"Lead the way."

He summons one of his faster large hawks.

The Land of Iron, where the summit's being held, is to their north, traditionally held to be on another continent even though it's technically contiguous with this one, across the giant bay that forms the continent's northern shoreline. They could skirt around to the West to stay over land, and that's likely what most of the Kage are doing, but they have fliers and can easily cross the water.

Konan meets them on the northern shore of Rice Fields, apparently on her own, born by her own paper wings. Crossing the sea is fairly easy, and they soon enough meet ice fields. The Land of Iron proper is in the tundra beyond, and Sasuke lands them near a port city. After some discussion with the samurai there they're allowed through, and continue on to Three Wolves Mountain, where the summit is. They pause outside, Isobu sliding off Ellisaria's back, and Konan touches the ground, summoning two of her followers. She then glances at Sasuke and the others.

"Any modifications to our approach I should be aware of?" Konan asks.

Sasuke shakes his head. "Though even though we're presenting as two separate blocs, we should probably enter together."

She nods. "Makes it harder for them to argue against our inclusion one-by-one."

"There is strength in numbers. Let us proceed."

The entrance tunnel is narrow enough they can't all walk in together with their own parties; he solves this by having his guards linger at the back (Konan and Okami do the same), making it easier for them to enter together.

They're challenged at the entrance, two samurai stepping to block their path while a man with dark skin and white hair dressed in loose white robes with a yellow triangular hat on the table in front of him stands and twists, demanding, "What is the meaning of this?"

Konan steps forward, and says, mildly, "You appear to have forgotten to invite us."

"You have gathered to discuss the problem of the Akatsuki and their activities. This concerns more than simply your so-called Five Great Villages. We," she indicates herself, Okami, and Isobu, "have come to represent the interests of the world."

"Rain has the greatest knowledge of the Akatsuki," Sasuke says, "And Sound's just after them."

"I don't see what two villages of traitors have to bring," a bandaged man before a red hat says, voice mild.

Sasuke sends him a look of tightly leashed anger. "I don't think you want me reading off a list of Konoha's crimes," he says, sharply. Then, a deep breath, and: "I have intelligence on the false Madara who has laid claim to the organization, as well." He glaces at the older man at the flat edge of the n-shaped table. "All of the villages on this continent and its neighbors are under threat if the Akatsuki succeeds in its goals."

Konan steps forward, then. "The wheels turn elsewhere. Let us in."

The youngest of the Kage, a redhaired teen about Sasuke's age in dark red clothes with a green hat, says, "I agree with them. The Five Nations only hold that title for historic reasons. Ignoring the smaller nations was how we got this problem, in the first place."

The woman to his right snorts, and leans back. "I'm not very interested in dealing with a bunch like them. But I'm more interested in them than in you lot, so."

The only Kage who hasn't spoken yet, an old man, just humphs.

The man Sasuke had glanced at raises his hand. "As the arbiter of this meeting, I rule to allow it."

That seems to quiet the opposition, and the man gestures for chairs to be brought forth so all five new representatives can sit (cushions are brought for Isobu and Okami). Konan, Sasuke, and Okami's guards are directed to stand at the edges of the room. A few wary looks are sent Itachi, Sasuke, and Konan's ways from the guards on the sidelines.

Introductions are made: the man serving as arbiter is Mifune, leader of the samurai of the Land of Iron. The woman is Terumi Mei, Mizukage. To her left is the teenaged Kage is Gaara, Kazekage. To Gaara's left is the bandaged old man Sasuke dislikes - Shimura Danzo, interim Hokage. The quiet old man to Danzo's left is Onoki, Tsuchikage. The dark-skinned man to Onoki's left who first demanded to know their business is A, Raikage.

Okami and Isobu are seated in the gaps between the n shape of the main table and the short segment at its open end where Mifune sits. Sasuke is seated to the Mizukage's right, Konan to the Raikage's left, and Ellisaria is allowed to choose her own position.

She takes her chair next to Isobu, opposite the Mizukage.

"The balance of powers has shifted a lot," Gaara begins, folding his hands on front of him. "Most of us haven't been leaders for very long, as these things go. The Akatsuki seems primed to take advantage of the changing times... Or cause them. They're a threat to the world, more than most of the villages seem willing to acknowledge. I was the host of the One Tailed Shukaku, once, and they nearly destroyed my village and almost killed me in extracting him."

(Isobu shifts, clearly uncomfortable.)

"Villages too weak to keep ahold of their Tailed Beasts shouldn't be making a big deal of it. They should just seek to get them back, quietly, without showing off their weakness," Onoki says, huffing.

"And that kind of secrecy is why it's taken so long for people to realize the true threat of the Akatsuki," Sasuke says, dryly.

"You're all ones to talk!" A booms. "The Akatsuki rose because of your villages - Sand, Leaf, Stone, Mist all used them as mercenaries in their wars. Rain - I don't know why you're here, or why Hanzo allows it. Sound - your last leader was a member of Akatsuki, and it's unclear if he ever left, and you have the audacity to bring a known member as a guard."

"You might have noticed I killed Orochimaru," Sasuke says. "And I can answer your question easily enough - he left the Akatsuki eight years ago. As for Itachi... She's one of mine, and I'm sure of her loyalty to me."

"Strange," Mei says, voice mild. "When she's rumored to be a clan-killer."

Sasuke shrugs, clearly faking nonchalance even if there's an undercurrent of anger in his shoulders. "What she has or hasn't done is my business, as her clan head and commander."

Konan raises a hand, disrupting the forming argument, and turns to A. "The question of Rain's involvement is complex. Hanzo, for one, has been dead well over a decade. We removed him during the Third War. At the time, we were a group of revolutionaries... A man calling himself Uchiha Madara approached us, offered us aid in exchange for us helping with his mercenary group between missions of our own. He poured poison in the ears of our last leader. I disentangled us upon our last leader's death, and I made it clear that anyone loyal to the Akatsuki who steps foot in my country will be killed."

"Madara!" Onoki exclaims. "Is he truly such a monster? He should've been dead decades ago."

"...That's not Madara..." Isobu mutters, voice quiet.

"Not Madara," Ellisaria says for Isobu. "An imposter who trades upon the name to save himself the trouble of building a reputation of his own."

Onoki 'hmphs.' "A coward, then."

Mei ignores him, turning to Konan. "If you were allied once with this fake Madara - which I'd believe - do you know his plans? Or - there's a question, remaining from the time of the Fourth Mizukage. He's said to have been controlled, and the Akatsuki was suspected..."

Konan turns to her. "I don't know every plot he's ever had in motion, and I'm unsure of his machinations in Mist. But his plan for the Tailed Beasts was to create a super weapon; he claimed with it he could bring eternal peace."

Sasuke hums. "The Fourth Mizukage was a jinchuuriki, right?" At Mei's nod, he continues. "The false Madara is an Uchiha, and one capable of controlling the Tailed Beasts - it's possible that's a quirk of some sharingan, or that he was Madara's student, or otherwise put together his teachings. It might be possible to control a jinchuuriki if you had enough control over the Tailed Beast..."

"War for peace," Mei says, voice bitter. "All the blood spilled in Mist and beyond. I suppose he doesn't care for anyone who fails to live to see his peace."

Isobu shifts, says, "Um... He might... Just be saying that... If you combined all of us, I don't think you'd get a very good weapon..."

Okami raises her head, speaking up for the first time. "Isobu's too young to remember, but he's right. The Tailed Beasts were once one being, a monster with Ten Tails - and I use 'monster' literally. It doesn't seem to have been sapient. It was made somehow by a powerful woman, Kaguya, who came from neither the world of men nor the world of spirits, and who used it to conquer the entirety of this world. The Ten Tails can only be controlled by its original maker; even your beloved Sage of Six Paths failed to tame it - the most he could do was break it into nine parts upon its defeat. The battle against it and its master lasted three days and reshaped the world. You humans don't have nearly as many mighty heroes nor great spirits helping as last time, so I doubt such a war would go as well this time."

"Which means it is necessary that you come together now to fight the man you can kill before his power grows beyond you. The time for bickering and recriminations about past actions is over. Look to the future now, or you will not have one."

The Raikage surges to his feet, punching the table - and the guards from the sidelines all move to surround their leaders. The Raikage, though, doesn't attack, merely shouts, "Quit all this yapping!"

Mifune frowns at him. "I know tensions are high, but please refrain from such displays of rudeness," as the other leaders have their guards stand down. 

A snorts. "I don't trust a single one of you. Employing the Akatsuki, letting your missing-nin run off to join their ranks - working as them - accepting one of theirs - and I have no intention of speaking so politely with any of you! In fact, I'd like to find out where your true loyalties lie!"

"The Akatsuki had good results, and we didn't know at the time they were any different from the thousands of other mercenary teams," Onoki says, leaning back and harrumphing. "The villages were in a time of relative peace, and it made no sense to keep a large active army - but the way you kept militarizing was making people nervous, about what if another great war broke out... It's safer to employ mercenaries for some things, and to have contacts to supplement your own forces in the event of a conflict. It's bad, to risk untried forces in a new war."

A scowls. "I don't want to hear your excuses, Fence-Sitter!" And to the corner of the room including Gaara, Sasuke, and Danzo: "I don't believe Orochimaru was dissociated from Akatsuki - and Sand used him to try and destroy the Leaf. While both the Hokage and Kazekage at the time died, I can't help but believe it was someone's plot..." He glances briefly at Danzo as he says this.

Sasuke snorts. "You have an interesting view of events. I don't mind handing out access to Orochimaru's records, myself. He hated the Hokage of his own accord, and it can be said to have been his plot - the invasion was thoroughly his idea."

"It's hard to say if you, Rain, or Mist is the most suspicious," A retorts. "Mist has no diplomatic ties with other countries... Rain admits to being tied to the early Akatsuki... Sound is very thoroughly entangled, and stole away one of Mist's Tailed Beasts."

Mei leans forward, waving her hand dismissively. "Eh, the jinchuuriki were a mistake, and I'm more annoyed about the Swordsmen-candidates he seduced away. And, Sasuke, what do you say we open diplomatic ties - I want my swords back. In exchange, I'll write off my soldiers who joined you as honorably released from duty."

Sasuke nods. "That sounds reasonable."

She turns to A then, smiling. "See? We have plenty of diplomacy."

A makes an incoherent sound of rage.

The Raikage is the biggest and loudest person here. Among dragons, this would also mean he is the most powerful. For humans... Well. He certainly thinks he is the strongest. She stares at him.

"You remind me of a human king I knew once. His father had been weak, and so the tribe of forest trolls that neighbored the kingdom had grown bold, raiding their crops and villages as they pleased. When the king took his father's crown, he was determined that the forest trolls would trouble him no longer. He gathered his army and marched into the forest, and burned it to the ground, along with all the trolls who lived there. The next year, cousins of the trolls invaded his land by the sea, for the forest that had insulated him from the coast was gone, and he had no wood left with which to build ships. His kingdom was destroyed, and the trolls planted a new forest on the graves of he and his people."

"You brat - " the Raikage snarls, but is cut off by Mifune raising his hand.

"Enough," he says, and the Raikage relaxes with a grumble.

"We aren't here to argue," the Kazekage says, leaning forwards. "Nor to insult each other. We're all well aware of how dangerous the Akatsuki are. Even if the man leading them isn't Madara - that's a dangerous name, and speaks of confidence. Even if it's unearned, a reckless enough person could cause a lot of problems. And there's only two bijuu not held captive by them at this point; they're close enough to whatever goal they have that we can't let them continue." He pauses, looks around. "When the Akatsuki attacked us, only Leaf answered our call for aid. When the Akatsuki attacked the Leaf, only the Sand, the Sound, and an independent came. That can't be allowed to continue." He spreads his hands. "Surely you're all aware the villages were founded for a reason. Alliances to end the constant fighting. Clans stronger together than apart. Such a dramatic solution as a full merge isn't called for here, but we need to coordinate more than we are. All of us."

"Perhaps not a political merge," Mifune says. "But your villages would be benefited by combining your resources more than you do in mere alliances."

Konan frowns. "I'd be leery of giving up my village's independence... As I'm sure all of us would."

"Sorting out politics can be a problem for the future. Bickering over power balances won't help us, and treaties are barely worth anything anyways. I'd hand off all the power I've accumulated if it'd get people to stop being idiots about fighting, and my people's independence can always be regained. Power, ideals of government... They're temporary. The losses from war aren't."

"Point," Konan says, nodding. "Very well. I'll support the alliance, then - but Rain won't bow forever."

"None of us will," the Mizukage says, crossing her arms. "But it's not a bad idea. Still... We have centralized power for a reason, instead of a council of clan heads. Someone would have to sit at top, and Mifune doesn't strike me as interested."

"I'm not," the man says, voice a bit wry.

"You require someone who knows your went enemy, who is experienced in the ways of war, and who you can agree to defer to."

"All three? That's none of us," the Mizukage says, voice amused. "Knows the enemy... Is pretty much our two baby-faces, and Konan. Ways of war? Onoki and A have led their nations through war before. I've led insurgent forces, as has Konan. Danzo's stuck his fingers where they don't belong. Agree to follow? Most of us have too much bad blood."

"Would you accept my judgement, as the ultimate arbiter here?" Mifune asks, and after a pause there's a few slow nods.

He hums, and looks around, and there's a strange shift in the air barely felt -

Sasuke's sharingan flares to life and he spins, staring at Danzo.

"You - "

The odd feeling in the air shatters, and it's like there were mutterings they can just now hear. Mifune reels, clutching his head, and Sasuke leaps to his feet. "I would assume," he snarls, when the others start to react, "Using genjutsu counts as a hostile action here."

"Your accusation is absurd!" Danzo spits back, his guards moving to flank him. "I'm not the one here who has a family history of genjutsu mastery - nor a personal history of treachery."

Sasuke goes very, very still. "You know," he says, sharply. "I'm well aware of your bloodline theft. The sharingan doesn't need Uchiha blood to wield. And the most powerful of the abilities you stole - to entirely rewrite the mind of your target. At least, in Shisui's hands. Yours seems weaker."

"Baseless accusations and hyperbole - " Danzo begins, but the Mizukage leans forward and interrupts him.

"Why don't you show us what's under your bandage, then?" she asks mildly, "If it isn't a sharingan eye. This is easy enough to disprove."

Danzo seems more incensed by the suggestion than liable to go along with it.

"Isobu," she says to the bijuu next to her, "what does his chakra feel like?"

"Uhhhhhh lots of things. Kind of like an old human, and kind of like that Senju who caught us, and kind of like an Uchiha, and kind of like bits of other people..." Isobu mutters, but still is loud enough to be heard clearly.

"I wasn't going to push it, but Orochimaru did keep records of his dealings with you, Danzo," Sasuke says.

"Sounds like quite a bit of bloodline theft. Still, I'm inclined to leave that to his own people..." the Mizukage muses. "Not really my problem if the Leaf can't clean house."

"And you would believe that thing?" Danzo demands.

"That 'thing' is a Tailed Beast, a guardian of this world, charged so by your Sage of the Six Paths. And he has a name. It is Isobu. You owe him your respect."

Sasuke nods, crossing his arms and scowling, though Danzo humphs.

The Kazekage sighs. "Let's get this distraction over with. I agree that you should remove your bandages."

Mifune recovers himself, and says, "I won't tolerate a fight here - but whoever was responsible for that will be told to leave. And, Danzo, Sasuke wasn't the one looking at me."

Danzo scowls and stands. "I will remove myself, then, rather than subject myself to a child's whims."

Mifune nods. "Very well. My men will see you out."