The vast desert of the Land of Wind.
Rasa, Michikawa, and Pakura, all dressed in green ninja uniforms, rushed through the desert.
Under Rasa's explanation, the two of them had finally understood the preparations that Rasa had made for this victory.
Pakura couldn't help but express his feelings.
"No wonder you even called Karura to participate in the meeting. So, you had already planned to use that spy, Nono Yakushi, all along?"
Michikawa also praised.
"I didn't expect that spy Nono could be used in this way. No wonder Kazekage-sama wanted to keep her around."
"Yes, spies are a double-edged sword. From the moment we learned about her identity, she has already become our weapon against Konoha."
Michikawa nodded in agreement.
"That means, at least for now, we don't have to worry about Konoha taking advantage of us."
Pakura thought for a moment before speaking.
"But what if Konoha doesn't believe it? They also have their own intelligence channels in Kirigakure."
Rasa's answer was simple.
"That's not important. We don't need Konoha to believe that Kirigakure will help us. As long as they suspect it, that's enough. Also, we aren't lying. The Mizukage really did send his close confidants to Sunagakure."
Seeing that Rasa had even managed to use this, Michikawa couldn't help but sigh.
"If the Mizukage knew that his little cleverness was being used by you, Kazekage-sama, he'd probably get so angry it'd give him a stroke."
"That's not our problem. But, if Konoha can pass this information on to Iwagakure and Kumogakure, the situation will be even more advantageous for us."
At that moment, sensing something, Rasa stopped in his tracks. From the rocks in the desert, a small white snake emerged, speaking human language.
"Rasa-sama, the positions of Iwagakure's ninja have been confirmed..."
---
Rasa's guess was not wrong.
After Jiraiya urgently relayed Minato's deductions to the village, Konoha's higher-ups immediately recognized the seriousness of the situation and suspected that Sunagakure and Kirigakure had indeed formed an alliance.
Kirigakure, in the past, had been willing to destroy the Uzumaki clan for the sealing techniques. Now, it was very likely they would ally with Sunagakure for the same purpose.
No wonder Sunagakure remained so calm in the face of the alliance between Kumogakure and Iwagakure. If Kirigakure secretly assisted them, Kumogakure and Iwagakure could indeed suffer a great loss.
This quickly extinguished the thoughts of some people in Konoha who had hoped to take advantage of the situation.
And as the leader of ROOT, Danzo also did not disappoint Rasa's expectations. Upon receiving the information, he immediately passed it on to Iwagakure and Kumogakure through ROOT.
Danzo, who clearly hated the Fourth Kazekage more than Konoha's casualties, had lost his Sharingan and arm to him, as well as his path to further study the Sharingan and the First Hokage's powers.
Iwagakure and Kumogakure quickly received the "unexpected" information.
The higher-ups of both sides were stunned. Because from their perspective, the alliance between Sunagakure and Kirigakure was the only explanation for Sunagakure's calm demeanor.
After analyzing the current battle situation, both Iwagakure and Kumogakure made changes.
Among them, Kumogakure reacted the most. Their forces were at risk of facing a direct threat from Kirigakure's ninja, so Kumogakure immediately issued an order for their forces stationed in the Land of Rivers to retreat. This was to avoid being caught between the forces of Kirigakure arriving by sea and Sunagakure coming from the Land of Wind. The naval ninja forces slowed their pace accordingly.
Iwagakure, on the other hand, did not react as strongly. This was because Iwagakure's two lines of attack against Sunagakure were in the smaller countries inland, far from Kirigakure's reach. Even if Kirigakure had intentions of launching an attack, they would not be able to reach them in time.
However, to be safe, Ōnoki still had his Anbu relay this information.
---
As time passed, the situation in the ninja world grew even more unpredictable.
After a day of long travel, Iwagakure's army of 6,000 ninja, led by two Jinchūriki, finally reached the border between the Land of Birds and the Land of Wind.
They did not rush forward but chose to rest, waiting for reports from their vanguard.
Before long, three ninja appeared.
"Report, Roshi-sama, Han-sama, we've already scouted ahead. There are no Sunagakure ninja in sight."
This made the leader, the Four-Tails Jinchūriki Roshi, frown deeply.
Although he had already received word from the village that Sunagakure had mobilized all its forces, including the elderly One-Tails Jinchūriki, to move toward the Land of Rivers, the lack of enemy presence made their situation somewhat awkward.
Theoretically, entering the Land of Wind and attacking Sunagakure while its forces were thin would have been the best choice. However, the harsh desert environment—issues like water shortages, getting lost, sandstorms, and the dangers of prolonged battle lines—could easily lead to them being caught in a pincer attack.
This was probably why Sunagakure felt secure enough not to set up defenses here.
At this moment, Han, the Five-Tails Jinchūriki wearing armor and a conical hat, asked the question on his mind.
"What should we do now, Senpai? Should we camp here, or push forward into the Land of Wind?"
Although Han had an additional tail compared to the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Roshi was older and had been a Jinchūriki for longer. Roshi belonged to the same generation as Ōnoki, so it was not inappropriate for Han to address him as "Senpai."
"Not so fast."
Roshi said, then turned to the vanguard squad.
"Are you sure? Not even one?"
"Hai."
One of the three, a sensory ninja, confidently replied.
"Roshi-sama, I haven't detected any chakra signatures within my range."
This was highly suspicious.
Roshi looked ahead at the vast desert, feeling as though it was like a pocket waiting for Iwagakure's ninja to step into it. The unease in his heart led him to give the order.
"Scout again, several times if necessary."
"Yes."
After the three ninja left, Roshi turned to Han and explained.
"We're carrying the lives of over 6,000 of our village's ninja. It's crucial that we proceed cautiously. Let's confirm everything first before making a decision."
Han nodded seriously upon hearing this.
At that moment, an Anbu ninja appeared beside Roshi, handing him a scroll.
"Roshi-sama, this is intelligence from the village."
Roshi took the scroll and, after a brief glance, his expression shifted in surprise.
"I see. No wonder the Kazekage is so bold. He's actually formed an alliance with Kirigakure?"
This news seemed to ease Roshi's unease.
Roshi handed the scroll to Han, who after reading it, understood what Sunagakure was planning and asked.
"Roshi-senpai, what should we do now?"
Roshi furrowed his brows, thinking for a moment, and then made his decision.
"To delay the battlefield and drag it to a more favorable position for the enemy would be foolish."
"So what should we do?"
"Advance along the Land of Wind's border toward the Land of Rivers and rendezvous with the forces entering the Land of Rain. Meanwhile, we'll launch a pincer attack on Sunagakure's forces from both the front and the rear..."
Just as he made his decision, a rumbling sound echoed from the ground.
"What's going on?!"
Iwagakure's ninja quickly located the source of the noise.
"What... What is that?!"
From the far distance, towering sand dunes hundreds of meters high loomed, sweeping toward Iwagakure's forces like a wall of sand.