quickly. We'll take care of the bodies. No one will find the corpses," he said indifferently.
The Anbu had already swiftly begun to handle the bodies, clearly accustomed to such tasks.
Yahiko watched the cold, indifferent expressions of Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, and a wave of confusion washed over him.
Alliance...