"Is this the Land of Iron?"
Ōnoki, accompanied by his bodyguards, arrived at the designated meeting point for the Kage Summit.
Kitsuchi, along with the newly appointed bodyguard, couldn't help but look around curiously at the snow-covered landscape of this frigid country.
The Kage Summit was usually held in a neutral nation.
Ever since the time when the Second Hokage signed a peace treaty with the Hidden Cloud, only to be ambushed on his way back by the infamous Gold and Silver Brothers of Kumo, such meetings had become increasingly rare.
Now, the Land of Iron—known as the country of samurai—had taken on the responsibility of hosting the summit.
As a neutral nation with a military force made up of samurai rather than ninja, it was one of the few places where the Five Kage could meet with a reasonable degree of trust.
The ideal location for a summit among the Three Great Nations might have been the Land of Rain, positioned right at the center. However, Ōnoki did not trust them.
After all, according to Iwagakure's intelligence network, the Land of Rain had already been colluding with Konohagakure since the Third Great Ninja War.
Although the Land of Rain claimed neutrality and maintained trade relations with Iwa and other major villages, Ōnoki's cautious nature made him unwilling to take such a risk—especially now, when he hadn't yet groomed a qualified Fourth Tsuchikage to succeed him.
"Let's go. The Konoha group is probably already here," Ōnoki said from atop Kitsuchi's shoulders.
Despite its harsh climate, the Land of Iron managed to sustain a powerful armed force.
This was partly due to the people's natural inclination toward sword arts, but also because of the country's rich mineral resources.
In fact, a significant portion of the materials used to forge ninja tools during the Great Ninja Wars had come from here.
Tools crafted from Land of Iron's ores were often superior to those made elsewhere.
Thanks to the influence of the samurai, professions such as blacksmiths were also in abundance.
The Land of Iron, leveraging both its neutrality and strength, quietly maintained connections—whether small or large—with nearly every power in the ninja world that needed weapons or tools.
The only place that could match the Land of Iron in mass-producing ninja tools was the Land of Craftsmen.
But the Land of Craftsmen had only the skill, not the strength or resources like the Land of Iron.
The Five Great Ninja Villages usually considered the Land of Craftsmen as just a competitor to the Land of Iron.
A city built into the mountains stood tall and proud in the midst of wind and snow.
A line of armored samurais, carrying swords and blades, patrolled back and forth on the city walls.
Noticing the arrival of the Tsuchikage and his group through the snow, the samurais confirmed their identity and tokens. Then they opened the city gates and welcomed Onoki and his party inside.
"Don't do anything unnecessary once we're inside. The samurais here have very strict rules," Onoki warned his guards who were visiting the Land of Iron for the first time.
This place was specially made for the Five Kage to hold meetings or discuss important matters of the ninja world. The guards here were said to be the strongest in the Land of Iron.
"Lord Tsuchikage."
General Mifune of the Land of Iron nodded slightly and greeted Onoki as he and his men approached inside the city.
"Mifune, huh?" Onoki recognized the man before him.
To have made a name for himself in the ninja world as a samurai alone showed his talent and strength.
After all, surviving under Hanzo's attack already said a lot.
Simply being a samurai of the Land of Iron wouldn't earn Hanzo's mercy or fear.
According to the intelligence reports, Mifune had challenged Hanzo to a sword duel.
By the Land of Iron's rules, Mifune could have been killed on the spot by Hanzo without any problem.
It was just that Mifune's skill and strength earned Hanzo's respect, so he spared his life, allowing him to grow stronger.
The sword techniques were so fast that the ninjas couldn't dodge or even form hand seals.
This was the reputation Mifune had earned from roaming the ninja world.
"Did both the Hokage and the Kazekage come?" Onoki and Mifune walked toward the meeting room while confirming with him.
"Not just the Hokage and Kazekage." Mifune's face looked somewhat complicated.
"Anyone else?" Onoki patted Tsuchikage's shoulder, making him stop. He stared at Mifune in surprise.
This wasn't what was agreed upon in the letter.
"It's the Amekage." Mifune answered quietly.
"The Amekage? Is he qualified to attend this meeting?" Onoki frowned. After a moment of silence, though, he didn't say more and followed Mifune toward the pavilion where the meeting was held.
He remembered how the Amekage's attack in the Land of Rivers had failed miserably, stopped by that Rain ninja named Nagato.
To be able to repel the Amekage and kill that Hanzo, the power of the Hidden Rain Village was already worth his respect.
As for the complicated look on Mifune's face earlier, Onoki didn't think too deeply. Maybe it was because of mourning Hanzo.
Thick walls blocked the wind, snow, and cold from outside. The spacious hall was filled with fully armored, alert samurai.
Inside the pavilion's meeting room, where the Five Kage conference was held, Onoki glared at Orochimaru and Rasa with a dark expression.
His gaze passed over Yahiko, sitting quietly below the Rain banner.
He sternly questioned them from his seat.
"Why is the Amekage sitting here? This wasn't what we agreed on!"
"Calm down, Tsuchikage. The Amekage being here must have a reason. He is one of the main parties in this meeting, so naturally, we need to hear his opinion.
This time, the main discussion is about Sunagakure and Amegakure wanting to assign a mission to Iwagakure."
Orochimaru's expression did not change when Onoki questioned him. He clearly understood that Onoki might really disagree with Yahiko sitting here, but Onoki was also using this moment to raise objections, test their intentions, and clarify their stance.
However, since Onoki came personally to attend this meeting, it showed he was interested and willing to cooperate.
"Our main discussion this time is about the ownership of the Gelel Stone!" Onoki reminded.
"The ownership of the Gelel Stone is included in the mission," Orochimaru said quietly. "The Gelel mine once gave rise to a powerful kingdom in ancient times, but because of the Gelel Stone, that kingdom was destroyed.
Konoha never took the Gelel mine for itself or tried to keep it from others. But at the same time, it won't allow people or forces who don't contribute to share in its benefits.
If Iwa ninja can complete the task entrusted by the Land of Wind and the Land of Rain, then we welcome Iwa ninja, and merchants from the Land of Earth, to join the Gelel commercial multinational alliance."
Onoki glanced at the calm Rasa and the somewhat young Yahiko, then carefully asked Orochimaru, "What kind of mission is it that even the ninja from your three villages can't do?"
"It's not that they can't do it, but Iwa ninja are more efficient," Orochimaru signaled to Rasa to speak.
"We plan to break through the mountains on the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Wind," Rasa said in a deep voice.
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