The Outbreak of the Second Shinobi World War

Inside the conference room.

After the major clan heads had left, only Konoha's four-man political group remained: the Third Hokage, Danzo, and the two Hokage advisors.

Tap, tap... The Third Hokage lightly tapped the table with his index and middle fingers together. Once he had drawn Danzo's attention, he casually asked, "You seem rather quiet today?"

Danzo gave an awkward smile, with a faintly unnatural look on his face.

In the past, he would have charged in to tear into the Uchiha clan head and make his hardline stance known without even needing a meaningful glance from the Third Hokage.

But this time, Danzo believed he had taken great advantage of the Third Hokage over Li Yao. Having firmly decided not to steal the Third Hokage's thunder during this meeting, he had failed to notice the Third Hokage's meaningful glances.

Naturally, he could not say any of that to the Third Hokage.

Danzo could only explain, "I may have been a little tired lately."

The Third Hokage shook his head. He certainly did not believe Danzo's words. That man definitely had something going on, but now was not the time to dig into it. Sunagakure was the issue giving the Third Hokage the greatest headache.

"Danzo, I'm leaving the matter of secretly negotiating with Hanzo of the Salamander to you."

The Third Hokage said sternly, "Under no circumstances can Amegakure agree to Sunagakure's plan. That is the bottom line. Beyond that, it would be even better if you could get Amegakure to stand on our side."

Danzo replied, "Understood."

The Third Hokage turned to Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura and said, "I'll leave the Feudal Lord's Mansion to the two of you."

After an incident like this, Konoha needed to report the situation to the Feudal Lord's Mansion while also demonstrating their determination not to let Sunagakure have its way. At the same time, they could take the opportunity to propose that the feudal lord increase Konoha's financial funding.

It was a perfect chance to ask for money, and the Third Hokage had no intention of letting it slip by.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura nodded. "We know what to do, Hiruzen."

Konoha responded to Sunagakure's insane plan one measure at a time.

However, before Konoha's countermeasures could be put into effect, another explosive piece of intelligence—or rather, an event—instantly shook the entire shinobi world.

On the very night Konoha's upper ranks made their response plans.

The Land of Whirlpools, founded by the Uzumaki Clan, was destroyed overnight.

No one knew who had destroyed it, nor did any faction step forward to claim responsibility.

Yet any force capable of silently destroying an entire nation could not possibly be simple. Without the strength of one of the hidden villages of the Five Great Nations, it could not have been done.

In truth, once the news emerged, although the four great nations of Lightning, Water, Wind, and Earth all claimed they had nothing to do with it.

Everyone knew that anyone who believed the four great nations had not been involved was an idiot.

The Land of Whirlpools was the first nation to be destroyed since the end of the Warring States Period, and its impact on the shinobi world ran deep.

Especially for the small nations caught between the Five Great Nations. Without exception, they all felt an intense sense of crisis that their own countries might be destroyed.

Armaments!

They had to build them up with everything they had!

At that moment, the smaller nations seemed to have recognized reality. They no longer entertained any fantasies of luck. If they did not want to be wiped out overnight like the Land of Whirlpools, they could only drastically strengthen their military power, make their own voices heard in the shinobi world, and cause their hidden enemies to fear them.

For a time, the shinobi world formally entered the frenzy preceding a great war. It was only a matter of who would lose patience first and light the fuse of the Shinobi World War.

Many had originally believed that Konoha of the Land of Fire would be the one to light that fuse.

After all, Sunagakure's insane plan sought to dig up Konoha's roots, and the Land of Whirlpools—Konoha's ally for generations—had been destroyed. Both were more than enough reason for Konoha to begin a war.

Yet what no one expected was that the nation to ignite the Shinobi World War was neither the Land of Fire nor any of the other four of the Five Great Nations.

It was the Land of Rain, bordering the Lands of Fire, Earth, and Wind, that first lit the flames of this Shinobi World War.

In an instant, the news that Hanzo of the Salamander, the Demigod of the Shinobi World, had declared war on behalf of Amegakure and the Land of Rain against Konoha of the Land of Fire, Iwagakure of the Land of Earth, and Sunagakure of the Land of Wind simultaneously spread across the shinobi world, shocking the entire world.

How did he dare?

How did Amegakure dare?

Countless people were dumbfounded, unable to understand Hanzo of the Salamander's choice for a time.

The Three Great Nations did not understand either.

The Three Great Hidden Villages were equally bewildered.

Was Amegakure really this bold?

Did Hanzo of the Salamander truly think that being called the Demigod of the Shinobi World made him a god?

Compared to Hashirama Senju, the true God of the Shinobi World, he was not merely a little inferior. They were separated by an entire dimension.

Hashirama Senju was a godlike figure who had ended an era of Warring States chaos that had lasted for centuries through his own strength alone.

He was the man who could even defeat Madara Uchiha, the Asura of the Ninja World.

How could Hanzo of the Salamander compare?

Did he want to end the era of shinobi villages begun by Hashirama and prove that he was the true God of the Shinobi World?

Otherwise, why would he dare declare war on all three Great Hidden Villages at once?

In any case, no matter how much the world failed to understand Hanzo of the Salamander's decision.

He had indeed started the Shinobi World War.

Moreover, it was even more chaotic than anyone had imagined.

What had been expected to be the Three Great Hidden Villages besieging Amegakure, home of the Demigod of the Shinobi World, somehow abruptly turned into an all-out melee, with four hidden villages each fighting for themselves.

Sunagakure went to war with Konoha, Iwagakure, and Amegakure all at once.

Konoha likewise fought Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Amegakure simultaneously.

Iwagakure did the same, battling all three hidden villages at once.

The Land of Rain became the main battlefield for the four-village war between the Three Great Hidden Villages and Amegakure.

Beyond that, Sunagakure and Konoha opened up a second battlefield in the Land of Rivers.

Soon.

Time reached the summer of Konoha Year 38.

A year after the massive melee between the four nations of Fire, Earth, Wind, and Rain had begun, smaller nations such as the Land of Grass, wedged between the Five Great Nations, also began wars of annexation and chaos.

They hoped to grow while the Three Great Nations were too occupied to look elsewhere, gaining territory and strength equal to the Five Great Nations within a short time.

From then on, the shinobi world became even more chaotic, with over half its nations plunged into war.

Among the Five Great Nations, only the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water had not joined the war.

But those two nations were also watching greedily from the sidelines. They had no intention of merely watching tigers fight from the mountain; they too were making preparations, waiting for the right opportunity to take a bite out of the choicest, fattest prize of the Ninja World War.

The Three Great Nations could not ignore their presence and each made the appropriate countermeasures.

Konoha in particular, having long been watched by the Land of Lightning, did not dare relax its vigilance.

A ninja force led by Hokage Advisor Mitokado Homura had continually operated along the border, monitoring every move of the Land of Lightning.

Along the coastline bordering the Land of Water, another ninja force led by Hokage Advisor Utatane Koharu was specifically stationed to guard against Kirigakure.

On the Land of Rivers battlefield, a ninja army led by the Nara Clan Head, including powerful experts such as Kakashi's father, Sakumo Hatake, faced the ninja and puppet master forces led by Sunagakure elder Ebizo.

Meanwhile, on the most intense battlefield in the Land of Rain, Danzo led a ninja force that included the Future Sannin, the Hyuga Clan, and powerful members of numerous ninja clans in fierce battle against the other three hidden villages.

With combat on multiple fronts, along with the need to guard against the Land of Lightning and the Land of Water, there were not many ninja left behind from Konoha's major ninja clans.

However, the Uchiha Clan, which had not joined the war, retained all of its combat strength.

The Sarutobi Clan's Hokage Guard Ninja Corps, left behind to deal with possible dangers, also retained considerable strength.

Furthermore, among the powerful figures remaining in Konoha were three Kage-level experts: the Third Hokage, Nine-Tails Jinchuriki Mito Uzumaki, and the Uchiha Clan Head.

The Anbu and Root also had personnel remaining to guard Konoha.

If the powerful members left behind by the other ninja clans were included as well, then after tallying everything up, Konoha's remaining strength still seemed beyond the reach of any ordinary small nation.

It had to be said that this was the terrifying strength of Konoha, the strongest hidden village in the shinobi world.

If anyone thought Konoha was weak at this time and tried to launch a surprise attack, they would surely smash themselves bloody against it.

So the question was:

Would anyone really be that stubbornly foolish?

There really were!

And there were two groups of them.