The Beginning of War

War had come after all.

Kumogakure took advantage of the chaos to launch a surprise attack on the Land of Wind's border, throwing the Daimyo, who had long been cutting military funding, into a panic. He hurriedly sent people to Sunagakure to request support.

At once.

The atmosphere of war spread throughout the entire village, and the efforts Chiyo and Ebizo had made to conceal the truth were shattered in that instant.

With the Third Kazekage missing, the village leaderless, and war now upon them, who wouldn't panic?

But as Ninja, quickly adjusting their mindset was a fundamental skill every one of them needed.

The villagers could panic if they wanted, but the Ninja absolutely could not.

Although the Land of Wind's envoy had rushed over, said a few flustered words, and then left.

He left no Silver Liang, made no arrangements for supplies—he left nothing!

Yet, as Ninja, they still swiftly set out for the battlefield under Chiyo and Ebizo's arrangements.

And at that moment... only a week had passed since that night's meeting.

The Ninja all knew about the village's difficulties. No manpower when they needed people, no money when they needed money, but... no one wanted to become a wandering Ninja!

Although the First Kazekage had been somewhat thick-skinned, clutching the One-Tail during the first Five Kage Summit and demanding both land and money from the Shinobi God, Sunagakure had also been founded for the sake of peace in the Shinobi World.

It was just that Sunagakure's land was truly damned. It lost money every year, so the First Kazekage had no choice but to be thick-skinned.

If he had not been, everyone would have starved to death. What was wrong with being a little shameless for his own village?

The day after Chiyo and the others departed, Rasa and Pakura, having received their orders, began leading the remaining Sand Ninja to their respective battlefields.

Although he truly did not want to wade into the muddy waters of a Great Shinobi War, who could guarantee they would remain untouched by the world in such chaotic times?

Forget humans—even toads, Slugs, and snakes could not manage that.

Just look at Whirlpool Country after its destruction.

As Konoha's ally, Konoha now said it only wanted one clansman as the next Jinchuriki. As for all those vows of alliance... sorry, who were you again?

Any Ninja not from the village would be treated as a spy!

The Shinobi World was this cruel. Leaving your own village was not like casually getting a green card and having others take you in.

Besides...

Karura was in Sunagakure. She could not possibly leave the village, so he could only work harder to make money.

Why couldn't I have transmigrated into the era of Naruto and Sasuke, or Boruto?

In the era of Naruto and Sasuke, all he had to do was lie down and sleep on Hokage Rock. As for the Boruto era... with everyone as strong as Naruto and Sasuke, what the hell was there to fear?~

The Otsutsuki Clan and Kara did not need an outsider like him to step in anyway.

Thinking about the money Pakura had lent him last week... it had only been one hundred thousand. Everyone was really having a hard time.~

Even Pakura, an elite Jonin who diligently carried out missions, only had one hundred thousand to her name. The situation of the other Ninja was easy enough to imagine.

Sunagakure's business had never matched Iwagakure, Kumogakure, or Konoha's. Not to mention that, to keep the village running, they had to hand over a hefty cut after every mission.

Rasa sighed and shook his head. His original plan to pan for gold in the desert and work hard to make money could only be put aside for now due to the war.

He bid Pakura farewell along the way, and the two went their separate ways.

"Lord Rasa, do you think Iwagakure will really invade Sunagakure?"

As Rasa walked along, thinking about how to make money, he heard someone call him. He turned to look at the Sunagakure Ninja beside him, pondered for a moment, then nodded. "They will!"

After all, this was a fierce war that would sweep across the entire Shinobi World. To keep Kumogakure from becoming too dominant, the other villages would not stand idly by. By the end, no one would probably even know who was fighting whom.

Of course, those muscleheads in Kumogakure would definitely keep courting death to show off their muscles. As long as Sunagakure remained steady, the war would surely end up becoming a duel among the top three of the Five Great Ninja Villages.

Sunagakure only needed to stay steady now, honestly make it through this chaotic period, and incidentally... help him make some money.

Rasa did not know exactly how the Third Great Shinobi War would unfold, but he knew that Might Duy would reveal the Eight Gates and slaughter half the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist alone, that Minato Namikaze would become famous in a single battle and secure Konoha's victory, earning the villagers' admiration, and that the filial son would unexpectedly embark on a road of no return.

As for everything else.

It was all a muddle. How could he possibly know that much?

In any case, Rasa felt that as long as he managed his own little patch of land, took good care of his wife, and properly taught his child, that would be enough.

He believed that as long as the money was there, he too could one day face the Nine-Tails, which could fight eight Tailed Beasts, like the Shinobi God had. With a dignified expression, he would say, "Nine-Tails, you are simply too powerful. For the peace of the Shinobi World, I cannot just let you remain free."

Then, one of the nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine hands behind him would reach out, seize the Nine-Tails by the neck, and bring it back to the village to build a better Ninja village together.

At that point... who would dare say no?

"So, everyone must be prepared!"

Rasa looked at the Ninja whose moods had dimmed because of his words, and inwardly sighed helplessly.

After this string of blows, Sunagakure could be said to be...

Truly unlucky.

The Third Kazekage was gone, the Daimyo's Office would not provide money, and even their Lord Rasa seemed like a completely different person!

Facing the aggressive Kumogakure, what... could they do?

"Yes!"

As soon as Rasa finished speaking, the Sand Ninja immediately straightened their backs and accepted their orders with the discipline they had developed over years as Ninja.

To them... at least Lord Rasa, Lady Pakura, Lady Chiyo, and Lord Ebizo were still leading them. As long as even one Sand Ninja remained, Sunagakure would not disappear.

Lord Rasa... as the Third Kazekage's Disciple, might become the Fourth Kazekage and lead Sunagakure back to its feet once more.

Seeing that they had recovered somewhat, Rasa inwardly sighed again. He looked up at the darkening sky and said, "Prepare to make camp and rest! We must reach our destination tomorrow!"

Kumogakure had come with such overwhelming force that it was obvious they could not possibly be here merely for a destitute village.

"Make sure to leave Ninja on watch around the camp."

Meanwhile, in Sunagakure.

After the main force set out first, the village would gradually dispatch Ninja who were already within the village or had returned to it.

Of course, because the village lacked combat strength and funds, it could not train Ninja on a large scale. Furthermore, most of its Ninja had been sent out early on to investigate the Third Kazekage's disappearance. This was why information had leaked and the village had been left short-handed on defense, allowing other Ninja villages to exploit the opening.

But as one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, and a village bold enough to tug Konoha's tiger whiskers twice, no matter how poorly it was doing... it was still a tough bone to chew!

It just could not afford to act recklessly now!

"Following Chiyo's recommendation, to ensure that the village has enough combat strength, we must have a batch of students graduate as soon as possible and grow through the war."

A Jonin looked seriously at the academy Teacher before him, who appeared both helpless and angry, and sighed.

"So, I hope you... will do your best! Pick out the most outstanding students whenever possible, and reduce those children's casualties."