The Omen of War!

Chapter 17: Prelude to War!

The next day, news of the Kumogakure envoys' accidental deaths began to circulate throughout Konoha.

Inside the meeting room of the Hokage Building.

"Bang!" Hiruzen Sarutobi slammed his fist onto the table. He scanned the high-ranking officials seated around him and said coldly:

"Who leaked this news? It only happened in the early hours of last night, yet by dawn, the entire village is talking about it."

"And 'accidental death'? What kind of accident?"

Hiruzen's gaze fell upon the man sitting to his left, his eyes filled with scrutiny and doubt.

"Hiruzen, it is highly likely that the ninja who handled the situation last night failed to clean up properly, allowing someone from Kumogakure to escape."

"I heard the one who took down the kidnappers last night was a child who just graduated from the Academy? The youngster has decent strength, but it's only natural that he was careless and let the intelligence slip out."

"Now is not the time to investigate why the news leaked. Kumogakure should be taking action soon, shouldn't they?"

The man speaking was the one Hiruzen had been staring at. The "×" shaped scar on his chin made Danzō's expression look somewhat sinister as he spoke.

"Danzō makes a valid point. After all, Minato Namikaze is young; it's normal for him to make such a mistake."

"What we need to do now is not dwell on why this news leaked, but rather prepare ourselves to deal with Kumogakure's reaction."

"I hear the current Raikage has a volatile temper. We must prepare early."

Mitokado Homura agreed with Danzō and voiced his support. His words caused Hiruzen to fall into a sudden silence.

What frustrated Hiruzen wasn't the leak itself—the deaths of the Kumogakure envoys couldn't be hidden forever, and Kumogakure would find out soon enough. His true frustration lay in the fact that he, the Hokage, had been kept in the dark and caught completely off guard by the leak.

He had originally intended to spin the narrative to give Konoha the moral high ground. But with the "accidental death" story already spreading among the populace, any official statement he released now would be met with skepticism, appearing only as a clumsy attempt to cover up the truth.

"Damn it!" Hiruzen cursed under his breath. He knew some things had already slipped beyond his control.

The meeting moved past the issue of the leak and began discussing how to handle Kumogakure.

However, what was happening in the Hokage Building's meeting room had nothing to do with Uzumaki Kuming. He remained in the secret chamber of his study as usual, researching the various secret techniques left behind by Uzumaki Mito. Kuming's daily routine had become firmly established.

He spent his mornings researching techniques; the study of various sealing arts was incredibly time-consuming. In the afternoons, he practiced taijutsu, with Uzumaki Mito as his sparring partner. As a master of sealing arts herself, Mito often incorporated them into their taijutsu training.

While others practiced pure taijutsu, for Kuming, the focus was on the integration of techniques and physical combat.

At night, Kuming would return to his study to research ninjutsu. Often, he felt the urge to go out and explore, but the thought of Kushina being kidnapped within the village made him choose to stay low.

It is well known that to live long, one must stay hidden. As long as Kuming didn't leave Mito's estate, no enemy could threaten him. If the ninja world were a game, Konoha would be the starter village, and Uzumaki Mito's estate would be the spawn point—the definition of safety.

Unlike other spawn points, however, this one allowed for leveling up. Here, Kuming could achieve sufficient growth.

"It will take a few more years to condense the chakra for the Yin Seal. It's better to stay home during this time."

"Once a person starts acting out, they attract hatred. Once the hatred is maxed out, they end up dead."

"I'll stay steady and focus on my sealing arts, so I can start practicing the Flying Thunder God as soon as possible."

Kuming's goal was very clear: to survive in these chaotic times, hiding at home was far from enough. Uzumaki Mito was becoming increasingly lethargic, and Kuming knew her time was running out. Once she passed away, there would be no one left to protect him and his sister.

Tsunade was still too young. Despite her high status, she lacked real political power, and her strength was far from its peak. Protecting him and Kushina was out of the question. If Mito were to pass away and Kushina inherited the Nine-Tails to become the second jinchūriki, her personal safety would be guaranteed.

But as her younger brother, Uzumaki Kuming would not receive such treatment. Being sent to the battlefield was only a matter of time.

"As long as I can master the Flying Thunder God, and as long as I don't do anything stupid like using my own body as a claw for the Nine-Tails, keeping my life shouldn't be a problem."

While flipping through the scrolls, Kuming didn't forget to mock Minato, whom he had met just yesterday. Thinking of the villagers discussing the Kumogakure envoys this morning, Kuming knew the current peace wouldn't last much longer.

In the 31st year of Konoha, negotiations between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning broke down. The Raikage seized upon the "accidental deaths" of his envoys in Konoha, insisting that Konoha had murdered them. The Third Hokage had no way to defend himself; he couldn't exactly tell the world that Kumogakure had attempted to kidnap Konoha's second jinchūriki, could he?

To say so would only reveal to their enemies that Uzumaki Mito's days were numbered.

Therefore, Hiruzen could only smear the envoys with baseless accusations. However, since these were fabricated on the spot, they were quickly debunked by other hidden villages, effectively handing Kumogakure the perfect excuse.

The atmosphere between Kumogakure and Konoha grew tense instantly, and other villages, sensing the potential for war, began a new round of an arms race.

"Lord Hokage, there is unusual movement from Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning. A large force of ninja is advancing toward the Land of Hot Water. They will reach the borders of the Land of Fire within days!"

In the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage was busy processing documents when an Anbu wearing a mask suddenly appeared, kneeling on one knee to report to him. At the same time, deep in his underground base, Danzō received the same intelligence.

"What? Kumogakure is moving this fast? Didn't I already send people to negotiate? They haven't arrived yet?"

Hearing the report, the Third Hokage stopped his pen, placed it gently on the rack, and lit his pipe.

"Report: we have completely lost contact with the envoy group. It has been two hours!"

"We originally scheduled contact every hour. It seems they have encountered trouble."

The Anbu's report left the Third Hokage in silence. He needed time to digest the news and formulate a response. But deep in the underground base, Shimura Danzō had already made his decision.

"Order units 1 through 30 to head to the border at full speed. They must block the elite forces of Kumogakure from infiltrating the Land of Fire."

"Once they arrive, they are to requisition all border defense ninja. The battlefield will be the Land of Hot Water!"

If one were to look at the map of the ninja world with the Land of Fire at its center, the Land of Hot Water sat in the middle, between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. When two great powers clashed, the small, weak Land of Hot Water often served as a buffer zone.

The same applied to the Land of Moon to the north of the Land of Hot Water, which also lacked a hidden village and served as a buffer. While the Third Hokage was still considering his options, Danzō had already issued his orders, attempting to seize control of the border forces for himself.