Chapter 280

"First squad, use Fire Release! Second squad, use Wind Release!"

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"

Thirty Konoha shinobi stood together. The odd-numbered shinobi quickly formed hand seals and unleashed Fire Release ninjutsu of various levels. After them, another group of Konoha shinobi swiftly performed hand seals and released Wind Release ninjutsu.

Wind enhanced the flames, turning the blazing fire into a seven or eight-meter-high sea of flames, like a massive fiery wave.

"Run! Run for your lives!"

The united army formed by the feudal lord of the Land of Wind and his nobles was terrified by the scale of the combined jutsu. They could only wish they had more legs as they scrambled to flee, using both hands and feet to escape.

Most of them were previously wandering samurai or bounty hunters. While they had fought shinobi before, they had never faced a shinobi army.

The combined jutsu from thirty shinobi was comparable to an S-rank forbidden jutsu, almost like a natural disaster.

And such a level of combined jutsu could be used dozens, if not hundreds, of times by the shinobi army.

After the fire-wind combined jutsu, the feudal lord and the noble army of the Land of Wind left behind dozens of corpses as they fled. But the Konoha shinobi had no intention of letting them go.

"Advance! Check for traps! We will take the capital of the Land of Wind in one fell swoop," ordered Uchiha Shinji as he commanded. They had initially been focusing on constructing oasis towns and key transportation points, with no intention of dealing with the nobles.

But since the nobles had come to provoke them, Konoha decided to destroy them first and then manage the large Land of Wind at their own pace.

Yoichi had given Pakura significant authority. After Tobirama and Hashirama left, Pakura held the most power in the Sand Region. Even Hiruzen and Jiraiya had to follow her commands.

This time, it was Pakura who ordered the complete elimination of the feudal lord and the nobles of the Land of Wind.

Even though there weren't enough administrative personnel, Pakura did not want to give these people the chance to stage any more rebellions.

Moreover, the Sand Region needed a large number of laborers, and Pakura had over three thousand shinobi under her command, more than enough to handle this ragtag army.

In just three days of warfare, Konoha's forces had pushed all the way to the capital of the Land of Wind, capturing six towns and making prisoners of five noble families.

Interestingly, it wasn't the Konoha shinobi who hated the nobles of the Land of Wind the most—it was the shinobi originally from Sunagakure.

The feudal lords and nobles of the Land of Wind had occupied the best lands, leaving Sunagakure, the military force protecting the country, to live in the harsh desert. They frequently cut the funding for Sunagakure, which had caused a lot of resentment among the Sand shinobi.

When they captured the first noble family and raided their storehouses, they discovered enough food to feed a thousand people for several months. Only then did the shinobi from Sunagakure realize that the Land of Wind wasn't poor—the nobles had hoarded all the wealth.

Sunagakure had nearly faced famine before. They couldn't buy supplies domestically, and foreign goods were blockaded. Rasa didn't dare to rob the feudal lords or the nobles, so he had to swallow his pride and accept Yoichi's terms just to feed the people of Sunagakure.

Now that they had seen how wealthy the nobles were, the shinobi from Sunagakure were furious. If not for the commands restraining them, they might have staged a full-scale rebellion against the nobility.

After receiving the front-line reports of the conquest of the Land of Wind, Pakura forwarded them to Konoha.

After handling the immediate issues, Pakura glanced at Mei, who had followed her for several days. At first, Mei had been full of questions, but by now, she had fallen silent, seemingly understanding the situation.

Pakura waved Mei over and asked, "You've been in the Sand Region for a while now. You should understand why the Fifth Hokage sent you here, right?"

"...Are you content with this?" Mei couldn't help but ask the question she had been holding in for a long time. Pakura was a hero of Sunagakure, so why would she betray her village?

"Why wouldn't I be content? Your intelligence was sent to me long ago. We share a similar fate, both betrayed by our villages. So, are you content?"

Pakura snorted and continued, "In the past, many children in Sunagakure had never seen a single leaf. Now, every newborn can see an oasis. Why wouldn't I be content?"

"But that's not your village!"

"Then why don't you go and serve your village? If you were truly loyal to Kirigakure, you wouldn't have become a missing-nin."

Pakura paused before reminding her, "We haven't restricted your freedom. You're free to return to Kirigakure and inform the Fourth Mizukage of Konoha's plans, and then help Kirigakure—before being executed by the Fourth Mizukage."

"However, I don't think Kirigakure can resist Konoha. You arrived too late to witness the power of the God of Shinobi. And Konoha also has the the Fifth Hokage."

Mei was well aware of this. She had personally seen the fully formed Susano'o, towering like a mountain. In the face of such a force, Mei couldn't even muster the will to resist.

She realized she only had two options: return to Kirigakure and rally those she knew to defect to Konoha or return and fight alongside Kirigakure against Konoha in a hopeless battle. There was no third choice.

"Take your time to think about it. You have one week. Either leave the Land of Fire or go to Konoha and have a serious talk with the Fifth Hokage."

With that, Pakura stopped paying attention to Mei. She had already given Mei enough patience. If it weren't for Yoichi's orders, she wouldn't have bothered with a Kirigakure shinobi, especially one like Mei, whose heart still lay with her village.

The war in the Land of Wind was progressing fiercely, and things were going smoothly in the Land of Rain and the Land of Rivers as well.

The Land of Rivers didn't have its own ninja village. In the past, it had survived as a small nation due to compromises between Konoha and Sunagakure. Now that Sunagakure had merged with Konoha, the daimyo of the Land of Rivers had barely resisted for a few days before being forcibly relocated to Konoha.

His property was not confiscated, but the Land of Rivers no longer belonged to him, and he was no longer a daimyo.

As for the Land of Rain, after learning that Urashiki had been captured and that his brother was no longer in danger, Tobirama began making major moves against the country.

And Hanzo, the so-called "Demi-God of the Shinobi World"?

Tobirama thought it was a joke. How had he never heard of such a title during his lifetime? How had it only appeared after his death?

And with the true God of Shinobi present in the Land of Rain, Tobirama almost hoped Hanzo would appear, so he wouldn't have to send people to gather information.

"Lord Hanzo, we've lost Yanmoku Town and Rain Town as well. We had over a hundred shinobi there. If we hadn't discovered it in time today, we would have been surrounded and wiped out by Konoha's forces."

Hanzo's expression darkened as he asked, "Did they not resist at all?"

"Lord Yanbei said their jutsu were too overwhelming, and with the Second Hokage and Shisui leading the charge, they couldn't fight back, so they retreated."

Hearing this, Hanzo fell silent. When Konoha first invaded the Land of Rain, he had fought Shisui. After a fierce battle, Hanzo had been shocked.

Once capable of defeating and even killing the Sannin, Hanzo now found himself struggling against a young Uchiha.

That strange Body Flicker Technique, the genjutsu that could ensnare him if he wasn't careful, and the Susano'o, which was so powerful that even his explosive flame formation couldn't break through, left him feeling helpless. Even his salamander's poison was neutralized by a secret medicine.

After battling Shisui for a while, Hanzo felt powerless. None of his techniques worked on Shisui, and he was constantly at risk of falling victim to the Sharingan's genjutsu.

So, Hanzo retreated and began directing the Rain shinobi from behind the scenes, rarely taking to the field himself.

However, since Tobirama's arrival, Konoha's forces had become more aggressive, gradually consuming Rain's territory step by step. Thinking of the Akatsuki, which had been swaying the civilians, Hanzo couldn't help but regret not having killed that blue-haired woman sooner.

"What should we do now, Lord Hanzo?"

Rainosuke, Hanzo's confidant, asked. If Hanzo wasn't in the village, Rainosuke was the one responsible for managing the affairs of Amegakure.

But Hanzo didn't immediately respond, instead falling into deep thought.

If they continued to resist, they didn't have the strength to fight back. But if they didn't resist, they would lose their remaining territory, which had already shrunk to less than a quarter of what it once was. In another ten days, Konoha's forces would likely surround Amegakure.

"...Gather everyone. Take the accumulated wealth of Amegakure and head to the Land of Earth."

"W-What?"

Rainosuke couldn't believe what he was hearing. He quickly asked, "L-Lord Hanzo, are we abandoning Amegakure?"

"We are not abandoning it. We don't have the strength to resist Konoha. We need to preserve our forces and join forces with Iwagakure and Kumogakure. Only then can we fight against Konoha!"

Hanzo sternly reprimanded, "If we all die in Amegakure, who will stand against Konoha? Who will restore the Land of Rain?"

"...Yes, Lord Hanzo."

Rainosuke felt ashamed of his doubts and quickly lowered his head. "Shall we evacuate immediately, Lord Hanzo?"

"The sooner, the better. If Konoha's forces catch wind of this, we'll have no choice but to fight to the death. And if we die here, the Land of Rain will become nothing but history."

"I understand, Lord Hanzo!"

With the heavy responsibility of restoring the Land of Rain weighing on their shoulders, they couldn't afford to die meaninglessly in battle.

With that belief in mind, Rainosuke quickly went to gather the remaining Rain shinobi.

Although the Land of Rain was a small nation, Hanzo had always dreamed of making it a major power. The spoils of war he had gained during the Third Shinobi World War had allowed him to grow the ranks of Amegakure's shinobi.

Even after suffering losses in recent battles with Konoha, Amegakure still had over 1,500 shinobi.

This was no small number. Only four or five years had passed since the Third Shinobi World War, and Amegakure had managed to cultivate this many shinobi, rivaling the growth rate of Iwagakure and Kumogakure.

Hanzo could see that Konoha likely knew about his alliance with Iwagakure and Kumogakure, which was why they were attacking the Land of Rain so aggressively.

Stubbornly holding the line wasn't an option. If all his forces were wiped out, even if he managed to escape, Onoki and the Fourth Raikage wouldn't take him seriously.

Most of the Rain shinobi were already concentrated near Amegakure, so it didn't take long for Rainosuke to gather everyone and relay Hanzo's orders.

Many Rain shinobi didn't understand the order, and some even had families in Amegakure, but nine-tenths of them didn't dare to disobey Hanzo's command.

For nearly twenty years, Hanzo had ruled as the "Demi-God of the Shinobi World." Many of the Rain shinobi had grown up under his influence. After receiving the order, they quickly returned home to inform their families and prepared to leave Amegakure with Hanzo.

"Sorry for troubling you, Fifth Hokage," Minato said apologetically. He knew the Fifth Hokage was incredibly busy right now. Kushina had asked Mina to relay the message, and they had waited almost an entire day before Uchiha Yoichi finally had time to come over.

"No trouble at all. The damage to the Edo Tensei body is a minor issue. Luckily, it only happened once. If it occurred repeatedly, the soul would eventually be damaged as well," Yoichi said, waving his hand dismissively before motioning to Minato. "I have other matters to attend to later, so let me fix this for you now."

Minato nodded and stepped forward, "Sorry to trouble you."

Without any further pleasantries, Yoichi extended his hand and used Yin-Yang Release to cover Minato's severed shoulder. After a few seconds, he nullified the residual Yin-Yang Release effect left by Urashiki, and Minato's shoulder began to regenerate, with paper-like fragments gathering and quickly restoring the limb.

"All done. If there's nothing else, I'll be heading out."

After finishing the task, Yoichi prepared to leave. He had plenty on his plate, even though he had handed the Tenseigan to Rumi. There was still the matter of Urashiki and the issues on the moon that needed his attention.

"Wait."

Kushina suddenly called out, causing Yoichi to turn back. But as he looked at her, she suddenly didn't know what to say.

"What is it?"

"…It's nothing important."

Kushina cursed herself internally for blurting it out. She noticed Minato's gaze, feeling a bit guilty. It wasn't what he was thinking at all.

"I'll go check on Naruto, Kushina," Minato said with a smile, but before leaving, he gave Kushina a look, signaling her not to mention the matter.

After Minato left, Yoichi couldn't help but ask, "What is it? Don't worry, my sensory abilities are sharp."

"This thing—don't leave it in my house. Destroy it as soon as you take it. Understood?" Kushina said, her face flushed with a mix of anger and embarrassment, as she shoved a sealed scroll into Yoichi's hand.

"What is this?"

"Hmph!"

Kushina didn't respond and simply turned and left. She had nearly forgotten about those things. While looking for something earlier, she had almost been caught, so she sealed them in the scroll.

There were too many of them to dispose of easily. She couldn't just throw them away, as they might be discovered by the Konoha Police Force. And she didn't know how to use Earth Release or Fire Release to destroy them. Keeping them sealed in a scroll also posed a risk of discovery.

When Yoichi returned home and opened the sealed scroll, he found a TV, VCR, and five or six videotapes he had given to Kushina.

"Oh, these... I'd better keep them."

Yoichi smiled. These were all masterpieces, and it would be hard to see such expressions on Kushina's face again in the future, so they were definitely worth preserving.

Right now, Konoha was at its most vulnerable. There were fewer than a thousand shinobi in the village, with most of them assigned to the Police Force to maintain order. Only about two hundred were handling missions. It was a time when Konoha was extremely short on manpower.

But there was no other choice. Konoha had too many things to deal with at once. Once Rumi resolved the internal issues of the Hyuga clan and freed the branch family shinobi, or after a couple of years when new shinobi joined, the manpower shortage might be alleviated.

For now, Yoichi couldn't leave Konoha for extended periods. Without someone strong enough to hold the fort, if Uchiha Madara showed up, the village might not be able to defend itself.

Unless, of course, the Tenseigan energy tower was installed and Rumi mastered the power of the Tenseigan.

"It's been a while since I drew a new ability…"

As he spoke, Yoichi opened the roulette.

Ever since he acquired the Sign-In ability, he had been accumulating his monthly ability draws. Rather than drawing useless abilities, he preferred to save them for something more powerful.

By now, he had accumulated twelve chances, meaning it had been about a year since he last drew a new ability.

"Let's see how my luck is after a year. Give me something strong."

With that, Uchiha Yoichi pressed the psychic roulette. The large wheel spun before gradually slowing down and landing on an ability.

[Transdimensional Trading: Set up a platform and distort perceptions for a win-win trade.]

"This…"

After carefully reading the description and confirming it multiple times, Yoichi realized that this ability functioned like a kind of trading platform for him.

But for the other party, it was akin to making an offering or plea. They could offer something in exchange for something they needed, provided Yoichi had it and was willing to trade.

"It's complicated, but it seems useful. I wonder what I can get…"

Yoichi opened the Transdimensional Trading list and was immediately overwhelmed by the countless trade requests that appeared before him.

He zoomed in and slowly began to read through them.

"Seeking a hundred-year-old ginseng to save my mother, willing to offer twenty years of my lifespan."

"Seeking to live twenty more years, offering a thousand ryo in gold."

"Seeking the wand of Sisrifa the God, willing to exchange two ninth-level magical beast cores."

"Hoping for an item or secret technique to restore my eyesight, willing to trade Byakugō no Jutsu and Cherry Blossom Impact."

There were as many trade requests as stars in the sky. Yoichi spent an hour browsing and still hadn't finished. He rubbed his eyes, feeling a bit tired.

"Life force, souls... All of these are up for trade? Even organs? I wonder how these will appear in my possession…"

After some thought, Yoichi selected the trade request for the hundred-year-old ginseng. He had used plenty of ginseng while refining medicines in the shinobi world.

Although none of it had fully matured over a hundred years, the natural energy in the shinobi world made the medicinal potency high enough.

Using the Flying Thunder God Technique, he retrieved the ginseng from his underground alchemy lab and placed it on the platform as per the ability's instructions.

[Trade Successful: Acquired twenty years of life force.]

After extracting the twenty years of life force, Yoichi found it rather useless. It was just pure life energy, which might extend a normal person's life by ten years or so.

But for someone like him, who possessed the Yomitsuka dojutsu, life force wasn't anything special.

After browsing a bit longer, Yoichi began to notice a problem. The items he wanted couldn't be traded because he lacked the necessary materials. On the other hand, the items he could trade weren't valuable enough to exchange for what others were offering.

In short, the shinobi world was too impoverished, and there wasn't much he could offer. Even techniques like ninjutsu couldn't be used by the other party.

"Tch, is this another useless ability?"

After spending over an hour browsing, Yoichi shook his head and closed the ability panel.

"I'll look again tomorrow, but it seems likely that most things won't be tradeable."

With that, Yoichi headed home to rest. This time, he went to the Senju compound. With both the First and Second Hokage gone from the village, and Nawaki away on a mission, only three people remained in the large Senju compound, and one of them was an infant.

Tsunade had just put Yoko to sleep and was preparing to rest when Yoichi suddenly appeared in her room.

Startled, Tsunade scolded him, "You little pervert! Next time, use the door. You scared me!"

"I just couldn't wait to see you, Tsunade," Yoichi said as he moved closer, wrapping his arms around Tsunade's waist, pressing her ample figure tightly against him.

Older women couldn't handle sweet talk like that. Even after having a child, Tsunade's face still flushed at his words, mumbling, "Who would believe a pervert like you? You've already married so many wives…"

The lights dimmed, and the sounds of passion filled the room until late into the night.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elsewhere.

After receiving intelligence from a White Zetsu clone, Black Zetsu finally breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly returned to Uchiha Madara's side to report, "Lord Madara, we've found the whereabouts of the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki!"

"Where?"

Black Zetsu explained, "This news comes from Iwagakure. It's said that there are signs of the Four-Tails and Five-Tails being revived, so Iwagakure plans to have the Eight-Tails persuade them. If this information is accurate, Lord Madara, you could potentially capture three Tailed Beasts at once."

Madara frowned slightly and asked, "Having the Eight-Tails persuade the Four-Tails and Five-Tails? That sounds far-fetched. Black Zetsu, can we confirm this information?"

"There shouldn't be any problem. The White Zetsu clone gathered this intel while serving as a servant in the household of the Third Tsuchikage's son," Black Zetsu explained.

"It took you a month to gather this information," White Zetsu muttered, feeling slighted.

"It was actually only a week, Black Zetsu. I got this intel in just a week," White Zetsu protested, but neither Black Zetsu nor Madara paid attention to it.

"Let's go check it out. Even if it's a trap, it won't matter. They don't have the power to pose a real threat," Madara said after thinking it over. If the information was true, he could finally become the Jinchūriki of the Ten-Tails.

(End of Chapter)

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