While Tsunade in the rear was still processing the shocking reports and urgently trying to decide what to do next, Jiraiya at the front lines received word of the disaster even earlier—the rear logistics unit responsible for supplies and security had been attacked.
Yamanaka Inoichi, who got the news first, immediately dispatched more personnel to investigate and provide support, then rushed straight to Jiraiya with the report.
"What did you say!? Something happened to Tokuma in the rear!? Are you certain!?"
Jiraiya shot up from his seat, his face showing rare shock as he stared at Inoichi.
"Yes, Lord Jiraiya. It's one hundred percent confirmed. From the initial investigation, it appears Orochimaru was responsible. The target was clearly the Hyuga clan's Byakugan—or rather, their bloodline. Because besides Tokuma himself, every single branch family member assigned to guard him has vanished without a trace. Not a single body was left behind."
Inoichi's expression was deadly serious.
The main branch of the Hyuga clan rarely left the village. But when the village needed them or they had personal matters to attend to, they would leave the Hidden Leaf—even the Land of Fire. They never traveled alone, however. They always brought a large escort. The branch family existed for exactly this purpose.
Whether it was Hyuga Tokuma who had followed Jiraiya to the front or the one stationed at the rear logistics base, both had been protected by more than a dozen branch members, each at least chunin level or higher.
This was the Hyuga clan's most direct method of safeguarding their kekkei genkai.
In fact, over the years, this system had successfully protected the main branch on countless occasions. The only Byakugan ever lost had been the one stolen by the Hidden Mist.
Today marked the second major breach.
And the attacker was once again Orochimaru.
"!?"
The moment Jiraiya heard that name, his expression changed as well.
"Lord Jiraiya!!"
At that exact moment, a loud, urgent voice rang out from outside the main command tent.
The next second, a tall man in white robes stepped inside. It was Hyuga Tokuma—the main branch member who had accompanied Jiraiya on this campaign.
Right now, the man's face was etched with anxiety and barely contained fury.
He bowed quickly to Jiraiya before blurting out, "Lord Jiraiya! I heard something happened to Tokuma!? Is it true!?"
The Hyuga clan was still the Leaf's largest and most powerful clan.
They also had their own private communication channels within the family.
The moment trouble hit Hyuga Tokuma, Hyuga Tokuma here had learned of it almost instantly.
As fellow main branch members—and close cousins—the two were tightly connected.
Naturally, Tokuma was deeply concerned.
"Calm down, Tokuma. I've already sent people to search immediately. We will do everything possible to rescue Tokuma and the rest of your clan members."
Jiraiya spoke in a steady, reassuring tone.
"Thank you, Lord Jiraiya. Please allow me to join the search team. I—"
Tokuma bowed again in gratitude and was about to insist on joining the rescue effort when—
"Tokuma, although we can't be one hundred percent certain yet, the attacker's goal was clearly the Hyuga clan's Byakugan. You are also a main branch member. You cannot leave the front lines right now. There's no telling whether these people are still targeting a second pair of eyes. I cannot allow you to act on your own. I've already made arrangements and sent word back to the village. You don't need to worry, Tokuma. The village will pour every resource into the rescue."
Jiraiya raised a hand, cutting Tokuma off. His expression was solemn.
This wasn't Jiraiya dodging the issue.
It was a very real danger he had to consider.
If Orochimaru decided one Byakugan wasn't enough, Tokuma's safety became a major problem. Until they knew the snake's true intentions—whether he simply wanted the Byakugan kekkei genkai or was coordinating with Menma—Jiraiya could not afford any more uncontrollable variables.
One main branch member and over a dozen branch members missing was already a huge incident. If another main branch member fell into enemy hands, Jiraiya would consider it his greatest failure.
There was another reason as well: the front lines still needed Tokuma. The Hyuga clan's Byakugan was one of their most vital assets in war.
Even though everything seemed quiet around Menma right now, what if this was all part of his plan? What if he waited until the front lines lost their most important "eyes" before launching a surprise attack?
That was an outcome Jiraiya refused to allow.
Even if Tokuma left and other Hyuga members took over, branch members could never match the main branch in capability.
"But…"
Tokuma's face flushed with urgency as he tried to speak again.
"Tokuma, you must trust me—and you must trust the village!"
Jiraiya's voice grew firmer, carrying the weight of an order.
"!?"
The clear command left no room for argument.
Tokuma's face stiffened. After several shifts of color, he finally lowered his head in defeat.
"…Understood, Lord Jiraiya."
He bowed once more, then turned and left the tent without another word.
Watching Tokuma's retreating back, Jiraiya rubbed his temples, feeling a massive headache coming on.
"Inoichi, I'm leaving the follow-up to you. Especially keep a close eye on the Hidden Waterfall. We cannot afford any more surprises."
Jiraiya spoke with grave emphasis.
"Yes, Lord Jiraiya. You can count on me!"
Inoichi bowed deeply in response.
Menma… Orochimaru… exactly what are you two planning?
Jiraiya frowned deeply, his thoughts heavy.
The sudden appearance of the serpent. The rising new waves. The situation was growing more unpredictable by the hour.
This so-called Fourth Great Ninja War—now involving all Five Great Villages to varying degrees—had entered an even more chaotic and murky phase.
Because from the current state of affairs…
Only the Hidden Mist had completely given up on continuing the war. While they issued no public declaration of withdrawal, the fact that every surviving Mist shinobi had pulled back into the Land of Water spoke louder than any announcement.
This was already a clear sign of weakness from a major village.
It was easy to predict that after this retreat, the Mist would find it extremely difficult to return anytime soon. Through this battle, the entire ninja world would clearly see how fragile the Hidden Mist had become. Losing that many shinobi in a single war, only to swallow their pride and retreat—combined with the slowly spreading news that both the Three-Tails and Six-Tails were now lost—the Mist's status as one of the Five Great Nations had become dangerously shaky.
Withdrawing from the war had been their only choice.
But only the Mist had done so.
In the north, the Hidden Stone and Hidden Cloud were still locked in fierce combat. The Stone had committed nearly half its main forces and had already pushed deep into Lightning Country territory.
All the territories the Cloud had once dominated were now firmly under Stone control.
The Stone ninja were now launching their fiercest assault yet on the Cloud's largest stronghold along the western border. Once that point fell, every region they had seized would become permanent Stone territory—from the Land of Frost in the north to parts of the Land of Rice Fields and Land of Hot Water in the south.
The Cloud's sphere of influence would shrink dramatically.
This was the strategic goal Onoki had pursued for years.
And it was a territory the Fourth Raikage could never afford to lose.
The moment he learned the Stone had intensified their offensive, the Raikage—still not fully recovered from his injuries—personally led another elite Cloud force to the front lines.
Even during the most difficult period after his father's death, he had never lost this rich region.
He refused to abandon it now.
A village's long-term strength was directly tied to the size of the territory it controlled.
Losing this area would cost the Cloud a massive share of missions and resources—an already fatal blow. Even worse, it was a vital strategic chokepoint. If it fell, the Cloud would live under constant threat from the Stone forever.
It would be like having a sword of Damocles hanging over their heads.
The Fourth Raikage could never accept that.
Therefore, he had resolved to fight to the bitter end.
The war between the two villages grew even bloodier.
The surrounding nations—the Land of Hot Water, Land of Frost, Land of Rice Fields, and even the permanently neutral Land of Iron in the far north—were all caught in the storm, constantly fearing that the fighting between the two superpowers would spill over into their borders.
In truth, during every major war between the Great Villages, the smaller nations suffered the most. They were forced to provide manpower and resources, and every conflict brought massive destruction to the battle zones.
Countless innocent civilians lost their homes and families.
This was exactly the suffering Nagato had described to Naruto in the original story—the pain the Great Nations inflicted on the smaller ones.
Yet these smaller nations could only endure it in silence.
The warring Great Villages cared nothing for their feelings.
The Hidden Stone and Hidden Cloud only had eyes for each other.
In the southern region, both the Hidden Leaf and Hidden Sand had pulled their main forces back to relatively neutral zones. It wasn't a true end to the war.
The Sand, at least, had fully withdrawn under Baki's orders.
But the Leaf…
Continued to engage in small-scale clashes with the Waterfall from time to time. As long as Tsunade had not issued a full retreat order, the war would continue. In the three previous Great Ninja Wars, nine-tenths of the fighting had consisted of exactly these kinds of localized skirmishes.
They were probes, surprise attacks, and the result of sheer unwillingness to accept defeat.
The Leaf was trying to stall for time, hoping the enemy would grow impatient and reveal an opening.
That was exactly the mindset the Hidden Leaf held right now.
But how long this could last was a very big question. Ninja wars consumed enormous amounts of supplies.
In most cases, the host nation bore the majority of the logistical burden, with the village covering the rest.
Even the wealthy Land of Fire could not sustain this indefinitely.
Not to mention the long-standing tensions between the nation and the village. The internal conflict among the Twelve Guardian Ninja that had once occurred in the Land of Fire might be unknown to ordinary people, but it was no secret among the upper echelons of the various nations.
Therefore, in any war, the Leaf had to consider far more factors than the other villages.
But that was the Leaf's problem.
Menma didn't care in the slightest.
If the Leaf wanted to continue the war, he would oblige them. If they wanted to drag it into a stalemate, that was fine too. As long as it didn't turn into a total collapse, the defending side would always face far less pressure than the attackers.
The truth was that Menma now had the luxury to think about other matters and begin planning his next special arrangements.
The Waterfall's calm, rock-steady posture left the Leaf in an extremely painful position. They could find no opening to exploit. A direct assault? They hadn't been able to pull it off even with the Mist providing support and the Sand pinning down the Grass. Doing it alone now was completely impossible.
This wasn't a simple one-on-one fight. The Leaf had far too many things to worry about.
Not to mention the terrifying strength Menma had displayed.
Even Jiraiya felt it would be difficult to act.
They couldn't exactly go for a mutual suicide tactic, could they? Only someone completely insane would make that kind of decision.
This was the result of completely losing control of the war's momentum.
The two sides remained locked in a tense standoff along the front lines for another half a month.
Then came the news from the northern battlefield: the Stone had officially defeated the Cloud's main forces and captured the Mount Tsumuji stronghold.
In the Hidden Leaf Village, after long deliberation and with the advice of Nara Shikaku—who had only recently recovered enough to return to work—Tsunade finally issued the order.
She reluctantly commanded the Leaf army at the front to withdraw.
In truth, even without the order, continuing the war would have been nothing but a pointless drain on resources. The Sand had already pulled its main force back deep into Wind Country territory under Baki's command, leaving only basic garrison troops at the border.
The Grass could reinforce their lines at any moment.
While their shinobi weren't particularly elite, numbers alone could still overwhelm.
Even Danzo strongly opposed the decision, but this time both Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu supported Tsunade's judgment.
And so…
With the thousands of Leaf shinobi at the front withdrawing under Jiraiya's command and returning to the Hidden Leaf…
This so-called Fourth Great Ninja War—which had lasted just over a month—officially came to an end.