Inside the main command tent, all the Konoha shinobi were silent and dejected.

The atmosphere was heavy..

One could hear a pin drop.

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, bloodshot eyes and deepening wrinkles etching further into his already aged face.

After a long sigh, he asked in a low voice:

"Where's Shikaku? Did he fail to negotiate with the Hidden Cloud?"

Before the war began, the Konoha leadership—Hiruzen and his two advisors—had already anticipated that the Hidden Cloud might kick them while they were down

So Hiruzen held a remote conference with the Daimyō of the Land of Fire, proposing economic concessions in hopes of persuading the Hidden Cloud to de-escalate the conflict.

A ninja from the intelligence unit, face grim and head lowered even further, responded:

"The Raikage stated outright: unless we cede all Land of Fire territory outside of Konoha to the Land of Lightning, the Hidden Cloud will not withdraw its forces."

With that, the tent fell into stunned silence. All the clan leaders turned toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The message was clear—Hidden Cloud had laid bare its ambition to carve up the Land of Fire.

"Cough, cough, cough…" Hiruzen clutched his chest, his face turning red with rage as he slammed his fists down and growled, "They no longer see Konoha as anything!"

"Lord Hokage!"

The clan leaders rushed to his side in concern.

"I'm fine," Hiruzen said weakly. "If it's come to this, withdraw. Fall back to the village. Prepare for a final battle against Iwagakure and Kumogakure!"

No one spoke.

Each person was lost in thought.

At that moment, another intelligence squad entered the main tent—this one from the eastern border of the Land of Fire.

That border faced the sea and the Hidden Mist.

Covered in dust and dirt, the lead ninja shouted, "Lord Hokage!!"

Hiruzen and the other high-ranking ninja instantly recognized the three-man team from the eastern front.

The lead ninja reported in a panic:

"Sunagakure has circled around to the east and is marching toward the eastern region of the Land of Fire! The situation is extremely critical!"

He handed over a scroll with the intelligence report.

"Rasa…" Hiruzen muttered in disbelief.

He rose unsteadily to his feet, face pale, his figure swaying like a dying candle in the wind.

Sunagakure was supposed to be Konoha's ally—by plan, they should've been attacking Iwagakure!

Why the sudden betrayal?

Clearly, Iwagakure had turned them.

"Bastards!!"

Fury surged in Hiruzen's chest. The betrayal of an ally shattered his last bit of will.

"Return to Konoha! Back to Konoha!"

The clan leaders scattered in panic.

With Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure all marching on Konoha, the Land of Fire stood on the brink!

When the main tent was finally empty, Hiruzen looked up to the sky and let out a long, weary sigh:

"Sensei… Konoha has no path left. What should I do? …Will you forgive me, Sensei?"

—

Half a day later.

Kikyō Castle.

Atop the outer wall, Iwa jōnin Bun'ya peered through his binoculars at the retreating Konoha forces, thrilled.

"Lord Tsuchikage, just as you predicted—Konoha has begun retreating over the past few days!"

Ōnoki snorted.

"Only now did Kumogakure make their move. Luckily, my letter convinced Rasa from Sunagakure. Now Konoha must face the combined assault of the Three Great Villages!"

Bun'ya grinned. "Lord Tsuchikage, did you foresee Rasa agreeing to your terms from the start?"

Ōnoki shook his head.

"Not that simple. Compared to throwing themselves against us, it makes more sense for Sunagakure to follow Iwagakure and Kumogakure and claim their share of the spoils from Konoha."

"Your foresight is unmatched!"

Bun'ya exclaimed, clearly impressed.

"Enough flattery. Send the order to pursue Konoha's retreating army. That old monkey Hiruzen Sarutobi doesn't get to go home so easily!"

Ōnoki smiled as he stroked his goat-like beard—clearly enjoying the praise.

"Yes, sir!"

Bunya left immediately, issuing military orders to the Iwa-nin behind him to pursue the enemy.

Ōnoki hovered in mid-air, gazing in the direction of Konoha.

Although Yu had warned him earlier that it was already too late and that Konoha still had contingency plans, now Sunagakure had been swayed.

Konoha only had the Nine-Tails left.

A cold smile appeared on Ōnoki's aged face. He wanted to see just what kind of waves this great ship—steered to ruin by a failure like Hiruzen Sarutobi—could still stir up!

…

Land of Fields.

Sound Village.

Sunlight poured across the forest canopy, the lush green unable to dispel the lurking chill in the air.

"Sis Kurenai, did Captain Yu really tell us to come to a place like this?" Hotaru clung to Yuhi Kurenai's side, her voice soft and pitiful.

Under the sun, her golden hair shimmered like light, and her big eyes sparkled like gemstones.

She wore a simple light pink dress, her exposed shoulders and arms pale and delicate.

"Mhm, this is the place." Kurenai scanned the cold, shadowy forest and replied in a low voice, glancing back at the Tsuchigumo clan's group.

Compared to the fragile and petite Hotaru, Kurenai was mature and seductive, with a beautiful face and crimson eyes like garnets. Her nose was high and straight, lips red like petals.

Her slim waist could be held in one hand, and her figure was full and graceful.

Beneath the short bandaged skirt, her legs were slender and smooth. Though her thighs weren't tightly packed, they were clean and white, with her feet neatly wrapped in ninja sandals, showing no trace of dirt.

Behind them, the elder of the Tsuchigumo clan led hundreds of their people, each carrying packs, advancing in orderly fashion.

Recently, Kurenai had brought the Tsuchigumo to the refugee zone at the border of the Land of Earth. After a few days of rest, she received Orochimaru's next plan, issued in the name of Captain Ingetsu.

So she decisively led the clan out of the Land of Earth toward the nearby Land of Fields.

What pleased Kurenai was that the Tsuchigumo truly lived up to being a ninja clan. Even after so many twists and turns, no one caused trouble or voiced discontent.

At first, the clan didn't understand why they had to move.

But with the recent upheaval in the shinobi world—especially the shocking news of Iwagakure flattening Kikyo Castle in the Land of Fire—they now saw the early relocation as a wise decision by their late clan leader.

Especially since it was Yu to whom he had entrusted their fate, who had dispatched a Konoha jōnin like Kurenai to escort them.

None of the Tsuchigumo had any objections now.

The group continued forward, climbing hills and crossing ridges.

Suddenly—

A disturbance echoed through the forest.

Kurenai's eyes narrowed as she sharply stared into the treetops.

She placed a hand on Hotaru's shoulder and drew a kunai from the pouch strapped to her right thigh.

"Ah…"

Hotaru let out a startled cry, lifting her head to follow Kurenai's gaze—just in time to see a flock of birds scatter.

Flap—

The birds took off in a rush, vanishing into the canopy.

On the treetops stood two figures.

To Hotaru's eyes, they were women with long red hair, clad in dark green shinobi gear, each holding a sharp kunai.

"Fall back!" Kurenai warned, carefully studying the two female ninja who appeared to be wearing Konoha-style uniforms.

But her eyes narrowed further when she saw the red spiral crest on their shoulders.

Her pupils contracted, heart jolting.

"The Uzumaki clan?"

This dark forest turned out to be territory of surviving Uzumaki ninja?

"Who goes there?" one of the women demanded coldly.

She had a beautiful face, smooth red hair, and a curvy figure. Under the Uzumaki vest, she exuded a unique blend of fierceness and beauty that was typical of Uzumaki kunoichi.

The Tsuchigumo group halted.

A standoff unfolded.

Suddenly, the sound of rustling footsteps echoed through the woods. Nearly a hundred red-haired women emerged from the shadows.

"…"

Kurenai looked around in silence. Just as she suspected—this was indeed the territory of Uzumaki survivors.

Most of these hundred women wore either simple skirts or ragged clothing, but they all held kunai, ninja tools, or shinobi swords.

Judging by their movement and posture, Kurenai guessed most of them had once been active ninja.

"Haa…"

She took a deep breath, narrowing her eyes. She knew all too well—the Uzumaki were masters of sealing jutsu.

And now, behind her…

None of them could use forbidden techniques like Fury.

The two sides clashed.

Their side would surely lose.

At that moment, the elder of the Tsuchigumo Clan, an aged Grand Elder, quickly stepped forward.

He walked up to Kurenai, looking at the red-haired kunoichi team before him.

The Grand Elder asked, full of concern:

"Miss Kurenai… what should we do?"

"I'll try to negotiate with them."

Kurenai stepped forward, raising the kunai in her hand, and shouted loudly:

"We mean no harm! If possible, we'd like to talk!"

Since both sides were led by women, the tense atmosphere slightly eased.

"Stay where you are! Don't move forward!"

Two Uzumaki kunoichi warned from the tree branches, then turned to look behind their formation.

The Uzumaki team swiftly spread out.

An elderly Uzumaki woman was carried out from the group on a young woman's back.

Then, someone summoned a wheelchair through a sealing scroll and seated the elderly woman in it.

Kurenai watched this unfold, analyzing in her heart:

"This elder seems to hold a high status among the Uzumaki remnants… perhaps a council elder or something similar?"

But before the two sides could begin talking—

The branches above shook.

Whoosh—

°°°

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