At the border between the Land of Earth and the Land of Grass.
The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, was flipping through the intelligence reports in his hand and said, “So, the commander of the Konoha ninja army facing us is Danzo?”
Akatsuchi, standing beside him, replied, “Yes, according to the information gathered by our intelligence team, it is indeed Danzo who is commanding the Konoha ninja army on the other side.”
Iwagakure’s sudden mobilization forced Konoha to make corresponding deployments.
Among Konoha’s advisors, Danzo was assigned to the Iwagakure front by the Third Hokage, Koharu Utatane personally went to Sunagakure to discuss an alliance, and Homura Mitokado was responsible for the eastern coastline of the Land of Fire, guarding against a potential Kirigakure raid.
This information couldn’t be concealed, so Iwagakure’s intelligence department intercepted it immediately.
After a moment of contemplation, the Third Tsuchikage asked, “And what about the Third Hokage?”
Akatsuchi shook his head, “There is no accurate information yet, but it is said that he is still in Konoha.”
“Hiruzen sure is good at staying calm.” The Third Tsuchikage chuckled, then seemed to remember something and asked, “By the way, have you found the Konoha ninjas who killed Iwamada?”
As the captain of one of the few remaining decapitation units in Iwagakure, Iwamada was one of their elite jonin. His death naturally caused the Third Tsuchikage great grief and anger.
“According to the spies we planted in the Land of Demons, it was Konoha’s Anbu Team Eleven that killed Iwamada.”
The Third Tsuchikage frowned, “Konoha’s Anbu?”
The identities of Anbu members are highly classified in any village, so even for a major village like Iwagakure, gathering specific information about Konoha’s Anbu Team Eleven wasn’t easy.
“Has this Anbu Team Eleven appeared on the battlefield?”
Akatsuchi, who had already collected relevant information, replied without hesitation, “No.”
The skirmish between Konoha and Kumogakure had drawn the attention of almost every ninja village, and Iwagakure was particularly attentive.
From the information gathered, it was clear that Konoha had suffered significant losses.
Several of their frontline defences were easily breached by Kumogakure, resulting in substantial material and personnel losses.
Rumours even spread that the Daimyo of the Land of Fire was furious.
The Third Tsuchikage, hands behind his back, smiled, “If Kumogakure continues to press on, they could reach Konoha Village in a few weeks.”
Seeing his old rival in such a dire situation pleased the Third Tsuchikage greatly.
More importantly, this battle had stripped Konoha of its intimidating reputation, showing everyone that Konoha was no longer the invincible force it once was.
Akatsuchi was less optimistic, shaking his head, “Since Jiraiya of the Sannin arrived, Konoha’s situation on the front lines has improved significantly. Kumogakure’s offensive has been temporarily halted.”
No one knew why Jiraiya had arrived on the battlefield a week later than expected, but his arrival had successfully stemmed Kumogakure’s advance.
After some thought, the Third Tsuchikage said, “Konoha’s response this time is strange. Despite their lack of frontline strength, there’s no sign of the Uchiha police force or the supposedly capable Anbu Team Eleven on the battlefield. Something is definitely off. Send people to investigate this. I want to know why!”
“Yes, I’ll arrange it right away.”
In the Kumogakure camp within the Land of Fire.
After receiving a message from the rear, the two Jinchuriki and Storm Release ninja Aida looked at each other in confusion.
The message contained only four words.
“Stop the attack!”
Killer Bee, scratching his head, asked the others, “Why would the village send such an order?”
Aida shook his head, “It doesn’t make sense. We’ve already destroyed Konoha’s front lines. Stopping the attack now would waste all our efforts.”
Yugito Nii speculated, “Could something have happened in the village?”
Killer Bee and Aida immediately agreed with Yugito’s guess, as it was the only reason that would prompt the always-tough Raikage to send such an absurd order to the front lines.
In the Konoha camp, facing the Kumogakure camp.
Shikaku Nara hurried into the command tent and announced, “It seems the Kumogakure forces have halted their advance!”
Hiashi Hyuga immediately frowned, “Why would they stop when they’re clearly at an advantage?”
Knowing more details, Jiraiya said, “Maybe the old man’s strategy worked.”
He then briefly explained the Third Hokage’s plan to have his direct Anbu team raid Kumogakure’s border warehouse.
Everyone sighed upon hearing this.
Such missions, infiltrating enemy territory to strike at critical facilities, were extremely dangerous, even if the target was a minor village. This time, the target was Kumogakure, a village whose strength rivalled Konoha. So, even if the mission succeeded, those who carried it out were likely in grave danger.
In the Land of Hot Water.
Alone by the lakeside, Hyuga Kyo was washing up and had removed his dark goggles.
The clear lake water reflected his eyes, which were now white.
He observed his reflection and confirmed that these were indeed Byakugan, identical to the Byakugan he had before injecting the genetic serum, without any changes.
After confirming this multiple times, he slowly closed his eyes and infused his chakra into them, then suddenly opened them.
Instantly, his eyes shone with a brilliant azure light, like stars in his pupils. The world in his vision became much clearer, with even the bark patterns on distant trees visible in great detail.
“Heh, so that’s how it works!”
Hyuga Kyo chuckled and breathed a sigh of relief.
This recent ordeal had inadvertently led him to discover how to open and close the Tenseigan. After several attempts and the final confirmation just now, he found that the Tenseigan could be temporarily closed, much like how the Uchiha clan could deactivate their Sharingan.
Moreover, he was surprised to find that once the Tenseigan was deactivated, the “Caged Bird” seal on his head became effective again.
This discovery sparked great interest in the “Caged Bird” seal for him. It was no ordinary seal, harbouring many secrets. Suddenly, he realized that the “Caged Bird” might be worth studying…
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