The Secret Weapon - part 2
02: Reunion
After Jiraiya's ominous proclamation, it seemed to Naruto that their return to Konoha was a bit anti-climactic.
The sun was shining and the ninja message-relaying birds were flying against the blue sky and sparse white clouds as usual. Off-duty ninja were wandering the streets and, since it was afternoon and they had finished up their classes for the day, the young genin-to-be were running about. They played and teased each other like on any normal day - and were often seen pestering the older generation into teaching them a trick or two to up-show some other kid in class who thought he was so cool.
Jiraiya sneaked a glance at his own charge when the begging of one particularly insistent nine-year-old reached his ears. The blond completely missed the implicit comparison and kept grinning in relief that home appeared to be exactly as they had left it.
Rising like a protective parent above the red-roofed houses stood their destination, the rounded Hokage Tower, as comfortingly white and red as ever. Just beyond it, multiple scaffolds partially obscured the rocky mountain wall that bore the carved effigies of the past village leaders. Tsunade's likeness was still under construction.
Inexperienced as he was, Naruto failed to see the odd details that Jiraiya was keeping track of as they walked. ANBU, who were so rarely seen outside the Hokage Tower (when on assignment, they became virtually invisible), were openly patrolling the village walls and roofs and there was a noted increase on the number of ninja hanging around. They walked past a few foreign merchants as well, who were discussing the sale of products that the village had never used to import: Konoha was stocking supplies.
All of these things worried Jiraiya, who had seen enough wartime preparations to last him a lifetime and had hoped to never go through it again. The fact that Tsunade and the Council had only given the order to regroup discreetly at the village rather than to proceed to some target, though, was consoling in that it meant that the worst might yet be avoided.
Student and teacher followed a tense-looking Shizune into Tsunade's office and found the blonde Hokage sitting behind a desk surprisingly clear of paperwork and nursing a cup of sake. Also present was Kakashi.
"Good, you're here," greeted Tsunade. She bent towards one of her desk drawers to fetch an extra cup of sake for Jiraiya.
"Hey, granny, Kakashi-sensei! Is Konoha really going to war? Everything seems fine to me," Naruto asked casually. Tsunade immediately felt her headache worsening but, since her hands were busy, she didn't pound some sense into the short teenager.
Kakashi didn't share the same problem.
"I see you haven't changed, Naruto." He sighed. "Be more careful about what you say."
"It'll be a long time before any measure of sense gets past that thick skull," Tsunade said. "And with the pervert for a teacher..."
"Hey," said pervert exclaimed, feigning more annoyance than he actually felt, "what do I have to do with it?"
"You're the one who picks these idiots for students," the Hokage remarked.
The Copy Ninja smiled with a touch of embarrassment for his former student and his favourite book author, closing his one visible eye in the process.
Meanwhile, Naruto was feeling a little stung at the way they were talking about him (and in front of him, too!), so he crossed his arms and decided to sulk. By the time Tsunade had handed the sake cup over to her former teammate and started filling them in on the situation, though, he had forgotten all about it and was listening as attentively as the others.
"I asked you two to come back because last week I received a disturbing message from Earth Country," Tsunade said tersely, in full Hokage-mode. "It was very long-winded and full of bullshit, but, in short, the Tsuchikage claims that we've somehow wronged Iwa and demands reparation."
Jiraiya immediately groaned at the revealed identity of their enemy: he should have expected it. Iwa had been itching to get back at Konoha for close to fifteen years, because of the humiliating losses they had suffered during the last great war at the hands of the man they had nicknamed the Yellow Flash - the not-yet-appointed Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
Konoha hadn't come out of that war untouched either - it was considered one of the bleakest periods in its history - but an Iwa ninja wouldn't be an Iwa ninja if they weren't as stubborn and proud as rocks, and capable of holding a grudge until the mountains themselves lost memory of the event.
"They are threatening to declare war, and you know what will happen if two of the great ninja villages break the world-wide peace pact at this point."
Jiraiya let his gaze slip down to the Hokage's clear desk and nodded. Political games had never been his favourites but that did not mean he didn't know the rules. "The remaining countries will either wait until we wear ourselves out and strike to conquer when we're at our weakest, or they'll line up to fight with us and it will be the beginning of a fourth world war."
Either outcome was grim, and Konoha already had more than enough on its plate, with the reappearance of Orochimaru, Sasuke's desertion and the sinister Akatsuki out to get Naruto.
"Hmm, their spies must have found out about what's been happening lately and, with a brand new Hokage still settling into her post, figured that we were finally vulnerable enough," Kakashi said.
"Wait," Naruto cut in, not having picked up on anything beyond the "Iwa wants war" part. "Can they do that? We didn't do anything to them, granny, did we?"
"Reasons don't matter here, Naruto," she explained, the tightness about her face relaxing a fraction. "Iwa can fabricate all the excuses they want and it won't matter if they're real or not. The only thing the other villages will be interested in is whether or not it's convenient for them to go along with it."
"So, what now?" Jiraiya continued, serious as he was rarely seen. He could always fill in the bits Naruto hadn't understood for him later. The most important was finding out if Tsunade had already made any decisions.
"Now, we talk. In his message, the Tsuchikage proposed a private meeting on neutral territory to discuss his terms and state his demands. It's obviously a ruse: I doubt he'd let go of the idea of getting revenge for anything we might offer. Maybe he just wants to gauge our strength, to see for himself what I'm capable of as Hokage, but this will be our only chance to dissuade him from going forward with this.
"I've already sent out teams of ANBU to scout out and secure the location," she continued. "If all goes well, we'll meet in five days' time, in Grass Country."
Hearing the name of the place, the toad summoner couldn't help but feel even more sceptical about the deal. He shot Tsunade a meaningful look that she carefully turned to avoid.
"Grass Country? The Tsuchikage wants to talk on the place where we struck the blow that brought Iwa to its knees all those years ago?" he said mockingly. Kakashi lowered his head in thought, too familiar with that particular event. It was the battle where he had gained his Sharingan.
"I agree with Jiraiya," the Copy Ninja said. "You shouldn't go."
"I know that it might be a trap," the Fifth insisted, "but I can't just refuse and sit by as they plan to destroy the village I swore to protect. That's why I asked you to come here today. I need you to hold the village and the Council together while I'm away."
Jiraiya looked down into his cup of sake and finally downed it after a resigned sigh.
"This was why I didn't want to take this job," he muttered. Then continued, so everyone could hear: "Fine. But Kakashi can handle things here by himself - I'm going with you."
Finally catching on to what was being decided, Naruto piped in as well. "Yeah, and me too! I'll keep you safe, granny!"
"You seem to be forgetting, brat, that the Akatsuki are still out looking for you," said Tsunade. "You're not going anywhere."
"What?! You can't do that! I can..."
Naruto would have gone on with his argument if Jiraiya hadn't placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. The old pervert was staring at the Hokage with a calculating look, so he remained silent and waited for his teacher to reveal his intentions.
"Maybe he should go," Jiraiya pondered aloud. "It wouldn't hurt to remind Iwa that Konoha has a very promising, very special new generation."
His inflection was not lost on Tsunade or Kakashi and soon they were going through the ramifications of what taking Naruto along might mean. After all, after the Chuunin Exams and with Akatsuki already about, his identity was hardly a well-kept secret anymore. It could not hurt to remind Iwa that they had the power of the Nine-tails on their side.
Sad as it was to think of Naruto that way - like the secret weapon so many on the Council had tried to turn him into - Tsunade had to admit that he was leverage that could help sway the mind of the Tsuchikage.
She hummed her assent.
"Let's hope it helps to stop this madness."
* * *
The Tsuchikage was a severe and unbreakable-looking man in his fifties with greying hair and a beard that partially hid a deep scar on the side of his face. He wasn't very tall, even by the standards of the mountain people of Iwa, but his imposing presence could fill a room and cow any who dealt with him into submission.
He was the mighty leader of Iwagakure and his will was law within and sometimes beyond the boundaries of Earth Country. Any who dared to cross him could be certain that his retaliation would be swift - which was why his unfinished business with Konoha felt like a sharp bone, painfully lodged across the back of his throat for the past sixteen years.
Widowed mothers still told stories about the horrors of the Third Shinobi World War to their children and it pained him daily to see the newest generation of ninja bearing the weight of that shameful defeat on their shoulders. Unlike their fathers and grandfathers, who had worn their forehead protectors proudly, knowing in the superiority of their home, the young ones stood confident only as long as Konoha wasn't mentioned. There wasn't a person in Iwa who didn't simultaneously fear and hate the name "Yellow Flash", regardless of whether or not they had been around at the time of the war.
This angered the Tsuchikage and left him with only one possible course of action if he wanted to return Iwa to its former glory. He had to wipe the source of their humiliation off the map.
His determination was renewed as he looked at the ruins of an old bridge in the distance. Standing atop a grassy plateau in the middle of Grass Country, he could easily look down at the reddish-brown moss that had overtaken the concrete and iron remains of the large structure. The Tsuchikage briefly wondered if the colour had anything to do with the spilled blood of all the Iwa ninjas who had died there.
The greying man allowed himself a sigh before once again donning the stern face he needed to impress the Konoha representatives (which was, in fact, his most habitual expression even when in Iwa).
He was glad that the Hokage had come in person to the meeting, as per his request - he had a surprise for them and this would only make it better - but the fact that she had brought a child in her party rubbed him the wrong way. Were they implying that even their greenest could handle the best of Rock?
"These are our terms," he stated. "Konoha will have a month to comply and surrender unconditionally to the authority of Iwa. If you do not agree, then..." He trailed off, knowing that words were unnecessary.
In truth, he already knew that the tall Hokage with the unyielding golden eyes before him would never agree, but for now he had a part to play.
"That's ridiculous," Tsunade, the famed healer and recently appointed Fifth Hokage, said. "Konoha cannot agree to that!"
Concealed by the shade of his white and brown hat, the Tsuchikage held back the spiteful response that leapt to the tip of his tongue and cast another appraising glance at his surroundings. He had never been particularly patient, but he wanted to make sure that his plan went to perfection.
He was pleased not to find a single bent grass leaf in sight to betray the presence of all the other ninjas that he had ordered to hide around the meeting place. The small six man delegation from Konoha before him wouldn't even see them coming until it was too late.
"Let's cut the crap," Tsunade continued fiercely and the Tsuchikage had to give her credit for her boldness, annoying as it was. "We both know this has nothing to do with Konoha stealing clients from Iwa - this has petty revenge written all over it."
The Tsuchikage furiously fisted his hands, one at each side of his body, to keep himself from forming any handseals and attacking her there and then.
"You are mistaken."
"We suffered plenty of losses too," Tsunade forged on, trying her hardest not to think of Dan. "It was war, damn it! What gives you the right to think we owe you anything now?"
"Oh, but you do. And you will pay."
"You're really willing to sacrifice hundreds more over this...?"
Rather than answer the question, he turned to contemplate the four ninjas standing behind him, studying their features and scrutinising their stances. There wasn't a speck of uncertainty or weakness there.
The Hokage was losing her patience and so was he. It was time to put his plan in motion. Today would be the day Konoha lost its first ninjas to the new war, starting with their Hokage.
"Yes, I am. But if you're not, perhaps you'd like to offer your life instead of theirs?" he suggested.
The only reason Tsunade didn't huff was because she caught sight of Jiraiya holding back Naruto out the corner of her eye. The little brat must have rubbed off on her, if she was about to lose her composure over something like this.
"Again, that's ridiculous. Like I'd ever give myself up for execution."
"On the contrary," said the Tsuchikage. "What if we could settle this matter right here, once and for all?"
It was what Tsunade wanted. "Go on," she prompted, and if Jiraiya was discreetly shaking his head at her, she ignored him.
"I propose a one on one fight: Konoha's best against Iwa's. Whichever side wins, gets to decide what happens next."
It went unsaid that the fight would end when one of them lay dead on the ground, but no one needed to hear that to know that those were the terms.
It was an unusual arrangement, but one that Tsunade found herself contemplating nonetheless. If the Tsuchikage kept his word and Iwa lost the match, the benefits would be huge. On the other hand, if Konoha lost... not only would they be without an Hokage - because Tsunade wouldn't let such responsibility fall on anyone's shoulders but hers -, but her village would have to fight a bloody war at a disadvantage.
The Hokage could feel Jiraiya's eyes boring into her, willing her to look his way and hear out what he had to say. Undoubtedly, he was ready to volunteer himself or give her more warnings against trusting the Tsuchikage, so she ignored him and decided to study the Iwa delegation instead.
The four escorting the Tsuchikage looked as compliant and forbidding as all Iwa ninja should, like deadly puppets whose will was ready to be molded by their leader. Three of them bore slightly hateful expressions, while the fourth hid his features behind a white mask. That one looked to be the youngest of the group and Tsunade guessed that he had probably grown up hearing tales about the monster that was Konoha.
How did things get so messed up, she asked herself. It had been almost fifteen years since the war had ended, longer than Naruto had been alive. How could this hatred have festered for so long and come back after all these years to torment a generation that had nothing to do with it?
Was that masked escort as young as Naruto? Was he also being forced to fight for a cause that he knew nothing of because of obligation to his village?
Tsunade observed the Tsuchikage once more, this time puting all of her medical expertise to use. He was starting to be considered old, by ninja standards, and the harsh Iwa climate had probably aggravated the usual malaises that came with age. He walked slowly, a possible indication that his joints weren't as good as they used to be, but his blocky, compact build was evidence that he hadn't neglected his training. He was probably the type to stay in one place during a fight and rely on long-distance ninjutsu and, since he was from Iwa, Tsunade figured that his favourite techniques would be earth-based and extremely destructive.
He looked tough, but Tsunade was confident in her skills. She was sure that she could handle him, just as she knew that he would be her challenger. For the Tsuchikage to name another as "the best of Iwa" was unthinkable. He was too proud.
"I accept," Tsunade said before she could change her mind. She heard some angry shuffling coming from somewhere behind her - Jiraiya, most likely - but she kept her eyes on the Tsuchikage.
If he was indeed hiding something, as she suspected, now would be the time to be on the lookout.
"Arashi!!" he shouted, and the masked ninja Tsunade had appraised earlier stepped forward. "Arashi will be fighting on Iwa's behalf. Choose your champion, Konoha!"
Tsunade tried not to let surprise show on her face as she retreated to confer with the rest of her group. The constitution of the ninja she would have to fight had nothing to do with that of the Iwa leader. He was younger, limber, and the very fact that the Tsuchikage had considered him the strongest spoke volumes about how dangerous he'd be.
"I'll fight him," Jiraiya stated in a low but no less intense voice as soon as she was in hearing range. "You're a healer, I'm the grunt. I'll fight."
"No, Jiraiya," she said. "This is too big. As Hokage, I can't let anyone else do this."
"Damn it, don't you start getting a sense of responsibility now! Konoha needs you. You're too important to risk your life like this. I'll fight!"
Tsunade looked at Naruto, who was unusually quiet. He seemed calm on the outside, but she imagined that on the inside he would be feeling out of his depth in more ways than one. He only knew how to fight an enemy head-on, so this political manoeuvering and bargaining was something he'd never had to deal with before.
She had seen him take on Orochimaru and Kabuto and heard the account of how he'd went up against the One-Tailed Raccoon during the invasion of Konoha. Naruto had been fearless when he would have been expected to cower and that had allowed him to prevail against enemies much stronger than him. Tsunade would take a page from his book now and follow his example.
"No. I can do this," the Hokage determined.
Jiraiya sighed in grim resignation and wished her good luck. Before she turned back to head up to the Tsuchikage, he offered a last piece of advice, hoping it would make a difference and help her even the odds: "he's going to be fast. His build reminds me of Minato. Try to hamper his movements and immobilise him if you can."
"Beat that guy to the ground, granny!"
Naruto's grin exuded confidence and somehow that warmth instantly infected Tsunade. She couldn't lose now, not with that kid's vibrant cheer pushing her on. When she faced the Tsuchikage again, a similar smile was dancing on her lips and her Will of Fire was flaring in her golden gaze.
"I'll be representing Konoha, as it's only appropriate." She couldn't resist adding in the slight insult to the Tsuchikage, but he didn't seem at all bothered by it. In fact, he smiled too.
"Arashi," he began in a conversational tone, his eyes never leaning Tsunade's. "You're going up against a Kage. It's a tough opponent. Maybe you should take off your mask, so it doesn't disturb you."
Tsunade was too focused on matching wills with the greying Tsuchikage to catch a glimpse of more than a movement from the young ninja that indicated he had complied with his leader's request. It wasn't until she heard a very confused cry coming from Jiraiya that she wondered if there might not be more behind the Iwa ninja's smug words. She took a look herself. What she found rendered her momentarily speechless.
She'd already seen the yellow hair, but the stone-set face and the cold blue eyes she found minutely analysing her were all too disturbingly familiar yet out of place in someone wearing a Iwa uniform.
"Minato!?"
Chapter 3...
After Jiraiya's ominous proclamation, it seemed to Naruto that their return to Konoha was a bit anti-climactic.
The sun was shining and the ninja message-relaying birds were flying against the blue sky and sparse white clouds as usual. Off-duty ninja were wandering the streets and, since it was afternoon and they had finished up their classes for the day, the young genin-to-be were running about. They played and teased each other like on any normal day - and were often seen pestering the older generation into teaching them a trick or two to up-show some other kid in class who thought he was so cool.
Jiraiya sneaked a glance at his own charge when the begging of one particularly insistent nine-year-old reached his ears. The blond completely missed the implicit comparison and kept grinning in relief that home appeared to be exactly as they had left it.
Rising like a protective parent above the red-roofed houses stood their destination, the rounded Hokage Tower, as comfortingly white and red as ever. Just beyond it, multiple scaffolds partially obscured the rocky mountain wall that bore the carved effigies of the past village leaders. Tsunade's likeness was still under construction.
Inexperienced as he was, Naruto failed to see the odd details that Jiraiya was keeping track of as they walked. ANBU, who were so rarely seen outside the Hokage Tower (when on assignment, they became virtually invisible), were openly patrolling the village walls and roofs and there was a noted increase on the number of ninja hanging around. They walked past a few foreign merchants as well, who were discussing the sale of products that the village had never used to import: Konoha was stocking supplies.
All of these things worried Jiraiya, who had seen enough wartime preparations to last him a lifetime and had hoped to never go through it again. The fact that Tsunade and the Council had only given the order to regroup discreetly at the village rather than to proceed to some target, though, was consoling in that it meant that the worst might yet be avoided.
Student and teacher followed a tense-looking Shizune into Tsunade's office and found the blonde Hokage sitting behind a desk surprisingly clear of paperwork and nursing a cup of sake. Also present was Kakashi.
"Good, you're here," greeted Tsunade. She bent towards one of her desk drawers to fetch an extra cup of sake for Jiraiya.
"Hey, granny, Kakashi-sensei! Is Konoha really going to war? Everything seems fine to me," Naruto asked casually. Tsunade immediately felt her headache worsening but, since her hands were busy, she didn't pound some sense into the short teenager.
Kakashi didn't share the same problem.
"I see you haven't changed, Naruto." He sighed. "Be more careful about what you say."
"It'll be a long time before any measure of sense gets past that thick skull," Tsunade said. "And with the pervert for a teacher..."
"Hey," said pervert exclaimed, feigning more annoyance than he actually felt, "what do I have to do with it?"
"You're the one who picks these idiots for students," the Hokage remarked.
The Copy Ninja smiled with a touch of embarrassment for his former student and his favourite book author, closing his one visible eye in the process.
Meanwhile, Naruto was feeling a little stung at the way they were talking about him (and in front of him, too!), so he crossed his arms and decided to sulk. By the time Tsunade had handed the sake cup over to her former teammate and started filling them in on the situation, though, he had forgotten all about it and was listening as attentively as the others.
"I asked you two to come back because last week I received a disturbing message from Earth Country," Tsunade said tersely, in full Hokage-mode. "It was very long-winded and full of bullshit, but, in short, the Tsuchikage claims that we've somehow wronged Iwa and demands reparation."
Jiraiya immediately groaned at the revealed identity of their enemy: he should have expected it. Iwa had been itching to get back at Konoha for close to fifteen years, because of the humiliating losses they had suffered during the last great war at the hands of the man they had nicknamed the Yellow Flash - the not-yet-appointed Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
Konoha hadn't come out of that war untouched either - it was considered one of the bleakest periods in its history - but an Iwa ninja wouldn't be an Iwa ninja if they weren't as stubborn and proud as rocks, and capable of holding a grudge until the mountains themselves lost memory of the event.
"They are threatening to declare war, and you know what will happen if two of the great ninja villages break the world-wide peace pact at this point."
Jiraiya let his gaze slip down to the Hokage's clear desk and nodded. Political games had never been his favourites but that did not mean he didn't know the rules. "The remaining countries will either wait until we wear ourselves out and strike to conquer when we're at our weakest, or they'll line up to fight with us and it will be the beginning of a fourth world war."
Either outcome was grim, and Konoha already had more than enough on its plate, with the reappearance of Orochimaru, Sasuke's desertion and the sinister Akatsuki out to get Naruto.
"Hmm, their spies must have found out about what's been happening lately and, with a brand new Hokage still settling into her post, figured that we were finally vulnerable enough," Kakashi said.
"Wait," Naruto cut in, not having picked up on anything beyond the "Iwa wants war" part. "Can they do that? We didn't do anything to them, granny, did we?"
"Reasons don't matter here, Naruto," she explained, the tightness about her face relaxing a fraction. "Iwa can fabricate all the excuses they want and it won't matter if they're real or not. The only thing the other villages will be interested in is whether or not it's convenient for them to go along with it."
"So, what now?" Jiraiya continued, serious as he was rarely seen. He could always fill in the bits Naruto hadn't understood for him later. The most important was finding out if Tsunade had already made any decisions.
"Now, we talk. In his message, the Tsuchikage proposed a private meeting on neutral territory to discuss his terms and state his demands. It's obviously a ruse: I doubt he'd let go of the idea of getting revenge for anything we might offer. Maybe he just wants to gauge our strength, to see for himself what I'm capable of as Hokage, but this will be our only chance to dissuade him from going forward with this.
"I've already sent out teams of ANBU to scout out and secure the location," she continued. "If all goes well, we'll meet in five days' time, in Grass Country."
Hearing the name of the place, the toad summoner couldn't help but feel even more sceptical about the deal. He shot Tsunade a meaningful look that she carefully turned to avoid.
"Grass Country? The Tsuchikage wants to talk on the place where we struck the blow that brought Iwa to its knees all those years ago?" he said mockingly. Kakashi lowered his head in thought, too familiar with that particular event. It was the battle where he had gained his Sharingan.
"I agree with Jiraiya," the Copy Ninja said. "You shouldn't go."
"I know that it might be a trap," the Fifth insisted, "but I can't just refuse and sit by as they plan to destroy the village I swore to protect. That's why I asked you to come here today. I need you to hold the village and the Council together while I'm away."
Jiraiya looked down into his cup of sake and finally downed it after a resigned sigh.
"This was why I didn't want to take this job," he muttered. Then continued, so everyone could hear: "Fine. But Kakashi can handle things here by himself - I'm going with you."
Finally catching on to what was being decided, Naruto piped in as well. "Yeah, and me too! I'll keep you safe, granny!"
"You seem to be forgetting, brat, that the Akatsuki are still out looking for you," said Tsunade. "You're not going anywhere."
"What?! You can't do that! I can..."
Naruto would have gone on with his argument if Jiraiya hadn't placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. The old pervert was staring at the Hokage with a calculating look, so he remained silent and waited for his teacher to reveal his intentions.
"Maybe he should go," Jiraiya pondered aloud. "It wouldn't hurt to remind Iwa that Konoha has a very promising, very special new generation."
His inflection was not lost on Tsunade or Kakashi and soon they were going through the ramifications of what taking Naruto along might mean. After all, after the Chuunin Exams and with Akatsuki already about, his identity was hardly a well-kept secret anymore. It could not hurt to remind Iwa that they had the power of the Nine-tails on their side.
Sad as it was to think of Naruto that way - like the secret weapon so many on the Council had tried to turn him into - Tsunade had to admit that he was leverage that could help sway the mind of the Tsuchikage.
She hummed her assent.
"Let's hope it helps to stop this madness."
* * *
The Tsuchikage was a severe and unbreakable-looking man in his fifties with greying hair and a beard that partially hid a deep scar on the side of his face. He wasn't very tall, even by the standards of the mountain people of Iwa, but his imposing presence could fill a room and cow any who dealt with him into submission.
He was the mighty leader of Iwagakure and his will was law within and sometimes beyond the boundaries of Earth Country. Any who dared to cross him could be certain that his retaliation would be swift - which was why his unfinished business with Konoha felt like a sharp bone, painfully lodged across the back of his throat for the past sixteen years.
Widowed mothers still told stories about the horrors of the Third Shinobi World War to their children and it pained him daily to see the newest generation of ninja bearing the weight of that shameful defeat on their shoulders. Unlike their fathers and grandfathers, who had worn their forehead protectors proudly, knowing in the superiority of their home, the young ones stood confident only as long as Konoha wasn't mentioned. There wasn't a person in Iwa who didn't simultaneously fear and hate the name "Yellow Flash", regardless of whether or not they had been around at the time of the war.
This angered the Tsuchikage and left him with only one possible course of action if he wanted to return Iwa to its former glory. He had to wipe the source of their humiliation off the map.
His determination was renewed as he looked at the ruins of an old bridge in the distance. Standing atop a grassy plateau in the middle of Grass Country, he could easily look down at the reddish-brown moss that had overtaken the concrete and iron remains of the large structure. The Tsuchikage briefly wondered if the colour had anything to do with the spilled blood of all the Iwa ninjas who had died there.
The greying man allowed himself a sigh before once again donning the stern face he needed to impress the Konoha representatives (which was, in fact, his most habitual expression even when in Iwa).
He was glad that the Hokage had come in person to the meeting, as per his request - he had a surprise for them and this would only make it better - but the fact that she had brought a child in her party rubbed him the wrong way. Were they implying that even their greenest could handle the best of Rock?
"These are our terms," he stated. "Konoha will have a month to comply and surrender unconditionally to the authority of Iwa. If you do not agree, then..." He trailed off, knowing that words were unnecessary.
In truth, he already knew that the tall Hokage with the unyielding golden eyes before him would never agree, but for now he had a part to play.
"That's ridiculous," Tsunade, the famed healer and recently appointed Fifth Hokage, said. "Konoha cannot agree to that!"
Concealed by the shade of his white and brown hat, the Tsuchikage held back the spiteful response that leapt to the tip of his tongue and cast another appraising glance at his surroundings. He had never been particularly patient, but he wanted to make sure that his plan went to perfection.
He was pleased not to find a single bent grass leaf in sight to betray the presence of all the other ninjas that he had ordered to hide around the meeting place. The small six man delegation from Konoha before him wouldn't even see them coming until it was too late.
"Let's cut the crap," Tsunade continued fiercely and the Tsuchikage had to give her credit for her boldness, annoying as it was. "We both know this has nothing to do with Konoha stealing clients from Iwa - this has petty revenge written all over it."
The Tsuchikage furiously fisted his hands, one at each side of his body, to keep himself from forming any handseals and attacking her there and then.
"You are mistaken."
"We suffered plenty of losses too," Tsunade forged on, trying her hardest not to think of Dan. "It was war, damn it! What gives you the right to think we owe you anything now?"
"Oh, but you do. And you will pay."
"You're really willing to sacrifice hundreds more over this...?"
Rather than answer the question, he turned to contemplate the four ninjas standing behind him, studying their features and scrutinising their stances. There wasn't a speck of uncertainty or weakness there.
The Hokage was losing her patience and so was he. It was time to put his plan in motion. Today would be the day Konoha lost its first ninjas to the new war, starting with their Hokage.
"Yes, I am. But if you're not, perhaps you'd like to offer your life instead of theirs?" he suggested.
The only reason Tsunade didn't huff was because she caught sight of Jiraiya holding back Naruto out the corner of her eye. The little brat must have rubbed off on her, if she was about to lose her composure over something like this.
"Again, that's ridiculous. Like I'd ever give myself up for execution."
"On the contrary," said the Tsuchikage. "What if we could settle this matter right here, once and for all?"
It was what Tsunade wanted. "Go on," she prompted, and if Jiraiya was discreetly shaking his head at her, she ignored him.
"I propose a one on one fight: Konoha's best against Iwa's. Whichever side wins, gets to decide what happens next."
It went unsaid that the fight would end when one of them lay dead on the ground, but no one needed to hear that to know that those were the terms.
It was an unusual arrangement, but one that Tsunade found herself contemplating nonetheless. If the Tsuchikage kept his word and Iwa lost the match, the benefits would be huge. On the other hand, if Konoha lost... not only would they be without an Hokage - because Tsunade wouldn't let such responsibility fall on anyone's shoulders but hers -, but her village would have to fight a bloody war at a disadvantage.
The Hokage could feel Jiraiya's eyes boring into her, willing her to look his way and hear out what he had to say. Undoubtedly, he was ready to volunteer himself or give her more warnings against trusting the Tsuchikage, so she ignored him and decided to study the Iwa delegation instead.
The four escorting the Tsuchikage looked as compliant and forbidding as all Iwa ninja should, like deadly puppets whose will was ready to be molded by their leader. Three of them bore slightly hateful expressions, while the fourth hid his features behind a white mask. That one looked to be the youngest of the group and Tsunade guessed that he had probably grown up hearing tales about the monster that was Konoha.
How did things get so messed up, she asked herself. It had been almost fifteen years since the war had ended, longer than Naruto had been alive. How could this hatred have festered for so long and come back after all these years to torment a generation that had nothing to do with it?
Was that masked escort as young as Naruto? Was he also being forced to fight for a cause that he knew nothing of because of obligation to his village?
Tsunade observed the Tsuchikage once more, this time puting all of her medical expertise to use. He was starting to be considered old, by ninja standards, and the harsh Iwa climate had probably aggravated the usual malaises that came with age. He walked slowly, a possible indication that his joints weren't as good as they used to be, but his blocky, compact build was evidence that he hadn't neglected his training. He was probably the type to stay in one place during a fight and rely on long-distance ninjutsu and, since he was from Iwa, Tsunade figured that his favourite techniques would be earth-based and extremely destructive.
He looked tough, but Tsunade was confident in her skills. She was sure that she could handle him, just as she knew that he would be her challenger. For the Tsuchikage to name another as "the best of Iwa" was unthinkable. He was too proud.
"I accept," Tsunade said before she could change her mind. She heard some angry shuffling coming from somewhere behind her - Jiraiya, most likely - but she kept her eyes on the Tsuchikage.
If he was indeed hiding something, as she suspected, now would be the time to be on the lookout.
"Arashi!!" he shouted, and the masked ninja Tsunade had appraised earlier stepped forward. "Arashi will be fighting on Iwa's behalf. Choose your champion, Konoha!"
Tsunade tried not to let surprise show on her face as she retreated to confer with the rest of her group. The constitution of the ninja she would have to fight had nothing to do with that of the Iwa leader. He was younger, limber, and the very fact that the Tsuchikage had considered him the strongest spoke volumes about how dangerous he'd be.
"I'll fight him," Jiraiya stated in a low but no less intense voice as soon as she was in hearing range. "You're a healer, I'm the grunt. I'll fight."
"No, Jiraiya," she said. "This is too big. As Hokage, I can't let anyone else do this."
"Damn it, don't you start getting a sense of responsibility now! Konoha needs you. You're too important to risk your life like this. I'll fight!"
Tsunade looked at Naruto, who was unusually quiet. He seemed calm on the outside, but she imagined that on the inside he would be feeling out of his depth in more ways than one. He only knew how to fight an enemy head-on, so this political manoeuvering and bargaining was something he'd never had to deal with before.
She had seen him take on Orochimaru and Kabuto and heard the account of how he'd went up against the One-Tailed Raccoon during the invasion of Konoha. Naruto had been fearless when he would have been expected to cower and that had allowed him to prevail against enemies much stronger than him. Tsunade would take a page from his book now and follow his example.
"No. I can do this," the Hokage determined.
Jiraiya sighed in grim resignation and wished her good luck. Before she turned back to head up to the Tsuchikage, he offered a last piece of advice, hoping it would make a difference and help her even the odds: "he's going to be fast. His build reminds me of Minato. Try to hamper his movements and immobilise him if you can."
"Beat that guy to the ground, granny!"
Naruto's grin exuded confidence and somehow that warmth instantly infected Tsunade. She couldn't lose now, not with that kid's vibrant cheer pushing her on. When she faced the Tsuchikage again, a similar smile was dancing on her lips and her Will of Fire was flaring in her golden gaze.
"I'll be representing Konoha, as it's only appropriate." She couldn't resist adding in the slight insult to the Tsuchikage, but he didn't seem at all bothered by it. In fact, he smiled too.
"Arashi," he began in a conversational tone, his eyes never leaning Tsunade's. "You're going up against a Kage. It's a tough opponent. Maybe you should take off your mask, so it doesn't disturb you."
Tsunade was too focused on matching wills with the greying Tsuchikage to catch a glimpse of more than a movement from the young ninja that indicated he had complied with his leader's request. It wasn't until she heard a very confused cry coming from Jiraiya that she wondered if there might not be more behind the Iwa ninja's smug words. She took a look herself. What she found rendered her momentarily speechless.
She'd already seen the yellow hair, but the stone-set face and the cold blue eyes she found minutely analysing her were all too disturbingly familiar yet out of place in someone wearing a Iwa uniform.
"Minato!?"
Chapter 3...