Chapter 359: Third Hokages In Shock

For many shinobi, today was a day filled with fear and sorrow.

No one had expected the battle to turn out like this. The enemy brought not one but two Tailed Beasts onto the battlefield.

Because of these two Tailed Beasts, Konoha suffered tremendous losses. Countless shinobi watched helplessly as their comrades and mentors fell under the Tailed Beasts' attacks.

Compared to the overwhelming power of the Tailed Beasts, they were as powerless as children.

Thank goodness most of the Uchiha clan had been deployed to the Land of Bears and hadn't remained at the coastal camp.

When Uchiha Fugaku arrived at the new encampment and learned of what had happened, he secretly thanked fate that his clan had avoided this calamity.

Everyone from the Land of Bears returned, bringing all their supplies back as well, so Takuya didn't have to endure sleeping in a tree.

Most of the tents brought from the Land of Bears were given to the wounded, who needed care.

In Konoha, at the Hokage's office.

The Third Hokage stared blankly at the urgent intel from the frontlines. His smoking pipe slipped from his mouth onto the table without him noticing.

The contents of the scroll had shocked him deeply.

He knew it was possible for Konoha to lose a battle. After all, no one could guarantee victory in war.

Victory and defeat were common in warfare, but the Third Hokage had never imagined that Konoha would lose in this way.

The two Tailed Beasts wreaked havoc on the battlefield, resulting in heavy losses for Konoha.

Seeing the casualty numbers written on the scroll, the Third Hokage felt his head spin.

There would always be casualties in war, but this time, Konoha had dispatched its elite forces against Kirigakure.

They may not have been invincible, but these shinobi were far stronger than the typical troops sent out in past battles. This was why the village had been hesitant to send additional reinforcements to Orochimaru.

It was also why Konoha, despite its smaller numbers, had managed to suppress Kirigakure on multiple fronts.

But now, everything was in ruins. Kirigakure had thrown honor out the window, releasing two Tailed Beasts onto the battlefield, causing Konoha's elite forces to be cut down by more than half.

At that moment, the Third Hokage felt his heart bleed.

"Old man, are you alright?"

Upon hearing the news, Tsunade rushed to the office as quickly as she could. Seeing the Third Hokage, who seemed to have aged years in mere moments, she couldn't help but feel worried.

"I'm fine. Take a look at this."

His voice was hoarse as he struggled to keep his emotions in check, trying to appear as if everything was under control. Slowly, he handed the scroll to Tsunade.

Tsunade didn't hesitate, immediately taking it and reading through it.

More footsteps echoed through the hallway as Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado arrived.

Upon entering, they immediately noticed something was off with the Third Hokage.

Seeing Tsunade's clenched fists and flushed face, they realized there was big trouble.

"Damn it! How could they do this?!"

Tsunade slammed her fist down on the table in anger. Thankfully, she controlled her strength, otherwise, the desk would have shattered to pieces.

While Tailed Beasts were considered part of a village's power, they, along with their Jinchuriki, served primarily as deterrents—as strategic weapons.

Who would deploy such a weapon without warning, throwing it directly into battle?

"What's going on?"

The members of the Elder Council, who had arrived a bit late, were confused.

"See for yourselves, but try not to get too shocked," Tsunade said, her frustration evident. She tossed the scroll over to them, uninterested in starting an argument with Koharu right now.

She furiously ran her hands through her hair, not caring if her golden locks became a disheveled mess. All she wanted was to find something to vent her anger and frustration on.

Koharu and Homura crowded together to read the scroll.

A few seconds later, they jumped in shock. "This can't be true! What is Kirigakure thinking?!"

"How could the Third Mizukage dare do such a thing?!"

The Third Hokage, having regained some composure, picked up his pipe, lit it, and took a few puffs of smoke.

"Koharu, Homura, sit down. The Tailed Beasts are still part of the village's power. Kirigakure sending the Tailed Beasts into battle isn't exactly against the rules—it just means our intel was lacking."

"Two Tailed Beasts appeared on the battlefield, attacking indiscriminately. Given the circumstances, our defeat was inevitable. Not to mention, Kirigakure also lost both of their Tailed Beasts."

When comparing Konoha's losses to the fact that Kirigakure had lost two Tailed Beasts, the Third Hokage found some solace.

"But with the frontline forces reduced by more than half, how are we supposed to withstand the enemy's advance?"

Koharu gritted her teeth in frustration.

"It's predictable that Kirigakure will try to push into the Land of Fire. Our promise to keep the war from reaching our borders will be nothing more than an empty statement. How will we answer to the Daimyo?"

Kirigakure had declared war on Konoha.

The fighting was inevitable. The Daimyo had given his support but also demanded that the conflict not spill into the Land of Fire.

Konoha had given its assurance that they would keep the fighting outside the nation's borders.

Now, they were getting slapped in the face.

With two rampaging Tailed Beasts tearing through the battlefield, Konoha suffered heavy losses, forcing them to retreat and establish a new camp within the Land of Fire's borders.

In this situation, let alone holding off the enemy's advance, even providing adequate care for the wounded was a major challenge.

If the enemy had any sense, they would seize this opportunity to invade the Land of Fire.

"What's important now isn't the Daimyo's stance—it's how we deal with Kirigakure's full-scale attack!"

Tsunade shot Koharu a sharp look. At a time like this, who cared about political formalities?

It would be better to think about how many shinobi they needed to send to reinforce Orochimaru and hold back Kirigakure's advance.

And then there was the matter of mobilizing medical personnel and coordinating supplies.

Just thinking about all these issues made Tsunade's head pound. Who could have foreseen that one defeat would trigger such a domino effect?

The Third Hokage took a deep drag of his pipe and nodded slowly.

"Tsunade is right. Our priority is defending against the enemy's advance. The Daimyo's attitude can wait—I'll go to the Daimyo personally to explain the situation. I'm confident he'll understand."

If they could, Konoha would certainly have kept the enemy away—they had the strength to do it.

But Kirigakure's ruthless tactics had caught them completely off guard.

Even now, the Third Hokage's head was still buzzing. Kirigakure had allowed their Jinchuriki to lose control, unleashing the Tailed Beasts in a surprise attack against Konoha.

Having a Jinchuriki was the key to fully utilizing a Tailed Beast's power, but that only applied to perfect Jinchuriki.

Without a perfect Jinchuriki, the Tailed Beast's full strength couldn't be harnessed—it was better to let the beast rampage freely as a living weapon. It was clear that Kirigakure's choice was the right one.

The Three-Tails and Six-Tails had indeed caught Konoha off guard.

No one would have expected two rampaging Tailed Beasts to suddenly appear on the battlefield. And without any preparation, there was little that could be done against them.

Trying to control a Tailed Beast wasn't easy, especially in the middle of a battle—let alone two at once.

Even if the Third Kazekage and the Third Raikage were thrown into that battlefield, they would have struggled against two Tailed Beasts at the same time.

The Third Kazekage could control Shukaku thanks to his Magnet Release, but the One-Tail's power wasn't exactly impressive compared to other Tailed Beasts.

Just because he could handle Shukaku didn't mean he could control both the Three-Tails and Six-Tails.

Similarly, the Third Raikage could go toe-to-toe with the Eight-Tails, fighting it to exhaustion. But that didn't mean he could tire out two Tailed Beasts simultaneously.

Luckily, despite the severe losses Konoha had suffered, Kirigakure wasn't unscathed either—they had lost both Tailed Beasts.

The Third Hokage hoped that the Daimyo would understand the circumstances they faced.