Pakura cheered.
"Great!"
"I'm charging in first."
"Hopefully I can find that Minato Namikaze and kill him myself."
Chiyo instinctively felt that something was wrong.
But she could not pinpoint exactly what it was.
After thinking for a moment, she still voiced her concern.
"Isn't this a little too rushed?"
"The three of us are making this decision on the spot."
"There may be many factors we haven't properly considered."
The Fourth Kazekage smiled confidently.
"Senior Chiyo, don't worry."
"Before this, I already gathered all of our staff officers and had them formulate a detailed battle plan."
"Tomorrow's offensive is not improvised."
"The staff officers are unanimous."
"The faster we attack, the better."
"We absolutely cannot hesitate."
"Otherwise, once Konoha's reinforcements arrive, we'll end up locked in another long-term confrontation in the Land of Rivers."
"Sunagakure simply does not have the resources to compete with Konoha in a war of attrition."
Rasa's reasoning was completely sound.
Chiyo had no way to refute it.
She could hardly say—
My intuition feels uncomfortable, so we shouldn't attack.
Ultimately, Konoha was simply too strong while Sunagakure was too weak.
That left Suna strategically passive and forced them to seek a tactical advantage through offensive action.
And if they had already decided to attack, naturally the sooner the better.
Only then could they catch Konoha off guard.
In the end, Chiyo convinced herself and agreed with the offensive plan.
The entire Sunagakure camp immediately became busy with preparations.
Suna shinobi collected weapons, food, medicine, poison, and other combat supplies.
At the same time, they received their mission orders and clarified their individual combat objectives.
While everyone was running themselves ragged—
Black Zetsu quietly left the tent belonging to the Kazekage's staff officers.
He was extremely satisfied with his work.
Using intelligence and genjutsu, he had needed only six hours to make Sunagakure decide to launch an offensive.
That was Black Zetsu's ability.
A thousand years of hiding had made him accustomed to planting pieces in advance.
No matter which shinobi village it was, there were always shinobi he had secretly implanted with suggestions beforehand.
Normally, these hidden pieces served as Black Zetsu's intelligence sources.
Without even realizing it themselves, they leaked highly classified information to him.
With this internal intelligence, Black Zetsu could act with precision and make the omnipresent surveillance of White Zetsu achieve its greatest possible effectiveness.
Only by combining intelligence from both inside and outside could Black Zetsu maintain comprehensive surveillance over the shinobi world.
And at crucial moments—
By relying on an overwhelming intelligence advantage, then acting through these hidden pieces, Black Zetsu could indirectly alter a shinobi village's strategy and thereby influence the direction of a war.
After receiving Uchiha Madara's order, Black Zetsu immediately came to Sunagakure.
He located his hidden pieces and gave them a push that was neither too strong nor too weak.
The decisive battle that had already been on the verge of erupting—
Was detonated ahead of schedule.
Only a war of this scale could force a shinobi like Minato Namikaze into chaos.
Eventually, he would have no choice but to loosen his protection over his subordinates.
That would give Black Zetsu an opening.
Now—
The machinery of war was already roaring forward.
The waters had been thoroughly muddied.
It was time for him to prepare for the final harvest.
…
Minato Namikaze looked at the white-haired child in front of him in surprise.
So young—
Yet already a chūnin?
But why had he been assigned to Minato's squad?
Faced with Minato's question, the newly arrived ANBU shinobi seriously explained,
"A major battle is about to break out."
"Jōnin Namikaze is one of our critical combat forces."
"We need to free you from squad responsibilities as much as possible."
"That's why a chūnin has been specially assigned to serve as squad commander whenever you are absent."
Minato understood.
But his doubts did not disappear.
"I see."
"But this chūnin is far too young."
"Can he really command a squad?"
"Lord Minato Namikaze, this is Hatake Kakashi."
"Don't be fooled by his age."
"He is already an experienced chūnin."
"Commanding two genin will definitely not be a problem."
"He's Kakashi?"
"Lord Sakumo Hatake's son?"
"Yes."
"Then all right."
"Hatake Kakashi was personally chosen by the Fourth Hokage to serve as your deputy."
"You should also know that Kakashi and your two squad members were classmates at the Academy."
"It will be much easier for them to interact than it would be with a stranger."
"He should be able to integrate into the team very quickly."
Minato suddenly understood and nodded repeatedly.
"As expected of the Hokage."
"He really considered everything thoroughly."
"I'm very grateful."
Only after Minato led Kakashi away did the ANBU shinobi quietly breathe a sigh of relief.
Naturally, he had not lied.
But he had not told the whole truth either.
Orochimaru had specifically mentioned one thing in his instructions—
Hatake Kakashi was an absolute problem child.
He could not get along with any team.
Even when Kakashi himself acted as squad leader, problems still occurred constantly.
He simply could not interact properly with his teammates.
But Konoha could not abandon Hatake Kakashi.
Not only was he Sakumo Hatake's only son—
His current problem had also been created by the Third Hokage.
Because Sakumo Hatake had died after abandoning a mission and had then been questioned and slandered by the villagers, Kakashi had twisted himself into believing that missions were more important than everything else.
That was why he could not get along with anyone.
Orochimaru truly had no better solution.
He could only try sending Kakashi to Minato Namikaze's squad.
Perhaps this unusually assembled team could accommodate him.
Perhaps it could also grind down some of his sharp edges.
After all, Minato Namikaze's strength was extremely trustworthy.
More importantly, his personality possessed a warm, sunlike quality capable of influencing others.
He was probably the person most likely to heal Kakashi's emotional wounds.
Kakashi's arrival delighted Rin.
It made Uchiha Obito feel as though he were facing a mortal enemy.
Yes.
Obito liked Rin.
Rin liked Kakashi.
Kakashi was only interested in fighting and completing missions.
The three of them formed a classic non-circular love triangle.
Exactly like the protagonist team in the original history.
Not only did the squad fail to integrate—
It descended into complete chaos.
This kind of instinctive triangular romance was simply too powerful.
Even Minato Namikaze had no immediate solution.
He could only temporarily suppress them through authority and ensure the squad members did not actually start fighting one another.
The next day—
While Minato was still considering how to resolve the relationships within the team, a messenger hawk soared overhead.
It brought the warning of war.
Sunagakure had attacked.
As one of Konoha's top shinobi, Minato knew the overall battle plan.
He immediately understood that their next task was to retreat.
And not simply retreat.
They had to fight while withdrawing—
Drawing Sunagakure's army forward step by step until it entered the trap Konoha had meticulously prepared.
Minato murmured,
"The most critical defensive position is Surge Mountain."
"The most important counterattack point is South Gate Stone Bridge."
"I wonder who those two missions will be assigned to."
"Maybe the counterattack at South Gate Stone Bridge will be mine."
"If so, I won't have any way to keep watching over Obito and Rin."
"So I really do need a new squad leader."
"But…"
Minato looked at his three subordinates.
One was huffing angrily.
One had hearts practically blooming in her eyes.
And one looked openly impatient.
Minato couldn't help shaking his head.
"Can a squad like this really survive the bait withdrawal operation unharmed?"
But Minato could not prevent them from participating in the coming battle.
His current political position was awkward.
His influence was not enough to alter headquarters' decision.
And besides—
Both Uchiha Obito and Hatake Kakashi eagerly anticipated war.
They both wanted to distinguish themselves in battle and prove their worth through military achievements.
Only Rin did not want to participate.
Minato was beginning to regret things.
He wondered whether he had protected Obito too much.
Perhaps that had given the boy unrealistic expectations about war.
A boy whose strength was decent but whose personality was unreliable—
Who had not awakened the Sharingan—
Yet wore the conspicuous Uchiha clan crest—
What were his chances of surviving a large-scale battle like this?
It was genuinely difficult to say.
"From here on, they can only rely on their own fate."
Minato's prediction was accurate.
Before dawn, he received an order from headquarters.
He was temporarily removed from his squad and assigned to a special mission team formed with other jōnin.
After the main force retreated—
They would have to pass through countless Sunagakure shinobi.
Their objective was South Gate Stone Bridge.
The jōnin team had to capture and destroy this critical transportation node, severing Sunagakure's supply line.
Unlike individual shinobi squads, the consumption generated by a large-scale shinobi army was astonishing.
In a battle involving more than ten thousand shinobi—
A single engagement could consume tens of thousands of kunai.
The number of thrown shuriken could easily reach into the hundreds of thousands.
And that was after excluding weapons recovered from the battlefield and those taken from killed enemies.
If there was no opportunity to clean the battlefield afterward, the losses became even greater.
Beyond that—
Medicine.
Food.
Tents.
Even damaged clothing.
All of these were unavoidable consumables and critical to maintaining combat effectiveness.
There was no way individual shinobi could personally carry so many supplies.
Continuous logistical support from the rear was necessary to sustain prolonged fighting.
Thus, in large-scale shinobi warfare—
Logistics were extraordinarily important.
Simply destroying a critical supply route could throw Sunagakure into serious difficulty and rapidly weaken its combat power.
Naturally, Sunagakure shinobi were not idiots either.
They would heavily protect their key logistical nodes.
They might even deliberately set traps there to hunt elite Konoha shinobi.
The mission Minato had received was destined to be extremely dangerous.
That was why every participant was among Konoha's finest elites.
The team did not consist merely of former ANBU or Root shinobi.
When Minato saw his two temporary teammates—
He was nearly stunned speechless.
"Uchiha-senpai?"
"You came to the frontline too?"
Uchiha Fugaku looked somewhat haggard.
But after seeing Minato, he finally forced himself to brighten and smile.
"It's been a long time, Minato."
"How is Kushina?"
Minato scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
"She's doing fine."
"She's just been complaining that she wasn't allowed to come to the frontline."
"She says staying at home is too boring."
Fugaku nodded.
"That's good."
"Mikoto's restrictions were lifted recently."
"They can spend time together again."
"That should help Kushina feel less bored."
"You and Senior Mikoto were both released from restriction?"
"That's wonderful."
"Heh."
"A month has already passed."
"Uchiha Yoru is now an unquestioned clan head."
"He even dumps most administrative work on the other elders."
"Why would he bother restricting an outdated former clan head like me?"
"Senior Yoru is actually that magnanimous?"
"Heh."
"He's extraordinary."
"Whether in strength or intelligence, he surpasses me by far."
"I have no choice but to admit defeat."
"Minato."
"Don't worry."
"Hm?"
"You're the commander of this temporary squad."
"I won't interfere with your orders."
"Senior Fugaku…"
"Thank you."
With only a few sentences, the two clarified the most important matter—
The chain of command.
Minato immediately felt much more relieved.
Uchiha Fugaku was actually a highly renowned shinobi.
His strength ranked among the very best in Konoha.
There were even rumors that he possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
If so, he would be one of the strongest even among Kage-level shinobi.
With Fugaku joining the team, their combat strength was fully guaranteed.
Minato also did not need to worry about coordination.
Fugaku was one of the rare powerful shinobi capable of keeping up with Minato's rhythm and speed.
Uchiha Fugaku was considerably older than Minato.
He had made his name during the previous war.
He had even served as clan head of the Uchiha.
Although he had stepped down from that position in a somewhat embarrassing manner—
Minato's own political circumstances were not much better.
In terms of seniority, prestige, and reputation, Fugaku far surpassed Minato.
As squad commander, Minato could not help worrying whether his authority would actually be respected.
Now that Fugaku had given him an explicit promise—
He could finally relax.
What about his other teammate?
Only now did Minato notice that another shinobi was standing beside Fugaku.
He wore sunglasses and a high-collared coat.
He looked familiar.
Minato searched his memories for a moment before asking uncertainly,
"Uh…"
"Shi… Shibi?"
Aburame Shibi was so moved he nearly cried.
Someone had actually recognized him after such a long time—
And had even remembered his full name at first glance!
At that instant, Shibi's goodwill toward Minato Namikaze reached an unprecedented height.
He immediately bowed ninety degrees.
"It has been a long time, Senior Minato!"
"Please take care of me during this mission!"
"I will carry out your orders seriously!"
Minato was delighted.
"Good!"
"Excellent!"
"Shibi, we get to fight side by side again."
The Aburame were a special ninja clan.
Their number of shinobi was not large, and every active shinobi in the clan was male.
But every Aburame shinobi was an insect user.
By using the clan's secret kikaichū, they could perform combat, reconnaissance, tracking, surveillance, detoxification, treatment, and many other tasks.
They could be called the most versatile shinobi in the entire world.
With Aburame Shibi joining—
The temporary squad had no obvious weaknesses.
If one absolutely insisted on identifying a shortcoming—
They lacked a medical-nin.
But among Konoha's current medical-nin, only Tsunade had the ability to match this team and mission.
And needless to say—
As the face of Konoha's entire medical system, there was no way Tsunade could be assigned to a special squad for such a dangerous operation.
Minato looked at the two teammates in front of him.
After carefully considering things, he couldn't help praising Orochimaru internally.
The Fourth Hokage's thinking was extraordinarily clear.
His arrangements were meticulous.
Minato served as team leader.
Both assigned teammates possessed exceptional strength.
Both also had close personal relationships with him and were willing to obey his commands.
Minato could not imagine how much thought Orochimaru had invested in forming such a team.
With such powerful teammates—
Minato became highly confident that they could complete this dangerous mission.
…
Sunagakure's offensive was ferocious.
The Suna shinobi attacked like a sandstorm sweeping across the desert.
With an absolute numerical advantage, they spread their offensive across an enormous width.
Whenever they encountered Konoha shinobi, they attempted to surround them and crush them with overwhelming force.
Even though Konoha's defenders consisted largely of elite former ANBU and Root shinobi—
They were still forced backward step by step.
They simply could not hold.
Very quickly—
The planned bait withdrawal was transformed by Sunagakure's genuine overwhelming pressure into a completely disorganized rout.
The worst performers were the Root shinobi.
Because of intense brainwashing, they possessed extraordinary obedience and execution ability.
But they lacked adaptability.
Entire groups of Root shinobi were surrounded by Sunagakure forces.
Then encircled.
Then wiped out.
They fought with extraordinary bravery.
They inflicted heavy casualties on the Suna shinobi.
But strategically—
Their resistance contributed almost nothing positive to the battlefield.
When surrounded by ten times their number—
Even fearless Root shinobi ultimately failed to achieve a one-to-one casualty exchange.
Several shinobi who had been deliberately sent to observe the battlefield could not help sighing after witnessing the rout of Konoha's elite forces.
"The shinobi of the old era…"
"No matter how individually powerful they are, no matter how fearless of death…"
"If their discipline is insufficient and their coordination is practically nonexistent, they simply cannot shoulder the responsibility of large-scale warfare."
"That's right."
"Against an offensive involving tens of thousands of Sunagakure shinobi, even someone as strong as the Hokage cannot independently support the entire front."
"We'll have to see how the Snake Unit and Tiger Unit perform."
"The Snake Unit hasn't experienced a true battlefield test yet."
"But the Tiger Unit fought Kirigakure in a large-scale battle before."
"They killed three thousand enemies in a single engagement."
"I heard the Tiger Unit later fought Kirigakure again and caused several thousand more casualties."
"We'll see how they perform this time."
"If both units perform exceptionally well, the new four-four organizational structure will completely become the future trend."
"The Suna shinobi are getting close."
"We need to retreat too."
"Move!"
"Yes!"
…
Sunagakure's offensive progressed extremely smoothly.
Their shinobi advanced triumphantly.
In only one day—
They rapidly occupied the Land of Rivers.
Immediately afterward, Sunagakure's army entered the Land of Fire.
Again, it took only a single day for them to advance more than four hundred kilometers.
They had already stretched far away from their supply lines.
At this point, Orochimaru had personally arrived at the frontline.
He commanded Konoha's shinobi to continue retreating—
Drawing Sunagakure farther forward and stretching their logistical lines even longer.
The Suna offensive was finally halted on the fourth day.
At Surge Mountain.
There—
The Tiger Unit, which specialized in concentrated defensive warfare, finally revealed its sharp fangs.
When countless flames from the Phoenix Sage Fire Technique rose into the sky and crashed toward the Sunagakure shinobi like a torrential downpour—
They were completely stunned.
Their comrades clearly surrounded them.
Sunagakure clearly possessed far more shinobi.
And yet every Suna shinobi felt as though they were personally facing countless Uchiha alone.
Even Fourth Kazekage Rasa, Chiyo, Pakura, and the other elites could not avoid the illusion created by such perfectly organized attacks.
They all responded with their strongest techniques immediately.
Puppet Technique: Three Treasures Suction Crush!
Magnet Release: Gold Dust Wave Forest!
Scorch Release: Scorching Steam Blast!
It had to be admitted—
The destructive power of Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique was indeed limited.
Before the powerful ninjutsu of these Kage-level shinobi, it was insignificant and easily extinguished.
But even if three Kage-level shinobi used their full strength—
The area they could protect remained limited.
Countless Phoenix Sage Fire flames descended from the sky.
They covered Sunagakure's entire army.
The three Kage-level shinobi simply could not protect everyone.
However, their example restored the courage of the Suna shinobi.
They pulled themselves together and began counterattacking with their own ninjutsu and puppet techniques.
The techniques from both sides entered a stalemate.
With a force of only a little over seven hundred shinobi—
The Tiger Unit forcibly stopped the offensive of seventeen thousand Sunagakure shinobi.
They held the entire Suna army at Surge Mountain.
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