After Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi issued the order, the entire Konoha immediately entered a tense state of war readiness. Ninja from various clans began preparing the Ninja tools needed for war.
War… Chiriu's heart felt heavy as he organized his Ninja tools. He wasn't worried that President Qinghe from White Snake Pharmaceutical Technology Company wouldn't know what was happening, but the thought of himself and his clansmen soon going to the battlefield filled him with fear and unease.
His emotions were widespread in Konoha at this moment. Ninja who had participated in the last war weren't feeling any better. The peace achieved with so much bloodshed had only lasted for just over ten years.
Thinking of the close friends who died in the war, their hearts were filled with more hatred for Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure, who had caused the war.
Why destroy the hard-won peace?
Konoha's Jonin, Chunin, and Genin gathered together, forming three large units, which were then divided into several smaller squads.
The three large units headed west to intercept the Sunagakure unit, north to intercept the Iwagakure unit, and east to intercept the Kumogakure unit.
Land of Rain.
After two years of development, the Land of Rain had no other Village besides Hidden Rain Village. People had built two towns centered around the White Snake Battery Factory and the White Snake Hub Town.
Almost all the people of the Land of Rain lived in these two towns, with only a small portion living in Hidden Rain Village.
Most of the Ninja from Hidden Rain Village worked at the White Snake Battery Factory, earning a very considerable income each month. They only needed to expend a certain amount of Chakra each day; their job was to inject Chakra into Chakra Batteries.
There were very strict patrol personnel in the factory who did not allow employees to overwork. Excessive Chakra consumption could lead to death.
Initially, many people, full of enthusiasm, consumed too much Chakra and ended up in the factory's hospital.
Many Ninja also chose to become members of the Police Department, maintaining public order in White Snake Electric Town and White Snake Hub Town. With their Ninja skills, catching petty thieves was incredibly easy.
Hidden Rain Village had gradually become a Ninja Academy for cultivating new blood, with not all functions fully developed.
Hanzo, as the leader of the Land of Rain, felt conflicted about this. Considering the situation in the Land of Rain, he was already very satisfied that people had the lives they did now.
However, the recent actions of Sunagakure and Iwagakure made him nervous again.
What exactly did these great Various Ninja Villages want to do?
Hanzo looked at the intelligence the Ninja had desperately gathered, and his mood sank to rock bottom. The lives of the people in the Land of Rain had just started to improve; were they going to… Recalling the former lives of the people of the Land of Rain, Hanzo clenched his fists, heavy breathing escaping from his mask.
No matter what, he had to protect everything that had been hard-won!
Hanzo quickly walked out, got into a black car, the authentication key appeared in his hand, started the engine, which roared to life. He floored the accelerator, and the black car shot out like an arrow from a bow!
However, Hanzo's location was a hundred meters above the ground. As the black car fell, Wind Release Chakra sprayed from its chassis!
A faint popping sound rang out, and the entire car flew through the air, moving incredibly fast with Wind Release Chakra flowing over its body, heading towards the outskirts of Hidden Rain Village.
Pedestrians and Ninja on the street, holding umbrellas, watched the black car disappear in the blink of an eye, their eyes filled with curiosity and envy.
Everyone knew that Lord Hanzo's black car was given to him by White Snake Pharmaceutical Technology Company. It had many more features than a small truck and could fly for longer!
Land of Waves, White Snake Pharmaceutical Technology Company.
"Are Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure planning to attack Konoha? Then what about the other operation?"
In the President's office, Kakuzu looked at the scroll in his hand, frowning. This war started too suddenly; the three Various Ninja Villages seemed to have agreed upon it long ago.
"According to the intelligence we've gathered, at least a hundred elite Ninja are approaching Uzushiogakure."
Setsuryu said with a solemn expression. The actions of the Various Ninja Villages had always been under the company's surveillance.
This time was no exception; even the company discovered that various Various Ninja Villages had dispatched elite Ninja to secretly go to Uzushiogakure in Land of Whirlpools.
"Could it be… that Uzushiogakure is their true target?"
Kakuzu thought of Hidden Mist, which had not participated in the attack on Konoha but had also sent elite Ninja to Land of Whirlpools. "Do they want to eliminate Konoha's generational ally in this way, or is it for the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Technique?"
Kakuzu had personally experienced the Sealing Technique performed by Orochimaru. Even now, he couldn't forget the feeling of powerlessness when bound by the Sealing Technique.
But for just a Sealing Technique, there was no need for the Various Ninja Villages to create such a large commotion, just to destroy Uzushiogakure, right?
Ryūchi Cave.
In the current Great Snake's nest, only Manda, Blue Snake, and Shinza were still willing to conduct combat training with Orochimaru. Other great snakes would flee faster than the last when they saw Orochimaru, their bodies wriggling several times faster than usual, fearing that if they ran too slowly, she would catch them to be her sparring partners.
Even White Snake Sage couldn't help but marvel. Something no one had ever accomplished was achieved by this little girl, Orochimaru. The great snakes in the Great Snake's nest reacted to Orochimaru as if she were a natural predator.
"That's enough!"
Orochimaru dodged Shinza and Blue Snake's attacks one after another. Memories from her Shadow Clone flooded her mind, and she had no desire to continue.
Shinza loudly scoffed, "What? Are you tired already?"
"Lord Orochimaru, did something happen?"
Blue Snake observed the change in Orochimaru's expression.
"Something has happened in the outside world."
Orochimaru landed on the ground. She had already understood the situation outside.
However, the actions of the three Various Ninja Villages, in her opinion, were a bit… more like deliberately attracting Konoha's attention, and the simultaneous actions of the three Various Ninja Villages were clearly coordinated.
In this way, to attract Konoha's attention and forces… attacking a small country like Uzushiogakure would not require sending a large number of Ninja; only the most elite Jonin would be enough, and the operation against Uzushiogakure could be completed in a very short time.
If that were truly the case, then Uzushiogakure would be in danger.
The Sky Ninja hadn't shown up for a long time either. If Konoha sent troops to meet the enemy, and the Sky Ninja took the opportunity to attack Konoha… then Konoha would not have time to support Uzushiogakure. If they couldn't even take care of themselves, how could they help Uzushiogakure?
It seems I must go to Uzushiogakure as soon as possible!
"Orochimaru, what's wrong?"
Ichikishimahime's figure appeared behind Orochimaru, affectionately wrapping her arm around her shoulder, looking at the rare solemn expression on her face.
"I have something important that forces me to end my training at Ryūchi Cave."
Orochimaru knew very well that she didn't have much time to waste.
---
Just as Orochimaru thought, the actions of the three Various Ninja Villages were merely to distract Konoha, leaving Konoha no time to deal with Uzushiogakure. Among the several thousand Ninja troops, only a few Jonin led them. Their mission was not to fight Konoha's Ninja but to attract attention at the Land of Fire's border.
The units of the three Various Ninja Villages all did this, solely to attract Konoha's attention.
Konoha's units quickly discovered something was amiss. Thousands of Ninja had arrived menacingly, but they had no intention of fighting. The Ninja of the Akimichi Clan had already prepared to let the Ninja World know the strength of the Akimichi Clan.
As a result, the enemy just stayed at the Land of Fire's border, showing no intention of attacking, and even greeted them with interest.
Whether it was Kumogakure, Iwagakure, or Sunagakure, the units of the three Various Ninja Villages all did this, completely baffling Konoha's forces, who for a time couldn't figure out why the three Various Ninja Villages were doing this.
The news quickly returned to Konoha.
"Could it be…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi thought of Hidden Mist, which had been quiet, and then of Uzushiogakure.
Uzushiogakure was their target?
Had the intelligence about Lady Mito being the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki leaked?
Just then, a huge shadow appeared overhead—it was the Sky Ninja's Air Fortress!
"What is that…?"
People on the streets stopped, looking up at the shadow in the sky, their faces filled with horror.
This feeling is… Senju Residence. Uzumaki Mito felt the same Chakra as the Nine-Tailed sealed within her. There was no doubt it was the Nine-Tailed's Chakra.
A large number of Sky Ninja flew out of the fortress in formation, like hornets swarming out of a hive!
Boom, boom, boom—!
The Sky Ninja attacked Konoha from the air, dropping exploding tags bombs like bombers. Explosions rang out one after another, and smoke and fire soared into the sky.
In the operations command room, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, Utatane Koharu, and Homura Mitokado were directing Konoha's forces in battle. When necessary, they would also personally go to the battlefield.
"What's with the explosions? Are we under attack?"
"It's the Sky Ninja! The Sky Ninja's base is directly above Konoha!"
The voice of Yamanaka Kawahara, the head of the Yamanaka Clan, echoed in the four people's minds, with a slight tremor.
"What?!"
Danzo Shimura abruptly stood up. He had searched for the Sky Ninja countless times and never expected these flies to attack Konoha at such a time.
"Evacuate the civilians to shelters! Eliminate the Sky Ninja attacking Konoha! And most importantly, find the Sky Ninja's base!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi could no longer suppress the rage in his heart. The Chakra erupting from him transformed into a fierce gale, smashing the conference table with a punch. He rose and walked out.
"Koharu, Homura, Danzo, let's go!"
The sudden attack by the Sky Ninja threw Konoha into chaos. Some members of the Uchiha Military Police Force who remained in Konoha immediately engaged the Sky Ninja, all using Fire Release to attack them.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
The Sky Ninja in the air dodged the continuous Fire Release attacks. Even with the aerial advantage, many Sky Ninja were shot down by the Fire Release.
The Ninja who remained in Konoha and could not go to the front lines to fight the enemy, as well as Ninja from various Ninja clans, also began to engage the Sky Ninja and evacuate civilians to safety.
"Go! Adamantine Staff!"
Members of the Sarutobi Clan threw their summoned beast, the monkey transformed into the Adamantine Staff, which spun in the air, striking down one Sky Ninja after another.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!"
The Shimura Clan members simultaneously unleashed Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere, continuously firing bullet-like Wind Release Chakra from their mouths like machine guns, causing the Sky Ninja to fall from the sky one after another, riddled with holes.
Large Chimera Bugs flew in the air, swinging their massive pincers and continuously striking with their scorpion tails, attacking the Sky Ninja assailing Konoha.
Numerous Kikaichu swirled around the Chimera Bugs, protecting them.
The Hyuga Clan members were stumped watching the Sky Ninja flying in the air; at this moment, besides throwing Kunai and shuriken, they couldn't even touch the enemy, which was incredibly frustrating.
The powerful Hyuga Clan Ninja who had mastered Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm had all gone to the front lines with the troops, leaving behind Chunin and Genin in Konoha whose strength wasn't considered too great, with not a single Jonin among them.
"Smoke Dragon Technique—!"
Five Iburi Clan Ninja formed hand signs, their smoke forms merging together to become a giant smoke dragon that shot down a small Sky Ninja airship!
The smoke dragon twisted its body and let out a roar, charging towards the Sky Ninja; the Kunai fired by the Sky Ninja's firearms passed through the smoke dragon's body, unable to cause it any damage.
"Multi-Size Technique!"
The Akimichi Clan Ninja's hands became incredibly large, and he swung them to strike the Sky Ninja in the air.
"Mind Body Disturbance Technique!"
The Yamanaka Clan Ninja formed hand signs, and several Sky Ninja found their bodies losing control, crashing into their comrades!
"Sharingan!"
Uchiha En, standing on a rooftop, activated his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, using the Sharingan's genjutsu to control the Sky Ninja the moment they attacked.
"What..."
"Witness the power of the Uchiha! In front of these eyes, feel your own helplessness!"
Uchiha En jumped onto the Sky Ninja's back, manipulating this Sky Ninja with genjutsu to fly him around, making it easier for him to attack other Sky Ninja.
The Uchiha Clan Ninja who had awakened their Sharingan and mastered Sharingan genjutsu, along with members of the Uchiha Military Police Force, followed suit, controlling Sky Ninja to serve as their personal flying mounts.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and his companions arrived at the top of the Hokage Building and saw the massive Air Fortress, their faces filled with horror.
"How can it be so huge..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared in shock at the Sky Ninja's Air Fortress that had appeared above Konoha.
"Is this... the Sky Ninja's base?"
Danzo Shimura finally understood why he couldn't find the Sky Ninja's base; who would have thought the Sky Ninja's base would be such an outrageous Air Fortress?
"We must find a way to stop this fortress!"
Utatane Koharu said gravely after a brief moment of shock; if there were any weapons inside this fortress, it would be disastrous.
"Should we use the Four Red Yang Formation?"
Homura Mitokado said seriously; in the current situation, there was no other way but to restrict this fortress. They could only use the Four Red Yang Formation to contain this giant Air Fortress, but once they used it, they would be stuck in place maintaining it.
"Summoning Technique!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi bit his thumb and slammed his hand on the ground; in a puff of smoke, the strong and youthful Monkey King Enma appeared.
"Enma, transform into an adamantine staff!"
"Understood! Transform!"
Enma saw the situation in Konoha and didn't ask further, transforming into an adamantine staff and landing in Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand.
"Danzo! Koharu! En! Assist me!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi did not want this dangerous Air Fortress to remain in the Village.
No, what are you trying to do?!
The adamantine staff opened one eye, looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi in shock, realizing what Hiruzen Sarutobi intended to do with him.
"Extend! adamantine staff!"
Enma heard Hiruzen Sarutobi's words and could only brace himself.
While worried that his indestructible body would become fragile, there was also a greater sense of excitement!
Enma, in his prime, feared no challenge!
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