Chapter 14
The Raikage slammed his fist down and barked, "What's the meaning of this!?"
Danzo spoke slowly. "The leader of Akatsuki… is likely Uchiha Madara."
"What?!" All four Kage were visibly shaken.
Onoki frowned. "That man should've died long ago…"
Danzo continued calmly. "The details remain uncertain, but the information is reliable."
Onoki muttered to himself, "Could he really still be alive…"
Just then, Mifune, the samurai general and neutral host of the summit, spoke.
"As the leader of a neutral country, allow me to offer a proposal. The one leading Akatsuki is someone well-versed in manipulating the current state of the world. He exploits the distrust between nations to grow his influence, especially in this time of peace."
"However, misfortune and fortune are two sides of the same coin. It's fortunate that the five Kage have gathered here today."
"I propose the formation of a united ninja alliance. Only by working together can we counter the threat of Akatsuki."
Onoki folded his arms. "A ninja alliance… It's a fine idea on paper, but the Five Great Nations are equals. Who leads this so-called alliance?"
Mifune looked around the table. "Currently, the only remaining Jinchuriki is the Nine-Tails… from Konoha. Protecting and guiding him is the highest priority."
A heavy silence followed.
Then Mifune added, "In that case, why not let the Hokage lead the alliance?"
All four Kage were stunned. None of them had any idea that Naruto had already defected from the village.
The Raikage erupted. "What did you just say?!"
Danzo didn't even flinch. "If there are no objections, then I will humbly accept the responsibility."
"You think this is acceptable?!" the Raikage shouted, rising to his feet. "You, of all people?! You are the embodiment of the dark side of the shinobi world! How could we ever entrust something this important to you?!"
Mifune turned his gaze to the Raikage. "Then may I ask, Your Excellency, who would you consider fit for the role?"
"No one from my village ever joined Akatsuki. I have the cleanest record. And those who can't be trusted shouldn't be given power. I'm the most qualified!"
"Unfortunately," Mifune said quietly, "your approach is unlikely to gain the trust of others."
"What was that?!"
Mifune looked at the broken remains of the table in front of the Raikage. "Is this how you intend to lead the world's ninja? With anger and brute force? If strength is your only solution, the alliance will end up shattered… just like this table."
The Raikage ground his teeth in frustration. He had no response.
Mifune continued in a calm tone. "Of course, this is just my perspective as an outsider. But look at the facts."
"Lord Kazekage is still young. He carries the heavy burden of leadership already. Expecting him to lead a global alliance may be too much."
"Lord Tsuchikage, with all due respect, lacks the energy of youth. And his history of hiring Akatsuki makes it difficult for others to place full trust in him."
"Lady Mizukage… While competent, Kirigakure is rumored to be Akatsuki's birthplace. There's reason to fear potential leaks or infiltration."
"As for the Nine-Tails… we still don't fully understand why Akatsuki is collecting the tailed beasts. But Konoha holds the Nine-Tails. And that makes the Hokage the logical choice to protect and guide the Jinchuriki."
Everything Mifune said sounded reasonable, and even the Raikage had to admit—he had no way to argue it.
He slammed his fist against his chair. "I didn't come here to be lectured about some fake alliance. I came to show the power of Kumogakure. Whether we join or not is our choice!"
Meanwhile, behind the Mizukage, her sensor-type bodyguard Ao narrowed his visible eye. Something wasn't sitting right.
He muttered under his breath, "Mifune… a neutral party, yes. But he's pushing too hard for Danzo. That's suspicious."
He turned slightly. "Chojuro, get ready."
"Eh? R-Ready for what?" the younger swordsman asked nervously, gripping the hilt of his oversized blade.
Ao pressed his fingers together in a quick seal. The outline of chakra meridians lit up around his right eye, even beneath the black eyepatch.
Byakugan.
In an instant, Danzo's chakra system became visible—especially the flow around his right eye.
Ao's heart skipped. "This chakra color… I know it. That's Uchiha Shisui's chakra. I fought him once. I'd never forget it."
Swish.
Ao suddenly stepped forward and addressed Danzo directly. "Lord Hokage. Would you mind showing us your right eye?"
"What?" All four Kage turned at once.
Danzo's expression hardened.
Onoki narrowed his gaze. "What's going on?"
Ao didn't hesitate. "That eye… it doesn't belong to you. It's Shisui Uchiha's. And with it, you possess a forbidden pupil technique—one that lets you control another's thoughts without them even knowing."
"Once it's used, the victim has no awareness that they've been manipulated."
Raikage's expression darkened. "You mean… he already used it on Mifune?!"
Mifune's eyes widened. "What?!"
Ao said, "I can confirm the illusion was just released from Mifune-sama. Also…"
He turned his eyes behind Mifune. "You two… show your true forms."
"Huh?" Everyone looked at the two samurai standing silently behind the general.
Orochimaru smirked under the mask. "Heh… I suppose it couldn't last forever. Who would've thought one of Mizukage's guards had the Byakugan."
Naruto, disguised as the other samurai, stayed silent.
He knew this moment was coming. The plan had been successful so far, but predicting every detail was impossible—especially since his knowledge of this summit came from scattered stories and secondhand accounts.
But their objective was complete. Danzo had used Kotoamatsukami. It couldn't be used again—not for a while.
Poof!
Transformation undone, Naruto and Orochimaru appeared in front of the entire summit hall.
Mifune's hand immediately went to his sword. "Where are Chongsuke and Lijiao?!"
Naruto smiled behind his mask. "Who knows?"
Mifune drew his blade in one clean stroke.
Clang!
Naruto blocked the slash with his own sword. "As expected from the Iron Country's general. Sharp reflexes."
Mifune narrowed his eyes. Naruto's right hand moved toward his pouch.
"Watch it!"
Mifune leapt back, but Naruto had already thrown down a smoke bomb.
Boom!
In the thick cloud, the sound of fists and feet clashing rang out.
A moment later—crash! One of the walls exploded as Danzo fled the scene, blood on his shoulder, flanked by Torune and Fu.
Naruto and Orochimaru darted after him.
But before they could escape, Ao dropped in their path, blocking the exit.
"Even with a mask, I can see your chakra clearly. You're Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
He turned to the snake-like man beside Naruto. "And you… you're Orochimaru. One of the Sannin, presumed dead. But here you are—alive and working with the Jinchuriki."
Orochimaru just chuckled.
Naruto frowned. "So this is Ao. I never had much contact with him in my past life, but now I get why the Kara organization recruited him after the Fourth War. He's sharp."
Behind them, the Raikage shouted, "Nine-Tails Jinchuriki! That means you're Uzumaki Naruto!"
Naruto turned his head. "That's right."
"Then tell me where Sasuke is!"
Naruto looked at him and answered plainly, "I know."
"Where is he?!"
"I'm not telling you."
If you want to read more there's 15, 30, 50 chapters there of my written fanfictions and translated works in my Pat.Reon.
Here is the link: https://patreon.com/ChainsofChaosCC?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink
And if you can't find it just type my name: http://patreon.com/ChainsofChaosCC