March, early spring.
In an uninhabited hilly area of the Country of Grass, the final decisive battle between Konoha and Iwagakure begins.
Having lost a large amount of supplies, Iwagakure made a desperate plan.
Faced with Iwagakure's unconcealed general attack, the Konoha troops in the Land of Grass naturally had no choice but to go up and fight.
Probably Iwagakure also saw that after the rise of the yellow flash wave Feng Minato, the strategy of delaying time with Konoha was undoubtedly an extremely stupid strategy.
That's why he wanted to decide the outcome with Konoha in one breath at this time.
On the day of the battle, a clear sky was obscured by dark clouds, and rumbles of explosions came from the battlefield.
The release of ninjutsu caused the earth to crack, fire and water were intertwined, and wind and thunder wreaked havoc on the battlefield.
On the fierce battlefield, a golden light penetrated deep into the core of Iwagakure's troops, causing chaos there.
When many Konoha ninjas pass by, the battle is often over.
When people saw that light, they already understood that it was a personal battle belonging to someone.
Under that extremely exaggerated speed, any defense seemed weak and ridiculous.
Even the Iwagakure ninjas did not expect that a yellow flash that could only bring a slight threat at the beginning would become a serious problem for Iwagakure today.
Their combined earth escape strategy was unable to cope with the yellow flashing space-time ninjutsu.
That is already a speed in the inhuman realm.
In the eyes of the Iwagakure ninjas, Yellow Flash is undoubtedly the fastest ninja in the world.
The battle lasted for a long time and ended with the complete defeat of the Iwagakure ninjas.
Corpses, corpses, corpses, corpses everywhere you look.
Iwagakure's bloodstained ninja Bakudushiri was also killed in the battle, his life harvested by the yellow flash Namikaze Minato.
On the battlefield, the yellow flash is a ruthless killing death to the Iwagakure ninjas.
Wherever the golden light shines, death is certain.
◎
The day after the battle, both Konoha and Iwagakure were counting the battle losses.
As the victorious side, Konoha had fewer casualties than Iwagakure. And one of the statistics is shocking, that is, of the approximately 1,500 Iwagakure ninjas who died in this battle, nearly two-thirds died at the hands of Yellow Flash.
The fatal wound made by the special kunai, and the obvious mark made by the rasengan.
This data is extremely shocking.
Even the Konoha ninja who was responsible for statistics was amazed at Minato's strength. Unknowingly, he had grown to become one of the top ninjas in Konoha.
The rumor that he is stronger than the Sannin may not be groundless.
After the battle, Minato was unscathed, only his clothes were stained with some dust, and his physical strength and chakra were somewhat depleted. It was obvious that he could continue to fight.
If the Iwagakure ninjas hadn't retreated in time, I'm afraid...
Even if the Konoha ninja calculated this answer himself, he still felt that it was not a record that a young man in his twenties could achieve.
"Watergate has important flaws."
Nara Shikaku said to his friends Akimichi Choza and Yamanaka Kaiichi.
There were only three of them in the simple tent.
Shikaku came in from the outside and said this as soon as he came in, looking quite cautious.
Both Ding Zao and Hai Yi looked at Shikaku in confusion.
This time in the battle with Iwagakure, thanks to Minato's power, he was able to achieve a complete victory. As a ninja, it was perfect.
Why does Shikaku say that Minato has a flaw?
"I just went to count Minato's results on the battlefield in the past few years."
"What's the problem? I don't think that's a false record."
Dingzuo said this.
Shikaku shook his head and sighed in distress: "It's not that the results are false, but that they are too real to be called a flaw. The current Minato reminds me of Sakumo Kame who committed suicide a few years ago. Tolerate."
Ding Zuo and Haiyi's expressions changed.
Hatake Sakumo is one of the few taboo names in Konoha that cannot be mentioned.
Not only himself, but also the names of the other three members of the former White Fang team were deliberately erased from Konoha.
Although many people remember it, senior officials have already ordered to downplay this matter.
"Shikaku, to put it simply, why are you mentioning Sakumo Jounin?"
Haiyi asked in confusion.
Shikaku replied: "Because Minato and Sakumo jounin are very similar. They are both very powerful ninjas. One person is equivalent to an army."
"It is not good?"
"It's good to a certain extent. But Sakumo Jōnin is so powerful and was once one of the candidates for the Fourth Hokage, but the biggest problem is... he doesn't have a team."
This is a bit rebellious.
However, Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, and the top management suppressed all negative public opinions with absolute superiority. It also confirmed that Hatake Sakumo had a huge reputation in Konoha, but he did not have any close associates of his own and did not have real power, so that incident The incident ended with less thunder and less rain.
"You mean..."
"I have also speculated before about why Minato is so good as a ninja, but his team is very weak. Through Minato's outstanding performance on the battlefield here, and comparing his past record with Sakumo Jōnin, I found out. common ground."
"What do they have in common?"
"One man stage."
Shikaku looked serious.
One person stage? Dingzuo and Haiyi seem to be enlightened but not enlightened.
"They have strong raiding capabilities, and one person is the force of an army, which is equivalent to giving up the assistance of other ninjas. They can complete the task alone. Before the raid on the Iwagakure supply point, Kakashi and we only Responsible for blowing up the Kannabi Bridge and attracting Iwagakure’s attention, Minato raided all Iwagakure’s supply points by himself and completed the task perfectly.”
In that mission, to be honest, Shikaku didn't feel that he had any sense of participation. The whole process was like watching a show.
With Minato's strength, one person could do very well.
It's not that Shikaku belittles his abilities, it's just the fact.
Minato's personal light was too dazzling.
Being unsociable is also a kind of tragedy.
"If you are too good, you will put pressure on your peers. At the same time, if one person completes the task, his peers will appear incompetent. Minato may be able to gain huge fame by relying on his own strength, but this kind of fame is like a castle in the air. It seems that his status is very low." High, but when it comes to actually participating in village affairs, fame without real power is meaningless.”
Once such a person becomes Hokage, he must be a puppet.
Ding Zao and Hai had complicated expressions on their faces, understanding what Shikaku meant.
At the beginning, Hatake Sakumo needed three team members to form the invincible White Fang team.
However, Minato, who is a yellow flash, is more thorough than the White Fang team and is truly a one-man army.
Because no one can keep up with his movements.
The ninjas who teamed up with him could only feel that their existence was redundant and incompetent.
Minato was the well-deserved first contributor to the two major actions that changed Konoha's disadvantage in the Land of Grass.
However, every move he makes is like a one-man performance on stage.
People will be admired and impressed by his strength, but they will not have any further sense of identification with him.
At least most ninjas couldn't identify with Minato any further.
At best, he was just the second Konoha White Fang.
"Minato stands too high, so high that many people can only look up and respect him, but cannot touch him because it will hurt themselves."
Shikaku smiled bitterly.
He never thought that Minato had such a flaw.
To become the Hokage in the village, fame and strength are on the one hand, and leadership skills are also very important.
In most of Minato's actions, one person ends the battle alone.
This time, in the decisive battle with Iwagakure, it was Jiraiya who was in charge of the battlefield command, not Minato, so we can see the problem.
Minato never showed how good of a leader he was.
Whether it is good or bad is an unknown.
The command ability of a leader is the best way to unite people and win over the team.
And Minato... doesn't have these advantages, or he doesn't have the time and space to take advantage of them.
In contrast, the Sannin can be said to have achieved the ultimate in this aspect.
Especially Orochimaru who achieved a major victory in the Rain Kingdom battlefield.
"Go and remind him."
Ding Zuo and Haiyi suggested.
"not now."
"Why?"
"What I can think of, won't the people above think of it?"
Shikaku's words left Choza and Haiichi silent.
"Maybe this kind of thing is what the higher-ups would like to see. If you want to change it, you can only change it after Minato becomes Hokage. Now, reminding him will only arouse the vigilance of the higher-ups and restrict Minato even more strictly."
The Fourth Hokage will only be born between Minato and Orochimaru.
If the Fourth Hokage were Orochimaru, it wouldn't be a bad start for Shikaku.
Because Orochimaru, one of the three ninjas, has a solid reputation and team foundation, he will not be left unavailable after taking office as Hokage.
Although the three of them need a period of testing before Orochimaru recognizes their abilities.
If the fourth Hokage was Minato instead of Orochimaru, there would be pros and cons as well.
Minato will be in an awkward situation with no one available. If the three of them go over, they can directly approach the core level and become Minato's first team members.
The disadvantage is that you have to face political suppression from the Third Hokage all the time.
This is no easy task.
"Is that so?"
Ding Zuo and Haiyi sighed.
They never thought that the situation in the village would be so complicated.
"Besides... maybe Minato himself has noticed it."
Shikaku smiled happily.
"What? Minato...did he notice it himself? Then why..."
Ding and Zuo's eyes widened.
Minato noticed it himself?
"As a person involved, you must be more foresight than someone like me who relies on intelligence collection to make guesses. After all, Minato's thinking ability is not weak. If he notices something himself but deliberately maintains the current state, Then our work will be much easier.”
Without a city, great things cannot be accomplished.
Fame without real power is indeed useless, but fame is the best foundation.
Laying a solid foundation of fame and then converting fame into real power is also a way to break through the disadvantaged position.
If Minato was really the genius he imagined, maybe everything he was doing now was preparing for a certain goal in advance.
This is best.
But Shikaku wasn't sure whether Minato was aware of it or not. Everything was just a guess.
He planned two different plans based on the candidates of the Fourth Hokage.
One is for Orochimaru, and the other is for Minato.
"What's next?"
Choza looked at Shikaku.
"Iwagakure should already be afraid of Minato's power. With the loss of a large amount of supplies, the long-standing stalemate is no longer tenable. If we are smarter, we will soon send someone over to declare a truce."
Shikaku touched his chin and answered.
"It seems that only Kumogakure is left."
"Yes, Kumogakure's side... it's a tough battle. Now we are waiting for the notice from the village. If Minato is transferred to the Kumogakure battlefield and returns victorious from the battlefield, there will be no doubt that he will be the Fourth Hokage. It belongs to Minato."
Therefore, success or failure depends on this.
This will also determine which side the three of them, Zhu, Deer and Die, stand on.
◎
Four people were sitting in a certain conference room in the Hokage Building.
The Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Danzo Shimura, the leader of the Roots.
Consultant Mito Menyan, moved to Koharu.
"Iwagakure is willing to sign an armistice agreement with Konoha. They have put forward the same non-compensation conditions as Sunagakure. As the defeated party, they have also suffered heavy losses. I have already agreed with Iwagakure's decision."
Hiruzen looked at his three former comrades and today's colleagues and said these words.
Iwagakure's armistice agreement was submitted this morning.
Knowing Iwagakure's desire to stop fighting, Hiruzen also expected this to happen and did not want to waste time with Iwagakure.
Although Iwagakure initially launched an attack on the Fire Country and looted the Fire Country, causing the Fire Country to suffer a lot of losses, Iwagakure would definitely insist on not letting up if the investigation continued. If the war continues, the gains will outweigh the losses.
"snort."
Danzo snorted gloomily, just protesting his dissatisfaction, and had no other appeals other than that.
No matter how much he protested, Hiruzen would not change his decision because of him.
As the victor, allowing the defeated party not to make any compensation was, in Danzo's view, treating the war as too much of a child's play.
In this war, Konoha, which fought against three ninja villages, suffered heavier losses than any other ninja village.
Mito Kadoyan and Koharu, who moved to bed, just remained silent and did not answer.
"Next, I plan to transfer Minato to the Kumogakure battlefield. The Kumogakure ninja is good at speed fighting, and the Fourth Raikage is also a master of the teleportation technique. Minato, who has mastered the flying thunder god technique, also uses speed to win. The best candidate for Kumogakure ninja."
Hiruzen used this reason to let Minato intervene in the Kumogakure battlefield.
"In other words, Minato wants to replace Feng Feng's command position? Will it be a bit risky to do so? After all, he is only twenty-two years old this year."
When he went to bed, Koharu seemed a little worried about Minato's age and his inability to do a good job of commanding.
"Jiraiya and the others were about the same age when they commanded the battle in the Land of Rain."
Danzo said with a cold face.
"It was different then than it is now."
"If you say no, you can transfer Orochimaru over. His commanding ability is recognized by most ninjas in the village, and he will never disappoint you."
Xiaochun was at a loss for words when he went to bed. He muttered his lips twice and couldn't say anything to refute.
Mito Menyan coughed, and opened his mouth to help Koharu, who had gone to bed: "We are discussing Minato now, and we have no contact with Orochimaru. Besides, Orochimaru also has important work to do now. Koharu is right, let Minato take over. Feng's command position is too risky. Minato has never commanded so many ninjas. As the deputy commander under Jiraiya, there is basically no room for him to perform. Now that Feng's command position is suddenly given to him, maybe It will add a lot of chaos.”
Danzo does not express his opinion.
But I also understand that Mito Katoyan does not allow Minato to serve as a commander, not only because the other party is young and ignorant, but there are other more important reasons.
Only through training can battlefield commanders accumulate experience. This is how they achieved it step by step back then.
Even more recently, the three ninjas have also come step by step in the same way.
Because he was young and worried about command errors, he would not give the opponent a chance to practice. In Danzo's eyes, the reason for Mito Gate inflammation was really untenable.
"Indeed, Minato is too young. If Minato takes the position of taking the wind, it will inevitably make many people unconvinced. Moreover, Minato's ninjutsu characteristics are not suitable for the position of commander. He must fully utilize his abilities. To show his full potential, let him provide side support to the battlefield in the form of a small team. Kakashi under his command is also an excellent jounin. After that, I will arrange for two more jonin to join in to form a new Minato team. "
Koharu and Mito Katoen's doubts and denials about Minato made Hiruzen make up his mind and let Minato support the Konoha troops on the Kumogakure battlefield in the form of a small team.
"I agree."
Koharu and Mito Kaden who moved to bed agreed with Hiruzen one after another.
Then, Hiruzen looked at Danzo.
The other party had already stood up, his left eye revealed a cold light, and the aura on his body became more sinister and terrifying.
"You don't need to ask me to attend such boring meetings in the future. I won't say much else. I just hope that you can control this second White Fang Blade and don't make any mistakes again."
After saying that, Danzo glanced at the three of them and walked out of the conference room.
Hiruzen and the other three sat there awkwardly, not knowing what to say for a moment.
◎
April.
The armistice agreement between Iwagakure and Konoha, Konoha will not hold Iwagakure responsible for any compensation, and it will end peacefully.
Afterwards, Konoha and Kumogakure immediately began an all-out war, once again attracting the attention of all the countries in the ninja world.
At the same time, the Kingdom of Ghosts welcomed a guest with a special identity.
In a certain conference room in the No. 1 Military Region to which Ziyuan City belongs, two people were sitting across from each other. There was a tea table in the middle with warm tea, some fruits and pastries on it.
Except for the two of them, no one else was present in the conference room.
"I didn't expect you to come here at this time. What, are you already busy with the internal affairs of Kirigakure Village?"
Shiraishi looked at the baby-faced man sitting opposite.
The strange purple pupils and the sutured wound under the left eye all confirmed the other party's identity.
Tangerine Yagura.
The right-hand man of the third Mizukage of Kirigakure Village, and a well-known figure in the ninja world.
Currently, they are in a state of cooperation with Shiraishi, but the two parties have only reached preliminary cooperation. As for deeper cooperation, it can only continue after Yagura takes control of Kirigakure.
After all, although Yagura now has considerable power in Kirigakure Village, he still has many constraints.
For example, the suspicion of the Third Mizukage himself, and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen group headed by the Great Sword and Samehada Master, Suikoyama Fugu Oni, were blatantly targeting Yagura.
"How is it possible? Now is the critical moment. The third generation's body is getting worse day by day, but he has never decided who will be the next Mizukage. Those guys headed by Xiguashan have been carrying out the blood mist policy in the village, which has caused great harm to the villagers. I’ve been very busy lately.”
After Yagura took a sip of tea, he sighed and let out the frustration in his heart.
"Do you want me to provide some help? For example, help you kill the Watermelon Mountain Pufferfish Ghost."
To deal with an aging Third Mizukage, Shiraishi believed that Yagura had such ability, but facing the Watermelon Mountain Fugu Ghost who was in his prime and had many minions, he might not be able to handle it with ease.
"There is no point in killing him now. Instead, it will alert the enemy."
Yagura shook his head, with a cold and stern light in his purple pupils, and then said to Shiraishi: "Those Blood Mist Sect people in Watermelon Mountain are supported by the daimyo and nobles of the Water Country. The important thing is not just to suppress Watermelon Mountain. They also want to cut off all the claws of the daimyo and nobles that extend into Kirigakure."
When the one-country-one-village system was established, there were various contracts.
For example, the daimyo cannot interfere in the internal affairs of the Ninja Village for any reason. The selection of Kage requires the approval of the daimyo, but that is after the internal election of the Ninja Village, and it can be handed over to the daimyo for review.
Although the daimyo can put forward opinions on the succession of the shadow, the final choice still rests with the Ninja Village itself.
In the same way, the ninjas of the Ninja Village should provide military force to repel the invading enemies when the country is in trouble.
There are many more contracts like this.
The Daimyo of the Land of Water has violated this contract, so it can only be carried out in secret. Once exposed, it will affect the stability of the one-country-one-village system.
At that time, in order to ensure the stability of the shinobi villages within their own families, the remaining four major countries will inevitably condemn the Daimyo of the Kingdom of Water, making the Kingdom of Water the target of public criticism.
Yagura wanted to use the evidence of the daimyo and the nobles interfering in the internal affairs of Kirigakure Village to make the daimyo and the nobles back down.
If you can't make people like them feel real pain, and just give them a few gentle lessons, they will definitely come back soon and use various reasons to suppress Kirigakure Village.
The Kingdom of Water, one of the five major kingdoms, has faced a bad situation where the daimyo and the shinobi village cannot trust and cooperate.
If you want Kirigakure Village to achieve long-term peace and stability for a long time to come, you must not act too hastily.
Now that the real snake has not come out of its hole, showing its power too early will only make those poisonous snakes hide deeper and expose their reformist stance.
Therefore, even if he knew that allowing the Miguel Mountain Fugu Demon and others to continue to run amok in Kirigakure Village, the power of Kirigakure Village would become weaker day by day, Yagura would pretend not to see it, or even participate in it, just to wait for the time to come. , giving the enemy a fatal blow and eradicating it.
"In this case, Kirigakure Village will suffer heavy losses."
Shiraishi said with a frown.
Yagura replied with a smile: "This is also a price. Now I do have the power to overthrow the Blood Mist Sect, but I can't completely reform it because the real enemy has not yet shown his feet. I don't want to let Kirigakure be here just because of my temporary pleasure. In the next ten years or so, we will all be plunged into extremely terrifying internal fighting and fighting.”
It's the same sacrifice, and he will definitely choose the method with the least sacrifice and the most stability.
"how long it takes?"
"It won't be more than three years. To be honest, without your help, I planned to start this year. Now I just want to play a big one. Let the daimyo and those nobles know what the price of pain is."
"That's okay. After all, the other four villages suffered heavy losses due to the previous war. When we took action, even if Kirigakure fell into a weak stage, they would not have the ability to come and cause trouble."
Less than three years, it could be a few months, a year, or two years. This time is not very long for Shiraishi.
Yagura's proposal is also more reasonable.
If we start taking action now, we will not be able to eradicate the root cause, but will still cause Kirigakure to fall into chaos for a long time. This is not only what Yagura does not want, but Shiraishi also does not want to see this situation.
"Iwagakure and Konoha signed an armistice agreement not long ago and withdrew from the fighting stage. Now only Konoha and Kumogakure are still insisting. Who do you think will win?"
Yagura asked.
"Konoha."
Shiraishi answered without hesitation.
"It seems that you have great confidence in the yellow flash. As far as I know, the younger brother of the Fourth Raikage is also going to the battlefield at this moment. He is the Eight-tailed Jinchuuriki. If the two of them join forces, I am afraid that the yellow flash may not be able to defeat them. Get benefits in your hands."
Yagura has his own intelligence channels, and he also pays close attention to Kumogakure.
"Do you think Konoha will lose?"
Yagura responded with a smile: "No, I want to explain that if Konoha wants to win, it will pay a considerable price."
"What a cunning answer."
"Although this Ninja War will be short, the overall scale of the war will be larger than the last Ninja War. After that, the international situation will probably change a lot. When do you plan to let the Kingdom of Demons officially intervene? ?”
Yagura asked this question next, looking at Shiraishi searchingly.
Everything in the Ghost Country will surface sooner or later, and it is impossible to sleep underwater forever.
"I'm thinking about it. I need to find a suitable entry point."
Shiraishi said meaningfully.
Yagura stood up from his seat and said: "No matter which country you start from, the neutral status of the Demon Country will be revoked at that time. I can guarantee that Kirigakure will not take action, and Konoha, which is the farthest away from the Demon Country, is also powerless. . But this may not be the case for Sunagakure, Iwagakure and Kumogakure. You must be prepared in advance. Otherwise, it will directly trigger the Fourth Ninja War."
"It is Kirigakure's job to sneak into the five major countries. We will solve the problems in the Kingdom of Ghosts ourselves. Since you are worried, let me give you this answer. This is my decision."
A kunai appeared in Shiraishi's hand at some point, and then he threw the kunai out, passed Yagura's ear, and stabbed into the wall behind Yagura with a clang.
Yagura turned around and saw an extremely precise map of the ninja world painted on the wall.
The kunai stabbed right in the middle of the Wind Country, the country with the largest territory in the ninja world.
"It's a pleasure to work with you, Mr. Yagura."
