"What outcome could there possibly be? The moment we lost at Lishi Fortress, our defeat was set in stone…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi poured another cup of sake, downed it in one gulp, and for a moment his face was etched with bitterness. But a heartbeat later, that look hardened into something steely and resolute.
"But Konoha will never be destroyed! We still have hundreds of thousands of villagers—if we truly mobilize, every last one of them can fight, every last one can become a shinobi! If Sunagakure and Kumogakure think they can swallow Konoha whole, they'd better grow sharper teeth!"
Something in Hiruzen's conviction lit a fire in Koharu and Homura. With that kind of resolve—willing to burn their bridges and fight to the last—how could Konoha ever truly fall? The Will of Fire would endure.
But as the passion faded, Hiruzen's calm returned.
"Honestly, Jinghang understands all this too. He's a pragmatist—he knows wiping out Konoha is a fantasy."
Homura frowned, skeptical. "Then why is he pushing us so hard?"
Hiruzen leaned back, hands behind his head. "It's about pride. We started this war—so it has to end with us admitting defeat and begging for peace. That way, he gets both the glory and the spoils. Once we surrender, the war's over."
Koharu's lips curled in frustration. "So Sunagakure becomes the undisputed overlord of the ninja world."
Hiruzen nodded. "That's right. There's no stopping it now. The next few decades might just belong to Sunagakure." He sighed, then shook his head and turned to Koharu, voice softer. "But don't get so worked up. No one stays on top forever—no flower blooms for a hundred days. This world's always been about rising and falling. Didn't Jinghang spend over a decade clawing his way back up? If he can do it, so can we."
Koharu still looked indignant. "You can really just stand by and watch the legacy of the First and Second Hokage wither away?"
Hiruzen shrugged, almost flippant. "I've already retired due to illness. I'm not Hokage anymore. Whether Konoha rises or falls… that's not my problem."
"You—!" Koharu started to scold him, but then caught the sly grin on Hiruzen's face. Suddenly, she understood.
"You… you're planning to use a borrowed knife!"
Hiruzen nodded, eyes glinting. "With all this downtime, I've been thinking about why we keep losing. In terms of strength and resources, we're not weaker than Sunagakure. So why do we keep failing?"
He looked down at his sake cup, voice tinged with regret. "I realized it's because Konoha's been on top for too long. We've gotten arrogant—complacent. For decades, we've clung to the old policies Tobirama left us. We lost because of our mindset, because of outdated strategies."
He spun the sake cup in his hand, eyes distant. "Honestly, I wanted to push for reforms even before the war. But you know how much resistance I faced? The old clan elders, clutching their tiny fiefdoms, refusing to budge—you couldn't pry them loose with a crowbar. And Danzo, always making shady deals with merchants, running smuggling rings, building little cliques, always looking to undermine Konoha from within… Cough! Cough!"
He started coughing from the agitation, and Homura quickly moved to pat his back. It took a while before Hiruzen caught his breath.
"If this war helps us clear out those rotten elements and chronic illnesses, Konoha can finally shed its burdens and move forward. With our scale and foundation, give us ten years—Konoha will rise again."
Koharu and Homura exchanged a long look, then silently refilled their cups. Hiruzen saw and immediately topped his off as well.
"For Konoha!"
"For Konoha!"
Three cups clinked together, and the three old friends downed them in one go.
Afterward, color returned to Hiruzen's cheeks. He turned to Homura with a smile. "Homura, you did well this time—actually brought back 8,600 ninja from Takigakure. How are you planning to deploy them?"
Homura nodded. "I read the Mist's battle reports that Koharu sent by ninja hawk, so I learned from their mistakes. I didn't try to flank the Wind-Cloud Alliance's camp. Instead, I led the troops in a wide arc, coming into the Land of Fire from the rear, then into Konoha to join our main forces."
Hiruzen nodded approvingly. "Smart. That way you avoid Cloud's scouts and keep the Wind-Cloud Alliance guessing. Merging our forces is safer, too. But what's Takigakure's real strength?"
Homura thought for a moment. "Overall, not bad. Amamiya basically emptied the whole village for this. But it's true—they haven't seen real combat in decades. They lack any killing intent."
"What about those so-called Eight Pillars of the Waterfall? Are they really that fearsome?" Hiruzen asked, amused.
Homura waved a hand. "Not really. Most of them are just elite jonin level. But two of them are genuinely impressive."
"Oh? Which two?" Hiruzen's interest was piqued.
"One is Jonin Miyamoto. His ninjutsu is top-tier—he's on par with Sakumo Hatake! Especially his Soul Extraction Technique—it's a work of art. But…"
Homura made a face, searching for the right words.
"But what?" Hiruzen pressed.
"Well… he's a bit of a coward."
"A coward?" Hiruzen raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. He's strong, but his real job is teaching at Takigakure's ninja academy. I even sat in on one of his classes—he spends all his time teaching kids how to hide and survive, not how to fight. If Amamiya hadn't forced him to join the expedition, he wouldn't be here."
Hiruzen laughed. "A wolf's skin over a sheep's heart. Didn't expect to find someone like that in this world. And the other one?"
Homura's expression grew serious. "This one's the real deal—Takigakure's own Seven-Tails jinchūriki, Fumi Itō."
"The Seven-Tails jinchūriki?!"
"That's right. Honestly, I think he's even stronger than Amamiya—almost a perfect jinchūriki."
Wind-Cloud Allied Forces Main Camp
The news of the troop rotation had been made public, and the entire camp was buzzing with excitement.
No surprise there. After a year at war, living every day with your head on the chopping block, everyone's nerves were shot. Who didn't want to go home, see their parents, their wives and kids, and enjoy a taste of normal life again?
This rotation involved a full twelve thousand people—most of the Wind-Cloud Allied Forces. Many ninja were already packing their bags. Jinghang and the Third Raikage were generous, too: they opened the treasury and handed out double pay, earning a thunderous "Long live!" from the lucky ones heading home.
Just then, Xuechi Gaojin burst into Jinghang's tent.
"Kazekage-sama, urgent code from Zhaoyang!"
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