The Real War

"I sincerely apologize, Your Excellency. Whatever the truth may be, Kumogakure failed in its duty to protect you. We deserve to die for it."

Dodai knelt and bowed his head to the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning.

After two months of talks, the Daimyo had reluctantly agreed to meet a representative from Kumogakure.

What? You're saying Konoha Ninja copied your secret Ninjutsu, made that ridiculous picture book to ruin your Raikage's reputation, then acted it out in my backyard?

You made all of that up.

Members of the Yotsuki clan had fought the Uchiha in previous wars.

Why couldn't the Uchiha copy the technique then, only to manage it now?

Dodai had no way to explain. The heart of Lightning Release Chakra Mode was not the visible flow of Chakra, but the way Chakra stimulated cells inside the body.

The Sharingan could see Chakra flow, but it could not reveal the exact process of cellular activation. Dodai had no idea how Homura Uchiha had pulled it off.

What he did not know was that Yan was the kind of relentless grinder who trained every day without fail for ten Gold Coins.

Cellular activation was nothing special to Yan. He had worked backward from the flow of Chakra and figured it out after a few hundred tries.

"Hmm." The Daimyo nodded. He did not believe Kumogakure's story, but Kumogakure was still his greatest military force.

He could use the incident to put them in their place, but driving them into a corner would do him more harm than good.

"Since it was a misunderstanding, we'll leave it at that. You're Dodai, yes?"

"Tell the Raikage to ready his forces. I'm doubling your funding."

Dodai's eyes lit up. "Yes, Your Excellency!"

Dodai knew what that meant. From the start of the war until now, the daimyos of every nation had acted as though it had nothing to do with them.

The shinobi villages had always paid for their own Shinobi War. Now that the Daimyo had doubled their funding, the conflict was officially shifting from a war between shinobi to a National War.

A Shinobi War was fought over shares of missions. A National War was fought to seize land.

Of course, everyone would tacitly avoid attacking the great nations' capitals. The daimyos were all related, after all. If one of them came to harm, a smaller nation might take advantage.

Dodai slowly withdrew from the palace. The Daimyo rubbed his forehead and asked the Left Minister beside him,

"How are the people I asked you to contact?"

The Left Minister bowed and answered respectfully,

"The stronger rōnin in the country have secretly entered the capital. The Ninja Temple has agreed as well."

The Daimyo nodded. As the ruler of a nation, he had a few political tricks of his own.

In the past, shinobi had been divided into clans, making it easy for the nobles to play one faction against another. Now the clans had formed shinobi villages, concentrating their power and making them harder to divide.

And now a shinobi had broken into the Daimyo's residence. Whether Kumogakure was responsible or not, the Daimyo had to act in case Kumogakure really did it next time.

He looked beyond the hall. The incident had humiliated him, and Konoha Ninja had spent so long roaming his country. The Daimyo of the Land of Fire was probably gloating right now.

The shinobi were growing weary of war. It was time to light a fire under them.

At the start of Year 42 of Konoha, Konoha's shinobi were jubilant. In the second half of the previous year, Orochimaru had pushed the Kumogakure front into the Land of Lightning.

Soon after the new year, reinforcements arrived from the Kumogakure front. Danzo launched several small campaigns in succession, steadily advancing the front.

Even Hanzō saw an opportunity and agreed to meet with Danzo.

If Hanzō agreed to send troops, Danzo could cross the Land of Earth's border from the Land of Grass and launch a decisive battle.

Danzo had not felt this triumphant in a long time—not since Hanzō had driven him back again and again during the Second Shinobi World War.

Everyone thought the war would soon be over.

Then, inevitably, came the unexpected.

Sunagakure tore up its alliance and declared war on Konoha!

The Third Hokage and Danzo were furious, cursing Rasa for fighting dirty.

In truth, Rasa had not let success go to his head. The Daimyo and Sunagakure had.

As far as the Daimyo was concerned, the Land of Wind had been treated like a public toilet. Kumogakure had attacked it, then Iwagakure. What dignity did that leave the Daimyo of the Land of Wind?

And the Daimyo of the Land of Fire had been having an easy time of it. It was time to make life difficult for his cousin.

For Sunagakure, it came down to the Third Kazekage again. The Third Shinobi World War had begun with the Third Kazekage's disappearance and the unrest it caused in Sunagakure.

Kumogakure's invasion had forced the rebels to stop challenging the village leadership. Now Kumogakure had been driven back to the sea, while Iwagakure, fighting on two fronts, had committed few troops against Sunagakure.

Naturally, the matter of the Third Kazekage resurfaced.

Rasa had previously offered an explanation that made Konoha the prime suspect. With pressure mounting from the village's rank and file, he had no choice but to declare war on Konoha.

And with the Shinobi World in such chaos, how could Madara stay out of it?

Less than a day after Sunagakure declared war on Konoha, the Land of Water declared war on both the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire.

Rasa was dumbfounded when he read the Land of Water's declaration.

Wait. I understand why you'd attack the Land of Fire. I want that fertile land too.

But you're an island nation. Why attack my desert from so far away?

Just for the thrill of fighting?

In short, the actions of all these powers did not end the Shinobi World War. They made it fiercer than ever.

Yan arrived at the Iwagakure Front. When he entered the tent, Danzo was staring at a map, his face dark and his mouth shut.

Hanzō had postponed their meeting, and Konoha was back to fighting four enemies at once.

Hiruzen, I told you you'd regret it!

Danzo raged at the Third Hokage in his head. As the situation had changed, the Third Hokage had returned some authority to him.

Danzo had finally regained control of Root, but by then, many of its members had been transferred to ANBU.

If you'd given it back to me sooner...

Danzo kept grumbling to himself, full of resentment.

"Ahem. Elder Danzo... Homura Uchiha reporting for duty."

Danzo looked up. The sight of an Uchiha he despised only deepened his resentment.

But the situation was urgent, so he kept his temper in check and pointed to a position on the map.

"The situation has changed, and Iwagakure has begun a counteroffensive. Your record on the Kumogakure front was impressive. I'm ordering you to help defend this position."

"Hold it until reinforcements arrive!"

Yan nodded. Without another word to Danzo, he headed straight for his assigned post.

Danzo had been about to put Yan in his place, but before he could open his mouth, Yan was gone.

"Damned Uchiha!"

Leaving Danzo's impotent fury behind, Yan raced toward the position.

Boom!

A Fire Release explosion sounded from the position ahead.

Taking advantage of the terrain, Konoha had used Earth Release and stone to build a low, wall-like fortification.

"Damn it. We can't hold out much longer."

Atop the wall, Choza Akimichi used the Multi-Size Technique, knocking several Iwagakure shinobi who had climbed up back down with his enormous fist.

He cursed inwardly. Iwagakure was determined to take this place.

Just as he was about to order a retreat to preserve his forces, a figure darted past him, leaped off the wall, and landed squarely on the battlefield.

"Die, brat!"

Fire Release: Fireball Technique!

An eagle-eyed Iwagakure shinobi reacted to Yan's arrival without hesitation, opening with a volley of ninja tools. A comrade beside him followed up with Fire Release.

Yan smiled faintly. As the attacks closed in, his gaze sharpened and he brought his palms together.

Clap!

Thump!

An invisible field spread outward, slowing the attacks in an instant. At the sweet sound of a successful Counterattack, Yan slapped a hand against the ground.

Summoning Technique: Great Bell!

"What?"

Before the Iwagakure shinobi could understand what Yan intended, they sensed an enormous shadow overhead, descending straight toward them.

Dong!

The sound of an ancient bell striking the ground rang across the battlefield. Two Iwagakure shinobi were trapped beneath it.

"Damn it!"

The trapped shinobi found they could not lift the strange bell.

Yan's voice reached them like a nightmare:

"Konoha Whirlwind!"