"You don't want to start a war either, do you, Fourth Kazekage?"

  The Third Hokage took a deep breath and said, "Surrender."

  Surrender, after only a few minutes of battle? Such as—breaking alliances, invading an allied vilge, and then immediately falling to their knees—would only deepen the Land of Wind's Daimyo's mistrust of the Sunagakure.

  Not to mention the deaths: Konoha ninja, Sunagakure ninja rades, and even nobles and daimyo who had perished iack...

  Someone would have to bear the burden of all these sins.

  Rasa was jolted back from his idealized vision of death to the harsh reality of what y ahead. The thought of fag the sequences was suffog.

  Dying would be a simple escape; living, however, would require immense ce.

  He looked at the aged Hokage before him, silently pleading for a swift end.

  "Swoosh!"

  "Lord Third Hokage."

  Baki leapt toward the two Kage, kneeling as he nded, surrounded instantly by Konoha's Anbu. Bowing deeply, he decred, "I have already sighe Sunagakure to retreat. All pns for invasion were devised, pnned, and executed by me—Baki, Jonin of the Sunagakure—in colboration with Orochimaru."

  Baki...

  Rasa g his subordiuheir gazes met, and Baki's eyes were firm, filled with resolve—a look Rasa reized all too well. It was the same determination he'd had when he first became Kazekage.

  "Thud!"

  Link nded nearby, carrying both Rock Lee and Gaara, with Kankuro and Temari dangling from his shadow, their disheveled forms a testament to their defeat.

  They didn’t escape?

  Baki looked at his captured subordinates, not surprised but somewhat relieved. At least they were alive.

  They represehe vilge’s future; as long as they lived, there was hope.

  This boy... truly ged everything, Baki thought, giving his three subordinates a meaningful gnce before swiftly raising his hand.

  "Ssh!"

  A bde of wind severed Baki's head ly.

  No oopped him. Everyone silently watched.

  "We..."

  Rasa sed the injured faces of his rades. Some familiar ones were no longer among them. After a brief silence, he turo the Third Hokage, his expression heavy. "On behalf of the Sunagakure, I surreo Konoha."

  For the first time in his life, Rasa realized how difficult it was to speak.

  When sacrifices carry weight, esg through death bees ughable.

  The Sunagakure ninja slowly raised their hands in surrehere weren’t ma—Konoha had strictly limited the number of fn ninja allowed in the vilge. ting them all, there were only about a dozen, most of them the elite of the Sunagakure.

  The giant snakes Orochimaru had summoo breach Konoha's walls had barely begun their advance when the "Kage" leading them was defeated and the retreat signal issued. The resulting damage was far less than what occurred in the is of the manga.

  The remaining enemies in Konoha were now limited to a few abaogakure ninja who tiheir futile resistance. With the surrender of the Sunagakure’s elite and their Kage, the war ended far soohan expected.

  From an individualistic perspective, the Third Hokage had almost single-handedly turned a war that should have caused catastrophic destru into a minor skirmish. Defeating the enemy Kage quickly was a massive blow to morale.

  Had the enemy’s Kage remained engaged in battle, it could have resulted in a one-sided situation.

  Baki’s decision was correct. tinuing the invasion, even at the cost of greater damage to Konoha, would not have signifitly altered the oute. It would only bleed the already weakened Sunagakure dry.

  With the tly halted, Konoha had suffered minimal harm, opening the door to peace talks. The "culprit" Orochimaru had fled, and Baki’s death further diffused tensions, giving both sides a way out.

  When Rasa annouhe Sunagakure’s surrehe remaining Jonin followed suit, raising their hands.

  Konoha’s Anbu appeared to detain the surrendered enemies, while mediinja rushed to treat their injured rades. The entire se unfolded with calm precision.

  As she was led away, Temari gnced back at her teacher’s severed head being sealed, her posure finally crag to reveal traces of sadness.

  Kankuro wiped his tears as he followed his sister.

  The Sunagakure ninja who had allied with Orochimaru would either escape or be detained, left to await the outes of future peace talks.

  Rasa, as the Kazekage, received no special treatment. The Anbu refrained from physically restraining him but kept a close eye.

  Rock Lee, critically injured, was taken to the hospital by the medical corps. Link, reverting from his transformed state, exhaled heavily. While his transformation granted him enhanced physical capabilities and chakra reserves, it came at a cost to his energy and stamina.

  His ability was akin to the Akimichi ’s calorie trol—greater stored energy meant a higher transformation cap. But the advantage was that he could transform at any time without requiriernal aids or preparation.

  This was why Link always maintained his rigorous training routine.

  "Link," the Third Hokage called out as he was about to leave. The aged Kage smiled faintly. "You’ve bee an outstanding ninja."

  "You're too kind." Link bowed slightly. "Now, if you’ll excuse me."

  The vilge, still rec from the attack, had much work to do. From clearing out lingering Otogakure ninja to treating injured rades, there were plenty of opportuo gain reition and tribute.

  Opportunities like this didn’t e often, and Link wasn’t about to waste it.

  "Old man, I’m not too te, am I?"

  A white-haired, middle-aged ninja carrying a giant scroll and wearia sandals appeared on the se.

  It’s already over.

  Link guessed this must be the Toad Sage, Jiraiya. Seeing him in person for the first time, Link thought the man looked slightly more disheveled than he’d imagined.

  Still, his appearance carried an air of power.

  "Jiraiya," the Third Hokage addressed him.

  Link walked away, not lingering to eavesdrop oeacher-student versation.

  A few hundred meters away, he found Sasuke Uchiha sitting against a wall, battered and bruised, with three dead Otogakure ninja around him.

  "How are you?" Link asked, croug to check Sasuke’s injuries.

  "I entered one of Orochimaru’s men. He used a straeique to sever the muscles in my arm," Sasuke summarized tersely, omitting the fact that he’d killed the three ninja.

  After a pause, he added, "Naruto and the others went to assist at the academy."

  "That guy was likely Kabuto Yakushi. ime you meet him, be careful not to engage in close bat," Link said, treating Sasuke's severed muscles while sharing intelligence.

  Sasuke g his rade, who was focused on healing him, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

  Bleam