Sunagakure
Kazekage's Office
" Rasa, the discussions within the village have become uncontrollable..."
A masked ninja knelt on one knee and spoke to Rasa.
"There's no other way..."
Rasa sighed.
Although he is currently only acting as the Kazekage, he is practically no different from the Kazekage himself.
He also knew that the Third Kazekage was likely doomed.
"Summon the higher-ups; I need to discuss the matter of going to war with Konoha."
Rasa spoke to the Anbu.
Although the cause of the Third Kazekage's death is unknown, it is most appropriate to pin the blame on Konoha.
After all, Konoha has both land and money.
"Yes, Lord Kazekage!"
After kneeling on one knee to reply, the Anbu left the office to inform Chiyo and the others outside.
Soon, a room full of old men and Rasa gathered together.
Pakura was not included.
Rasa's reason was that Pakura was too young, but he himself wasn't much older than Pakura.
To put it bluntly, they were afraid that Pakura would affect their position, but Pakura herself didn't have any objections, and no one else could say anything about it.
" Lord Kazekage, are you preparing to wage war against Konoha?"
Seeing the silent crowd, Chiyo had no choice but to speak first and give Rasa a way out.
"That's right, I strongly suspect that the Third Kazekage died at the hands of Konoha Ninja!"
Rasa gave Chiyo a satisfied look, then said with a serious expression.
With Rasa's example, the higher-ups below began to discuss it amongst themselves.
The higher-ups quickly made a decision—to wage war against Konoha!
"Since everyone has no objections, then Chiyo and Ebizo will lead two thousand ninjas to attack Konoha!"
Rasa made the final decision to start the battle.
Two thousand men were not the full strength of Sunagakure; at most, they could only be considered a relatively large vanguard force.
"Understood, Lord Kazekage!"
Chiyo and Ebizo stood up and bowed.
The high-ranking officials then discussed some details of the war, and the next day they launched a condemnation of Konoha!
" Konoha's murder of the Third Kazekage is a heinous crime, Sunagakure has decided to wage war against Konoha!"
Very brief.
The Sunagakure didn't even bother to think of a long message; they simply relayed the message to Konoha and began amassing troops on Konoha's border!
Although doing so means losing the initiative, it puts you on the side of justice.
Moreover, even if you seize the initiative temporarily, it's not of much use; it's more useful to put yourself on the side of justice.
Just as Sunagakure was declaring war on Konoha, Iwagakure also eagerly declared war on Konoha!
" Iwagakure was on good terms with the Third Kazekage, and now that the Third Kazekage has been killed by Konoha, Iwagakure deeply grieves..."
What followed was a long and rambling explanation.
In short, the goal can be summed up in one sentence: to wage war against Konoha.
Instead of launching a war against Kumogakure, they deployed troops to the border.
If Kumogakure makes any unusual moves, Iwagakure will immediately launch a war against Kumogakure.
Konoha
Hokage's Office
Is there really no room for negotiation?
The Third Hokage looked at the two declarations of war, then sighed as he looked at the envoys from the two villages.
" Lord Hokage, you did this yourself, and you still expect there to be room for negotiation?"
The Sunagakure envoy sneered disdainfully.
He was not afraid of death; even if he died, his wife, children, and elderly parents would be properly taken care of. Therefore, he was not afraid of the Third Hokage at all.
Even if the other party killed him, it would suit his wishes perfectly, since that would give the village another reason to wage war against Konoha, and the village could stand on the side of greater justice.
"That's right, Lord Hokage- sama! It's a disgrace to Iwagakure that such a fine ninja as the Lord Kazekage was ambushed and killed by your men!"
The Iwagakure envoy also angrily berated Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The Sunagakure envoy looked at the Iwagakure envoy with the same gentle expression one would give a close brother; his gaze was as tender as could be.
"How many times do I have to say it? I didn't kill him!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi a deep drag on his cigarette, forcing himself to calm down.
" Lord Hokage, if you dare to do something, you should dare to admit it. If you think what I said is wrong, you might as well kill me now!"
The Sunagakure envoy's arrogant and fearless demeanor put the Iwagakure envoy in an awkward position.
The other person even gave him a meaningful look.
"It's your Kazekage who died, not mine. Are you trying to make me die with you?"
The Iwagakure envoy was internally ranting.
He's not afraid of death, but he won't risk it for the sake of another village's reputation.
Forget about the death of a Kazekage; what does the destruction of Sunagakure have to do with him?
The Iwagakure envoy chose to ignore it, Sunagakure envoy was somewhat embarrassed but said nothing.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, on the other hand, had a deadpan expression and stood there smoking for over ten minutes.
"Alright, you can leave now. I understand."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flashed with a fierce light, revealing his intention to kill the two men.
But he managed to suppress it himself.
The Sunagakure envoy was somewhat disappointed.
However, the Third Shinobi World War officially broke out.
Unlike previous outbreaks, this one had a prelude.
The previous times the fighting started out of nowhere, but this time at least there's an excuse.
The Sunagakure had already arrived in the Land of Rivers and begun a standoff with the Konoha.
Meanwhile, Iwagakure) began sending troops to Land of Waterfalls).
After all, the Land of Grass is now Iwagakure's territory; they can't exactly fight on their own land, can they?
Takigakure only has one Seven-Tails, which poses a threat, but not a significant one.
Didaze alone is enough to take down the Seven-Tails.
The Land of Waterfalls
Border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Waterfalls
"This is it... I hope you won't involve us..."
A Takigakure ninja bowed and scraped as he spoke to Didaze.
He had already evacuated a large number of people, leaving ample battlefields for Iwagakure and Konoha.
Although he knew this place would become uninhabitable after the war, what could he do?
Small countries are simply powerless to resist large countries.
"Um."
Didaze responded calmly, then looked towards Konoha in the distance.
The Konoha in the distance was already on high alert.
"There are quite a few familiar faces across the street..."
Didaze spotted Orochimaru, Tsunade, Jiraiya at a glance.
There was even a blond guy!
It was none other than Minato Namikaze.
The Sannin, including Minato Namikaze, the strongest of the new generation, were all sent to resist him.
So the question is, with the Third Hokage tasked with defending his home, who would defend Sunagakure?
Sunagakure
"Clan leader, why should we obey the orders of that damned Third Hokage!"
Uchiha Fugaku was on his way, while the Uchiha clan members were complaining incessantly.
Their entire clan was dispatched to the battlefield in Sunagakure.
There were no secret clans among them, only two thousand ordinary ninjas, with even Jonin making up a minority.