Fourth Raikage fell into silence once more, this time in shock and doubt. He looked down at the deciphered text, and his feelings were completely different from the first reading.
Only a bone chilling awe and fear remained. These words were written across a span far beyond the rise and fall of humanity in Ninja World, measured in thousands of years or more.
Behind those dark, lost, and unknown legends and histories, the shadow of that existence loomed faintly, vast enough to seem to cover the entire civilization of Ninja World. Viewing the universe as a nursery, feeding on planets, transcending life and death as an Outsider, and wielding power where a single drop of blood could devastate a region.
Even titles like god or sage could not fully describe the scale of such power. That heavy presence from the unknown had not been washed away by a thousand years of history, and could still be felt through scattered words.
"So that means," Fourth Raikage murmured after a long silence, "that underground palace was left by an existence stronger than Sage of Six Paths?"
"What lies inside?" he continued. "Ancient secrets, divine weapons he forged, techniques he left behind, or even the remains left after his 'death'?"
His voice grew deeper and more forceful, each word striking the hearts of those present. By the end, his gaze was unfathomable, and the pressure rising from his body weighed heavily on the room.
"Send word," he said without hesitation. "Tell the two Yugito Nii to put the surprise attack on Konoha on hold. No matter what it takes, open that door for me."
"No. That is not enough."
Before anyone could react, Fourth Raikage stood up abruptly, his towering figure casting a massive shadow. Lightning Release Chakra surged unconsciously around him, faint arcs of electricity crackling in the air.
Crack. His clenched fist sounded as he said in a low voice, "I will go myself."
The usually cautious Mabui opened her mouth, but no words of persuasion came. In the eyes of Fourth Raikage and all of Kumogakure, the first, second, and even the Third Shinobi World War losses to the Konoha Root had a single root cause.
It was not that Kumogakure Ninja lacked talent compared to Konoha Ninja, nor that they were less united. It was because they did not have the same depth of Ninjutsu as Konoha.
This belief had become an obsession throughout Kumogakure. That was why they secretly bullied the weak and used numbers to seize Ninjutsu everywhere, until it even reached the point where Fourth Raikage personally stole secret techniques from the Land of Cedar.
If that underground palace truly held a legacy left by such an existence, even if it was not secret techniques or Ninjutsu, a treasure like the Six Paths Ninja Tools would be enough to move them. It was a possibility that could change the future of Kumogakure.
"Mabui," Fourth Raikage said as he turned to her. "Have Killer B guard the village. Everything discussed here today must not be leaked in the slightest."
As he spoke, no one noticed a flicker in the eyes of someone standing behind the bespectacled ninja. Mabui bowed slightly.
"Yes, Raikage-sama. Please rest assured," she replied. "And please, you must be sure to…"
Boom.
Before she could finish, Fourth Raikage turned and smashed through the wall with a single punch, then leapt straight down. Mabui looked up at the gaping hole in the wall and the crushed desk, raised a hand to cover her face, and her mouth twitched helplessly.
After a moment, she let out a long breath. Alongside a rising sense of anticipation, an inexplicable unease welled up inside her.
She quickly forced it down and returned to a calm expression. With Raikage acting personally, and the two Yugito Nii as Two-Tails Jinchuriki, nothing should go wrong.
"May everything go smoothly," she murmured as she watched the lightning flash disappear into the distance.
"Yugito Nii, are you ready?"
At the border where Land of Moon meets Land of Hot Water, Yugito Nii, as the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, led the Kumogakure Ninja as they circled behind and stood on tree branches, watching the distant camp with their eyes fixed forward. Because they feared being spotted by the Konoha Hyuga Clan, they kept a very long distance from the enemy position. From this range, normal Ninjutsu could not affect the camp at all, unless one used Tailed Beast Ball to cause massive damage.
However, Yugito Nii still could not reach the level of full transformation like Killer B. With only partial control over the Tailed Beasts, she was unable to use Tailed Beast Ball at present. It was almost ironic, since she had become the Two-Tails jinchuriki at the age of two and kept training despite being disliked in Kumogakure. Yet she had still been surpassed by Killer B, who became the Eight-Tails jinchuriki later.
Even so, their goal here was not to wipe out the Konoha camp in one strike with Tailed Beast Ball. That kind of operation was unrealistic from the start. Their plan was meant to weaken the enemy without revealing their full strength.
"Fire Rat Ball."
Standing on the tree, Yugito Nii raised her hand and formed seals, then spat out rat shaped flames wrapped in the Two-Tails's Chakra. When they hit the ground, the flames silently split into several fire rats. The fire rats moved at extreme speed, leaving blue afterimages as they rushed forward.
Under Yugito Nii's control through the Two-Tails's Chakra, these fire rats would head straight for the warehouses of Konoha and burn them down without a sound. Thanks to the nature of the Two-Tails's Chakra, the flames would not be extinguished by Water Release before their energy was fully consumed. Once ignited, the destruction would be difficult to stop.
"Scatter!"
At the command, the other members of the Kumogakure Ninja dispersed at once, preparing to coordinate with Yugito Nii for the next wave of attacks. This would both draw the attention of the Konoha Ninja and provide cover, while also setting up a follow up strike once the warehouses caught fire. If everything went as planned, the chaos would tilt the battlefield in their favor.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had taken the initiative by declaring war and quickly uniting the clans to deploy forces, pushing the battlefield closer to Land of Moon on the edge of the Land of Lightning. From the border of the Land of Lightning, one could almost see the Konoha camp directly, which was why Fourth Raikage had been scolded by the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning. No one expected Hiruzen Sarutobi to act so decisively, catching Raikage and Kumogakure completely off guard.
The drawback, however, was that Konoha had stretched its supply lines much farther. If the supplies stored in the camp were burned down, Kumogakure could switch from defense to offense before reinforcements arrived and push the battlefield back. This was the opportunity they were waiting for.
Just as the Kumogakure forces spread out, a sharp cry suddenly rang out. The piercing screech of an eagle echoed through the air, and everyone instinctively stopped and looked up. An eagle circled above them, then released a Scroll from its talons.
Yugito Nii flashed forward to catch it and frowned after opening it and reading the contents. Land of Hot Water? Underground Palace? None of this made immediate sense to her. The message was unexpected and confusing.
"An order from Raikage." She looked up at the other Kumogakure Ninja and spoke. "This operation is suspended. The mission target has changed, and I will explain on the way."
She raised her hand and extinguished the fire rats that had already rushed out, then led the group toward the direction indicated in the Scroll. The others were puzzled, but they followed without hesitation. Orders from above were not something they questioned in the field.
At the same time, inside the Konoha camp in Land of Moon, within Jiraiya's tent. A puff of white smoke burst out as a toad appeared in front of him, croaking its report. The information made Jiraiya frown.
"Call them back," Jiraiya said as he turned to a member of the Yamanaka Clan nearby.
"What happened?" Kakashi Hatake asked with curiosity. "Didn't we spot Kumogakure Ninja activity in the rear?"
"It was the Kumogakure Two-Tails Jinchuriki," Jiraiya replied, his expression heavy and confused. "But they suddenly withdrew just now."
With Mount Myoboku as his support, Jiraiya's eyes were not limited to the Konoha ninja alone. Even ordinary toads served as his scouts. Small moves by Kumogakure rarely escaped his notice.
He had already set up an ambush by playing along, yet the Kumogakure forces abruptly aborted their mission for no clear reason. This left him unsettled.
"Did they notice us?" the Yamanaka Clan liaison asked after opening his eyes.
"…Probably not," Jiraiya said after a moment of thought, shaking his head. "According to the toads, they stopped because they received orders."
At that moment, Ryuji Hyuga, who had been standing silently behind Kakashi Hatake, suddenly spoke. "Which direction did they leave in?"
Kakashi Hatake's expression changed slightly, as if he had realized something. After questioning the toad, Jiraiya also understood.
"South," he said in surprise. "Land of Hot Water? They actually changed their target to Land of Hot Water?"