Chapter 289: A Miracle

Long security lines had already been established along both sides of the official road before Konoha’s main gate.

Two rows of animal-masked ANBU stood with their hands resting on their swords.

Minato Namikaze waited at the center of the entrance, his white Fourth Hokage cloak stirring gently in the wind.

Terumi Mei stood beside him.

Today, a water-blue Mizukage hat rested properly on her head.

After receiving her message, Genji had sent someone to deliver it.

Knowing that his advanced age made long journeys difficult, he had entrusted her with the symbol representing Kirigakure’s highest authority.

Mei raised a hand and adjusted her long hair, ensuring that nothing about her appearance could be criticized.

Minato turned his head and offered a warm smile.

"Fifth Mizukage, thank you for your assistance today."

Mei gently shook her head, adopting a perfectly official tone.

"You’re too courteous, Hokage-sama. Kirigakure and Konoha are allies with aligned interests. Advancing and retreating together is our duty."

The moment she finished, a blinding burst of blue light exploded along the distant horizon.

A sharp electrical crackle tore through the air and rapidly approached.

Its speed was completely unreasonable.

The ANBU on both sides instinctively tightened their grips around their sword hilts.

A dark figure entirely wrapped in violent Lightning Style chakra raced toward the gate.

It forcibly stopped only three steps away from Minato.

Two charred trenches were carved into the road as shattered stones sprayed outward.

The violent wind whipped everyone’s clothing into the air.

Minato didn’t blink, nor did his feet shift by even half an inch.

The lightning faded and revealed the newcomer.

Ay, the Fourth Raikage.

He wore a white cloak. His skin was extremely dark, and thick veins bulged across his powerful arms.

Most strikingly, heavy bandages covered the area from his waist to his left shoulder.

Ay raised his voice and roared at Minato.

"Fourth Hokage! What happened to Konoha’s Tailed Beasts? Has the masked man who took Bee appeared?!"

His voice shook leaves from the surrounding trees.

Minato looked at the human tower of dark iron before him, who appeared ready to erupt at any moment.

"No."

Ay’s expression visibly worsened.

Before he could explode, Minato continued,

"Konoha previously issued the highest-level security warning to every nation and explained the enemy’s infiltration methods in detail."

"Raikage-dono, had Kumogakure cooperated at that time, you might not have reached today’s situation."

The words struck Ay directly where he was weakest.

He wanted to curse.

But he understood that his own excessive arrogance had indeed contributed to the result.

"Stop using the past to silence me!"

Ay waved an arm irritably.

"I want information about that masked man! If I see him again, I’ll tear his head off myself!"

As he shouted, an indifferent scoff sounded from above.

"Has Kumogakure truly run out of people?"

Everyone looked up.

Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage, floated in midair using the Earth Style: Light-Weight Rock Technique.

He wore a red-and-green Tsuchikage robe, and the white beard beneath his large nose shifted in the wind.

Onoki deliberately remained above the Raikage and looked down at him.

"You charged ahead alone like a mad bull. Are your guards crawling behind you?"

Ay’s anger finally found an outlet.

Crackle!

Lightning Style chakra covered him again as he glared upward.

"Third Tsuchikage, are you planning to take that sarcastic mouth into your coffin?"

Onoki showed no fear and curled his lips.

"This old man is merely teaching you basic etiquette. You charged Konoha’s gate alone. Did you come to negotiate or start a war?"

The two Kage-level fighters had barely met before the smell of gunpowder became suffocating.

Standing beside Minato, Mei looked between them.

One had lost the Eight-Tails and was furious. The other appeared reasonable while actually attempting to establish dominance.

Neither was easy to deal with.

She glanced at Minato and prepared to mediate at any moment.

Minato gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.

"Enough. Control your tempers."

Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, approached at a measured pace with his guards.

"None of us traveled this far to fight outside Konoha’s gate."

Onoki snorted and slowly descended, no longer paying attention to Ay.

The lightning around Ay also dimmed.

Rasa turned toward Minato and performed a perfectly formal salute.

"Fourth Hokage, Sunagakure’s delegation has arrived as agreed."

Minato restored his warm smile and returned the greeting.

"Kazekage-dono, you must be tired from the journey."

The leaders of the four Great Nations, together with Mei representing Kirigakure, had now formally assembled.

Once the atmosphere eased, Minato stepped aside and opened the path.

"Since everyone has arrived, please enter the village. We can speak as we walk."

The group crossed the gate and entered Konoha’s main avenue.

The villagers had received orders to clear the street and had retreated to the second floors of the shops on both sides. They whispered through the windows.

Onoki looked at the prosperous streets and immediately addressed the central issue.

"Hokage, spare us the pleasantries."

"The situation has completely deteriorated. What exactly does the organization that captured our Tailed Beasts intend to do?"

Minato continued walking, but the smile vanished from his face.

"Every Jinchuriki outside the two protected jointly by Konoha and Kirigakure has fallen."

"As for the enemy’s objective, I explained half of it in the confidential letters sent previously."

"Their complete plan is to collect every Tailed Beast, revive the Ten-Tails, project their ocular power onto the moon, and cast a permanent Genjutsu over the entire Shinobi World."

"This plan is called the Infinite Tsukuyomi."

Rasa, walking in the center of the group, stopped.

"Project it onto the moon?"

His brows tightened. The concept completely exceeded his understanding of Ninjutsu.

"Does a technique of that scale truly exist?"

Ay and Onoki stopped as well.

Onoki’s hand froze midway through stroking his beard, and his eyelids twitched several times.

Before coming, every village had been calculating how to gain more from the negotiation while contributing less.

The words "Infinite Tsukuyomi" shattered every scheme at once.

If the entire Shinobi World became controlled, what meaning would remain in competing for power and profit?

Onoki had lived the longest and was the first to regain his composure.

He resumed walking while examining the density of the buildings inside Konoha.

"Since Iwa agreed to the alliance, the troops we intend to contribute have already been assembled and can depart at any time."

Then he raised an extremely practical issue.

"But Hokage, look at your village."

"There’s only so much space. Even if you evacuated every civilian, the combined forces of the four Great Nations and the smaller Ninja Villages would number tens of thousands."

"If all those people flood inside, there won’t even be room to stand. How will you arrange logistics, encampments, and defensive lines?"

Ay nodded in agreement.

"The Tsuchikage is right. Tens of thousands of shinobi who have killed before will be mixed together."

"If the encampments aren’t arranged properly, the allied forces will explode into conflict before that masked man even attacks."

Facing pressure from the two Kage, Minato smiled faintly.

"None of you need to worry about the encampments."

He changed direction and headed toward the Hokage Rock.

"Follow me."

The Kage exchanged looks.

Minato sounded so certain that it felt abnormal.

Mei walked at the rear and watched his back, unable to stop the corners of her lips from rising.

She knew what he intended to show them.

The group climbed to the highest point of the Hokage Rock.

Standing at the cliff’s edge, the entire outline of Konoha stretched beneath them.

Ay folded his arms and looked at the densely packed rooftops below.

"Hokage, did you bring us up here to enjoy the wind?"

"The land won’t become larger no matter how high we stand. Unless you order the surrounding forest cut down immediately and begin leveling foundations for barracks."

"Even then, it would take at least a month."

Minato ignored the question.

He raised his hand and pointed toward four distant locations around Konoha’s perimeter.

"When I sent the letters proposing a joint defense, I had already prepared an accommodation plan."

"I brought you here so you could see the four major theater encampments Konoha has designated."

The moment his words ended, everyone followed the direction of his finger.

In the endless towering forest beyond Konoha’s gate, entire sections of trees began falling as though swept aside by an invisible giant hand.

Deep rumbles rolled across the land.

The earth trembled.

Flocks of birds shrieked as they burst from the forest and filled the sky.

The unbroken sea of green was being erased at a speed visible to the naked eye.