Konoha Village, Main Gate.
A weary, somewhat bedraggled procession slowly passed through the massive wooden gate.
The core of the procession was not Konoha's Ninjas, but a luxuriously decorated, four-horse-drawn noble carriage.
Surrounding the carriage, Konoha's Ninjas in green flak jackets and Root's Ninjas in tight-fitting outfits with animal masks were mixed together, forming a tight protective circle, but the atmosphere was unusually oppressive and low.
The carriage curtain was abruptly pulled aside, revealing the sharp, angular face of a middle-aged man, distorted with anger and anxiety.
He wore the ornate robes symbolizing the Land of Wind's Daimyo, but the robes were now stained with dust, and his hair was disheveled. This was the fleeing Land of Wind's Daimyo, Masaki Sato.
He chattered incessantly at the mounted guard outside the window, his voice sharp and grating:
"Worthless! All worthless! I spend so much gold, silver, and grain every year to support tens of thousands of mouths in Sunagakure, two thousand Ninjas! And the result?! Not even seven days! They couldn't hold out for seven days! They were completely wiped out by that Land of Stars that came out of nowhere! That idiot Rasa! And that old hag Chiyo! They've utterly disgraced the Five Great Nations!"
His complaints had not ceased throughout the journey. Since entering the Land of Fire and confirming their safety, this pampered Daimyo seemed to have transformed all his fear and post-traumatic stress into endless, chattering anger and blame, thoroughly annoying the Konoha's Ninjas assigned to guard him, who had no choice but to bear it.
Walking alongside the carriage were two men.
One was Shimura Danzo, leaning on his cane, his single eye slightly narrowed, expressionless as if he didn't hear the Daimyo's complaints. But the sinister, cold aura he exuded made those near him uncomfortable.
The other was the masked Hatake Kakashi. The one visible eye looked listless, but upon closer inspection, one could detect deep fatigue and helplessness hidden within.
At the rear of the procession, Guy sidled up to Kakashi and spoke in a low voice, an unusual look of annoyance on his face. "Kakashi, just how long is this Daimyo-sama going to keep complaining? The whole way, he's either complaining about the poor accommodations, the food not suiting his taste, or even demanding we find him hot springs to bathe in... We're on a protection mission, not a sightseeing tour serving a noble lord!"
Nearby, Tenzo, wearing his Anbu mask, vigilantly scanned the surroundings. His team and Danzo's Root's Ninjas appeared to be jointly guarding, but in reality, they were distinct, maintaining a subtle distance and wariness between them.
Danzo seemed deaf to the Daimyo's words, even occasionally turning his head to placate Sato inside the carriage: "Daimyo-sama, please calm your anger. The journey has been tiring, and preserving your health is most important. Once we reach Konoha Village, everything will improve."
His tone was flat, lacking sincerity, more like completing a necessary procedure.
Danzo's heart was cold. This Daimyo, who had lost his country and army, his greatest value now was probably the gold, silver, and valuables he carried with him.
But in a panicked flight, how much could he have taken?
Within a few years, with his resources depleted and his tax revenue gone, the Land of Fire's Daimyo and greedy nobles would have plenty of ways to squeeze this down-and-out relative dry.
Finally, the procession arrived at the luxury guest house arranged for the Land of Wind's Daimyo's party.
Sato was helped down from the carriage by his servants, still cursing, declaring he would immediately go to see the Land of Fire's Daimyo to 'demand Konoha send its most elite forces to utterly exterminate those damned Star Ninja and reclaim my land!'.
Danzo watched him enter the guest house expressionlessly before slowly turning to Kakashi. "Captain Kakashi, accompany me to the Hokage's office to report on the mission. This operation needs to be explained in detail to the Third Hokage."
Kakashi nodded. "Yes, Danzo-sama."
He turned and gave orders to his subordinates. "Tenzo, lead the Anbu Team to assist with the guest house's security, ensuring the safety of the Land of Wind's Daimyo's party. Guy, lead the other team members to escort the wounded to the hospital for proper treatment."
"Yes!" Yamato and Guy responded in unison, the latter giving a thumbs-up and flashing a gleaming white-toothed smile. "Leave it to me!"
This support mission could be described as a complete failure.
When they urgently rushed to the Land of Wind's Sunagakure, they received the devastating news that Sunagakure's main force was completely wiped out and the Kazekage captured.
Following that came the Star Ninja Army that had invaded Sunagakure!
Facing the Land of Stars' surging, unstoppable Ninja Army, Danzo and Kakashi were powerless to turn the tide.
They could only decisively choose to retreat and, during their withdrawal from the Land of Wind, rescued the fleeing Land of Wind's Daimyo and some of his family and close associates, escorting them back to Konoha.
Personnel losses weren't severe, but morale suffered a heavy blow.
Inside the Hokage's office.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, sat behind his large desk, his pipe emitting tendrils of smoke.
The Hokage's Advisors, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu sat on either side, their faces equally gloomy.
Danzo and Kakashi stood in the center of the office, separately reporting the mission's details and their observations.
From the shocking news of defeat received upon arriving at Sunagakure, to encountering the Land of Stars' main force led by Hizashi invading Sunagakure, the brief skirmish, their fighting retreat, encountering the fleeing Land of Wind's Daimyo, and their observations escorting the Daimyo back.
After listening to the report, Hiruzen let out a long exhale of smoke, his voice carrying heavy fatigue. "The decision to retreat was correct. The situation at that time was indeed beyond salvage. Forcibly intervening would only have dragged Konoha into the quagmire of war."
He picked up an encrypted document from his desk and handed it to Danzo. "This is the latest intelligence just received. Regarding the Land of Earth... they were also defeated. The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki has personally gone to the Star City and signed an armistice agreement. The Land of Earth ceded vast territories of five eastern provinces and made huge concessions politically, economically, militarily... Essentially, they have been reduced to a vassal state of the Land of Stars."
"What?! That old fox Onoki too..." Danzo took the document and skimmed it quickly, a flash of incredible horror in his single eye.
'That old, cunning, stubborn-as-stone Onoki had been forced to sign such a humiliating treaty?!'
'Just how terrifying was the Land of Stars' strength?!'
Koharu added in a sharp voice, "After annexing the Land of Wind, the Land of Stars's strength and territory have greatly expanded. Now they've forced the Land of Earth to submit... Their rise is already unstoppable! We must quickly devise a counter-strategy, otherwise the entire Ninja World's balance will be completely shattered!"
Homura adjusted his glasses, analyzing calmly, "But the current external environment is not favorable for us. The Land of Lightning's Kumogakure is far in the northeast of the Ninja Continent, too distant from the Land of Stars. The Land of Water's Kirigakure has been isolationist since the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura took office. Their Bloody Mist policy has caused internal chaos, so they can't be relied upon. To unite other great nations to contain the Land of Stars, we lack sufficient opportunity and a common interest foundation."
"Unless... we can find a trigger, like in the last Great Ninja War, to ignite the entire Ninja World's conflicts and plunge the situation back into chaos."
Hiruzen's brow furrowed even deeper.
The Land of Stars' strength lay not only in its military power but also in its dangerous and seductive [Will of Star], which was fundamentally different from the traditional great nation model.
Its ideology of overthrowing nobles, equally sharing resources, and relying on technology and institutional development had a fatal attraction for the long-oppressed commoners and lower-ranking Ninja.
This was what truly shook the ruling foundations of the great nations!
"First, properly settle the Land of Wind's Daimyo's party and quickly communicate with the Land of Fire's Daimyo's residence to sound out their attitude," Hiruzen finally instructed. "Koharu, Homura, please focus on this matter. Danzo, your Root must continue strengthening intelligence infiltration into the Land of Stars. I need to know more about their internal structure, technological sources, and the true intelligence about that 'Shura'."
"Yes." The three responded in unison.
Danzo, Koharu, and Homura left the office first.
As Danzo passed Kakashi, his single eye gave him a meaningful glance.
Inside the office, only Hiruzen and Kakashi remained.
The atmosphere became even more subtle and grave.
Hiruzen put down his pipe, leaned forward slightly, and looked sharply at Kakashi, lowering his voice to ask, "Kakashi, regarding that secret mission I previously assigned you... the investigation into the 'Ten-Tails' and that anomalous 'Nine-Tails' appearing in the Sea of Death... any progress?"
Kakashi stiffened and replied respectfully, "Yes, Third Hokage-sama. Based on intelligence our spies embedded within Sunagakure risked their lives to send back, combined with information obtained from some fleeing Sunagakure's Ninjas, we can basically confirm that the direct trigger for the war between Sunagakure and the Land of Stars was the Fourth Kazekage Rasa's discovery deep within the Sea of Death of a suspected 'Nine-Tails' and a 'Ten-Tails' with abnormally massive size and Chakra."
"Rasa attempted to capture them but was intercepted and attacked by Shura. The One-Tail's Jinchuriki was also taken by the other side, leading to full-scale war."
He paused, taking several specially processed, somewhat blurry black and white photos from his pocket.
"Due to the harsh environment of the Sea of Death and the great distance, we couldn't dispatch a team for deep reconnaissance. These are images taken by Sunagakure's Anbu during their initial scouting from a long distance. They are the most direct evidence currently available."
Hiruzen solemnly took the photos and brought them close to examine carefully.
The shooting distance was extremely far, the images coarse and full of noise, but two suffocatingly huge outlines were still discernible!
One of the monsters was so huge it was unimaginable, estimated to be over five hundred meters tall!
It crouched in the sea of sand, its form blurry and indistinct, but faintly visible were ten massive, serpent-like tails writhing wildly in the air, emanating a sense of savagery that made one's soul tremble!
'Was that the legendary Ten-Tails?!'
The other figure, though relatively 'smaller', was still about a hundred meters tall, its form clearly recognizable!
It was distinctly a ferocious demon fox!
Nine massive tails burned and swayed like flames behind it!
Its oppressive feeling made one's heart palpitate even through the blurry photos!
But the size and Chakra quantity of this Ten-Tails far exceeded any record Hiruzen knew of!
In the background of the photos, Sunagakure's Ninja forces could be seen, tiny as ants, further highlighting the horror of these two Tailed Beasts!
Kakashi added, "According to intelligence, the Fourth Kazekage Rasa used the One-Tail's Jinchuriki to try to resist, but was utterly defeated. The One-Tail was taken, Ebizo and others were killed in battle, leading to the subsequent war."
Hiruzen's face was gloomy. He slowly put down the photos and looked deeply at Kakashi. "Kakashi, there's something you should know. The Nine-Tails... has always been sealed inside Naruto."
Kakashi nodded. "Yes."
As the Fourth Hokage's student, former Anbu Captain, and current Anbu Commander, Kakashi naturally knew Naruto's true situation.
Hiruzen's voice became even lower. "But there's another point, known to very few."
"When the Fourth Hokage sealed the Nine-Tails, he didn't seal the complete Nine-Tails into Naruto. Using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, he split the Nine-Tails' Chakra in two. Half was sealed within himself, consumed along with the caster by the Shinigami, while the other half was sealed inside the newborn Naruto. So, the Nine-Tails inside Naruto is actually only half."
Kakashi's heart jumped violently, instantly understanding Hiruzen's implication. "You mean... the Nine-Tails in this photo... is very likely..."
"Yes." Hiruzen nodded heavily, stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the peaceful, harmonious Konoha Village.
"There has been no unusual reaction from the Nine-Tails inside Naruto. Then, the only explanation is... the Land of Stars' Shura, through some method, obtained the half of the Nine-Tails that belonged to Minato, which was sealed within the Shinigami! As for that 'Ten-Tails'... I've searched through the Book of Seals and all ancient texts but found no definite record. Its very existence is a massive mystery."
He turned and stared at Kakashi. "What makes me most uneasy is that Shura seems to have extraordinary understanding of our Konoha. How did he find the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, and how did he break such an ultimate sealing technique? What exactly is his goal?"
A deathly silence fell over the office.
After a moment, Hiruzen seemed to make a decision. He walked up to Kakashi, his expression extremely grave. "Kakashi, I have an extremely important and dangerous mission that requires you to personally complete."
Kakashi went down on one knee. "Please give your orders, Hokage-sama."
"According to reliable intelligence, the Land of Stars is vigorously promoting a completely new education system within their country, even opening the path to becoming a Ninja to ordinary commoners. The core of their education is an ideology called the [Will of Star]." Hiruzen's voice was lowered to a whisper, as if afraid someone might overhear.
"I want you to secretly infiltrate the Land of Stars. Spare no effort, obtain the teaching materials they use, especially the core materials regarding [Will of Star], and absolutely bring them back! We need to understand exactly what kind of ideals they are instilling in the next generation!"
Kakashi looked up and responded in a firm voice:
"Yes! I will complete the mission!"