Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

The next instant, the powerful eagle in the painting flapped its wings and flew out like an arrow through the wide-open window, soaring straight up into the cold wind outside.

"Iwa nin?"

Zhi Shui raised an eyebrow. "Are they trustworthy?"

"Of course it's unbelievable!"

Zongxian almost burst out laughing.

Looking back at Shisui, he said, "That old man Onoki is notoriously fickle. Talking about trust with Iwa ninja is too much of a luxury. At least as long as Onoki is still the Tsuchikage, Iwa ninja will never be trustworthy. We only cooperate with Iwa ninja because of mutual interests. But conversely, as long as our interests align, cooperating with Iwa ninja... I'm getting off-topic. How did we get onto the topic of Iwa ninja?"

"By the way, Shisui, did the Cloud Ninja have any objections to the amber vase?"

Zongxian changed the subject.

The situation of the Iwa ninja is not important. Konoha and the Iwa ninja are just cooperating. Compared to worrying about the situation of the Iwa ninja, he is more concerned about the current negotiations with the Kumo ninja. Especially after discovering that the Kumo ninja are still obsessed with the survival of Turtle Island, but have not mentioned the Amber Purification Bottle at all, he has become a little curious.

"Hmm... As for the amber bottle, the earthen platform didn't say anything."

After thinking it over for a while, Shisui finally shook his head.

The long list of claims had been altered in many places, but the section about the amber vase remained intact.

“But there’s nothing strange about that, is there? It’s just a ninja tool. Even if it’s one of the ninja tools left behind by the Sage of Six Paths, it doesn’t seem that special.” Shisui said, glancing at Sogen. He didn’t quite understand why Sogen valued such a ninja tool so much.

Even if Sogen has a penchant for collecting ninja tools, the Uchiha fan, the banana fan, and Samehada are all very powerful weapons. In comparison, this amber bottle is a bit... hard to imagine. After thinking it over, all I can say is that Sogen's ninja tool collecting habit is not picky.

These words startled Zongxian.

He was silent for a few seconds before he realized what was going on. With the talent of "Knights Never Die Unarmed," he could gain a lot of useful information from these ancient and mysterious ninja tools. However, this was only true for him. For the rest of the ninja world, ninja tools were just props.

If it were a sword or similar ninja tool, it would be of great use in battle and would likely be highly valued. However, you can't say that a ninja tool like the Amber Purification Bottle is useless. Its ability to seal a target simply by responding to the wielder's call is quite powerful.

but,

The amber vase is too big.

Not only is it difficult to carry around for mobile warfare, but it's also unlikely to be stored in a scroll. Furthermore, ninjas aren't fools; even if they don't understand the mechanism of the Amber Purification Bottle, they won't be so easily fooled. Otherwise, the Cloud Ninja wouldn't have only used the Amber Purification Bottle as a temporary container for Tailed Beasts.

Back then, the Gold and Silver Horn brothers also abandoned the Amber Purification Bottle and chose other ninja tools.

This shows that

Amber water jars may have impressive abilities, but their practicality is probably quite limited!

This thing is quite valuable to Zongxian himself, but the Yun ninja might not value it as much as the banana leaf fan in Zongxian's hands. Moreover, the list of claims is very long, and the amber bottle is only one of them. If it were to be traded separately, the Yun ninja probably wouldn't give in so easily.

Just like that Orochimaru guy.

Seeing that Sogen had a strong desire for the Six Paths Ninja Tools, he was not going to give up easily. In the end, Sogen only gained a slight advantage by taking advantage of his information. In fact, he planned to use the White Zetsu's body parts to make a deal with Orochimaru.

"I misunderstood, but this is a good thing."

Zongxian relaxed his brow.

Being able to acquire an amber vase without much effort is certainly not a bad thing. While a story full of twists and turns is certainly captivating, few people would actually enjoy experiencing setbacks. Smooth sailing is the common aspiration of most people, and Zongxian is one of them in this regard.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

As Zongxian said, the most anxious party at this time was not Konoha, but Kumogakure. The negotiations were dragging on without results, and the Two-Tails Jinchuriki and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki remained Konoha's prisoners. A had thought more than once about simply refusing the negotiations and withdrawing his troops back to the village.

But he quickly dismissed that idea.

Refusing to negotiate, not to mention whether Konoha would pursue them, the loss of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails alone was something he couldn't bear. To be precise, after Konoha used Killer Bee and Yugito as bargaining chips at the negotiating table, no matter how he thought about it, he had no room to refuse to negotiate.

If he truly cannot reclaim the two tailed beasts, A will certainly face a lot of criticism, but it will not shake his position as Raikage. However, the problem is that if he has the opportunity to recover the tailed beasts but chooses to refuse negotiations, then he will face a storm of attacks from the opposition. Those senile elders might actually consider impeaching him as Raikage.

As the saying goes, every family has its own troubles. It's not just Konoha that's constantly fighting internally; each of the other villages also has its own problems.

The Cloud Village ninja appear to be united, but that's because A inherited his father's legacy, had the strong support of Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, and was himself among the strongest in the Cloud Village. Therefore, he was able to use Konoha as a target to unify the hearts of the villagers.

But now the situation has changed. The Cloud Ninja have been defeated by the Leaf Village, and it was a crushing defeat!

After suffering a defeat, Ai could fully imagine the disarray in the village. Once the people were not united, all the suppressed conflicts and disputes would resurface... Just thinking about the current chaotic situation in the village gave Ai a terrible headache.

"Tsuchikage, is Konoha still not planning to back down?"

"Yes."

Tu Tai stood in front of the table, his expression bitter.

Representing the defeated to negotiate with the victors... This task is truly torturous. In just a few days, I look like I've aged seven or eight years. Anyone with eyes can see the deep weariness there!

“Uchiha Shisui’s attitude is very firm. No matter what I say, he just sticks to Kame Island and refuses to budge… Unless there is a major change, I’m afraid there’s no way to get Konoha to give up Kame Island.” He looked at A and said seriously.

The Fourth Raikage remained silent, his face grim.

The importance of Turtle Island goes without saying. The real waterfall on Turtle Island has the potential to help Jinchuriki become perfect Jinchuriki. Although a successful case has only appeared in this generation, the hardest part is always starting from scratch. This is the meaning of "everything is difficult at the beginning". Once there is a successful case, then we can continue to explore and improve based on the successful example.

This was originally a treasure meant to ensure that every generation of perfect Jinchuriki would be born in the Cloud Ninja. It seems to be of little use to the Cloud Ninja at present, but looking to the future, Turtle Island is more important than a complete set of Six Paths Ninja Tools, at least in A's opinion.

But the problem now is that it seems the Cloud Ninja can't protect this treasure!

"Not even a chance?"

After a long silence, Ai asked, still unwilling to give up.

"It's difficult! The main problem is that we don't have any bargaining chips with Konoha." Tsuchitai looked distressed and helpless. This was not an equal negotiation. The Cloud Ninja, who were in a weaker position, didn't have many bargaining chips. In his opinion, if Konoha hadn't wanted to push the Cloud Ninja to the brink, there would have been no need for negotiation at all.

The so-called negotiation,

It's just a more peaceful and convenient way to cut off the Cloud Ninja's flesh, but the Cloud Ninja have no choice but to accept this option. Otherwise, if Konoha were to use a more violent method to cut off their flesh, the Cloud Ninja would only suffer greater losses!

“Lord Raikage, negotiations cannot drag on for too long. Putting aside whether Konoha will become impatient, I am worried that if it drags on for too long, trouble will break out in the village,” Tsuchikage said softly. He was a staunch supporter of A, not only because A was the Third Hokage’s son.

From Tutai's perspective,

A's decisions in this war with Konoha were not too wrong. The reason for the crushing defeat was that he misjudged Konoha... no, he underestimated the strength of the Uchiha clan. If it weren't for Uchiha Sogen and Uchiha Shisui, and if it weren't for the Susanoo that could overpower the tailed beasts, the Cloud Ninja would never have lost so badly!

After all,

The Cloud Ninja are still too weak.

He had anticipated the uproar this crushing defeat would bring, but he believed that it was precisely at times like these that it was crucial to maintain the Raikage's position, because there was no one in Kumogakure who could replace the Raikage, at least in Tsuchida's eyes.

"Tutai, are you saying we're going to give up Turtle Island?"

Ai stared at the earthen platform.

Facing the Raikage's sharp gaze, Tsuchida met it frankly. "That's exactly what I think. We lost this time. We're not as skilled as them, so there's nothing to complain about. We deserve to be exploited and drained of our lifeblood. Who told us to lose? If we can't protect Kame Island, so be it! Anyway, the village still went on as usual before we had a perfect Jinchuriki, didn't it?"

"What if Konoha could train a perfect Jinchūriki?"

"Is there any difference between then and now? We still can't beat Konoha, no matter if we have a perfect Jinchuriki or not."

"Then... is it possible to start with the Fifth Hokage and get Konoha to have someone else lead the negotiations?"

"It's impossible. Even if the Third Hokage were alive, he couldn't do it. I know you want to use the internal strife in Konoha, but to be honest, I think the Fifth Hokage might want Kamejima even more than Uchiha Mugen. The Uchiha clan is too powerful, and Kamejima might be able to help the Fifth Hokage cultivate a perfect Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to fight against the Uchiha clan."

Ai kept a straight face and remained silent for a long time.

According to Tutai's statement, Turtle Island is doomed to perish no matter what, but... he is still unwilling to accept it!

At this moment,

The door to the room was flung open with a bang, and hope stumbled in. Ai, whose thoughts had been interrupted, frowned, and the anger in his chest was ignited uncontrollably. However, the urgent information that Xi brought in the next second extinguished the anger in his heart. In an instant, he felt as if he had drunk a bucket of ice water in the dead of winter, and the cold went straight to his stomach.

The intelligence was very short, only two sentences.

Kumogakure has been attacked! The attackers are Iwa ninja!

[Chapter 220. The Unpopular Onoki]

Onoki's bad reputation has been a long time coming. As the longest-serving Tsuchikage, he constantly shifted his allegiance during the various Shinobi World Wars, taking his opportunism to the extreme time and time again. He was almost as famous as his unique Kekkei Tota in the Shinobi world.

This time,

The Iwa ninja once again demonstrated to the ninja world what it means to maximize profits.

First, they joined forces with the Cloud Ninja to attack Konoha. Then, they launched a surprise attack, striking deep into the Cloud Ninja's weak point. Taking advantage of the fact that the Cloud Ninja army was entangled with Konoha in the Land of Hot Water, and that the Fourth Raikage and Killer Bee and Yugito Nii, the two major Jinchūriki of the Cloud Ninja, were not present, they crossed the sea and marched straight into the heart of the Land of Lightning, their forces aimed directly at the Hidden Cloud Village.

Regardless of how clever the Iwa ninja's actions were, they certainly maximized their gains. Just as Onoki predicted, the Kumogakure's defenses were weak and unable to withstand the attack from the Iwa ninja army led by Onoki himself. The small number of Kumogakure ninja forming the defensive line were easily defeated by the Iwa ninja.

Without the obstruction of the Cloud Ninja, the Iwa Ninja brazenly stormed into the Hidden Cloud Village and plundered it.

Although most of the valuable items had already been moved by the Cloud Ninja, it was impossible to empty such a large village in a short time. After a thorough search, the Iwa Ninja still returned laden with spoils. Not only did the army collectively reap a rich harvest, but almost every Iwa Ninja who went into battle also filled their personal bags.

To know,

Among the five great nations of the ninja world, the Land of Lightning is second only to the Land of Fire, far surpassing the impoverished Lands of Earth and Wind. Consequently, the Cloud Ninja are also quite wealthy. This time, under Onoki's command, the Iwa Ninja did not harass the ordinary people who were not ninjas. They only targeted the major clans of the Cloud Village, as well as the village's storehouse and library, and even so, they still managed to feast to their hearts' content.

This gives a glimpse into the wealth of the Cloud Ninja.

Hidden Cloud Village, Raikage Building.

"Pass down the order, it's time to retreat!" In the Raikage's office, Onoki had taken over the chair that belonged to the Fourth Raikage. He looked very awkward. This was a specially made, extra-wide version of the chair for the Fourth Raikage. Onoki, this skinny old man, looked ridiculous sitting in it. To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that Huang Tu's body was quite burly, he might not even be able to see Onoki sitting in the chair.

No matter how mismatched they seemed, few people dared to laugh in front of Onoki.

"So fast? But we still haven't found the group of Cloud Ninja who escaped?" Huang Tu was somewhat unwilling. Although they had unexpectedly contributed to the Hidden Cloud Village, the Cloud Ninja were not all useless. They had already moved away the most valuable treasures before the Iwa Ninja entered the village.

"Giving birth to such an idiot as you is the biggest mistake of my life." Onoki held a scroll in his hands, which he had found in the clan land of a large clan in the Cloud Ninja. It contained some research insights on Magnet Release bloodline limits. The contents were truly precious. The old man was originally engrossed in reading it, but Huang Tu's reaction made him so angry that he could no longer continue reading.

"When I tell you to move forward, you keep shrinking back; when I tell you to retreat, you stand still and refuse to budge. You bastard, are you here specifically to go against me?" He waved the valuable scroll, almost throwing it at the yellow earth, but in the end he held back, not because he was reluctant to part with his son, but because he didn't want to damage the valuable scroll.

"Fighting Konoha is harmful and pointless, but fighting Kumogakure is profitable. Is that not strange?"

"Huang Tu said innocently."

He consistently maintained that Konoha was not to be trifled with. Every time the Iwa ninja attacked when Konoha was weak, they were always soundly defeated by the seemingly weakened Konoha. As for the idea of ​​containing Konoha, preventing it from regaining its invincible state during the First Hokage's reign, and preventing a powerful Konoha from invading other countries…

Huang Tu thought it was even more absurd. When the First Hokage was alive, Konoha didn't seem to be invading everywhere. Moreover, the Land of Earth was such a vast and desolate land that even if Konoha ninjas were begging to occupy it, probably no one would want it. After getting used to prosperity, how many people can adapt to such desolation for a long time?

Instead of worrying unnecessarily about Konoha's invasion, we should see if we can gain an advantage from the Cloud Village, Sand Village, or even the Mist Village.

Unfortunately, his father and he had different views, and even in Iwagakure, he could not find many like-minded friends.

"You idiot, if we don't retreat now, are you waiting for the Cloud Ninja's main force at the front to return before we race against them?" Onoki looked at his honest-looking son, took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and said coldly, "This is an order, not a bargaining game. And Huangtu, is this how you speak to me so rudely?"

"Lord Tsuchikage, I apologize! It was my rudeness."

The loess soil had no choice but to bow its head.

He was clearly very familiar with his father's bad temper. Once he got angry, he wouldn't care who was in front of him. Even Kurotsuchi had been taught a lesson by Onoki using his authority as the Tsuchikage or his father's authority after he grew up. However, his grandson Kurotsuchi seemed to be the only exception.

In short, based on Huang Tu's experience, it is absolutely not advisable to confront Onoki head-on at this time. Even if he doesn't think the Cloud Ninja will return to the Hidden Cloud Village easily, the Konoha army at the front is not to be underestimated. Even if the Cloud Ninja manages to withdraw in the end, how much fighting strength will they retain?