Kirigakure Declares War

On the Northern Front, with Taiichi's assistance, the attack from Cloud Village was temporarily repelled, but Cloud Village was no pushover.

They quickly learned the details of the Western Front Konoha and realized that Taiichi was using the Flying Thunder God to travel between the two battlefields.

But a person's energy is ultimately limited. He can take care of one battlefield well, but there will always be some shortcomings when he takes care of two battlefields.

Having learned its lesson, Cloud Village no longer launched large-scale attacks. Instead, it slowly wore down Konoha, drawing away Konoha's forces and Taiichi's attention.

Leaving aside the actions of the Cloud Village, in the Land of Water, in the Kirigakure, in a spacious meeting room.

The Third Mizukage and other high-ranking members of the village were gathered together to discuss Mist Village's next move.

Mist Village also received the news that Konoha had suffered heavy losses on the Western Front Battlefield, and the village had just replenished its forces there. With the village currently vulnerable, Mist Village could seize this opportunity to launch a full-scale attack on Konoha.

"Mizukage, make up your mind. We've already started fighting Konoha, so what's there to worry about?"

The speaker was Kaguya Kuma, the head of the Kaguya Clan, a true warmonger. If the people of Cloud Village were barbarians, then the Kaguya Clan were insane; even the other Ninja Clan in the village disliked them.

"Yes, Lord Mizukage. Konoha is currently engaged in battles on three fronts, facing enemies on all sides. In addition, it has just suffered a defeat, and everyone is kicking it while it's down. Wouldn't it be perfect for us to join in now and pick up the pieces?"

This is a man with long, straight black hair and a rather effeminate appearance. If he doesn't speak, everyone will just think he is a beautiful woman. This is the head of the Yuki Clan, Mizunuki Asuka.

"Mist Village needs a foothold closer to the mainland. If we win this battle, we can seize the opportunity to occupy the Land of Waves and establish it as our Mist Village's bridgehead."

This is Hozuki Hoshizuki Hozuki Clan. His voice is the softest, but his words carry immense weight.

At this time, Kirigakure was at the height of its Ninja Clan influence, and now that the Three Great Clans had jointly declared war on Konoha, even the Third Mizukage had to consider the matter carefully.

"Elder Genshi, what do you think?" Mizukage looked at the old man beside her who had his eyes closed as if he were asleep, her eyes showing respect. This was the oldest and most senior elder in the village, and everyone present could be said to have been raised by him.

"Well—I'm too old for this. You can decide this yourself. I'm just here to bear witness. Don't ask this old man!"

Genji squinted, and it was unclear whether he was looking at everyone, but his answer was clear: you have the final say.

The Third Mizukage was also in high spirits. During Second Shinobi World War, he kept the entire Mist Village in hiding, precisely to conserve his strength and hope to have enough power to seize more benefits in the next great war.

Now that the opportunity has come, how could he let it slip by?

Looking around at all the attendees, everyone had an eager expression on their face, and they were all waiting for his command.

The Third Mizukage nodded in satisfaction. "Since no one has any objections, I have decided to formally declare war on Konoha."

"Yes!" Everyone stood up to obey, and the entire conference room was enveloped in a frenzied yet chilling atmosphere.

The war horn officially sounded, and Mist Village acted swiftly. On the very same day, Mist Village dispatched their elite Seven Ninja Swordsmen, planning to land directly on the East Coast of the Land of Land of Fire, launch a surprise attack on Konoha's heartland through the Konoha Great Forest, disrupt Konoha's internal logistics, and lay the foundation for the subsequent large-scale offensive.

Mist Village's declaration of war quickly spread throughout the Ninja World through special channels, and Konoha, as the responding party, was the first to receive the news.

Along with this news came a letter requesting reinforcements from the East Coast Outpost. It can only be said that Mist Village acted too quickly, and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were the elite of the elite.

Ordinary Konoha Ninja were no match for them, unable to stop their advance.

The main conference room in Konoha, the place where Jonin Council are usually held, is being used for this impromptu operational meeting.

It wasn't that Hiruzen Sarutobi and the two Advisor suddenly changed their minds and actually joined the others to discuss war matters.

Rather, Hiruzen Sarutobi simply doesn't have any spare troops at the moment. The Western Front Battlefield has just withdrawn a small number of their forces, and now they are struggling to maintain even the daily tasks in the village.

If these personnel are redeployed, the backlog of tasks will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among employers. If task assignments are lost, it will not be easy to win them back.

Therefore, with no soldiers available, Hiruzen Sarutobi can only ask the various clans of Konoha for help, hoping they can borrow their clan ninjas to jointly deal with this attack from Mist Village.

"Clan leaders, you are all aware of the current situation. Mist Village is coming on strong, and the outposts on the East Coast have sent many letters requesting reinforcements, but there are no more ninjas in the village who can go to provide support."

Everyone, Konoha to all of us. At this critical moment, I hope you will all respond to the village's call and send your clan's ninjas to the front lines to assist in the battle.

Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke with great passion, but the various clans below still had reservations.

The reason is simple: clan ninjas are not easily obtained; they are cultivated slowly by each clan at great expense. It is easy for them to be loaned out, but if they die outside, the loss will have to be borne by each clan itself.

Everyone looked at each other, wanting to see how the other companies would react before making a decision.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was annoyed by everyone's silence, cursing them inwardly for being short-sighted and only thinking about their own interests at a time like this.

Little did they know that once the village suffered significant losses, that would be when they truly suffered the consequences.

Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was wondering whether he should say something more or set an example, Fugaku Uchiha, sitting in the first seat on the left, spoke first.

"Konoha is our home. We all have our lives today because of Konoha. As one of the founding clans of Konoha, the Uchiha Clan naturally has to do its part in this time of crisis."

Fugaku Uchiha's righteous and stern words drew everyone's attention. Such an opportunity to shine was rare, and fortunately, the Great Elder had already explained everything beforehand, otherwise he wouldn't have dared to make such a decisive decision.

"Our Uchiha Clan is willing to send 200 ninjas to participate in this battle against Mist Village."

These words immediately caused an uproar in the conference room; not because there were too few people, but rather because there were too many.

Although they didn't know exactly how many ninjas the Uchiha Clan had, they knew from comparing it to their own clan that the Uchiha had brought out most of their clan's resources.

This is truly a desperate act! Could it really be because they are the founding clan, a deep love for Konoha? The other Ninja Clan leaders were momentarily confused. However, this wasn't the end of it. Fugaku Uchiha stood up, ignoring the astonished looks of the others present, as if a 20-year-old...

Like a headstrong young man, he waved his arms and declared without hesitation, "As the head of the clan, I will personally lead the team in this war and dedicate my strength to protecting Konoha."

Now, not only the clan leaders present, but even Hiruzen Sarutobi at the head of the table and the two Advisor couldn't help but glare at Fugaku Uchiha.

This is... isn't the Uchiha acting too strangely? Could they be plotting something again?

These high-ranking members who disliked the Uchiha all had the same thought at that moment: Fugaku Uchiha's performance was simply too good, so good that they couldn't believe it.

However, Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly adjusted his mood. Now that Fugaku Uchiha had broken the deadlock and made such a good start, he naturally wanted to take this opportunity to work even harder.

"The Uchiha Clan Head a man of noble character and integrity. His dedication to the village is something we should all learn from. As the Hokage, I cannot back down. The Sarutobi Clan will also be sending 200 ninjas to participate in this battle against Mist Village."

While other clans may not know how Hiruzen Sarutobi to his statement, it was Hyuga Hiashi who was the first to become uneasy.

The Hyuga Clan, which has always competed with the Uchiha for the title of the strongest clan in Konoha, is already lagging behind the Uchiha Clan, but now it's even falling behind the Sarutobi Clan. Where does that leave the Hyuga Clan's reputation?

"Our Hyuga Clan is willing to send 150 ninjas to participate in this battle."

Unfortunately, the Hyuga clan couldn't match the Uchiha, let alone the Sarutobi Clan of the Hokage. Their clan also had a Main Family and Branch Family. The Main Family were restricted from going to the battlefield, and enough Branch Family had to be left behind to protect the Main Family, which further limited the number of people they could send out.

However, even so, their numbers already exceeded the total number of most Ninja Clan, and many Ninja Clan leaders below looked at them with envy.

With the Uchiha, Sarutobi, and Hyuga clans setting an example, other clans also announced the number of people they would send.

First, as staunch allies of the Sarutobi Clan, the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans each sent 100 people to participate in the battle.

Then the Aburame Clan sent 80 people, the Inuzuka Clan sent 90 people, and other clans, large and small, also sent some ninjas one after another.

In the end, a total of 1200 ninjas were gathered.

These people, along with the original ninjas at the East Coast Outpost and those squeezed out of the village, pieced together a force of two thousand.

This team is certainly sufficient to handle this battle for the time being.

"Where the Konoha dance in the air, the fire will never die out; its Kakkou will continue to illuminate the village and allow new leaves to sprout."

Hiruzen Sarutobi beamed with a bright smile. The meeting had undoubtedly been a great success, and the problem of troop strength that had been troubling them had been resolved.

"You all truly deserve to be the Ninja Clan leaders of Konoha; the Will of Fire is fully embodied in you."

Hiruzen Sarutobi naturally didn't hesitate to shower the clan leaders with praise, showering them with compliments as if they were free.

Once everyone had calmed down, a new problem arose.

Who should be the Commander of such a team?

The Sannin would have been a perfect fit, as they possessed sufficient strength and prestige to fill the positions. However, Jiraiya the Southern Front, Orochimaru on the Northern Front, Tsunade was not in the village, leaving none of them suitable for the role.

Aside from these three, no one else from Konoha is really suitable to lead this team. After all, there are too many clan ninja here, especially the Uchiha and Hyuga, who don't get along with each other. If the Commander isn't chosen well, the team might even start fighting amongst themselves.

After a fruitless debate, all eyes turned to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was at the head of the table. As the Hokage, it was only right that he make the choice at this point.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was also in a Danzo. Danzo's defeat made him doubt the Advisor elder's command ability; otherwise, either Utatane Koharu or Mitokado Homura could have solved the problem.

But just as expected, even Danzo failed. How much better off could the two of them, who had been away from battle for a long time and were only handling logistical work in the village?

Konoha cannot afford another defeat.

At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi missed Tsunade terribly. If she were still in the village, he wouldn't have to worry about this at all.

Thinking of Tsunade, something suddenly occurred to Hiruzen Sarutobi. He knew that Taiichi and Tsunade had maintained contact, and that Taiichi had been trying to persuade Tsunade to return to Konoha, but he didn't know how far things were going.

But no matter what, we have to try asking Taiichi. If that doesn't work, we'll have no choice but to swallow our pride and ask our former comrade-in-arms Torifu Akimichi.

I heard that although he has retired, he still occasionally takes on some missions as a pastime and to pass the time. I suppose his abilities haven't declined too much compared to Koharu and Yan.

"Gentlemen, I have a good idea of who the Commander will be, but I need to confirm it again. You should go back and prepare the troops for the expedition. I will give you a satisfactory answer later."

The group exchanged bewildered glances, but still chose to believe the Hokage's words, and one by one they got up and returned to their respective clans.

The ninjas to be sent into battle still need to be selected. They can't be too bad, and they also need to leave behind a legacy for the clan to continue. This First Shinobi World War will likely cost countless clan members their lives, so everyone needs to consider all aspects.

After all the clan leaders left the meeting room, Utatane Koharu couldn't help but ask the Hokage, "Hiruzen, what are you thinking? Does the village have any suitable candidates? If not, let me go. At least I can mediate the conflicts between the clans."

"No, this First Shinobi World War must be won, not lost. We can't afford to lose again. Danzo's defeat has given other ninja villages hope of defeating us. If we First Shinobi World War to Mist Village again, it will be a catastrophe for Konoha. All the ninja villages will pounce on us like hunting dogs and tear off the fattest piece of meat."

Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke with unusual calmness, but the confidence in his words sent chills down one's spine.

No one expected that in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind, the situation in Konoha had deteriorated to such an extent that it seemed as if another misstep would plunge them into utter ruin.

However, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura thought about it for a Hiruzen Sarutobi, and were immediately shocked into a cold sweat.

Indeed, Konoha may seem strong now, but it is also at its most vulnerable. If its enemies see its weakness again, they will surely swarm in and devour it.

"What do you plan to do, Hiruzen?"

"I want to bring Tsunade back, and then transfer Taiichi back from the western front to deal with Mist Village. His Water Style are not much weaker than his Fire Style, and he will have a greater advantage against Mist Village at the seaside."

"What about the western front? The western front is in great danger without Taiichi, and Orochimaru's side also needs Taiichi's help."

Unbeknownst to anyone, Taiichi had grown to this level, and his influence had spread to all battlefields in Konoha.