Spies were an unavoidable presence in every major ninja village.
Compared to enemies on the front lines, they were hated far more—because their work was always about stabbing people in the back.
And when spies were captured, what awaited them was invariably the worst kind of treatment imaginable.
No matter how much one resented them, however, it was impossible to completely eliminate spies.
Thus, while every nation enforced strict counterintelligence screening, they also adopted a more "effective" defensive strategy—
Planting even more spies inside enemy territory.
After all, the best defense was offense.
If you stabbed me once, I had to stab you twice. Otherwise, how could things possibly be balanced?
Did Iwagakure have spies inside Kumogakure?
Of course it did. How could it not?
That being the case, Iwagakure's preparations for war against Kumogakure couldn't possibly have gone completely unnoticed. Even if Cloud spies couldn't obtain detailed plans, they certainly weren't blind.
What no one had anticipated was just how far the Third Tsuchikage was willing to go.
Iwagakure had practically mobilized everything.
Ten thousand ninja moving together.
Hagoromo's first reaction was simple—
My mission might be doomed.
With forces of this scale, Kumogakure couldn't possibly ignore it. Once both sides fully mobilized, the battlefield could easily exceed fifteen thousand combatants.
Even by Naruto's standards, this was a top-tier war. Conflicts larger than this were exceedingly rare.
To respond to such an invasion, Kumogakure would need to deploy at least five thousand ninja.
Using half that number to counter the full force would already be terrifyingly bold. As for Jiraiya's earlier judgment—that Kumo would send only elite units—
That now seemed impossible.
Hagoromo's second realization was even more unsettling.
With Iwagakure deploying troops on this scale, their internal defenses would be dangerously hollowed out.
That meant the Third Tsuchikage was likely remaining in the village, not heading to the battlefield himself.
In other words, Ōnoki was not commanding this war in person.
So who was?
Was it really Kitsuchi?
Hagoromo didn't know.
Logically speaking, as an army grew in size, its movement speed should slow dramatically.
But that simply didn't apply here.
Iwagakure's forces advanced like a raging gale.
They departed from Iwagakure at dawn and reached the Land of Waterfalls within just two days—
Faster than many ninja could travel alone.
At this scale, they didn't need to worry about ambushes.
Whatever lay in their path, they would simply roll over it.
After all—
Who exactly was capable of ambushing ten thousand ninja?
Certainly not the small nations bordering the Land of Earth.
In fact, when the Stone army reached the Land of Waterfalls, the country was immediately terrified into silence.
Fortunately, Iwagakure ignored them entirely.
On the third day, they passed through the Land of Frost.
On the fourth day, crossing by sea, they finally set foot on the Land of Lightning.
The speed of the advance was nothing short of thunderous.
If Kumogakure received the intelligence too late—or underestimated Iwa's marching speed—many of their defensive preparations would be rendered useless.
As for traveling by sea, that choice was unavoidable.
A land invasion would have forced Iwagakure through the Land of Rice Fields, where Konoha and Kumogakure's front lines were tightly interwoven.
That would have turned the campaign into a three-way bloodbath.
Iwagakure's objective was to strike Kumogakure's soft underbelly—
Not to have all three sides smash each other into pulp.
Almost simultaneously, Kumogakure and Jiraiya received the same piece of intelligence—
Information that sounded absurd, yet was completely true:
Ten thousand Stone ninja had invaded the Land of Lightning.
Jiraiya was stunned.
Are you insane?! Did you clear this with your parents?
Then—
Six Paths Sage, please protect Hagoromo.
Name-sharing counted as fate, after all.
Regardless, Konoha had no choice but to act according to the prearranged strategy—
To create favorable conditions for Iwagakure's advance.
As a result, Konoha's entire front line also mobilized.
Hagoromo remained within his assigned unit, advancing alongside the main force.
Yet after entering the Land of Lightning, Iwagakure encountered almost no resistance.
After crossing the sea, they rested briefly on the coast, replenished supplies, and immediately resumed their advance—
Charging straight toward Kumogakure.
But where was Kumo's resistance?
Why was there nothing?
Hagoromo's original mission parameters were clear:
If the Raikage did not personally lead the interception, Kumo's forces might fail to stop the invasion. Once the battlefield tilted decisively in Iwagakure's favor, Hagoromo could disengage on his own. Mission complete.
If the Third Raikage appeared, then the mission became simpler—
Assassinate the Raikage.
That made Hagoromo an assassin.
A killer.
A shinobi in the truest sense.
Even if the mission hadn't demanded it, he would have chosen assassination anyway.
A frontal clash with the Raikage?
No thanks.
He wasn't a battle maniac.
But assassination was merely a means, not the goal.
The real objective was to break the balance of the war.
Simply put—
If Iwagakure wanted to storm the Land of Lightning and strike at Kumogakure's core, then let them do it.
Whether they succeeded or not didn't matter.
As long as they reached Kumogakure itself—
Could Kumo really continue fighting the war afterward?
Just imagine thousands upon thousands of Stone ninja pouring into the Hidden Cloud Village.
The war would be effectively over.
But now, with Iwagakure going all-in like this, Hagoromo realized—
Things were no longer going to unfold according to Konoha's expectations.
Plans could never keep up with reality.
Fine.
He'd start thinking about how to escape instead.
Then—
He was wrong.
Completely wrong.
Four hours later, the Stone army finally encountered Kumogakure's interception force.
It was a "force."
Even though it consisted of only one man.
In hindsight, calling it a force was not an exaggeration.
The lightning-shaped scar across his chest.
The 雷 character tattooed on his right shoulder.
The stable, impregnable Lightning Release Chakra Mode—
And the unstable arcs of lightning dancing around his body, flashing intermittently.
No explanation was needed.
Everyone knew who stood before them.
The Third Raikage — A.
The Stone formation stretched for miles.
Trash-tier ninja like Yoshida were nowhere near the vanguard; they had been placed far to the rear.
So even when combat erupted ahead, Hagoromo couldn't immediately see what was happening.
But intelligence quickly reached him.
Enemy encountered.
Only one.
The Third Raikage.
Stone ninja erupted in excitement.
Wasn't this just a walking headcount bonus?
Hagoromo, meanwhile, was dumbfounded.
You're kidding, right?
Where was the elite force?
Where was the army?
One man versus ten thousand?
Even the Third Hokage wouldn't dare pull something like that.
At this rate, Hagoromo wouldn't have to do anything at all.
The Raikage would just get focused down and die instantly… right?
That was when Hagoromo realized—
His understanding of ninja was still far too shallow.
The sounds of battle continued to echo.
Soon, excitement faded from Stone ranks.
They realized something was very, very wrong.
The enemy was nothing like they'd imagined.
This was no easy fight.
It was a slaughter.
When the Stone formation fully deployed, Hagoromo finally saw him.
The Third Raikage, surrounded—
Or rather, the Third Raikage who had charged straight into their ranks.
At his feet—
A field of shattered corpses.
The Raikage moved like a storm.
His strides were violent, his movements brutal, dust and debris exploding around him.
He used only two techniques:
The Strongest Shield — Lightning Release Chakra Mode
The Strongest Spear — Hell Stab
And every Stone ninja who approached him—
Died instantly.
Hagoromo stared, slack-jawed.
The Third Raikage was like a burly man—
No.
He was a burly man.
But at this moment, the only fitting description was this:
He danced across the battlefield, lightning beneath his feet,
scattering death with every step.
PS: I've been releasing chapters daily . Honestly, it hurts seeing almost no support on Patreon after all that work.If you're enjoying the fic, even a little, supporting me would mean a lot. It helps a student stay independent .
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