Iwagakure.
In the Tsuchikage's meeting room, all the seats were full, and the short old man on the main seat had a gloomy face, making the atmosphere in the entire meeting room exceptionally oppressive.
"Let's all discuss the matter of Konoha's victory over the Land of Waterfall Border Line last night."
Ōnoki floated in the air, looking at the many Iwagakure higher-ups, and spoke in a deep voice.
"This..."
Everyone looked at each other, and for a moment, no one wanted to speak. What a joke, their Tsuchikage's anger was clearly visible on his face; whoever spoke first would definitely not have a good outcome.
As time passed, Ōnoki's face grew gloomier. Everyone knew they couldn't delay any longer, so they all directed their gaze towards one seat, frantically signaling with their eyes.
"Uh..."
The selected Iwagakure Ninja instantly showed a bitter expression. But everyone present was his superior, and he was the lowest in both status and position. He wished he had applied to leave the Village for a mission.
"Tsuchikage, it's all because of those despicable Konoha guys' night attack. Otherwise, otherwise..."
Watching his Tsuchikage's face turn red with anger, the Iwagakure Ninja's voice grew softer and softer. By the end, his mind was completely blank, and he had no idea what to say.
"We are Ninja, not those rigid Samurai! Night attack? If they can do night attacks, why can't you? I..."
As expected by everyone, Ōnoki's pent-up fury instantly erupted. The poor man, attending this high-level meeting for the first time, was thoroughly scolded, his head almost touching the table.
Looking at the sympathetic glances from around him, the man had already mentally cursed out all the female relatives of his superiors.
At this moment, Ōnoki's anger had mostly dissipated. Looking at the man who looked utterly defeated after being lectured, he realized he might have gone a bit too far.
But as Tsuchikage, he couldn't apologize, so he could only say grumpily,
"Alright, sit down."
"Yes!"
The man immediately felt as if he had been granted a great pardon. After quickly sitting down, he secretly wiped a bead of sweat. Ōnoki, an old-school Kage-level Ninja, had an overwhelming aura.
Just now, the other party had intentionally or unintentionally pressed most of his aura onto him. If his own strength hadn't been decent, he might not have even been able to stand.
"Cough cough."
Seeing that Ōnoki's anger had mostly subsided, everyone dared to speak. A thin old man sitting to the lower left of the Tsuchikage stood up, coughed twice to draw everyone's attention to himself, and then slowly began to speak.
"Tsuchikage, although the Border Line was defeated, the losses are not very significant and are still within an acceptable range.
The situation in the Land of Rain is currently stable. So, let's strengthen our border troop deployment, dispatch the Ninja remaining in the Village to join the Konoha and Kumogakure Battlefield, catch them off guard, and then defeat them in one fell swoop."
Compared to Hidden Cloud Village's logistical resource issues, Iwagakure's resources are fully supported by the Daimyo, so there's no need to mention their troop strength. They still have a full ten thousand Ninja remaining in the Village who haven't been deployed to the battlefield. If they are dispatched, they will definitely achieve miraculous results on the battlefield!
"Hmm..."
Ōnoki floated indecisively in the air, a thoughtful expression on his face. Clearly, he was somewhat tempted by this suggestion.
This Ninja World War had been going on for almost a year, and the consumption of various supplies made even Konoha feel a bit strained, let alone them.
"Tsuchikage, isn't it a bit inappropriate to mobilize all of them? What about the piled-up missions in the Village then...?"
Another higher-up deliberated for a long time before standing up and carefully speaking, looking at the expressions of the others.
No matter how much manpower and resources were invested in the battle, the Village's defense forces absolutely could not be moved. Also, a portion of Ninja must be left behind to complete Delegation missions and earn commissions.
After all, part of their reason for starting the war was to seize mission resources, and the commissions from these missions were one of the sources of livelihood for the Ninja.
"A portion of the Village's defense Ninja will be pulled out to complete missions, and all remaining Ninja will be dispatched."
Ōnoki's deep voice echoed, and the meeting room instantly fell silent. A few higher-ups opened their mouths, wanting to stand up and say something, but just as they were about to act, they were pulled back by someone nearby, who then frantically signaled with their eyes to stop them.
It seemed their Tsuchikage was serious, and even if they spoke about something he had decided, it would be futile; it would only make him more resolute in his ideas.
Iwagakure Village is different from other Ninja Villages. Unlike Hidden Sand Village, where power is jointly managed by the Kazekage and the Elder Council, Konoha Village also has so-called Advisor Elders to check the Hokage. But the Land of Earth is different.
Tsuchikage Ōnoki wields great power through his formidable strength and excellent methods. Even the Daimyo of the Land of Earth holds this Tsuchikage in high regard.
So, basically, as long as Ōnoki decides on something, unless the entire Iwagakure higher-ups unanimously oppose it, it will be directly finalized and implemented. This is the man known as "Ōnoki," who stands at the pinnacle of the Land of Earth.
As the meeting concluded, everyone left one after another. Only Ōnoki remained in the meeting room, sitting on a chair, looking at the wartime map on the table, subconsciously tapping the armrest with his hand, and muttering to himself.
"Konoha..."
Meanwhile, Ren had already returned to the main camp, but at the entrance, he saw Itachi standing at the gate, with Fugaku, Uchiha Ken, and others beside him.
"Uncle Fugaku, Brother Ken, what are you doing here...?"
Upon hearing the voice, the others also noticed Ren, who had approached at some point. Itachi's face showed a hint of reluctance, but he still raised his hand and greeted,
"Brother Ren!"
"Oh, it's Ren."
Ken glanced at Fugaku beside him, and seeing no reaction from him, he explained,
"I'm returning to the Village for a mission, and I'm taking Itachi back to the Village with me. The Clan Head came to see us off. What about you?"
"Oh, I was out on a mission and just got back."
Ren chuckled, subtly shifting the topic away from himself.
"Itachi going back to the Village is good. This place isn't conducive to your growth."
Ren said, squatting down and gently stroking Itachi's hair with a light laugh.
"If you see Shisui, then please help me say hello, Brother Ren."
Itachi didn't mind Ren's actions; he was used to them anyway. However, the reluctance on his face grew even stronger.
These few short days on the battlefield, under his father's guidance, had completely overturned his worldview, but under Ren's guidance, he gained a new understanding and definition of life and war. He also cherished his bonds with Ren, Shisui, and others even more.
Seeing Brother Ren made him happy, but he was worried about Shisui, who was on another battlefield and whose situation was unknown.