"You're seen by everyone as the 'Nine-Tails Jinchūriki'... then what does that make me in this village...?"
After a long pause, Sasuke lifted his gaze, watching Naruto's silhouette disappear into the distance. He muttered to himself, then silently turned and walked home.
At the Hokage Tower, the Konoha leadership gathered around a massive round table.
A detailed military deployment map was spread out across its surface.
The Third Hokage stared grimly at the map and spoke in a serious tone:
"Advisor Danzo, are you certain Ōnoki plans to split his forces in two and launch a pincer attack through neighboring countries?"
Danzo stood up, casually grabbed a pointer stick from the table, and tapped a red-marked point on the map.
"My subordinates brought back intelligence pointing to that, but we can't rule out the possibility that Ōnoki deliberately leaked it—his goal might be to force Konoha to spread its forces thin."
"Back during the Third Great Ninja War, he pulled a similar trick—bypassed borders through the Land of Grass to launch a surprise assault on Konoha. We were completely unprepared and suffered heavy losses."
"And the same tactic could easily work again."
"Since it's not Konoha initiating this war, the initiative lies with Iwagakure. If we don't divide our forces, he could attack via the Land of Waterfalls, just like he did with Grass before. But if we do split up, he can concentrate his forces and hit whichever front he chooses."
Danzo sat back down.
The Third Hokage's expression only darkened further. After a moment, he turned to the other side of the table.
"Shikaku, what's your analysis?"
Nara Shikaku, standing nearby, shook his head lightly. "Danzo-sama's analysis is accurate. And if Iwagakure sparks a war, Konoha may be forced to fight on multiple fronts."
He gestured toward the map.
"First, Kumogakure might seize the opportunity to besiege us again—just like last time."
"Second, the Land of Wind might decide to join the conflict too. After all, Sunagakure has betrayed Konoha before."
"Lastly, there's Kirigakure in the Land of Water… Though they've been in isolation for years, we still can't ignore the possibility of their involvement."
"This time, the situation may be worse than the Third Great Ninja War. Kumogakure likely won't divert forces to fight Iwagakure like before. If war breaks out, we must prepare for a scenario where three of the Five Great Villages attack Konoha simultaneously."
The Third Hokage's face turned thunderously grim.
Konoha may have emerged victorious in the previous war, but its resources were already stretched thin.
The village was still reeling from the Uchiha Massacre and the massive explosion incident.
Back in the days right after the Third War, at least Konoha still had alliance ties with the Land of Wind and Land of Water.
But after the Nine-Tails Incident, everything changed.
Minato was gone. And now the once-powerful Uchiha Clan had become history.
Even setting Iwagakure aside, Kumogakure had grown dramatically after mastering control of their Jinchūriki—arguably now surpassing Konoha in military strength.
Kirigakure had severed contact with the outside world under its new Mizukage. And the Land of Wind, under the Fourth Kazekage, had gradually drifted away from Konoha.
Konoha's younger generation was still in training. According to Shikaku's earlier analysis, if war breaks out, aside from the older generation and a few mid-tier veterans, the village has no one truly capable of standing alone.
Konoha had become a target from all sides.
The Third Hokage could already see it clearly—if this escalated into a full war, and things went as badly as Shikaku predicted, Konoha's power would plummet.
And he himself… would be remembered as the Hokage who let Konoha fall.
"If only my three students were still here…"
The thought crossed his mind, and Hiruzen shook his head. The past couldn't be undone. If the situation worsened, he would have to resort to unconventional methods.
Just then, a voice came from outside the council chamber:
"Hokage-sama! Jiraiya-sama has sent urgent intel via his Ninja Crow!"
Everyone's faces turned even more serious.
Another urgent message?
Could things actually get worse than this?
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. "Bring it in."
An ANBU entered and handed over a scroll the size of a thumb before quietly leaving.
The Third Hokage opened it—his expression immediately shifted. Before anyone could react, he… smiled.
What?
A smile? Now, of all times?
Danzo and Shikaku both noticed this and exchanged glances. Danzo was about to speak when Koharu Utatane beat him to it:
"Hiruzen, what did Jiraiya's report say? Is it good news?"
The Third Hokage nodded solemnly, then handed the scroll to Danzo, whose expression had been gloomy since the meeting began.
Danzo scanned the scroll—his brows furrowed first, but then a thoughtful look crept across his face.
"…You should all take a look."
He passed it to Koharu, then to Homura Mitokado, and finally it reached Shikaku.
After reading, Shikaku handed the scroll back to the Third Hokage and said, "Hokage-sama, if this intel is used correctly, Konoha might not just survive… we might be able to prevent the war from breaking out at all."
Hiruzen's gaze was steady. "Let's discuss how best to use this intel."
Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"Hiruzen, are you planning to share this intel with the other villages?"
The Third Hokage nodded with a solemn expression. "If they all know, we may be able to preserve the current balance between the Five Great Nations. That would buy Konoha valuable time."
Both Koharu and Homura nodded in agreement.
But Shikaku's face showed a flicker of something else—uncertainty, perhaps, or doubt.
Danzo stared at the map coldly and said, "Hiruzen… there may be another way."
"For instance, we could leak a version of this intel to the other villages—say that Iwagakure has already allied with Akatsuki, and that they plan to hunt all the Tailed Beasts to create a 'final weapon' capable of conquering the entire shinobi world."
"That would spook the others into turning on Iwagakure before they turn on us."
Koharu and Homura looked intrigued by the idea.
Shikaku, however, merely observed the Third Hokage in silence.
Hiruzen didn't flinch. He shook his head.
"For the sake of Konoha's future, we'll do it my way. But given the current situation, all intel related to Akatsuki and its sources… will be handled by Advisor Danzo and Root."
Danzo's expression turned sharp.
He understood the implication.
Light and shadow must coexist.
Hiruzen would do what he wanted to do… and Danzo would do what he needed to do.
Later that night, Naruto entered the Mirror World, accompanied by Kurama and Muō.
"How is Jiraiya so sure that Akatsuki is targeting all the Tailed Beasts?" Naruto frowned as he reviewed the Third Hokage's meeting.
"…Did that old toad from Mount Myōboku intervene?"
He turned toward Muō and asked, "Did Four-Tails tell Roshi about the Ten-Tails and Akatsuki?"
Muō gently shook his head.
"Rōshi and Son Gokū aren't truly in sync. Son only warned him because I brought up the Ten-Tails. But he would never share such information with a human who doesn't understand him."
"This is a matter of Tailed Beast dignity."
Naruto nodded calmly, though he still didn't really understand what that so-called "dignity" entailed.
In the original timeline, all it took was a Jinchūriki genuinely recognizing their Tailed Beast's worth to form a true bond.
Still, things were changing, and nothing was certain anymore.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, he noticed Kurama had already pulled up the challenge window—and was about to tap on Uchiha Shisui's portrait.
"…Kurama, why are you always challenging him?"
Kurama sat upright, tails swaying. "I wanted to challenge your father, Minato Namikaze—but I can't access his side!"
"But since you're making a fuss, fine, I'll change it up. Hmm… let's go with the Third Hokage. That old man whacked me a few times back in the day!"
Naruto twitched.
He turned to Muō. "What about you? Who are you challenging tonight?"
Muō raised his head proudly, summoned his interface, and selected Kakashi Hatake.
"I'll try him. He was quite famous in Iwagakure."
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