442 The Shimura Has Ice Release

Uchiha Hikari stayed in the Land of Wind for only one day.

Early the next morning, Pakura received her subordinates' report that Uchiha Hikari had already left the Land of Wind, and they had completely lost track of him.

After hearing the report, she made no comment—she only told her subordinates to prepare the tools needed for the remote meeting.

By the afternoon, with everything ready, Pakura sat down at her desk, facing the screen directly in front of her.

"Tsuchikage-sama, your shinobi from the Land of Earth are too much—you're not leaving our shinobi from the Land of Lightning any chance to survive!"

The moment the meeting connected, Pakura heard Raikage Dodai complaining at Ōnoki.

"Raikage, what are you talking about? This project was entrusted to us because our bid from the Land of Earth was cheaper than yours. You couldn't compete, so how can you say we were excessive?"

Ōnoki immediately countered.

"You relied on the fact that your country has a huge number of Lava Release shinobi, allowing you to cut down the cement budget—that's the only reason you could offer such a low price."

"This is the shinobi world. Isn't it completely natural to use the strengths of your shinobi efficiently?" The moment Ōnoki said that, Dodai's originally fair old face turned dark, almost resembling the Third Raikage's fierce aura.

"Exactly, Raikage-sama, the Tsuchikage is right. Reasonable bidding is—"

Sakumo tried to mediate, but before he could finish, Dodai forcefully cut him off:

"And you, Hokage-sama—your people are just as bad! You actually sent the Hyūga clan to participate in the bidding—doesn't that mean you read our bid documents inside and out?!"

Hearing the accusation directed at him, Sakumo became serious.

"Raikage-sama, you shouldn't make claims without proof. The reason our price happened to be slightly lower than yours is pure coincidence."

"Hokage, do you even believe that yourself?" Ōnoki also sided with the Raikage.

Their group had only been awarded part of the project—the rest had all been secured by the Land of Fire.

The reason? The other party had offered a bid even lower than theirs.

As the first shinobi power to industrialize, the Land of Fire had always maintained the highest level of technology in the shinobi world.

Because of this, in many openly tendered projects, the Land of Fire's construction teams were everywhere.

Roads, bridges, skyscrapers; military, civilian, heavy or light industry—there was nothing the Land of Fire couldn't do.

"Alright, alright, let's not listen to baseless rumors. Speaking of which, our Land of Fire's military department recently developed a new type of armored vehicle. I was just planning to send a few to each of your nations—"

Sakumo waved helplessly, steering the conversation away.

"Anyway, since we're all members of the Shinobi Alliance, isn't doing more or less all for mutual progress?"

Ōnoki, as always, was the first to change gears, resuming his honeymoon-like cooperation with the Land of Fire.

"Yes, yes, mutual progress, mutual progress. But there's something I must ask—Hokage, your armored vehicle isn't going to blow its own barrel, is it?"

Dodai no longer mentioned the earlier unpleasantness and cautiously asked about the vehicle's durability.

"That…"

Sakumo was speechless. Whether it would explode or not wasn't something he, as Hokage, could decide.

Once all the Kage finished discussing the general terms of military aid, the topic of infrastructure was skipped entirely.

"Regarding the Three-Tails, there are still no signs of revival."

Yagura was the first to bring up the matter everyone cared most about.

The revival of the Three-Tails involved the life of the Fifth Hokage, so naturally the Kage present were all concerned.

"Exploration of the otherworld space is progressing steadily. There is still no trace of Isshiki. The tailed beasts captured by them remain missing."

"Hokage, I propose we redistribute the tailed beasts. As of now, both the Land of Wind and the Land of Water have none. This goes against Hashirama-sama's original will."

Just as Yagura said, the Lands of Wind and Water currently had no jinchūriki. They urgently needed tailed beasts to strengthen their combat power.

Among the Five Great Nations, the Land of Earth had the Five-Tails, the Land of Lightning had the Eight-Tails, and the Land of Fire had the Seven-Tails and Nine-Tails. Whether or not the still-missing Three-Tails was included, the nation with the most tailed beasts was the Land of Fire.

"Mizukage, you must be joking. There are only four tailed beasts left in the shinobi world. Even if we divide them again, one nation will still end up empty-handed. And even if the Three-Tails revives in the future, the current tailed beasts all have jinchūriki. Do you expect every nation to extract them just to redistribute them?"

Pakura was the first to oppose.

The Land of Wind lived comfortably relying on the Land of Fire and didn't need tailed beasts to strengthen their army.

"Kazekage is right. Besides, the era of Hashirama-sama is completely different from today. The decisions of our predecessors aren't always correct. Look at Uchiha Madara—didn't he fall for Black Zetsu's deception and make countless mistakes…"

Ōnoki agreed, and as expected, once again used Uchiha Madara as the punching bag of history.

"Tsuchikage-sama, this is already the twenty-third time you've mentioned Uchiha Madara this year."

Yagura was speechless. This guy Ōnoki always managed to find the perfect moment to complain about Uchiha Madara. His trauma must have run deep; otherwise at his age he wouldn't still be holding on to those memories.

The group exchanged a few more complaints—especially Pakura, who brought up Yagura's immoral actions from years ago, declaring that she would properly spar with him during the next Five Kage Summit.

Yagura could only respond with: do whatever makes you happy.

"In any case, let's save these topics for the formal Five Kage Summit next month."

In the end, it was Hatake Sakumo who concluded the remote meeting.

The current Konoha Village has officially been renamed Konoha City.

However, many long-time residents who have lived here for years still habitually call the land beneath their feet by its original name.

Outside the village, Naruto, who had just finished a mission, spotted that flash of pink standing at the gate from afar.

"Sakura?"

When Naruto walked closer, he recognized her at a glance.

"Why are you standing here?"

"I just finished a mission and was about to deliver some materials to the medical division." Sakura showed a youthful smile and naturally stepped up beside Naruto.

"Really? I feel like I've been seeing you a lot lately whenever I come back to the village."

"Doesn't that mean we're meant to be?"

"Haha, you really know how to joke."

The two chatted as they walked toward the village. They hadn't gone far when Hinata suddenly stepped out from behind a nearby tree. Watching the two figures walk away, her expression grew complicated.

"Naruto..."

Hinata subconsciously raised her thumb and bit her nail.

After a moment, Hinata followed after them.

Not long after Hinata left, another figure poked his head out from behind the spot she had just been standing in—Otsutsuki Toneri.

"Hinata..."

Staring at Hinata's retreating silhouette, Toneri seemed dazed. After hesitating for a moment, he followed as well.

"Tch, that stalker is still pestering the young lady." No sooner had Toneri left than Neji, who had been secretly protecting Hinata, stepped out. His eyes, fixed on Toneri's back, were filled with killing intent.

"I'm sorry, but what is with you people nesting inside one another like this?"

The last to arrive were Sasuke and Karin, both dumbfounded.

One after another—what kind of twisted plot were they all acting out?

Even those melodramatic romance dramas at 8 p.m. weren't this complicated, okay?

"You don't get it, Sasuke. Sakura is full of courage, while the thing Hinata lacks most is courage. As for Toneri, because he once got beaten senseless by the Fifth Hokage, he's way too scared to confess to Hinata."

Ino suddenly appeared from who-knows-where and leaned beside Sasuke as she explained.

Sasuke quickly stepped aside, putting Karin between himself and Ino.

"Tch~"

Seeing his reaction, Ino was displeased, but she didn't continue pestering him.

"In short, right now there are two people who like Naruto—one's a bit braver, while the other never dares to take that step, right?"

Choji, crunching loudly on potato chips, summarized the situation perfectly.

"Exactly, Choji!" Ino laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Um, are you guys seriously discussing this right in front of me?" Neji's face darkened as he looked at this crowd that had suddenly materialized.

"Neji, you don't understand—love is also part of youth." Just as Neji was preparing to distance himself and find a chance to eliminate Toneri, Lee appeared behind him without warning.

"That's right, Neji. Lee said exactly what I wanted to say. Love and youth don't conflict—in fact, they make youth burn even brighter!"

Might Guy appeared in front of Neji, sandwiching him between master and student.

"Ahh… these two hot-blooded idiots..."

Tenten stood farthest away, massaging her forehead helplessly.

"Tenten, are you guys headed out on a mission?" Ino looked at Tenten's fully armed appearance, puzzled.

"No. It's all because of Guy-sensei. He keeps saying a ninja's youth must burn to the fullest, and even without missions we can't neglect training..." Tenten complained bitterly to Ino. She didn't dislike training—but with these two hot-blooded idiots beside her, even the best training turned overwhelmingly green.

"I heard missions have been scarce lately because of the Five Kage Summit." Karin shared the news she heard from Minato.

"That's right. This year's Five Kage Summit is being held in the Land of Fire." Sasuke nodded, confirming the information.

"The Five Kage Summit, huh? Not bad—we might even get to see the Five Kage in person." A look of longing flashed across Tenten's face.

She really wanted to meet the only female Kage—Kazekage Pakura.

In her heart, Pakura ranked right below Tsunade, and was one of the people she admired most.

"I heard the Mizukage of the Land of Water looks like a young boy just like the Fifth, but he's actually already..."

Lee began speaking, but before he could finish, Ino interrupted, "Hey, Lee!"

"Ah, sorry, I…"

Reminded by Ino, Lee immediately realized he had said something he shouldn't and apologized in a panic.

Sasuke, Karin, and the others all showed a moment of sadness on their faces.

Even Guy shut his mouth and stopped smiling.

"It's fine, Lee." But Guy was the first to recover. "This is a ninja's fate. From the moment he and I met, we had already accepted this possibility. Anyway, did I ever tell you about the time I fought alongside the Fifth Hokage? Back then, we also—"

...

Near the Konoha Memorial Stone, Obito, who was patrolling the area, spotted a familiar figure standing before the monument.

"Asuma?"

"Oh, Obito." Hearing the voice, Asuma turned around. Seeing it was Obito, he nodded.

Nowadays, Asuma handled part of the Fire Country's military affairs, so he rarely crossed paths with Obito.

"You must be pretty busy with work, right?" Obito said as he casually glanced over the names engraved on the stone. Some were familiar, but most were strangers.

"Yeah. The Five Kage Summit is a huge event. Your side must be busy too." Asuma subconsciously reached into his pocket, only to touch nothing.

He suddenly remembered he'd quit smoking for the sake of his child and let out a bitter smile.

"If that guy were here, he'd definitely be mocking me again."

Obito smiled as well.

"Yeah. Back then, he was always the one doing the complaining."

"You're one to talk. You were the one he scolded the most. Only he could tolerate someone like you who's always late." Asuma's eyes softened with nostalgia.

"Right, I remember one time the two of us teamed up and forced him to wear women's clothes. Your eyes were practically glued on him."

"As if you weren't staring too!"

"What are you saying? My heart belongs only to Kurenai!"

"And my heart belongs only to Rin!"

The two fell silent.

"Honestly… why do the best people always leave first?" Asuma reached over and rummaged in Obito's pocket.

"Don't bother. I don't smoke." Obito rolled his eye and batted Asuma's hand away.

"That's a shame." Asuma pulled his hand back, shrugged, and looked toward the memorial stone.

"If that guy doesn't come back soon, his name is going to end up carved here."

"Anyone who dares carve it, I'll beat to death."

"Well, well. Haven't seen you for a while, and Obito, you've grown some spine." No sooner had Obito spoken than someone smacked him on the head.

"Kakashi, you're here too." Seeing who it was, Asuma greeted him.

Effortlessly dodging Obito's attempt to retaliate, Kakashi nodded at Asuma in response.

"Kakashi, why aren't you obediently sitting in your office doing paperwork? What are you doing here?!"

Seeing how agile Kakashi was, Obito gritted his teeth in anger.

"Well, you see… the higher-ups just made a decision..." After Obito stopped chasing him, Kakashi finally halted, scratching his head. He thought for a moment, then decided to tell them.

"After this Five Kage Summit ends, the Fourth Hokage is going to step down."