RNP Chapter 446 Deterrence
Chapter 446 Deterrence
The Land of Earth, Hidden Rock Village.
After a long day of heavy official duties, Onoki slowly walked back to his residence in Iwagakure. His already short stature appeared even more hunched, and if it weren't for the fact that his aged body was being repeatedly burned by heavy thoughts, he would never have felt sleepy at this moment.
Minato Namikaze has been resurrected.
This news repeatedly struck his nerves. Konoha, the "greatest village" that had once appeared outwardly strong but inwardly weak after the Nine-Tails' attack, a place he had secretly sneered at, had now regained its former power.
Once upon a time, Onoki coldly observed Konoha's "weakness," the disappearance of the "Three Legendary Sannin," the sacrifice of the Fourth Hokage and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the extermination of the Uchiha clan leaving only a handful of survivors, and the suicide of "Konoha's White Fang"...
This forced the old man Hiruzen Sarutobi to become Hokage again. At that time, Konoha had a shortage of high-end combat power, and the new generation had not yet grown up. On the chessboard of the five great ninja villages, its weight was once so light that Onoki wanted to remove it from the list of "primary opponents".
But what about now? Tsunade has returned to take charge of medical care and some administration, and Jiraiya has even become the Fifth Hokage, managing the village in an orderly manner.
Even more terrifying was that rising star—Naruto Uzumaki. When Onoki first truly focused his attention on this name, the other was already a "perfect Jinchuriki" who had perfectly controlled the power of the Nine-Tails, and had also mastered the long-lost "Flying Thunder God Technique." An "infinite nuclear bomb" who could teleport instantly, was almost impossible to lock onto, and could unleash tailed beast-level destructive power anytime, anywhere?
Just imagining this combination sends chills down Onoki's spine.
If it weren't for the fact that Iwagakure's research department had recently spent a huge sum of money to finally successfully construct the complex sealing barrier array that could theoretically interfere with and delay the operation of space-time ninjutsu, providing Onoki's plan with a fragile but necessary psychological barrier, he probably wouldn't have dared to easily launch these recent probing moves.
Minato Namikaze's resurrection was undoubtedly the final straw that broke the camel's back after all rational considerations. One "Yellow Flash" was troublesome enough, but now with the addition of Naruto Uzumaki... the balance of high-end combat power in Konoha has become suffocatingly tilted.
If left unchecked, Iwagakure will completely lose its right to engage in equal dialogue with Konoha, and may even one day become a force to be reckoned with. This is something Onoki absolutely cannot accept.
He's gambling. Gambling on a possibility.
The [Jin] organization... Over the years, although there have been occasional eyewitness reports of its members operating in various places, it seems that eliminating rogue ninja groups and clearing out bandits who are causing trouble in the area has become their "new business".
However, its fundamental principle—to deter, intervene in, and prevent large-scale wars with absolute force—was rarely demonstrated during the relatively peaceful period in the ninja world.
So many years have passed, and the leader who wore a fox mask and called himself "Menma" has never again directly intervened in the power struggles and frictions between major powers as he did in Konoha and Kumogakure.
Could it be that there is some kind of limitation to that cataclysmic power that could wipe out a ninja village in an instant?
Unable to use frequently? Or requiring a huge price to pay? Or perhaps... the internal focus of the [Ember] organization has shifted?
This vague conjecture became the psychological basis for Onoki's daring to test the limits.
He was betting that [Jin] wouldn't easily reveal its destructive fangs again for these minor actions that hadn't yet escalated into a real war and could be explained as "normal diplomatic friction."
Thinking this, Onoki finally felt a deep weariness wash over him like a tide, barely managing to suppress the turmoil in his heart. He slowly closed his heavy eyelids, trying to sink himself into a brief darkness and tranquility.
however--
Outside the window, the light was a dark red glow, neither from dawn nor from lamplight.
At the same time, an extremely familiar chakra surge, as if passing through the walls and barriers without any hindrance, overwhelmed his senses.
"..."
"This isn't what we agreed on... Lord Hashirama..."
"There is no alliance. You only need to submit to the power of Konoha. Also... you are not allowed to mention his name in front of me! [Susanoo]!"
Memories from many years ago flashed back into my mind.
Ohnoki suddenly opened his eyes, his cloudy old eyes no longer showing any signs of sleepiness.
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The complete Susanoo, with its towering, dark red body hundreds of meters tall, stands silently at the highest point outside Iwagakure Village, like a war god descended directly from ancient mythology.
Uchiha Shisui stood within the diamond-shaped crystal on the forehead of Susanoo, with an unprecedentedly wide field of vision.
He could clearly see the "creeping" of Iwagakure below—the lights that had been flickering regularly began to move erratically, the once quiet streets were quickly filled with throngs of people and urgent whistles, and fortifications and sentry posts lit up with blinding warning lights, like a startled beehive.
An atmosphere of unease, suspicion, and panic could be faintly sensed even from hundreds of meters away and through the thick chakra armor.
But that's not enough. For a ninja village like Iwagakure, known for its strict discipline and tenacity, Shisui's mere outward intimidation might temporarily shake them, but it might not completely extinguish the flames of complacency in some people's hearts.
He needed a more direct "demonstration" to bring this late-night visit to a sufficiently striking close.
With a slight thought, the complete Susanoo slowly raised its massive arm, and red energy gathered wildly in its palm. Then, three enormous tomoe, burning with blazing red flames, appeared out of thin air and slowly rotated in Susanoo's palm.
"[Yasaka no Magatama]!"
The moment the magatama formed, the commotion in Iwagakure reached its peak, with countless terrified eyes fixed on the three deadly magatama.
Just then—
"Please wait a moment!!"
An aged yet composed voice, accompanied by the sound of something cutting through the air, rang out. A figure rose rapidly from the center of Iwagakure, flying towards Susanoo.
It was Onoki, who used Earth Release: Super Light-Heavy Rock Technique to fly at high speed. Behind him were several elite Jonin from Iwagakure, all pale-faced, their eyes fixed on the red giant.
Onoki hovered in mid-air not far in front of Susanoo, maintaining a cautious distance. He looked up at the figure hidden behind the crystal on the giant's forehead, wearing a fox mask similar to Menma's from the [Jin] organization.
This mask is enough to identify the visitor.
"You must be a member of the [Ember] organization."
Onoki's voice, amplified by his chakra, echoed clearly through the night sky. He struggled to maintain the dignity of the village's Kage, but upon closer listening, one could still detect a hint of suppressed tension. "Visiting in the dead of night, in such a manner... I wonder what offense I, the Hidden Stone Village, have committed?"
He paused briefly, struggling to organize his thoughts, before continuing, "It's probably about some recent...unpleasant diplomatic and border matters with Konoha. I've heard about it. There must be many misunderstandings involved!"
Onoki spoke a few steps faster, "My Iwagakure has absolutely no intention of disrupting peace or provoking Konoha! The delays in resource allocation and the trade frictions are all due to poor coordination and communication among lower departments. It is my negligence in management and supervision!"
"In the name of the Tsuchikage, I guarantee that such a thing will never happen again! Iwagakure cherishes its peaceful relationship with Konoha and has no ulterior motives!"
His words subtly downplayed his and Iwagakure's responsibility, shifting it to "management oversight" and "misunderstandings with subordinates," attempting to explain a deliberate strategic probe as a mere accidental work mistake.
Uchiha Shisui listened quietly to Onoki's explanation, calmly observing every subtle expression and body language of the old man.
To him, this explanation was almost identical to the intelligence department's analysis of the possible response strategy of the Iwagakure leadership—evasion, downplaying, and assurances, but the core intention and the ambition to test the waters had probably not been truly dispelled.
Verbal assurances alone are not enough. Deterrence requires more profound "memorable points," like what a leader does.
And so, as soon as Onoki finished speaking, in the tense and expectant silence that filled the air, the arm of the Complete Susanoo holding the Yasaka Magatama moved.
Instead of aiming at Iwagakure Village, it suddenly hurled three burning red magatama from its hand toward a desolate, rocky mountain on the outskirts of Iwagakure Village!
call out--!!!
Three enormous streaks of red light ripped through the night sky, like falling blood-red comets, and slammed into the solitary, rocky mountain peak, hundreds of meters high!
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The deafening explosion shook the entire world! A blinding red light instantly engulfed the outline of the mountain.
A gigantic sphere, mixed with red light and dust, expanded outwards, and the shockwave spread violently in all directions in a ring. Wherever it passed, the ground was scraped away layer by layer, and the nearby rock walls collapsed like sandcastles!
It was just a throw.
As the blinding light and billowing dust slowly dissipated, the once towering stone mountain that served as one of the natural barriers surrounding Iwagakure Village had vanished.
All that remained was an enormous, scorching, and intensely hot pit, along with radiating, glass-like fragments of rock, melted by the heat and rapidly cooled, scattered several kilometers away.
A mountain was completely flattened off the map.
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(Only one update today. The author went to Changzhou and is a bit busy. I will start writing about the wedding tomorrow.)