Land of Iron. Mifune's samurai stood guard outside the venue.
Inside the hall, a massive round conference table was already occupied by three factions.
From Kumogakure: the Fourth Raikage, A, with his guards Darui and C.
A folded his arms across his chest, eyes closed as if dozing, but the tension in his muscles betrayed what he was really feeling.
From Iwagakure: the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, floating in midair, with Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi standing behind him on his left and right.
From Kirigakure: the Fifth Mizukage, Mei, with her guards Ao and Chojuro.
Mei sat with elegant poise, a faint smile on her face—yet the smile never reached her eyes.
Three Kage—those who stood at the pinnacle of the shinobi world's power—were all silent at this moment.
One seat remained empty, reserved for the Kazekage of Sunagakure.
But everyone understood. Gaara's stance was no longer a secret.
The seat of honor at the head of the table was also empty.
It should have belonged to Mifune, the general of the neutral Land of Iron.
Yet now, that seat had naturally been left for that youth.
No one raised an objection.
Strength was the most fundamental rule in this world.
"Hmph. What an attitude," A finally couldn't hold back.
His temper had always been explosive. Being able to endure this long was already his limit.
Darui quietly said, "Raikage-sama, please calm down."
Onoki flicked his eyes toward the Raikage but said nothing.
He had more patience than A—and he understood the current situation far more clearly.
A young man couldn't hold his temper. An old man like him wouldn't make the same mistake.
Mei, meanwhile, casually brushed at her long hair and said to Ao, "Looks like today's meeting will be interesting. Maybe we'll even get to watch some entertainment."
Ao nodded. The Byakugan he had received through transplantation had been active ever since he entered, vigilantly observing the surroundings.
Just then, Shinju walked in.
He wore simple clothing, and there was no extra expression on his face.
A's gaze sharpened instantly.
Onoki's posture straightened slightly.
Even Mei's smile faded a little.
The first person behind Shinju had dazzling blond hair, a warm smile, and wore a Hokage cloak with the words "Yondaime Hokage" (Fourth Hokage) written on it.
Minato.
On A's neck, it was as if he could still feel the cold sensation of the kunai from back then.
"Minato… what a strange man," Darui murmured as he looked at the Fourth.
Behind Minato was a white-haired man with a cold, stern expression.
Tobirama.
"Second Hokage…" Onoki sucked in a sharp breath.
A legend who had founded Konoha alongside the First Hokage and helped pacify the chaotic era.
Next was a man with silver-white hair, a short blade on his back that radiated chilling cold.
Konoha's White Fang—Sakumo Hatake.
Onoki's back seemed to bend a little more at the sound of that name.
He remembered those years when Iwagakure's shinobi stationed along the border would go pale at the mere mention of "Konoha's White Fang."
This man's blade had severed countless Iwa defenses—and their pride.
Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi, father and daughter, looked at the "demon god" their elders spoke of, and their limbs turned ice-cold.
Then came Uchiha Shisui, close behind.
"Shisui of the Body Flicker…" Ao's forehead beaded with cold sweat.
As a shinobi of Kirigakure, he knew all too well what that name meant.
Back then, how many of Kiri's ANBU never even saw Shisui's shadow before they died to genjutsu?
This man had once been Kirigakure's nightmare.
Chojuro tightened his grip on the handles of the twin blades Hiramekarei, his heart pounding wildly.
Finally, an orange-haired young man walked in, wearing a forehead protector from Amegakure.
The first leader of Akatsuki—Yahiko.
The appearance of this person filled everyone with confusion and absurdity.
Akatsuki was clearly the shinobi world's public enemy—so why was its leader standing here?
Minato, Tobirama, Sakumo, Shisui, Yahiko…
This could only mean one thing:
Shinju possessed some kind of power that could perfectly resurrect the dead.
A privilege only a god should possess.
The Kazekage, Gaara—who had been silent until now—stood up from his seat.
Under the shocked gazes of everyone present, Gaara walked to Shinju's side, taking his place behind him shoulder to shoulder with Minato, Tobirama, and the others.
With the most direct action possible, he declared his choice and his stance.
Sunagakure had completely submitted to Shinju.
Shinju ignored everyone's shock and calmly walked to the main seat and sat down.
"Everyone, welcome to the new era."
"There's no need to be nervous. Today we won't discuss war—we'll only discuss the future."
"Before we begin, allow me to introduce my advisory council."
Minato, Tobirama, Sakumo, Shisui, Yahiko—and even Gaara who had just stepped over—
Chakra erupted from all of them at the same time.
There was no earthshaking spectacle, no world-ending devastation.
It was only pure chakra release.
Yet the moment A's lightning chakra sparked at the surface of his body, it was crushed back into him by the sheer oppressive force.
It felt as if several mountains were pressing in on him from all sides.
His proud physical power seemed laughably small.
Darui and C were even worse off—both dropped to one knee, sweat instantly soaking their clothes.
Onoki's floating body was forced down into his seat.
He tried to gather chakra to use Dust Release, but the flow of energy inside his body became sluggish and unresponsive.
In all his life, after countless storms and crises, he had never once felt such suffocating helplessness.
Akatsuchi and Kurotsuchi were already pressed flat to the ground, using everything they had just to keep from collapsing completely.
Mei was doing slightly better, but her face still turned pale.
The Boil Release and Lava Release chakra inside her was suppressed so hard she couldn't mobilize even a trace.
Ao's Byakugan, pushed too far, began to stream bloody tears—yet what he saw was even more terrifying.
All of that power…
Was being held in the hands of a single person.
The three Kage—and their most elite guards—weren't even ants in the face of such power.
The pressure came fast, and it left just as fast.
When Shinju lifted a hand, the terrifying force that could crush everything vanished like smoke.
Inside the hall, only heavy breathing remained.
A, Onoki, and Mei gulped fresh air like drowning people dragged onto shore.
Their faces were filled with the shock of surviving a catastrophe—and a horror they couldn't hide.
Their guards were sprawled and staggering, utterly miserable.
Shinju watched their reactions, still calm.
He took out a scroll from his robe, gently placed it on the table, and slid it toward the center.
"Now… we can begin talking."
"About the future of the shinobi world."
(End of Chapter)
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