Hiruzen persuaded me to die

The lifeless body of the Fourth Raikage collapsed with a dull thud, thrown aside like a broken tool—his final expression frozen in fury and helplessness.

Naraku, the man who had ended his reign, stepped forward, the golden sword of Truth-Seeking Orbs humming softly in his grasp, as if feeding on the very aura of power surrounding him.

His cold gaze fell upon a man trembling in the distance—Dodai, the former assistant to the Raikage.

"You're Dodai, right? Raikage's aide?"

"...Yes."The glint from Naraku's golden blade flickered in Dodai's eyes. Beads of sweat slid down his cheeks.

"Are you planning to resist again?""…We surrender."

Dodai clenched his jaw. His eyes swept past the mangled remains of Killer Bee and the Fourth Raikage. They had both fallen.

He had advised the Raikage against continuing this war, long ago.

The moment Naraku lifted a mountain and crushed their barrier, Dodai knew—they were facing a power beyond logic. Beyond understanding. This was no longer a shinobi war. This was survival.

Naraku's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Very well. You've bought yourselves a chance to live."

Naraku's expression didn't soften in the slightest. He continued flatly,"As part of the peace terms, Cloud Village will now surrender 50% of its annual income to Konoha."

Dodai's eyes widened. "Wasn't it thirty percent?!"

"That was before," Naraku replied coolly. "Now it's changed."

Dodai understood. Their last-ditch effort—the Chakra Cannon—was an act of war. And they had failed.

Thirty percent had already pushed their village to the edge. But fifty? With that, Cloud Village might not even be able to sustain itself.

"This is the price for your provocations. You started the war. I'm simply finishing it."

Naraku's fingers gently flexed around the hilt of his golden blade.

"Do you accept… or not?"

Dodai said nothing. The weight of his village's future bore down on his shoulders like a boulder. He glanced around at the few dozen ninja who remained. All that was left of nearly 2,000.

"…We accept," he said bitterly.

Naraku gave a slight nod, then delivered the next blow—one far crueler.

"Next, Cloud Village will turn over all of its classified materials to Konoha. This includes all shinobi information, and every single recorded ninjutsu."

Dodai's head snapped up. "That's—! That's impossible!"

Naraku's sword tilted slightly toward him, its edge gleaming with restrained death.

"If I wanted to, I could kill every last one of you now. Including the civilians you evacuated earlier."

Dodai's eyes widened. A murmur rose behind him.

"Lord Dodai, we have to accept it…""We can't survive another battle!""There's no other way!"

The pleas of the remaining shinobi struck him like kunai.

Dodai's expression twisted in anguish. After a long silence, he gave a pained nod.

"…We accept."

"But," he added, "I request that—when the time comes—Cloud Village be allowed protection under Konoha. At least... as an allied shinobi village."

The words nearly broke him. It was a total submission. A recognition that Cloud, once the proud aggressor, was now a vassal of its former rival.

But Naraku's reply was swift—and merciless.

"Konoha has no obligation to protect parasites."

His golden eyes narrowed with cruel amusement.

"You say you want shelter? You had no problem plundering the world before. Picking fights. Making enemies."

His gaze swept across the horizon toward the broken remnants of the once-proud village.

"Now that you're weak, you want mercy?"

"You created your enemies. Now face them."

Dodai stood frozen, speechless. He remembered every covert operation, every abduction, every assassination Cloud Village had ever conducted in the name of expansion.

Now, their arrogance had come full circle.

The enemies they made wouldn't miss this opportunity.

Naraku didn't care.

He left Dodai in the dust of history, turning the logistics over to Nara Shikaku, who arrived to oversee the peace terms on behalf of Konoha.

Meanwhile, Naraku moved to absorb his hard-earned spoils.

[Current Chakra Status]

Yang Release Chakra: 10,000 / 10,000 — MAXED

Six Paths Level Yang!Not only did Naraku's chakra reserves surge to astronomical levels, but his regeneration rate soared as well—he could now mend fatal wounds in moments.

With full Yin and Yang mastery, Naraku had entered a new realm of power.

He could now create living beings with chakra alone.

Fire Style Chakra: 4,000 / 10,000

Lightning Style Chakra: 3,500 / 10,000

Wind Style Chakra: 500 / 10,000

Water Style Chakra: 500 / 10,000

Earth Style Chakra: 500 / 10,000

Space-Time Ninjutsu: 3,200 / 10,000

With Yang Release capped, he still had 17,650 points to allocate.

Before, he had prioritized Fire and Lightning due to their sheer combat power.

But now… now he was thinking bigger.

Could he combine styles?Could he unlock a Kekkei Genkai?

Water + Earth = Wood Release?

Wind + Water = Ice Release?

Fire + Earth = Lava Release?

His mind buzzed with possibilities as he thumbed through the inventory Konoha shinobi brought over.

One detail caught his attention.

"You're telling me… that of the five Six Paths Ninja Tools of the Sage of Six Paths, only the Amber Purifying Pot remains in Cloud's possession?"

Shikaku, flipping through the scrolls, replied:"Yes. The other four were lost during the First Great Ninja War."

Naraku's brow furrowed.

The Banana Palm Fan, Crimson Gourd, Seven Star Sword, and Golden Canopy Rope—gone?

Only the Amber Purifying Pot remained... and even that had failed to seal him.

He narrowed his eyes at the pot beside him.

"...So these 'relics' are just ornaments now."

The winds blew through the ruins of Cloud Village, echoing the silence that had descended upon what was once one of the Five Great Shinobi Nations.

Naraku stood amidst it all—unchallenged. Unmatched.

And he was just getting started.