Chương 25: A New Phase of the Third Great Ninja War

The Hidden Sand was the first to ignite the flames of war against the Leaf, and the first to crawl back in surrender. They were the classic "all bark and no bite"—barking the moment they were loose, and begging for mercy the second a hand tightened around their throat. When news of their plea for peace spread, many naive souls in the various ninja villages thought the war was finally ending. They were wrong.

Those who understood the true state of affairs knew the war wasn't over; on the contrary, it had only just begun. The Third Great Shinobi War was slowly entering its second phase—the most chaotic and brutal chapter of all. Ohnoki, the Tsuchikage—a man who had aged into a sharp, cunning fox—would never be ruled by mere hatred. Everything he did was calculated to yield the greatest profit for the smallest price.

Hatred was nothing more than a tool to motivate the underlings; profit was the foundation that allowed a village to grow strong. His plan had hit a slight snag, however. The Leaf had produced a monster like Orochimaru, who brought the Sand to its knees with minimal losses. Unlike Hiruzen Sarutobi, Ohnoki actually admired the snake's command capabilities, viewing his ruthless efficiency as the correct approach. The Leaf hadn't bled as much as he'd hoped, but the Sand was now crippled.

And where there was a vacuum, there was opportunity. Following the Battle of Kikyo Pass, while the Sand was in shambles and struggling to regroup, Ohnoki ordered the Iwa shinobi to aggressively plunder the fertile border regions of the Land of Wind. Since the establishment of the Five Great Nations and their Hidden Villages, the global structure had been largely set. The era of the Warring States—where nations annexed each other and Daimyo fought endless chaotic battles—was a thing of the past.

The Five Great Nations each had established territories, with smaller nations serving as buffers in peace and as arenas in war. Small nations were allowed to squabble, but never to annex or grow powerful; the Great Five would never tolerate the rise of another nation capable of threatening their status. Hanzo of the Salamander from the Hidden Rain had tried it, only to be ground into the dirt by the combined weight of Fire, Earth, and Wind.

Those three nations then turned his homeland into a scarred battlefield, birthing countless tragedies and directly leading to the creation of the Akatsuki. Annexing a neighboring small nation was also off the table for a Great Nation, as the others would intervene to stop them. No one was foolish enough to watch a rival grow stronger. Without a buffer zone, the Great Nations would be forced to face each other directly, which offered no sense of security.

Unless one could dismantle the other Hidden Villages and unify the shinobi world, the balance remained unbroken. The people in the small nations caught in the middle suffered, but no one cared. Since territorial expansion was too difficult, how was one to reap benefits from a Great War? It was simple: gold, precious metals, jewels, infants with special talents, and various secret ninjutsu. Anything that could strengthen the village's power was a target. Iwagakure was currently busy doing exactly that.

By the time the Sand organized its forces to move north, the fertile borderlands adjacent to the Land of Birds and the Land of Rain had already been ravaged. The Sand shinobi, having just finished their war with the Leaf, were forced back into the fray with bloodshot eyes, clashing with the Iwa forces. Meanwhile, in the direction of the Land of Grass, Iwa made preparations to invade the Land of Fire while reaping their spoils. But they were waiting—waiting for another "hired hand" to enter the field.

As Ohnoki expected, the "black-skinned barbarians" of Kumogakure couldn't sit still seeing Iwa take all the loot. They quickly joined the war. In their minds, they were the ones who robbed others; they weren't about to stand by and watch someone else have all the fun. However, once Kumo entered the fray, the situation spiraled beyond Ohnoki's control.

Kumo shinobi invaded the Land of Fire from the Land of Hot Water while simultaneously entering the Land of Rice Fields to drive out the Iwa forces stationed there to watch them. The Leaf, having just concluded its western campaign, was forced to redeploy troops to meet the threats from the northwest and north. The situation was once again in total chaos.

Currently, Iwa was entangled with the Sand in the south, friction was mounting with the Leaf in the Land of Grass, and they were guarding against Kumo in the Land of Rice Fields. The Sand was pushing north against Iwa but had to leave forces on their eastern flank to prevent the Leaf from stabbing them in the back. Although a peace treaty had been signed, trust was the cheapest commodity in the shinobi world, and a treaty was often just a piece of scrap paper.

Kumo, upon entry, immediately clashed with both Iwa and the Leaf. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. With everyone facing multiple opponents, the shinobi world was a mess, sliding toward total loss of control. All that was missing was the Hidden Mist. In reality, if the other four nations united against the Leaf, Konoha wouldn't be able to hold out—but such a thing would never happen.

Without a common enemy, the five villages were too busy being suspicious of each other and trying to kill one another. Trust did not exist. Before the Battle of Kikyo Pass, the situation in the Land of Grass had actually been relatively stable. Iwa and the Leaf were only engaged in small-scale skirmishes. This allowed Jiro Dongye, Yuhe Uzuki, and many other Leaf shinobi to be rotated back for a break, spending the New Year in the village. But with the Sand's defeat, the landscape shifted.

The movements of Iwa and Kumo acted like a match to a silent powder keg. Small nations like Grass, Rice Fields, and Hot Water were powerless against the Great Nations and could only plead for Konoha's help. Compared to the other "bandits," the Leaf—founded by the God of Shinobi—had a much better reputation. In a world of bad choices, the Hidden Leaf seemed positively virtuous by comparison.

Under these circumstances, Jiro Dongye missed his son's birthday for the first time as he marched toward the Land of Grass with the main force. The annual family birthday party, usually a trio, had only five people this year due to the war: Uchiha Shisui, Uzuki Yugao, and Gekko Hayate had come to celebrate with him. Among the four, Zhen Dongye had the earliest birthday in late March. The other three were all born after October; Yugao and Hayate's birthdays were only a day apart and were usually celebrated together.

Under the gaze of his friends, Zhen made a sincere wish: he hoped Jiro Dongye and Yuhe Uzuki would return alive. In his previous life, he was just an ordinary person. In this world, he was born into a commoner family. He had no "system" that gifted him an Otsutsuki body, no legendary treasures in his mind, and no "Blue Panel" that added dozens of stat points a day. He only had a "cheat" discovered at age four: a slightly special soul that helped him filter white natural energy.

Since white energy was the rarest type, his absorption speed was painfully slow. Beyond that, he relied on extreme self-discipline, training since age three to reach a decent level of strength by age seven. But this level of strength was only enough for self-preservation. Interfering in a Great Shinobi War? He didn't have the power for that. Just look at the figures emerging during this chaotic phase of the Third War. The Sand shinobi, having been tricked by Orochimaru, took their rage out on Iwa.

A young ninja named Rasa rose to prominence, his Magnet Release: Gold Dust burying countless Iwa lives. His reputation was soaring, making him a frontrunner for the title of Fourth Kazekage. However, his rival, the beautiful Pakura—who provided "mummification services" for Iwa with her Scorch Release—also had many supporters. One mountain couldn't hold two tigers, unless one was male and the other female. But Rasa was already married; his wife, Karura, was heavily pregnant and close to giving birth.

On the Hot Water battlefield, the son of the Third Raikage and his "brother"—the future A-B Combo—were unstoppable, making life miserable for the Leaf until they encountered the "blond" of Konoha in the middle of the year. Minato Namikaze held his own against the pair, including an Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. Using the Flying Raijin, he single-handedly forced the Kumo offensive back. The "Yellow Flash" of the Leaf was no empty title; for ordinary ninja, encountering him meant death was certain and escape was futile.

With Orochimaru disillusioned, Tsunade gone, and Jiraiya focused on paving the way for his student, Minato Namikaze was the star of the battlefield. He used the Flying Raijin to flicker between the Iwa and Kumo fronts, striking terror into the hearts of his enemies. No matter how hard the Leaf shinobi were struggling, the sight of a yellow flash meant victory was at hand. In October, a massive event rocked the entire shinobi world. After a battle of intelligence, Kumogakure fell into Ohnoki's trap.

The Third Raikage, A, led an elite unit to the borders of Rice Fields, Fire, and Waterfall to intercept stolen supplies, only to be surrounded by ten thousand Iwa shinobi. To allow his elite squad to escape, the Third Raikage carved a path for them and then stayed behind alone to cover their retreat. He fought for three days and three nights until he finally died of exhaustion.

The Raikage's death not only showcased the terrifying power of the Lightning Style Chakra Mode to the world but also pushed the Third War into an uncontrollable phase. The Kumo shinobi, fueled by the rage of their leader's death, went all-in against Iwa. Konoha took the opportunity while Iwa was distracted to push the front line back into the Land of Grass. Was there cooperation? No. Kumo and the Leaf were still killing each other in the Land of Hot Water. Cooperation was impossible.

The Sand also accelerated their efforts to drive Iwa out of their territory. For a moment, Iwa became the "world boss," with three of the four other Great Nations attacking them. Ohnoki was stunned.

"Wait... this isn't right. Why have I become everyone's target?" But with things as they were, he could only grit his teeth and hold on to the bitter end.