The murderous atmosphere instantly vanished.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, Utatane Koharu, and Homura Mitokado—all three turned sharply, their eyes wide in disbelief as they stared at the Anbu operative before them.
"How is this possible? How could the Hidden Mist Village declare war on Konoha?"
Not long ago, Hiruzen Sarutobi had confidently stated that the Hidden Mist would never declare war on the Leaf.
And yet, it had happened.
This slap in the face was deafening.
The Anbu continued, "The information is absolutely confirmed. Not only that, but the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, is personally leading a force of over four thousand Mist-nin. They've already crossed the great river and reached the border of the Land of Fire!"
"This…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes widened, disbelief written all over his face.
They had already reached the border—if they advanced any further, it would be Konoha itself.
"Ahem! Hiruzen, we still have other matters to attend to, so we'll be taking our leave!"
"Yes, yes! Our families require our attention as well, so we won't stay any longer!"
Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado spoke quickly and decisively.
Without another word, they turned and left.
What a joke—there was no way they intended to get dragged into a full-scale war.
Being peaceful, comfortable Konoha Elders suited them just fine.
"Those two cowards!"
Watching them walk away without hesitation, Hiruzen's expression darkened.
But he didn't stop them. After all, he had known them for decades.
Hiruzen Sarutobi understood their timid nature better than anyone.
He turned his attention back to the Anbu.
"How many ninja does Konoha still have available?"
"Reporting, Hokage-sama—only about a thousand!"
"..."
Hiruzen fell silent.
One thousand against four thousand… It would be strange if they could win.
Even he, the so-called Professor, had no confidence.
Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was sinking into helpless thought, the Uchiha clan head, Fugaku Uchiha, arrived.
"Hokage-sama, I've heard the Hidden Mist Village has declared war on Konoha!"
Fugaku spoke bluntly, without hesitation.
"Your Uchiha clan's intelligence network is quite impressive," Hiruzen remarked with a faint edge.
He had only just received the report himself—yet the Uchiha already knew.
That meant the Uchiha clan's intelligence network was at least as capable as the Hokage's own.
But Fugaku didn't catch—or simply ignored—the undertone in Hiruzen's words.
With a serious expression, he declared, "Hokage-sama, the Hidden Mist is advancing aggressively. The Uchiha clan is willing to face them under your command!"
"..."
You may want to fight, Hiruzen thought grimly, but I certainly don't want to lead you.
His title of "Ninja Hero" sounded good on paper, but his actual battle record told a different story.
During the First Shinobi World War, he had merely followed behind the Second Hokage.
During the Second and Third Wars, he had stayed within the village, issuing commands from afar.
The truth was simple—Hiruzen Sarutobi no longer had the courage of a Kage.
The idea of stepping back onto the battlefield filled him with dread.
...
Fugaku frowned slightly at Hiruzen's silence.
"Hokage-sama, the Hidden Mist has already reached the border of the Land of Fire. If we don't issue orders soon, Konoha itself will be next!"
Though war was dangerous, it was also a crucible—a place where strength was tempered and growth accelerated.
Especially for the Uchiha clan.
Having endured the flames of war before, their members grew sharper, stronger, and deadlier through conflict.
It was precisely because of that potential that Hiruzen had spent years suppressing the clan's involvement in major conflicts, deliberately limiting their military role.
But now, with a legitimate war at their doorstep, Fugaku refused to let the opportunity slip away.
"Alas…"
Hiruzen sighed heavily.
Fugaku assumed that the sigh came from frustration—that the Hokage could no longer suppress the Uchiha.
But only Hiruzen himself knew the truth.
He sighed out of helplessness. Because this time, he had no choice but to go to the front lines himself.
Thousands of ninja would be heading into battle—they needed a commander with authority and presence.
And since their opponent was none other than the Fourth Mizukage, there was no one else who could lead but him.
"Go and rally the forces. The Uchiha clan will also prepare for deployment."
He waved his hand weakly, signaling the order.
"Yes!"
Fugaku, visibly pleased with the command, bowed and departed immediately, eager to gather his clan's warriors.
...
Thus, news of the Hidden Mist declaring war on Konoha spread across the entire shinobi world.
Soon, everyone knew—Konoha was facing the impossible: one village standing alone against four.
They were already locked in battle with Sunagakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure, and now the Hidden Mist had joined the fray.
Even though Konoha was considered the foremost of the Five Great Ninja Villages, the world began to doubt whether even they could stand against all four at once.
"So… the Hidden Mist has declared war too?"
In a dim, cavernous underground chamber, Uchiha Madara sat upon his throne, listening as Black and White Zetsu delivered the news.
His eyes gleamed, the thoughts behind them unreadable.
"Yes. And this time, it's said that the one leading Konoha's defense is none other than the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen."
"The Sarutobi clan?" Madara sneered. "Hmph. A minor, insignificant clan."
When Madara and Hashirama had founded Konoha, the Sarutobi and Shimura clans had been small, almost irrelevant—barely worthy of mention.
Black Zetsu wasn't surprised by Madara's contempt.
He chuckled darkly. "This Hiruzen Sarutobi is hardly remarkable. But his teacher was the Second Hokage—Senju Tobirama."
"Crack!"
The armrest beneath Madara's hand splintered instantly.
"Senju Tobirama!"
Even after all these years, just hearing that name filled Madara's ancient eyes with fury.
Between Madara and Hashirama, there had once been respect—rivalry between equals, not hatred.
But with Tobirama, it was different. The hatred there was absolute.
Senju Tobirama had despised the Uchiha clan. And Uchiha Madara, in turn, had hated Tobirama.
After all, it was Tobirama's Flying Thunder God Slash that had taken Madara's younger brother's life.
"Wow! So scary! An angry Lord Madara really is terrifying—I feel like I'm going to die!"
Only White Zetsu dared to make a joke at a time like this.
Madara and Black Zetsu ignored him completely.
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