The next day arrived.
The representatives from Kumogakure finally arrived at the Hidden Grass Village and immediately held private talks with the village's leader.
The Grass Village had dared to attack Konoha in the first place only because they had the backing of the Hidden Cloud.
Now that Konoha had clearly come to demand accountability, the Grass leader desperately sought the protection of Kumogakure.
But the result was deeply disappointing. The Cloud representatives bluntly stated that they would not interfere—the Grass Village would have to bear full responsibility on its own.
The Grass leader was enraged.
It had clearly been the Cloud's encouragement that had emboldened him, and now they were completely disavowing any involvement.
But as a mere leader of a minor village, his anger changed nothing. He had no choice but to accept this harsh reality.
After more than a week of intense negotiations, a result was finally reached: Kumogakure would sign a peace treaty with Konoha and Sunagakure.
In turn, Konoha would no longer pursue the matter of Kushina's kidnapping, and the Cloud would let go of the fact that Aoshi had killed Toroi.
As for the Grass Village—the direct culprit that had inflicted major losses on Konoha—they would have to pay heavy reparations, and even the Box of Ultimate Bliss would be handed over to Konoha for safekeeping.
This was to prevent any similar incidents in the future.
The Box of Ultimate Bliss had belonged to the Grass Village for generations. Now they were being forced to relinquish it.
The Grass leader was outraged and wanted to protest. But he couldn't.
With all three major villages in agreement, a minor leader like him could only swallow his indignation and accept the terms in humiliation.
Soon after the peace treaty was signed, the Cloud representatives departed under the cover of night.
Pakura also said her farewells to Aoshi and Tsunade. With her mission complete, it was time for her to return to the Hidden Sand.
Before leaving, she instinctively cast one last glance at Aoshi. She might respect his strength, but that didn't mean she would so easily concede defeat.
As for Aoshi and Tsunade, they needed to remain in the Grass Village for one more day. The Box of Ultimate Bliss had been stored at Hozuki Castle and still needed to be transported back.
Also, the reparations the Grass Village owed Konoha were far too large to pay all at once. If they attempted to do so, the village's economy would collapse.
So they would gather a portion immediately, with the remainder to be paid off gradually over the next year.
Incidentally, the Peace-loving faction elders took the initiative to reach out to Aoshi and Tsunade. Their goal was to show goodwill toward Konoha.
Due to the incident, the previously dominant hardline stance had lost significant standing within the village.
This allowed the peace-loving faction to rise in influence.
Aoshi and Tsunade did not reject their overtures. Konoha still needed to maintain a decent relationship with the Grass Village.
Otherwise, the village could easily turn to Iwagakure. And if that happened, it would spell bad news for Konoha.
---
At the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Grass.
Just after leaving the Grass Village, Aoshi and Tsunade found themselves surrounded by a large group of bounty hunters.
They were all after Aoshi's head. After all, he was worth ten million ryo!
Tsunade, too, had a sky-high bounty in the black market—several times higher than Aoshi's.
There had once been foolish bounty hunters who dared to target her. After enough of them were killed, however, very few dared to try again.
Money was important—but so was staying alive.
"Hey—isn't that... Tsunade?!" One bounty hunter recognized her and cried out in horror.
Some even immediately began to back off.
"What's going on?! Our intel never mentioned that Tsunade was with him!"
These bounty hunters had gathered here based on leaked information about Aoshi's whereabouts.
Unlike Tsunade, a legendary kunoichi, Aoshi was still seen by many as just a somewhat famous upstart.
Sure, he had some skill—but how strong could he really be? So when they received the intel, they hadn't hesitated to come after him.
"Bounty hunters... what a troublesome bunch," Tsunade muttered, recognizing their identities at a glance.
Most bounty hunters were wandering rogue ninja. They weren't particularly powerful—but they were extremely annoying.
"Aoshi, be careful. These people won't give up so easily," she warned.
"I know," Aoshi replied calmly. He showed no signs of panic, despite being heavily outnumbered.
As if to prove Tsunade right, one hunter suddenly stepped forward and shouted: "What are you all afraid of? There are so many of us—don't tell me we can't take down one Tsunade?"
"Exactly! There are only two of them—we have the numbers!"
His words quickly sparked a wave of agreement from the others.
Where one goes, others follow. Hunters who had been considering retreat now gritted their teeth and joined the assault.
In the shadows, a figure watched it all unfold. It was Kakuzu.
After receiving the bounty notice for Aoshi, he had locked him in as a target. And upon learning Tsunade was with him, Kakuzu decided to kill both in one strike.
Though supremely confident in his abilities, Kakuzu was not arrogant enough to let his guard down.
Tsunade was a known powerhouse.
Even Aoshi had made a name for himself in the ninja world. Anyone who could earn such renown clearly wasn't to be taken lightly.
Fighting both alone would be risky—even for him.
So to ensure success, Kakuzu had deliberately concealed the intel about Tsunade's presence and leaked Aoshi's location to lure in the bounty hunters.
Yes—this entire situation was orchestrated by Kakuzu from the shadows.
His plan was simple: let the hunters distract Tsunade, then launch a sneak attack. If he could take her out first, Aoshi wouldn't be a problem.
As for the possibility of someone else stealing the kill? Kakuzu didn't even consider these hunters a threat.
With the patience of a serpent poised to strike, he quietly waited for his moment to deliver a fatal blow.
Boom!
Facing the relentless bounty hunters, Tsunade didn't bother holding back.
With each punch, she sent enemies flying dozens of meters. Her monstrous strength instantly killed whoever got hit.
"Don't get close to her! Use ninjutsu from a distance!"
Suddenly, a storm of flames, water, lightning, wind, and flying rocks filled the air. The scene looked intense—but the attacks themselves were weak.
Most were just D- or C-rank jutsu. Not a single B-rank among them.
And these bounty hunters were all used to fighting solo, with no coordination whatsoever.
Tsunade weaved through their attacks with ease.
"You think avoiding close combat means I can't hit you?" She sneered, chakra surging into her legs as she stomped the ground.
The earth shattered beneath her, breaking into jagged slabs.
She hurled the chunks with brute force, each one hitting like a thrown shuriken. Suddenly, a hand shot out from underground at lightning speed.
Before she could dodge, Tsunade was impaled through the body.