Whenever Renye cooked, a group of "passing by" Ninja would inexplicably appear around him.
They pretended to be training, discussing tactics, or even repairing Ninja tools, but their eyes all simultaneously glanced in the direction of the cooking smoke.
These guys were all Ninja from the camp's mess hall, wanting to come over to see if they could secretly learn a dish or two.
"It's bad enough that Renye Jonin is strong, but his cooking is also delicious. How are we supposed to live?" The mess hall leader sighed.
They were all just Genin-level, assigned to cook on the battlefield.
The aroma of Renye's cooking wafted through the Konoha Camp, making the Ninja start to feel dissatisfied with the mess hall.
Demanding that the mess hall produce delicious food, they had no choice but to come and learn secretly.
But Renye always cooked inside his tent, and the mess hall staff didn't dare to enter, so they could only stand outside and smell the aroma.
...
Days passed, and just as Renye was about to be forced into becoming the "Little Chef of the Ninja World," a turning point finally arrived.
Three months after Senju Tobirama arrived on the battlefield.
A Kumogakure envoy, holding a white flag high, arrived at the Konoha Camp.
"We... surrender."
News came from the Village—
The Second Raikage had been elected, and Hidden Cloud Village ultimately chose to surrender.
Voluntarily ending this year-long war...
The specific compensation matters required Senju Tobirama to personally travel to the Land of Lightning for detailed discussions.
Konoha Camp, Commander's tent.
The Kumogakure envoy knelt on one knee, cold sweat seeping from his forehead, respectfully holding a scroll inlaid with lightning patterns—the surrender document—and presenting it to Senju Tobirama, who was seated at the head of the table.
"Hidden Cloud Village... officially surrenders to Konoha."
His voice was hoarse, filled with unwillingness, yet also helplessness.
The tent was silent. The clan heads of Konoha's major families stood solemnly on both sides.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, and others stood beside Tobirama.
Renye leaned in a corner, arms crossed, a slight smile playing on his lips.
The war was finally over.
It ended even faster than he had anticipated.
But it was normal; a war that directly killed four Shadow-level Experts would be unbearable for any Village.
If they didn't surrender soon, Konoha would eventually invade.
It seemed that Hidden Cloud Village was severely weakened this time and would not be able to actively instigate war for a long time in the future.
Renye was quite satisfied with his achievements; from now on, he could slack off and do nothing.
With nearly twenty years until the Second Great Ninja War, he could already live a retirement life.
He would be thirty or forty years old when the Second Great Ninja War broke out.
He could even avoid participating in the war and continue to live a retired life in the Village.
Thinking of the relaxed life ahead, Renye almost laughed out loud.
Of course, this was the ideal scenario...
Who could know what would happen in the future?
...
Senju Tobirama took the surrender document, his gaze sweeping over the various clauses—
War reparations, border concessions, free sharing of Ninjutsu... every clause signified Hidden Cloud Village's complete defeat.
"After several consecutive defeats, Hidden Cloud Village's high-end combat power is already meager," Senju Tobirama said coldly. "Surrendering is indeed a wise choice."
The Kumogakure envoy bowed his head, not daring to refute.
The First Raikage, the Raikage's strongest personal guards, Kinkaku, Ginkaku, plus the newly arrived battlefield Commander...
Their deaths were undoubtedly a huge blow to Hidden Cloud Village!
It directly stripped the Village of its qualification to fight Konoha.
As Senju Tobirama said, Hidden Cloud Village's surrender was the wisest choice.
Continuing the fight would not benefit the Village in any way...
"The surrender is acceptable," Senju Tobirama closed the document, his tone unequivocal. "But the specific compensation matters require your Land of Lightning Daimyo to discuss them with me personally."
The Kumogakure envoy trembled, "This..."
The Daimyo is the head of the country, possessing the highest administrative power, the supreme ruler of the country,
Determining the political direction of the country and responsible for handling various state affairs.
Including diplomatic relations with other countries, deciding major matters such as war and alliances.
The Daimyo possesses the highest military power; the Ninja Village is equivalent to a military base, and Ninja are military forces hired by the Daimyo.
At the same time, the Daimyo also controls the country's economic lifeline, providing financial assistance to the Ninja Village and offering financial support for the Village's construction and development.
The Five Great Ninja Villages need to apply for financial allocations from the Daimyo annually for the Village's development and construction...
Senju Tobirama's demand was clearly somewhat unreasonable.
To make the Daimyo negotiate in person, this was an attempt to completely crush Hidden Cloud Village's reputation!
"Is there a problem?" Senju Tobirama asked.
"No..." The Kumogakure envoy dared not refuse and could only nod with difficulty, "I will arrange it immediately upon my return!"
Before coming here, the higher-ups had instructed him that no matter how unreasonable Konoha's demands were, he had to grit his teeth and agree...
After all, Hidden Cloud Village could no longer afford to continue the attrition.
After the envoy left, the atmosphere in the tent finally relaxed.
"Tobirama-sensei, we won!" Utatane Koharu could not hide her excitement.
Danzo Shimura snorted, "Kumogakure should have surrendered long ago, needlessly wasting so much time."
"Haha, we can finally rest," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, laughing as he put an arm around Danzo's shoulder.
Senju Tobirama put down the surrender document, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the tent.
"Nara Shikamaru," he said in a deep voice.
Nara Commander immediately stepped forward and respectfully said, "Hokage-sama."
"You are responsible for arranging the Ninja in the camp to return to Konoha in batches, ensuring their safety along the way."
"Yes." Nara Commander nodded, then hesitated for a moment, "Then you..."
"I will personally go to the Land of Lightning," Senju Tobirama said calmly. "Although the war has ended, the subsequent negotiations are the key."
As the victorious nation, the Land of Fire could propose corresponding compensation terms to the Land of Lightning.
These reparations could largely compensate Konoha for its losses in this war.
This was also the reason Senju Tobirama demanded to speak with the Land of Lightning Daimyo.
The Daimyo are all wealthy individuals; he could take the opportunity to extort a hefty sum.
As for whether this would offend the Land of Lightning Daimyo?
Senju Tobirama didn't care about that at all...
Before Hidden Cloud Village launched a war against Konoha, they needed the Daimyo's consent.
Since they chose to wage war, they should be prepared for defeat.
He would not be soft-hearted towards these guys who attempted to target Konoha; on the contrary, he would make them pay a heavy price!
After receiving the order, Nara Commander led the clan heads of the major families away to begin arranging the subsequent withdrawal.
Only Renye and a few others remained in the tent.
Senju Tobirama's gaze fell on them, and he said in a deep voice, "You few, come with me."
"Okay, sensei!"
Renye had no objection to this and readily agreed.
He was worried that the Old Man wouldn't take him.
Although Hidden Cloud Village had surrendered, it was hard to guarantee that someone wouldn't lash out in desperation!
It would be troublesome if the Old Man were killed by the plot.
With him there, at least Senju Tobirama's personal safety could be ensured...
"Don't worry, Uncle!"
Renye clenched his fists, thinking:
"With me here, nothing will happen to you!"
