Chapter 152
Chapter 152: News of the AB Duo's Capture Spreads
In the 48th year of Konoha, the famous AB duo, A (the son of the Third Raikage) and Killer B, were captured in Frost Village.
When this news reached the Hidden Cloud Village, the Third Raikage immediately questioned the credibility of the information:
"Impossible! How could my son and B be restrained by merely Uchiha Haneda and the Frost Village?!"
The Hidden Cloud ninja who reported back nervously replied, "The information came from Konoha. So far, no spies from Frost Village have sent any related intelligence."
He hesitated before adding, "Lord Raikage, it seems Frost Village has been sealed off. The source of the information may very well be true."
The Third Raikage waved his hand dismissively, clearly unconvinced. "No way! Absolutely not! A is my son and direct disciple, and B is the Eight-Tails jinchuriki! What about the Tailed Beast Bomb? Even if a thousand Frost ninjas attacked, they'd need an entire morning to wear them down! How could they be captured?!"
The Cloud ninja initially shared his disbelief, but Konoha's intelligence detailed the entire battle sequence.
He said heavily, "Uchiha Haneda knows the First Hokage's summoning technique—the Rashomon Gates..."
The Third Raikage shook his head. Even if the Tailed Beast Bomb had been blocked, the AB duo's reputation wasn't based on that alone.
"That's still impossible! My son can use Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and B is a perfect jinchuriki!"
"Lord Raikage, Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo, and one of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru, were both present..."
Hearing the names Hatake Sakumo and Orochimaru left the Third Raikage stunned. Sakumo's swordsmanship was a natural counter to Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and Orochimaru's summon Manda was comparable to a tailed beast. Combined with over a thousand Frost ninjas and Konoha's support, it was an overwhelming force.
"Damn it! They're bullying us with numbers!" he roared, shattering a glass window in his office with his fist. In a flash, he appeared on the roof of the Raikage Building.
Understanding the Raikage's temper, the Cloud ninjas hurried over to warn him, "Lord Raikage! Lord A and Lord B are held in Konoha's main camp, guarded by at least three thousand Konoha ninjas, with both White Fang and Orochimaru on-site!"
The Third Raikage snorted, temporarily suppressing his rage. But as he made his way back, the thought of it infuriated him further. Were they, the proud Cloud Village, to bow to Konoha?
"Prepare a rescue plan! Even if Konoha has three thousand ninja, White Fang, and Orochimaru, the Cloud Village fears nothing!"
---
In Konoha, the latest battlefield update from the Land of Frost arrived, and the Third Hokage was privately astonished as he read the scroll Orochimaru had personally sent. Haneda had achieved another great success—using nothing but genjutsu and diplomatic savvy, he had resolved the Frost Village's stance in just a quarter of an hour, without any leaks.
The Third Hokage couldn't help but compare Haneda's abilities to those of Minato Namikaze. Even a prodigy like Minato couldn't accomplish such feats at just eleven years old. In both the Sand and Cloud conflicts, Haneda's contributions were exemplary.
However, the Hokage sighed as he considered Haneda's Uchiha lineage. Haneda wasn't like Kagami; he didn't possess Kagami's dedication to the village. The Hokage also noticed a significant problem with his efforts to bring Haneda closer to Konoha's core. Asuma, his own son, seemed to revere Haneda—a dynamic that complicated things.
He lit his pipe and pondered how to leverage the Third Raikage's son and the Eight-Tails jinchuriki to Konoha's advantage. Regardless of his reservations, Haneda had done a great service for Konoha, and that was enough for now.
---
Meanwhile, the intelligence scroll reached Danzo's Root headquarters. Danzo stared in disbelief as he read it.
What kind of joke was this? An Uchiha brat, inherently inclined toward evil, had managed to pull off such a sophisticated strategy, subduing an entire village in just fifteen minutes?
He carefully re-read Haneda's tactics, realizing that despite Haneda's seemingly reckless actions, they were brilliantly calculated. Danzo grew increasingly amazed at Haneda's boldness and cunning. The young Uchiha infiltrated the heart of an enemy stronghold, manipulated their leader with genjutsu, and used Konoha's prestige to test Frost Village's loyalties, ultimately pushing Frost's leaders into opposition against the Hidden Cloud.
Even Danzo, who prided himself on his own tactical acumen, knew he could never pull off such an audacious scheme. If Haneda weren't an Uchiha, a clan he viewed as corrupt by nature, Danzo might even have admired him.
Danzo scoffed as he read that Haneda had summoned the Triple Rashomon to block the Tailed Beast Bomb, thinking, 'See, Hiruzen? The evil Uchiha has grown this powerful! Allow me to…'
But the Root leader stopped himself. He was restricted from deploying Root forces, unable to take action against this burgeoning Uchiha prodigy. Frustration mounted.
---
Across the sea, in the Hidden Mist Village, at Madara Uchiha's base, Black Zetsu hurried back from the Land of Frost and reported, "Lord Madara, it appears that the war between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud may end soon."
"What?" Madara questioned in surprise. According to the plan, the conflict was supposed to last until at least the second half of the year. How could it end so abruptly?
"Lord Madara, Konoha set up a trap in Frost Village. They pretended to send Haneda to negotiate an alliance, which lured the Hidden Cloud into dispatching Raikage's son A and the Eight-Tails jinchuriki, B. Haneda used genjutsu to control Frost's leader, uniting their ranks to oppose the Hidden Cloud."
Madara pictured the scenes from White Zetsu's intel. Although he disdained such tactics, he had to acknowledge the effectiveness of Haneda's genjutsu—nearly as potent as his own back in the day.
Haneda's performance in battle wasn't bad either, having even learned Hashirama's Rashomon summoning to block a Tailed Beast Bomb. Memories of the Valley of the End battle flooded back to Madara. He remembered how Hashirama had once summoned Rashomon to shield against Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb.
"Haneda has grown," Madara remarked. "But he's disrupting my plans."
Remembering Hashirama's words about sacrifice for the greater good, Madara murmured, "Send Hidden Cloud's forces to retrieve their captured comrades. The plan continues."