The Cloud Village was preparing at full speed, while the Stone Village continued setting up its battlefield defenses.
Everyone understood that only by defeating Konoha could they truly step into the Land of Fire. Otherwise, even if they entered, they would only fall into a bigger trap—just like the Stone Village nearly did during the Second Shinobi War.
But at this moment, the most anxious party wasn't the besieged Konoha, nor the Rain Village, which was at a disadvantage on the battlefield.
It was the Sand Village, unable to find their own Kazekage.
"What the hell is going on? Where did sensei go? How can he just vanish like this without a trace?"
Rasa slammed his fist onto the table.
Could it be—
No, impossible. Sensei is the strongest Kazekage. Who could possibly harm him?
"Rasa-sama."
"What is it?"
A Sand shinobi rushed in with a report.
"The higher-ups are all asking about the whereabouts of the Third Kazekage."
"And whether we should continue with the plan to attack Konoha."
Calm down. Calm down. If sensei were here, what would he do?
Rasa forced himself to steady his thoughts.
"The plan to attack Konoha will proceed as scheduled. Once the Stone Village and Cloud Village engage Konoha, we will immediately join the battle."
Defeating Konoha and stepping into the Land of Fire was sensei's dream—no, it was the only way forward for the Sand Village.
"And the Third Kazekage?"
"Sensei has gone to train in an extremely powerful ninjutsu. When the war with Konoha begins, he will definitely return."
"Yes, sir."
Hearing this, the Sand shinobi's mood visibly improved. He quickly left to deliver the "good news" to the higher-ups.
Only Rasa remained, still frowning deeply.
Sensei… please don't let anything happen to you.
...
At the Fire–Lightning border,
Jiraiya, along with Namikaze Minato, Hyūga Hiyasu, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, Akimichi Chōza, and the rest of the group, were about to reach the border of the Land of Fire.
The group of shinobi: If you don't want to mention us, then don't. What do you mean "the rest of the group"?
"Stop."
Walking at the front, Hyūga Hiyasu halted the entire unit.
Jiraiya, Minato, and Nara Shikaku quickly gathered around him.
"Hiyasu, what's wrong?" Jiraiya asked.
Hiyasu's expression was rather strange.
"What kind of people would stockpile a massive amount of stones?"
Nara Shikaku narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Hiyasu, are you suggesting the Cloud Village has a secret weapon comparable to our Akimichi stone-throwing unit?"
"Probably not a secret. I just saw nearly a hundred large machines—those stones are likely meant to be used with them."
Hiyasu explained.
"The Cloud Village really isn't simple. To think they'd come up with imitating the Akimichi stone-throwing unit… this will significantly weaken our frontal assault strength."
"Jiraiya-sama, we should avoid direct confrontation with the Cloud Village as much as possible."
Nara Shikaku spoke seriously.
"You handle all the battle plans. Just tell me what to do."
Jiraiya broke into a wide grin.
Everyone in Konoha knew that when working with the Nara clan, you didn't need to use your brain. Even if you did, the result might as well be the same as not using it. You just followed the Nara's command.
Thinking of this, Jiraiya couldn't help but feel proud.
As expected, bringing the Nara clan along—something I'd even take a punch from Tsunade to do—is absolutely worth it. Saves so much trouble. War is such a headache anyway. I'm not Orochimaru—I don't have the ability to command thousands of troops. But thinking about Tsunade being so busy she's practically losing her mind… yeah, I really can't help smiling.
...
Meanwhile, in the Land of Grass,
At the Konoha camp,
Tsunade lay comfortably on a chair, completely relaxed.
Senju Hideki was doing push-ups nonstop, trying to get his body fired up as quickly as possible.
As for all battlefield arrangements—
Of course, they were handed over to their all-capable, ridiculously overqualified Uchiha Kamito.
"Damn it, I've realized I was completely fooled by Aburame Shiken. 'Best partner'? Even if I get beaten to death, burned by Fire Release, electrocuted by Lightning Release, sliced by Wind Release, drowned by Water Release, or buried by Earth Release, I will never go on a mission with you Senju people again!"
Having finally squeezed out a brief moment from his overwhelming workload, Uchiha Kamito voiced his strongest complaint yet.
"Sigh, kid, you're the one making things complicated. It's just a war—what's so hard about it?"
Tsunade, lying there with cucumber slices on her face, comforted him in an unusually considerate tone.
"Making things complicated? What's so hard about war? You guys are…"
"Wait, Tsunade-sama, how do you usually fight wars?"
Uchiha Kamito asked, genuinely confused. Those words didn't sound like something people with actual war experience would say.
"War? That's easy. As the commander, you just stand at the front and shout 'Follow me and charge!'—that's it."
Uchiha Kamito was speechless.
There's a reason the Senju have declined this far.
Deceased Senju shinobi: This is just an exception! Please don't misunderstand us!
Speaking of which… if the entire Senju clan is like this, what kind of person was the Second Hokage?
Uchiha Kamito turned to look at Senju Hideki.
At this moment, Hideki had already crouched next to Tsunade.
"Tsunade-sensei, how should I shout 'Follow me and charge' to make it sound more imposing?"
Faced with such a scene, Uchiha Kamito could only sigh deeply.
Back in the day, Senju Hideki was clearly quite smart…
When did he become like this?
Was it during the Second Shinobi War, when the Third Raikage's attack pierced his abdomen and somehow affected his brain?
Or was it the price of saving people in Shikkotsu Forest—trading away his intelligence?
Though he thought all this, Uchiha Kamito still picked up the intelligence scroll in his hand.
They would likely clash with the Stone Village tomorrow.
Having Senju Hideki lead the charge was a given—durable and tough, perfect for tanking the front line.
The key question was: who should he bring to hold the very front?
The Kurama clan wouldn't work—too fragile, like paper. Good for control, better placed in the rear.
The Yuhi clan was average—place them in the middle. At least sturdier than the Kurama.
Mitarashi—middle as well, for the same reason.
The Gekkō clan's transparency technique was useful. Deploy them once the battlefield turned into close combat; the effect should be excellent.
The Senju seemed to have produced another dozen or so members.
Got it.
Hideki will lead the Senju clan along with two thousand civilian shinobi as the frontline shield.
I'll lead the Uchiha clan and act depending on the situation.
As for Tsunade?
Her only role is to hold back Ōnoki.
But… can she actually stall him?
Hopefully she can.
Otherwise, she'd truly be completely useless.