"Uncle Shibi, did they bring a girl from the Hyuga family with them when they crossed the border?"
"This... They brought an extra person, but I can't confirm that, it's covered up tightly. But according to your description, it should be almost the same."
Hearing this, Haruto gritted his teeth and walked out.
Seeing that the flames of war were intensifying, Haruto couldn't help but want to make a move. Haruto, who was already angry, wanted to vent a long time ago.
"What are you going to do? Calm down, Haruto, you are not like this usually."
Haruto calmed down and stood where he was.
"It's not yet time for you to play. Soldiers against soldiers, generals against generals. It's just the beginning of the war—although the fight is fierce, it's not really time to fight to the death. The Third Hokage's communication means to try first to negotiate, and if it doesn't work, start a full-fledged war. You have to understand that once you join the battle, the high-end combat power on the opposite side will also join, and then the situation will be irreversible." Shibi said seriously.
"Isn't this considered a complete war now?" Haruto wondered.
"Of course not. Once the war really starts, tens of thousands of troops will be mobilized. Not only the students of the ninja academy will go to the battlefield, but also the small ninja villages of the Vassel countries and the samurai legions under the command of the daimyo will all participate in the battle, which is even more cruel. If you do, the civilians will also be driven into human bombs. Haruto, you have never seen what a real war is like. The cruel scene like this is just a small friction."
Haruto's inexplicable emotions calmed down when he heard Shibi's words. Thinking of the cruelty of war, Haruto was silent for a long time.
"Then try to negotiate first. As long as the demands on the other side are not too excessive, I think it's better for the war to stop."
Haruto said silently in his heart: "The premise is that Hinata is not hurt, otherwise I don't know what I can do by myself."
"Huh?" Killer Bee, who was listening to his subordinate's report at the temporary headquarters, suddenly sensed a killing intent, and a figure rushed towards Killer Bee at a speed that ordinary people could not recognize.
Killer Bee didn't dodge, not even block it.
With a sound of "Boom!", Killer Bee's whole body was embedded in the ground.
"Lord Killer Bee, are you okay, the enemy is Lord Raikage!"
"You all go back first."
"Boom!" Killer Bee was thrown into the ground again just as he got up.
"Lord Raikage, this has nothing to do with the teacher. The war was caused because I took people out without permission." Omoi quickly took the responsibility on himself.
"No, it's all because of me. If it wasn't for my greed and self-assertion, Omoi wouldn't have done it either." Samui also stood up quickly.
"Don't be noisy!" Raikage stared at Killer Bee and asked, "What's going on?"
After a while, Raikage followed Killer Bee and the others to a simple tent.
"Is it this girl? Because of her, we Kumogakure were somehow involved in this war."
Looking at the unconscious Hinata, Raikage sighed: "It's really not worth it."
"I'm sorry, Lord Raikage, it's all because of me."
"I have to say that you, Samui, let me down. But this is the end of the matter, and it's useless to say more." After hearing what Samui said, Raikage felt extremely pained. War.
"Lord Raikage, this is a document from Konoha. They hope to have a negotiation with us tomorrow morning."
Raikage took the document and glanced at it, then turned and walked out.
"Let's go, let's make a battle plan. Although this war is inexplicable, since we Kumogakure lost lives, we can't get any benefits. If Konoha can't make a condition that satisfies me..."
After half a day of fierce fighting, the anger of the ninjas on both sides finally dissipated a bit. As the evening approached, the entangled two sides gradually dispersed. Although it was only a small battle with hundreds of people, the surrounding terrain had been destroyed beyond recognition. As the ninjas on both sides returned to camp, intermittent cries gradually sounded from both sides.
"Teacher! Teacher! Woohoo—it's all my fault, if it wasn't for hooooo—" A teenager hugged the corpse of a middle-aged man and cried bitterly.
"I swear that I will kill a hundred Kumogakure ninjas to avenge you." A young man covered in scars hugged a girl's body tightly but did not cry. His face was as calm as stagnant water, only the gleam in his eyes—hatred enough to swallow everything.
"Doctor, doctor, help my brother, you see he is still breathing, please."
Haruto walked out of the camp and watched the scene quietly for a while, and then Haruto lowered his head sadly.
Suddenly Haruto felt his anger disappear like a tide, and Haruto remembered the great ambition he had made, if there could be peace.
"Boom." A person knocked Haruto down, but that person continued to run forward without looking back.
"Have you seen my two younger brothers? They are so tall, and there are scars here." A black-haired woman with glasses asked and identified each one until it was completely dark, she was still standing at the gate of the camp and watching. Until no one came in, she suddenly seemed to lose all her strength, fell to her knees softly, covered her face with her hands and began to cry.
"Is this war?" Haruto murmured with his head bowed.
Haruto walked out of the camp aimlessly, looking at the battlefield in the distance. Haruto began to think. Haruto thought a lot—from the past to the future, from ideals to the meaning of life. Suddenly a cry of pain in the distance interrupted Haruto's thinking.
Haruto stepped forward only to find that it was a child who was screaming in pain, and there were two Konoha ninjas standing beside him.
One of the Konoha ninjas knelt on the ground with a face full of bewilderment.
"I, I don't know, he rushed out from there just now, with a weapon in his hand, I just now—"
Haruto stepped forward to check the child's injuries and found that the entire spleen had been smashed.
The boy suddenly picked up the knife at hand and stabbed Haruto, but Haruto dodged quickly.
"Ah—give me back my parents, give me back!" The boy struggled violently.
"Why, why did you kill them? Give them back to me!" The boy kept cursing, biting Haruto, but Haruto didn't dodge, and let the boy leave a few scars on his body.
Gradually, the boy lost his breath, but the boy's eyes full of curse and resentment pierced Haruto's heart deeply.
"I'm sorry." Haruto suddenly felt that his sorry words were a little pale. Compared with the hurt Konoha and Kumogakure shinobi, the innocent citizens of Land of Hot Water whose lives were affected should be more painful.
Thinking that what Shibi mentioned during the day was just a small friction, Haruto suddenly felt a trace of fear.
Is this the cruelty of war?
Early morning. The sun had just risen over the misty battlefield. Konoha and the Hidden Cloud each dispatched several people toward the center.
"What's wrong, Haruto?" Jiraiya noticed Haruto Itsuki's grim expression and asked with concern.
"...It's nothing. I just wonder if the negotiations can really go smoothly." Haruto's voice was flat, but the unease in his eyes was clear.
Jiraiya took a deep look at him but remained silent. He thought to himself: This kid already understands. He just doesn't want to accept it yet...
———
"Brother... I'm afraid Konoha won't accept this kind of treaty at all." Killer B hesitated, his expression unusually serious.
"Then how else do we make up for our losses?" Raikage A didn't look back as he responded coldly.
"But this outcome... it's only going to hurt both sides. This war has no value at all."
"Enough. If this were any other time, I might have chosen peace... But this is our only chance. That Konoha boy—Haruto Itsuki—he's already that strong at just twelve. If we wait, in a few years... there'll be no one left to stop him.
If the other villages find out about him, they'll all move against Konoha. We have to strike now—either kill that monster or cripple Konoha's strength before it's too late."
Killer B fell silent.
———
At the center of the battlefield— Jiraiya stood opposite Raikage A. Behind them stood Shikaku and Haruto, staring down Killer Bee and Omoi.
Though Shikaku Nara was the designated commander, it was Jiraiya who acted as Konoha's negotiator.
Jiraiya's voice was sharp: "Your so-called treaty isn't a negotiation. You want us to give up control of several buffer nations, and hand over a girl from the Hyuga clan?"
Raikage A folded his arms. "We've already buried too many of our own. Land of Hot Water can't accept this war without compensation."
"And what, Konoha's dead don't matter?" Jiraiya stood abruptly, eyes narrowing with killing intent.
"You came begging for peace. Show us some sincerity then." Raikage stood as well.
"Then there's nothing to talk about." Jiraiya's voice turned cold. "See you on the battlefield."
"Exactly what I wanted to say." Raikage slapped the table and turned away. Killer Bee and Omoi quickly followed.
"Wait—please!" Haruto stepped forward, forcing a smile.
"Lord Raikage, if we both go to war, it won't end quickly. Countless lives will be lost. Even if we fight, all it'll do is give Iwagakure the chance to swoop in and benefit."
Raikage A paused. "...What I've offered is already Land of Hot Water's bottom line. If Konoha can't accept that—then there's no negotiation."
Haruto's smile stiffened. "No one in Konoha would ever agree to such terms. Let's sit down and talk again. Please."
Raikage turned his back. "We'll take what we want ourselves."
"...What is human life to you...?" Haruto's voice dropped into a murmur.
"I hate people like you... Do you know how many people will die because of your pride? How many children will lose their parents? How many wives will lose their husbands? Your own men follow you because they believe in you, and you just throw their lives away like that? The ninja world is a mess because of leaders like you!"
Haruto clenched his fists. "I swear… one day, I will kill all people like you!"
Raikage A turned slightly, then smiled with disdain.
"Heh… What a naïve little brat. Peace? You think the world wants peace? If you don't kill and grow strong, others will kill you. This is a world where the weak are devoured. You think Konoha's different? Don't make me laugh. You want to kill me? Come then. I'll be waiting."
———
On the way back, A was silent. Killer B frowned. "Brother, what's wrong?"
"...That kid's words were laughable, that's all," Raikage said. Peace? If peace existed, neither his father nor his child would have died.
But......just for a moment, I really wished he was right.
———
Haruto remained silent all the way back. Jiraiya placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Haruto... you must understand. There are a lot of people like Raikage in this world. Not everyone seeks peace like you do. You've chosen a difficult path— one that tests not only your strength, but your beliefs and your humanity. It's a long road."
"...I know, Master Jiraiya. I knew from the start. Words alone won't change this world. Only power can make people listen."
Haruto turned and walked into the distance.
"Haruto, where are you going?"
"I'm going to make arrangements... If they won't listen while standing— then let them listen while lying down."
If war is inevitable, then I'll make it short— even if I have to teach them peace through pain.