Naruto: Cultivating to Immortality

Chapter 122 War Breaks Out

Tsunade left with Shizune, and the message she left behind brought peace back to Konoha.

In the dimly lit laboratory, Orochimaru heard Tsunade's departure and the message she left behind, and a disdainful smile appeared on his lips. Tsunade had ultimately chosen Konoha Village.

In Orochimaru's eyes, Konoha Village had no reason to continue existing, but he still respected Tsunade's choice, which was also his last sense of guilt towards Tsunade, his comrade-in-arms.

Orochimaru then joined the secret experiments of Konoha's higher-ups. He now only wanted to obtain the Konoha resources he desired, to use them as nourishment for his growth.

At the beginning of Konoha Calendar 47, tensions in the ninja world intensified. Friction between major powers escalated, with even border outposts being attacked.

Everyone in the ninja world felt that war was drawing ever closer. The recent turmoil in Konoha also gave Sunagakure and Iwagakure an opportunity. Kirigakure was also eager to make their move, believing that Konoha was now a huge cake waiting for them to take a slice.

Meanwhile, the Hidden Cloud Village was divided into two factions. One faction believed that the Hidden Leaf Village was the most delicious cake, and they needed to mobilize their troops to prepare for a take. The other faction believed that the Hidden Iwa Village was the real enemy of the Hidden Cloud Village. They were constantly moving closer to the Hidden Cloud Village's sphere of influence, the Land of Hot Springs, and had even attacked the Hidden Iwa Village's outposts in the Land of Hot Springs.

Most importantly, if the Hidden Cloud Village were to launch an attack on the Hidden Leaf Village, the flanks and logistics transport teams of the Hidden Stone Village would be attacked by the Hidden Stone Village forces, which would cut off the Hidden Cloud Village's forces and divide them up.

This is an extremely dangerous operation. If we cannot defeat the Iwa ninja forces first, then our attempt to attack Konoha will be constantly threatened by a sneak attack from behind by the Iwa ninja.

Furthermore, the mineral resources of the Land of Earth are something the Hidden Cloud Village desperately needs. If the Hidden Cloud forces can defeat the troops stationed on the border of the Land of Hot Water, then the Hidden Cloud Village can advance unimpeded into the Land of Earth and obtain a large amount of mineral resources. This would also clear the flank of any forces attacking Konoha.

The Sand Village's military capabilities have reached their limit. The Land of Wind, with its limited resources, cannot continue to engage in an arms race with other countries. Moreover, it now needs more resources to support the village.

Iwagakure, meanwhile, quietly awaits its opportunity. The Tsuchikage, Onoki, is also waiting, hoping other nations will make the first move and initiate war. Iwagakure's location is the most advantageous: to the east, it can attack the flanks of the Cloud Ninja's forces attacking Konoha; to the west, it can attack the Sand Ninja's forces attacking Konoha; and to the south, it can directly attack Konoha.

Now, we just need to wait patiently for other countries to launch an attack on Konoha. Then, Iwagakure can maximize its gains by attacking in whichever direction it wants, and Iwagakure's current resources are sufficient to continue the arms race. Most importantly, we need to get other ninja villages to attack Konoha, weakening Konoha's forces in the south, making it easier and more convenient for Iwagakure to attack Konoha.

The current situation in Kirigakure is like a fog, intricate and complex, with internal conflicts escalating to a volcanic eruption. Since his defeat in the last battle against Konoha, the Third Mizukage has implemented the Blood Mist policy within the village, a double-edged sword. While it has cultivated exceptionally skilled ninja and suppressed the powerful clans within Kirigakure, it has also deeply alienated many Kirigakure ninja from the bloodshed and fueled resentment towards his rule. Now, the Third Mizukage desperately needs to shift the village's internal conflicts outside, and the recent intelligence from Konoha seems like the dawn before sunrise, offering him a glimmer of hope. He must now be fully prepared, like a tiger poised to pounce, ready to launch an attack on Konoha at any moment.

Konoha is now on high alert, with intelligence pouring in, plunging the village into chaos. All current intelligence indicates that the other ninja villages harbor hostility towards Konoha and are poised to attack. Sunagakure has even begun assembling its army, constantly putting pressure on the border. Kirigakure has also started gathering troops towards the Land of Whirlpools and the Land of Waves, its intentions obvious to everyone. While Iwagakure hasn't yet shown any signs of attacking Konoha, it is also deploying troops towards the Land of Grass and the Land of Waterfalls. Kumogakure, however, stands out, not continuing its troop buildup towards the Land of Hot Springs, but instead advancing towards the Land of Waterfalls.

Hiruzen Sarutobi is now somewhat regretful. If Sakumo Hatake were still alive, his power to deter the Sand Village would have been enough to prevent them from making any rash moves. Moreover, with Tsunade's departure, Konoha's hospitals are now in disarray, and Konoha's greatest advantage has lost its overwhelming edge.

Most importantly, the experiment has still not succeeded, wasting a great deal of resources with no chance of success in sight. Now, the Fire Country Daimyo's support for Konoha is also facing problems. Although he dispatched Mitokado Homura to the Fire Country capital to negotiate with the Daimyo, he knows the chances are slim. With Tsunade's departure, the Daimyo clearly doesn't want to increase support for Konoha any further.

Furthermore, Hiruzen Sarutobi has now sensed that Orochimaru's attitude towards Konoha has changed significantly. Now, apart from experiments, Orochimaru directly refuses all assigned tasks and is even unwilling to operate within Konoha.

The Hyuga clan also had a very cold attitude towards the village. They did not refuse the tasks assigned to them, but they never took the initiative to come to the mission center to accept the tasks. They would only carry out the tasks when the village assigned them to them.

In fact, Hiruzen Sarutobi's misunderstanding of the Hyuga clan runs deep. The Hyuga clan is currently completely immersed in a wave of training. The legacy passed down by Hyuga Kanan is like a guiding light, illuminating the path for the clan's ninjas to improve their strength, but this requires time and accumulation. Currently, the clan's ninjas are single-mindedly focused on enhancing their strength, naturally leaving no time to proactively take on missions. Moreover, the ninja world is in turmoil, with war imminent. In this turbulent time, seizing the opportunity to improve strength is of utmost urgency; how could they possibly waste precious time on missions?

The Uchiha clan weighed heavily on Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind, causing him immense headaches. The clan's ninjas were like a herd of untamed wild horses, completely disregarding his commands as Hokage. Mission assignments required the approval of the clan's higher-ups before they would execute them. Otherwise, even the Hokage's orders would be ignored and treated like a passing breeze.

Hiruzen Sarutobi is increasingly feeling that his control over Konoha is becoming increasingly weak. Although he still has a general grasp on the whole, many ninjas outwardly execute his orders meticulously, but their attitude towards him is no longer as respectful as before.

Moreover, Konoha is now in a very dangerous situation. If war breaks out, Konoha will face an attack from all sides, especially the Sand Village. Intelligence indicates that the enemy has basically launched a full-scale attack, with more than 8,000 ninjas gathering at the border. Even the Third Kazekage has personally appeared at the border to inspect the troops, ready to attack at any time.

The border of the Land of Rivers, Konoha outpost.

Brick and stone watchtowers collapsed with a crash, and bamboo and wood observation towers burst into flames. The massive fire ignited the nearby forests, making them look like giant fireballs from a distance.

This was a probing attack by the Sand Village on the Konoha border, intended to gauge Konoha's reaction and the strength of their resistance. The main Sand force had not yet reached its designated position, nor had the Sand Village made a decision to launch the initial attack.

The Third Kazekage is now somewhat hesitant. He doesn't want to be the first to attack Konoha, drawing away Konoha's main elite forces. He wants to wait until other villages attack before the Sand Village attacks, which would make things easier for them.

The purpose of arriving at the front line this time is to stabilize the situation and allow the troops to endure for a while.

With absolute confidence in the strength of the Third Kazekage, he only took Sasori with him on the inspection before preparing to return to the village and go to the Daimyo's residence to request more support. He believed that given the current situation, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind would definitely provide more support.

More than ten days passed, and not only had the Third Kazekage not returned to the village, but no message had been sent back either. This caused turmoil throughout the entire Sand Village. The Third Kazekage was hailed as the strongest Kazekage, possessing immense power. Few in the entire ninja world could threaten him. Only a combined effort of multiple powerful ninjas could prevent him from even sending a message. Furthermore, the Third Kazekage was accompanied by Sasori, the Sand Village's most talented puppeteer and a renowned and powerful ninja.

Now that they've all disappeared, the only village capable of mobilizing multiple Kage-level ninjas is Konoha, given that the enemy boasts the legendary Sannin, Danzo Shimura, and the Third Hokage. They are fully capable of surrounding and defeating the Third Kazekage and Sasori of the Red Sand.

Moreover, the Sand Village is currently in turmoil, and the frontline troops are experiencing some panic. If this matter cannot be resolved quickly, the Sand Village may lose this opportunity to divide Konoha, and may even become a target for other ninja villages.

The leaders of Sunagakure are now in a state of turmoil. They must make a decision: whether to immediately withdraw their troops, prepare to defend against other ninja villages, and make further plans after the village has stabilized, or to shift the focus of their conflict and launch a direct attack on Konoha, using the pretext of avenging the Kazekage to boost the morale of the frontline troops and invade the Land of Fire in one fell swoop.

Chiyo directly stated that if it were simply a matter of defending against other ninja villages, the Sand Village could easily manage it now. However, the prolonged arms race had overburdened the Sand Village, and it needed external resources to alleviate the burden. Otherwise, the Sand Village probably wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

Upon hearing this, everyone present knew the final outcome: all the long-term preparations for war would ultimately lead to an attack on Konoha.

Soon, the Sand Village, using the pretext of Konoha Village's assassination of the Third Kazekage, launched a full-scale war against Konoha, advancing rapidly and leaving Konoha powerless to resist.

Other ninja villages, discovering Konoha's vulnerability, launched attacks against it without hesitation.

Thus, the Third Shinobi World War officially broke out in full force.