Hiruzen persuaded me to die

Iwagakure – Tsuchikage's Office

"Slow down. One at a time."

The aging Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, raised his hand, halting his son's rapid-fire report. His eyes narrowed with impatience.

Kurotsuchi, ever the steady son, paused and organized his thoughts before continuing.

"Before this, Konoha forces under a young shinobi named Hyūga Naraku repelled a major assault squad from Kumogakure. Not only that... they chased them all the way to the gates of the Hidden Cloud and surrounded the village itself."

Ōnoki's eyes widened.

"That's impossible."

The old Tsuchikage's voice was sharp. "I know the Fourth Raikage's temper well. You expect me to believe he just let someone camp outside his gates?"

He remembered the time during the Third Great Ninja War, when he led tens of thousands of Iwa shinobi to encircle and kill the Third Raikage. Even after that, the battle didn't end—because the Fourth Raikage immediately succeeded his father and carried the war forward with savage determination.

Ōnoki had clashed with that man countless times.

"I didn't believe it either," Kurotsuchi said bitterly. "But the intel is solid."

He continued, barely keeping the disbelief out of his own voice.

"Sarutobi Hiruzen defected and fled to Kumogakure, but instead of finding safety, he was caught in Naraku's siege. Cloud was forced to keep him hidden… yet the man was attacked constantly by assassins."

Ōnoki raised an eyebrow. "Assassinated? Inside the Cloud?"

"He couldn't retaliate. If he lifted a finger, the Raikage would have turned against him too."

The old Tsuchikage chuckled. "Hah! Poetic justice. Didn't the Raikage once give Konoha a seven-day ultimatum? Looks like Naraku returned the favor."

Kurotsuchi nodded, a reluctant smile on his face.

"But it didn't end there."

Ōnoki leaned forward, sensing the tremor in his son's voice.

"Naraku destroyed two mountains—each over a hundred meters high—and dropped them straight onto the Hidden Cloud."

The room went silent.

Ōnoki slowly extended his hand and mimicked the scale with his fingers.

"If I used Dust Release with everything I had… I could maybe pulverize one mountain. But two? That would drain me completely. If Naraku really did that…"

He didn't finish the thought.

"But that's not all," Kurotsuchi said, flipping to the next page of the report with trembling fingers. "After the destruction, Naraku and his Konoha forces walked straight into the village."

Ōnoki's brows furrowed. "The Fourth Raikage wouldn't just let that happen."

"Exactly," Kurotsuchi agreed. "Apparently, he was stalling—pretending to negotiate while secretly activating a new 'secret weapon.' Our spies couldn't identify it, but we know this: the village was quietly evacuated before they deployed it."

Ōnoki scoffed. "So Naraku walked right into a trap."

But Kurotsuchi's silence said otherwise.

He handed his father a photo.

"What's this?"

The image showed an immense canyon—deep, long, and unnaturally smooth. Taken from a high mountain vantage, the crevasse ran far beyond the frame.

"This isn't a natural formation," Ōnoki muttered. "This… was cut. This is a sword scar."

"You're right," Kurotsuchi confirmed. "It wasn't the Cloud's secret weapon. That was deployed earlier—and all it did was emit a blinding golden light. Moments later…"

He exhaled slowly.

"Every peak in and around Cloud Village was gone. Flattened."

Ōnoki stared in disbelief.

"The canyon you're looking at—according to eyewitnesses—is the result of a golden blade. A single swing, dozens of kilometers long."

Ōnoki leaned back in his chair, visibly shaken.

"That's… Uchiha Madara level. Or even Senju Hashirama."

Kurotsuchi wasn't finished.

"When the Cloud villagers returned, they found everything razed. Only the area Naraku's Konoha forces had occupied remained untouched. The Fourth Raikage and Killer Bee were both confirmed dead. Of the two thousand shinobi stationed in the village… barely any survived."

Ōnoki didn't speak.

It was the same cold silence he remembered when his teacher, Mu, spoke of Madara's power during the Warring States.

A shinobi strong enough to flatten a hidden village. Alone.

Suddenly, the door burst open.

"Lord Tsuchikage!"

An Iwa Anbu dropped to one knee.

"Urgent report from the communication squad!"

Ōnoki waved him on impatiently.

The Anbu spoke quickly.

"Konoha's Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, returned… and launched an attack on Konoha with forces from Kirigakure."

Ōnoki snapped back to attention.

"Mist Shinobi?"

"Yes. Hiruzen was accompanied by one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen—Kisame Hōshigaki's predecessor, the Blowfish Demon—and over a thousand Mist shinobi. They raided Konoha while Naraku was still in the Cloud."

Kurotsuchi paled.

"Wait… wasn't Hiruzen trapped in the Cloud?"

The Anbu nodded. "It appears he slipped away and fled to the Mist. There, he gained their support and attempted to retake Konoha with remnants of the old Sarutobi faction."

Ōnoki looked grim.

"And?"

"He failed. Naraku returned from Cloud and crushed the rebellion personally. He's now been officially appointed as the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure. Sarutobi Hiruzen has been declared an S-rank missing-nin, and Konoha has formally demanded that Kirigakure surrender him."

Ōnoki leaned back, his face pale.

"So Hiruzen turned traitor… colluded with the Mist… and tried to take back Konoha by force."

"And failed," Kurotsuchi added softly.

The old Tsuchikage stared out his window at the distant mountains, the weight of decades pressing on his shoulders.

"Cloud's leader is dead. Mist is exposed. And Konoha's Fifth Hokage has already shattered a hidden village and decimated two great powers."

He chuckled bitterly.

"The entire shinobi world has shifted… and we didn't even notice."

He turned to his son.

"It's as if Iwagakure… has been left out of the shinobi world chat."