All for War

"The Stone Ninja have made their move?"

"Hmph! That Ōnoki guy is still as impatient as ever."

The Third Raikage's imposing figure blocked the large swath of sunlight streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling window behind him, casting a deep shadow on the desk.

"Father, should we intervene?"

The young man who spoke bore a striking resemblance to the Third Raikage, with only a slight difference in size compared to his imposing physique. The only difference was that he lacked the large beard.

"Intervene? Of course we have to get involved. If we don't take this opportunity to suppress Konoha's arrogance, how will we be able to hold our heads high in front of Konoha Ninja in the future?" The Third Raikage's voice was like muffled thunder, echoing and buzzing in the room.

The Third Raikage's heavy body pressed down on the chair, causing it to groan under the strain. His gaze was fixed on the documents spread out on the table, and he didn't even flinch as he spoke.

"Father, what are you looking at? You're so engrossed!"

Ai walked over, leaned against the table, and peered over.

As the designated Fourth Raikage, there were no secrets he couldn't be told, so even documents marked as top secret were within his rights to review.

The text, as tiny and dense as ants, made my head ache at first glance. My wandering gaze instinctively focused on the photo in the upper right corner, showing a red-haired young man with a tense face, seemingly having his ID photo taken...

"This······"

Ai squinted. He recognized the person in the photo; strictly speaking, he knew of the person's existence through various channels, both actively and passively.

"Konoha's Calamity, Uzumaki Katsuki."

A few words uttered through clenched teeth, and Ai's face revealed a look of delighted surprise, as if he had discovered his prey. The surging fighting spirit in his chest instantly boiled, and flames seemed to burn in his eyes.

The Cloud Ninja are warlike.

The Cloud Ninja revere strength, love to fight; physical confrontations bring them immense pleasure and satisfaction.

This is the custom of Kumogakure Village, nestled atop towering mountains.

As the strongest of the younger generation, no one in the village could rival him. He had always longed to fight against experts from the outside world, Katsuki naturally came into his sights. He had long harbored the idea of challenging this Konoha genius who was touted as a god.

"Hey!! Calm down!"

The deep shout resounded like thunder in my ears, causing my anger to falter for a moment before slowly subsiding.

He slapped his head twice with his large, fan-like hands, then gazed at the mountains and clouds outside the window, his boiling brain gradually calming down.

"I'm getting a little excited."

Ai sat back down on the sofa, took a breath, and then looked at the Third Raikage, who was deep in thought.

"Father, the Stone Ninja have made their move, and the Mist Ninja have also taken action in the south. That two-faced man wasn't entirely lying. When should we make our move?"

"No rush. Konoha is powerful, but Ōnoki is no pushover either. The destructive power of Dust Release... I dare not confront him head-on." The Third Raikage tapped his fingers on the table, the thud sounding like a drumbeat. "Let Konoha's Calamity clash with Ōnoki, and then we'll see..."

Outside the window, a fierce mountain wind swept through the mountains, and wispy clouds rolled and swirled in the wind!

Through the clouds, the figures of Cloud Ninja could be seen moving on the towering mountain peaks. On the sparse open spaces, Cloud Ninja gathered in rows, their surging killing intent soaring into the sky.

Everything was being prepared for war.

Konoha.

"Lord Hokage, the Stone Ninja have headed south."

A high-ranking Jonin open the door, holding a scroll aloft, and rushed in.

This is a fairly spacious conference room where Orochimaru and many other high-ranking officials and powerful figures from the village have gathered. Some are staring at the latest, most detailed map produced by the geography surveying class on the wall, some are whispering in small groups, and some are anxiously doodling in their notebooks.

However, Jonin's attention was drawn to the Jonin who rushed in to deliver the news.

Upon hearing "Stone Ninja heading south," their expressions immediately changed, and their eyes darted around.

"Stone Ninja... that old Ōnoki is still as impatient as ever!" Orochimaru stood in front of the large map, turned around, took the scroll handed to him, and began to examine it closely.

Half a moment passed.

Everyone remained silent, waiting quietly for the Lord Hokage to speak.

"Gentlemen," Orochimaru said, clearing his throat after reading the scroll. He then looked around at the elites in the room and said, "A secret report from the Land of Earth indicates that the Stone Ninja army is marching south, the Third Tsuchikage is personally leading the expedition, and the two Jinchuriki have also left their village and are marching rapidly towards the Land of Grass!"

"The Third Tsuchikage himself has intervened?"

"Are the Stone Ninja going all out? Sending out two Jinchuriki at the same time, aren't they afraid the Cloud Ninja will cross the sea and raid their base?"

"Brother, are you kidding? With Konoha here, why would Cloud Ninja go against Stone Ninja? The Third Raikage isn't stupid."

After a brief, noisy argument, the crowd quickly quieted down and stared at the silent Lord Hokage.

Once the room returned to silence, Orochimaru continued, "Although I had already ordered the troops stationed in the Land of Rain to relocate to the Land of Grass, I didn't expect the Stone Ninja to have such courage. The Tsuchikage personally went into battle, and two Jinchuriki went to the battlefield together. I have to say... Katsuki- kun is probably going to be alone."

The Lord Hokage's opening remarks set the tone, and everyone knew what to say; finally, they could unleash their opinions.

"The Lord Hokage is right. The Lord Commander only has a little over a thousand men under his command. How can such a small force withstand the fierce offensive of the Stone Ninja? We must immediately send reinforcements. We must not allow the war to spread to our territory."

"That's right, the Land of Grass must not be lost."

Those who spoke first were Hiruzen's eldest son and his group, either subordinates of the Anbu or close mentors and friends, such as Sakumo, who also spoke up in support.

"We need to send manpower to the Land of Grass as soon as possible, otherwise if the Land of Grass is lost, the Stone Ninja will advance unimpeded and start a war on our territory, which would be disastrous."

That's true. Since the founding of the Land of Fire, apart from the Mist Ninja's invasion and fighting in the eastern coastal areas, none of the Cloud Ninja, Stone Ninja, or Suna Ninja have successfully brought their armies into the Land of Fire. Almost every major battle has been fought in different small countries.

If the Stone Ninja were to conquer the Land of Grass, all the elites and high-ranking officials present would be too ashamed to show their faces.

"Support is definitely necessary, but the key question is where will we get the manpower? The Mist Ninja are causing trouble in the east, Yuki has already taken away a group of elite troops. It's not easy to find manpower now..."

The speaker was the patriarch of a middling family, who spoke hesitantly, indicating his difficulty. (To be continued)