Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Chapter 468 A Small Gift

Minato Namikaze nodded, seemingly unaware of the hostility in the other's words and the force that nearly crushed his hand bones.

She was still smiling, and that composed smile made Ai feel a surge of deep-seated irritation.

He turned to the side, seemingly to make room for the person behind him.

"Having traveled a long way, we have prepared a small gift for Lord Raikage."

Gift?

Ai's nerves tensed instantly, and Tsuchishiro's one eye suddenly contracted.

At this time and in this situation, what would Konoha's gift be?

Are they harsh post-war terms? Or is it a takeover of command of the Hidden Cloud Village?

Just as all the Cloud Village ninja held their breath, trying to guess the other party's intentions, the Uchiha standing behind Minato took a step forward.

His movements were light and silent, but that one step seemed to resonate with everyone's heartbeats.

The focus of the entire arena instantly shifted from Minato Namikaze to him.

"Uchiha Fugaku".

He calmly gave his name, his voice devoid of any emotion.

The next second, those dark eyes underwent a startling change.

The original three magatama spun rapidly, eventually merging and stretching to condense into a complex pattern resembling a three-edged shuriken, slowly rotating on a blood-red background.

An ominous yet powerful aura suddenly spread out!

Kaleidoscope Sharingan!

Ai and Tudai's hearts sank.

The eyes that exist only in legends within the Uchiha clan!

Uchiha Fugaku met the shocked gazes of the Cloud Village members with his eerie eyes, calmly sweeping them over each one.

He paused, seemingly organizing his thoughts, or perhaps enjoying the oppressive silence.

Then, in a statement of fact and in a detached tone, he uttered the second half of the sentence.

"The eastern flank containment force I led arrived the day before yesterday..."

"...the vanguard of Tsuchiya Kenzou of Iwagakure was completely wiped out."

boom--!!!

This statement was neither as gentle as Minato's voice, nor as violent as thunder's.

It's very ordinary.

Ai's expression froze completely.

Kenbe Tsuchiya?

The tough, unyielding force of Iwagakure, known for their fearlessness and Earth Release techniques.

They...were killed? All of them killed?

How is that possible?!

Countless question marks exploded wildly in Ai's mind, turning his thoughts, which were already filled with hatred and humiliation, into a boiling mess.

Behind him, Tsuchishiro's single remaining eye also erupted with unprecedented horror.

As a strategist, he thought more deeply and was more fearful than Ai.

This means that while they were still being brutally beaten by the combined forces of Iwagakure and Sunagakure on the main battlefield and were overwhelmed by the loss of one defensive line after another, Konoha's peacekeeping force not only solved the troubles on the southern front, but also had the spare capacity to divide its forces.

What terrifying intelligence, infiltration, and combat capabilities!

In the distance, Killer Bee took off his sunglasses, and his eyes, which were remarkably similar to A's, stared unblinkingly at the man named Uchiha Fugaku.

Are these guys... monsters...?

In the deathly silence, Minato Namikaze withdrew his hand.

He glanced at Fugaku, who was expressionless beside him, and then turned his gaze back to the Fourth Raikage, who had completely turned to stone. His smile remained gentle, but deep in his azure eyes, there was now an undeniable sharpness.

"So, Lord Raikage."

He spoke, breaking the suffocating silence.

"Now, can we sit down and talk about how to win this war?"

"Now, can we sit down and talk about how to win this war?"

Ai's expression froze completely.

His brain, the head that had been scorched by anger, humiliation, and exhaustion, suddenly stopped functioning as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over it.

win?

This word has been erased from the dictionary of all Cloud Village ninjas over the past three days.

They talked about how to survive, how to trade their lives for an enemy, and how to prevent the village from being completely destroyed in their generation.

The blond-haired Konoha youth before them, after shattering the last pride of Kumogakure with a cruel gift, was casually discussing victory.

It's as if this is something that is taken for granted and readily available.

Countless question marks exploded wildly in Ai's mind, turning his thoughts, already filled with various emotions, into a boiling mess.

In the distance, Killer Bee had removed his sunglasses at some point. His eyes, so similar to A's, were fixed on the man named Uchiha Fugaku, his black eyes now calm.

He unconsciously drew a long ink mark on his notebook.

Yeah... these guys... they're basically a bunch of monsters in human skin...

In the deathly silence, Minato Namikaze withdrew his hand.

He glanced at Fugaku, who was expressionless beside him, and then turned his gaze back to the Fourth Raikage, who was completely petrified. A sharp, undeniable edge appeared in the depths of his azure eyes.

Ai didn't look at Minato again, and as if using all his strength, he squeezed out two words through clenched teeth.

"Come in."

Having said that, he turned around abruptly and strode toward the dilapidated tent that symbolized the command center of the Cloud Hidden stronghold.

That silhouette was filled with the humiliation and resentment of a defeated dog.

Minato Namikaze's smile remained unchanged. He nodded slightly to Fugaku, Shikaku Nara, and the others behind him, and then calmly followed.

……

Inside the tent, the light was dim, and the air was filled with a complex smell of earth, sweat, and herbs.

A huge military map was spread out on a simple long table, with red and blue arrows marking the jagged battle lines. The red arrows represented the enemy's offensive, which had almost compressed the blue area symbolizing Cloud Hidden into a precarious corner.

The atmosphere was so oppressive it was almost palpable.

On the Cloud Village side, A sat in the main seat, his face ashen. Tsuchishi and a few remaining Jonin stood on either side, each one like a statue weathered by time, etched with weariness and numbness.

On the Konoha side, Minato Namikaze, Fugaku Uchiha, Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, Choza Akimichi, and others stood casually.

Their green vests formed a stark contrast to the Cloud Village ninjas' tattered and bloodstained combat uniforms.

This composure is itself a silent form of crushing.