Black Naruto: Shadow Moon

In the Sand Village of the Land of Wind, the Third Kazekage began to regret signing a peace treaty with Konoha too soon.

He once believed that reaching an agreement with Konoha would allow the Sand Village to buy enough time and resources to consolidate the victory in River Country.

However, as the three major ninja villages, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Mistgakure, launched their invasion and expansion one after another, the Third Kazekage suddenly realized that he might have underestimated the changes in the situation in the ninja world.

When the Third Kazekage observed that the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki successfully invaded the Land of Grass, the Third Raikage Ai quickly forced the surrounding small countries to submit to the Land of Lightning, and the Third Mizukage began to annex the islands around the Land of Water, he had a new idea in his mind.

The Third Kazekage realized that these expansionist actions made the Sand Village's position in the ninja world relatively conservative and cautious, and the peace agreement he signed with Konoha seemed to restrict the actions of the Sand Village.

He once thought that he had achieved his expansion goal by quickly occupying the territory and resources of River Country, but now it seems that the ambitions of other Kage far exceed his expectations, and the Third Kazekage even feels that his actions are lagging behind.

Looking back on these changes, the Third Kazekage gradually realized that peace in the ninja world was no longer sustainable.

The competition for resources and territorial expansion among major powers has once again brought the shadow of war closer.

He realized that even though the Sand Village did not have the ability to launch a new war immediately, it had become crucial to consolidate the existing results.

He was thinking in his mind that if Sand Village wanted to gain an advantageous position in the upcoming turmoil in the Ninja World, it must be cautious about the current situation and not be too radical. Although he regretted the existing peace treaty, he understood that the current task was to consolidate the results of the battle in River Country and ensure that this occupied area could continue to provide resource support for Sand Village.

The Third Kazekage turned to the top leaders of the Sand Village and convened an emergency meeting.

He, the village elders and military advisers decided that the next major task would be to consolidate the Kawakuni and ensure that the region's mining resources and arable land could be put into production quickly.

He demanded that the village's economic power and military strength be concentrated on the development and stabilization of River Country, while strengthening defense measures to prevent other ninja villages from coveting the new territory of Sand Village.

The top leaders agreed with this strategic policy and decided to fully support the development and integration of River Country. Through appropriate military stationing and internal construction, this area would gradually become a long-term and stable resource supplier for the Sand Village.

Although the Third Kazekage longed for greater expansion, at this critical moment, he understood that if the existing results could not be consolidated, the Sand Village would soon lose its foothold in future changes in the situation.

As the situation in the ninja world became more turbulent, especially with the successive successes of the invasion and expansion actions of the Iwagakure Village, the Kumogakure Village, and the Mist Village, the anxiety of the Konoha fighting faction led by Danzo Shimura grew.

Watching other ninja villages constantly gaining resources and territory through expansion, Danzo felt uneasy. The success of these ninja villages' expansion made him more uncomfortable than his own failure in Konoha.

Ever since the major ninja villages began to take action, Danzo felt that Konoha could no longer remain idle.

He determined that if Konoha did not take action, it would likely be at a disadvantage in future wars.

So he went to the Hokage Building many times, trying to persuade the Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen to change his conservative policy and follow the example of other big countries to start annexing the surrounding small countries.

Danzo firmly believed that Konoha, as the strongest ninja village in the ninja world, could not continue to stand idly by, but should immediately adopt a strategy of aggression and expansion, otherwise it would miss the opportunity to expand its territory and resources.

He even made it clear that "Konoha must not fall behind in this process, otherwise we will pay the price for it in the future."

However, Sarutobi Hiruzen was not impressed by Danzo's proposal.

Sarutobi has always adhered to the concept of conservative peace. He believes that Konoha cannot withstand a full-scale war at this time. Most of the surrounding small countries are neutral countries. A forced invasion may not only be unjustifiable, but may also affect Konoha's international reputation.

Sarutobi Hiruzen is a Hokage who is very careful about his reputation. He knows very well that Konoha's current position in the ninja world is already very stable, and it is rich in resources and territory. There is no need to improve Konoha's status by invading small countries.

In comparison, the purpose of expansion of other ninja villages is survival, but if Konoha were to annex small countries with only a small amount of resources, it would appear cheap and damage Konoha's high-ranking image.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's view made Danzo very dissatisfied. He believed that Konoha was strong enough to support the expansion plan, and that the ninja world was about to enter a state of war. Any conservative approach might cause Konoha to lose the initiative in the war.

Due to the conflict of fundamental concepts, the dispute between Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo intensified.

Danzo insisted that war was inevitable and that Konoha should take the initiative, while Sarutobi advocated maintaining the status quo to avoid letting Konoha fall into an unnecessary vortex of war.

Quarrels between the two occurred frequently in the Hokage's office, and the Hokage building was filled with tension almost every day because of their conflicts.

Sarutobi's rejections made Danzo furious many times, and he even slammed the door and walked out at one point.

The door of the Hokage's office was broken many times by Danzo's angry actions, and it almost became a sign of the end of every quarrel.

Every time Danzo left, he would leave behind a resentful speech, warning Sarutobi that if he did not act, Konoha would lose the initiative in future wars.

Although Sarutobi Hiruzen rejected the suggestion of active invasion, believing that Konoha should not be involved in the expansion of the war, he gradually realized that the situation in the ninja world was rapidly deteriorating.

Faced with the expansionist behavior of other major powers, he began to worry that the impending war would jeopardize Konoha's security.

Although he had chosen the peaceful route, Sarutobi knew that Konoha could no longer sit idly by and must prepare for the coming crisis.

In order to make his position clear, Sarutobi Hiruzen issued a strong condemnation of the expansionist behavior of other major powers, questioning whether they wanted to destroy the hard-earned peace in the ninja world.

He accused other ninja villages, especially Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure, of launching wars for their own selfish interests, invading the territories of small countries, and abandoning the short-lived peaceful order in the ninja world.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's condemnation was harsh. He publicly pointed out many times: "We have experienced two great ninja wars and finally achieved the current peace. Your current expansionist behavior is pushing the ninja world into the abyss of war and destroying the future of countless ninjas and civilians!"

However, Sarutobi Hiruzen's appeal did not receive the attention it deserved.

Other countries chose to shirk and evade his condemnation and continued to advance their own expansionist actions.

Even ninjas from some countries began to mock Sarutobi Hiruzen privately, believing that his peace advocacy was outdated and weak, and that he was afraid to face reality. In their view, although Konoha Village was the strongest ninja village in the ninja world, its current leaders were too conservative and unable to adapt to the changes of the times.

Some senior officials of some countries even discussed privately that it was time to shake Konoha's position as the largest ninja village.

The wind direction in the ninja world is quietly changing, and the pace of war seems inevitable.