Was the Fourth Shinobi World War a Konoha civil war?

The number of Impure World Reincarnation Ninja increased, eventually appearing in droves.

Images of six Ninja appeared from the front lines of the Mist Ninja. They were of various heights, builds, and shapes, and they struck very distinctive, or rather, eye-catching, poses.

In short, these six Mist Ninja left a very deep impression.

The First Hokage, who had never seen such an outspoken Ninja before, was very curious and looked at the Fifth Mizukage, asking, "Little girl from Kirigakure, who are these strange-looking guys?"

Under everyone's gaze, Mei Terumi covered her face in shame. "Ringo Ameyuri Jinin Akebino, Kushimaru Kuriarare, Munashi Jinpachi, Suikazan Fuguki, and Hozuki Mangetsu, these are the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Kirigakure."

Yes, they were the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, who claimed to be able to conquer a small country. Their first group appearance was to hunt Hokage, but they were defeated by a Genin, resulting in four deaths and three defections, and they were immediately removed from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

From that day on, the Mist Ninja's goal in becoming Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist became, instead, to revive that name.

Momochi Zabuza was so audacious that he even wanted to wash away the shame brought by the First Generation of Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Mei Terumi, the Fifth Mizukage, originally believed that victory and defeat were commonplace, and that even losing was not a disgrace. However, she never imagined that the so-called disgrace would mean shame.

But as soon as an image was sent from the Konoha Ninja Corps, the Frontline Command fell silent instantly.

Most people don't recognize this Ninja with his wild, long hair and red armor; they only see his image in pictures and sense his astonishing coldness and disdain.

But those who know this Ninja are completely different.

The Third Tsuchikage seemed to be greatly frightened, even staggering back a step, kicking the chair with a screeching sound.

He recalled that more than 60 years ago, Madara Uchiha, dressed in the same manner, stood at the Main Gate of Iwagakure and arrogantly ordered the First Tsuchikage to attend the first Five Kage Summit.

The First Five Kage were all ruthless characters who had fought their way through blood and fire, and each of them was proud and arrogant.

Before experiencing Madara Uchiha's power firsthand, the First Tsuchikage was unwilling to lower himself to face the First Hokage, and thus a battle ensued between him and Madara Uchiha.

At that time, Ōnoki, who had only 16 shattered pieces, had not yet been promoted to Jonin. He couldn't understand the battle between the First Tsuchikage and Madara Uchiha at all, and he didn't even have the ability to get close enough to watch.

He only knew that the battle hadn't lasted long, but the newly built Iwagakure was almost half destroyed, and the First Tsuchikage was being held by Madara Uchiha, barely alive, when he was forced to agree to the First Hokage's demands.

That scene left a deep impression on Ōnoki, and could even be described as a profound psychological trauma.

The damage suddenly erupted when he saw Madara Uchiha, causing Ōnoki's finger pointing at the image to tremble, and his open mouth to utter no words.

The Third Hokage looked somewhat bewildered, clearly unable to recall the Ninja's identity for the moment.

When Madara Uchiha was active in Konoha, he never displayed such a hostile attitude and arrogant demeanor; on the contrary, he always appeared shy and insecure.

When Madara Uchiha returned to Konoha with the Nine-Tails, he was quickly stopped by the First Hokage and fought a fierce battle in the wilderness hundreds of kilometers away, until that place became the Valley of the End.

In short, the Third Hokage had never seen such a vivid Madara Uchiha, and his impressions, though not deep enough, couldn't withstand the passage of time, so he couldn't recognize who it was.

When the Second Hokage saw Madara Uchiha, the face that came to mind was Uchiha Izuna, his old rival whom he had personally killed.

Tobirama Senju, his face wary, muttered, "As expected of Madara Uchiha, he discovered the problem so quickly. This is going to be a bit tricky."

The First Hokage's expression was the most complex, containing melancholy, a touch of apprehension, but mostly nostalgia.

"Madara Uchiha." The First Hokage uttered the name he loved most, then firmly declared to everyone, "I will deal with him."

Upon hearing the First Hokage's words, the Fourth Raikage, the Fifth Mizukage, and the Fifth Kazekage realized that it was Madara Uchiha, and couldn't help but gasp in shock.

But they immediately breathed a sigh of relief along with the Third Tsuchikage, realizing that the Ninja in front of them was the First Hokage, known as the God of Shinobi, whose record of defeating Madara Uchiha multiple times was well-documented.

Sensing the relaxation of the Four Kage, the First Hokage reiterated, "This time, I will not allow Madara Uchiha to continue making mistakes."

The Second Hokage walked over, patted him on the shoulder, and asked, "Big Brother, how are you going to stop him?"

The First Hokage clenched his fist, slightly excited, and said, "Of course, we should beat him up badly, until he can't move!"

"I want revenge for the time he bit me."

The Second Hokage looked at his Big Brother with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot, but still reminded him, "Madara Uchiha is now also a Impure World Reincarnation, possessing an immortal body capable of infinite resurrection and endless Chakra."

"Ah?" The First Hokage exclaimed in surprise, "Oh dear, I forgot that after Impure World Reincarnation, one becomes immortal! What, what should we do?"

The Second Hokage said, "It's very simple. Even the immortality and infinite Chakra of the Impure World Reincarnation have their limits. If you smash Madara Uchiha's body 100 times, the offerings used to summon him will be completely destroyed."

"If the offering is of such high quality that breaking it 100 times won't work, then break it 200 times; it will surely return to the Pure Land."

The First Hokage was dumbfounded. "That, that's Madara! And you want to break it 100 times? I, I can't do that!"

Tobirama Senju scoffed, "Then let's use the second method: shatter Madara Uchiha's body once, and while he's recovering, seal him away with Sealing Technique."

Hashirama Senju was overjoyed. "Great, this is a good idea, it will definitely work the first time."

Shazo smiled and handed the Second Hokage a small note from behind, on which was written information about Madara Uchiha breaking the seal with his aura and Chakra.

Tobirama Senju glanced at it only once, then his expression changed slightly, and he asked in surprise, "The Rinnegan can also be reproduced by my [Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu]?"

The fact that Madara Uchiha could destroy a pre-arranged Sealing Array with just his aura and Chakra means that his power completely surpasses the category of Kage-level Ninja, that is, the so-called Sage of Six Paths Level.

The Sage of Six Paths Level power that Madara Uchiha possessed was the Rinnegan.

Shazo raised an eyebrow and said, "Your version of the Second Hokage won't work, but Orochimaru's improved [Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu] will."

Tobirama Senju frowned, recalling the details of Orochimaru's improvements. After a moment, he exclaimed in surprise, "So that's how it is! I didn't even notice it before!"

"Orochimaru, that kid, is really something."

"But how are we supposed to deal with Madara Uchiha then? Even my Big Brother can't beat him."

Shazo pointed at the four Hokage: "Hokage, you are four immortal Impure World Reincarnation Tensei users, and you have 30,000 Konoha Ninja supporting you. Don't always think about one-on-one fights."

Minato Namikaze asked, "Fifth Hokage, aren't you coming along?"

Shazo shook his head and said, "I won't go. Nagato and Obito Uchiha are still hiding in Akatsuki. I have to stay here to guard against them."

Minato Namikaze nodded in agreement. "Nagato is powerful, Obito's Kamui is unpredictable and difficult to defend against. Indeed, only you can deal with both of them."

Just as the Hokage were discussing the battle without any restraint, the Four Kage felt that something was amiss the more they listened.

Without realizing it, they left their seats and gradually gathered in Ikkaku of the room.

The Fourth Raikage suddenly looked up and surveyed the room, saying in a voice loud enough for Four Kage to hear, "I know what's wrong. There are five Hokage in this room, more than Four Kage us combined."

"If the whole room is full of Hokage, wouldn't we feel uncomfortable?"

The Kazekage, Mizukage, and Tsuchikage were all startled by what they heard, and when they met the Raikage's gaze, they all saw the unease in each other's eyes.

The Four Kage felt even more uneasy when they thought about how the Frontline Command and the Airship where it was located all belonged to Konoha.

They exchanged a glance, confirming their mutual feelings.

The Third Tsuchikage then spoke up, "Time is of the essence. We must go to the front lines now and seal away those senior Ninja who were resurrected using the Impure World Reincarnation."

After receiving permission from the Fifth Hokage Shazo, the Four Kage immediately left the Frontline Command and traveled to the front lines on sand and Yuanshi, respectively.

However, the Four Kage did not separate immediately, but instead gathered together to discuss the matter.

The Fifth Kazekage Gaara, spoke first, "The information the five Hokage are providing is truly astonishing, but the more I listen, the more something seems amiss."

The Third Tsuchikage scoffed, "That just proves you're not stupid; you haven't become the Fifth Hokage's puppet."

The Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi, explained earnestly, "Kazekage, you feel something's wrong because there's something wrong with the identity of our enemy."

"Look, the strongest enemy we've encountered right now is Madara Uchiha, missing-nin from Konoha, right?"

"Nagato of Akatsuki, is said to be Jiraiya's disciple, while Obito Uchiha, whom the Fifth Hokage had to be wary of, was the Fourth Hokage's disciple."

The Fourth Raikage's voice grew even colder. "And also, the guy who summoned the Impure World Reincarnation Ninja and Madara Uchiha for the Akatsuki, claiming to be a spy for Sasori of the Red Sands."

"But what kind of spy could learn Orochimaru's improved [Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu]?"

"You can imagine how strict the vetting process would be for Ninja has access to Konoha's forbidden techniques. The Konoha Fifth Hokage isn't the Third Hokage, after all."

The Third Tsuchikage concluded, "Based on the information we have now, the Fourth Shinobi World War, which was instigated by the Fifth Hokage, was essentially Civil War within Konoha. We were merely innocent victims caught in the crossfire."

The Fourth Raikage angrily retorted, "Whether it's the Fifth Hokage or any other Hokage, they're forcing us to risk our lives for Konoha!"

The innocent young Gaara was completely shocked, his worldview and values collapsed at the same time, and he appeared completely dazed.

The Fourth Raikage and the Third Tsuchikage's anger didn't last long, because the Fifth Mizukage said quietly, "So what if the Hokage forces us? Can we resist?"

Tsuchikage and Raikage Shadow were speechless.

Yes, what else can we do but rebel or simply side with the Akatsuki?

The Akatsuki lost its base in the Land of Rain from the very beginning, and now it is completely blocked in the Land of Iron by the Allied Shinobi Forces led by Konoha, with no room for maneuver.

The battle has only been going on for less than a day, but the Akatsuki has already played three cards in the face of the Allied Shinobi Forces ' attack: the Liao Kong Shinobi, the White Zetsu, and the Impure World Reincarnation army.

If we include Madara Uchiha, then four trump cards have been revealed.

Despite revealing so many trump cards, they failed to inflict any real damage on the Allied Shinobi Forces.

On the other hand, the Allied Shinobi Forces used their trump cards— the Konoha Airship and the Fifth Hokage —to cripple the Liao Kong Shinobi and Deidara, achieving remarkable results.

Even the youngest of the Four Kage, the Fifth Kazekage, could see that the Akatsuki wasn't showing signs of weakness, but rather a defeat after falling into a completely passive position.

Why did the Fifth Hokage suddenly appear before the Four Kage with all the Acting Hokage? He had kept Acting Hokage existence completely hidden before.

Of course, it was because after assessing the situation, he was certain that the Four Kage could see that Konoha had turned its advantage into a winning position, and they would absolutely not dare to betray the Allied Shinobi Forces.

It's important to know that before this, Konoha had demonstrated the power of money to the Ninja of the four major villages by "spending lavishly," which greatly eased the hostility of the lower-ranking Ninja of the four major villages.

Even the most hated Mist Ninja could smile at the Konoha Ninja distributing supplies and equipment.

Although the hatred has not been extinguished, the grassroots have stopped harboring any sentiment against Konoha. The only thing that could make the Four Great Ninja Villages turn against each other is the orders of the Four Kage.

Now that such a possibility no longer exists, the Fifth Hokage can naturally relax and bring out more trump cards that might offend or frighten the Four Kage.

Once he understood everything, the Third Tsuchikage's mood wasn't so bad anymore.

He slowly exhaled. "I've figured it out. The Fifth Hokage is dealing with us this way because it's a necessary measure to integrate the Allied Shinobi Forces and prevent any unforeseen events."

"From the perspective of the Allied Shinobi Forces, what he did was absolutely right."

The Fourth Raikage also said, "Looking back now, the Fifth Hokage's firm rejection of my suggestion and his refusal to let any Shinobu villages join was the right decision."

"There are too many Shinobu villages, and the leaders of Shinobu village have varying organizational abilities and authority, making it easy for uncontrollable variables to arise."

"And the most feared thing on the battlefield is unpredictability."

"The Fifth Hokage expended so much effort and time to subdue the four of us; he simply didn't have the energy to deal with any more Shinobu villages."

The Fifth Mizukage pursed his lips and said, "What you said makes a lot of sense, but as the one who was schemed against, I still feel very uncomfortable."

The Fourth Raikage and the Third Tsuchikage both smiled wryly, "We're the same. Understanding something in your heart and feeling comfortable about it are two completely different things."

The Fifth Kazekage asked, "What do we do next?"

The Raikage, Tsuchikage, Mizukage all said in unison, "Obey the Fifth Hokage's orders, strive to win this war, and then—"

After a long silence, when it was time to part ways, the Tsuchikage said dejectedly, "----Let's see how things go then."

The Four Kage looked at each other in silence, then went their separate ways.