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"It looks like Konoha’s elite forces are finally pulling out."

The moment Ōnoki received this intelligence, he immediately understood: Konoha’s elite units were withdrawing.

They were taking everything they had plundered from the Land of Earth—resources, wealth, supplies—and heading straight back to their village.

The thought of all those resources and that mountain of money being carted away made Ōnoki’s heart clench painfully again and again.

Iwagakure was so poor that its people would tear a single bill in half just to pretend they had two. They pinched every coin, yet Konoha had swept in and cleaned them out in one fell swoop.

Damn it!!

A surge of irritation flooded Ōnoki’s mind. He desperately wanted to curse out loud.

The only reason he had secretly come to the border in the first place was to ensure the village could rebuild its camps and establish fresh defensive lines in peace.

He feared that Kazuki would strike again—once more ripping through their defenses, smashing the newly rebuilt camps to pieces. Iwagakure simply couldn’t afford to suffer that kind of loss more than once or twice.

As for whether Konoha would launch a full-scale war afterward... Iwagakure wasn’t afraid. Let them come. A mule or a horse—only when you lead it out for a walk do you know what it’s really worth.

Sure, Iwagakure didn’t have many top-tier powerhouses, but what it did have in overwhelming numbers was ordinary ninja. Taken individually, most of them looked mediocre at best.

But when those seemingly average ninja gathered into a massive legion and marched onto the battlefield, only then would anyone truly understand how terrifying Iwagakure’s army could be.

As wave after wave of ninja departed the camp, the pressure finally began to ease. Fugaku and Hiashi no longer had to lie awake worrying about running out of supplies or consumption spiraling out of control.

On top of that, the next shipment of provisions from the village was already en route. At most two days, and it would happen. Once that happened, they could finally breathe easy.

When Kazuki decided to act, he acted decisively—that was simply his style.

Since he planned to take a stroll along the border, he certainly wasn’t going to dawdle.

This time he hadn’t come alone. Traveling with him were Fugaku, Orochimaru, Itachi, and a few others.

Hiashi, meanwhile, had been firmly stationed back at the camp to handle administrative duties.

Rather than taking the route through the Land of Rain, Kazuki chose to cut straight through the Land of Grass this time.

"Any recent movements from Kusagakure?"

It had been quite a while since Kazuki paid any attention to that fence-sitting little village. Ever since Konoha had given them a thorough thrashing and Iwagakure had subsequently sold them out, Kusagakure had gone remarkably quiet. They hadn’t dared entertain any more sneaky little schemes.

The animal-masked leaders of Kusagakure lived in constant fear that Konoha’s blade might once again rise—and this time came down squarely on their necks.

Fugaku spoke up immediately:

"Ever since that last incident exploded, Kusagakure has kept an extremely low profile. They’ve even abandoned several things they used to fight Konoha over. Our patrol teams have been moving freely inside the Land of Grass, and Kusagakure hasn’t shown the slightest reaction."

"Interesting."

Orochimaru found Kusagakure’s behavior quite amusing. With a village like that, it was hard to tell whether they had genuinely learned their lesson and were cowering—or whether they were simply biding their time, waiting for another opportunity.

"There’s an old saying that fits perfectly: it’s easy to change rivers and mountains, but impossible to change a person’s true nature. A dog will never stop eating its own filth—no matter how many times it’s beaten, no matter how much pain it’s endured. We can never afford to drop our guard against Kusagakure. Keep them under constant watch. The moment they make the slightest suspicious move, cut off their hands immediately." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Kazuki would sooner trust Iwagakure or even Sunagakure than place even a shred of faith in that ungrateful, backstabbing village of grass ninja.

It seemed Kusagakure still had more misfortune coming their way.

As long as Kazuki held power in Konoha, Kusagakure would never know a single day of peace.

Over time, everyone would grow accustomed to it. Eventually, if Kusagakure so much as twitched, they would be slammed back down without hesitation.

Because Konoha would have grown used to keeping them firmly under heel.

Anyone who allowed them to rise—even a little—would be suspected of betraying the village.

That little village was finished.

The only question left was how long they could limp along before they finally collapsed completely.

Come to think of it, the Land of Grass had some kind of dangerous thing hidden away.

Kazuki suddenly remembered something from a filler episodes he had watched in his previous life—one episode had been about Kusagakure.

Apparently the village had released some kind of monster sealed inside a so-called Box of Ultimate Bliss.

But a monster from the Box of Ultimate Bliss? That wasn’t Konoha’s problem to worry about.

It all depended on whether Kusagakure was foolish enough to dig their own grave.

If something really did go wrong, all five great ninja villages would have to face it together. It wouldn’t be anyone’s sole responsibility.

In the end, if things spiraled out of control and Kusagakure couldn’t handle the fallout themselves, the five great villages would have no choice but to step in.

Regardless, Kazuki’s attitude toward Kusagakure was crystal clear: no leniency whatsoever. Keep them pinned down tight. Give them zero chance to rise, zero chance even to catch their breath.

Having already been burned once and learned their lesson the hard way, Kusagakure was behaving very obediently these days. They didn’t dare provoke ninja from either Konoha or Iwagakure lightly.

As long as the fighting didn’t spill directly into their territory, Kusagakure would simply pull its head into its shell like a turtle and pretend nothing was happening.

Konoha ninja strutting openly through the Land of Grass? Kusagakure would act blind and deaf.

Uchiha Kazuki!

And Uchiha Fugaku... Orochimaru...

The intelligence had to be sent back immediately.

Outside the border line, Iwagakure had stationed numerous hidden sentries precisely to guard against surprise attacks from Konoha.

"Lord Advisor, should we take this one down?"

Fugaku and Itachi turned to Kazuki in perfect unison, their eyes asking the question silently.

Kazuki gave a faint smile.

"No need. Let him report back. We’re not afraid of Iwagakure knowing what we’re doing. In fact, it’s better if they’re on guard. That kind of pressure is exactly what we want. As long as Iwagakure knows I’m here on their border, that’s enough."

Under Kazuki’s deliberate leniency, the Iwagakure sentry slipped away at top speed, racing back toward the camp under reconstruction to deliver the urgent message.

"Uchiha Kazuki is here?"

Ōnoki hadn’t expected his precautions to be proven correct so quickly. Kazuki had returned to the border once again—and from the looks of it, he intended to target the newly rebuilt camps and defensive lines.

This brat!

One rampage wasn’t enough? He wanted to do it all over again?

Fortunately, this old man came prepared.

"Carry on as usual. No need to panic. Do whatever you’re supposed to do. I will go take a personal look."

With those words, Ōnoki shot into the sky and flew straight toward the border.

The ninja left behind in the camp panicked.

"Lord Tsuchikage! Please wait for us!!!"

But Ōnoki had no intention of waiting. He didn’t want bodyguards. Flying alone in the open sky was actually the safest position for him—bringing others along would only create liabilities and distractions.

On the border of the Land of Earth, Kazuki made no move to cross the line. Instead he stopped just outside it.

He had already sensed Ōnoki’s chakra signature rapidly approaching.

"I didn’t expect Ōnoki to come personally. Looks like the destruction of their camp last time—and the massive looting of resources inside their country—really rattled Iwagakure."

Should we prepare?

Fugaku asked the question with his eyes.

Kazuki gave a small shake of his head. No need. Just wait for Ōnoki to arrive.

"You all stay here."

After scanning the surrounding terrain, Kazuki continued forward alone. He walked straight to the border marker stone that stood as the official dividing line between the two countries, then casually sat down on top of it, legs crossed, posture relaxed, waiting patiently for the Tsuchikage’s arrival.

High above, a tiny black speck appeared in the distance, growing continuously larger as it drew near.