Konoha's Sword Saint [58]

The wolf pup had just been born not long ago, still unaware of the world, when Hoshiyomi carried it out of the small den.

Getting along with the pup was surprisingly easy. Hoshiyomi's roasted meat had completely won over the little glutton. In just a few days, the two had already formed a close bond.

Hoshiyomi gave him a name—Lobo, after the wolf king from Seton's Animal Chronicles, hoping he would one day grow into a powerful beast that could shake the shinobi world.

In just a few days, Lobo already remembered his name. Whenever Hoshiyomi called out to him, the pup would bark twice and run over, rubbing up against Hoshiyomi's leg in anticipation of grilled meat.

Seeing that, Hoshiyomi couldn't help but wonder if this guy was going to grow up into a majestic wolf king… or turn into something more like a lazy house pet.

Team Torifu stayed in the Land of Rice Fields for a few more days. Partly to care for Lobo, but also to give the daimyō solid proof that the "monster" had truly been eliminated.

Torifu, meanwhile, was having a great time. Having solved the mystery that plagued the region, he was treated like a national hero by the daimyō—who insisted on having personal chefs cook for him every day. In just a few days, Torifu's figure had grown noticeably rounder.

While Hoshiyomi and his team were still staying in the Land of Rice Fields, something major happened back in Konoha: a peace delegation from the Hidden Cloud Village arrived.

The news sparked celebration among Konoha's citizens. The arrival of the peace delegation basically meant the war was over. Shinobi on the front lines could finally return home to their families.

But while the people were happy, Konoha's leadership wore troubled expressions—for one simple reason: Kumogakure didn't plan on backing down easily.

Yes, they had proposed the ceasefire, but that didn't mean they were admitting defeat. Nor did it mean they were too weak to keep fighting.

In fact, after Kinkaku and Ginkaku dragged the Second Hokage down with them, things settled down in Cloud much more smoothly than in Konoha.

The rebel factions in Cloud were quickly crushed by the Third Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, who restored order through brute force.

Compared to Konoha's internal politics, Cloud had already united behind one strong will.

They chose peace partly because the new Raikage needed to stabilize public opinion—and also because Iwagakure had started acting suspicious.

The fear of getting stabbed in the back by Iwa was the real reason they called for peace talks—but of course, they weren't about to admit that.

As a result, the negotiation team that arrived in Konoha had an air of arrogance that could rival the Uchiha. They looked down on everyone like they had something stuck in their nose.

Their attitude during the talks was equally tough. And since Konoha had no intention of being taken advantage of either, the negotiations quickly turned into a drawn-out standoff.

To break it down simply, the "negotiation" looked something like this:

Konoha: You surrendered first. Why should we be the ones to suffer losses? You wish.

Cloud: We're not afraid of dying. You don't like it? Then fight.

Konoha: You think you can beat us? We've got numbers.

Cloud: We've got the Two-Tails and the Eight-Tails. Bring it.

Konoha: We've got the Nine-Tails. Let's see who blinks.

Cloud: If your Jinchūriki dies, what will your village do?

Konoha: If your two Jinchūriki die, Iwagakure will wipe you out.

Cloud: …

Konoha: …

Cloud: Ahaha! It's been a while. Konoha's still as funny as ever.

Konoha: And Cloud is still as charming as always. Remember how you backed Hashirama-sama at the first Five Kage Summit?

Cloud: And we're still thankful he shared the Tailed Beasts with us.

Konoha: So then, how about—

Cloud: Let's not go there.

Konoha: Then what do we do?

Cloud: Then what do we do?

What do we do? What do we do…

Because, in the end, humans are just glorified broken record players.

The negotiation dragged on. Both sides kept going back and forth—shouting, threatening war, then quietly backing off again.

At the core of it all, neither side had shown their true strength yet. Both thought they could squeeze more out of the other.

That was until someone—no one knows who or which side they were from—suddenly said:

"This endless back-and-forth is pointless. We can't see each other's cards, so how about we let the next generation decide the outcome?"

No one knew what the speaker's true intention was, or who they represented. But somehow, both sides agreed to the proposal.

In the end, war is always about giving the younger generation access to more resources and strength. So why not just let them fight for it directly?

It would also give both sides a sense of the other's future strength—and reduce the chance of another war breaking out anytime soon.

If one side saw that the other's up-and-coming ninja were stronger, they wouldn't be so foolish as to provoke a fight. And the stronger side, bound by the ceasefire, couldn't launch a war either.

Once this direction was settled, negotiations suddenly sped up. What had taken weeks of back-and-forth was settled in just three days:

One year from now, Konoha and Cloud would jointly host a Chūnin Exams, inviting smaller surrounding nations to participate as well.

The exam would be limited to genin under the age of sixteen.

The side whose genin perform worse will be recognized as the losing side of the war—and must provide reparations.

Hoshiyomi and his team had just returned to Konoha after days on the road. They hadn't even had time to change clothes when they heard the news. At first, it didn't seem like a big deal.

But right after turning in their mission report, they were summoned to the Hokage's office by the ANBU.

Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen, Danzō, Homura, Koharu, and even Mito Uzumaki were all gathered around Tsunade's team, giving them a serious talk.

When Hoshiyomi's team entered, they were immediately pulled into the conversation.

Just like that, Hoshiyomi, Tsunade, and four other genin found themselves surrounded by six of Konoha's top leaders, being briefed on the first major mission of their shinobi careers:

"Starting now, all your regular missions are canceled. Your sole focus for the next year will be preparing for the Chūnin Exams.

Don't underestimate this exam—it's no ordinary promotion test.

This is the continuation of the war between Konoha and Kumogakure. The results of the Chūnin Exams will determine which of our villages is considered the victor. We cannot afford to lose.

The six of you are currently the most talented genin in the village. You are Konoha's best hope.

Your mission is to train, grow, and win. Beat those Cloud brats.

This mission's classification is: S-Rank."

PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin