The Konoha forces that had swiftly withdrawn from the battlefield regrouped.
Uchiha Kamito brought Senju Hideki to find Tsunade.
"Tsunade-sama, our plan has changed. The Four-Tails has appeared—Hidden Stone Village has deployed a jinchūriki in this war."
"What? Hidden Stone Village can already send jinchūriki onto the battlefield?"
Tsunade was startled.
She had seen Senju Hideki and Uchiha Kamito work together to alter the outcome of the great flood attack, but she didn't know what happened afterward.
All her attention had been focused on when a certain "little old man" would appear in the sky.
"It's Lava Release—magma. That kind of ability belongs only to the Four-Tails," Uchiha Kamito said.
"Damn it… Hidden Stone Village actually dares to use a tailed beast. Aren't they afraid of being condemned by the entire shinobi world?"
Tsunade gritted her teeth.
"Whether they're afraid or not doesn't matter. What matters is that our strategy has to change. Leaving aside the destructive power of a tailed beast, just the power of lava alone is something our forces can't withstand. Unless we can deal with the Four-Tails, the more troops we have, the worse our chances become. And besides, Hidden Stone Village doesn't only have the Four-Tails—the Five-Tails' ability to break formations is unmatched in the shinobi world."
Uchiha Kamito analyzed calmly.
"Kamito, tell me your plan."
Tsunade naturally wouldn't hand over all decision-making authority to him.
She wasn't like Jiraiya.
Jiraiya had no understanding of tactics or strategy at all.
Tsunade, on the other hand, was just lazy—she didn't want to deal with it. But when things became critical, she would definitely step up and take responsibility.
"The most suitable strategy against Hidden Stone Village right now is still the one used in the Second Great Ninja War—Aburame Shiken's method. Pull them in and fight. Use the nearly 700 kilometers of the Land of Fire to constantly harass them. We have over five thousand shinobi—scatter them like sesame seeds. If you can throw a kunai, throw it. If you can throw an Explosive Tag, throw it. Kill one and it's a huge profit; injure one and we lose nothing."
"In short, the idea is to make those 700 kilometers an absolute nightmare for Hidden Stone Village to march through."
Uchiha Kamito laid out his thoughts.
"No. You're using the lives of Konoha's shinobi to delay their advance. I will never allow a strategy that treats our comrades as expendable."
Tsunade rejected it sharply.
As expected, not everyone has the resolve to use such a tactic.
A trace of memory flickered through Uchiha Kamito's mind.
"Tsunade-sama, Aburame Shiken stayed here for a long time before. He must have left some preparations behind. Should we recall him from Konoha?"
"Agreed. I'll write the requisition order right away."
...
On the Hidden Stone Village's side,
The Four-Tails' jinchūriki, who had just rescued a large number of Iwa shinobi, did not receive flowers or applause.
"Outrageous, Rōshi! Who allowed you to act on your own? Do you know that because of your appearance, Konoha's forces have completely withdrawn from the Land of Grass? Our entire plan is ruined!"
Ōnoki roared in anger.
"I saved no fewer than two thousand Iwa shinobi," Rōshi replied.
"Hmph. Two thousand? It was just a flood—do you really think they would all die? Since when did our shinobi become mud dolls that collapse at the first rush of water? At most, we would have lost a few hundred. Trading a few hundred casualties for Konoha's carelessness—wasn't that a huge gain?"
Ōnoki said coldly.
"Bullshit! Every single life of an Iwa shinobi is precious. How can they be sacrificed for your so-called clever plan?"
Rōshi slammed the table, his eyes burning with fury.
"Fine. Let's say you saved two thousand. But now that Konoha is on high alert, it will undoubtedly cause us even greater losses later. When that happens, the casualties may far exceed those two thousand. All those extra deaths will be on your head, Rōshi."
Ōnoki and the Four-Tails' jinchūriki stood at odds, their confrontation sharp as drawn blades.
In the end, they parted on bad terms.
After everyone left, Ōnoki collapsed weakly into his chair.
"Tsuchikage-sama, Rōshi only acted to save people. At his core, he did it for Hidden Stone Village," Kitsuchi stepped forward and said.
"Kitsuchi, do you also agree with his actions?"
Kitsuchi knew what his father wanted to hear—but he couldn't betray his own conscience.
"Yes. I think Rōshi did nothing wrong."
"That's exactly why, Kitsuchi, I haven't handed you the position of Tsuchikage. A good leader loves his ninja like his own children; a great leader treats all things as pieces on a board. Sacrificing a few smaller pieces for greater gains—such a simple truth, yet no one in Hidden Stone Village can do it."
Ōnoki sounded exhausted.
Unity, kindness, harmony—
All of that was good.
But a village couldn't be made up entirely of good people.
Ōnoki sighed repeatedly.
"If Rōshi had appeared behind Konoha's lines during our drawn-out war, and coordinated with Han's formation-breaking power from the front, how could Konoha not be defeated? But now that Rōshi has been exposed, Konoha will never fight us head-on again."
Their chance to decide the war in a single battle was gone.
...
Cough, cough…
Uchiha Madara awakened from the darkness, his consciousness returning slowly.
"Black Zetsu."
"Madara-sama."
"What's the situation in the shinobi world now?"
"Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Stone Village have already gone to war with Konoha. Hidden Sand Village has also declared war—they should start fighting within a few days."
"So it's already come to this… Notify Hidden Mist Village. Have them begin as well."
"Madara-sama, there may be a change. Over in Hidden Mist Village, someone seems to be organizing resistance against your puppet."
"Useless. They can't even fully control a mere Hidden Mist Village."
"Forget it. It's just one more puppet."
Uchiha Madara stood up.
After fusing with a White Zetsu, he set off toward Hidden Mist Village.
...
The next day,
Hidden Mist Village officially declared war on Konoha.
As expected of me, Madara—efficiency at its finest.
That side moved quickly,
Which only made things more painful for Konoha.
Mitokado Homura looked at the intelligence report in his hand.
Of course.
Of course…
I still can't escape this.
The Daimyō's court—I have to go again.
"Ha… hahaha… hahahahaha! The shinobi world is truly too interesting."
Utatane Koharu shook Mitokado Homura frantically.
"Homura, no! Don't! Snap out of it!"
Koharu, you don't understand. This is my greatest rebellion against life.
You'll never understand what it feels like—to work so hard, yet have more work piling up endlessly. Just let me die… let me escape this hell.
...
While Utatane Koharu tried to comfort the mentally collapsing Mitokado Homura,
Elsewhere—
"Danzō, you'll take command this time."
"Fine. But I'll be bringing the Aburame clan."
"The Aburame clan has always been deeply hidden. Be careful."
"It doesn't matter. After Aburame Shiken dies, Aburame Tatsuma will become the new clan head."
...
In a corner of Konoha,
Aburame Tatsuma encountered the person he least wanted to see—
Aburame Shiken.