"Damn, I walked right into your trap."
Shukaku finally realized what had happened.
Instead of using its perfectly suited desert body, it had been foolishly locked in close combat with this wild dog—wasn't that just asking for trouble?
"Wind Release—"
Before Shukaku could finish,
"Fang Passing Fang."
Eimaru and Ryoha instantly turned into a whirlwind, smashing Shukaku's head apart and reducing it to a pile of sand.
"Damn it, Wind Release—"
"Fang Passing Fang."
The scene repeated itself.
"With such a huge opening after your attacks, do you really think no one can take advantage of it? And I'm really curious—can your desert body be used indefinitely, or does it have a limit that no one's ever pushed before?"
Inuzuka Ryoha said excitedly.
"Die! Sand Burial!"
Shukaku whipped up a storm of sand, its form gradually dispersing.
"Two-Headed Wolf."
After transforming, Inuzuka Ryoha began playing a game of hide-and-seek with Shukaku.
...
"Tch, those Cloud Village bastards are relentless. Over two thousand of them chasing us nonstop, day and night."
Hyūga Hiyasu spat on the ground, his Byakugan constantly active.
Those Cloud ninjas were insanely persistent, like they'd gone mad.
They only had about a hundred people, yet the Cloud Village had sent over two thousand—twenty times their numbers.
The pressure was immense.
Several times, they had only managed to escape thanks to Namikaze Minato's group Flying Thunder God.
"Hiyasu, how is it? Do we have a next plan? If not, after another day of travel, I can take everyone back to camp."
After resting, Namikaze Minato's Flying Thunder God had cooled down.
They were ready to move freely again.
"Minato, before it was possible, but now it's not. If we go back, those Cloud ninjas tailing us will follow too. Two thousand of them—by then, Shikaku would be facing at least double his own forces, plus the Third Raikage. We wouldn't stand a chance. And we can't retreat either—going back just means dying together."
Hyūga Hiyasu said.
I'm a perfect support…
…but there are just too many enemies.
One plus one can be greater than two, even three.
But it can't surpass a thousand, two thousand, ten thousand.
"Minato, what if we go capture the Daimyō? Capture the leader first—he's at least a nominal ruler, right?"
Hyūga Hiyasu suggested wildly.
"Probably useless. Based on our intel, the Third Raikage might use that as an excuse to attack Konoha even more fiercely. Other factions in the Land of Lightning might also join in. And targeting a Daimyō would have terrible consequences—the Daimyō of other countries, as well as the Fire Daimyō, might all hold Konoha accountable."
Minato refuted.
First, it might not work. Second, the consequences would be too severe.
"Damn it, so we're just supposed to keep running like this?"
Hyūga Hiyasu slammed the ground in frustration.
"Let's keep moving. If the Cloud ninjas catch us, it'll be a huge hassle again."
"Alright—but where do we go?"
"How would I know? We run wherever there aren't any Cloud ninjas."
Under Hyūga Hiyasu's lead, they also started playing hide-and-seek with the Cloud ninjas.
??? You guys are playing hide-and-seek too?
...
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Damn it, it's the Uchiha! Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
"Ah!"
"Naiko!!"
The battle ended.
The Stone Village lost a young female ninja.
Konoha suffered no casualties.
"Heavenly Lightning."
A bolt of lightning suddenly struck, reducing a Stone ninja to ashes.
"Damn it, it's the Kurama clan! Where exactly are they hiding?"
"Underground—they must be underground! Everyone, follow me!"
"Earth Release: Earth Core!"
"Earth Release: Earth Core!"
This time, instead of raising terrain, the ground split into deep fissures.
The Stone ninjas rushed forward to investigate.
A swarm of black insects burst out.
They quickly latched onto nearby targets—and self-destructed.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Two Stone ninjas were killed instantly before they could react.
The rest were left disheveled and shaken.
"Damn it, the Aburame again! The Aburame clan is on this battlefield too—report to the Tsuchikage immediately!"
"Yes!"
These small-scale attacks kept happening all around the Stone forces.
Enemies appeared and vanished unpredictably—like a game of hide-and-seek.
When did it start?
It seemed to have begun when the Stone forces entered the Land of Grass.
"Tsuchikage-sama, bad news! The Konoha forces include the Aburame clan!"
"What?!"
Ōnoki instantly became alert and examined the map.
"Damn it… our current route is exactly the same as six years ago. We're walking straight into a trap the Aburame clan set for us back then."
"Tsuchikage-sama, that can't be possible. This is the Land of Grass—how could the Aburame clan maintain a trap here for six whole years?"
Kitsuchi was in disbelief.
Since when did ninja wars start being planned six years in advance? The ninja world was becoming unrecognizable.
"What's impossible about it? Does the Land of Grass have the guts to stop Konoha? Fortunately… we discovered it in time."
Ōnoki let out a long breath.
If he had fallen into a six-year-old trap now, he wouldn't rest in peace even in death.
"Kitsuchi, what about intel from the other battlefields?"
"Oh, here it is."
"The Cloud Village is confronting Konoha, currently focusing on chasing a Konoha squad deep inside their territory?"
Ōnoki frowned—not questioning the strategy, but thinking:
If Konoha sent a similar suicide squad into the Land of Earth, what should he do?
Why call it a suicide squad?
Because sending just a hundred people deep into enemy territory was basically courting death.
"Kitsuchi, form an emergency reconnaissance unit in the village."
"Yes, I'll organize a team to monitor Konoha's positions around the clock."
"No. This unit will monitor the interior of the Land of Earth."
"Huh? …Understood."
Though confused, Kitsuchi obeyed.
Ōnoki continued reviewing the reports.
"The Sand Village is at a stalemate with Konoha."
If not for the sudden disappearance of the Third Kazekage, the Sand Village would have been the strongest factor to break the deadlock.
Shimura Danzō… could it be you again?
Shimura Danzō: How many times do I have to say it? That has nothing to do with me.
"The Mist Village has declared war. They're slower to act this time."
"But where exactly is the key to breaking this stalemate?"
Ōnoki frowned deeply.
Four great ninja villages besieging Konoha, yet everything remained balanced.
In the previous two wars, the early stalemate had given Konoha the chance to turn things around.
Were they really going to repeat the same mistake again and again?
Should they deploy the tailed beasts?
Wait—
tailed beasts.
The ninja world wasn't limited to just the five great villages having them.
"Kitsuchi, lead the troops back to the Land of Earth's border. I'll be leaving for a while. Until I return, do not launch any attacks."
"Huh? We're retreating again?"
"This time we're not withdrawing from the war—just finding the Stone Village some 'help'… or cannon fodder."
"Yes!"
This time, Kitsuchi responded with enthusiasm.
As long as they weren't withdrawing from the war again.
If they retreated again, the nickname "Stone Village runners" would become permanent.
After all, in the ninja world, reputation mattered.