The Land of Wind is vast, ranking first among the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Even a Kage-level powerhouse like Ebizō had to travel all night to return to Sunagakure.
Sunagakure, Kazekage's Office.
Currently, due to the disappearance of the Third Kazekage, Chiyo was temporarily handling the war preparations in his place.
Looking at the panting, exhausted Ebizō in front of her, Chiyo frowned and asked, "Did something happen on the front lines? Why have you, the commander-in-chief, returned, and where is Monzaemon?"
"Senior Monzaemon is dead, and even the Monzaemon's Five Puppets have been destroyed."
Seeing Ebizō's expression, Chiyo had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, upon hearing Ebizō's words, she stood up abruptly, her face filled with murderous intent.
"Monzaemon is dead? And the Five Puppets are destroyed? Was it Hiruzen Sarutobi or Sakumo Hatake? Did they come to the battlefield without fear of leaving Konoha defenseless?"
Sunagakure is not like Konoha, with only a handful of Kage-level powerhouses.
The war hadn't even officially started, and they had already lost a Kage-level fighter, and her senior at that. Chiyo's mood couldn't be good. Moreover, the secret technique Monzaemon's Five Puppets was a treasure of the puppet lineage in the village, as important as a Kage-level powerhouse.
Ebizō's face was grim, and after a moment, he spoke with difficulty:
"It wasn't Hiruzen Sarutobi, nor Sakumo Hatake. According to intelligence, it was likely Mitarashi Shishio's nephew, Mitarashi Kai, a disciple of Sakumo Hatake, and only seven years old."
Being killed by a seven-year-old would be an eternal shame for Sunagakure, regardless of whether they won the war. Ebizō's expression was unpleasant.
"Are you sure!?"
Ebizō nodded.
"Sakumo Hatake's disciple!" Chiyo gritted her teeth.
Her hatred for Sakumo Hatake ran deep; he had killed her son and daughter-in-law, causing her beloved grandson to defect from Sunagakure.
Because of this, Chiyo had pointed the blame for the Third Kazekage's disappearance at Konoha, intending to wage war for revenge.
"Attack! I will personally go to the front line and kill that brat!"
Chiyo was hot-tempered and could not tolerate such humiliation to the sand shinobi.
Hearing Chiyo's words, Ebizō quickly said, "Sister, we can't. If we start a full-scale war now, even if we win, Sunagakure will be severely weakened, and other villages will take advantage."
"What should we do then?" Chiyo asked, displeased.
Ebizō quickly responded, "We've formed a defensive alliance with the Iwagakure. They promised to send reinforcements once they declare war on Konoha. Then, we can strike with full force and minimize our losses."
Chiyo knew that war couldn't be waged recklessly. She suppressed her anger and said, "Tell Ōnoki to hurry up and declare war on Konoha."
"Understood."
Ebizō sighed in relief, nodding. He knew his sister's fiery temper well, and it wasn't easy for her to hold back her anger.
...
Both the First and Second Shinobi World Wars lasted for several years, indicating that such wars couldn't end in a day or two.
It had been half a year since Kai had killed Monzaemon.
In that time, the battle in the Land of Rivers had become increasingly intense.
A small skirmish broke out every three days.
Due to Monzaemon's death, to maintain high-level combat power, Sunagakure had even sent Bunpuku, the jinchūriki of the One-Tail Shukaku.
This old monk had a good relationship with Shukaku and could perfectly control its power. Although Shukaku ranked last among the Tailed Beasts in terms of strength, in the desert-like environment of the Land of Rivers, Shukaku's power could be fully unleashed, compensating for the loss caused by Monzaemon's death.
After half a year of fighting, Kai's strength had significantly improved.
His chakra level had steadily reached that of an elite jōnin, and with various powerful jutsu, he was not afraid to face Kage-level opponents like Ebizō and Bunpuku.
Land of Rivers, Konoha Camp.
Kai sensed that the situation seemed peculiar recently, as if the sand shinobi were plotting something big. If even Kai noticed this, then Shikaku Nara, the brain of Konoha, certainly did as well.
"Shikaku, has there been any movement from Sunagakure recently?"
After reading the latest battle report, Tsunade frowned and asked Shikaku.
Shikaku Nara shook his head, "No movement at all. Everything is too normal, and in war, normalcy is the greatest abnormality. The best response now is to increase the number of ninja troops in the Land of Rivers."
"Impossible. Iwagakure has already declared war on the village, and Kumogakure has incited Kirigakure to deploy troops at the borders of the Land of Fire, ready to declare war on Konoha at any moment. The village can't send any more ninja troops. Damn it!"
Saying this, Tsunade slammed her fist on the table, shattering it into countless pieces.
Kai, standing by, looked at the scattered wood chips, his mouth twitching. How many times had this happened? There probably weren't many tables left in the entire Konoha camp.
"Shikaku, increase patrols, and Kai, assist Shikaku in the operations." Tsunade glanced at Kai and ordered.
"Understood."
Kai nodded in agreement, just about to ask Shikaku how to proceed when he suddenly froze.
A message flooded into Kai's mind:
"Congratulations to the host for reaching a certain level of strength. The Ultimate Profession System's mission module is now activated."
"First mission issued: Defeat the joint attack of sand and stone shinobi within three days. Mission reward: One jutsu fusion scroll. Mission failure: The mission module will be permanently closed."
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