In the blink of an eye, several more months passed. The ninja from the various villages had been mobilized, and a preliminary agreement had been reached with the Akatsuki. Whatever their ultimate goals were, the Seireitei had to be dealt with first.
The Seireitei had sealed its borders again several months prior, focusing all its efforts on training the Hollows and Shinigami within to increase their immediate combat strength as much as possible.
In the Pure Land, Naruto was still in seclusion, his control over Ryujin Jakka becoming more and more proficient. In terms of destructive power, a casual strike from his Zanpakuto could now achieve the effect of a Shinra Tensei. A full-power strike could completely overwhelm a Super Shinra Tensei. However, using Ryujin Jakka at full power consumed a great deal of energy, so it had to be used judiciously.
Konoha.
The horns of war against the Seireitei had sounded. All the ninja were assembled, preparing to march. No clan was exempt; everyone had to go to the battlefield.
"Get ready. It's war. We don't even know if we'll make it back alive," Ino said, patting Sakura's hand.
"Why does there have to be a war? We could all just live in peace," Sakura said, her face full of sorrow.
From Naruto to Sasuke, and finally to Kakashi, Team 7 was now nothing but a memory. And yet, she still held onto the hope that Naruto had some hidden reason for his actions, that the misunderstanding might be cleared up later.
Unlike the naive Sakura, Hinata Hyuga's expression was calm, a white cloth wrapped around her face.
"So, it's war? Good. It's time to test these eyes," she murmured, gently touching the cloth over her eyes.
The ninja from the various villages began to gather, marching in a great host towards the Seireitei. There were ninja from Konoha, Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and even from the smaller nations. It was hard to imagine that these villages, which were usually at each other's throats, ready to tear each other apart, would ever gather together so peacefully.
Their forehead protectors no longer bore their village symbols, but a unified "Shinobi" character.
Within the Konoha contingent of the Allied Shinobi Forces, the Akatsuki members were filled with a sense of irony.
"To think the first time the ninja villages unite is because of the Seireitei, yeah," Deidara said. "The thought of proving the art of explosions in front of so many people makes me tremble with excitement, hmm."
"I hope this battle will put an end to everything. Still, I never thought I'd be fighting alongside Itachi-san again," Kisame said, smiling at Itachi. Although Kisame looked fierce, he was truly loyal to his partners. Even though Itachi had returned to Konoha, in Kisame's heart, he was still his partner.
Nagato and Konan were also in the ranks, with a new Six Paths of Pain surrounding Nagato. He was emaciated, his face pale, looking as if he could die at any moment. To annihilate the Seireitei, he had even brought his real body.
"This must be the first time the entire shinobi world has been so united," Konan remarked.
"When a common enemy appears, they unite. But when that enemy is gone, the shinobi world will return to its former state of conflict," Nagato's voice was cold. "Once the Seireitei, the obstacle to the Akatsuki's plans, is destroyed, we can implement the Tailed Beast capture plan and make the entire shinobi world know pain."
Inside the Seireitei, the various powerhouses had been waiting. Watching the vast allied army approach, everyone's expression was grim.
"Shinobi forehead protectors... so this is the Allied Shinobi Forces? It's rare to see everyone so united, but they are our enemies," Minato said with a relaxed smile.
"They've formed an alliance simply because they're afraid of the Seireitei," Orochimaru licked his lips, a twisted smile on his face. "This is a good chance to test my Zanpakuto."
"Konoha..." Sakumo muttered to himself, his expression complicated. A few months ago, persuaded by Kakashi, he had become a member of the Seireitei and had decided to help change this sick shinobi world. But the thought of fighting his former home still filled him with a bit of sadness.
"I hope there are a few guys worth cutting down," Zabuza said coldly.
Several Adjuchas followed behind, their faces also cold. Compared to Shinigami, Hollows were clearly more brutal. In their world, there was only cutting and being cut.
Click, clack, clack. Suddenly, the strange sound of clicking joints was heard, and a bizarre, puppet-like creature walked up to the group.
No one was surprised. Instead, they just complained, "Is this another one of Neri's new inventions? It looks a little creepy."
"Orochimaru, can't you just give her the position of Head of the Research Bureau? These little monsters she creates are affecting my life," Minato asked, looking at Orochimaru with a dark expression. Since Minato lived next door to Neri, he could hear strange noises from her room every night. Little bugs would crawl around from time to time, and his house was starting to feel like a haunted house. This was all because Neri wanted to snatch the position from Orochimaru, so even her own room had been converted into a laboratory.
Orochimaru, however, refused to take the blame. He threw up his hands and said helplessly, "I'm definitely not giving up this position. That little girl Neri has a lot of potential. You'll just have to put up with it."
The group chatted and laughed, as if they weren't concerned about the coming war at all.
Soon, the Allied Shinobi Forces and the forces of the Seireitei stood facing each other.
"Lee! Have you fallen so low?" Might Guy roared, glaring at Rock Lee.
"Fallen?" Rock Lee had shed his former immaturity, his expression calm. "I have simply seen through the true nature of this world."
"Kakashi, Minato, White Fang?" Tsunade stared at the Seireitei's ranks in shock, her eyes filled with sorrow. "White Fang, have you also chosen to stand against Konoha?"
She remembered that when the Sannin had just made their name, the White Fang was already famous. At that time, all the great villages feared him. For the ninja of Konoha, seeing their former comrades become rogue ninja was a huge blow.
What made the Allied Shinobi Forces even more wary were the several humanoid Hollows who seemed to be on equal footing with Minato and the others. And further back was an army of Shinigami in their Shihakusho. The number of Hollows and Shinigami in the Seireitei exceeded their expectations.
"This is trouble. It seems our opponents are not simple," Nagato's gaze turned colder as he saw that the Seireitei had so many Kage-level fighters.
"Where is Uzumaki Naruto?" Tsunade, the leader of the allied forces, stepped forward and demanded.
"To deal with small fry like you, Lord Naruto doesn't need to lift a finger," Haku said with a smile.
It seems Uzumaki Naruto is unable to act for the time being. This is the best time to take down the Seireitei.
The Five Kage exchanged a look, joy visible in their eyes.
"Then let the war begin!" The entire Allied Shinobi Forces erupted.