The following days, Shigeo searched everywhere for the one who framed him, but he found nothing. And as time went on, with Iwagakure fanning the flames, the situation had reached a point where it could no longer be delayed.
Helpless, Shigeo could only choose to face the problem directly. A swift blade cuts through tangled threads—only then could things return to their proper place.
So he created five clones and sent them to the Five Great Shinobi Villages, delivering a message to each Kage, asking them to gather at Aobing Ridge on the southwest coast of the Land of Snow to settle the matter face-to-face.
And because they were clones, Shigeo knew everything they experienced.
The five villages—Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage of Konoha; A, the Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure; the elders of Kirigakure; Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure; and Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure—all, upon receiving Shigeo's letter, agreed to the request. They promised to arrive at Aobing Ridge four days later to confront him and resolve the misunderstanding.
Thus, Shigeo, carrying his pack, went early to wait at Aobing Ridge.
The Land of Snow was a country that had rarely experienced war. Its population was sparse, and now under the control of Kazahana Dotō, most of its political power was concentrated in the northern seas. This southwestern coast, however, was practically uninhabited—a fitting place for the Five Kage to gather.
Shigeo waited in the snow and wind for four days, yet no one appeared. He grew suspicious—perhaps they had been delayed on the way? He waited two more days.
Still, no one came. Just as he was losing patience, he received a summoning signal from Ichiraku Ayame's charm.
When he appeared again, he found himself in the Forest of Death, north of Konoha. But there was no trace of Ayame anywhere.
Tsunade-sensei had warned him never to return to Konoha no matter what. But some things couldn't be solved by just running away.
The forest was so quiet that not even birds called. Dense trees blocked most of the sunlight, which fell in threads through the leaves, scattering onto the ground. Yellow and red leaves drifted down from the branches.
Each step Shigeo took crunched on fallen leaves. As he moved forward, a clearing opened up ahead, sunlight shining upon a lone torii gate standing at its center.
His eyes narrowed, a cold smile curling at his lips. As expected—they had never intended to talk with him. They didn't care about misunderstandings or false accusations. Even Konoha believed only what it wanted to believe, let alone the other villages. Now Konoha had decided to make its move.
Though he didn't know who orchestrated all of this, he knew what the outcome would be. The Five Great Villages were already wary of Konoha suddenly harboring a boy who contained seven tailed beasts. The fabricated challenge letters merely provided an excuse to act.
So what would the other four villages do? They wouldn't listen to his explanations. They would exert diplomatic, political, and military pressure on Konoha.
The Third Hokage would weigh every angle. He was no Hashirama—he wouldn't generously hand out tailed beasts to maintain balance. To Hiruzen, the beasts inside Shigeo were both a prize and a threat.
This was exactly the meaning of huai bi qi zui—"to bear a treasure is to court guilt." If Aozora Country could not be found, the other villages would still fear Konoha having such a weapon. All eyes, all weapons, would turn toward Konoha.
And so Shigeo had to provide an answer—for himself, and for everyone else.
As for the so-called alliance to subjugate Aozora, only Iwagakure truly clamored for it. The other villages would never really commit to fighting alongside them.
Having just endured an attack from Sora-nin, the villages would prefer a simpler way: eliminate Shigeo with minimal effort. And the best way to do that was to pressure Konoha.
Truth? Misunderstandings? Investigations? None of that mattered. They only wanted him dead.
A chill spread across Shigeo's lips as he walked step by step toward the torii. Grass, half-yellowed, swayed under the wind.
"Don't go forward!"
A familiar voice rang out—Uchiha Itachi came rushing toward him. But before he could reach Shigeo, his father yanked him back.
"What are you doing? Do you want to ruin our plan?"
From every direction, dozens of Uchiha appeared, surrounding the clearing in a tight ring.
"The Uchiha clan?"
Shigeo's eyes widened, then narrowed. He understood at once—what a scheme by the Third Hokage!
This was killing multiple birds with one stone. Use the Uchiha clan to capture him: if they succeeded, they would gain credit for seizing the boy with seven tailed beasts. If they failed, the blame fell squarely on the Uchiha for letting such a dangerous being escape.
"Shigeo, run! This is a trap! They want to capture you! I know you didn't do any of those things. Go!" Itachi shouted, his eyes blood-red.
The Uchiha rushed forward. At the same time, sealing teams appeared on the outskirts, ready to trap a tailed beast.
Shigeo formed a one-handed seal. As Uchiha flames surged forward, his wind release tore through them.
Fire fanned by wind—the dry grass caught ablaze.
Among the Uchiha was Shisui. In a flash, he was in front of Shigeo, throwing a punch aimed at his gut. Shigeo twisted back, swinging a kick toward his face. But Shisui vanished in that instant, reappearing behind him, kunai stabbing toward his back.
Shigeo dodged, spinning around with a blade of wind that sliced across Shisui's face. Shisui avoided it, his Mangekyō spinning—yet his genjutsu had no effect.
Wood Release sprouted, branches clawing like demons toward Shisui. He bounded away, dodging nimbly.
Other Uchiha pressed in. Shigeo leapt among them, blades of wind clashing with kunai in a cacophony of sparks.
Shisui darted back in, kunai slashing with hand movements so fast they formed cutting blades of fire, sharp and deadly—attacks ideal for long range.
Shigeo's evasions barely kept up. Yes—this was Shisui's lightning-swift cutting technique, a testament to his genius.
The fire spread through the trees, Uchiha fire jutsu roaring from every side. Waves of heat and flame tried to engulf him.
In the distance, Itachi struggled against his father's grip, watching the battle with anguish. All he could do was hope that Shigeo would survive.
(End of Chapter)
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