章 77: CH - 76 Reply to Konoha
When Mubuki saw the Uzumaki Clan and the Chinoike Clan standing behind him, his face turned pale. He couldn't comprehend why Iwagakure would turn against him when he had no grievances or enmity with them. After all, he was the one who had found and brought the Uzumaki Clan and the Chinoike Clan back to the village. How could they doubt his loyalty?
Mubuki quickly shook his head and denied the accusations, "No, I didn't do anything! They are lying, I am loyal to the leader. Besides, I am not the kind of person who wavers and betrays!"
The others fell silent, uncertain of whom to believe. Akihiko, the leader, narrowed his eyes and fixed a serious gaze upon Mubuki. He spoke, "Mubuki, what do you think happened?"
Mubuki's body trembled as if he had recalled something. He looked enlightened and quickly said, "Wait, I remember now. Last time, when I led the Iwagakure shinobi—*ahem*, when I worked as a tour guide to earn some money, I encountered a few Iwa shinobi. And then..." He winked, "Leader, you know what I mean."
The others suddenly understood, recalling the large order they received from Iwagakure. It was true that Iwa had placed a significant order, prompting the Grass Village to decide on building a factory. If not for that order, they might have overlooked the situation.
As the discussion continued, Akihiko patted Mubuki's shoulder and said with admiration, "Mubuki, I never doubted you."
Although Mubuki sensed Akihiko's lack of complete sincerity, he played along, saying with flattery, "You have a discerning eye, leader."
Changing the subject, Mubuki frowned and rubbed his chin, "So, this letter is probably from Iwagakure after their successful operation in the Fire Country border. It seems they want to continue cooperation. Speaking of the last order..."
"Konoha no longer shows trust in us, so we can't help them. We should also be cautious about involving ourselves in Iwagakure's matters. Let's focus on our village," Akihiko concluded, aware of the Grass Shinobi Village's delicate position between Iwagakure and Konohagakure.
Akihiko then turned his attention to the upcoming graduation of their academy students, an important event for the village.
As the meeting concluded, Kana, the secretary, asked, "What should be our response to Konoha?"
"Konoha..." Akihiko pondered for a moment, then turned to Mubuki, "Mubuki, I leave it to you."
Confidently, Mubuki replied, "No problem!"
…
{Regarding this unexpected incident, the Grass Shinobi Village expresses deep apologies. After conducting a thorough investigation, it was found that our senior advisor, Mubuki, acted on his own accord and caused this without the knowledge of the village.
Please understand that the Grass Village has always been an ally of Leaf Village, and our friendship dates back to the founding of the village by the First Hokage, tracing back to the Shinobi God.
Please trust the Grass Village! We have taken strict measures to reprimand our senior advisor, Mubuki, and have revoked his position, ensuring he receives appropriate punishment!
By the way, would you like some intelligence? As a gesture of apology from the Grass Shinobi Village, all intelligence is discounted by 80%!
Again, please forgive us!}
The high-level officials of Konoha looked silently at the response from the Grass Village. Removing an advisor for such a serious matter? Speaking of which, this sounded eerily familiar, thought Sarutobi Hiruzen and other elders.
As for the intelligence advertisement, they ignored it completely. The intelligence from the Grass Village was always unreliable!
It became evident that Kusagakure had guided Iwagakure, facilitating their passage through the Grass Land to directly reach the Fire Land border without any hindrance. Konoha's ANBU investigation confirmed that the Iwa shinobi were remarkably familiar with the Kannabi Bridge, both the main road and the chaotic underground stone passages. It was evident that they had been expertly guided by Kusagakure, making them feel at ease as if they were in their own territory.
The claim of a profound friendship with Konoha by the Grass Shinobi Village was laughable and an obvious lie. Everyone's mouths twitched at this assertion, and they thought, "Grass Shinobi will always be Grass Shinobi—swindlers!" They couldn't fathom why the Grass Village expected Konoha to buy intelligence from them after this betrayal.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the wise Hokage of Konoha, raised an eyebrow but remained composed. He sighed and said, "We should be grateful that this group of Grass Shinobi didn't genuinely join Iwagakure in declaring war on us." He continued in a sarcastic tone, "The only regret is also that this group of Grass Shinobi didn't genuinely join Iwagakure to declare war on us"
The sarcasm was not lost on anyone, and they nodded in agreement. Indeed, these scammers had a reputation for being untrustworthy. If they had genuinely joined Iwa in declaring war on Konoha, it was likely that Konoha would not have hesitated to buy intelligence from them, knowing their history of selling out allies.
Given the situation, Konoha had to accept it, but they were relieved that they never fully trusted the Grass Village. Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath from his cigarette, breaking the silence, and said with a serious expression, "We must ensure that the ninjas at the Land of Fire border hold their ground. We absolutely cannot allow Iwagakure to enter the Land of Fire!"
"Understood!" Everyone nodded, fully grasping the gravity of the situation.
…
Meanwhile, in the underground of the Grass Country, inside a cave...
"Lord Madara, Lord Madara, it's just as you predicted, war has come!" The enthusiastic Zetsu looked at Madara with admiration and a wide grin, "Now, Konoha is facing a three-on-one situation, It's a dire situation with Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure, the three major ninja villages all involved."
As Madara slowly opened his eyes, a hint of melancholy crossed his aged face. He coldly snorted without showing any emotion, "That fool Hashirama! It seems the war has indeed come." After a brief pause, he frowned, "Iwagakure has also joined the war? In that case, the Grass Land has become a battlefield again?" He turned to Zetsu, "This morning, during the morning reading, there was no indication of any abnormality. It seemed that the Grass Shinobi Village's leader is more principled than Tobirama's students, and the children haven't..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Zetsu raised his hand and interrupted, still grinning, "That's not the case! The Grass Shinobi Village had long betrayed Konoha. They gave up the Kannabi Bridge and allowed Iwagakure to pass directly through The Land of Grass, catching Konoha off guard."
Madara raised an eyebrow, falling silent once again, and then spoke calmly, "Indeed, Grass Shinobi are just Grass Shinobi. They're a bunch of scammers! I saw through them long ago! At least he has some principles since he didn't involve children in the war." He changed the topic directly, "By the way, where's White Zetsu's main body?"
"Oh, him! He has gone out to gather information and sent out many other White Zetsus. He asked me to stay here to take care of you, Lord Madara." Zetsu didn't mind Madara's face-saving act, scratched his head, and seemed to remember something else, "Oh, right! In a few days, the first batch of children who received six years of compulsory education from the Grass Shinobi Village Academy will graduate. Lord Madara, do you want to personally check on them with your own eyes? Oh, I forgot, it seems that Lord Madara can't move away fro….."
"Shut up and get lost!" Madara got annoyed at Zetsu, who started chattering non-stop, and cut him off abruptly.
"Okay~, I'll get ready to go down now" Zetsu replied as he turned back to leave before Madara could get angrier.
Madara watched Zetsu hopping away, then shook his head. "This idiot! I told him not to inquire about such useless things anymore! He's a useless tool!"
Then, he slowly closed his eyes again, his face returning to tranquility. It seemed like he was speaking to himself in a voice only he could hear, murmuring, "They're already graduating, huh?"
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