Chapter 116 – The Three Legendary Summoners
But Hiruzen Sarutobi had forgotten—this wasn't a room filled only with old schemers like them. There was still one hot-blooded idiot present.
BANG!
"You're dreaming, Sarutobi! If it's a fight you want, then we'll give you one!"
A thunderous slap of the table echoed through the chamber.
On the opposite side of the table, the Fourth Raikage had already stood up, unable to contain his seething rage any longer.
Unlike Ōnoki and the others who weighed the pros and cons of battle, Ay had only one goal in mind: avenge his father.
And in his muscle-bound brain, he truly believed his entire village was united in this mission of revenge. If Konoha refused to surrender Kazane, then the whole village would throw everything they had at Konoha to kill him.
But emotions make it hard to see clearly. And while Ay had lost all reason, the man standing behind him—Killer B—had clearly been startled by his outburst.
Ay might throw caution to the wind, but that didn't mean B could do the same.
After all, it had been Ay's father, the Third Raikage, who'd started the war, launching a three-front offensive that had already drained their forces. His death at the hands of Hatake Kazane had shattered morale.
Many of the once-fearless Cloud shinobi now trembled at the mere mention of Kazane's name, believing him to be truly unbeatable.
If war broke out again, with Konoha at full strength, it would be a guaranteed loss.
Still, B wasn't the Raikage. All he could do now was stare at Ay's back, helpless and anxious, unable to intervene.
Meanwhile, both Ōnoki and Yagura glanced at Ay, unable to hide their disapproval. Their expressions said it all: Is this guy serious?
At that moment, Ōnoki couldn't help but recall how, early in the war, he had sent a diplomat to the Cloud to propose peace—and the utter disaster that followed.
"Right," he thought, "after what they did back then, I should never have expected them to act rationally."
Back then, the messenger had been imprisoned in the Cloud for two months. The poor man came back starved skin-and-bones, and missed the entire war.
And yet, he'd still given them the benefit of the doubt.
Foolish.
Wanting to fight was one thing—but thinking about how to fight was another.
Right now, Konoha didn't just have Hatake Kazane, the strongest shinobi in the world. They also had the Legendary Sannin, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo, the rising star Namikaze Minato.
Let's not forget Might Duy, the "human beast" who had defeated Han in full Tailed Beast Mode multiple times on the battlefield.
Konoha was teeming with elite Jōnin, bloodline clans, and secret technique families.
Forget three villages—even four united wouldn't guarantee victory over today's Konoha.
And yet, despite receiving reports from spies within Konoha saying that Hiruzen and Orochimaru had fallen out, why was Hiruzen acting like this?
Were the spies lying?
Though his mind raced with speculation, Ōnoki knew one thing for sure: he couldn't let this meathead of a Raikage start another Great Ninja War.
"Lord Raikage, let's wait a moment. I believe the Third Hokage will give us a reasonable explanation," Ōnoki quickly interjected, shifting the conversation away from conflict.
But Hiruzen Sarutobi still had plenty of confidence left. Even with his fallout with Orochimaru, he was certain that, once he returned to the village and followed through with his next steps, Orochimaru would choose reconciliation.
And if that happened, Konoha would remain under his control, and the rest of the village would unite under his leadership once again.
"What explanation? This is Konoha's answer. Either prepare for war, or hand over the reparations."
Hiruzen showed no intention of backing down.
Now that he was certain the village would still be his to command, there was no way he would let go of the war reparations. After all, once the money arrived, it would be under his control.
The other three leaders couldn't help but scowl at his unwavering attitude.
The Fourth Raikage, already boiling with rage, couldn't hold back any longer.
BANG!
With a roar, he smashed the table in front of him into splinters—but just as he was about to speak again, a deafening noise cut him off.
From outside came a loud rumble, accompanied by violent tremors shaking the entire building.
An earthquake?
Everyone rushed outside—only to freeze in place, stunned by what they saw. Slowly, they all turned toward Hiruzen Sarutobi, eyes filled with disbelief.
—
Ten Minutes Earlier
"Orochimaru, that's the capital of the Land of Iron up ahead. The Five Kage Summit is being held in the tallest building," Jiraiya said, pointing to the imposing structure in the distance.
"Then let's give them a little surprise," Orochimaru replied, his golden eyes gleaming.
He licked his lips with a flick of his long tongue, a gleam of dominance flashing in his gaze.
"Let them know—we're here."
He then shared his plan with the other two.
Jiraiya and Tsunade exchanged glances, mildly taken aback. As expected, Orochimaru really was the most qualified among them to become Hokage.
Moments later—
From three different directions around the summit building, three voices rang out in unison:
"Summoning Jutsu!" ×3
Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade formed the seals together.
BOOM! ×3
Three massive clouds of smoke burst forth—revealing three colossal beasts that loomed over the Land of Iron's capital.
The three greatest summoning creatures of the ninja world—Manda, Gamabunta, and Katsuyu—had arrived, and their appearance sent the entire Land of Iron into chaos.
The samurai warriors quickly mobilized, surrounding the area with weapons drawn, but their faces revealed visible panic.
"How the hell am I supposed to cut down a monster like that with just a sword?" one terrified samurai thought.
Another, more hot-blooded, felt a surge of excitement:
"Looks like it's finally time to use my long-lost greatsword!"
"It's the Legendary Three Summoners!" came the awestruck cry from seasoned warriors and accompanying ninja alike.
Everyone across the shinobi world knew of them—the snake, the toad, and the slug—the signature summons of Konoha's Legendary Sannin.
And if those beasts were here, then it meant the Sannin themselves had arrived.
"It's the Sannin of Konoha!"
Sure enough, atop each colossal summoning beast stood Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade.
Though many had anticipated their arrival, seeing them in person still struck a deep sense of awe—and a twinge of fear.
Was Konoha here to invade the Land of Iron?
The Land of Iron had enjoyed peace for years.
The country was small, but its warriors were highly trained. Some elite samurai could even rival the Jōnin of the five great villages.
Their leaders, the successive generals of the Land of Iron, had always been on par with top-tier shinobi.
As such, no major village had ever seen the benefit in wasting resources to attack such a "low-reward, high risk" territory.
Because of that, the Land of Iron had avoided the First, Second, and Third Great Ninja Wars, enjoying decades of uninterrupted peace.
Though the samurai often prided themselves on their martial prowess, when faced with the real presence of the Legendary Sannin—they couldn't help but feel a sliver of fear.
Years of peace had dulled their willingness to die in battle.
And now, the chaos outside and the violent tremors caused by the movement of the three gigantic beasts had finally reached the ears of Hiruzen and the other Kage—cutting their argument short.
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