Konoha was completely unaware of the Kumogakure Village's plans; all they knew was to press their advantage and beat the fleeing enemy to a pulp.
They wouldn't hold back against the Kumogakure, which was now at a disadvantage.
On the other side, after receiving the news from the village, the Kumogakure immediately adopted a defensive posture to meet the fierce attack from Konoha.
They knew that as long as they held on, victory would come sooner or later.
Therefore, even with the formidable Yuki present, Konoha's attack on the Cloud Village was not as smooth as expected, despite the united efforts of the Cloud Village.
Meanwhile, far to the north of the Land of Fire, on the ocean, the Raikage was sailing with his thousand-strong army towards the Land of Land of Earth.
" Lord Raikage, news has just arrived from the village that there's a significant problem on the Kumogakure battlefield. Our troops are being routed by the Konoha forces and have already requested reinforcements from the village." At this moment, a Kumogakure intelligence officer reported to the Third Raikage, who was standing at the bow of the ship, while looking at the intelligence report he had taken from the hawk's leg.
These words immediately caught the attention of the Third Raikage, who was gazing into the distance.
He snatched the intelligence report from the officer's hand and began reading it intently.
The more he looked, the deeper his brows furrowed. Finally, unable to contain his rising anger, he cursed, "That brat! I entrusted him with such an important battlefield, and this is the trash he repays me with? After this mission is over, when we return to Kumogakure, I'll teach him a lesson!"
All the Raikage in history have had a fiery temper, and the Third Raikage is no exception; in fact, he seems to have surpassed his predecessor in some ways.
Seeing the immense damage his son had caused to Kumogakure, he flew into a rage, continuing his tirade without a second thought, showing no favoritism towards Ai simply because he was his son.
Or perhaps it's because A is the successor he favors to the next Raikage, so he has to treat A more strictly; only in this way can he entrust Kumogakure to A with peace of mind.
However, given the current situation, Ai's performance has not satisfied him; on the contrary, it has disappointed him considerably.
It's important to know that in this battle against the Kumogakure Village, apart from the Raikage himself not appearing, most of the Kumogakure's fighting force participated, and even two Perfect Jinchuriki were entrusted to A. However, the results A has given him are a complete mess.
The Two-Tails was captured, the Eight-Tails was seriously injured, and the Kumogakure troops below suffered heavy losses. With such a performance, how could he entrust the Kumogakure to A with peace of mind?
He even considered changing the identity of Raikage's successor and choosing a more suitable successor.
However, he would have to wait until he returned to Kumogakure from the Land of Earth to consider these ideas. Right now, he was far away and unable to help on the battlefield in Kumogakure. He could only hope that Ai could stabilize the situation and prevent any major problems from affecting the important alliance between the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning.
Thinking this, the Third Raikage gazed once more at the boundless sea in the distance and asked the people below, "How much longer until we reach the Land of Earth?"
A ninja who was specifically monitoring the journey immediately replied loudly from inside the cabin, "Reporting to Lord Raikage, we have about three more hours. We expect to arrive around two or three o'clock in the afternoon."
"Then have everyone below prepare. If the plan goes smoothly, we can launch a surprise attack on the Konoha forces tonight."
"Yes, Third Raikage." As soon as the Third Raikage gave the order, the Kumogakure around him immediately began to adjust their posture.
And so, time passed little by little, Kumogakure's troops finally set foot on the land of the Land of Earth.
As soon as the fleet docked, ninjas from the Land of Earth greeted them.
"Welcome to the Land of Earth, everyone from Kumogakure! You've all had a long journey..." A ninja who appeared to be a high-ranking member of Iwagakure immediately greeted the Third Raikage and his group with a bright smile.
But before he could finish speaking, he was Teuchi by the Third Raikage waving his hand.
"Enough with the nonsense. Where is Ōnoki? Take me to see Ōnoki."
He saw the Third Raikage completely ignore the Iwagakure high-ranking officials who came to greet him, and brush past him.
Such a rude, direct, and disregardful attitude ignited the anger in the hearts of the Iwagakure leadership, and their eyes darkened considerably.
But turning around, he concealed the sinister look in his eyes, revealing a smile, and quickly walked to the Third Raikage, saying, "Then, Lord Raikage, please come with me. I will take you to see Iwagakure."
"Okay, lead the way."
After saying that, he led the Kumogakure troops behind him and followed the Iwagakure high-ranking official toward Ōnoki's location.
Unbeknownst to the Third Raikage, the Iwagakure high-ranking official leading the way had a subtle yet meaningful smile on his face, as if he were expressing something.
Soon, the higher-ups of Iwagakure brought the Third Raikage to a plain, where Ōnoki was waiting.
"Lord Ōnoki, the Third Raikage from Kumogakure have arrived." Upon seeing Ōnoki, the Iwagakure high-ranking official hurriedly approached him, his swift movements suggesting that the Kumogakure Ōnoki him were some kind of ferocious beast.
"Okay, you can go now."
After dismissing the Iwagakure high-ranking officials, Ōnoki turned to the Third Raikage and said wistfully, "Ah, it's been decades since we last met. I thought we'd meet again in the Pure Land."
The tone was full of nostalgia, leading those who didn't know better to think that Ōnoki and the Third Raikage A, were very close friends, rather than the leaders of two of the Five Great Shinobi Villages had only met a few times.
Faced with Ōnoki's nostalgic tone, the Third Raikage, perhaps with a desire to reminisce, said in a gruff voice, " Ōnoki, I don't recall having such a good relationship with you. And why hold the meeting in such a vast place? Or is this Iwagakure's way of showing sincerity?"
The Third Raikage was very dissatisfied with Ōnoki's attitude during the talks, which he felt was a complete disregard for Kumogakure.
However, before he could finish venting his anger, a ninja from the Kumogakure forces behind him quickly approached and whispered a few words in his ear.
" Lord Raikage, sensory ninjas have detected a large amount of Chakra fluctuation around the plain!"
This caused the Third Raikage's expression to change drastically, and he glared angrily at Ōnoki.
" Ōnoki, what do you mean? Aren't you going to join forces with Kumogakure to deal with Konoha?"
At this point, even he, who was slow to notice, realized something was wrong; Ōnoki definitely had some other plans.
Upon discovering that his ambush had been discovered by the Kumogakure ninja, Ōnoki made no attempt to conceal his intentions, stating directly, "I am indeed interested in Konoha, but I also want Kumogakure, which has suffered considerable losses."
As Ōnoki finished speaking, the figures of the Iwagakure troops slowly emerged from the plain, quickly covering the once vast area. Bathed in the blood-red sunset, it seemed to foreshadow the endless crimson that was about to engulf this plain.
"Therefore, all of you from Kumogakure, please face your deaths in peace!"