This man... his legacy was still gently caring for the world. A brilliance from an ancient era, crossing a vast and distant time, still shining upon the people, bringing them a sliver of warmth in this cold-hearted ninja world.
If a rare disease appeared, one only had to inquire about the local legends of Emiya Shirou to find a cure hidden within the tales. Even now, he was still trying to save peace.
And even if he lost this wager, he wouldn't hold it against them. He'd just continue to rescue the wounded on the battlefield.
The Second Tsuchikage, Mū, felt a pang of shame. Truly ashamed. The Second Kazekage, Shamon, was so guilt-ridden he couldn't even lift his head.
"My conscience is starting to ache a bit," the Second Mizukage, Gengetsu Hōzuki, muttered, touching his chest. But after a moment of dramatic flair, his expression became solemn. "If Lord Emiya loses this wager and sets up a camp on the battlefield... in the name of the Mizukage, no battle of the Mist shall affect his camp, and no war activities of the Mist shall occur there!"
This was a promise. "War activities" included everything from spying and assassination to poisoning. This meant that if any ninja, from any village, managed to hide in Shirou's camp, the Mist would simply abandon their mission.
"In the name of the Kazekage," Shamon declared, not to be outdone, "no battle of the Sand shall affect Lord Emiya's camp, and no war activities of the Sand shall occur there!"
"In the name of the Tsuchikage," Mū added, his eyes firm with respect, "no battle of the Rock shall affect Lord Emiya's camp, and no war activities of the Rock shall occur there!"
To be honest, if it weren't for the future of their villages, they would have thrown in the towel right then and there. But a Kage bears the weight of their village. They couldn't back down.
Then, a fourth voice boomed, crackling with lightning. "In the name of the future Third Raikage, no battle of the Cloud shall affect Lord Emiya's camp, and no war activities of the Cloud shall occur there!"
A wave of shock went through the crowd. If all these promises held, a truly absolute safe zone would appear on the battlefield.
But wait... there was still one village that hadn't spoken up. The very village that had been using Shirou to try and win the war.
All eyes fell on the Konoha ninja, who suddenly found the ground intensely interesting.
Sarutobi Sasuke hung his head in shame. A group of Konoha ninja regretted even showing up. Tobirama had left without appointing a deputy, leaving no one with the authority to make such a promise.
Besides, no one dared to speak in the name of the Hokage. Most importantly, Sasuke knew Tobirama's style: for Konoha, at any cost. That naturally included using Emiya Shirou. To win the war, Tobirama had shamelessly sent all their seriously wounded to Shirou to save on medical resources.
Who was to say he wouldn't just break his promise later? They'd been using him all along.
Konoha had never looked so pathetic.
The crowd, which had been momentarily silent, erupted into laughter.
"Of course Konoha wouldn't dare make such a vow! They've been using Lord Emiya this whole time!"
"Konoha was about to collapse, wasn't it? Our Rock Village owes Lord Emiya a huge debt. Their Second Hokage wanted to use Lord Emiya's kindness to get us to retreat!"
"Yeah, and Lord Tsuchikage would have agreed, but we got new allies before he arrived!"
"How pathetic," the future Third Raikage sneered, glancing at the silent Konoha contingent. The alliance between the Cloud and Konoha was starting to look very shaky.
The accusations were fatal, and they were true. Konoha's reputation, once the shining beacon of peace under the First Hokage, had plummeted under the Second. Sasuke couldn't help but wonder if they had chosen the wrong person.
He glanced at Madara. Back then, everyone had wanted Hashirama, but Hashirama had wanted Madara to be Hokage. In the end, no one elected Madara. Tobirama, with his political skill and knack for bureaucracy, had seemed the more suitable candidate.
And then, Madara left.
If we had just let Madara be Hokage, Sasuke thought, a wave of regret washing over him and many other Konoha ninja, we probably wouldn't be in this mess, cursed by everyone.
But it was too late. All he could do now was pray that Shirou won. If he lost, Konoha would be a pariah.
"Silence!" Madara's voice boomed across the venue, a terrifying pressure radiating from him, stunning the tens of thousands of ninja into a cold sweat. He looked with satisfaction as the venue quieted, then turned his arrogant gaze to the three Kage.
"Hmph. How confident. The battle hasn't even started, and you're already making victory declarations, thinking you can defeat Lord Emiya? Thinking the three of you together can win?"
The Kage were at a loss. This was a misunderstanding! They were trying to show respect!
Shirou, ever the diplomat, sighed.
This guy... no wonder he never became Hokage.
"This isn't a provocation against me," he said, stepping in to defend them. He even gave a slight, serious bow. "Thank you."
"I really don't deserve this!" the Second Mizukage yelped, so scared he looked ready to kowtow.
"Then let the small talk end here," a half-body Susanoo suddenly erupted from Madara. He had never backed down from a challenge in his life, and he wasn't about to start now. "Now, let's begin!" He controlled the Susanoo to withdraw, leaving the battlefield to the combatants.
The crowd scrambled back. The jutsu of the Second Tsuchikage and Second Mizukage were known for their large-scale destruction.
"Lord Emiya," the Tsuchikage floated up, already gathering the chakra for his Dust Release. "A battle is not a game. We bear the responsibility of our villages, and we cannot lose."
Anyway, he thought, he doesn't have to worry about dying. Tobirama's creepy jutsu does have its uses.
"Be careful!" the Second Mizukage shouted, his fingers flying through hand seals. "Battles in this era are fast!"
"Although both winning and losing are beneficial to me," the Kazekage said, flashing two scrolls, "a Sand ninja doesn't like to lose, especially when I bear the name of Kazekage!"
"Don't worry," Shirou said, with that earnest sincerity that was so infuriating. "I will try my best not to hurt you. If I accidentally do, I can also heal your injuries."
The corners of the three Kages' eyes twitched. They knew he was being genuine, but it was still unbelievably condescending.
"Let's begin!" The Kazekage threw off his hat, revealing a terrifying blue dragon tattoo. Chakra threads shot from his fingertips, wrapping around two puppets that sprang to life and rushed Shirou.
"My apologies," Shirou said, and simply charged forward.
Crack!
A puppet shattered under his fist. Even the most exquisite craftsmanship was just a toy in front of his monstrous strength.
"That's monstrous strength, like the First Hokage's!" the Kazekage realized, seeing the flash of chakra on Shirou's fist. He hastily tried to make the other puppet fly up, but Shirou raised a hand, a green chakra scalpel appearing in his palm, and with a single slash, cut all the chakra threads.
"Gathered some intel," Shamon said, watching his puppet fall. "The opponent is excellent at close combat. Even a medical ninja's scalpel can be his weapon."
"Got it," the Mizukage replied, flying through hand seals.
"Earth Style," Shirou's voice was calm. The next moment, a massive wall of earth shot up from under his feet, separating the Mizukage and Kazekage from him.
"Is this the Earth Flow Castle Wall?" the Tsuchikage's expression changed from his vantage point in the air. "He released it without any hand seals!"
As expected! The ninja of the ancient era were extraordinary!
A massive water dragon formed beside Shirou and flew towards the Tsuchikage.
"The forty-four-seal Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu..." the Tsuchikage quickly obliterated it with his Dust Release, his expression turning even uglier. "It's not that he's proficient in Earth Style, it's that he doesn't need hand seals for any jutsu he uses!"
"Hey, hey, hey, is it that exaggerated?!" the Mizukage shouted from the other side of the wall.
"It's more exaggerated than you think," the Tsuchikage replied, realizing the terrifying advantage Shirou held.
Boom!
The city wall came down. The Kazekage and Mizukage rushed out.
"Water Style: Water Gun Jutsu!" The Mizukage shot a series of water bullets from his finger.
"Sand Shuriken!" The Kazekage controlled the sand on the ground to form a dense cloud of shuriken.
A solid stone wall appeared in front of Shirou, absorbing the attacks.
"Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!" The Tsuchikage's white cylinder of light shot towards Shirou, disintegrating the wall and causing a huge explosion on impact. The Mizukage followed up with a barrage of water bullets into the smoke.
Shirou's figure flew backwards out of the smoke.
"Don't underestimate the sand on the ground," the Kazekage's eyes flashed. The sand from his shuriken quickly gathered and wrapped around Shirou's ankles.