As Second Tsuchikage 46

Chapter 46: Talk?

"Ahem! Let's not discuss all that right now. The priority is to win this battle first! We need to decide who’s going to lead the charge. We can’t all just rush in at once, can we?" Mū tapped the table lightly as he spoke, his tone calm but firm.

The atmosphere shifted. Silence settled over the group again.

It was clear to everyone that with victory already within reach and most objectives secured, no one was eager to gamble with their lives. The thought of sending their own men to die felt needless now.

"Don’t look at me. Hurry up and come up with a plan, make a decision," Mū said in a low voice.

Just then, a ninja burst into the tent in haste.

"Lords, Tobirama Senju has come alone to negotiate!"

The group exchanged surprised glances. None of them had expected Tobirama to come in person; they'd assumed he would meet them only on the battlefield.

After a brief moment, the leaders nodded, signaling for the guards to let him in.

Tobirama Senju entered the command tent wearing his high-collared cloak, a single Senju guard walking silently behind him.

"Oh? The King of Konoha is here!" Gengetsu Hōzuki sneered. "I thought you’d keep hiding in Konoha’s bunker like an old hermit."

Tobirama remained calm, his gaze fixed on Mū at the center of the room. Then he spoke, measured and steady. "I’m here to negotiate. Continuing this war benefits no one. Konoha doesn’t want a war."

"Hahahaha! Is this a joke? We’ve already reached your doorstep, and now you come to negotiate?" Shamon burst into loud laughter.

"You haven’t even seen what Konoha is capable of," Tobirama said evenly. "None of you have encountered the Uchiha, Senju, or Hyuga clans on the battlefield yet."

At that, Shamon hesitated. Now that he thought about it, those clans truly hadn’t appeared.

"If you insist on pushing forward, we in Konoha will likely fall with you. But you won’t walk away unscathed. When that moment comes, I, Tobirama Senju, will make sure to take at least two of you with me!"

His voice carried a chill, and as his eyes swept across the four leaders, a dangerous light flashed within them.

The tent grew tense. The four leaders exchanged heavy glances.

Mū narrowed his eyes slightly. He could tell Tobirama wasn’t bluffing. The threat wasn’t just bravado. He’d long been wary of the Reaper Death Seal and the Impure World Reincarnation technique.

"If you agree to a ceasefire, I’ll overlook the territories you’ve already taken," Tobirama said, gritting his teeth. It was a massive concession, delivered with finality.

"What!" A collective gasp rang out as the leaders drew sharp breaths.

Even Mū looked visibly stunned. So much territory was simply handed over? Even a proud general wouldn’t dare sign a treaty like that!

Mū fell silent, deep in thought. He wasn’t concerned about Iwagakure suffering heavy casualties. He could always brush it off by saying, "I don’t care about the losses. I only want Konoha."

More than anyone else here, he wanted Konoha to fall quickly. That was why he had gone to such lengths to eliminate Hashirama Senju in the first place.

"Please think it over, all of you. I’ll take my leave for now."

Tobirama gave Mū a long, deliberate glance before turning to go, his guard following quietly.

Mū narrowed his eyes. He understood the message behind that final look all too well.

…

Late at night, Mū stood at the edge of a cliff, his eyes fixed on the distant silhouette of Mount Kikyo. In the annals of history, the Battle of Mount Kikyo would later be remembered as Konoha’s devastating defeat, but that belonged to the era of the later Shinobi World Wars.

"Tobirama Senju, stop hiding. My sensory abilities picked you up a long time ago."

With his hands clasped behind his back, Mū glanced slightly over his shoulder.

Tobirama stepped out from behind the trees and slowly came to stand beside him.

"You didn’t bring me all the way out here in the dead of night just to enjoy the moonlight, did you?" Mū asked, still staring up at the glowing moon.

Tobirama’s expression remained unreadable.

"Name your condition. As long as Iwagakure agrees to abandon its attack on Konoha, I’ll do my best to meet it."

Mū raised an eyebrow and immediately replied. "What if I said I want Konoha itself?"

Tobirama’s eyes narrowed. "Then you’d better be prepared to pay a terrible price."

A cold light flashed through Mū’s eyes.

He was Mū. And if there was one thing he loathed, it was being threatened. The last person who tried that was Madara Uchiha, whom he turned into shinobi dust. If Tobirama’s god-of-shinobi brother were still alive, perhaps Mu’d tolerate such words. But he was dead. Now, Mu was the strongest in the entire ninja world.

"Tobirama Senju, are you threatening me? I already killed your brother. Do you want to taste my Dust Release too?" Mū then crossed his arms, "Uchiha Madara and Hashirama Senju are relics of the past. Who now holds sway over the vast ninja world? I do."

Mū’s gaze swept across Tobirama like sharpened blades. With each movement, the pressure radiating from him intensified, the overwhelming aura of someone who truly believed he stood at the top of the shinobi world.

Of course, Mū wasn’t bluffing. Since he had defeated two great powerhouses, he had no reason to remain humble.

In that moment, Tobirama’s pupils shrank. Instinctively, he took two steps back. His eyes filled with surprise and regret.

Yes, regret.

He remembered the man Mū used to be. The one who once crawled to Konoha, begging for peace. The one who had been beaten to his knees by Madara. The one who was nailed to the ground like a discarded tool.

Back then, Mū wasn’t like this.

Tobirama had seen him grovel before both Hashirama and Madara. He had been weak, someone meant to be crushed.

But now... somehow...

Tobirama regretted that his brother and Madara hadn’t finished this man when they had the chance. Had they done so, none of this would be happening now.

"Ahem... I was too hasty."

A flicker of restraint returned to Tobirama’s expression.

Mū looked at him with calm indifference. He hadn’t forgotten that this man had created many forbidden techniques.

"Fine, we can talk. But I’ve come all this way to Konoha. I’m not leaving empty-handed. I heard Tobirama-dono has a fondness for creating forbidden jutsu. Why not let me take a look? Let me admire them up close."

Mū gave Tobirama a firm pat on the shoulder.

Tobirama’s face darkened. He realized instantly that this man’s true goal was his jutsu. "Which one do you want?"

"I want all of them." Mū clenched his fist as he spoke.

"Don’t be ridiculous! Those jutsu are extremely valuable!" Tobirama snapped, his patience slipping.

"Then we have nothing to discuss." Mū waved him off dismissively.

"You..."

Tobirama found himself cornered, grinding his molars so hard his back teeth cracked from the pressure.

"Fine! I agree! I’ll give you a complete copy of every jutsu in Konoha! And I won’t pursue the matter of the territory you've taken from the Land of Fire! But you must promise to withdraw your forces!"

With no alternative left, Tobirama relented. Of course, he was keeping tabs on what information he had to withhold. If a bloodshed can be overlooked, then he was willing to pay the price.

"Deal." Mū nodded without hesitation.

The two men reached a private agreement, paying no mind to the other ninja villages involved in the war. This had been Mū’s plan all along. He had no intention of letting the other three villages stand on equal footing with Iwagakure. If the war continued, their greed and ambition would eventually lead to chaos, and once they turned on each other, open conflict would be inevitable.

So for now, Konoha would be spared.

As long as he lived, Mū would ensure Konoha remained the second power in the ninja world. He wanted to solidify the gains Iwagakure had already made, return to the village, and shift focus toward development. His ambition was clear: to raise Iwagakure above all others.

That was also why he demanded Tobirama’s jutsu. Iwagakure lacked a broad arsenal of techniques, and acquiring Konoha’s secrets would greatly strengthen its forces.

But Mū’s plans went beyond that.

He intended to capture the Tailed Beasts, not to wield them himself, but to cultivate Jinchuriki who could. With Hashirama dead, no one was left to distribute the beasts. Mū would now have to take them by force.

He did regret not waiting until Hashirama had completed the handover before killing him. But what was done was done. The souls of Asura and Indra were destined to be bound in conflict.

As for Tobirama... Mū would never allow him to live.

The man was far too clever for his own good. Mū loathed clever people, especially when that cleverness came with techniques like Flying Thunder God, Impure World Reincarnation, and a treasury of forbidden jutsu.

Just the Flying Thunder God alone rendered Mū’s Dust Release ineffective. He knew Kamui could escape Dust Release, and Flying Thunder God was faster than Kamui.

Even now, Mū was thinking carefully about how to deceive and eliminate Tobirama Senju.

There was no room in the ninja world for someone that dangerous to exist.