Declaration of War on the Land of Snow

The cries of vendors still echo through the streets of Konoha.

As always, the ninjas and civilians living in the village took to the streets to select their daily necessities.

However, this seemingly ordinary atmosphere cannot completely conceal the grim atmosphere that permeates the village today.

Street vendors have noticed that many familiar faces they usually see have not visited their shops for many days.

Every night, some insomniacs who can't sleep can vaguely see Anbu jumping and darting across the rooftop through their windows.

The last time this scene occurred was on the eve of the Third Shinobi World War.

Military Police Force increased patrol frequency, and the ninjas of the Internal Affairs Department also began a new round of anti-traitor operations.

Some ninjas who did not belong to the Shinobi Alliance were captured and thrown into prison to be severely tortured.

The other four hidden villages also received notification of Konoha's operation.

Konoha is declaring war on the Land of Snow.

The major hidden villages did not pay much attention to this small country located on the border of the map, especially after learning that it was very likely to be colluding with the Dawn Organization, and they unconditionally supported Konoha's actions.

As for aid, apart from Sunagakure explicitly asking Konoha if they needed support, the other villages all adopted a "not my problem" attitude.

Kazashiro didn't stand on ceremony and directly demanded that Sunagakure send people to protect Konoha's supply routes.

After all, the best route to conquer the Land of Snow is to cross the northern part of the Land of Wind.

Sending ninjas from Sunagakure to protect the supply lines would save Konoha a lot of resources to defend against the Dawn Organization.

Pakura readily agreed.

Three days later, once Konoha's supplies and troops had been assembled, the Konoha High Command immediately produced the declaration of war that they had long requested from the Daimyo, and officially declared war on the Land of Snow.

As for the official purpose, it is to help Kazahana Koyuki, the true heir of the Land of Snow, regain her rightful place.

In their declaration of war, Konoha condemned Kazahana Dōtō's heinous act of usurping the throne, portraying him as a ruthless demon who would persecute even his own niece for the sake of the king's throne.

Of course, that's exactly what they did; Konoha just exaggerated a little bit of it in some details.

In short, Konoha's declaration of war immediately aroused the dissatisfaction of Kazahana Dōtō.

As expected, the schemer's defenses crumbled upon upon seeing the various human behaviors described in the proclamation.

"Slander, utter slander! What do you mean I coveted Kazahana Koyuki's beauty? How old was Kazahana Sōsetsu when she died?! And what do you mean I liked eating raw human brains? Is that even edible?!"

Tearing the notice to shreds, Kazahana Dōtō, her face flushed with rage, shouted, "Damn it! Beat them! Beat those shameless bastards from Konoha!"

The Land of Snow quickly assembled its army and continuously dispatched troops to the border region.

As for their most elite robot army, it was left in the capital of the Land of Snow as a reserve force.

"The Land of Snow has complex terrain and a cold climate, so we must act quickly, otherwise our logistics will be severely strained."

Konoha mobilized a total of 2,000 ninjas this time, and the commander in charge was Jiraiya, who had extensive experience in combat.

At this moment, he was standing in front of a huge map, analyzing the terrain of the Land of Snow.

Kazashiro's role as Hokage was to act as a vanguard, opening up opportunities for his main force.

"Conquering Helsinki Fortress would be tantamount to tolling the death knell for the Land of Snow."

"I understand."

Kazashiro instantly understood Jiraiya's meaning.

That afternoon, the snow ninja in the Helsinki Fortress saw the Tailed Beast Bomb for the first time in her life.

Fearing that the fortress might contain some advanced defensive technology, Kazashiro unleashed three Tailed Beast Bomb in one go, blasting the Land of Snow's number one fortress into the sky.

Using this opening, the Konoha Ninja successfully entered the Land of Land of Snow.

Before the Snow Ninja could react, they divided and surrounded their troops on the road.

Despite it being his first expeditionary operation, Jiraiya still demonstrated his command abilities.

With minimal losses, Konoha swiftly conquered major towns and began its advance towards the capital of the Land of Snow.

Faced with the dire situation at the front, Kazahana Dōtō couldn't even bother cursing Konoha anymore. He hurriedly summoned Gratoni, hoping he could eliminate Kazashiro. At the same time, he sent his most elite robot army to the front, temporarily slowing down Konoha's advance.

Above Lahti Fortress.

Kazashiro brandished his enormous Ice Wings, conjuring a massive Ice Release: Rasengan in his hand.

Below him, the Snow Ninjas could only watch helplessly as Kazashiro's Rasengan grew larger and larger.

Three Black Rods suddenly shot out from the shadows, heading towards Kazashiro's location.

Upon hearing the sound of something cutting through the air, Kazashiro unleashed Rasengan, deflecting the three Black Rods. He then used his Ice Wings to reach the location where the Black Rods had been launched.

Pale skin, Byakugan, and arms that extend past the knees when hanging down naturally.

That's right, this is the Artificial Human Kakashi encountered, Gluttony.

"You are the Fifth Hokage?"

Gratoni, who resembled a gorilla, looked Kazashiro up and down.

Kazashiro ignored his opponent and threw Flying Thunder God Kunai at him.

"Flying Thunder God - Ice Wing Dance"

This is Kazashiro's latest technique, which uses the Flying Thunder God for rapid movement while attacking the opponent with the ice wings that swirl behind him.

A loud crash rang out, and Gratoni raised his hands and swung them out rapidly, managing to match the speed of the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Gratoni also inherited some of the Ōtsutsuki's physique, and actually managed to clash with Kazashiro hands.

"Ice Release: Ice Fist Barrage!"

When his attacks failed, Kazashiro exchanged a punch with Gratoni, only to be forced back several steps by the force of the blow.

Seeing that Kazashiro had made a mistake, Gratoni did not hesitate and once again swung his Black Rods straight at Kazashiro.

"Ice Release: Ice Rock Dome Nothingness"

An ice wall was erected, blocking the Black Rods's attack.

Using the cover, Kazashiro clasped his hands together and began to gather Natural Energy.

Gratoni on the other side jumped up, leaped into the air, and swung the Black Rods again.

"Ice Crystal World Law!"

Unexpectedly, Kazashiro, who had not anticipated that his opponent would bypass his defenses in this way, immediately changed his hand seals, creating countless ice spikes that pierced the sky and blocked the Black Rods.

Gratoni was also hit by the ice spike, but the sharp spike did not break through his defenses; it simply lifted him into the air.

"Ice Release: Snow Woman Descends"

A thick white fog filled the surroundings, and when Gratoni jumped to the ground, he was immediately enveloped in this Ice Mist that could destroy a person's internal organs.

He activated his Byakugan and began searching for Kazashiro's whereabouts.

As for the Ice Mist, given his physique, its destructive power was insufficient to alert him.

It wasn't until blood began to gush from his mouth that he realized he had underestimated the damage the Ice Mist had inflicted on him.