The Land of Iron is covered in snow almost year-round, and although not as much as the Land of Snow, it's still extremely cold. There are no ninja in the entire country; it's made up entirely of samurai. Even so, all the countries have agreed not to attack the Land of Iron.
Compared to other villages, Konoha and Kumogakure are undoubtedly the closest to the Land of Iron. However, unlike Kumogakure, the Raikage was the first to arrive, while Neji and his group were the last.
They were also the largest group, with a total of ten people. Apart from Neji and Tsunade, everyone else wore a mask.
This unusually large number of people, compared to other "Kage," made Mifune, who was waiting at the entrance, slightly taken aback. He almost thought they were here to cause trouble. However, he maintained his composure. After all, he hadn't set the rules about the number of accompanying people. After introductions, he quickly led Tsunade and the others into the meeting hall.
"Neji!"
As soon as Neji entered the hall, a pretty woman with long, red hair rushed into his arms.
"Tayuya?"
Seeing the familiar red hair, Neji tentatively called out her name. Indeed, Tayuya responded.
"What's going on? Why are you here?" Neji asked.
"Because I'm a Shadow Guard."
"Shadow Guard! You?" Neji was dumbfounded. The last time he saw Tayuya, she was still working her way up to become a Jonin. Now, she was a Shadow Guard.
One had to know that Shadow Guards were generally very strong, usually at the elite Jonin level, and they also required extensive combat experience.
Tayuya…
Neji looked at her closely. Was he mistaken? Could Tayuya actually be a genius?
Without realizing it, Neji's gaze shifted to Terumi Mei, and then he saw Guren.
Sensing Neji's gaze, the two women smiled sweetly. Unfortunately, the current occasion wasn't suitable. Especially for Terumi Mei; if she openly acknowledged her relationship with Neji, the meeting wouldn't be able to continue.
Thus, for a moment, the gazes of the three clashed intensely.
This made everyone present frown. Were they blind?
Very well, they now understood that Kirigakure and Konoha were definitely in cahoots.
"Since you're all here, let's get started quickly," the Fourth Raikage said, suppressing his anger.
"Yes, please have all the Kage take their seats," Mifune quickly added. If this continued, they wouldn't finish discussing things even by nightfall.
Then, on the round stone table, cloth banners with the characters for Wind, Lightning, Water, Fire, and Earth lit up under the lamplight, and the Five Kage took their seats in order.
"Then, next, the Five Kage Summit officially begins," Mifune said, standing up as the host.
Thanks to Neji's little interlude, the Kage all ignored the fact that Konoha had brought ten people. By the time they realized it later, the summit had already begun.
However, the result was as expected. This meeting was completely disharmonious, with a subtle tendency towards fighting.
Onoki looked down on the young Gaara, while Gaara thought Onoki was an old stubborn fool, extremely pedantic. Tsunade wanted all the villages to work together, but Onoki believed that hatred between villages couldn't be resolved.
Gradually, the original purpose of the Five Kage Summit was long forgotten.
"All of you, shut up! My brother's life is still unknown, so stop spouting useless nonsense!! The Akatsuki organization must be eliminated!!"
The Raikage, with his already short temper, saw so many people spouting useless drivel. Veins bulged on his forehead, and he immediately raised his right hand and slammed it on the stone table.
"It looks like this can't end peacefully," Onoki said, waving his hand slightly. Akatsuchi immediately assumed an offensive stance. At the same time, Guren, Kankuro, and Darui also prepared for battle.
Only the Konoha group watched with amusement, completely adopting an attitude of detachment.
"Sigh."
Mifune sighed. This was his task. As the host of the summit in the Land of Iron, he was fully in charge. He couldn't interfere with the Kage's decisions but had to mediate between them to prevent them from fighting, just like now.
Doing his duty while in his position.
In his heart, he was actually reluctant. What if a mediation failed and they actually started fighting? That would be disastrous.
"All you 'Kage,' please discuss it properly and don't waste this opportunity."
With Mifune's reminder, and more so with Konoha's stance, the summit finally resumed.
"But, Raikage, as far as I know, the Akatsuki's publicly known leader, Pain, has already been defeated by Konoha. The true mastermind hasn't shown themselves yet. How do you plan to eliminate them?" Gaara got straight to the point and asked his question.
"Hmph, hand over all the Akatsuki information you possess, then gather your forces, and we'll eliminate them in one fell swoop!"
"That's impossible. This information was obtained through the sacrifices of countless people. To demand that we hand over this information based on your word is simply unreasonable."
Onoki was the first to object. Both the Raikage's commanding tone and his excessive demand made him very dissatisfied.
"You shut up! The Akatsuki is made up of rogue ninja from Konoha, Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure. You should be held fully responsible for this!" the Raikage roared in anger, completely disregarding the increasingly grim expressions of everyone present.
"Not only that, but I've also investigated, and there were people in your villages who made use of the Akatsuki, which is also why they grew stronger. In short, you must help us with my brother's situation for free."
"That's how it is, understand? I don't believe any of you at all. This summit is just to hold you responsible!!"
"This is too much, Raikage!" Terumi Mei angrily said.
"Too much? Hmph, your Kirigakure bears the greatest responsibility. A closed country that engages in no diplomacy being used as the birthplace of the Akatsuki, have you forgotten?!"
"I..." Terumi Mei was speechless. Indeed, not to mention anything else, their Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, was manipulated without their knowledge. This dark history was simply impossible to refute.
"Wait!" Neji suddenly interjected, "If that's the case, then our Konoha bears no responsibility, because Itachi was a spy we planted in the Akatsuki. This news has been widely known for a while now, hasn't it?"
"Hmph, even so, Itachi helped the Akatsuki capture many Tailed Beasts during his undercover mission. Your Konoha's responsibility cannot be escaped either," the Raikage said, pounding the table.
"Oh? So, you mean that each of our villages must be responsible for the actions of our own ninja, even rogue ninja?" Neji narrowed his eyes slightly, staring intently at the Raikage.
"Exactly. Your lack of supervision is a responsibility you should bear," the Raikage said.
Neji chuckled, "Then, in that case, it should be easy."
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