Reaction, Flying Thunder God

Iwagakure's speed is top-notch; a force of 1,000 men was assembled in just one day, demonstrating that the entire Iwagakure is always ready for war.

Even without the Sunagakure incident, they would have acted quickly anyway; it's just that their target at that time would be unknown.

This Iwagakure force assembled and set off on the first day, and arrived at the front-line Camp in the Land of Birds on the second day. After joining forces with some of the ninjas in the Camp, the force, totaling 2,000 men, swept through the Sunagakure scouts in the Land of Birds on the third day and stormed into the border of the Land of Wind.

The sudden attack did catch Sunagakure off guard, but Sunagakure was not overrun in one fell swoop as Iwagakure had predicted.

Taking advantage of the natural terrain of the Land of Wind, they managed to hold off the attack from Iwagakure with great difficulty.

This greatly surprised the Iwagakure at the front lines and also puzzled Ōnoki at the rear.

In fact, Sunagakure was not as chaotic as they imagined, though perhaps it was at first. But with Chiyo's return and the election of the acting Kazekage, the internal turmoil in Sunagakure was quickly quelled.

But this is not something that Iwagakure scouts can easily Scout.

With Iwagakure's undeclared war, this move thoroughly enraged Sunagakure. The disappearance of the Kazekage already indicated that Iwagakure might have been behind it.

Now that Iwagakure has launched this sneak attack, it immediately confirms Sunagakure's suspicions.

The village is currently in turmoil due to the Kazekage's disappearance, and Iwagakure is rushing in to be the first to act. This means that the Kazekage's disappearance must be related to you. Even if you didn't do it alone, you must have colluded with a rogue Rogue Ninja from Sunagakure.

Thus, a strongly worded declaration of war appeared, the gist of which was:

Iwagakure colluded with Sunagakure's Rogue Ninja to ambush the Third Kazekage, resulting in his death. Iwagakure then launched a massive attack on Sunagakure. This act was utterly shameless and despicable, lacking any semblance of national dignity (omitting a thousand words of condemnation). Therefore, Sunagakure formally declares war on Iwagakure.

While Sunagakure announced its declaration of war against Iwagakure to the Ninja World, Sunagakure also sent a letter to Konoha requesting support, along with a copy of the recently signed Offensive-Defensive Alliance Treaty.

In the words of Sunagakure Chiyo: "Anyway, the alliance has been signed, and sending a letter won't take much effort. What if Konoha really does send troops?"

The news of the formal war between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth immediately became the focus of the Ninja World. Just two days ago, news came that the Third Kazekage of Sunagakure had gone missing, and the next day, Iwagakure invaded the Land of Wind.

Unfortunately, Iwagakure failed miserably. Their sneak attack was thwarted by Sunagakure, who held their line. They gained no advantage and instead earned a reputation for framing a foreign leader and waging war without declaring war. It was a classic case of trying to steal a chicken but losing the rice instead, and losing both their wife and their army.

For a time, Iwagakure of Ōnoki became a laughing stock in the Ninja World.

"Hahaha, even that shorty Ōnoki has met his end! He spent all his time scheming and plotting, but in the end, he still got himself into trouble!"

From the Raikage's Office came the Third A's hearty laughter, as if he could be overjoyed by the Third Tsuchikage's misfortune.

But despite the laughter, the Third Raikage wasn't one to stick to the status quo, Cloud Village wasn't exactly a law-abiding village either. "Karui, what benefits do you think we can get from this?"

Karui was exasperated. The Lord Raikage was up to his old tricks again, and all they could do was clean up his messes.

"Fortunately, it was Ōnoki who made the first move. I was originally planning to send people to Sunagakure to cause trouble. Even if we couldn't take over the land, it would be good to seize some resources."

"We really have to thank the Tsuchikage!"

Karui was also relieved. The Raikage had previously considered sending troops to the Land of Wind, but was dissuaded because the timing wasn't right. This time, it was Iwagakure who took the lead and let everyone know that Sunagakure had returned to stability.

Otherwise, given the Raikage's personality, he would definitely send an elite squad to raid the Land of Wind. In that case, it would be uncertain whether these elite squads could return safely from the heavily fortified Sunagakure.

So, the Third Tsuchikage is truly a good person; he definitely saved the Cloud Village from disaster this time!

"We're not going to Sunagakure. What about Iwagakure? I've disliked them for a long time. They're fighting Sunagakure now, so we can launch a sneak attack from behind."

The Third A's mind raced, and a new idea popped into his head, only to turn around and see that Karui's face had turned completely dark.

"Lord Raikage, the battle between Sunagakure and Iwagakure has only just begun, and currently Iwagakure still holds the upper hand. Iwagakure's defenses against us have not weakened at all. Even if you want to attack Iwagakure, you should wait until they are locked in a fierce battle."

The Third A looked listless. He had realized his mistake as soon as he said it, and now, after Karui's analysis, he also felt that it was indeed true.

"Then let's hold back for now, but send more men to gather intelligence on the situation in various countries. The Ninja World is about to become even more lively."

While Sunagakure and Iwagakure locked in a life-or-death struggle, Cloud Village chose to remain neutral, Konoha was now facing a difficult problem.

In the Hokage's Office, the four high-ranking officials —Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura— gathered together once again, staring at a letter requesting assistance on the table, remaining silent for a long time.

The alliance originally signed to stabilize the south has not only failed to achieve its intended purpose, but has now become the fuse that has prematurely dragged Konoha into the quagmire of war.

"Let's all share our opinions!" Hiruzen Sarutobi took a couple of puffs of his cigarette and broke the silence, but his words revealed a hint of anger, though it was unclear whether he was angry at himself or at the Sunagakure.

Danzo remained calm and Danzo. He hadn't led the signing of this alliance, so he wasn't in a hurry to speak. He wanted to see how Koharu and En would handle it.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of helplessness in each other's eyes. They both felt a sense of frustration, never expecting that things would change so abruptly.

The Third Kazekage died so inexplicably, catching everyone completely off guard. The treaty, originally intended to give Konoha a breather, has now tightened its grip on the Konoha.

Helping in the battle would violate Konoha's strategic policy; not helping would destroy Konoha's reputation.

Unlike other ninja villages that often disregard alliances, using them when necessary and tearing them up when appropriate, this village...

As the strongest Ninja World, Konoha values its reputation highly, and to date, there has never been a precedent of it breaking its alliances. This is why many missions are actively sought out by Konoha – it's because of its excellent reputation.

"How about we send a symbolic number of people over? That wouldn't be considered a betrayal of our alliance. After all, we just fought a battle with Sunagakure, and we need to set up defenses on all sides. It's understandable that we don't have enough troops to send out."

Mitokado Homura spoke words he himself didn't believe, but after seeing the looks in Hiruzen and Danzo's eyes, his voice grew softer and softer.

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head in disappointment, then turned his gaze to Danzo, hoping he could offer some constructive advice.

Seeing that everyone's attention had turned to him, Danzo felt a surge of pride. Back then, they all didn't believe in him and wanted to form an alliance. Now, well, they all have to find a way for him.

Of course, these are just things I can imagine in my mind; I can't say them out loud.

Danzo frowning in thought, whetting everyone's appetites before finally revealing the answer he had already prepared, "We'll send reinforcements directly towards the Land of Grass. Coincidentally, we had planned to send more troops to the Land of Grass when we faced the reinforcements from Iwagakure. This way, we can kill two birds with one stone."

Tell Sunagakure that in order to help them contain Iwagakure's forces, we have urgently dispatched a group of people from the village to the front lines in the Land of Grass.

Hiruzen Sarutobi up. This was indeed a good idea; it wouldn't disrupt his plans and could also deal with Sunagakure.

Only----

"Will Sunagakure believe it?" Utatane Koharu asked, voicing everyone's final doubt.

"Believe? Why should we make them believe! This is just giving everyone a plausible excuse. At most, we'll make a bigger commotion in the Land of Grass and the Iwagakure. Besides, even if we really send troops there, would the Sunagakure allow our forces passage?"

Everyone looked at each other, and sure enough, that made sense. Besides, even if Sunagakure dared to open its borders to Konoha wouldn't dare to pass.

After all, not long ago everyone fought a big battle, and a large number of Sunagakure ninjas died. If Konoha's troops go there now, who knows if they will be able to come back?

In this way, a force of a thousand men quickly assembled in the village and, under the pretense of containing the Iwagakure forces, headed towards the Kusanagi camp.

Meanwhile, a formal reply was also brought back to the Land of Wind by a ninja hawk from Sunagakure. The content, of course, was that Konoha, as agreed, had dispatched an additional thousand troops to the border of the Land of Grass, tying down a great deal of Rock Ninja's attention, and hoping that Sunagakure could successfully defeat the Rock Ninja's invasion.

Just as the Sand Village and the Stone Village were locked in fierce combat, Taiichi, at the camp in the Land of Rivers, finally received a reward from the village.

Central Army Tent.

After receiving the order, Taiichi hurriedly followed the messenger ninja to the location. Upon closer inspection, he found only Jiraiya and Shikaku in the tent.

The two were still chatting and laughing, showing no signs of being in a hurry. Taiichi finally felt relieved and slowed his pace to approach.

"Jiraiya- sensei, you summoned me without giving a reason, making me think something urgent had happened, I was worried sick!"

Taiichi approached and started joking, acting as if he were one of us.

"You little rascal, there's no fighting going on at this time, so there must be something good that I called you here." Jiraiya didn't care about Taiichi's attitude at all; he was a person who didn't care about formalities.

"Great news!" Taiichi's eyes lit up, and he immediately realized what was going on. "Could it be that the village's reward has arrived?"

"Haha!" Jiraiya laughed heartily, then said to Shikaku beside him, "I told you this kid was smart. He'd understand as soon as you gave him a little hint."

Shikaku smiled and nodded, then looked at Taiichi and explained, "It is indeed the village's reward. For discovering and bringing back the Kazekage's body last time, according to the S-rank Mission calculation, you are also allowed to choose one Ninjutsu from the Scroll of Sealing as a reward."

As he spoke, Shikaku began to envy Taiichi. Not to mention the S-rank mission record, even choosing Ninjutsu from the Scroll of Sealing was a reward that not everyone could receive. It required not only great merit but also strong connections.

Even the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans, the staunch Hokage faction, despite their numerous achievements, haven't necessarily selected many Ninjutsu from the Scroll of Sealing.

"Ah~ Ha, finally down? I've been waiting for this for so long." Taiichi's eyes gleamed, and he rubbed his hands together, looking eager to try.

"Look at you, kid!" Jiraiya and scolded. "Don't be in such a hurry. Besides, you haven't even said what kind of Ninjutsu you want. If you choose one that I don't know, then I'll have to go back to Konoha to learn it."

Jiraiya and Shikaku both looked at Taiichi, wanting to see which Ninjutsu he would choose. Jiraiya wasn't worried that Taiichi didn't understand the Scroll of Sealing, as he knew that Tsunade's collection was in Taiichi's hands, and there would naturally be descriptions of the Scroll of Sealing in it.

Taiichi naturally knew about the Scroll of Sealing, so he had already decided how to choose. In peacetime, he would choose the Spirit Transformation Technique to understand the soul and Yin Release.

But now it's wartime, so the Flying Thunder God Technique is naturally more practical and convenient. Besides, with Taichi's strength and connections, it's almost certain that he'll earn the opportunity to choose ninjutsu from the Book of Seals after making further contributions.

"I've made up my mind, I'll choose the Flying Thunder God Technique." Taiichi was full of confidence, not worried at all about not being able to learn it.

"Flying Thunder God?" Jiraiya and Shikaku both looked at Taiichi in surprise.

"Taiichi, why don't you choose something else? Don't be fooled by Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique. In reality, since the Second Hokage created it, only he and Minato have mastered it. Everyone else hasn't even scratched the surface."

Jiraiya to persuade Taiichi, not because he didn't trust Taiichi, but because there were very few people with spatial abilities. Of all the ninjas in Konoha, only the Second Hokage and Minato could do it.

Moreover, he had also learned this technique, but he just couldn't learn it. No matter how much time he spent, it was all in vain. He really didn't want Taiichi to spend so much precious time on this.

"It's alright, Jiraiya- sensei. Besides, even if I can't learn it, it's okay. I'll just consider it as enriching my knowledge base." Taiichi didn't care at all. Even if he didn't have a panel, he still wanted to study what kind of techniques involving space were.

"Sigh, you people, you never learn until you hit a brick wall." Jiraiya sighed, seemingly thinking of his friend Orochimaru, who was also obsessed with Ninjutsu.

"Here's what we'll do. I'll have Minato teach you, but if you don't have the talent for it, you'll have to stop immediately and come back to me to choose something else."

Jiraiya spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, but Taiichi looked on in astonishment. He turned to look at Shikaku, who was staring intently at the top of the tent, seemingly oblivious to what Jiraiya had just said.

"Is this okay? Will we be punished?"

"You brat, if you don't tell, and I don't tell, who will know you chose two Ninjutsu from me?" Jiraiya waved his hand dismissively, then turned to Shikaku and asked, "Right? Shikaku!"

"Huh? What are you talking about? I don't know!" Shikaku looked completely bewildered, just like he really meant it.

Taiichi also learned that everyone's bottom line can be so flexible. No wonder they can hang out together; they're all birds of a feather.

"Alright, kid, don't act all innocent after getting the benefits. Take the warrant and get going!" With that, he picked up a pen and paper, quickly wrote a few words, and handed it to Taiichi.

"Thank you, Jiraiya- sensei, Shikaku- sama." Taiichi happily accepted the token and thanked the two of them sincerely. They had done him a favor, so he couldn't be rude.

After leaving the Central Army Tent, Taiichi strolled around the Camp with cheerful steps, eager to find Minato Namikaze as soon as possible to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique. However, the Camp was neither too big nor too small, and it was not something that could be searched out in a short time.

Half an hour later, Taiichi, who had finally calmed down, slapped his forehead. He was so stupid; he had Sensory Ninjutsu but didn't use it, wasting so much time.