Chapter 115: The war begins

The internal conflicts within Konoha brought great convenience to the evacuation of Sunagakure.

Don't be fooled by the fierce fighting that Gaara and others displayed in Konoha. But the time they had was very limited. Which is why they quickly retreated towards the border with Land of Wind, while Sunagakure's main force on the border also launched a counterattack.

In fact, it is very difficult to launch a desperate attack on a ninja village. It is not only a question of whether it will succeed, but also the problem of subsequent evacuation. Because Konoha has more ninjas and a more comprehensive deployment of manpower.

In the original plan, Rasa even considered evacuating with some elites and the Shukaku, sacrificing the lives of other Suna shinobis.

However, the chaos in Konoha gave Rasa a great opportunity.

Clearly, Konoha had more people and was relying on several defensive fortresses. Even if they could only delay them for a few days, he would cause heavy casualties to the Sunagakure shinobi.

However, Konoha was unable to exert its strength at all. Even if Kakashi and other elite Jōnin tried to coordinate, and even risked personally chasing and killing the Suna shinobis, they still couldn't stop Rasa from forcefully breaking through Konoha's defense line and finally joining the main force of Sunagakure at the border.

"We're still alive?"

Countless shinobis were dumbfounded. They had rushed into Konoha with the mindset of certain death. But in the end, they broke through Konoha and returned home? After realizing this, they were extremely surprised.

"We're back! We're going home!"

"Hooray! Hooray!"

"Long live the Kazekage!"

The Suna shinobis cheered loudly, tears of joy streaming down their faces, some even with an expression of disbelief.

That was Konoha. The strongest ninja village in the world. And yet, we violently broke it. Not only that, we also broke through Konoha's defense and came back.

This credit should definitely be attributed to our great Kazekage-sama.

"The Fourth Kazekage is definitely the strongest Kazekage!"

"Even the Third Hokage is no match for our Fourth Kazekage-sama!"

"Kazekage-sama, I am willing to die for you!"

The deafening shouts filled the air. Looking into the eyes of the shinobis of Sunagakure, there was a deep sense of reverence. Even the high-ranking officials leading the Sunagakure forces looked at the Fourth Kazekage with admiration.

This completely exceeded Rasa's expectations. It was really a pleasant surprise. He originally lacked prestige, he had insufficient strength and Sunagakure had a poor economy, he could only rely on mining to obtain a certain amount of funds, now he has become the spiritual pillar of Sunagakure.

"Kazekage-sama, what should we do next?" The high-ranking officials' eyes were filled with fanaticism.

"Kazekage-sama, should we launch a direct attack on Konohagakure?"

"The pressure is too great. I suggest we first stabilize the surrounding defenses to prevent a counterattack from Konoha."

"Fool! Even the mighty Third Hokage died at the hands of our Fourth Kazekage. Are we Sunagakure shinobi afraid of Konoha shinobi? Coward!

"That's right, with the great Fourth Kazekage, we are guaranteed to win this war!"

"Yes, that's the Fourth Kazekage who killed the Third Hokage!"

The crowd discussed excitedly.

Rasa opened his mouth, hesitating to speak, wanting to say something but stopping himself. 'It's possible that I'm not the one who killed the Third Hokage...'

However, the hopeful eyes of the surrounding Suna shinobis made it impossible for Rasa to speak the truth.

The plan to destroy Konohagakure was actually just a desperate counterattack by Sunagakure, which could no longer support the dwindling funds and gradual decline in the number of missions.

But now, everyone's eyes were filled with hope.

"The Fourth Kazekage is invincible!"

"Don't even mention that dog Hiruzen, what about Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara? They were just born earlier, otherwise the Kazekage would have taught them a lesson!"

'Damn!' Rasa couldn't hold back anymore. 'Insulting Sarutobi Hiruzen was still acceptable, and maybe even Senju Hashirama, but when it came to Uchiha...'

They may not know how the Third Hokage died, but doesn't he know?

"Cough... Everyone, please refrain from speaking recklessly!" Rasa said with a serious expression. "I actually have great respect for Uchiha Madara from back then, and I greatly admire his feat of suppressing the Shinobi world with his power. He is my idol!"

Uchiha Madara may not be Rasa's idol. But after Natsuo easily defeated him and Orochimaru, and then watched from a distance as he quickly killed the First Hokage, the Second Hokage, and the Third Hokage, with only Orochimaru escaping alone... Uchiha became his idol!

After hearing Rasa's words, everyone immediately remembered the popularity of Uchiha Madara's catchphrase back then and nodded in agreement.

"That's right, I remember that Rasa-sama admired Uchiha Madara!"

"Yes! He even said, 'The harsh environment of the Land of Wind has forged our resilient character. Every Suna shinobi will not be as weak as the First Hokage. We will only become determined warriors like Uchiha Madara!'"

"Uchiha Madara wanted to unify the Shinobi World through force, and that is also the goal of our great Fourth Kazekage!"

"Our great Fourth Kazekage is the inheritor of Uchiha Madara's will!"

Rasa shouted in his mind: 'Did I ever say that I wanted to learn from Uchiha Madara and conquer the Shinobi world? Don't randomly add settings to me!'

But as he looked at the expectant gazes of the many Suna shinobis, Rasa silently swallowed his saliva.

Morale can be boosted but not leaked, and he is well aware of this. He suddenly pounded the table with a fist, his face determined, like the most steadfast warrior.

"What you all said is right, that's exactly what I think!"

"It's time to let the weak Konoha shinobis see the resilience of our Sunagakure!"

A surge of spirit rose in their hearts, causing every Suna shinobis to speak at the same time.

"Let the weak Konoha shinobis see the resilience of our Sunagakure!"

Although Rasa is known as the worst Kage, he has been the Kazekage for many years, so he is still a qualified politician. Furthermore, his strategic level is not low either. He took the lead in raising the banner of the war and formally declared war on Konoha.

Under Rasa's leadership, Sunagakure launched a relentless offensive, quickly capturing many strongholds on the border of Konoha.

Although there were also many Konoha Shinobi who defended themselves fiercely, they ultimately were unable to stop the Sunagakure army's advance for long under Rasa's Kage-level force.

If others don't know the real situation, can't he know it? To boost morale, he took advantage of Konoha's slow response and launched a major offensive. However, after the initial attack, he immediately began to withdraw his forces without hesitation and create defensive lines.

Honestly, this completely contradicts the 'quick and decisive' strategic policy set by Sunagakure in previous wars due to limited resources. But under Rasa's high prestige, the Suna shinobis all found reasons to support him.

"We want to conquer and occupy one place!"

"Rasa-sama wants to focus on a long-term goal while carefully observing and considering the immediate situation."

"Konoha is too big for us to swallow alone. We need other major nations to act as well and divide Konoha together..."

"Rasa-sama is just confusing Konoha. He is looking for an opportunity to completely crush Konoha!"

Although the reasons for Rasa's decisive actions vary in the eyes of different people.

But the Suna shinobi firmly believe that their great Fourth Kazekage definitely has a perfect strategic plan. They just have to shut up and carry out the orders.

Rasa: 'No, I'm just being cowardly.'

'Konoha will never be destroyed as long as that man is there!' Rasa knew this deep in his heart.

As an Uchiha, with countless wives from Konoha, Natsuo would definitely not stand by and watch Konoha being swallowed up.

That man had just killed the Third Hokage, defeated the First and Second Generations who were under Impure World Reincarnation, drove away Orochimaru, and could easily treat Shukaku as a doll.

Even though his strength might not be on par with Uchiha Madara, it wouldn't be too far off.

However, Rasa was also very decisive and sent messengers to constantly instigate Kumogakure and Iwagakure, trying to draw both sides into the battlefield. He even tried to lure Kirigakure using the results of the attack on Konoha.

If they were lucky, completely annihilating Konoha might not be possible, but occupying a small piece of land was not without hope...

...

Kumogakure...

"What a joke, is Konoha really this weak?" The Fourth Raikage said. "The Third Hokage, being beaten up by a little Kazekage?"

During the Third Shinobi World War, Rasa had personally led the Suna shinobis against the Kumo shinobis.

And they were defeated miserably by the AB combination... And yet, this Rasa had managed to overthrow Konoha?

"Konoha has become completely weak, they don't deserve to occupy such fertile land!" The words of the Fourth Raikage were filled with excitement. "We, Kumogakure, should take action!"

"Boss, should we wait a bit?" Darui hesitated for a moment. "Konoha has suffered greatly in this war, and I can't help but feel that something is off."

"Who cares if something is off? Konohagakure can't possibly destroy itself, right?" The Fourth Raikage looked disdainful. "This is already enough to prove that Konoha is at its weakest moment."

"If we don't move now, when will we?"

"Since we have been preparing for war for so long, we can directly launch an attack... "

"Kumogakure declares war on Konoha!"

He slammed the table with force, showing a resolute attitude.

Everyone stood up solemnly and said: "Yes, Raikage-sama!"

"Good." The Fourth Raikage nodded, paused for a moment, and continued: "Speaking of which, now is a good opportunity... Konoha is currently in chaos, which may be convenient for our espionage operations."

He looked in the direction of Konoha village, his eyes filled with anticipation.

"The Uchiha clan... I have long heard about the reputation of the Uchiha clan..."

...

Iwagakure...

"Is it true? The little brat from Sunagakure actually killed the Third Hokage?"

The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, widened his eyes and said, "Although I heard that Hiruzen is becoming less powerful, he shouldn't be able to be killed by that Sunagakure brat, right?"

"Tsuchikage-sama, what should we do?" Akatsuchi tilted his head and looked at Ōnoki.

Ōnoki remained deep in thought and finally said: "Let's wait for now."

"We don't need to risk the lives of the Iwa shinobi due to temporary changes... The war has already started and cannot be ended in a short time."

"We can wait!" He said but sighed.

Waiting sounds simple, but shinobi prefer to take the initiative and create opportunities rather than wait for them.

But the problem is that Iwagakure is also facing a serious shortage of powerful shinobi. Even the position of Tsuchikage needs to be supported by Ōnoki, who is older than the Third Hokage. The financial resources of the village are not sufficient...

With insufficient family assets, who dares to gamble recklessly?

'Is that kid Deidara still playing house with Akatsuki? Maybe it's time to call him back!' The Third Tsuchikage thought to himself.

...

Kirigakure also received a message from the Sunagakure.

"This is really troublesome... I thought the Chūnin Exams would give us a lot of time to develop."

Terumī Mei sighed lightly. "I didn't expect Sunagakure to directly start the War..."

Ao looked at the Fifth Mizukage Terumī Mei seriously and asked: "Mizukage-sama, what should we do?"

"Let's not act rashly for now." Terumī Mei pondered for a moment and finally decided. "For Kirigakure, occupying new territories is meaningless."

"First, we need to deal with the internal issues of the village, which is the real priority!"

Kirigakure is located in the middle of the sea and can remain stable even if the Shinobi World is in crisis.

Without this advantageous geographical condition, Kirigakure would have been annexed by other major nations due to its continued internal conflicts.

"It's good that you can think like this." Ao breathed a sigh of relief. It was clear that he also agreed with Terumī Mei's words, but...

"But, Mizukage-sama, there are quite a few people within our village who want to start a war..."

"They even made decisions pretending to be the Mizukage. I find it hard to believe that they won't take advantage of this opportunity to gain power."

"I see." Terumī Mei nodded, her eyes showing a hint of sharpness. "But so what?"

"If it really gets out of control, I wouldn't mind using war to unify our internal forces." As she spoke, a murderous intent emanated from her.

The high-ranking officials around her all became solemn upon hearing her words.

"Understood, Mizukage-sama!"

...

As soon as the war began Konoha was attacked by Sunagakure and Kumogakure.

Sunagakure entered a defensive stance after launching a major attack. However, Kumogakure launched an all-out attack and annexed a large amount of Land of Fire territory.

Fortunately, the warning about the start of the possible Fourth Shinobi World War was issued almost a year ago. Relying on Konoha's wealth and power, the Third Hokage concentrated a large number of troops and resources at the border.

With the fierce battles fought by the ninja forces, although there were significant losses and territorial concessions, they managed to barely withstand the initial attacks from both countries.

However, Konoha was still at a clear disadvantage, without a Hokage that everyone could trust to coordinate and decide on the mobilization of troops, it would be difficult for Konoha to manage to mobilize all the shinobi clans.

Konohagakure was not lacking in resources or shinobis. What Konoha lacked was a Hokage everyone could trust.

...

As soon as Jiraiya finished recovering, he left the village in search of Tsunade.

Due to the crisis that Konoha was facing, Jiraiya used all available means and quickly discovered the inn where Tsunade was staying.

And without any hesitation, he burst into the room.

"Tsunade! Emergency situation! Konoha needs you! The village needs you!"

"The position of the Fifth Hokage is reserved for you. It's no longer the time for you to wander around, you know..."

[Bang!]

A familiar fist landed on Jiraiya's face, sending him flying out.

"Stop making a fuss!" Tsunade's expression was unfriendly. "You scared my daughter!"

Although the punch was heavy, Jiraiya was already used to it.

Wiping away his nosebleed, Jiraiya stood up and said: "Oh, sorry, but I'm serious about what I said. Konoha needs..."

"Hmm? Wait!"

"Daughter?!" Jiraiya suddenly widened his eyes, looking at the little baby in Tsunade's arms.

"Your... Daughter?" Jiraiya said each word slowly.

Tsunade nodded, confirming Jiraiya's words.

"My daughter."

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