"Four of them?"
Tsunade, Shikaku, and Choza exchanged looks when they heard this, all falling silent for a moment.
After Onoki lost his son, he immediately submitted a crisp, clean surrender letter.
After the Third Raikage A's strongest spear was snapped and his strongest shield shattered, he declared that so long as any Cloud shinobi lived, none of them were to set foot in the Land of Fire for the rest of their lives.
The Fourth Kazekage Rasa, having finished consuming the mountain of gold dust forced down his throat, would soon proceed, accompanied by the elders Chiyo and Ebizo, to meet the First Kazekage.
As for who the fourth "Kage" was… none of them said it aloud, but all of them knew.
That "Kage" wasn't the Mizukage of Kirigakure, but their own Third Hokage.
Although Hiruzen was currently living quite comfortably, and unlike the other three hadn't directly faced Garp, knowing him as they did, they understood one thing clearly:
The Third Hokage simply didn't have that kind of courage.
And especially after the examples set by the Third Tsuchikage, Third Raikage, and Fourth Kazekage… he absolutely wouldn't have it.
…
On the other side, after being force fed a heap of gold dust half as tall as a man, Rasa eventually died.
It required no action from him, nor from Chiyo and Ebizo, nor from Garp who stood by watching.
The massive amount of gold dust the Fourth Kazekage had summoned and manipulated ended up rupturing his own body from within, killing him on the spot.
"Don't blame us for being cold or heartless. The title of Kazekage represents more than power, it's the responsibility of carrying the village's legacy and future."
Chiyo's gaze was complicated as she looked at Rasa's corpse. She did not avoid the resentment still lingering in his eyes at the moment of death.
"Lord Garp, Rasa has paid the price for everything he's done. Could you spare these Sand shinobi? From beginning to end, they never truly participated in the fight.
In truth, the only ones who rejected you and initiated this Third Great Ninja War were Rasa, and us."
Ebizo brushed the gold dust powder from his palms, tidied his clothing, then stood and cast a pleading look toward Garp, who stood at the edge of the massive fist-shaped crater.
"If it's still not enough, before I die, I will issue one final decree as a Sand elder to every shinobi present, and to the future Kazekage.
All Sand shinobi, for the rest of their lives, must retreat three paces before Lord Garp."
Chiyo withdrew her gaze from Rasa's corpse and also addressed Garp.
"You two lived through half the Warring States Era. You should be well aware of my past and my temperament.
I don't like attacking the weak, but it's not something I'm incapable of."
Garp fixed his eyes on Chiyo and Ebizo, two Sand elders who clearly stood prepared to die. After a long, silent moment, he finally spoke.
"I understand."
Ebizo nodded quietly.
As someone who had survived the old era, he knew Garp truly disliked using his strength to torment the weak.
Even Hashirama, known among the Three Great Powers of the era for his gentle nature and boundless compassion, had taken the lives of youths, children, even infants with his own hands.
But Garp, despite his fearsome reputation and the era he buried with his fists, had never taken the life of a child, not once. Much less an infant.
Because of that, some people who should have been unquestionably doomed had survived under Garp's fists, some of them even lived long enough to reach this era.
Until the Third Great Ninja War broke out and Garp took the field once more, those who had once survived by chance were still alive.
Such as the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki.
And himself and his sister, Chiyo.
Yes, back then, the two of them, much like Onoki, had been dragged before Garp by their respective village leaders.
And in the end, for various reasons, being too young, not having fought, or simply running into Garp while he was in a decent mood, they survived.
But everyone knew, that kind of miracle only ever happens once.
That was why Onoki surrendered the moment he lost his son.
And it was why Chiyo and Ebizo never expected to survive after choosing to strike at Garp, they'd already had their first miracle.
And just now, they'd even rejected the final chance Garp had offered them to avoid death.
"Thank you for granting us this mercy."
Chiyo bowed deeply toward him.
This bow was half submission, half sincerity.
Because if she stood where Garp stood, she wouldn't hesitate, not even if the ones kneeling were two thousand Sand shinobi infants. A single sweep of the blade would settle everything.
Ninjas had no bottom line, no principles, much less notions of good or evil.
A man like Garp, born in the Warring States Period yet still holding a bottom line in his heart, should have long been buried in that era.
"Sunagakure, hear my command."
Suppressing the swirling emotions in her heart, Chiyo struggled up from the crater left by Garp's fist.
"All Sand shinobi, for the rest of your lives, without question or hesitation, must retreat before the Iron Fist."
She swept her gaze across the two thousand pale-faced Sand shinobi who had never raised a hand, yet were now defeated soldiers, and shouted with all her strength.
"The next Kazekage, whoever the Fifth may be, must never wage war on our behalf again."
Standing beside her, Ebizo followed.
"We as the Sand elders, hereby declare that Sunagakure's involvement in the Third Great Ninja War… is over."
The siblings spoke in unison.
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