Two-Front War

In Snake Pit Village, Orochimaru sat in his Underground Laboratory, listening to Kabuto Yakushi analyze some information for him.

"Lord Orochimaru, the Iwa ninja have consolidated their forces and teleported most of their ninja back to the village."

"Of the numerous branches of the Iwa ninja, almost all of them have only a few dozen people left to guard them."

"Only a few hundred people are still maintaining their daily work at the Moon-Earth Channel."

Orochimaru nodded without saying a word.

Seeing this, Kabuto Yakushi began to analyze his guess. "Lord Orochimaru, following Black Zetsu's method, we informed the Tsuchikage and the higher-ups of the Mist ninja of the area."

"Their sudden withdrawal of troops is probably for this reason."

"The Iwa ninja may be preparing to mobilize a large army to attack the Mist ninja, or they may be planning to have enough manpower for defense during the attack on the Mist ninja."

"Regardless of which one, the Iwa ninja have probably all been fooled!"

Orochimaru nodded, ignoring Kabuto Yakushi's words, and instead asked, "Do you think the Iwa ninja are capable of fighting on three fronts?"

Kabuto Yakushi aback, then thought for a moment and said, "According to the information gathered by the White Zetsu clone, the Mist ninja possesses the Impure World Reincarnation."

"The simplest way for the Iwa ninja to attack the Mist ninja is to have either Neji Hyuga or Izumi Uchiha take action."

"The other person can also act alone, and with the Tsuchikage leading the other Kage Level Iwagakure, they can also wipe out the Mist ninja."

"Based on this calculation, the Iwa ninja can fight on three fronts."

"However, based on Lord Orochimaru's previous intuition, the Iwa ninja should already know your current strength."

"You are now definitely their primary target, so the Iwa ninja won't launch multiple attacks under these circumstances."

"I suspect that the Iwa ninja will Neji Hyuga Izumi Uchiha together to deal with you."

"Without Neji Hyuga and Izumi Uchiha, given the current strength of the Iwa ninja, it would be impossible to divide them in half and use half of their strength to deal with the Mist ninja."

"Even if the Iwa ninja don't split into three groups and send everyone except Neji Hyuga Izumi Uchiha to deal with the Mist ninja, it's still very risky."

"If Neji Hyuga and Izumi Uchiha, these dispatched Kage Level could potentially be ambushed by you."

"Therefore, Iwagakure is already struggling with fighting on two fronts, let alone three."

"Unless Neji Hyuga or Izumi Uchiha can defeat Lord Orochimaru one-on-one."

"Or perhaps, there is a third strong ninja in Iwa ninja who is on the same level as you."

Orochimaru thought for a moment and said, "Neji Hyuga's eyes are called the Tenseigan. I asked the White Snake Sage, and he told me some information about the Tenseigan."

"This intelligence is basically consistent with what Neji Hyuga showed during the Joint Chunin Exams."

"With this intelligence in hand, dealing with Neji Hyuga will not be difficult."

"Izumi Uchiha's Rinnegan is very similar to Nagato's. I don't know what her Dōjutsu is, but if it is similar to Nagato's, then I have a way to deal with it."

"If my guess about their Dōjutsu is correct, I'm not worried even if it's one against two."

"As for a one-on-one fight, with those two brats' fighting strength, I can't possibly lose!"

"However, perhaps Iwagakure really does have a third powerful figure."

Kabuto Yakushi was taken aback. He had only said it casually out of caution; he had never imagined that there was a third Sage in Iwagakure.

Sage aren't so easily cultivated.

How much effort did Orochimaru expend to reach this level? The fact that two Iwa ninja appeared first already demonstrates the terror of that Tsuchikage.

How could there possibly be a third person?

After thinking for a moment, Kabuto Yakushi asked, "Lord Orochimaru, are you referring to the Tsuchikage himself?"

Orochimaru shook his head and said, "It's Sokai Uchiha!"

Kabuto Yakushi looked completely bewildered.

Orochimaru explained, "Two years ago, Kakashi gave me information stating that Neji Hyuga and Sokai Uchiha possessed strength surpassing that of a normal Kage Level."

He also speculated that Izumi Uchiha possessed the same strength.

"Kakashi said he personally witnessed the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in Sokai Uchiha's eyes."

"Later, both of them displayed the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in their battles against Sasuke Uchiha and his group."

"This means that their advancement was almost simultaneous. That Tsuchikage must have mastered some method that allows the Sharingan to advance."

"If this method isn't a one-time thing, then the evolution process of Izumi Uchiha's eyes could potentially be repeated on Sokai Uchiha."

Kabuto Yakushi was startled and asked with some worry, "Lord Orochimaru, do you have a chance of winning against three opponents?"

Orochimaru shook his head and said, "If we had clear information about the three opponents, we could have planned ahead, but right now we have no chance of winning."

Orochimaru is right; battles at the Sage level are different from battles at the Kage Level or even Kage Level.

Orochimaru was a genius from a young age. In his youth, he was capable of taking on three opponents at once, and it wasn't uncommon for him to kill more than a dozen ninjas of the same level single-handedly.

The title of the Legendary Sannin is well-deserved.

Even at the Kage Level, Orochimaru believed that with his various special abilities, he could put up First Shinobi War against three normal opponents of the same level.

If we also consider the Impure World Reincarnation and the giant Summoning Beast, Orochimaru felt that winning against three opponents wouldn't be too difficult.

However, at the Sage level, the situation is completely different. Sage have reached a new stage in terms of power, but their corresponding methods have not kept up.

The original ultimate move was almost useless at this moment. Manda, which could play a significant role in Kage Level battles, probably wouldn't be able to withstand a single blow from Neji Manda.

The same applies to Impure World Reincarnation; it doesn't have much effect.

Furthermore, the ability of certain Sage to fly and absorb the Five-Attribute Ninjutsu renders most Ninjutsu meaningless.

The powerful Dōjutsu at the Sage level rendered many tactics useless.

Everyone can only fight by relying on combat skills and special Dōjutsu.

This is not good news for Orochimaru, who is known for his unorthodox methods.

On the contrary, Neji others, because they were originally Dōjutsu ninjas, were able to better utilize the power of the Sage.

After listening to Orochimaru's words, Kabuto Yakushi appeared worried. Orochimaru, on the other hand, didn't seem to care much about the possibility of a third Sage appearing in Iwa ninja.

From the conversation between Orochimaru and Kabuto Yakushi, it's clear that neither of them had considered the Yichen could become Sage.

The two of them came to a conclusion from their experiments over the years: in this Ninja World, bloodline is everything!

Orochimaru, who possessed Hyuga Hiashi Orochimaru, is a good example of this, and Neji Hyuga, Izumi Uchiha, and Sokai Uchiha all prove this point.

Even Konoha Hyuga, Sasuke Uchiha, and Naruto Uzumaki, who hadn't yet become Sage of Hinata Hyuga, indirectly prove this conclusion.

Yichen's talent is strong, having developed so many bloodline limits, but what ordinary people call talent still cannot compare to bloodline.

Orochimaru had seen plenty of geniuses; he himself was a genius among geniuses.

But the fact that he ultimately chose to take their bloodline shows that he succumbed.

Yichen's greatest strengths are Sage Mode and Light Release, which were his trump Trump Card in the past.

This allowed Yichen to move freely in and out of the Ninja World for a considerable period of time, stirring up trouble and becoming uncontrollable.

However, Yichen's strength has not improved for many years, which makes Orochimaru and Kabuto Yakushi believe that Yichen, like other Kage Level, has reached his peak and cannot advance any further.

They guessed that perhaps it was because his own strength could no longer be improved that Yichen had gone to great lengths to cultivate several Sages.

After all, Yichen is the Tsuchikage, and this kind of inherited thinking is normal practice for the Kage of a village.

The Seventh Hokage of Konoha, Kakashi Hatake, thought the same thing.

Kabuto Yakushi said, "Lord Orochimaru, are you still going to risk your life on the moon? What if you get trapped there by the Iwa ninja?"

Orochimaru laughed and said, "An adventure? Not necessarily!"

Seeing that Orochimaru seemed to have made up his mind, Kabuto Yakushi stopped trying to persuade him and instead asked, "Lord Orochimaru, is there really a Giant Tenseigan on the moon?"

"Black Zetsu untrustworthy. Could the information he provides be false?"

Orochimaru thought for a moment and said, "When I advanced, I did see a huge eye, and its shape was the same as Neji Hyuga's eye."

"I didn't tell Black Zetsu about this. If Black Zetsu hadn't personally gone to the moon to confirm it, he wouldn't have known either."

"However, Black Zetsu must have had his reasons for leading me to the moon."

Kabuto Yakushi and said, "Could it be that Black Zetsu wants to lure you and the Iwa ninja to the moon, then cut off the passage and trap you all there?"

Orochimaru thought for a moment and said, "This won't be easy. Although I don't know what the situation is on the moon, I believe the Tsuchikage has a backup plan to bring people back from the moon."

Before Kabuto Yakushi could say anything more, Orochimaru interrupted him.

"Kabuto, remember, sometimes uncovering the truth requires taking risks."

"For someone who truly seeks the truth, this danger cannot stop him."

"Besides, I might not necessarily die on the moon."

Kabuto Yakushi remained silent; he knew what Orochimaru was thinking.

Orochimaru has indeed advanced this time; his Byakugan is now truly the Sage's Eye.

Strangely, the shape of the Byakugan of his eyes did not change; they still looked like Byakugan in his eye sockets.

Although from Orochimaru's tone, Kabuto Yakushi knew that these Byakugan must have also developed their own special Dōjutsu.

However, Orochimaru was probably not satisfied.

At this moment, Black Zetsu tells Orochimaru that there is a Giant Tenseigan on the moon that can help Orochimaru's eyes evolve, thereby gaining more Dōjutsu.

So even though Orochimaru knew that Black Zetsu had ill intentions, he was still tempted.

Orochimaru adopted Black Zetsu's suggestion and told the Iwa ninja about the locations of the Mist ninja high-ranking members that White Zetsu clone had discovered.

They planned to lure the enemy away from their mountain stronghold and, while the Iwa ninja were dealing with the Mist ninja, go to explore the moon!

A few days later, the twenty-eight people left the Land of Hot Water branch the Iwa ninja, and flew towards the Land of Water on a huge Porcelain Platform.

This information was quickly discovered by the White Zetsu clone was already lying nearby.

The White Zetsu clone dared not get too close; they could only see the Porcelain Platform and sense the faint, powerful aura emanating from it.

As for the people on the platform, the White Zetsu clone could only determine their identities from a distance by their clothing and blurry figures.

There are both men and women on the platform; it seems like Yichen, Ōnoki, and Natsuki Shion are among them.

Just as the White Zetsu clone approached to examine them more closely, the Porcelain Platform suddenly stopped, and several people suddenly appeared beside it.

One of the shorter ones even flew off the platform, making a square shape with his hands in mid-air, and launched a Dust Release directly at one of the White Zetsu clone.

One of them swung his long sword as a hidden weapon, tearing through the air and striking a White Zetsu clone with incredible speed.

The White Zetsu clone was torn apart by the sword Sword Qi attached to the longsword the moment it was stabbed.

The knife was then sucked back into the control platform by Yichen.

A burly man and a shorter man each unleashed a long, thin Tailed Beast Chakra tentacle, which precisely pierced through a White Zetsu clone.

One of the pink-haired girls placed her hands on her chest and used the Mind Body Switch Technique on one of the White Zetsu clone.

The next moment, the White Zetsu clone suddenly turned around and punched the nearest White Zetsu clone.

A red-haired, seemingly silly female ninja first peered down, then Hand Seals and unleashed a massive Great Dragon Fire Technique, instantly burning a White Zetsu clone to death.

One of the handsome young men, who looked like a girl, used a B-rank Ice Release on one of the White Zetsu clone.

One of the blond youths suddenly produced several Clay Bird from his sleeve. The Clay Bird twirled several times in the air, arrived near the White Zetsu clone, and then exploded with a bang.

The sudden turn of events terrified the remaining White Zetsu clone, who dared not approach to observe further and scattered in all directions.

In fact, the White Zetsu clone clones could have run even faster, but they deliberately pretended to be beaten with surprising difficulty, just to see what these people were capable of.

Although they lost several White Zetsu clone in the process, the identities of this group were confirmed.

This is a team of Kage- Kage Level Iwagakure, personally led by Yichen. Iwagakure has come out in full force.

Unfortunately, it's not confirmed whether Neji Hyuga, Izumi Uchiha, and Sokai are among them.

It seems the three of them are being used as secret weapons and won't be easily exposed.

The scattered White Zetsu clone quickly relayed the information to Black Zetsu.

Upon seeing the intelligence, Black Zetsu was somewhat incredulous. How could the Tsuchikage be so easily fooled? Moreover, White Zetsu's intelligence came far too easily.

The White Zetsu clone said, "They're sitting on the Porcelain Platform; the one in the lead must be the Tsuchikage."

"We also saw Ōnoki's Dust Release; it couldn't have been someone else impersonating him."

"Both Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, and Four-Tails Jinchuriki Roshi, used the power of the Tailed Beast, so this is even more credible."

"Kawakita's swordsmanship is not something an ordinary ninja can imitate."

"Deidara's Exploding Clay, Sakura Haruno's Mind Reincarnation Technique, and Yuki Haku's Ice Release are all impossible to fake."

Black Zetsu, upon hearing this, also agreed that White Zetsu clone's assessment was correct.

A while later, another White Zetsu clone emerged from underground and said, "Black Zetsu, Iwagakure is now under full martial law."

"Even the Four Red Yang Formation has been set up around Iwagakure."

Upon hearing this, Black Zetsu stopped worrying. Even if the Iwa ninja had set a trap, he didn't care anymore, since he didn't need to charge into battle in this First Shinobi War anyway.

He said to one of the White Zetsu clone, "Go and inform Orochimaru that the Iwa ninja's Kage-level experts have been dispatched, but we haven't yet confirmed the whereabouts of Neji Hyuga and Izumi Uchiha."

"However, it's impossible for Iwagakure to be undefended. I estimate that at least one of Neji Hyuga or Izumi Uchiha will stay behind to guard the village."

"Now is the perfect time to strike!"

The White Zetsu clone responded and quickly left.

After the White Zetsu clone left, Black Zetsu said to the other White Zetsu clone, "Go to the Land of Water and tell them about the Iwa ninja's attack."

"Yes." Several White Zetsu clone quickly left.

After receiving information about the White Zetsu clone, Orochimaru also felt something was amiss, but he still stood up from his seat.

With a slight smile, Orochimaru said to Kabuto Yakushi, "Kabuto, I'm leaving this to you!"

Kabuto Yakushi felt uneasy and opened his mouth as if to say something, but Orochimaru did not hesitate any longer and quickly disappeared underground.

Iwagakure)

At this time, Iwagakure was under complete martial law, and the Four Red Yang Formation barrier had even been erected around the Iwagakure.

While Orochimaru was underground, all the Kage Level and Sage of Iwagakure, including Yichen, were in the Tsuchikage's Office.

It can't be said that they're all in the office. Among them, Ikura, Kitsuchi, Deidara, Kurotsuchi are just clones; their real bodies are maintaining the Four Red Yang Formation.

At that moment, Chiga suddenly said, "Orochimaru has left Snake Pit Village!"

After a pause, Chiga said, "He's heading this way, and he's very fast?"

Yichen frowned. Did Orochimaru really intend to attack Iwagakure? But what benefit would he gain from conquering Iwagakure?

Orochimaru never had the idea of Unifying the Ninja World; what he pursued was the essence of Chakra, immortality, and the ultimate secret of the Ninja World.

Yichen couldn't guess it, and neither could anyone else.

So everyone waited quietly.

Since everyone is in Iwagakure anyway, even if Orochimaru really heads straight for Iwagakure, Yichen won't panic!

Orochimaru's speed at the Sage level was extremely fast. Before long, Chiga suddenly said, "Orochimaru changed direction; he went northwest."

Yichen glanced at the map instinctively, and then he realized what was going on.

Orochimaru is going to the moon? He wants Giant Tenseigan?

Despite having some suspicions, Yichen did not act rashly, but simply ordered the ninjas at the Land of Snow passage to be moved immediately.

After a long while, Chiga said, "Orochimaru has arrived in the Land of Snow and is heading towards the Space-Time Tunnel."

Yichen stood up and said, "Let's go to the moon too."

With that, Yichen led Neji, Izumi Uchiha, Sokai, Shion, and Chiga out of the office.

Ōnoki and the others were not surprised; this was an arrangement that had been planned long ago.

After Yichen and the others teleported away, Ōnoki said to Atsumi Akino, who had also come to attend the meeting, "Akino, seal off the village's space and strictly prohibit anyone from using Space-Time Ninjutsu."

Atsumi Akino responded, and then, under the protection of Matsutani Shinya and Shiro, she went to the Barrier Team.

After Atsumi Akino and the other two left, Natsuki, Sakura, and Yakumo Kurama also got up. The three of them nodded to Ōnoki and then went next door.

Kawakita followed closely behind the three.

Then, Ōnoki said to Uzumaki Riori, Han, Roshi, and Karin, "The four of you, go and help Ikura and the others maintain the Four Red Yang Formation."

The four of them Chakra reserves far exceeding those of ordinary people. With them around, the Four Red Yang Formation of Iwagakure can be maintained for a long time unless it is attacked in one strike and destroyed.

"Yes." The four responded and quickly left.

Of course, Shion accompanied Uzumaki Riori throughout the entire process to prevent the silly girl from ruining things at crucial moments.

The four members of the Ikura also disbanded their Shadow Clone, and in an instant, the once full office was left with only Ōnoki and Tomoko.

The two of them were responsible for mediating the conflict!

This battle, which Yichen called the final showdown, hinged on the act of defense.

The key concern for everyone is how the Iwa ninja can avoid suffering heavy losses in this clash of titans.

As for whether to deal with Orochimaru or Kaguya, Yichen's idea was relatively conservative; he would consider it a victory for the Iwa ninja if they could remain undefeated.

Therefore, apart from Yichen and his four companions, almost all of the Iwa ninja's strength was devoted to protecting the village.

In addition to these Kage-level experts, a large number of regular ninjas from Iwagakure were also lined up in neat rows, ready to respond.

Some of them will provide Chakra to those who maintain the Four Red Yang Formation.

Some of them provide Chakra to Atsumi Akino's spatial barrier.

Some form battle formations, ready to attack immediately once the village's barrier is breached.

In addition, the village's Perception Network has been fully deployed.

All the strong ninja from Iwagakure are in the village, so who were those people the White Zetsu clone previously identified as strong Iwa ninja?

Those were all Reanimated Body; the Twenty-eight Reanimated Bodies were:

People from Iwagakure): First Earth Shadow, Second Tsuchikage Mu, former Four-Tails Jinchuriki, former Five-Tails Jinchuriki.

The original Kumogakure: the First Raikage, Second Raikage, Third Raikage, Fourth Raikage A, Fifth Raikage Darui, Yugito, Killer B, former Two-Tails Jinchuriki, Former Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Kinkaku, and Ginkaku.

The Second Hokage of Konoha, Fugaku Uchiha, Itachi Uchiha, Shisui Uchiha, Jiraiya.

The Third Kazekage and the fourth Kazekage of the original Sunagakure Fourth Kazekage Rasa, Pakura, Ryosuke, and Chiyo.

And Obito Uchiha, Hanzo, Yuki Koru.

Of the Twenty-eight Reanimated Bodies, apart from the four from Iwagakure itself, the other twenty-four were controlled by Natsuki, Sakura, Yakumo Kurama, who were currently in the Tsuchikage's Office.

The special moves that the White Zetsu clone saw before were all performed by these Reanimated Body.

These Reanimated Body first use Transformation Jutsu to transform into the appearances of many Kage Level Iwa ninja, and then imitate the special moves of Yichen and others.

Yichen's Porcelain Platform that could carry people flying was actually the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release, except that the First Earth Shadow had added a layer of Earth Release to the surface of the Magnet Release.

The person impersonating Ōnoki was the Second Tsuchikage Mu. He taught Ōnoki Dust Release and Light-Weight Rock Technique. It was easy for him to mislead the White Zetsu clone with Dust Release.

The person impersonating Han and Roshi is their former Jinchuriki.

Hanzo impersonated Kawakita, Kawakita swordsmanship was greatly influenced by Hanzo. Even White Zetsu clone couldn't tell the difference.

The one impersonating Sakura was actually Chiyo. She didn't control the White Zetsu clone using the Mind Body Switch Technique, but rather used the Puppet Technique.

The person impersonating Deidara was Ryosuke, who was also skilled in Puppet Technique. The Clay Bird were real, but they were controlled by Ryosuke to make aerial maneuvers.

Detonating the Clay Bird was also simple; Deidara had prepared a backup plan beforehand, Ryosuke could easily ignite and detonate it.

The one impersonating Yuki Koru; Ice Release is Yuki Koru's forte.

Also, the one impersonating Uzumaki Riori was Fugaku Uchiha, and Fugaku Uchiha's Great Dragon Fire Technique was even more skillful than Uzumaki Riori's.