The guards of each faction returned to their original positions, and those who had released their chakra reined it in, as if nothing had happened.
Kushina Uzumaki glanced at both Habara and Kakashi, then whispered, "Well done."
The two young men had performed admirably. This wasn't just about saving face for Konoha; in a way, Habara and Kakashi's actions had allowed Konoha to take the lead in steering the direction of the upcoming meeting.
Habara was about to humbly respond, but his literary instincts compelled him to blurt out, "Hmph, my sword has never failed me."
"..."
Well, that sentence seemed a little unlucky.
In any case, with the clumsy probing out of the way, and since all parties had agreed to end the Shinobi World War, the next step was to discuss the specifics of the troop withdrawal.
There was no helping it, who told the Third Tsuchikage's plan of "breaking the wine cup as a signal" to completely fail.
Since all parties had made up their minds to end the war, there was no need for deception when discussing concrete matters. They could be as straightforward as possible. Thus, the village leaders quickly agreed on the withdrawal arrangements.
In just one hour, all the details that needed to be discussed had been finalized. The samurai, Atsumori, immediately began writing a document in six copies, and after the village leaders carefully read it, they each signed their names.
Next, as long as the feudal lords of each country signed and sealed it, this agreement would officially take effect... That's right, this was naturally the agreement to end the war. Perhaps no one had imagined beforehand that the long and drawn-out Shinobi World War would end in such a relatively peaceful and simple way.
The Five Kage Summit, as the ultimate conference deciding the world's situation, could be said to have a very fast negotiation speed. In just one day, it could be declared a success... This swiftness was determined by the special nature of the ninja profession. If the Kage were to stay overnight in the Land of Iron and negotiate for ten days or half a month, there was no guarantee that some accident wouldn't occur.
If someone lost their mind and actually planned an assassination, things would become complicated. Therefore, the villages couldn't give potential opponents such an opportunity... No matter how big the issue, it had to be discussed and finished as quickly as possible within a day, and the Kage had to leave the Land of Iron before nightfall.
Since the agreement had now been signed, theoretically, they could leave immediately. This group wasn't here to foster relationships, but such a large conference couldn't just end abruptly; there needed to be a smooth transition.
Thus, the Third Hokage's next topic was perfectly timed.
"It's rare for all parties to gather together. Since the Shinobi World War is about to end, I believe it's necessary for us to discuss the post-war order. The war has brought about various problems and reflections, and even an old man like me should learn to grow. At the very least, we should try to ensure that such a great war doesn't easily happen again in the future..."
"Third Hokage, what do you want to say? There's no need to beat around the bush," said the Third Tsuchikage. After the most important matter had been discussed, his attitude had changed considerably; at least he wasn't as aggressive as before.
In fact, the Tsuchikage's mood was rather low at this point. On the one hand, he was relieved that the Shinobi World War was truly ending, but on the other hand, he felt a sense of loss.
"I have a few suggestions that I hope everyone can consider together. First, after peace is restored, the issue of rogue ninja from each village is likely to increase within a few years. I hope that we can exchange lists of rogue ninja with each other, and at the same time, grant a certain degree of legitimacy to the elimination of rogue ninja, and that the Five Great Ninja Villages will not accept the allegiance of rogue ninja from other villages... This can, to a certain extent, avoid friction between the villages," the Third Hokage said first.
In the years following the end of the war, each village would indeed experience some issues with rogue ninja. The ninja world would even see a small peak in rogue ninja activity. This was because not everyone could quickly adapt to the post-war state. There were many ninja whose bodies had left the battlefield but whose minds remained there, and they were prone to causing problems.
The Third Hokage's suggestion to exchange rogue ninja lists was primarily to serve as a warning. Most rogue ninja would still have to be dealt with by their own villages, but if ninja from other villages happened to eliminate a rogue ninja from another village, the Third Hokage hoped that the villages would acknowledge such actions.
Of course, this rule only applied to most situations. If some high-level talent defected from one village to another, that rogue ninja would certainly be hidden.
"Agreed."
This suggestion was beneficial to all villages, so no one would object. Of course, what the Third Hokage was talking about here was just a simple intention. As for the specific implementation, the villages would need to discuss it further.
"Second, to restore formal communication channels between the Five Great Ninja Villages and ensure the smooth operation of backup communication channels... After peace, timely communication between the villages is very important," the Third Hokage continued after his first suggestion was approved.
Maintaining communication was to prevent small conflicts between villages from escalating into another war. In addition to maintaining direct communication channels, the ninja villages also needed to ensure that communication through the Land of Iron could be transmitted accurately and promptly to all parties.
There was no problem with this either, and the Kage all nodded in agreement. After the war ended, at least during the period immediately following the war, the diplomatic principle of the great nations would definitely be to talk rather than fight, so communication was crucial.
The Third Hokage knew that these first two points would be accepted by all parties, but the next issue was a headache.
"The sacrifices of the very young are unbearable. Although war is extremely cruel, certain outdated customs passed down from the Warring States Period are unacceptable. We, Konoha, hope to avoid having ninja under the age of fourteen participate in missions that may involve conflict between ninja. Even if small-scale conflicts occur again, we hope to no longer see ninja under the age of fourteen on the battlefield... What do you all think?"
As soon as he said this, the atmosphere became awkward.
Whether it was the sharp-edged young Kage or the older Kage who had experienced great wars, they were all accustomed to seeing ninja under the age of middle school die on the battlefield. No one believed that the Third Hokage's statement was some kind of kindness towards young people; they would only consider it the cowardice of an old man... The Third Hokage was old, so he would consider such issues.
The so-called striving forward meant not fearing death, regardless of age; ninja should be like that.
The Third Hokage's proposal was extremely cautious. He only said that ninja under the age of fourteen shouldn't go to the battlefield, not sixteen, and certainly not eighteen, and yet...
No one agreed with him.
What were casualties of twelve or thirteen-year-olds? Kawarama Senju was only seven years old when he was surrounded and killed by five Uchiha on the battlefield; conversely, Madara Uchiha originally had five brothers, but only one survived to adulthood, and later, even Madara himself was beaten into a sorry state.
Before the Fourth Raikage could voice his objection, the Third Tsuchikage once again spoke first, "Iwagakure agrees in principle with this approach. No one wants to see the sacrifices of young people. Regarding Lord Hokage's proposal, Iwagakure is willing to sign a memorandum of understanding with Konoha. We can jointly restrain those unreasonable and outdated customs."
The Third Tsuchikage was an old fox, of course he would seize the moral high ground. But what binding force did a "memorandum of understanding" have?
What did "agree in principle" mean?
It meant, "We acknowledge it, but we don't care, and we probably won't implement it."
Well, this was actually considered a positive attitude. The Third Tsuchikage had given the Third Hokage some face, but did he truly agree with this proposal?
Seeing the Tsuchikage say this, the Raikage immediately responded, "Kumogakure also acknowledges this matter."
Then Chiyo and the Mizukage also nodded in agreement.
So it is, the Third Hokage shook his head inwardly. In fact, the reactions of the villages were within his expectations, but regardless, this matter had received positive feedback. No matter how sincere they were, the Hokage had received "acknowledgement," hadn't he?
But what about the next issue?
The Third Hokage sighed, then said, "Since the Shinobi World War, the number of ninja in each village has expanded dramatically. The maximum military strength of some villages has even reached 30,000, which is clearly unreasonable. For the continued peace of the ninja world, we hope that all parties will gradually reduce the number of ninja, maintaining a size of around 15,000..."
Before the Third Hokage could finish speaking, the Fourth Raikage stood up first, "The peace agreement has been signed, and the Five Kage Summit has concluded perfectly. As for the few points the Third Hokage mentioned subsequently, they can be discussed in detail later... I believe our party can take our leave."
The matters he said could be discussed later certainly didn't include troop reductions. They weren't even willing to listen, let alone discuss it.
After the Fourth Raikage boldly departed, the Third Tsuchikage put his conical hat back on his head. He said, "Lord Hokage, whatever policies Konoha wants to implement are Konoha's own business, but Konoha has no control over Iwagakure's policies."
After saying this, he stood up with some difficulty and also left the meeting hall.
If Konoha had said that they wanted to expand the size of their ninja village after the war, everyone present would have jumped to their feet. But if Konoha wanted to reduce the number of ninja?
Heh, whoever wants to reduce, let them reduce. I won't.
Subsequently, Sunagakure and Kirigakure also left, proving that even they didn't want to reduce their forces. Previously, Konoha's side had guessed incorrectly; they had thought that these two slightly weaker villages would support this decision.
Thus, in the blink of an eye, only Konoha's side remained in the meeting hall.
The Third Hokage silently took out his pipe and lit the tobacco inside.
Had the Five Kage Summit been a success?
It wasn't a success; it simply hadn't failed.
War and peace alternated, and the world had merely entered a new cycle. Other than that, nothing had changed.
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