Violet-Eyed Serpent: Ch.28

The sky was blue and the air was warm as the sun shone upon the village known by the name of Konohagakure. Half of its citizens were still asleep, but many that knew the village knew that it was already bustling.

Leaping from rooftop to rooftop and patrolling the shadows and alleyways of the village, the shinobi of Konohagakure were ever-vigilant as they captured spies that tried and failed to escape or headed off to the village's job centre to acquire their missions for the day.

At the very back of the village under Konoha's well-known Hokage Rock stood a tall building, it being the Academy of the village that was slowly waking up with teachers filing in to begin their day.

At the very top of the building stood a large, oval office, a small stack of paperwork seated on the desk that stood in front of a large window, allowing the owner of said desk to look over the village.

That person in question was doing that exact thing as he looked over the village, dressed in the formal robe and hat for the Hokage while smoking on the wooden pipe in his hands.

His spiky brown hair was hidden under the head and while a bit shorter than the average person, his chakra was far more potent that any other in the village as it exuded from his body like an oppressive mist.

Despite all of this, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was pleased as he looked out the window, having just received news of his shinobi winning the border skirmishes between Konoha and Iwagakure at the Konoha/ Kusa border.

While he was a bit nervous at sending his men there since his students would not be there to help, it appears their help was unneeded as Minato Namikaze, the pupil of his own student Jiraiya, had managed to turn the tide of the battle with his newfound Flying Thunder God jutsu.

It was a jutsu that only one other person in the history of Konoha had used, said person being the one who created it and known by many as the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

With that news came more good news of how Fugaku Uchiha and his platoon had won their battles against Suna and how the Tanigakure/ Konohagakure border was still being protected.

However, that was where the good news ended as Jiraiya's spies had informed the man about Kumogakure and Kirigakure building up forces in secret, especially Kirigakure after they had lost both of their Bijuu to the most wanted man in the world.

' 'Man', huh? The boy looks no younger than twelve,' Hiruzen thought with a hum as he looked at the Bingo Book behind him that was open at the entry. He had to admit that he was still surprise every time he read it as even he found it hard to believe that a 12 year old boy was capable of causing such devastation.

Then again, he wasn't exactly one to talk considering how many he's killed, but even he could not boast a death count of 6000+ shinobi, some of which were supposed to be the strongest shinobi in their respective villages.

'Just goes to show that Konoha is not the only one producing prodigies anymore. I do wonder what had happened to him,' Last he heard from his friend Danzo, the boy had helped fend of the combined efforts of Kiri and Kumo to wipe out Uzushiogakure before he vanished and he knew that Menma knows where he went.

Unfortunately, the leader of Uzushio had made no effort to tell them where he had went so they decided to just leave it as is even though Danzo had sent out ANBU after ANBU to make sure the boy was dead.

A knock from the door drew him back from his thoughts and he turned, watching as the door opened before smiling at the sight of his three students walking in.

“Come on, Tsuna~ What does he have that I don't?”

“Beautiful hair for once,” Tsunade spoke with a smirk and Jiraiya scoffed while Hiruzen smiled at Orochimaru's exasperated look.

“Oh please. As if that guy can match my beautiful white mane.”

“Uh-huh, and his looks like a cascading waterfall that smells like lavender and makes you want to…hah~…”

“Ur gh~ Nope, I regret my words,” Jiraiya gagged as he saw Tsunade's blissful look, Orochimaru ignoring his two teammates while staring at his smiling sensei.

“I'm glad to see you find amusement in my pain, sensei.”

“Of course I do. How was the mission?”

“Same old, same old. S-Rank escort mission, mostly jounin trying to take out the Feudal Lord so we killed them all and got the mission done,” Jiraiya spoke with a nonchalant shrug and Hiruzen smiled as he nodded.

“Wonderful. You will be glad to know that Minato and Fugaku have also completed their missions as well. Both Suna and Iwa were fended off and the borders are stable for now.”

“For now, that is,” Orochimaru murmured and Hiruzen sighed before nodding.

“Unfortunately so. I do wish that a time could come where we can talk peacefully with each other, but with how stubborn Onoki is, the time for talking is almost over.”

“I told you we should have marched into Iwagakure and talked to them.”

“And doing so would have resulted in Iwa declaring war upon us before we're ready,” Orochimaru spoke up with a frown and Jiraiya just sighed as Hiruzen looked at the quiet member of the trio that was looking at his Bingo Book.

“Have you heard any word?”, Tsunade asked, looking at the picture of Nagato, which Orochimaru and Jiraiya noticed as well as the Hokage shook his head.

“Nothing yet. However, a shinobi of his caliber does not disappear that easily. For all we know, he could be hiding in plain sight.”

“Hello!! Is anyone up there?!”, Hiruzen blinked at the shouting from behind him and looked out the window, his students doing the same before all four were shocked to see a smiling Nagato standing on the ground while waving at them.

In that same moment, hundreds upon hundreds of Konoha shinobi surrounded the Uzumaki in an instant, Hiruzen and his students landing on the ground along with an older man with shaggy brown hair, an X-shaped scar on his chin and bandages hiding his right eye.

“Oh, everyone's here. Okay, then. Uh, you mind lowering the kunai? I don't want to pop just in case.”

'Pop? Ah, I see.'

“You're a Shadow Clone, aren't you?”, Hiruzen spoke with a knowing look in his eyes, everyone relaxing ever so slightly as Nagato smiled and nodded.

“I am one of five clones that were sent to the Five Great Villages.”

“For what reason?”, Danzo asked with a frown and Hiruzen swore he caught a flicker of something dark in the teenager's eyes as he looked at his friend before turning back to the Hokage with a smile.

“I'm here to invite you, Hiruzen Sarutobi, to the Five Kage Summit that are to be held in Amegakure. I understand that you may think this is a trap, but I simply wish to prevent the Third Great Shinobi War and the loss of innocent lives before it can happen.”

“And what makes you think we can believe you? For all I know, this could be a trap set by you and one of the other villages to get rid of me,” Hiruzen spoke up and Nagato sighed while scratching the back of his head.

“The original said that you would say that so he said that you are allowed to bring whoever you want. It can be just one genin or it can be an entire army, just as long as you come to the meeting. Oh, and he did ask if you wouldn't mind bringing your Jinchuriki as well. He wishes to meet them.”

“We do not have a Jinchuriki,” Danzo spoke up and Nagato just rolled his eyes.

“I would reveal their identity, but I'm sure you wish to keep it under wraps. After all, you do not wish to upset the Flash, do you”, Hiruzen's eyes simply narrowed at those words while Danzo frowned, the latter turning to look at the former who looked back at him before they gave subtle nods to each other.

“Very well. I will attend this meeting, but I will be bringing my students, my teammates and my top shinobi with me.”

“Oh, that's more than fine. The meeting will be held in…five days and if you're not there, Nagato will assume that you do not wish to have peace. Now, you. Can you stab me?”, Nagato asked as he looked at the shinobi closest to him with a kunai, who was all too eager as she stabbed a kunai through the clone's skull and made it pop.

“Well, I suppose that answers the question on whether or not he actually was a clone,” Jiraiya murmured before looking to his sensei who looked out at the spot where Nagato previously stood.

“Are you going to meet him, sensei?”

“If I do, I may have a chance to prevent the war.”

“What if this is a trap?”, Danzo asked and Hiruzen chuckled as he simply shrugged and patted his friend's shoulder.

“Then you'll finally have the chance to become Hokage. Now, give me a list of every available shinobi. It's time for me to make a guard.”

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“…And Konoha has decided to come. Well, I guess that means all five villages are actually going to be here,” I murmured with a pleased smile as I sat on a soft recline chair in my office.

At my desk sat a dozen clones that were each busy with filing out paperwork, most of which were requests from other villages to Hanzo to get new plots of land in Amegakure or permission to put outposts on the borders.

'Really? This guy was selling out his country for his own greed. I guess he really isn't the Hanzo I thought he'd be,' I thought with a sigh as I lounged back, looking up at the ceiling while ignoring the sounds of construction outside.

Last I checked, Yahiko is currently busy with helping prepare everything for the Five Kage Summit and I know that Konan and Pakura are helping the civilians pack up for the Summit as well, which left little ol' me to my own devices to find and do my own thing.

'Well, they did say that we still need a way to move so I guess I'll find a way,' Biting the tip of my thumb and smearing the blood on my palm, I weaved through hand signs and leaned down to place both palms against the wooden floor.

With twin puffs of smoke, I lifted my hands as two dozen snakes sat at the ready, each looking at me as I smiled and spoke.

“I want you to head to Uzushiogakure. When you get there, find a man called Menma and ask him to prepare for Operation Storm, okay?”

“Yes, great Sage~!”, The snakes hissed in unison before slithering off, slipping through the cracks of the walls and vanishing into the shadows as I leaned back.

'Menma should know what to do and if he doesn't, well, it's a good thing I sent Akahime to deliver the back-up scrolls anyway.'

“You know you could help with this, right?”, I looked up as one of the clones spoke up, smirking as I saw his exasperated look before shrugging.

“Delegation is a vital leadership skill. Besides, I don't want to get pissed off again reading how Kiri want to buy mineral rights and farmland just a month after I took out Hanzo.”

“Actually, that last one was Iwa. They want to set up an 'observation base' in the north.”

“Observation base, my ass. They just want to spy on us and get first dibs.”

“We should set up our own bases first. If we build before they even arrive, then they won't have room to argue,” The clone closest to the maps of Ame spoke up and I nodded as I stood up.

“Do it and while you're at it, start assigning shinobi to patrol the outlying districts of Ame. One of these districts may have villages that still have people loyal to Hanzo so I want to remind them that this isn't Hanzo's Amegakure anymore. This is the land of the people.”

“Got it,” The clones nodded as they got to work, a smile on my face as I stood up and walked out onto the balcony that overlooked the entire villages.

I could see shinobi carrying steel and stone, papers fluttering through the air like messenger birds and numerous sights of Pakura and her clones slowly welding everything together.

However, what I heard and saw the most were the faint sounds of children and people laughing, the sun shining through the grey clouds as its rays shone upon the village.

The Five Kage Summit was not just a gathering. It was a test to see the strong of every village and a test to see how far they could push Ame before we pushed back.

'Hehehe~ Let them try. Soon, they all will know what it means to fear the storm.'

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“Well, I kind of expected these numbers, but damn are there many,” Yahiko murmured as he, Konan, Pakura and I stood atop one of the taller towers near the edge of the village and I had to agree as I stared at the gathering group of shinobi outside the village's gate.

Thousands of shinobi from not only the Five Great Nations but also the lower-ranking villages stood at the ready, each just needing a slight reason to go ballistic and make sure that every chance of peace is gone.

At the front of every village stood their leaders with their own personal guards, all of their attention focused on me as I took a deep breath before looking at the other three.

“You ready for this meeting?”

“I'm not ready to talk to the old farts of my village, but when am I ever going to be ready for them?”, Pakura spoke with a sigh and I chuckled as I walked forward, surprising not only the three behind me but probably most of the shinobi below as I continued walking on thin air before clearing my throat.

“Shinobi of the world! I thank you all for coming here! It is rare for the Five Great Nations and the lesser villages to stand together, even more so in a land that was once a battlefield!”, Chakra helped my voice sound clear across the landscape, the thousands of shinobi stilling as I smiled and floated down.

“Many know me as the Butcher of Iwa or the Maker of Widows, but those close to me know me as Nagato Uzumaki. Today, I stand before you not as an enemy nor as a weapon, but as the leader of Amegakure, a nation reborn not in the image of conquest but in the dream of freedom!

This land has suffered beneath the boots of invading armies and the orders of men who saw us only as tools, but those days…are over!”, I declared as I landed on top of the village wall, Yahiko, Konan and Pakura having already jogged down the building and landing beside me as I stared at the shinobi.

“You all came here today wondering what this was. A show of power? A declaration of war? Some of you expected an ambush or a betrayal. Well, as a wise man once said, I do not seek war, but I am always prepared for it,” That brought tension to the atmosphere as Pakura and Konan folded their arms in unison with cold glares while Yahiko gave a dry smirk.

“I invited you all here for the Five Kage summit to do one simple thing that has only been done once before: To talk to each other as equals. Today, we are not the victors of wars nor are we the vanquished, but we are all here as survivors of a broken system.

You can walk away now, clinging to old grudges or doctrines or you can enter this village, help shape a future where our children don't have to kill each other for 'a good cause' and shape a better future,” I spoke as I dropped down from the wall, gesturing for Pakura and the others to stay there as I looked at the shinobi in front of me.

“If any of you still doubt Amegakure's strength, then I welcome your doubts, but do not mistake my generosity for weakness. I have simply learned that peace earned through fear is only the illusion of peace itself. Now,” I began, looking at the gathered Kage before they looked as tendrils came from my backs and slowly pushed open the doors.

“What will it be? Will you join me at the table as leaders…or will you walk away and become relics of the past?”

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“Nice speech,” Pakura spoke with a smile as the four of us stood outside the meeting room, where the leaders and their guards were getting ready while Yahiko, Konan, Pakura and I stood outside the room.

“Thanks. It was a lot harder than I was expecting,” I replied, letting out a soft exhale while watching the massive double doors.

“Honestly, I think the Raikage looked ready to charge at you to see if you could back up your words.”

“According to the information you have, he's always like that,” Konan muttered in response to Yahiko's words, to which I nodded before turning to Pakura as she spoke.

“At the very least, your speech. You got their attention and hopefully their respect.”

“I hope so. The next storm might not be one I can stop,” I spoke with a frown before standing up, shaking my shoulders to ready myself.

“You stressed?”, Pakura asked and I gave a smile before nodding in response.

“Yeah, I'm going to be talking with the most powerful beings in the world. One wrong word and it's another word.”

“Well, compared to when I first met you, I think you've got this. Just don't shit your pants and you'll be fine.”

“…Is that your way of saying good luck?”, I asked, narrowing my eyes as she simply smirked before shaking my head as I looked to the amused two looking on.

“You two ready?”

“As ready as we can be. Let's go,” Konan spoke and I nodded as I pushed the doors open, staring at the gathered leaders of the villages looking at me as I walked around and sat down on the seat at the far back.

To my right sat the 3rd Raikage, his back straight and his arms crossed as the top of his blonde hair was covered by a black forehead protector as a bandanna while a jagged bolt-shaped scar was on the right side of his chest.

To my left sat Hiruzen himself, dressed in his Hokage garb while his gaze was focused on my every move.

Right beside Hiruzen sat the 3rd Mizukage, his long black hair having pearl-shaped objects encircling his head and I could feel the glare in his eyes even as his face was stoic.

To the right of the Raikage sat the Fence-Sitter himself, the short man not even trying to hide his animosity as the two of us stared at each other before he gave a subtle scoff and looked away.

Next to the Tsuchikage sat the 3rd Kazekage, his short dark-blue hair looking a bit messy and his narrow yellow eyes glancing at everyone person before they settled on me.

Finally, directly opposite of me sat the leaders of Kusa, Ishigakure, Tanigakure and Takigakure, the four men looking stoic despite the presence of the Five Great Villages' leaders in the same room as them.

There was a tension in the air as the room was completely silent, their respective guards standing against the walls. Glancing at Pakura, Yahiko and Konan behind me, I nodded as all three nodded at me before turning back to face the group.

“Well, I thank you all again for accepting this invitation. I know your time is precious like your tempers,” I began, a few of them narrowing their eyes while the Kazekage just raised an eyebrow.

“I know you're probably wondering why a small nation like Amegakure dared to summon the titans of the world to sit at the same table and the reason is simple. Someone had to.”

“You think you're the one to do that? Who exactly are you to summon the Five Kage and expect obedience?”, The Raikage asked with a scoff and I looked at him before smiling softy.

“I never asked for your obedience, Lord Raikage. I simply wished for your attention and it looks like I got it,” Hiruzen looked amused at my words before quickly hiding it behind a thoughtful look while the Mizukage narrowed his eyes further and the Tsuchikage gave a dismissive snort.

“You call us here and yet I don't see what you're offering that warrants our time. I hope this is more than another deluded call for peace.”

“Oh, it is. What I'm offering isn't just a dream of peace. It's leverage, resources and above all else, it's a seat at the table for the future. I look at a future where war doesn't drain our people dry every decade like a ritual sacrifice.”

“You speak like a boy who has not tasted the price of compromise. Peace doesn't come free,” The Kazekage spoke and I saw them all raising an eyebrow when I let out a soft chuckle.

“Is there something amusing to what I said?'

“At age 7, both of my parents were killed by Konoha shinobi. At age 8, I had to kill an Iwagakure Chunin to save my best friend Yahiko. After that, unlike the children at your villages, I was forced to fight day in and day out to face off against your shinobi because none of you could find a way to just sit down and talk.

Amegakure, Kusagakure, Ishigakure, Yugakure, Tanigakure, Takigakure, Shimogakure and Uzushiogakure were all made the battlefields for the petty skirmishes of the Five Great Villages simply because you five could not talk with each other,” The silence was deafening as some of the guards shifted uncomfortably at my words, the other leaders of the lesser Kage looking pleased at my words while the Five Kage looked surprised and a bit resentful at my words.

“Don't talk to me about the price of compromise. I've paid for it in blood, in sleepless nights and in burying the people I've failed to save. Your villages' children got to bury their dead under gravestones while mine became corpses left behind in the mud.

I didn't gather you here to guilt you or to play the martyr for the lesser villages. I gathered you here because I see what's coming. I see a world where every generation grows up knowing only death and war because a bunch of relics from the past could not break the cycle of pain.”

“You're being dramatic,” The Tsuchikage spoke with a scoff and I just looked at him before the Raikage nodded at his words.

“He is. Do you believe talking with change centuries of bloodshed? Do you believe that you can undo grudges with a speech?”

“Not in the slightest, but someone has to take that first step. I've already walked through hell to get here and I'm not stopping now,” I said and the Raikage just stared at me before I looked to Hiruzen as he spoke up with a calm tone.

“You speak of conviction and pain, but conviction alone isn't policy. If you are truly offering a peaceful future, show us the blueprint and the structure you have,” He said and I nodded as Konan stepped forward, unrolling and placing a scroll in front of me.

“What I have is a proposal,” I spoke as I opened the scroll fully, letting the village leaders see the rough diagram of interconnected villages, routes and shared zones.

“It's an inter-village council that I have dubbed the United Nations. There are equal seats for each of the Five Great Nations and the smaller ones that have always been overlooked, because this is their world too,” That made the lesser villages' leaders perk up as the Kage stayed silent.

“The council will mediate trade disputes, shared intelligence on black market dealers and rogue shinobi and establish neutral grounds for joint training operations. No village gives up sovereignty, but we stop treating each other like loaded kunai.”

“And who enforces these agreements? You?”, The Mizukage asked sharply and I shook my head.

“No, we do it together and if one of us breaks that agreement, then everyone else holds them accountable not with war…but with sanctions, pressure and with unity,” I finished, sitting back and letting the room digest what I said before I looked to the Kazekage as he spoke.

“What if the others choose war anyway?”

“Then I will annihilate them, down to the last man, woman and child,” I answered bluntly, making the Five Kage look at me while the Tsuchikage smirked mocklingly.

“You believe you can do that?”, He asked and in response, I activated Sage Mode, watching his eyes widen as I became one with the world around.

“Shukaku, Matatabi, Isobu, Son Goku, Kokuo, Saiken, Chomei, Gyuki, Kurama,” With those nine words, I watched as some of the guards flinched, drawing the attention of their leaders before I spoke and drew their attention back to me.

“Those are the names of the Nine Bijuu and as you have just seen, I can hide my chakra signature by becoming one with the world itself. These are but just a few of the things I can do so I ask you this, Tsuchikage. How do you plan to stop me when you can't even see me coming?”, I asked as I looked at the Five Kage, who were now actually wary of me before I sighed.

“However, I do not wish to do this. Like I said before, I do not wish for war, but if it comes to that, I am ready to ensure that Amegakure and the smaller villages survive. Now, what are your answers?”

A/N: And the Five Kage Summit is off~!! I know that some should have denied it, but as usual, the leaders know what the loss of life can do for their village's power so they wish to use this opportunity to see if they can't get anything for themselves.

Anyway, next chapter: A Show Of Power.

As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…

Ba-Bye~!!