The Third Kazekage's Disappearance

The spring of Konoha's forty-seventh year brought little warmth. Instead, conflicts along the border showed signs of escalating further. Uchiha Kyohaku drifted like a silent ghost through the dangerous regions where the Land of Fire's borders intersected with those of neighboring countries. Using missions as whetstones, he continuously honed his skills while quietly gathering the "resources" he needed. His name had not spread far, but scattered rumors had already begun circulating in the areas where he operated, describing a pale-faced Konoha medical ninja with strange techniques and terrifyingly high efficiency.

During a brief break between missions, the team stopped at a border outpost to resupply and rest. Making use of the rare downtime, Kyohaku sat quietly in a corner of the outpost, reading through a set of research notes on abnormal proliferation in chakra pathways—materials he had taken from Orochimaru's laboratory.

Suddenly, a hurried set of footsteps approached. Kyohaku looked up and saw an unexpected figure—his uncle, Uchiha Shota.

Uchiha Shota wore the Security Force uniform, his face marked by the dust and exhaustion of a long journey. Yet his gaze was sharper and more solemn than usual. He had evidently learned the location of Kyohaku's team through certain channels and had come specifically to find him.

"Uncle?" Kyohaku closed the scroll and rose to his feet. He did not have a poor impression of this uncle of his. At the very least, Shota had always maintained a surface-level concern for him.

"Kyohaku." Uchiha Shota nodded, his gaze swiftly sweeping over Kyohaku. It paused briefly on his steady legs and unusually pale skin, and a complicated emotion flashed through his eyes before being quickly suppressed by a more urgent matter. "I'll keep this short. I came to inspect the border defenses, and I also wanted to tell you that the atmosphere in the village is getting more and more tense. You're carrying out missions outside the village, so you must be extra careful."

His tone was grave, carrying the oppressive weight of a storm about to break.

"Did something happen?" Kyohaku keenly sensed that Shota's solemnity stemmed from more than routine border tensions.

Uchiha Shota took a deep breath and lowered his voice. Even within the relatively safe outpost, he appeared exceptionally cautious. "Two days ago, word came from the Land of Wind. It hasn't been fully confirmed yet, but I'm afraid... it's probably true."

He paused, then said each word distinctly. "The Third Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village... has mysteriously disappeared."

"Disappeared?" Kyohaku's pupils contracted slightly, and a crack appeared in his usual calm expression. This news was like a key, instantly unlocking a crucial intelligence point buried deep within the memories of his past life!

"Yes." Shota nodded grimly. "Apparently, after an utterly ordinary border patrol mission, he never returned to the village. No body, no trace of him alive. Hidden Sand is already in complete chaos, and they can't suppress the news at all."

A simple patrol mission... the strongest Kazekage... a mysterious disappearance...

Every clue perfectly matched the memories in his mind!

"How has Hidden Sand reacted?" Kyohaku's voice remained steady, but turmoil had already surged within his heart.

"How else could they react?" Shota sneered, carrying a trace of disdain for the chaos in the neighboring village, though there was far more deep concern in it. "First, they frantically searched internally and suspected one another. Now... voices have begun accusing Konoha, or other great nations, of making a move in secret. After all, who could make a 'strongest Kazekage' disappear without a sound? This is nothing more than a pretext for war!"

Uchiha Shota's concern was plain to see. "Right now, even the slightest disturbance at the border could ignite a major war. Since you're active in this area, you need to be especially wary of Hidden Sand's ninja. They're like a nest of hornets that's been stirred up. They could go mad at any moment."

After giving Kyohaku a few more reminders to stay safe, he hurried away. He still had demanding patrol duties to attend to.

After seeing his uncle off, Kyohaku stood alone where he was. His face appeared expressionless, but his thoughts were racing.

The Third Kazekage had disappeared!

This was no accident. This was the prelude! The decisive fuse that would set off the full-scale outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War!

According to the memories of his past life, the Hidden Sand Village would turn its fury over the Kazekage's disappearance toward Konoha and formally launch a war before long. After that, Hidden Rock Village and Hidden Cloud Village would be drawn in one after another, and the entire shinobi world would be plunged completely into a sea of blood.

The urgency of time instantly engulfed him like an icy tide. He had originally thought he still had time to calmly make arrangements and accumulate strength, but this sudden upheaval had disrupted his original pace.

His "Completion Plan" had only just begun. He had merely fused White Zetsu cells and obtained Uzumaki clan blood. There were still more critical bloodline limits to plan for afterward, such as the Shikotsumyaku and the Byakugan. His own strength was also far from sufficient to calmly protect himself in a war of this scale, much less seize benefits from it.

War meant chaos, but it also meant opportunity. Many bloodline ninja would take to the battlefield, making it possible for him to acquire samples. Yet war also meant an extremely high mortality rate, especially for a lone wolf like him, without a powerful backer and forced to act alone.

He had to speed up! Before full-scale war broke out, he had to increase his strength as much as possible and make preparations in advance, securing more initiative for himself amid the chaos.

He walked to the outpost's lookout and gazed toward the dim yellow horizon in the direction of the Land of Wind. His eyes became incomparably deep.

The illusion of peace had been utterly torn apart.

The battlefield of carnage was about to fully open.

He clenched the several vials of Uzumaki clan blood in his pocket. The cold test tubes seemed to take on a hint of scorching heat.

"I have to be faster..." he murmured, his voice scattering into the biting wind at the border.

The road ahead would place every step upon a blade's edge.