Qingshui patted Rasa on the shoulder and continued to comfort him:
"Connecting your forearm to a prosthetic Puppet limb that can receive simulated biological signals, even if the hand signs aren't as effective as before, will at least ensure a stable normal life. Once we find another solution, or if your soul can be retrieved, I'll use the Creation Rebirth Technique to restore your hands.
If we can put enough Chakra metal into the Puppet to replace the meridians within the prosthetic limb for Chakra circulation, your strength could recover by at least seventy to eighty percent. So, you don't need to worry too much for now."
Hearing that he could recover seventy to eighty percent of his strength, Rasa felt a little better.
That would at least allow him to retain Kage-level strength, so the drop wouldn't be too significant.
Even if it required expensive Chakra metal, Rasa didn't have much else, but he had plenty of money, and sand gold was abundant!
The unfortunate part was that Rasa's hands were currently sealed, and his strength was largely diminished. Before he could get a Puppet prosthetic limb with Chakra metal, he was no longer suitable to return to the battlefield.
"Seal off all information regarding Rasa's hands being sealed. All other details of this battle will be made public. Also, send a message to Ebizo-sensei, requesting him to quickly dispatch a group of personnel to assist us in occupying the rear.
Even Ninja Academy students in higher grades are fine; it'll be good training for them. The main force will continue to advance. Konoha suffered a major defeat this time and won't be able to organize large-scale resistance again in a short period. We can take this opportunity to bring all of western Land of Fire under our control."
Qingshui looked at the bodies of Hiruzen Sarutobi and other strong Konoha ninja being collected by the Sealing Squad and instructed Pakura.
The losses to the five thousand main troops were not significant. With their ninja abilities, they could advance directly now. Perhaps they could even carve out a portion of the Konoha ninja taken by Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
"The Third Hokage is dead. Konoha Village, what will you do this time?"
...
...
"What should we do now, Orochimaru?"
In a secluded forest, Jiraiya leaned dejectedly against a rock, looking at his most trusted companion with hopeful eyes.
From childhood, Orochimaru had always been the smartest and most talented among them. His analysis of situations and the choices he made, in hindsight, were always the most reasonable.
Even though Jiraiya could now overpower Orochimaru after activating Sage Mode, he still deferred to Orochimaru.
Because Jiraiya was inherently someone who didn't want to be a leader or bear responsibility.
Orochimaru looked at the bonfire burning in front of him, poking the flames with a dry branch in his hand. His narrow eyes were deep in thought. The firelight reflected on the face of the next Hokage, personally designated by the Third Hokage before his death, subtly revealing a hint of sorrow.
He was not yet the person from the original timeline who had already decided to sever all ties and ruthlessly pursue eternal life and truth.
No matter how much he was transformed or how rational he became, the current Orochimaru was still a human at his core, not a snake.
The bond between the Sannin and the Third Hokage had been cultivated since their childhood. Hiruzen Sarutobi had not done anything to betray Orochimaru or cause him dissatisfaction up to this point.
Now, before his death, the Third Hokage had stayed behind to cover their retreat and even passed the title of Hokage to Orochimaru.
This made it impossible for Orochimaru to sever this bond even if he wanted to in the future.
"Jiraiya, I need your help. I need your full help."
After a long silence, Orochimaru threw the dry branch into the fire. His sharp, snake-like eyes looked seriously at Jiraiya.
"We're good brothers. As long as you need me, I'll risk my life to help you, just like when you pretended to be a bad guy to help me pursue Tsunade when we were kids. Didn't you risk your life then too?"
Jiraiya forced a smile and gave Orochimaru a thumbs-up.
A few black lines appeared on Orochimaru's forehead.
How was he supposed to know then that pretending to be a bad guy and helping Jiraiya act out a damsel-in-distress scenario from a storybook would almost cost him his life, nearly getting him smashed by Tsunade's monstrous strength?
"Not just you, but also those you can help me unite: Tsunade, the elder advisors, all the Jonin in the village, and your disciple Minato and his Jinchuriki girlfriend. I need your assistance in winning them over."
At this point, Orochimaru paused.
"Just like when the Second Hokage died, a young Hiruzen-sensei relied on Danzō and other classmates to stabilize his position as Hokage. He united all the forces in the village that could be united, and that's how they won the First Great Ninja War."
Sand Village was indeed strong, but Konoha was not yet at a point of despair.
The Third Hokage had died, but the Sannin and several other older generation powerhouses were still alive. The younger generation's Minato Namikaze had also matured. With so many strong individuals, Konoha could still be defended.
But these forces needed to be united.
And Jiraiya was very important at this time.
Now that the Third Hokage was dead, Jiraiya, who could enter Sage Mode, was Konoha's strongest individual combatant. Many future matters would revolve around him.
And to gain Tsunade's support, with the Third Hokage dead and Konoha in peril, if Jiraiya stood by his side, Tsunade's stance would also be easily swayed.
Minato Namikaze, as Jiraiya's disciple, would certainly follow Jiraiya's lead. Furthermore, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was Minato Namikaze's girlfriend, and the Jinchuriki's attitude would often play a crucial role.
In other words, as long as Jiraiya firmly supported him, more than half of Konoha's high-level combat power would be united.
As for the remaining old-timers, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura could be won over with effort. Danzō was the one Orochimaru was most uneasy about, but with the overall situation settled and enough to suppress Danzō, coupled with Konoha genuinely being in its most critical moment, Danzō, no matter how unwise, wouldn't instigate internal conflict at this time.
With these cards in hand, and with some more planning and operations, Orochimaru believed that with his abilities, even if defeating Qingshui's Sand Hidden was difficult, he had some confidence in defending Konoha.
"I believe in you, Orochimaru! I will also work hard to convince the others in the village!"
Jiraiya said with a firm tone.
...
...
News of the Third Hokage's death quickly spread.
With so many Sand Hidden ninja as witnesses, the news disseminated rapidly.
The Ninja World was shaken to its core.
How many years had it been since a Kage died in battle?
The last time was when the Second Mizukage and the Second Tsuchikage perished together during the Second Great Ninja War. Before that, you'd have to go back to the First Great Ninja War, when the Second Raikage and the Second Hokage died one after another during Gold Horn and Silver Horn's rebellion.
Now, less than a year into the Third Great Ninja War, another Kage had fallen!
Hiruzen Sarutobi was the first of the Third Kage of the Five Great Ninja Villages to die in battle.
"That monkey died?"
Onoki, sitting in the Tsuchikage's office, was reading the latest intelligence report and felt a headache coming on.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, how could you be so useless?!
The death of the Third Hokage was a huge blow to Konoha, and it would also affect Stone Hidden, who were allied with Konoha.
Simply put, Konoha's weakening meant that Stone Hidden would have to bear greater pressure.
While inwardly cursing Hiruzen Sarutobi's uselessness, Onoki immersed himself in the intelligence report, beginning to read it carefully.
"What the hell! He single-handedly fought against Hiruzen Sarutobi and two of the Sannin, Jiraiya and Orochimaru? And three thousand Konoha elites?"
Onoki sat up straight and re-read it, confirming he hadn't misread.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was an old rival of his; their strengths were evenly matched, making it hard to say who was superior.
If Sand Hidden had the power to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi, they might also have a way to kill him.
"To preserve their main force, he voluntarily stayed behind and ultimately died at the hands of the Sand Hidden army and Separation Release Qingshui, Scorch Release Pakura, and Magnet Release Rasa—the three Sand Hidden Kekkei Genkai ninja? That old monkey truly did something similar to his teacher."
Onoki read the report over and over several times, finally arriving at two conclusions.
Given Konoha's current strength, they would likely not be able to defeat Sand Hidden, unless other variables emerged.
However, Konoha had a deep foundation, and Orochimaru was a man of great wisdom. If Konoha went all-out in a defensive retreat, Sand Hidden would have a hard time breaking them.
Both sides still had a fight ahead, but Sand Hidden would definitely be the dominant force.
The other conclusion was that Qingshui's strength had already surpassed that of their current Five Kage; he was not someone a single Kage could contend with alone.
"This kid's strength shouldn't have reached the level of Uchiha Madara back then. But even after this year ends, he'll only be sixteen, and he still has several years to grow. There's no guarantee he won't reach Madara's level."
This guy must be eliminated!
If another Uchiha Madara appeared, this time, there wouldn't be a second First Hokage to stop him!
Then all the other ninja villages would suffer!
Although this guy was already incredibly strong, so strong that even Konoha, a dominant force in the Ninja World, couldn't eliminate him even after sacrificing a Hokage, it was precisely for this reason that an alliance was needed!
They still needed to figure out how to deal with him if he appeared on the battlefield against Stone Hidden.
...
"Dad, according to what you and Dodai-uncle said earlier, shouldn't we ally with Sand Hidden this time and seize Konoha's territory?"
Inside Cloud Hidden Village, Fourth Raikage A put down his dumbbells and asked the Third Raikage.
The Third Raikage was silent for a few seconds before speaking:
"Sand Hidden Village is a bit too strong, stronger than we anticipated. If we help them, Konoha will indeed be defeated, and we would certainly gain a lot, but if Sand Hidden grows any stronger, it might cause future trouble. What we gain now, we might have to return with interest later."
"Then what do we do..."
"Hmph, Sand Hidden Village must be suppressed and guarded against, but I also want Konoha's benefits. If I give up such a good opportunity to profit from a disaster, your father won't be able to sleep at night. Oh, by the way, how is Killer B doing now?"
"He and the Eight-Tails have become friends. He has the potential to become a perfect Jinchuriki. He's still training on Turtle Island and should be out soon."
When speaking of his younger brother Killer B, Fourth Raikage A's rugged face broke into a hearty smile.
"My Lightning Release Chakra Mode has also reached mastery. Even with Flying Thunder God, I'm confident I can keep up within a certain range. Then, when the new A-B duo teams up, even if we encounter Separation Release Qingshui from Sand Hidden Village again, we..."
"You won't win."
The Third Raikage interrupted his son.
"I know, but we definitely won't be as miserable as Orochimaru and them. If Killer B becomes a perfect Jinchuriki, his Tailed Beast Mode will have strong offense and resilience. In a direct confrontation, he might not be worse than you, Dad.
Even if that guy broke Konoha's Flying Thunder God, my speed is enough to keep up and tie him down until Killer B comes to support. In terms of ability, Killer B and I are more suited to deal with that guy than anyone else."
Fourth Raikage A clenched his fists, confidently.
He believed that once Killer B finished his training and could control full Tailed Beast Mode, even if they couldn't defeat Qingshui, their combined unique abilities would allow them to contend with him, even if defeating him was difficult.
The death of the Third Hokage was sensational news in the Ninja World. All factions would investigate deeply and consequently understand the details of the event, realizing just how exaggerated Qingshui's power was.
Everyone was thinking about how their own ninja village would deal with such an enemy.
Except for Mist Hidden.
Not because they were allies of Sand Hidden, but because they had just suffered a crushing defeat.
Fourth Mizukage Yagura calmly looked at the two bodies covered in white cloths and the remaining members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, all of whom were heavily wounded.
"Forgive me, Fourth Lord, we didn't anticipate that Uchiha Fugaku would actually..."
"Say no more."
Yagura waved his hand, his voice cold.
"I already know what happened."
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen lowered their heads even further.
"Expedite the selection of new users for the Twin Swords Hiramekarei and the Longsword: Nuibari. Our war with Konoha isn't over yet. Sand Village has already eliminated the Third Hokage, easing the pressure on us, so we can't let them outdo us.
You still have a chance to redeem yourselves. Take the bodies and leave. Don't disappoint me."
"Yes!"
The five Ninja Swordsmen collectively carried out their two comrades, who had been killed by Uchiha Fugaku, and closed the door.
Only after sensing that the Ninja Swordsmen had gone far did Yagura turn around, press a mechanism on the table, and open a secret passage behind the wall, descending all the way.
In a spacious underground cave chamber, the hunched figure of Uchiha Madara leaned against a hard cot, numerous tubes connected to his body, leading directly to the Gedo Statue.
At this moment, he appeared much older than two years prior, looking as if he could expire at any moment, sustained entirely by the Gedo Statue.
"Lord Madara, I presume your plan has been executed perfectly?"
A squirming lump of black mud crawled out from Yagura, its voice hoarse.
"The plan has changed. Uchiha Fugaku did activate his Mangekyo Sharingan according to our scheme, but his ties to Konoha Village haven't been severed. He still has a wife and children in Konoha.
So, we had to activate the backup plan."
Uchiha Madara opened his eyes and said.
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