When the News Returned to Konoha

This is Orochimaru's emergency contact method.

Only in the most dire and exceptional circumstances would he be contacted in such a way!

Whenever Orochimaru was on a high-risk mission, the Third would try his best to remain in the Hokage Office Building.

Even if he had to leave for urgent matters, he would have the Anbu wait here, just in case he missed any intelligence Orochimaru might send back during a crisis!

Or perhaps a distress signal...

The Third quickly cleared the table, pulled a pre-prepared scroll from beneath the desk, and unfurled it across the surface.

The small snake immediately crawled onto the scroll, and after wriggling a few times, left several peculiar marks on the paper.

"White Fang has been rescued... encountered... Five-Tails Jinchuriki!?"

The Third's heart skipped a beat. How did this child, Orochimaru, get involved with White Fang's mission?

Wasn't that supposed to be a B-rank rescue mission?

The Five-Tails Jinchuriki? They encountered it!?

But this was no time for him to be stunned for long. The Third shouted into the empty air, "Go notify Ino-Shika-Cho and the Minato Team! Quickly!"

Though no one answered, a figure swiftly departed the Hokage Office Building.

The small snake continued to wriggle. The Third kept his eyes locked on it, staring intently while deciphering the message.

"Ruohuo-kun... captured... Five-Tails."

"..." The Third paused, rubbed his eyes, and looked again. Still not understanding, he hurriedly pulled out his glasses and retrieved his codebook for Orochimaru.

He cross-referenced the message at top speed and deciphered it again; the content remained the same.

Little Ruohuo... captured... the Five-Tails?

Had the danger Orochimaru encountered left him somewhat delirious?

That child is only seven years old! How could he possibly capture the Five-Tails?

This must be a distress signal.

The Five-Tails Jinchuriki would not act alone; Orochimaru must have been surrounded by the Five-Tails Jinchuriki and Iwagakure ninja!

"What exactly is this child (Orochimaru) trying to tell me!"

Anxiety clouds judgment; for a moment, the Third truly could not grasp what Orochimaru intended to convey with such concise intelligence.

In reality, it meant exactly what was written...

"Speed... support... Iwagakure direction..."

This time, the Third understood, but only half of it.

He understood the need for urgent support, but what about the coordinates?

The direction of Iwagakure?

Where exactly was that?

"Enough!"

The Third waved his hand, "Notify the Jonin Squad, assemble!"

Chirp----! (The sound of an eagle, similar to the Chunin Exams.)

The signal for the Jonin to assemble had barely been sent when several ninja rushed into the Hokage Office Building.

But they were not there to assemble; they were there to report with the utmost urgency!

"Lord Third! A massive force of Iwagakure has launched a surprise attack, numbering over five thousand!"

"Lord Third! Iwagakure has deployed a Jinchuriki with five tails, and they have already crossed the border!"

"Lord Third! Iwagakure has deployed a Jinchuriki, tail count unknown, and they are closing in on Konoha!"

One urgent battle report after another exploded within the Hokage Office Building.

What surprised these ninja was that their Third was already in full battle gear, wearing the armor of that era!

As expected of Lord Third, he had already sensed Iwagakure's movements!

"Scout further!" the Third roared!

Figures assembled at top speed. In just a few minutes, all standby Jonin in Konoha were gathered!

The battle reports from the front lines and Orochimaru's emergency transmission aligned perfectly at this moment.

Clearly, Orochimaru had sent the message in such a hurry precisely to warn Konoha!

As for whether Iwagakure's sudden and hasty offensive was related to Orochimaru, or whether Orochimaru had met with misfortune...

"Everyone! The hope for peace has been thoroughly torn to shreds by Ōnoki." The Third suppressed his inner worries and shouted!

He had to appear strong now; he was not just Orochimaru's teacher, but the Hokage of Konoha!

"Iwagakure has deployed over five thousand ninja to the front lines, with the Five-Tails Jinchuriki leading the charge, and they have already crossed the border of the Land of Fire!"

"Ōnoki clearly intends to seize this opportunity to breach Konoha, but he has underestimated our resolve!"

The Third raised his arm in a rallying cry, "We shall crush every invading enemy and drive the Iwagakure ninja back!"

"Yes!" Without further response, the diverse group of ninja knelt on one knee, clearly divided: the Jonin Squad on the left, and the Hokage's personal Anbu guard on the right!

Yet, among this emergency assembly of ninja, there was not a single figure bearing the Uchiha crest...

With the entire Iwagakure army mobilized and the Five-Tails nearly at their doorstep, the Third naturally had to lead from the front!

"Team Minato, Sealing Squad, join me in confronting the Five-Tails head-on!" the Third commanded.

"Yes!" Minato acknowledged the order.

"Yes!" the captain of the Sealing Squad replied.

"Shikaku! Inoichi!" the Third shouted.

"Yes!" they replied in unison.

"Establish a defensive line in the shortest time possible and bypass the Five-Tails to reach the front lines!"

"Yes!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The situation was critical; upon receiving his orders, Nara Shikaku immediately led a large force of ninja toward the front.

Aside from the Anbu and the Third, only four people remained at the scene.

They were the three members of Team Minato: Namikaze Minato, Akimichi Choza, and Aburame Shibi. (Composition referenced from The Lost Tower.)

And...

A red-haired woman.

"Lord Hokage! What about me?" the red-haired woman asked, looking agitated.

"..." The Third was silent for half a second. "Kushina, you are Konoha's final line of defense..."

"If I fail to stop the Five-Tails..."

"I leave Konoha to you!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Third departed with his subordinates.

The red-haired woman stomped her foot. "Same old speech again, so annoying!"

Facing the large-scale Iwagakure assault, Konoha's ninja mobilized in full force!

In the shortest time possible, Nara Shikaku mapped out thirteen distinct routes for the Konoha forces to advance!

Each route bypassed the path of the Five-Tails, and by calculating the speed of the Iwagakure army, he ensured that Konoha could reach the front lines as quickly as possible to engage in immediate defensive combat!

Furthermore, this dispersed advance would maximize their ability to prevent surprise attacks from Iwagakure infiltration squads!

There is a reason why the Nara Clan's hairlines tend to recede...

The Third led by example, personally heading straight for the Five-Tails with his Anbu, Team Minato, and the Sealing Squad!

"Has Ōnoki gone mad..."

In the Hokage's office, the three elders stood guard.

With the Third heading to the battlefield, they needed to secure Konoha's rear.

"An offensive of this scale, even deploying all the jinchuriki... this doesn't look like a feint."

Having lived through another era, the three elders remained remarkably calm.

And at this very moment.

The culprit who had directly triggered these events suddenly stopped on his way back to Konoha.

"Hey! You white-haired uncle up ahead!!!"

"Are you guys heading to Konoha too? We're going the same way, let me give you a lift!"