NARUTO: SECOND GOD OF SHINOBI

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Two days passed after the war ended. Yamamoto led the Iwa ninja back to Iwagakure.

As they reached the village gate, almost the entire village gathered, loudly cheering their return from the battlefield.

As Yamamoto arrived at the village gate, he roared loudly, "Victory for Iwa!"

In response, all the civilians and ninjas smiled and roared back, "Victory for Iwa! Long live Lord Yamamoto!"

The battlefield ninjas also smiled, as if their efforts had not gone to waste.

Soon, the elder council, elite jonins, and village elders arrived. They also smiled, and one of them spoke,

"You have done well, Yamamoto, leading Iwa to repel Suna and tie the fight with the Third Kazekage."

Other elders also smiled and acknowledged his efforts, as Iwa had no one else to rely on.

But at the right time, Yamamoto had appeared as a savior. Yamamoto smiled and spoke loudly,

"This is nothing, elders. What I did was for Iwagakure because this is my home. If I, an Iwa ninja, do not fight for my own home, then who else will?"

One of the elders spoke, "Well said! If not me, then who? Well done, Yamamoto. Your achievements will not be forgotten. You will be rewarded appropriately."

The others also nodded in agreement. Soon, the ninja forces dispersed, and the elders busied themselves with accounting for the war—analyzing how it ended and gathering various details from their faction's ninjas.

News of the battle quickly swept throughout the ninja world.

It spread that an Iwa ninja had first captured Ebizo, then Chiyo, and then fought toe-to-toe with the Third Kazekage, ending the battle in a draw.

The Suna-Iwa war had concluded with both sides signing a peace agreement.

The next day, an Iwa village jonin meeting was called. Soon, all the Iwa jonins arrived.

As Yamamoto entered, one by one, the jonins greeted him and congratulated him.

Yamamoto nodded in acknowledgment. Once almost all the jonins had arrived, the meeting began.

Yamamoto stood up, walked to the center, placed a scroll down, and spoke,

"This is the Suna-Iwa peace agreement, signed by me and the Kazekage."

The details of the agreement were reviewed by everyone, while Yamamoto explained,

"These are the compensations agreed upon by me and the Kazekage. After extensive negotiations, he agreed to this amount."

Seeing this, all the jonins nodded, as Iwa had secured the upper hand by capturing two S-rank ninjas.

One of the elders spoke, "Well done, Yamamoto. You have handled the negotiations gracefully."

All the jonins nodded in agreement, praising Yamamoto. Soon, other discussions took place.

After that, it was time to discuss the appointment of the next Tsuchikage.

One of the elder jonins spoke, "Everyone, the village cannot be without a leader. I suggest that we nominate the Tsuchikage now, while every jonin of the village is present."

All of the jonins nodded. Soon, another elder spoke, "Then I suggest Kirihara, the commander of the Taki front.

He led Iwa ninjas to repel Taki and Kusa villages, and afterward, he arrived to assist the Iwa ninjas on the Suna front. He fought the Third Kazekage valiantly."

Some of the jonins nodded in agreement, while others had strange expressions.

Yamamoto, who had fought the Kazekage to a draw, was standing right there, yet they wanted to appoint an elite jonin who had only fought rebels—especially when Konoha had already captured and destroyed Kusa and Taki.

cough!

Other elders coughed at this shameless suggestion. One of the jonins spoke up,

"How can Commander Kirihara become Tsuchikage? He was crippled by the Kazekage's attack. I thought he had died after that blow. I didn't knew he was still alive."

The other jonins muttered in low voices, but everyone heard it clearly.

At this, Yamamoto stood up from his seat and spoke,

"Esteemed elders and everyone present, in your presence, I would also like to nominate someone… and that is myself.

Many of you may know me, you have already seen my strength, my term as the commander, my tactics.

I will not say to vote for me lightly as their is no more suitable ninja so just vote for Yamamoto Sugekuni.

I would only like to say,.... If and only If you believe in me and recognize my merit, then I ask you to believe in me once more.

Just as I fought for Iwa against the Kazekage at forefront, I will always put myself at the front whenever I am needed.

I will give my all for the village prosperity, I will make Iwa great again! Never let it fall like in the past.

I Yamamoto swear to my ancestors that I will never hesitate to do anything For Iwa, Untill I am Killed!"

As he finished, the Tsuchikage faction jonin echoed his words, chanting, "For Iwa! For Iwa!" The hall was filled with their voices before they finally settled down.

One of the jonin then stood up and spoke, "Lord Kirihara is crippled, everyone. If we make him Tsuchikage, Iwa will become the laughingstock of the Five Great Villages.

What will be our standing among them? They will look down on us!"

Some of the jonin in support nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we will become a laughingstock if that happens."

Another jonin added, "What is Commander Kirihara? He was crippled with one attack from the Kazekage.

What if he becomes Tsuchikage? Will he be able to garner respect among the Five Great Villages?"

Another jonin stood up, raising his voice, "We fought on the Suna front following Lord Yamamoto.

Not only did he capture Chiyo and Ebizo, but he also eliminated more than 3,500 Suna ninjas with his various tactics.

Along with that, he fought the Kazekage! Tell me, who is more suitable?"

As more and more voices rang out in support of Yamamoto, the elders understood that he had been well-prepared for this moment.

When they turned to look at him, they saw him smiling, his lips curled upward.

One of the elders thought, Well played, Yamamoto. I thought you were just a brat, but who would have thought you were also a manipulator too?

Soon, another jonin stood up and spoke, "Everyone, in today's meeting, almost all the jonin are present.

I suggest we cast a vote right here to select the leader that everyone agrees with."

Almost two-thirds of the jonin agreed. The same jonin then continued, "Those who support Commander Kirihara as the Tsuchikage, raise your hands."

One by one, the jonin raised their hands, though some hesitated after hearing of Yamamoto's achievements, as well as Kirihara's current state as a cripple.

After counting, the jonin announced, "32 jonin votes for Commander Kirihara out of 150 present."

The jonin then continued, "Those who support Lord Yamamoto as the Tsuchikage, raise your hands."

At that, the entire Tsuchikage faction raised their hands without hesitation. The jonin nodded after counting. "89 votes for Lord Yamamoto as the Tsuchikage."

Some jonin refrained from voting—six to seven were elders, while others were from the neutral faction, who refrained from choosing any side.

Soon, the final result was announced, and a jonin hurriedly declared,

"By the agreement of the jonin, I hereby announce Lord Yamamoto as the Fourth Tsuchikage!"

The jonin immediately stood up and cheered, "For Tsuchikage Yamamoto!" while the jonin who supported Kirihara were left bewildered. Even the elders were dumbfounded.

What? How can the Tsuchikage be selected this fast?!

One of the elders stood up angrily and slammed his hand on the table.

"Enough, everyone! How can the position of Tsuchikage be this easy to attain? Are we in a market, who give the most and he will have it?"

One of Yamamoto's confidants stood up and spoke firmly, "What are you saying, Elder? All the jonin are present here, and we cast a vote.

Almost 90 agreed. Are you suggesting that this is wrong? You didn't interfere when we were casting votes for Kirihara, did you?"

Another jonin stood up in support. "Yes, Elder! Are you implying that Iwagakure be damned, but the Tsuchikage must be Commander Kirihara?

How will we be able to stand before the Five Great Villages? Are you trying to destroy Iwa's reputation?"

The elder was left bewildered and hurriedly refuted, "No! What I am trying to say is that to become Tsuchikage, the Daimyo's permission is needed—"

Another jonin immediately cut him off, "Who said that? The previous Tsuchikage merely informed the Daimyo, and he simply gave his approval.

When did we ever need the Daimyo's permission to select the village leader?

Almost two-thirds of the village's ninja support Lord Yamamoto. Are you trying to go back on your words?"

The elder was rendered speechless. As he opened his mouth to argue further, an overwhelming chakra pressure suddenly descended upon the hall.

The entire room fell silent.

Almost all of the jonin flinched at the sheer intensity of it.

A powerful killing intent radiated from Yamamoto as he merely stared at the elders.

The pressure in the air became suffocating, and soon, sweat began to drip down the backs of the elders, as if a massive predator was watching them, waiting to devour them.

Unable to withstand the pressure, they all sighed, soon one of the elders finally broke the silence and spoke with a trembling voice,

"By the unanimous decision of the elders… we also support Yamamoto as the Fourth Tsuchikage."

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