Konoha: Offer your heart to the Hokage!

Legend has it that this was during the Warring States period, a time very far removed from the present day, when ninjas were not yet widely used on the battlefield, and wars were still dominated by samurai.

A general from the Land of Fire died here, hence the name Falling Fire City.

Konoha was wary of Kumogakure, fearing that the latter might use the pretext of peace talks to secretly kill them; Kumogakure was equally cautious, worried that Tobirama Senju might take the opportunity to spy on the village's secrets.

Reputation is mutual, and in this atmosphere of distrust, the Raikage ultimately compromised and chose Firefall City, which is located right next to the border of Cloud Village, as the meeting place.

Two days later, Tobirama Senju and his party were able to see the phantom of Firefall Castle from afar.

Danzo Shimura's expression was gloomy as he muttered, "Falling Fire Castle... what an unlucky name."

"What? Danzo, are you scared?" Hiruzen Sarutobi teased with a smile.

Just like when they were young, the two of them continued to bicker and argue.

Danzo sneered, "Who's afraid? I just can't stand that when Kumogakure can't defeat Konoha head-on on the battlefield, they resort to these kinds of disgusting tactics. Just wait, one day I'll rename this city Thunderfall City!"

At this moment, Danzo was unaware of the unspoken rules of the Shadow Guard's legacy. He only thought that he was honored by his teacher's favor and that he was one of the members of the Shadow Guard who accompanied him to the meeting between the two Shadows.

Changing Falling Fire City to Falling Thunder City was also something he planned to do after becoming Hokage.

War! War! And more war! Unlike the passive situation in World War I, Danzo planned to turn Konoha around and transform it into a war machine.

"However, this terrain looks like a really good ambush spot."

In the group, Mitomon En stroked his chin, looked around, pushed up his glasses, and calmly spoke.

Koharu Utatane: "Alright, don't scare yourself. Kumogakure doesn't have the guts to do that. Our ninja forces are right on the border. If they act recklessly, the front lines will immediately reopen."

Senju Tobirama listened to his disciples' discussion and nodded.

"Xiaochun is right."

"Mind your manners. You are here to negotiate as envoys of the victors. Don't worry too much about the ambush."

Even now, Tobirama remains convinced that the talks are "absolutely safe."

Formal negotiations between the two Kage are a major event that concerns the reputation of the ninja villages. The main source of income for ninja villages is a contract-based employment system built on a foundation of reputation. If they destroy their reputation, the consequences could be even more severe than defeat.

The four disciples served as both guards and messengers.

This is a test given to them by Tobirama; they will negotiate with the Cloud Ninja for more rights as the victors.

soon.

The five arrived at the gates of Firefall Castle and, guided by officials from the Land of Lightning, smoothly met the Second Raikage and a group of high-ranking officials from Cloud Village. As a master of intelligence gathering, Tobirama Senju's gaze swept over the entire area without revealing his true intentions.

It was discovered that the Gold and Silver Horned Brothers hadn't been given seats; they were only responsible for standing guard on the edge.

These two are probably staunch advocates of war, which is why they are being targeted and suppressed by the Raikage.

It seems there's not much peace within Kumogakure, which is good news for Konoha...

With a faint smile, Tobirama Senju extended his hand to the Second Raikage in a gesture of goodwill: "Second Raikage, sir."

"Hmph, no need for such insincere politeness."

The Second Raikage crossed his arms, his expression arrogant, and coldly refused, showing no respect for Tobirama: "Today's meeting is only to discuss conditions acceptable to both sides, to end this war as soon as possible, and to avoid meaningless losses for both sides."

"Hehe, since that's the case, let's begin."

Tobirama, though embarrassed, was not angry. He simply added another debt to Kumogakure's compensation for their defeat in his heart.

Upon hearing this, Danzo seemed to transform into a steelback beast, mocking the Raikage: "You speak so eloquently, as if your Cloud Ninja are so peace-loving. If you were truly sincere, you wouldn't have sent an envoy to Konoha to provoke them in the first place. Now that you're on the verge of defeat, you're only thinking of peace talks. It's all just hypocrisy."

"What did you say?!"

The Raikage, his sore spot touched, glared menacingly.

At the critical moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi displayed the composure expected of a senior disciple and spoke up to ease the tension: "Enough, Danzo! You must not be disrespectful to the Raikage."

Danzo curled his lip, snorted coldly, and remained silent.

This scene caught the Second Raikage's eye, and he couldn't help but take a few more glances at Hiruzen Sarutobi. Serving as Tobirama Senju's mouthpiece at the Kage meeting… it seemed this was Konoha's next Hokage.

Peace talks began quickly.

As the Hokage and Raikage, the two powerful figures didn't really participate in the discussions, leaving it all to the elders below to deliberate.

A fierce debate, arguing based on reason...

Tobirama was very satisfied with Hiruzen's performance. Under his careful guidance, Hiruzen showed the vision and demeanor to succeed as Hokage.

"In this way, after returning to the village and transitioning for a while, I can confidently hand over the Hokage position to the monkey."

Tobirama thought to himself.

However, both Shadows were drawn to the power struggle at the negotiating table. Meanwhile, the Gold and Silver Horn brothers, who were supposed to be attending the meeting, had quietly left the venue and disappeared without a trace.

Jinjiao strolled outside the venue and asked in a low voice, "How are the preparations going?"

Silverhorn's expression was cold as he reported on the prepared backup plans one by one: "I used matters related to Jinchuriki to get Illaoi away from the scene in Firefall City."

"All the secret agents guarding the venue have been replaced by our people, and the outer perimeter is also full of our clansmen."

"Also, I've added a special poison to the Raikage's meals these past two days. Once the battle begins, he won't be able to enter Lightning Release Chakra Mode..."

A decisive battle aimed at the Raikage.

"Ah."

Kinkaku was satisfied with Ginkaku's arrangements: "The Raikage won't have a chance to make a move, and also, don't let the Konoha delegation get away."

"Go together!"

Having finalized all the contingency plans, the Gold and Silver Horn brothers exchanged a glance, then turned and returned to the meeting place.

The talks were nearing their end; most of the terms had been negotiated, and the documents were being prepared for signing. The atmosphere throughout the talks was calm, and no one was aware of the lurking, deadly crisis.

The Gold and Silver Horn brothers worked in perfect harmony, bypassing the guards and arriving within three steps of the Second Raikage.

For ninjas, there is always an invisible "lifeline" within their perception range, which they will never allow to be easily crossed unless it is someone they absolutely trust. Once this line is breached, it means that their life has been exposed to threat.

Even the most carefree Raikage noticed something was amiss at this moment.

Where are the guards?

Raikage, still unsuspecting, assumed Golden Horn had something urgent to report and asked with a grim face, "Golden Horn, what happened..."

Before he could finish speaking...

puff

A sharp blade suddenly pierced Raikage's heart from behind.

Warm blood splattered out, staining the unsigned peace treaty on the table crimson. The Raikage, not even having time to activate his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, collapsed to the ground in shock.

Fearing that the Raikage wasn't quite dead, Kinkaku gripped his ninja sword and swirled it around at his heart.

At the same instant, Ginkaku borrowed the Nine-Tails' chakra and instantly killed the Raikage's staunch guards; the Cloud Ninja Anbu on the periphery also drew their swords and killed unrelated Cloud Ninja and officials of the Land of Lightning.

The sudden betrayal stunned everyone.

At this moment, Ginkaku shouted, "How dare those despicable Konoha ninjas kill the Raikage and the Daimyo's officials!"

"Kill them all, leave no one alive!"

Chapter 160 Hiruzen, I'll even help you become a qualified Third Hokage.

Tobirama Senju was the first to recover from the sudden turn of events. He sprang into action and shouted at his disciples, "Retreat immediately!"

Hiruzen and the others, who had been delayed by the sudden turn of events, only came to their senses upon hearing the sound and immediately activated their Body Flicker Technique to try to escape the battlefield.

But they were a step too late.

Or rather, this was a premeditated trap. The Gold and Silver Horn brothers were prepared, but due to their overconfidence, they had no contingency plan. Even with their quick reactions on the spot, they couldn't escape the deadly situation.

Upon receiving instructions from Ginkaku, the Cloud Ninja ANBU surrounding the venue quickly formed an array, using a combination of Lightning Release ninjutsu to create a barrier-like structure that triggered celestial phenomena, resulting in a dense network of lightning.

Dense lightning bolts roared in from all directions, continuously striking the fleeing group.

Even if you can move in an instant, can you be faster than lightning?

It really works.

Tobirama Senju, relying on his Kage-level Body Flicker, calmly dodged the bolts of lightning. Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly formed hand seals and used Earth Release to neutralize most of the lightning damage.

In contrast, Danzo, Koharu, and En had neither extreme speed nor suitable defensive techniques, so they were unable to defend themselves in time. Several bolts of lightning struck them, and all three let out a muffled groan, suffering considerable damage.

Tobirama's expression turned grim; even the wisest can make a mistake.

He had considered many possibilities, and was certain that the Raikage wouldn't dare to do anything foolish and defy the ninja world. But he never expected that the Gold and Silver Brothers of Kumogakure would dare to publicly assassinate the Raikage and launch a rebellion.

This situation is different.

This peace talk was led by the Second Raikage, the highest authority in Kumogakure. Now, the Raikage has died in a rebellion in his own village, and the ones who took action were the two rogue ninja brothers, Kinkaku and Ginkaku.

Even if Konoha wanted to hold them accountable afterward, they could only target the Gold and Silver Brothers, making it appear as if Konoha and Kumogakure had joined forces to eliminate the rogue ninja.

By the time Kumogakure quells the rebellion and restores order... Konoha will have gained nothing.

If the Gold and Silver Brothers were to use this opportunity to rebel, seize power, and become Raikage, it would mean starting a new war.

They could simply declare all the peace treaties and decisions made by the former Raikage null and void. Doing so would mean that killing someone at the meeting wouldn't even affect Kumogakure's reputation.

The one negotiating is the Raikage. What does that have to do with my brothers, the Gold and Silver Horns?

The situation was reversed in an instant.

The mere lightning barrier couldn't contain Tobirama at all; with the Flying Thunder God Technique, he could escape at any time.

But he was not alone!

Such words might feel exciting and exhilarating during a battle, but they seem rather ridiculous in this moment of escape.

A feeling of regret welled up in Tobirama's heart.

It was he who, in order to pave the way for his disciples, placed himself and his disciples in a predicament.

“I was so stupid, really... I should have listened to Shen’s advice a long time ago.”

While thinking this, Tobirama's hands moved swiftly. He unleashed the Flying Thunder God Slash at top speed, instantly killing several Cloud Ninja Anbu, tearing open a gap, and then using the Flying Thunder God Kunai, he passed through the lightning net unharmed.

But some of the disciples were not so lucky.

Even with teachers in front, it was still inevitable that people would be struck by lightning when crossing the lightning net.