Naruto: Cultivating to Immortality

Chapter 123 Coercion

The Sand Village's all-out attack caught Konoha completely off guard.

According to Konoha's intelligence, the Sand Village would need at least a month to prepare for a full-scale attack, and it seems that the Sand Village doesn't want to be the first to attack Konoha.

However, the slogan of avenging the Kazekage put forward by the Sand Village left Konoha completely baffled. They could only hastily organize troops to support the border forces.

During this harrowing period, the Sand Ninja forces surged relentlessly into the Land of Fire like a raging tidal wave, their momentum overwhelming and seemingly intent on engulfing the entire country. In contrast, the Konoha border troops were like fragile seedlings ravaged by a hurricane, utterly powerless and forced into a series of defeats.

In terms of strength, the Sand Ninja forces held an absolute advantage in both numbers and combat power. Their offensive was like an invincible sword, unstoppable, cutting through enemy lines with unstoppable momentum. However, just as they were advancing triumphantly, preparing to conquer Konoha in one fell swoop, they unexpectedly stopped in front of Mount Kikyo.

It turned out that after a long period of continuous fighting, the Sand Ninja forces had suffered enormous losses, especially in terms of logistical support. Without sufficient food and ammunition, continuing to advance would only lead the soldiers into a desperate situation. Left with no other option, the Sand Ninja leadership had to order a temporary rest, awaiting reinforcements and supplies from the rear.

This sudden pause was undoubtedly a lifeline for Konoha. The border troops, who had been exhausted from their efforts, finally had a brief respite to recover their strength. At the same time, the leadership of Konoha began to urgently discuss countermeasures and organize more forces to prepare for the challenges ahead.

Konoha was in chaos, but there was no time for them to think. They could only quickly mobilize troops for support. The only ninja they could muster was Jiraiya, so Hiruzen Sarutobi had to approach him and assign him the mission to fight the Sand Ninja. He was tasked with leading 3000 ninja, along with border guards, to hold back the Sand Ninja's advance.

Intelligence also arrived from other directions. The Iwagakure forces, like wolves smelling their prey, were frequently mobilizing and poised for attack on Konoha. Meanwhile, the Kirigakure forces, like arrows released from a bow, had already begun their operation. The direction of the Kumogakure forces' movements, however, brought a sigh of relief to Konoha; at least for now, the Kumogakure showed no intention of attacking Konoha.

Therefore, Konoha Village now needs to defend against multiple directions, and there are absolutely no extra ninjas to assign to Jiraiya to lead to support the border of the Land of Rivers.

And so, the ninja world descended into chaos, becoming a battlefield everywhere. This was the first time the Land of Fire had been invaded by another country, further fueling the Fire Daimyo's resentment towards Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Hokage.

To avoid being attacked from the flank by the Iwa ninja during their attack on Konoha, the Third Raikage personally led an elite force to launch a surprise attack on the Iwa ninja forces stationed on the flank of the Cloud Village. They quickly broke through the enemy's border guards and advanced straight towards the Land of Earth's border, leaving the Iwa ninja in a state of chaos.

However, the Tsuchikage Onoki was not one to swallow his pride. The Cloud Ninja's attack on the Land of Earth's border had prompted Onoki to prepare to inflict a heavy blow on them. Onoki mobilized most of the Iwagakure ninja, numbering over ten thousand, to surround the elite force led by the Third Raikage, intending to annihilate the Cloud Ninja army.

The Third Raikage, overconfident and utterly unprepared for the Iwagakure's audacity in mobilizing over 80% of their ninja to fight him, even abandoning defenses in other directions, led to his forces being surrounded by Iwagakure. However, the Third Raikage, also a madman, ordered the Kumogakure forces to break through and retreat, staying behind alone to hold off the Iwagakure's pursuit. Thus, the Third Raikage fought alone against overwhelming odds, battling fiercely for three days and three nights, ultimately succumbing to exhaustion and sacrificing his life.

This marked the beginning of the most chaotic period of the Ninja World War.

Meanwhile, Hyuga Kanan, who was in seclusion training in the unassuming mountains of the Land of Iron, suddenly sensed that the World's Will was relentlessly interfering with his training, like a persistent, venomous wound, and was also conveying to him the idea of ​​going to the battlefield. After all, in the chaos of war, Hyuga Kanan was like a helpless infant, desperately craving to absorb the soul energy clusters of numerous ninjas, while the World's Will could use this opportunity to reclaim a large amount of reincarnation authority. Therefore, how could the World's Will possibly allow Hyuga Kanan to remain indifferent and hide away to train slowly?

Hyuga Kanan was also quite helpless. He knew there was no such thing as a free lunch. The World Will had drawn him to this world and even helped him shield himself from the Sage of Six Paths' detection; how could it possibly allow him to cultivate in peace? Now that there was an opportunity to vie for the power of reincarnation, the World Will wouldn't easily let it go. It wouldn't give up such an opportunity that could weaken its enemies while strengthening its own power.

In a closed room, Hyuga Kanan slowly opened his eyes, exhaling a sigh of relief before struggling to his feet. He moved his body, which seemed stiff for a long time, each movement awkward. Then, he resolutely walked out of the secluded room. He knew that if he continued to sit and wait for death, the world's will would surely stagnate his cultivation. Furthermore, going to the battlefield to absorb and refine the soul energy of some ninjas would not only increase his cultivation speed but also improve his efficiency.

Reaching the summit, Hyuga Kanan surveyed his surroundings, his mood easing considerably. Now, he needed to go out and confirm the time, and also check the progress of the Ninja World War. This would allow him to remain hidden and absorb the soul energy of the deceased ninjas. However, this time, Hyuga Kanan wouldn't easily absorb the more special and powerful soul energies. He almost got discovered last time when absorbing Mizuki's soul energy, and he couldn't risk it again. Instead, he would absorb more low-level soul energy, which wouldn't attract attention. As long as he absorbed enough, he could refine more pure energy for his cultivation.

Hyuga Kanan is currently located at the border between the Land of Iron and the Land of Fire, which is still some distance from the nearest battlefield. He needs to carefully consider which battlefield to head to. Heading west leads to the battle between Konoha and Iwagakure. Heading east leads to the battlefield between Kumogakure and Konoha.

However, Hyuga Kanan recalled his memories from his previous life. He realized that there hadn't been a large-scale battle between Kumogakure and Konoha; only a brief skirmish between elite ninjas. After realizing they couldn't gain any advantage over Konoha, they retreated. In contrast, Iwagakure engaged in a full-scale war with Konoha, resulting in heavy losses for both sides, some even suffering serious injuries.

After thinking it over, Hyuga Kanan headed directly west, where the battlefield was most intense, and where he had the best chance of absorbing more soul energy and satisfying the world's will.

His figure moved swiftly, rushing towards the battlefield between the Western Iwa ninja and Konoha, leaving only afterimages behind.

A day later, Hyuga Kanan's Byakugan had already observed the battle raging in the distance. His figure gradually slowed down as he observed blind spots in the battlefield.

Hyuga Kanan didn't want anyone to discover his presence on the battlefield; he only wanted to secretly absorb and refine the soul energy of these ninjas. After all, his participation in this war of the ninja world was forced upon him by the will of the world, and he didn't want others to find out, which would lead to trouble later.

If his very obvious Byakugan were discovered by the people on the battlefield, he probably wouldn't be able to secretly absorb the soul energy of these fallen ninjas anymore.

Hyuga Kanan had already reached the outer edge of the battlefield, intently observing the life-or-death struggle between the Konoha ninja and the Iwa ninja. The Konoha ninja were clearly at a disadvantage, like candles flickering in the wind, barely managing to hold on. It was only a matter of time before this Konoha force was routed by the Iwa ninja, given the vast difference in numbers. The Iwa ninja outnumbered the Konoha ninja by at least twice as many. Leveraging this overwhelming numerical advantage, the Iwa ninja typically employed a tactic of multiple Iwa ninja attacking a single Konoha ninja. The Konoha ninja could only grit their teeth and hold on, hoping for reinforcements from Konoha. They understood that if they retreated even a step, the Iwa ninja could advance deep into the Land of Fire, bringing annihilation to its people.

Hyuga Kanan showed no intention of intervening. He simply watched quietly, extending his divine sense to absorb the smaller soul energies. Whether Konoha was victorious or defeated was irrelevant to Hyuga Kanan. He was no longer a member of Konoha's ninja ranks, and the battles of the ninja world had little to do with him. He was merely an outsider. The constant fighting among the people of this world was their destiny, something an outsider like himself couldn't change. Even if Hyuga Kanan had the power to change things, he wouldn't throw himself into this chaotic world.

In just a short while, the Konoha ninja force had already collapsed. Most of the ninjas were killed by the Iwa ninjas, with only a few still struggling to hold on. But within ten minutes at most, these few Konoha ninjas would also meet their end. The Iwa ninjas had no intention of letting these Konoha ninjas go; they were clearly preparing to annihilate this Konoha force and open a passage to the Land of Fire's border for the main army behind them.

However, Hyuga Kanan had already sensed a yellow figure rapidly approaching the battlefield from afar. Moreover, the way the figure moved caught Hyuga Kanan's attention. The figure's shimmering movement was clearly a high-level Konoha ninjutsu - the Flying Thunder God Technique!

The rapid, blinking movement also made Hyuga Kanan, a cultivator, feel a sense of wonder.