Chapter 108: Caution, The Battle Begins
Having received this information, the bored Kushina immediately dragged Ling Yu out of the wooden house and followed Tsunade to watch the excitement.
"Ling Yu, are those the Sand ninja reinforcements coming to help Konoha? I somehow feel like those people don't have any goodwill toward us."
Watching the Third Kazekage and others smiling and talking with Hiruzen Sarutobi, Kushina felt something strange in her heart. She frowned and spoke softly to Ling Yu.
"Oh? Is that so."
Ling Yu sounded a little surprised.
He had absolutely no doubt about Kushina's judgment. After all, she now possessed the ability to sense good and evil. If she could feel malice from them, it meant the Sand ninja's support this time carried some unknown scheme.
"Alright, you go back first. See if Mikoto has finished cooking. I'll go take a look."
After thinking for a moment, Ling Yu coaxed Kushina back.
Then he opened his Rinnegan and fixed his gaze on Bunpuku's eyes. With a shift of his mind, he entered the One-Tail Shukaku's Tailed Beast space.
In the dark prison, the One-Tail Shukaku was quietly lying inside with its eyes closed, resting. The intimidating presence of fifty to sixty meters it once had was long gone. After Ling Yu absorbed half its chakra, it was now only a little over thirty meters tall.
"Shukaku, how's the task I gave you coming along?"
Floating in front of Shukaku, Ling Yu punched it flying and asked with an evil grin.
"L-Ling Yu! Why are you here?!"
Shukaku had been sleeping peacefully when it was suddenly blasted away by external force. It was genuinely startled. It hurriedly scrambled up from the ground and looked at him warily.
"How can I not come? I told you to collect information on the other tailed beasts for me. How's it going?"
Using Space Power, Ling Yu instantly appeared in front of Shukaku again and asked once more.
"I… I've been paying attention the whole time. A few kilometers in the direction of the Land of Rain, I can sense the chakra of the Three-Tails, Five-Tails, and Eight-Tails. Less than three hundred meters from here, there's also the Nine-Tails' chakra."
Facing Ling Yu, Shukaku didn't dare hide anything and immediately told him everything it knew.
"They actually sent the Three-Tails, Five-Tails, and Eight-Tails… and hid them so deeply that even Konoha's scouts didn't notice. Looks like Hanzō and the others came prepared."
A strange light flashed in Ling Yu's eyes. After getting the information he wanted, his mind withdrew from the Tailed Beast space.
"Moreover, the Sand ninja harbor deep malice toward Konoha. We need to be careful—they might stab us in the back. Just to be safe, I should warn big sister and the others first."
Back in reality, Ling Yu quietly shared his analysis with Tsunade, Kushina, and the other girls, telling them to be cautious of the Sand ninja during battle.
Although Tsunade and the others were puzzled, they still followed Ling Yu's advice and decided to hold back some strength when fighting—keeping an eye on the Sand ninja.
One night passed like this.
The next day, just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was still feeling pleased about the Sand ninja's reinforcements—
The allied forces of the Land of Lightning, Land of Earth, and Land of Rain also received the news. After discussion, seeing that the Sand ninja were now in position, they decided not to drag things out any longer. They began gathering all their forces and prepared to launch an immediate attack.
"Lord Third Hokage! The enemy camp has started moving! Nearly fifteen thousand ninja are heading straight toward us!"
A Konoha ninja rushed into the meeting room, interrupting Hiruzen Sarutobi's conversation with the Third Kazekage.
"What?! So fast? Looks like they know they can't afford to wait any longer."
Hiruzen Sarutobi shot to his feet. The smile on his face instantly froze. His expression turned grave.
"Quick! Assemble the troops immediately. Notify every ninja—prepare for battle!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi had originally planned to let the Sand ninja and Konoha forces coordinate and discuss several strategies before launching an attack. He never expected the enemy to strike first.
"Lord Third Hokage, since the enemy has already begun their assault, the Hidden Sand Village will also fight with everything we have to help Konoha win this battle."
The Third Kazekage—who had received the same news—stood up as well. He gave Hiruzen Sarutobi a reassuring look, then turned and issued orders to the Sand ninja behind him.
In a corner no one noticed, the corner of his mouth curved into a sinister smile. Hidden inside his sleeve, his hand silently formed a seal.
After several minutes, the combined forces of Konoha and the Sand ninja finally finished assembling. In total, eight thousand ninja—three thousand from Sand and five thousand from Konoha.
Although the combined Konoha–Sand ninja numbered only half of the enemy army, the number of Kage-level powerhouses was roughly equal. Moreover, they had Senju Ling Yu—an ultra-Kage-level fighter who could take on three opponents at once. Hiruzen Sarutobi was very confident in winning this war.
…
On the battlefield at the border of the Land of Fire
The ninja of Konoha Village and the Hidden Sand stood with the Land of Fire at their backs. Opposite them, the ninja of the Hidden Rain, Hidden Cloud, and Hidden Stone stood with the Land of Rain behind them. Both sides faced each other in confrontation.
Once both armies were fully assembled, the entire battlefield was filled with a thick smell of gunpowder. Even before combat began, their auras had already clashed. A sudden gale swept across the ground, kicking up clouds of sand and dust and giving the battlefield a solemn atmosphere.
"You three nations have allied to invade the border of the Land of Fire. As the Third Hokage of Konoha Village in the Land of Fire, I will uphold peace in the ninja world and do everything in my power to defeat you."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood side by side with the Third Kazekage. Flanking them were Tsunade, Chiyo, and a group of Kage-level powerhouses. He opened by loudly condemning the enemy forces.
With Senju Ling Yu as their trump card and the Sand ninja's support, Hiruzen Sarutobi was currently brimming with confidence.
"Hahahaha! Uphold peace in the ninja world? Konoha is the very spark that ignites conflict. As long as we eliminate Konoha, the ninja world can finally achieve true peace."
Ōnoki laughed instead of getting angry. He floated out from the front of the Stone ninja ranks and pointed at Hiruzen Sarutobi with a sneer.
Ever since the founding of the great ninja villages, Konoha had always stood alone in its own league—not just because it was backed by the resource-rich Land of Fire, but also because of Hashirama Senju and Uchiha Madara, the two strongest ninja in the world.
The other four great nations had only maintained superficial peace in the ninja world because they feared Konoha's power. Behind the scenes, they had pulled countless dirty tricks.
This was evident from the very first ninja war that erupted immediately after Hashirama Senju's death and Uchiha Madara's supposed "death," when Konoha's strength was weakened.
And after the Second Hokage died on the battlefield, Konoha's power declined again. The other nations breathed a sigh of relief—now that the power balance among the great nations was roughly even, the pressure had lessened.
But now Konoha had produced another ninja who could use Wood Release—Senju Ling Yu. If he were allowed to grow, Konoha would once again become an unbeatable force among the four great nations. Such an outcome was absolutely unacceptable to the other nations.
"Hmph! Konoha occupies too many resources and keeps growing stronger. For the sake of balancing power among the nations, the Land of Fire must be sacrificed."
Hanzō stood atop his summoned salamander and spoke toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Hmph! Enough talk. Let's begin. Cloud ninja—full assault! Crush them!"
The Third Raikage snorted coldly. Lightning-attribute chakra surged wildly over his body, instantly forming a Lightning Release Armor around him. Sparks of electricity danced across the armor.
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