Chapter 309 307: Ōnoki Steps Back
Following Mei Terumī's words, the other Kage fell back into contemplation.
Although everyone understood in their hearts that the plan Ōnoki proposed was the most feasible and definitive solution, the problem was that no one really wanted to take that path.
Humans are just like that!
Even if that path is correct, it's useless because everyone has their own selfish interests; this is something that can never be changed.
What a joke!
They were all the Kage of their respective hidden villages, truly standing above tens of thousands. Who would be willing to have another leader placed over their head?
And it wasn't just between the Kage; there were many high-level officials and power-holders within each village. How would a newly integrated alliance guarantee their interests?
It was far too complicated!
Even if this path was the right one, if they really wanted to see it through, heaven knows how much internal strife it would take, and how many powerful individuals would have to be sacrificed or killed in the process?
Give up power?
Impossible!
No one would be willing to let go of their authority, so any attempt at fusion would inevitably result in a wave of deaths.
The problem was that their alliance was formed specifically to deal with the increasingly powerful Konoha. Even now, the combined combat power of the Four Great Shinobi Villages was inferior to Konoha's. If a large number of Ninjas died because of this integration, what strength would they have left to deal with Konoha even if the alliance was successfully formed?
Therefore, it wouldn't work!
Even if that path was correct, they had no way to walk it.
On the contrary.
The path Mei Terumī suggested, while not as 'correct' as Ōnoki's, was the one most likely to succeed.
Perhaps such a loose alliance would inevitably lead to internal bickering, but because the elites of each village would be concentrated in one place, they wouldn't have to worry about the issue of facing Konoha. At most, there would just be more internal power struggles in the future...
But for the current stage, this path was considered decent.
As for the future?
That could wait until after they dealt with the two major problems: the Akatsuki Organization and Konoha.
"Kumogakure has no objection to the Mizukage's proposal!"
Darui was the first to speak, agreeing with Mei Terumī's suggestion.
This was quite normal.
After all, Kumogakure's current strength was too weak. They had plummeted from being the strongest Ninja village to nearly sitting at the same table as Sunagakure.
In particular, the capture of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki and the death of the Fourth Raikage had completely knocked Kumogakure into the dust.
The current Kumogakure naturally didn't dare to be arrogant; they were eager to ally with these villages and have the others stand in front of them.
Upon hearing this, Rasa also nodded directly: "Sunagakure has no objection either!"
In an instant.
Kumogakure, Hidden Mist, and Sunagakure had all nodded in agreement, leaving only the initiator, Iwagakure.
Ōnoki: "..."
At this moment, he truly had a headache.
He was not as optimistic about the future as the other Kage; on the contrary, as the initiator, he was full of pessimism.
He didn't believe that relying on such a loose alliance could deal with an increasingly dominant Konoha!
Because he had lived long enough, he had truly seen the power of Uchiha Madara.
Facing that kind of unreasonable powerhouse, even if the Four Great Shinobi Villages were truly united as one, he wouldn't have much confidence in dealing with Uchiha Jin, let alone this extremely loose so-called alliance.
He wanted to speak up and persuade them, but he didn't know what to say.
Unless they were allowed to truly witness the power of the Uchiha, saying anything more now would be completely meaningless.
So, what should he do?
Facing the current situation, he seemed to let out a sigh; he opened his mouth but ultimately chose to keep it shut.
"Then let it be so. Iwagakure also agrees."
"As for the future alliance headquarters, I suggest moving it directly to the Hidden Mist Village."
"My reason is simple: compared to the Other Ninja Villages, the Hidden Mist is far from the Shinobi Continent."
"We are not suited to clash head-on with Konoha at this stage. Our overall strategy going forward will definitely be passive defense and training as many Ninjas as possible, so the Hidden Mist Village is naturally the most suitable location."
"Besides that, there's the Akatsuki Organization!"
"In my view, as long as we retreat to the Hidden Mist Village, the Akatsuki's next targets—whether they like it or not—will only be Konoha."
"Let the Akatsuki and Konoha fight like dogs; it's better for us to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight."
"Iwagakure yielded on the previous proposal. I presume none of you will have any objection to this small suggestion?"
"Time is tight right now, and the situation is becoming increasingly dire. Since we've reached a consensus, let's return and make arrangements as quickly as possible."
Ōnoki's face was full of bitterness, but he finally gave his answer.
He had no choice!
He really had no other way.
Even though he knew this so-called alliance wouldn't be very effective, the problem was that it was still better than Iwagakure bearing the burden alone, right?
At the very least, even if they couldn't hold out and were doomed to die, it could buy them a little more time.
Of course.
Also for the sake of buying more time, he still forcibly chose to set the new alliance location directly in the Hidden Mist Village, far from the Shinobi Continent, and he was quite firm when discussing this point.
After all, he had agreed to their suggestion; he figured the others certainly wouldn't say much about such a small proposal.
In fact, that was exactly the case.
Although the other Kage looked surprised, after a brief moment of reflection, they nodded and agreed.
Seeing this, Ōnoki also relaxed quite a bit.
However.
Just as he was about to say a few more polite words, he suddenly sensed a massive amount of Chakra frantically heading toward their meeting place.
"Someone is coming, stay on guard!"
Ōnoki stood up immediately.
The other Kage reacted quickly as well, soon sensing the familiar Chakra, and immediately chose to stand up to prepare for defense.
But, in the next second.
'Water Release: Great Explosive Water Colliding Wave!'
A loud shout came from the distance, followed by a sea-like flood of water that directly smashed through the venue where the four Kage were negotiating.
The Kage reacted quickly, easily standing atop the crest of the wave.
Besides them...
The elites from each Ninja village brought by the Kage also rushed over from various directions, guarding their respective Kage.
"The Akatsuki Organization..."
"To think they'd actually deploy everyone; they really think highly of us!"
Darui spoke, his expression solemn.
The other Kage also looked grim; after all, they had clashed with the Akatsuki multiple times during this period, so they were well aware of the organization's strength.
"Kisame, you traitor!"
"Sasori! You murderer of the Sandaime, I, Rasa, will surely kill you today!"
"Deidara, come back!"
Rasa, Ōnoki, and Mei Terumī spoke one after another, their expressions all very ugly.
It couldn't be helped!
Seeing these three major generals of the Akatsuki, who were once powerful figures in their respective villages, it was infuriating to find they had all joined the Akatsuki.
This feeling was quite unpleasant!