On the border between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Fire
Tsunade brought more than two thousand shinobi with her. After five days, they reached the border and met up with Li Yu's squad, which had gone ahead to provide support.
"Big Sis Tsunade, we've finally been waiting for your main force to arrive."
"What happened? Did you run into any trouble?"
Li Yu recounted everything they had encountered along the way, embellishing the story with dramatic gestures. He made it sound perilous and full of close calls, and only stopped once his mouth had gone dry.
After hearing Li Yu's account, the Senju Clan shinobi traveling with the main force looked at him with admiration. A few of the Senju women even cast him flirtatious glances, hoping to win the clan leader's favor.
Tsunade knew Li Yu's strength and background. Clenching her fists and gritting her teeth, she patiently endured his eloquently embellished tale.
"Nawaki, are you done? If you are, get your ass out of here!"
"Tch, you're all gratitude until the job's done, then you kick the donkey that pulled the mill. You've got no patience at all."
With his hands clasped behind his head, whistling, he sauntered out of the tent. Once outside, Li Yu dropped his carefree expression and left with a serious look on his face.
The truth was, Li Yu was annoyed that Tsunade had brought so many of the clan members he had worked so hard to train into danger without even informing him, their clan leader. Some big sister she was.
More than anything, though, he was still irritated that the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had played him for a fool. This Wood Release Clone was not happy about it.
"I should focus on what my real self assigned me. I need to conserve my chakra, too."
By then, the main force from Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning had also reached the border and set up camp.
The shinobi leading them had dark skin, pale yellow hair, and a powerful build. He wore a white cloak, with green Shuriken-like emblems on both shoulders, along with a broad belt and heavy armor.
The future Fourth Raikage turned to the shinobi beside him and said,
"Killer B, we suddenly changed plans from attacking the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth. Father told me to lead the attack on the Land of Fire instead. What do you think?"
Killer B sang as he spoke, keeping his own beat and swaying his body.
"Yo, yo, Lord Raikage's sending us to fight the Fire Nation today. He's got his reasons; I won't weigh in, okay? Oh yeah!"
"That one rhymed pretty well. I'd better write it down, write it down."
He took out a small notebook, opened it, and began scribbling in it.
A group of about fifty Cloud Ninja, many badly injured, arrived in front of the main force. Their leader reported,
"Lord A, the vanguard suffered heavy losses."
"What happened?"
"We were just about to wipe out Konoha's defensive force when an elite Konoha support squad appeared. Their leader used some kind of jutsu to kill many of our finest shinobi. The Konoha squad's jutsu were incredibly powerful."
"Oh? Konoha sent out shinobi that strong? Which clans do they belong to?"
"The Uchiha Clan. We don't know what clan the leading Konoha shinobi and many others with the same crest belong to."
"That's strange. Look into it at once. Send the wounded to the Land of Hot Water."
"Yo, yo, Big Bro, you've got a problem? I'll take care of it. Konoha's got nothing on me. I'm the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki—watch me go! Oh yeah!"
Killer B launched into another impromptu rap in his clumsy style.
Watching his sworn younger brother act like such a fool, A couldn't help rolling his eyes in exasperation, even though he had seen it countless times before.
"I want to see for myself just how strong these Konoha shinobi are, after they beat my vanguard so badly."
Meanwhile, Konoha had also received word that the main force from Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning had arrived, and a major battle could break out at any moment.
The following day
Killer B followed A, leading a group of elite shinobi from Kumogakure toward Konoha.
"Big Bro, why bring so few people? We should've brought everyone and finished the fight quickly. Then I could go home and hold a concert."
"Hmph. War isn't that simple. Do you think Konoha is that easy to deal with?"
"Yo, yo, with me, Killer B, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, here, no fight's a problem. Don't worry, Big Bro. I'll take care of those Konoha shinobi in no time!"
Killer B launched into an impromptu rap in his strange drawl. The Cloud Ninja nearby looked at him awkwardly; they couldn't stand his cringeworthy singing.
"Killer B, don't embarrass me out there."
"Got it, Big Bro."
Konoha's patrol spotted a large number of Cloud Ninja approaching and immediately sent someone to report to Tsunade at the main camp.
"We've only just arrived, and the Cloud Ninja are already here in force. They sure are in a hurry."
"We still don't know who's leading Kumogakure's forces. This is a good chance to meet them."
Tsunade had the bearing of a leader. She wore a long green coat over a gray outfit, a blue sash tied around her waist, dark cropped trousers, and black heeled shinobi sandals—her signature look.
She carried a mix of sex appeal and authority, her eyes sweeping over the Konoha jonin to gauge their reactions.
"That's right."
"Agreed."
Tsunade's presence didn't faze Li Yu. He merely swallowed and muttered, "What a shame she's my big sister. If only she were my wife."
"Never mind, never mind. My Yuying's well-endowed too. I should be grateful."
No one knew that Li Yu could let his mind wander even during a battle meeting. His thoughts had long since strayed. After all, he knew the Land of Fire would win, and Konoha would win, so he could take things easy.
"Nawaki, Nawaki, are you listening?"
Li Yu snapped back to attention and hurriedly replied, "I am."
"What are you thinking about? You're coming with me to meet the Cloud Ninja."
He hadn't caught what anyone else had volunteered for, so Li Yu quickly agreed and followed Tsunade out of the tent.
He followed the group toward the direction given by the patrol. The forest was thick with green trees, and a constant rustling filled the air. The forest's commotion sent birds scattering into the sky.
When they saw a crowd of figures emerging from the forest ahead, they stopped in an open area to wait.
A moment later, with a series of "whooshes," the opposing side appeared, scattered across the ground and treetops in a dense mass of Cloud Ninja. Each carried a Ninja Blade on their back, and most had dark skin.
Two burly men stood at the front. Pointing at the Konoha group, they called out,
"Which one of you Konoha shinobi fought our Cloud Ninja vanguard a few days ago? I want to see how strong you are."
"That's right! Come out, Konoha shinobi! We don't know which clan you belong to, so come out and spar with us!"
Seeing the Cloud Ninja leaders step forward to taunt them, Tsunade didn't back down.
"Oh? You want to come out and test your mettle? One-on-one or all at once, we're game."
Li Yu recognized the Cloud Ninja leaders at a glance and spoke up to warn her.
"Big Sis Tsunade, the ones opposite us are the Third Raikage's Son and his sworn younger brother, Killer B, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki."
"Let me go face them. I'm afraid the others won't be able to handle it."
"All right. Since you've volunteered, go ahead. Be careful."
"This is a good chance for me to see exactly how strong you are."