The Land of Iron, Five Kage Summit.
Five Kage, each flanked by their own elite guards, arrived one after another at the fortress-like meeting hall.
First was the Fourth Raikage, A—closest in distance and the one who'd called this summit in the first place. Next came the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, the old stone himself from the Land of Earth. Then, almost in sync, the young Fifth Kazekage, Gaara, and the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, strode into the room together.
Now, only the Mizukage from the Hidden Mist Village was still missing.
Tsunade glanced at the other three Kage, a strange sense of superiority bubbling up inside her. Against these three, she felt she held all the cards. Ōnoki? Her old flame had put him in his place ages ago. The Raikage? Basically a junior—her friend Rinjin and his father were sworn brothers, after all. And Gaara? No matter how she looked at him, he reminded her of Rinjin, which was enough to make her want to bang her head against the wall.
She'd heard the Fourth Kazekage had been sidelined by Rain for over a decade, still coughing up water fees every year. Pretty tragic, honestly.
Just as the four were sizing each other up, the doors slammed open.
All heads turned.
In walked a woman, hips swaying, green eyes flashing, lips pink and glossy. Her red-brown curls spilled down to her knees, and she wore a high-slit, off-shoulder, low-cut qipao that screamed dangerous curves and untamed confidence—a living blend of innocence and seduction.
Tsunade's face went pitch black.
You've got to be kidding me.
That's my damn daughter!
Without missing a beat, Tsunade stormed over, grabbed the girl's scandalous qipao by the shoulder, and yanked it up, muttering through gritted teeth, "You brat—if your old man saw you dressed like this, he'd blow your head off!"
Mei Terumī flicked her hair, huffing with all the pride of a queen. "Hokage-sama, mind your manners. You're addressing the Fifth Mizukage."
She brushed Tsunade's hands off, voice dropping to a mutter. "I'm old enough to marry. Once I do, only my husband gets a say in what I wear."
The other Kage—and their guards—were dumbstruck.
What the hell is this? When did the Five Kage Summit turn into a family drama?
Behind Mei, Ao—eyepatch gleaming—coughed discreetly. Elder Genshi had warned him: always keep the Fifth Mizukage's dignity in check.
The cough was soft, but Tsunade got the message. She let go of Mei's outfit—one that would earn a bonk from her dad for sure—straightened up, and said, voice crisp, "Fifth Mizukage, you're the last to arrive."
She returned to her seat, face composed.
With Mifune, the ironclad samurai chief, presiding, the summit began.
Each Kage laid out their intel on Akatsuki. The consensus: Nagato wasn't the true mastermind. Someone else was pulling the strings. After all, what kind of real boss gets taken out by a Konoha genin? Total scrub.
Just as the discussion heated up, the air above the flag-draped dais shimmered and twisted.
A man in a yellow spiral mask and a black cloak patterned with red clouds stepped out of the distortion, landing on the platform.
"Yo~ Kage!"
The Raikage, nerves frayed from losing his brother, shot to his feet, eyes blazing. "Who the hell are you?!"
The masked man perched on the edge of the dais, looking down at them all. "No need to shout, Raikage. Let me introduce myself. I'm Uchiha Madara. There's something I want to tell you—"
But the Raikage cut him off, fury crackling. "I don't care what you're up to! Give us the Eight-Tails back, and maybe you'll walk out of here alive!"
A low, mocking laugh echoed from behind the mask. "Give it back? How naïve. Listen up—once I gather all nine tailed beasts, I'll unleash the Infinite Tsukuyomi. Everyone will enter a world without conflict. Harmony for all. Compared to that, what's one Eight-Tails?"
"Don't give me that crap!" The Raikage roared, fists clenched. "I'd never hand this world over to someone like you!"
Gaara, draped in crimson robes, spoke up, voice steady. "False peace is just a lie. Real peace only matters in the real world."
Ōnoki sighed, ancient and weary. "You say 'unify the world,' but what you really mean is creating a world that belongs to you."
The masked man laughed, then his voice turned cold. "And what have you five Kage ever done for this world? You should know by now—this world... has no hope. Hope and despair exist side by side, which is why hope is nothing but a comforting lie. Hand over the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails, or... there will be war."
The Raikage froze, stunned. "Wait—you didn't capture the Eight-Tails?!"
The masked man nodded, almost admiring. "That's right. The Eight-Tails escaped. That's what a perfect jinchūriki should be. Truly an outstanding ninja."
"Bee!" The Raikage's voice stretched, then erupted in rage. "That idiot snuck out of the village at a time like this?! Unforgivable! I'll show him what my Iron Claw feels like!"
Gaara's calm cut through the tension. "Uzumaki Naruto will never be handed over to you."
The other Kage nodded in agreement. Surrendering their jinchūriki—the living weapons of their villages? No way. Asking them to hand over their power was laughable.
On the platform, the masked man—now standing tall—spoke, voice icy and deliberate:
"In that case...
The Fourth...
Great Ninja War—
I...
declare it now!"
...
The Five Kage Summit ended swiftly.
At the same time, news of Uchiha Madara's declaration of war swept across the ninja world like swallows riding the ocean wind.
If it had been any other name, people might have laughed it off.
But "Madara"—those three syllables crushed mountains and shook legends.
Anyone old enough knew the terror of Madara and Hashirama.
This was no joke.
In Konoha, thanks to the late Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, those names had faded from everyday talk. But with Tsunade as the Fifth Hokage, her grandfather's legend was being dusted off and spoken of once more.
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