The Avengers of the Uzumaki Family

Iwazawa didn't care about Tsunade's suspicious attitude at all, and still looked at Tsunade calmly and said.

(End of this chapter)

Please take one day off.

I went out to buy bathroom fixtures, toilets, and custom washbasins for the house today. I'm so tired that I can't type anymore tonight. Please allow me to take a day off. Sorry.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 358 A 'Reasonable' Choice

P.S.: Another busy day with renovations. I only wrote this much so far. I'll upload it now and see if I can write a little more later.

Make the first move!?

Upon hearing these words from Shangshui Liuyan Jue.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes slightly, and Jiraiya and Shikaku on either side of her also revealed a different kind of color in their pupils.

This is an absolute show of sincerity.

You need to know about the encirclement that happened before.

Konoha Village was the first initiator and the first attacker.

The fact that Chun Chun was from Kumogakure was an unexpected factor.

The Fourth Raikage wanted to gain more advantages, and most importantly, his confidence was off the charts, so it didn't count. But now it's different. In the two or three consecutive battles, Menma has proven everything with his performance.

If the Takigakure-Kagami alliance, led by Asahi, were to make a move, the first to strike would inevitably face the fiercest counterattack. The fact that the Third Tsuchikage dared to make such a promise truly demonstrates his sincerity.

"Is this truly what Your Excellency Tsuchikage spoke of?"

Tsunade leaned forward instinctively, looking at Iwazawa with a hint of suspicion. Although she hadn't met that old guy from Iwagakure many times, she was quite familiar with this Tsuchikage.

That's a real old fox.

He was an even more difficult person to deal with than his own old man.

Under normal circumstances, it's always Iwagakure who benefits, and it's almost impossible for them to suffer losses. Judging from the current situation in the ninja world, Tsunade doesn't think that the Third Tsuchikage would necessarily make such a bold decision.

"Hehe, Lord Hokage, you jest. How could I dare to relay the orders of our Tsuchikage? Please rest assured, everything I have said is on the orders of our Tsuchikage."

Yan Jue chuckled softly, then replied in a deep voice.

This is another tone of strong affirmation.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly at that moment.

She genuinely didn't want to believe that the Third Tsuchikage would make such a decision. What was her reason?

Is it really just because they are wary of the strength of Menma's side? Or are they simply envious of those tailed beasts?

To the average person, this would certainly be a very good reason, but to Tsunade, the Third Tsuchikage didn't seem to be that type of person.

That subconscious glance at Jiraiya beside him.

Jiraiya appeared outwardly calm, but a strange light flickered in his pupils. Tsunade, his close friend of many years, was startled when she saw it.

next second.

After taking a deep breath, Tsunade placed her hands on the table with a calm expression and said, "I understand what your village means. This is a serious matter, and I need to consider it for a day or two. If Iwazawa-san doesn't mind, please stay in our Konoha Village for two or three days. What do you say?"

"That is only natural. So, I will excuse myself from my rudeness today, Lord Hokage."

Yan Jue still had a smiling expression on his face. After bowing slightly, he turned around and strode away.

After Yu Yanjue's figure completely disappeared.

"Jiraiya, Shikaku, what do you guys think? Is that old guy really going to make a move against Uzumaki Menma, or is he just deceiving us?"

Tsunade's expression also darkened, and she asked in a solemn voice.

"It's hard to say. Judging from the Tsuchikage's past behavior, both possibilities exist. Even if he seems very sincere now, it's hard to say what will happen later."

After frowning and thinking for a while, Jiraiya finally shook his head slowly and said...

Onoki, known as the "Two-Tsubo," is considered a "legendary figure" in the ninja world. Not to mention his mastery of Dust Release, his methods are truly terrifying. In terms of leadership, Onoki was the most outstanding among the Third Kage. Hiruzen Sarutobi was indeed ahead in the first half of his life, but he "willingly degenerated" in the later stages.

As for the Third Generation Rai, he wasn't particularly good at this kind of thing to begin with.

Not to mention the remaining three generations of wind and three generations of water.

Only Onoki, purely from the perspective of Iwagakure, was truly wise his entire life. Moreover, this old guy was the kind who became more and more cunning as he got older, and he could always look at any problem with the most rational perspective.

This is the biggest reason why Iwagakure has been able to maintain its relative strength.

Jiraiya and Tsunade were both very familiar with this Third Tsuchikage, so naturally they would make their own judgments.

"My opinion differs from that of Lord Jiraiya. Fifth Hokage, I think that Iwagakure is indeed going to take action against Uzumaki Menma this time, or to be more precise, against Takikusa Village. This is based on Iwagakure's fundamental strategic security assessment."

Shikaku, who was sitting on one side, shook his head slightly after Jiraiya finished speaking, and looked at Jiraiya and Tsunade with a very serious expression.

"Hmm? Why do you say that, Shikaku? What's your reasoning?"

Tsunade and Jiraiya were both taken aback, with the former staring intently at Shikaku and asking in a deep voice.

"Because the alliance between Takigakure and Kusagakure is too close to Iwagakure, and there is no dividing area between them, although our five great ninja villages have always been fighting each other in the past, thanks to some natural barriers and distance restrictions, the outbreak of war is not so easy. Most of the time, the countries will try their best to restrain themselves. But now, Fifth Hokage, Jiraiya, please look at the map. Takigakure and Kusagakure have essentially half-encircled Iwagakure. The Third Tsuchikage made this judgment precisely because he saw this threat."

Shikaku pulled out a huge map hanging on a whiteboard from one side and pointed to Takigakure and Kusagakure, which were clearly marked in red.

This can be clearly seen from this map.

The entire southeastern part of the Land of Earth is now caught in a pincer movement between the Land of Grass and the Land of Waterfall.

Most importantly, Iwagakure's location is already a bit further forward.

Without considering any other factors, purely from a threat perspective, Menma could indeed launch a fierce attack on Iwagakure in the shortest amount of time by mobilizing the military forces of two ninja villages if he wanted to.

Jiraiya and Tsunade, who hadn't thought of this before, immediately realized it when Shikaku pointed it out.

This is a strategic threat.

It's not a question of whether or not one can do it.

It's not a question of whether or not it's possible.

"Looking at it that way, it does make a lot of sense..."

Jiraiya looked thoughtful and muttered to himself.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 359 Deduction and Chance Encounter

When judging the definition of a threat, humans often consider various factors. The most direct factor is whether the other party has the ability to threaten them. Clearly, the current situation in the ninja world, as well as the ambiguous distance mentioned by Shikaku, is enough to prove that Iwagakure truly feels the threat from the 'Takikusa Ninja Village' alliance.

Regarding threats.

How to do?

There is only one answer: eliminate it as soon as possible, and do so within a range of acceptable costs.

"This is the same intention as when the Third Tsuchikage sent a large army into the Land of Lightning and Kumogakure. I judge that at that time, Iwagakure's plan was to take the opportunity to eliminate the threat of Kumogakure on the eastern border of their own village, and then sit back and watch the two fight, so as to seize the greatest benefit. The former's intention has been completely achieved. With the help of Uzumaki Menma and Iwagakure's two victories in the war, Kumogakure's strength has been weakened to its lowest level in history, and a considerable number of important strategic locations have been occupied by Iwagakure. In the future, the strategic confrontation between the major villages will be completely one-sided. At least for the next ten years, Iwagakure will not need to worry about the threat of Kumogakure."

Shika paused slightly, then continued.

"If my guess is correct, the Third Tsuchikage's original plan was that while they were crushing Kumogakure, our war with Uzumaki Menma would end in mutual destruction, or that we would pay a high price to completely defeat the Takikusa-ninja alliance represented by Uzumaki Menma. If things unfolded in this way, I'm sure the Third Tsuchikage would order a large number of Iwa ninja to go south to continue their alliance with Uzumaki Menma. If things went exactly as planned, they might even severely damage us and annex the forces under Uzumaki Menma's command. If all of this is accomplished, the future power in the ninja world will completely fall into the hands of Iwagakure."

A judgment that is almost perfectly accurate.

This isn't hindsight; it's something that Shikaku had already suspected from the beginning. It's just that at that time, there wasn't much supporting evidence, the northern battlefield was still raging, and at that time...

Shikaku still felt that his side had a pretty good chance of winning.

With the three major ninja villages joining forces, a full ten thousand ninjas, and our own hero leading the charge, they seem to have the upper hand, right?

However, what happened next really exceeded Shikaku's expectations.

He was indeed resourceful, but not to the point of being able to predict everything. The most important issue was his misjudgment of the opponent's strength.

Furthermore, there was a slightly fatal error in the assessment of the Sand Village side.

Shikaku certainly wasn't naive enough to think that Sunagakure would launch a full-scale attack at all costs, but from his perspective, a probing attack was always necessary. Moreover, in their planned discussion, either Maki or One-Tailed Beast had to appear on the battlefield.

Once you show your face, just make a small impression.

That will definitely attract some of the attention from Mianma's side.

Unfortunately, things didn't unfold as Shikaku had imagined. A slight deviation here was fine, and a slight slowdown there seemed to be no problem either.

But when all these small things, each one lost, come together, they become a whole.

The problem is extremely serious.

Shikaku himself was seriously injured and fell into a coma. He returned to the village and recuperated for a long time before he recovered.

But that arm that was blown off can only be lost forever.

He is now the one-armed strategist of Konoha Village.

Therefore, after thoroughly reviewing the entire incident, Shikaku finally sorted out all his thoughts, including the intentions of Iwagakure in taking the initiative to negotiate, which he was able to easily discern and judge.

"Hmph, that old guy has some pretty good ideas."

Tsunade crossed her arms, a hint of displeasure on her face, and snorted coldly.

"This Tsuchikage certainly has a huge appetite..."

Jiraiya's face showed a hint of emotion as he spoke softly.

As a ninja who could be considered a contemporary of his own father, he was very different in personality, and in some matters, he was the complete opposite of his father.

"However, this Tsuchikage not only misjudged our assessment, but also fatally underestimated Uzumaki Menma's strength. Now, this Tsuchikage must simply be aware of Uzumaki Menma's threat, which is why he is so eager to reach an agreement with us."

Shikaku continued, adding.

And it was through Shikaku's explanation that this was achieved.

Tsunade and Jiraiya both felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

The previous awkwardness vanished instantly, and Tsunade nodded and said, "Then it seems there is indeed something to discuss."