Peace Talks Between the Land of Thunder and the Land of Fire

After a brutal battle, the air was filled with the sharp scent of blood, and the entire forest seemed shrouded in death.

Shisui stood alone amidst the chaos, his eyes empty and his expression dazed. Slowly regaining awareness, his heart filled with confusion.

He had never liked killing and despised violence.

He only fought back and engaged in mass killings when forced, when attacked by foreign enemies. But the bloody, gruesome scene before him was his own doing. Worse, the victims were ninja from his own village.

Shisui couldn't accept this reality for a moment. His eyes widened as he looked around in disbelief.

The blood and bodies scattered on the ground reminded him of what had just occurred.

He couldn't help but murmur to himself: "What's wrong with me? Why did this happen..."

His voice trembled.

Shisui raised his trembling hand and gently touched his eyes. He finally realized that he had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, a power spoken of only in legends.

He loved peace and hated fighting. Yet recently, when he saw ninja from his own village brutally killing his friends, the anger and pain deep within him exploded like a volcano.

At that moment, he awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, and with it, the unique pupil technique Kotoamatsukami, which had the power to alter the will of others, forcing them to surrender in battle.

But the intense negative emotions triggered by the first awakening of the Mangekyo Sharingan eroded his mind like a demon, making him unable to control himself.

In his madness, Shisui lost his reason and launched an uncontrollable bloodbath, killing all the Root ninjas present.

When he came back to his senses and saw the blood-soaked ground and the bodies scattered everywhere, his heart filled with regret and self-blame.

He gathered the bodies and then, heavy-hearted, set off to find the traitor. Eventually, he found the rogue ninja and brought him back to Konoha.

After receiving the news, Shisui rushed to the Hokage's office and reported everything to Hiruzen without delay.

Hiruzen listened in silence, his face expressionless, but his clenched fists revealed the turmoil in his heart.

After Shisui finished speaking, Hiruzen took a deep breath and said slowly, "Arrange an interrogation immediately. I want to know the truth behind this!"

Not long after the order was given, the interrogation proceeded smoothly. After a fierce struggle, the rogue ninja was eventually overwhelmed and revealed the truth.

To everyone's shock, it turned out that all of this had been meticulously orchestrated by Danzo!

He had intentionally let the rogue ninja go to Iwagakure, planning to use him as a double agent in the enemy camp.

Even worse, to block news, seize intelligence, and use it as leverage to claim the Hokage seat, Danzo had mercilessly killed, even sacrificing his own ANBU members!

At this point, Danzo's crafty, narrow-minded, and selfish nature was fully exposed.

However, unexpectedly, after learning of these events, Hiruzen did not punish Danzo as harshly as everyone expected but instead took a "high and lenient" stance.

He only asked Danzo to compensate the three ANBU members for their pensions and firmly ordered them to keep the matter secret. At the same time, he publicly announced that one of the three ANBU members had tragically fallen in battle against foreign enemies.

As for Danzo's punishment, his official position was temporarily revoked, but what practical difference did that make?

Everyone knew it wouldn't be long before that position returned to Danzo's hands.

After this incident, Shisui's heart was shaken like never before, as if his entire world had collapsed in an instant.

The lives of comrades he once cherished were now so trivial in the eyes of Konoha's leaders, snuffed out like candles in the wind.

This realization was unbearable for Shisui, causing him to question the "Will of Fire" he had always believed in.

What once seemed like solid convictions now felt like illusions. He couldn't help but wonder: Was justice and sacrifice really this cruel?

In his struggle with pain and confusion, Shisui made the difficult decision to hide the fact that he had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.

He knew that if Konoha's top brass learned this secret, an even more tragic fate might await him. And the eyes symbolizing power and destruction had become his last line of defense to protect both himself and Konoha.

Shortly after this event, Shisui received an important mission and was transferred out of Konoha to patrol and defend the southeastern border of the Land of Fire against potential threats from Kirigakure ninja in the Land of Water.

He knew the mission's importance but was unafraid and set out resolutely. Along his journey, he remained vigilant, always alert to movements around him.

One day, while patrolling a key location, Shisui encountered a team led by Ao, a famous ninja from Kirigakure.

This team was clearly heading toward the Land of Fire, but when they saw Shisui standing before them, they couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

Shisui stood tall, his eyes firm, and his whole body exuded a powerful aura. He stood calmly, making it clear that he was not to be easily provoked.

Ao silently cursed his luck. He knew he had run into serious trouble this time. Facing such a formidable enemy, a battle would undoubtedly spell disaster. After careful consideration, Ao decided to lead his team in retreat.

In this way, relying solely on his reputation and strength, Shisui managed to drive the enemy away and secure the Land of Fire's safety. His heroic deeds quickly spread throughout Konoha, and people admired and revered him even more.

Shisui himself continued to protect the village from the shadows, dedicating his efforts to peace.

❀❀❀

In the Land of Thunder, the Fourth Raikage solemnly announced his decision to begin peace negotiations with Konoha.

The reasoning behind this decision was clear: the border war between the two nations had reached a point where it could no longer continue.

After all, this wasn't a major ninja war. In such circumstances, it was difficult for both sides to sustain the prolonged war while ensuring the smooth operation of their villages.

Thus, the Land of Thunder took the lead in requesting a ceasefire, and Konoha, too, was weary of the endless conflict.

It's worth noting that Konoha's northeastern defense line relied almost entirely on the protection of Uchiha Shintaro alone. With his formidable power, he shouldered the critical task of fending off enemy attacks virtually by himself.

However, Konoha's higher-ups seemed unwilling to allow the Uchiha Clan to contribute further. Perhaps out of fear of their power or due to other complex political considerations, the Uchiha Clan's status in Konoha was becoming increasingly subtle.

In contrast, the ordinary people of Konoha had one simple and pure wish for the war—to let the brave ninja at the borders return home as soon as possible. They longed for a peaceful and quiet life, free from the disruptions of war. For these civilians, peace was the most precious thing.

On a sunny day, the Land of Thunder sent an elite peace negotiation team. They bore a heavy responsibility and embarked on a journey to Konoha with a mission of peace and cooperation.

The team was large and imposing. Wearing uniform costumes, they left the mountainous terrain of the Land of Thunder and arrived at the forested Land of Fire, eventually reaching Konoha Village.

Upon entering Konoha, the peace negotiation team felt an unprecedented warmth. The villagers seemed drawn by an invisible force, rushing toward them one by one.

However, this "warm welcome" was not out of respect for the peace negotiation team but for another reason—the closer the distance, the more accurately they could throw the rotten eggs in their hands at their opponents!

Faced with such a large crowd, the Kumogakure ninja found themselves in a great dilemma. They tried their best to break free, but the villagers' encirclement grew tighter.

In the chaos, verbal criticism and physical attacks intertwined, making the Kumogakure ninja miserable. Some of them tried to explain their position, but their voices were quickly drowned out by the sounds of rage. Others tried to fight back, but in return, they received more assaults.

Finally, after several difficult attempts, the Kumogakure ninja managed to find a breakthrough and escape in shame.

They glanced back and couldn't help but sigh: This peace negotiation journey might be more difficult than they had imagined!

The Konoha villagers continued venting their dissatisfaction behind the scenes, as if trying to tell the Kumogakure ninja that they would never easily compromise.

Next, the peace negotiation team arrived in front of the Hokage Building, symbolizing Konoha's power and majesty. Here, they would begin important negotiations with Konoha's top leaders.

The atmosphere in the negotiation room was tense and serious, with representatives from both sides engaging in heated discussions on various issues.

They freely expressed their opinions on the current situation, proposing various plans and views on the peace talks, striving to find common ground to reach an agreement, and at the same time, working hard to gain more benefits for their village.

Konoha and Kumogakure were locked in fierce debate over the peace negotiations. Both sides stared each other down, refusing to give in. However, after a long tug-of-war, they still failed to reach a satisfying conclusion or agreement acceptable to both parties.

This meant that the peace talks between the two nations had reached an impasse, making it extremely difficult to achieve any substantive breakthroughs.

The prolonged and futile back-and-forth exhausted the little patience left in Konoha's leadership.

However, just when everyone was pessimistic about the negotiations, shocking news suddenly struck like lightning. The ninja from Kumogakure had the audacity to kidnap Hyuga Hinata, the jewel of the Hyuga clan, in broad daylight!

The cause of this situation was likely Kumogakure's greed and ambition for the Byakugan, owned by Konoha's Hyuga Clan.

The Byakugan, with its far-reaching vision, played an undeniable role in the war. This certainly sparked great interest among the Kumogakure ninja, making them covet it.

In fact, this wasn't the first time the Hyuga clan's Byakugan had been taken.

To this day, there is still a Byakugan wandering outside, controlled by Ao from Kirigakure, embedded in his eye socket.

This, of course, had more serious implications for the already stalled peace negotiations.

It didn't take long for the outcome of this issue to be revealed. The head of the Hyuga family, Hyuga Hiashi, desperate to save his daughter, pursued the captor on his own and managed to kill the Kumogakure ninja who kidnapped Hinata.

However, this move placed Konoha, initially in a favorable position, into a very passive situation.

After all, Kumogakure hadn't killed anyone, but Hiashi directly killed a Kumogakure ninja in Konoha. This already involved a sensitive diplomatic issue between the two nations.

The peace negotiations, already at a standstill, were on the verge of total collapse. If this result truly happened, it would be something unacceptable and intolerable to Konoha's senior officials.

After all, they had invested countless time and energy into the peace negotiations before this.

If the peace talks failed due to uncontrollable factors, all efforts would be in vain.

This not only meant that all the hard work of the past would be wasted, but also that the beautiful vision placed on the success of the peace talks would become a utopia.

As a result, everyone would fall into deep disappointment, and all previous experiences would seem like a pointless joke.

What's more critical is that if both sides didn't begin peace talks, the Uchiha Clan could continue to grow and expand their power through this war, something intolerable to Konoha's top leaders.

After all, any factors that could threaten the village's existing power structure had to be eliminated at the outset.

Otherwise, once the Uchiha Clan grew stronger, the situation in Konoha could spiral out of control in the future, possibly leading to chaos and division throughout the village.

Therefore, for Konoha's top leadership, peace negotiations with Kumogakure were not just an option, but an inevitable trend.

Only through peace talks could they ensure that the Uchiha Clan would not take the opportunity to rise, while also maintaining the village's stability and calm.

So, no matter what happened, these top Konoha leaders had to find a way to prevent this from occurring—even if it meant making compromises or concessions to achieve it!