Naruto: Training is My Ninja Way
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The Leaf forward camp in the Land of Rivers felt unusually tense inside the main command tent. Jiraiya, Minato, and Shikaku were already there when Taiichi burst in, his face tight with worry.
"Sensei, have you heard the rumors they're spreading about me?" Taiichi asked without preamble. "The whole 'White Death' thing—Sand's letting their teams abandon missions the second they spot me. That's not normal. It feels like a setup."
Minato raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth twitching. "White Death? Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue for you, does it?"
Jiraiya chuckled but quickly sobered when he saw Taiichi wasn't joking. "I had people look into it. Rasa really did give that order. But it's probably just them trying to save face after you kept wrecking their supply lines. Nothing deeper."
Taiichi shook his head. "It spread too fast. Sand is pushing this on purpose. They want every other village gunning for me so they don't have to deal with me themselves."
Jiraiya and Shikaku exchanged a glance. The kid had a point. Sand's "praise him to death" tactic was classic—make him famous enough that every other Kage wanted his head. Still, they couldn't exactly call Sand out on it without looking paranoid.
"I'll have the rumor clamped down inside camp," Jiraiya said with a sigh. "No more gossip about you or Minato. Happy?"
Taiichi nodded, though the knot in his stomach didn't fully loosen. "Good. Then I'm heading back out. My last mission isn't finished."
Minato clapped him on the shoulder. "Come on. I'll walk you over. I want to check on Kakashi's team anyway."
They stepped outside into the cool evening air. Taiichi's chakra sensing flared for a second, picking up familiar signatures near the training grove. Kakashi, Obito, and Rin were all there—each running multiple shadow clones in a brutal grind session.
Obito had two clones working on Fire Style while his real body drilled taijutsu. Kakashi and Rin moved in sync, practicing ninjutsu combinations. The sight made Minato's smile soften with pride.
"Looks like they're finally taking things seriously," Minato murmured. Then he called out, "Rin! Your shadow clone's coming with Taiichi. He's going to teach you proper medical ninjutsu. The rest of you, with me."
Rin's real body flushed but nodded eagerly. "Thank you, Taiichi."
Taiichi gave her a small smile. "Just don't expect it to be easy. War doesn't wait for anyone."
He left one shadow clone behind to guide Rin while his real body used Flying Thunder God to vanish toward Wind Country. The front lines were quiet for now, but that wouldn't last. Sand was still licking its wounds, and Taiichi had every intention of keeping the pressure on.
Far across the ninja world, in the Raikage's office in Kumogakure, the atmosphere was anything but quiet.
The Third Raikage stood shirtless, casually curling a massive dumbbell with one hand while his secretary, Karui, gave her report.
"The strike force is ready, Lord Raikage. We sail at dawn."
"Good," the Raikage grunted, switching arms. "Those Sand rats have been bleeding us dry with their mineral prices for years. Time to remind them who really owns the desert."
Karui hesitated. "The intel from the survivors who escaped Wind Country… that unknown ninja who wiped out our teams. Shouldn't we confirm whether he's still active before we commit so many forces?"
The Raikage barked a laugh. "A and Killer B will handle anything that comes up. If they can't beat him, they'll at least bring back useful information. Sand's too busy fighting Leaf to waste their best people on rear security anyway."
He dropped the dumbbell with a heavy thud that shook the floor.
"Send the order. New AB combo leads the raid. Hit their supply lines, steal what we can, and burn the rest. If we weaken Sand now, when the real war for the Land of Fire starts, they'll have nothing left to fight with."
Karui bowed and left to carry out the command. Within hours, a powerful strike force assembled at Kumogakure's coastal city. The new generation AB combo—A and Killer B—stood at the head, their chakra already crackling with anticipation.
They boarded the waiting ships under cover of night. The voyage across the sea would take nearly two weeks, but the payoff was worth it. Plunder Wind Country's rare ores, destroy their logistics, and leave Sand crippled for the final scramble over Konoha's fertile lands.
The Third Great Ninja War was about to get a whole lot bloodier—and Cloud was more than happy to fan the flames from the shadows.