Restarting Life: Call Me the Leader of Konoha

"Uncle Shizukage, Tsuchikage-sama...is he always this grumpy?"

Kakashi asked after Huang Tu fastened the chain on the prison door and turned to leave.

“I don’t usually know.

"But in my impression, he has always been like this."

Kakashi was speechless after hearing this.

If it wasn't Ōnoki's 'nature', then it could only mean one thing...

You really don't get along!

Lao Zi swayed his body, held his head with both hands and swayed onto the bed, staring quietly at the dark ceiling.

“When I couldn’t control the power of the tailed beasts, I was often imprisoned here.

"It's been a long time since I came back..."

Seeing the other party's relaxed expression, Kakashi's heart moved.

So this really is Iwagakure's prison!

But what's with that nostalgic look in your eyes?

"Uncle Zi, I don't think this is something we should be concerned about right now..."

Kakashi sighed helplessly.

The matter is of great importance, and time is relatively tight for me.

How could anyone be in the mood to find joy in misery like Lao Zi?

What if the Tsuchikage doesn't let me out...

Uncle Zi, you have caused me so much trouble!

Kakashi secretly complained in his heart.

Why do you have to say those few words for no reason?

Of course, I was also implicated. This old Tsuchikage guy also had problems...

"No, this is important, Kakashi."

Hearing this, Kakashi was slightly stunned, then his eyes narrowed.

"In order to complete the training of controlling the tailed beast's chakra, I have traveled to many places and met many people who have suffered from war...

"——Those who became victims in the struggle between great powers.

"Some people are doing their best just to survive, while others are still taking whatever they want without shame... This is the reality I see."

Lao Zi spoke slowly, his eyes solemn, as if he was recalling something.

Kakashi vaguely heard the meaning behind the words...

You mean, Tsuchikage Ohnoki?

“I tried to help, I tried to work hard, and I naively thought I could change something.

"It wasn't until I got old that I realized: war is endless! As long as there are some ambitious people, the entire ninja world will continue to cycle in struggle..."

Lao Zi said slowly: "Oonoki is such a person. In my opinion, there is no essential difference between a businessman making profits for himself and a 'shadow' making profits for the village.

"The villagers loved him, worshipped him, respected him because he brought benefits to the village, but I just felt disgusted...

"Only those who are willing to sacrifice their own interests in order to reach a consensus can truly lead the ninja world towards peace."

Lao Zi changed the subject and turned his head to look over, his expression surprisingly serious.

"Kakashi, since you are here, it means that Konoha is here for 'peace'. That's why I will choose to help you."

Uncle Zi, thank you...

But now you've sent me to Iwagakure's prison!

Looking at the other person's eyes, Kakashi didn't know how to start.

"Hahaha... Even though I don't like that guy very much, it's actually a good thing for you to stay here!"

Lao Zi explained with a smile.

"I deliberately wanted to irritate him for this very reason. Otherwise, after all these years, I would not bother to deal with that guy anymore!"

"Is it a good thing to stay here?"

"Kakashi, negotiations cannot be concluded overnight, and the Iwagakure clan is not united in this regard."

......

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Iwagakure, high-level meeting room.

There were eight elders on the council, plus the Tsuchikage himself, a total of nine people.

This is the process that Iwagakure must go through whenever it faces a major decision.

The content of Konoha's "negotiation" is undoubtedly the key at the moment.

"According to what Lord Tsuchikage said, the conditions offered by Konoha can be said to be sincere enough..."

The one who spoke was the only bald old man in the field besides Ōnoki.

"But even if the offer is generous, we still have to see if they are qualified to negotiate with us!"

"Given Konoha's current situation, we can just let go and maybe we can get some more for the village..."

"Forget it! The current conditions will surely make Konoha feel painful for a while. A lean camel is bigger than a horse, so we shouldn't push them too hard."

"This is a rare opportunity, we should..."

......

Several old men were talking at once.

And at the main seat at the square table.

Oonoki lowered his eyes to the envelope in front of him, thinking silently.

After hearing the noisy discussion gradually die down, he said:

"The conditions offered by Konoha are not bad, and they are already beyond our expectations. If they continue to push their limits, I'm afraid we will have to go to war.

"Everyone, I still say the same thing. Unless it is absolutely necessary, I will never risk the blood of the village to buy the future. I hope you can understand what I mean..."

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Any village needs to spend countless manpower and material resources to cultivate elites, and there is nothing wrong with cherishing these.

"So, Tsuchikage-sama, are you planning on agreeing to this?"

Ohnoki glanced at the head of the left hand side, an old lady with silver hair hanging down to her shoulders, and then replied in a deep voice: "Why not."

"I think that whether to accept this or not can be decided back to Konoha, and let them make the choice..."

"Konoha and Iwagakure are far apart, and it would take a lot of time to go back and forth. If we continue to fight for it, it's not worth it. It would be better to offer the conditions we want!"

As a 'shadow' who had countless negotiation experiences, Ohnoki was extremely clear about the twists and turns involved.

The best thing would be for both parties to carve out a path and then use the situation to force the other party to meet their conditions.

Procrastination will only delay the opportunity!

"No, Tsuchikage-sama, I mean...

"How about leaving the decision to the Konoha messenger you imprisoned?"

Ōnoki glanced at the other person coldly.

"What are you going to do?"

......

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"Among the top leaders of Iwagakure, there are also two factions."

In the dark and quiet prison, only the sound of conversations between two or three people could be heard.

"One faction is the radical faction that advocates fighting to support the war, and the other faction is the conservative faction that advocates non-aggression and tries to avoid the possible sacrifice of the village.

"Given the current favorable situation of Iwagakure, you should be able to predict that the forces supporting the latter are relatively weak among the top leaders."

Listening to Lao Zi's words, Kakashi fell into deep thought.

I'm afraid it's not just weaker...

All along, the aggressiveness displayed by Iwagakure is only slightly inferior to that of Kumogakure.

This shows that the influence of radicals at the top must be dominant!

It seems that there is a similar situation in Konoha...

Although he had few interactions with the senior elders, Kakashi could vaguely sense that Danzo had a say in them.

Among the three elders, Danzo is obviously the most radical and powerful.

But in the end, the three generations had to mediate.

Just like Iwagakure, the ultimate power undoubtedly lies in the hands of Ōnoki.

"Then Uncle Zi...is a conservative?"

"Hahaha, I'm not from either faction. I'm just a savage who longs for 'peace'."

Lao Zi shook his head and sighed, then a gleam of light flashed in his eyes.

"Kakashi, perhaps you don't understand the dangers of negotiations between major powers.

"The Iwagakure high-ranking officials are eyeing Konoha covetously, and you, as Konoha's envoy, are here for 'peace talks', which is something the radicals are not happy to see. They can use this opportunity to cause trouble in countless ways...

“Once they get information about you and frame you for killing someone in the village, or force you to take action against someone, how will you respond?

"Should we just let it go? Or should we fight back?"

The old man leaned against his side with his arms folded across his chest, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Is it possible to just let things take their own course and leave your life to others?

And rise up in resistance...

Fight against Iwagakure in Iwagakure Village?

Isn't this a joke?

Obviously, neither of them will have a good ending.

"As long as they can destroy the relationship and disrupt the negotiations, their goal will be achieved. You won't be able to explain yourself by then!

“This has always been a common tactic used in the ninja world, not just by Iwagakure, so being an envoy to another country has always been a big risk.

“But at least it’s different now.

"In order to avoid these troubles, deliberately angering Ohnoki and letting him 'imprison' you here can prevent those people from playing tricks. And we just need to wait for the decision of the high-level meeting..."

"I understand."

What Lao Zi said might be right!

Kakashi lowered his head in thought.

In the past, during wartime, the warring parties often negotiated peace by having their subordinates exchange handwritten notes across borders.

It is rare to go deep into the enemy camp alone!

Although it is not similar to the present moment, the word "danger" is still unavoidable.

I really didn't understand the grievances and grievances involved!

but.

Kakashi's eyes flickered.

There was only one thing that made him care.

Ohnoki, this person...

At the same time, he is dealing with both radicals and conservatives, and is the longest-serving and elderly 'shadow'.

Is he really the type that gets easily irritated?

Although according to Lao Zi, he has always been so "violent" in his impression.

But Kakashi thought, maybe it was just because of Old Zi...

Whether it is rational prudence or emotional intuition.

That look.

Obviously turbid and dim, with not much brilliance in his eyes, but they are deep as if embracing everything!

He doesn't seem like the kind of person who would let anger control his behavior.

"Tatttatt..."

Suddenly, a faint rustling sound was heard from the entrance of the cave.

Kakashi's heart moved, and he looked up in the faint light.

Not long after, a nimble, short and fat figure appeared in the field of vision, walking towards this side on "tiptoe".

Terracotta?

"Grandpa Zi!"

Through the iron gate, the young man smiled innocently.

He took out a bunch of keys and fiddled with them for a while before unlocking the chain on the iron fence...

"Chitu, shouldn't you be practicing the Gangli style technique?"

Lao Zi frowned slightly.

In his impression, someone as stubborn as Ohnoki would not change his mind easily.

"Hehe, actually I have already secretly learned the Gangli style technique a long time ago!

"It was with the help of the stone man that I was able to successfully steal this bunch of keys from the teacher!"

Still smiling naively, Chitu shook the key in his hand, and then opened the prison door.

"That's right..."

Lao Zi suddenly revealed a meaningful smile and turned to look at Kakashi.

"Kakashi, let's go."

"Ah? But Uncle Zi, didn't you just say..."

"I think maybe the time has come."

Has the time come?

"Well, it seems that the efficiency of the Council of Elders has improved somewhat."

Looking at the old man walking out, Kakashi followed him half-believingly.

Sure enough, just outside the cave, there was a figure standing next to him...

"Akagi, the Tsuchikage-sama is calling you to go back and practice the Earthquake Core Technique. You are not allowed to leave the house until you learn it well!"

Huang Tu looked at the young man, sighed, and spoke slowly.

Chi Tu's eyes suddenly widened into as big as copper bells!

Earthquake Core...

I really don’t know how to do this!

Seeing the boy beside him suddenly turn pale, Kakashi couldn't help laughing.

I think I understand!

Is this 'fishing enforcement'?

......

-----------------

Akatsuki was able to steal the key away from the Tsuchikage...

This is obviously unrealistic.

It seems that this was done with Oonoki's tacit approval, and the appearance of yellow soil also proves this point.

Even if there was no red soil, it would most likely be the yellow soil that came to "invite" the two to leave.

And the reason why the other party does this.

That is to say...

There is a response to Minato-sensei's matter!

"The Tsuchikage-sama is already waiting."

"Yeah, I understand."

Kakashi nodded slightly, without thinking any more, he reached out and pushed the door open.

Behind him followed an old man with a red beard and purple clothes...

"The Third Tsuchikage-sama."

Looking at the little old man sitting at the table, he bowed slightly and saluted.

"Ah."

Oonoki responded calmly, and on the table was the letter.

"Regarding what Minato said in the letter and the conditions he proposed, the resolution of the top leaders of Iwagakure has been barely passed.

"This also means that Iwagakure will accept this letter and abide by the agreement stated in the letter. They will no longer abuse force or actively provoke disputes."

Kakashi's eyes lit up.

This is actually not unexpected.

But hearing the news in person finally put my mind at ease!

Maybe there is hope for the 'peace' that Minato-sensei talked about?

"But..."

but?

Before I could say anything, I heard Ōnoki continue.

“Negotiations can only be meaningful if both sides are on an equal footing.

"Iwagakure has no objection to the content, but Iwagakure still has doubts about whether Konoha is qualified to negotiate with us."

"What Lord Tsuchikage means is..." Kakashi said with a frown.

Accept and reject at the same time?

Accept the benefits and refuse the promises?

That's too shameless...

"The council has finally decided that you will represent Konoha and will fight against an elite jonin sent by my Iwagakure."

Ohnoki placed his elbows on the table, his palms clasped together and pressed against his chin.

"If we win, then everything will be as Minato said in the letter, but if we lose, Konoha will have to increase the stakes by one-fifth...

"How about it? Whether you can realize Minato's 'innocence' depends on you, Hatake Kakashi."

Kakashi was slightly stunned.

It was clearly a form of "peace talks", but in the end it actually turned into a fight?

"Third Tsuchikage-sama, I don't think I have the right to refuse, right?"

"Since you can realize this, it seems you are not stupid!" Ohnoki laughed.

As he spoke, he handed over a red leather scroll.

"This is......"

"These are some earth-style ninjutsu from Iwagakure."

"Earth escape ninjutsu?"

"After all, you are fighting against us Iwagakure ninjas, so for the sake of fairness, this competition requires you, Hatake Kakashi, to only use earth-style ninjutsu!"

Competition!

But it restricts ninjutsu!

"Time...and opponents." Kakashi said in a deep voice.

This is clearly targeting me...

With his own attainments in Lightning Escape, against Iwagakure's Earth Escape, there is no doubt that he will have a good chance of winning with the advantage of attribute restraint.

Even when the competition was first proposed, Kakashi was not worried about anything, mainly because of this.

But if you limit yourself to earth escape ninjutsu...

Could it be that I was on the "Earth Flow Wall" the whole time?

Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief after taking the red scroll.

Since this has been given to me, at least explain something.

There's still time!

Perhaps I can take advantage of this time to master a few more earth escape attack methods...

"The time is tomorrow. As for the opponent, you will know then." Oonoki said with a smile.

Kakashi's face darkened.

tomorrow?

Now we really have to rely on the 'Earth Flow Wall'!

......

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