Chapter 117 - 117 (1/2)
The Rock and the Cloud had always been hostile to each other. While the Cloud's war against Konoha was purely for resources, theirs against the Rock was because of the hatred that was always there.
Onoki was very aware of this. If the Cloud did really ask Hanzo for help, then their first target will definitely be them.
Hanzo's name made Onoki extremly afraid. In his view, the most powerful living Ninjas of the time were him, Hanzo, the 3rd Hokage and 3rd Raikage.
If it was only the 3rd Raikage facing him, Onoki would be confident that he wouldn't lose. However, he knew that he should not be able to face the two together.
Moreover, if Hanzo of the Salamander actually comes to this battlefield, the Cloud would have 5 Kage tier Ninjas. The Rock did have four Kage Tier Ninjas, but Roshi was killed. The Sand front also needs Kitsuchi for its leadership. For now, this front only has Onoki and Han, the Gobi Jinchuriki.
”Old man, this situation is very unfavorable to us. What are you going to do?” Asked Han.
”There are only two ways for us to take. One is to retreat before Hanzo's arrival, and the other is to join forces with Konoha to resist this alliance.”
”Join forces with Konoha? Tsuchikage sama, will Konoha be willing to cooperate with us?” Said Gari.
”If Hanzo really arrives, we'll be all in the same boat. Once we're defeated, Konoha should be next. I believe they'll understand this much.” Said Onoki after some silence.
”In that case, how do we deliver this information to Konoha? If we just tell them, they might just not believe it.”
”Han, you're going to throw this Cloud quasi Kage to Konoha's camp. They have the Yamanaka clan, and they should have someone to read his memories and thoughts. While they may not believe what we say, they should believe what they see.”
Han nodded and ran towards Konoha's camp with the Cloud captive.
Onoki sighed. He knew that by asked for Konoha help, he is going to pay. After all, while Hanzo's arrival is a major threat to them as well, this new alliance should have the Rock as its 1st target. What should Konoha be interested in?
After Han took the half dead Troy to Konoha's camp to explain his intentions, Minato told him to leave the Quasi Kage to them.
As soon as he did that, Han ran into the distance without looking back. Witnessing the horrifying Golden Flash, he knew that he should be no opponent of him, even with the power of the Gobi.
After Han left, Minato once again summoned the higher ups of the camp to a meeting in his tent. Seeing the beat up Troy, everyone one knew that Ryo's plan was a success.
”The next step is negotiation. With this, we are giving the Rock great help. I believe it's appropriate to ask for something back!” Minato wasn't just fit to be a Hokage for his strength, his political wisdom was also on par.
”Minato San, Konoha's repertoire of Earth Release Jutsus is lacking!” Said Katachi Uchiha.
As soon as his voice fell, the tent was full of excitement. The old man, and the head of his clan, knew well what to ask for.
The next day, Minato went with the result of his discussions to negotiate with Onoki. Konoha demanded an S class Jutsu, 5 A Class Jutsu, and supplies that were ending in their camp.
Negotiations naturally didn't go well. Onoki just couldn't give away an S class Jutsu.
The most important thing in such situations is to stay calm. After the negotiations failure, Minato just retreated, and the Rock didn't hear from Konoha's camp for days.
With time passing by, and his Sensor Ninjas detecting Cloud Ninjas going in the way of the Rain Country, Onoki couldn't help it anymore.
He took the initiative and contacted Minato for second negotiations, and finally they reached an agreement: An S-Class Jutsu, 3 A-class Jutsus, and Rock not stepping foot into the Rain Country.