A brief and forceful announcement dispersed all minor noise.
A heavy atmosphere permeated the air, gradually weighing down on everyone's hearts.
After a moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the first to break the short silence.
"Ahem!"
He cleared his throat and began, "Esteemed colleagues, the successful convening of this Kage Summit demonstrates the five great nations' joint resolve to face this threat and seek a solution."
"The Leaf merely provided the opportunity."
"Our shared purpose, as you all know, is clear."
"Currently, creatures known as 'Hollows' are ravaging the entire ninja world. Whether it is the Land of Fire, the Land of Water, or the Land of Wind, Earth, or Lightning..."
"In every corner of the ninja world, their savage forms have appeared. They ignore borders, disregard status, and wantonly devour the souls of living beings. Their threat level is extremely high."
"They bring not only devastation but also the collapse of order. If allowed to spread, the foundations of the five great nations, and indeed the entire ninja world, will be utterly destroyed."
Sarutobi's voice suddenly rose, carrying an undeniable resolution: "Therefore, in my view, the core theme of this Kage Summit is alliance!"
"We must cast aside old grudges, set aside our prejudices, and jointly confront this unprecedented crisis that threatens the very existence of everyone."
He looked around at the people with varying expressions and continued, "Specifically, there are three objectives."
"First, establish a joint response mechanism, setting up a permanent body to share intelligence and coordinate actions, ensuring a unified, efficient, and timely response to the 'Hollow' threat."
"Second, comprehensively share all intelligence on the 'Hollows,' including their characteristics, weaknesses, behavior patterns, known classifications, and all other information. We must break down information barriers and avoid fighting alone."
"Third, formulate a collaborative combat strategy, developing joint clearance, defense, and rescue combat plans for threats of various scales, integrating the power of the five great nations to form a combined force."
Sarutobi looked toward the Shrine Maiden and nodded, "Furthermore, we must utilize the Land of Demons' experience and power in suppressing demons to seek a method for the complete eradication of the 'Hollows.'"
It was clear that Hiruzen Sarutobi had prepared a draft long in advance, immediately setting the tone for the summit.
However, if uniting the five great nations were that simple, there wouldn't have been so many Shinobi World Wars.
"So..." Sarutobi attempted to continue explaining the necessity of the alliance.
"Enough! What self-righteous nonsense are you spouting?"
A thunderous roar interrupted Sarutobi's words.
The Fourth Raikage's face twitched, his frustration and impatience completely unconcealed.
He violently raised his heavily muscled arm and slammed his fist down hard onto the stone table in front of him!
Bang!!
Amidst a deafening boom, a huge fist-print was left recessed in the stone tabletop, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading out from the center of the impact.
Whoosh!
The five-colored curtains hanging around them were violently swept up by the air current, and ten figures simultaneously appeared in front of their respective Kage.
Maki and Yura guarded Rasa on the left and right, forming hand signs. Ao activated his Byakugan in front of Yagura Karatachi. Mei Terumī crossed her arms, chakra surging.
Akatsuchi's massive body shielded Ōnoki. Deidara cracked open a mouth on the palm raised to his face, wearing an excited and dangerous smile.
Darui's lazy eyes turned sharp as his hand rested on his sword hilt. Yugito Nii's eyes became vertical slits, and she grabbed towards Hinata Kawa's face, only to have her wrist caught by Kakashi's upraised hand.
The five Kage's escorts assumed their respective stances. The air inside the shrine seemed to freeze, and the atmosphere instantly grew taut as a bowstring.
However, just at this critical juncture, where an all-out melee could erupt at any moment—
Ding-a-ling...
A crisp chime, seemingly able to pierce the soul, rang out in the shrine like clear spring water dripping onto a jade plate.
The bell sound was ethereal and pure, carrying an indescribable power of soothing that instantly brushed over everyone's taut nerves.
The nearly snapping string suddenly slackened. Everyone's gaze instinctively turned toward the layers of gauze curtains.
"This is a site for the Kage Summit." Miroku's ethereal, gentle voice clearly reached everyone's ears. "I ask that you be mindful of disrespectful behavior."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's face was devoid of expression as he addressed Kawa and Kakashi in front of him: "Kawa, Kakashi, stand down."
Kakashi Hatake released Yugito Nii. Hinata Kawa smiled at Yugito Nii, who glared fiercely back at him. The two flashed and retreated behind the curtains.
Seeing Sarutobi take the initiative, the other Kage also spoke in turn, commanding their guards to retreat behind their respective curtains.
"...Hmph!"
Seeing this, the Fourth Raikage snorted heavily, violently wrenching the fist that was deeply embedded in the stone table out, sending a spray of stone fragments flying.
Though he did not speak, Darui and Yugito Nii understood and slowly retreated behind the curtain.
"Hmph! Alliance? Sharing? You Leaf Ninja just love to talk such nonsense!"
The Fourth Raikage crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Sarutobi, saying in a muffled voice, "We are well aware that the 'Hollows' first appeared in your Konoha!"
"Who knows if this isn't some trick hatched by your Leaf Village!"
Sarutobi felt the gazes—some mocking, some scrutinizing, some questioning, some hostile—but did not argue. Instead, he slowly stated, "Raikage-dono, I understand your concern."
"Therefore, we will express our sincerity."
With that, he raised his hand and gestured to Kakashi Hatake behind him.
Kakashi stepped out from behind the curtain, holding five thick scrolls. He handed the scrolls to the other four Kage.
The final scroll was delivered by a guard standing beside the gauze curtain to Miroku.
"This is all the intelligence regarding the 'Hollows' that we have collected and compiled through battle and in-depth research, having paid a heavy price."
Sarutobi spoke steadily: "This includes their physical structure, energy characteristics, attack patterns, known weaknesses, countermeasures, and preliminary analysis reports on the Espada-level individuals."
"The Leaf is willing to offer this intelligence as the foundation for cooperation, and as our sincerity to jointly confront this threat."
A heavy silence descended upon the shrine.
The four Kage's gazes were fixed on the scrolls in their hands.
Rasa was expressionless, but his movement in unrolling the scroll was quick and meticulous.
Yagura Karatachi's face was grave as he rapidly flipped through it. His pupils noticeably contracted when he saw the analysis concerning the 'Uzumaki,' clearly recalling a painful past experience.
Ōnoki slowly picked up his scroll, squinted, and read line by line. The cunning smile on his face gradually faded.
Although the Fourth Raikage was verbally suspicious, his hands were decisive. He snatched the scroll, tore it open, and quickly scanned the contents.
When he reached the crucial paragraphs about the "mask being the core weakness" and "Chakra-infused attacks being effective," his tightly furrowed brow slightly relaxed for a moment.
For a time, the only sounds in the shrine were the rustling of scrolls being turned and the gradually deepening breaths and heartbeats of the people present.
"The 'Hollows' did not appear out of thin air. Their origin is closely related to the souls of humans after death and the negative emotions that breed in living beings' hearts."
Sarutobi's voice was unhurried, echoing clearly in the silent shrine: "Despair, hatred, fear, greed..."
"These negative emotions are like nourishment for them. They breed and gather throughout the ninja world. When a soul leaves the body engulfed by powerful negative emotions, it may be distorted, mutated, and eventually transform into a 'Hollow.'"
"And those who possessed great power in life, when their souls mutate, give birth to 'Hollows' of even more terrifying power. These are the 'Gillian,' the 'Adjuchas,' and the so-called 'Espada.'"
Speaking here, Sarutobi's voice carried a hint of sadness: "Regarding the Shrine Maiden's mention of the 'Mōryō' mutation, I believe you all now understand the reason."
Sarutobi's explanation plunged everyone into silence.
They knew the appearance of the 'Hollows' was related to souls, but they hadn't realized that the 'Hollows' were born from human negative emotions.
They also hadn't realized that the power possessed by the 'Espada' was even greater than they had understood.
"Espada, Hueco Mundo, and some inexplicable 'Lord'..." The Fourth Raikage frowned deeply and said in a deep voice, "Is this the work of some organized power after all?!"
If an organization named 'Hueco Mundo' was intentionally behind this, what was their objective? Was it purely to destroy the five great nations?
However, 'Hueco Mundo' seemed to have been inactive for a long time since that incident.
"Hokage-dono."
As everyone was preoccupied with their thoughts, Yagura Karatachi suddenly spoke: "According to the intelligence you provided, the 'Espada' are formed by the mutated souls of individuals who possessed great power in life."
"And combining this with the information we already know, the 'Cuatro Espada(4th)' is Fugaku Uchiha from your Leaf Village, and the 'Primera Espada (1st)' is a member of the Uzumaki clan from the Grass Village."
"Then..."
He paused before continuing, "Is it possible that the other 'Espada' were also ninjas we know in their former lives?"
At this remark, everyone's gaze froze. Almost simultaneously, they looked toward the seated Rasa and the direction of the red curtain.
Segunda Espada (2nd): White Fang.
Tres Espada (3rd): The Puppeteer' .
The characteristics, names, and abilities of these two 'Espada' almost immediately made them think of two specific people.
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