Uchiha's personal opinion

Huang Tu took out a golden seal and handed it to him, saying quietly, "Whether to fight or make peace is up to the people who remain in the village to decide. But if anyone is unwilling to fight anymore, then let them prepare themselves."

Having said that, Huang Tu, his hands trembling, removed the rock-hidden headband from his forehead.

Several Uchiha ninjas instantly appeared not far in front of him, but seeing this, they did not rush to make a move. After exchanging glances, they simply stared at the Iwagakure ninjas with their Sharingan.

"Go..."

Huang Tu spread his hands and walked towards the Uchiha Jonin.

"Report the outcome of the war back to the village, giving the village's ninjas another option."

The Iwagakure ANBU members exchanged glances, then two of them instantly disappeared, while the other two removed their masks, took off their ninja swords and ninja tool pouches, and walked towards the Uchiha ninjas with their hands outstretched.

The Uchiha ninjas didn't spare any manpower to intercept him. Instead, a Jonin walked up to Huang Tu, said "That's the procedure," and handcuffed his hands. Without even sealing his chakra, he put his arm around Huang Tu's shoulder and took him away. The two Iwagakure Anbu members who chose to stay received the same treatment.

Huang Tu's extremely complicated feelings suddenly eased a little.

……

Faced with an unstoppable tide, the Cloud and Iwa ninjas, whose ninja way had collapsed, either fled immediately or abandoned their weapons on the spot. Those die-hards who intended to trade one for one had already been slaughtered in the previous battle.

However, Uchiha Tokumitsu's order not to kill surrendered ninjas only applied to the ninjas, and the snake ninjas of Ryuchi Cave were naturally excluded. As a result, the shogunate's victory banquet had an extra meat dish.

This was a resounding and exhilarating victory!

Judging from the number of enemies killed, the fruits of victory, and even the foreseeable chain reaction, this battle, officially named the "Battle of Takinohara" by Uchiha Tokumitsu, was a landmark battle that would completely establish the ninja world's格局 (geju, a term referring to the overall situation or structure of the ninja world).

Yes, although both sides deployed more than 10,000 ninja troops in this battle, and the Cloud Village and Iwagakure Alliance had thousands of snake ninja from Ryuchi Cave to assist them, judging from the entire process of the battle and even the duration of the fight, this battle could not really be considered a campaign.

But no matter how it is defined, it cannot change the tide of the times.

After being brought before Uchiha Tokumitsu, Huang Tu lowered his head as he watched the silent, bowed Iwagakure soldiers being escorted into the newly renovated prisoner-of-war camp by the Shogunate's ninja army.

The will of stone of Iwagakure has been completely shattered...

"This is an unstoppable tide of the times..."

Uchiha Tokumitsu said calmly.

"Perhaps the hatred will continue in our generation, but after another generation, the ninja world, which has been integrated into one, will truly enter a new era."

Uchiha Tokumitsu took out the only small stone left behind by Onoki from his ninja tool bag and put it into Huangtu's hand.

"The will of stone will continue, but it can only be the will of stone of the shogunate, do you understand..."

Huang Tu's hands began to tremble.

It's just an ordinary stone.

However, the trace of blood on the crevice gave this small stone another meaning.

"Iwagakure will have a place, and the legacy of Iwagakure will be passed down under the order and guidance of the shogunate."

Uchiha Tokumitsu continued, "What is rightfully yours, I will give you; what I do not give you, you cannot take!"

"If you want to gain power, be prepared to pay a blood tax. It's all about an equal exchange."

After saying that, Uchiha Tokumitsu patted Huangtu on the shoulder and left on his own.

Two attendant ninjas also stepped forward and invited the tearful Huang Tu to rest in a specially arranged place of confinement.

……

"We've lost..."

In the Dragon Cave beneath the Nine Netherworlds, the White Snake Immortal, perched atop the temple, slowly opened his eyes and sighed softly.

"Grandmaster..."

Princess Tianxin knelt at the foot of the steps, as if walking on thin ice.

Although Shinya, who had escaped back to Ryuchi Cave from the battle at sea in the desolate land, had grown all his reverse scales back, he lay trembling on the ground, not daring to move.

Since it escaped back to Dragon Cave, it has been lying in front of the White Snake Immortal ever since.

No matter how strong you are, maintaining the same posture for several days is unbearable.

"Asura's summoning contract is still there, but he has sealed it away..."

The White Snake Immortal said, "Tian Xin, try contacting it!"

"The reverse psychic spell is not working..."

Princess Tianxin cautiously reported this.

We can't just call it that...

"Go to the ninja world and look for his existence..."

As expected, what you fear most is what happens; the White Snake Immortal's instructions shocked Princess Tianxin.

"Don't worry about those secret techniques that block summoning jutsu; those are not things that ordinary ninjas can set up."

The White Snake Immortal glanced at Tianxin Shenji and immediately understood her thoughts. He then tossed out a talisman with the character 'snake' written on it and said, "If you encounter danger, leave immediately. I won't blame you!"

"As ordered!"

Helpless, Princess Tianxin had no choice but to bow down once more.

"As for you... Xin Ya."

The White Snake Immortal's gaze finally fell upon Xin Ya, who was lying stiffly on the ground.

"You did a good job. Go back and rest!"

The matter of fleeing in front of the enemy was thus lightly dismissed.

"Thank you for your great kindness, Immortal!"

Xin Ya was overjoyed.

The White Snake Immortal closed his eyes, and Tianxin Shenji and Xinya immediately understood, slowly retreating away.

"Ugh……"

After a long while, the White Snake Immortal sighed, "The world has changed..."

Fortunately, it wasn't the worst off. After all, Mount Myōboku was in imminent danger, so the White Snake Sage still had a chance to try to maneuver around during this period.

If Orochimaru hadn't personally destroyed his summoning contract, there would probably have been more room for maneuver.

……

"……that's all?"

Upon receiving the battle report from the front lines in Takigawa, Hatake Sakumo felt extremely conflicted.

"Yes, the Third Tsuchikage and the Third Raikage have both died in battle."

The attendant ninja who returned to Konoha to report replied respectfully.

Hatake Sakumo hesitated, then simply dismissed the attendant ninja.

Tsunade and the others exchanged bewildered glances.

This was something no one expected.

Although the Shogunate had always held the advantage in foreign wars, it was still facing two extremely militaristic ninja villages. The Konoha leadership unanimously believed that to completely determine the victor, they would need to recuperate for at least five years after destroying Mount Myōboku. Only then could the Shogunate be brought to its best condition, and the economies of Iwagakure and Kumogakure be completely crippled. At that time, they could suppress all the disobedient forces and unify the world.

But unexpectedly, this seemingly ordinary 'standoff', which was just a matter of a larger number of people, turned into a crucial battle that would determine the course of the ninja world in a very short time!

Moreover, the deaths of the Iwagakure and Kumogakure Kage represent the complete collapse of the old Five Kage order—although there is still the Fourth Kazekage, no one takes him seriously anymore!

The two ninja villages that lost their leaders either fought desperately in despair only to be easily crushed, or they laid down their weapons and surrendered to Uchiha Tokumitsu in utter despair, or they hid in the deep mountains and forests and waged guerrilla warfare against the shogunate... The Konoha leadership could not think of any other possibilities besides these three.

In any case, it's certain that Iwagakure and Kumogakure have absolutely no chance.

But what should Konoha do next?

And what about those who are neither fully connected to nor completely disconnected from the shogunate system?

What kind of new order will Uchiha Tokumitsu intend to establish?

Even Tsunade couldn't help but feel a little uneasy at this moment.

"I'll make a trip to the Land of Waterfalls tomorrow..."

Sakumo Hatake glanced at Tsunade, the Hyuga clan leader, and Homura Mitokado, and said quietly.

The crowd remained unmoved, continuing to watch Sakumo Hatake.

"Okay, okay, I'll be leaving in a bit..."

Tsunade and the others' expressions softened.

Chapter 464 The Way Out

Under the command of Uchiha Himon, the ninja army under the Northwest Garrison Command advanced with unstoppable momentum, quickly defeating the Iwagakure-occupied area in the southwest of the Land of Lightning, and breaking into the central part of the Land of Lightning to fight fiercely with the Kumogakure ninja army left behind.

Meanwhile, the northern border defense forces and the garrison ninja forces of various buffer states moved north from the Konoha-occupied area in the southeast of the Land of Lightning, forming a pincer movement against the ninja forces left behind in the Hidden Cloud Village.

However, under the command of A and Killer Bee, the Cloud Village ninja army managed to stabilize their position, fighting and retreating to escape the pincer attack and slowly advancing towards the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Lightning.

However, all of this changed completely after the results of the Battle of Takinohara came.

The Cloud Village ninja army initially launched a desperate counterattack against the Shogunate ninja army in a frenzy, but after being crushed by several rounds of attacks, they suddenly collapsed completely at night! Even when A and Killer Bee tried to stabilize the ninja army with bloody methods, they were powerless to do so.

The death of the Third Raikage, coupled with repeated failures in their counterattacks, had already crushed the will of the Cloud Village ninjas.

"Even if there are 10,000 pigs, they shouldn't all run out of the pen so quickly, right?"

Uchiha Himon was afraid that this was a vicious plot by the Cloud Village ninjas, so he carefully sent Byakugan ninjas to conduct reconnaissance several times. After discussing with his advisors for a long time, he finally decided to launch a night attack.

Although the Cloud Village ninja suffered few direct casualties in this very sudden night battle, the speed of their retreat after the ninja army collapsed was beyond imagination. The Cloud Village ninja army's high-ranking officers, including A and Killer Bee, delayed their retreat in an attempt to salvage the situation, and were thus surrounded by the Uchiha ninjas who had accompanied them into battle, and were subjected to a series of battles until they were captured.

At this point, the Hidden Cloud Village, as a ninja village, was completely defeated by the Shogunate's ninja army, both in terms of its morale and spirit!

After receiving the battle report from the front lines, Uchiha Tokumitsu glanced at it briefly and then had it sent to the imprisoned Huang Tu as a warning. He then left with only the words "Plow the court, sweep away the caves, and flatten the Cloud Thunder Gorge" before pulling the helpless Hatake Sakumo along to continue drinking and having fun.

After fighting so many wars over the years, it's time to enjoy ourselves!

Upon learning of the Raikage's death and the collapse of the ninja army, the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning, utterly despondent and abandoned by his followers, donned his finest attire in the palace and then committed suicide by drinking poison.

As for the various regions of the Land of Lightning, which had suffered greatly from both the Hidden Cloud Village and the Daimyo, they changed their flags and banners and welcomed the royal army with food and drink even before the arrival of the Shogunate's ninja forces.

Before the Land of Earth could declare its submission, the Land of Lightning was the first to perish!