The Third Kazekage's chakra suddenly erupted, and a large amount of iron sand surged out from the gourd on his back, rushing fiercely toward Hiruzen.
The sudden all-out assault by Konoha on the Suna camp, causing them heavy losses, instantly sent the Third Kazekage into a rage.
In terms of raw power, Suna was already at a significant disadvantage compared to Konoha. If it weren't for that fool Danzō's reckless commands, the war wouldn't have dragged on this long.
So, with the weaker side caught unprepared and the stronger side launching a surprise attack, the outcome was obvious.
What's more, Chiyo, who was always proud and strong-willed, was now urgently requesting his return for reinforcement. That only meant the situation was likely even more dire than expected.
In his eyes, Konoha's sudden all-out offensive could only have been ordered by Hiruzen.
Who else could command the Konoha frontline army?
He had been scheming against Hiruzen, yet Hiruzen had also been calculating against him. If he didn't teach him a harsh lesson today, he wasn't worthy of being the Kazekage.
Moreover, only by capturing Hiruzen could he force him to stop the war and secure the greatest benefits for Suna.
But Hiruzen was no easy opponent.
He quickly formed hand seals, and a massive stream of water spewed from his mouth, forming a giant water dragon that surged toward the iron sand.
The water dragon slowed down the iron sand and soaked large portions of it, making it much harder to manipulate for a short period.
Seeing the water dragon coming for him, the Third Kazekage was immediately encased in iron sand for protection.
At the same time, the wet iron sand broke free from the water and formed a sand waterfall, crashing toward Hiruzen.
A fierce battle between two powerful Kage had officially begun.
---
While the Third Kazekage and Hiruzen were locked in intense combat, the battle at the Suna camp was drawing to a close.
Konoha had launched a well-prepared surprise attack against an unprepared enemy, with morale drastically favoring them.
After relentless bombardments with explosive tags and massive casualties, there was now a clear numerical advantage on Konoha's side.
From every angle, this was a complete rout.
On the southern battlefield, Sakumo and Fukuyama led the charge, commanding the Uchiha clan and many Konoha ninjas in a one-sided massacre of Suna's forces.
On the western battlefield, Tsunade held the line, specifically targeting Suna's elite to ease the pressure on Konoha's forces.
On the eastern battlefield, Orochimaru led a massive offensive, with Jiraiya, the Hyūga clan, the Ino-Shika-Chō trio, and other Konoha ninjas at his side.
On the northern battlefield, Minato spearheaded the attack alongside Fugaku and Hiashi, slaughtering enemies in densely packed areas, turning the land into a river of blood.
This was Konoha's most forceful response to Suna's declaration of war and attack. It was also a message to the world: This is what happens when you cross Konoha.
As Chiyo and Pakura tried to escape, they were suddenly intercepted by Konoha ninjas. Pakura shouted, "Chiyo-sama, run! I'll hold them off!"
It wasn't that they didn't want to fight, there was simply no fight left.
Looking around, they couldn't even spot any more Suna ninjas. All they could see were Konoha ninjas everywhere.
"Pakura, forget about me. You escape!" Chiyo moved in front of him, fully prepared to die here.
The next moment, the ground suddenly shifted, then exploded.
Though the blast didn't injure anyone, it kicked up sand and debris, blocking everyone's view.
In that instant, Pakura sensed a hidden path, grabbed Chiyo's hand, and dashed forward along it.
Seeing Pakura flee, Shin finally relaxed a little.
This surprise attack on the Suna camp had gone so smoothly largely thanks to Pakura, she successfully deceived both Chiyo and the Third Kazekage. And yet, she wasn't even suspected, on the contrary, she was still valued.
After all, everyone naturally assumed it was Konoha who broke the treaty. What did that have to do with Pakura?
So, despite having seemingly outlived her usefulness, she was kept alive because he still hoped to extract further benefits from her.
The battle in the camp lasted four hours before it finally ended.
As for the ninjas posted at the various checkpoints and fortifications, they had all been systematically eliminated before Shin and the others even began their assault on Suna's headquarters.
Many Suna ninjas managed to escape during the chaos, but Konoha had no intention of letting them go. They began a relentless pursuit, hunting them down over hundreds of miles.
In this campaign, Suna had deployed nearly all its forces, but in the end, it would be considered fortunate if even three thousand managed to return, and most of them were injured.
As Shin predicted, after this battle, Suna likely wouldn't even glance in Konoha's direction for the next twenty years.
Konoha had dispatched a force of ten thousand ninjas.
After half a year of war, the total death toll on their side was just over two thousand.
Of those, around 1,200 deaths were attributed to Danzō's poor leadership, with the rest lost in the final decisive battle.
Although Konoha held a massive advantage in this war, casualties were still unavoidable. However, the wounded on Konoha's side were recovering quickly and would soon return to full strength.
Much of that was thanks to Shin and Tsunade, whose efforts had preserved a large portion of Konoha's fighting force.
With resounding victories on both fronts, Konoha had sent a clear message to the world: Konoha is still Konoha.
Anyone who wants to provoke them must be prepared to pay the price.
As the Konoha ninjas were still cleaning up the battlefield, Tsunade and Orochimaru jointly sent a letter to Suna.
The letter was long, but the message was simple:
[Suna unjustly declared war on Konoha, causing massive losses to both the village and the Land of Fire. Your crimes are countless and unforgivable. However, the daimyō of the Land of Fire and Konoha are magnanimous and are willing to give you one chance, agree to peace and offer reparations. Since we know Suna lacks food and resources, we'll take only money, 20 billion ryō. Refuse, and Konoha will mobilize its full force and march directly into Suna. If it comes to that, we will wipe your village off the map to avenge this insult.]
Why was it Tsunade and Orochimaru who issued the joint declaration?
Because Hiruzen had no knowledge of any of this from beginning to end, and even if he did, there was nothing he could do about it.
At that very moment, he was severely wounded, being escorted back to Konoha by his guards.
He had the reputation of a great ninja, and the Third Kazekage, known as the strongest Kazekage in history, had earned his title for good reason.
The two fought for a full day and night, unleashing deadly techniques in a brutal back-and-forth, neither could overpower the other. But then a report came: Suna's forces had suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Konoha, with almost complete annihilation.
The Third Kazekage went mad. He abandoned all strategy and fought with suicidal desperation, trying to drag Hiruzen down with him.
Under those conditions, even someone like Hiruzen couldn't hold on. The battle ended with both sides heavily wounded, and each had to be rescued by their guards.
To this, Hiruzen could only feel deeply frustrated.
As the Hokage, he had somehow become the only major casualty in Konoha's great victory.
Taking the full brunt of the Third Kazekage's wrath and getting gravely injured was one thing.
What crushed him the most was: Orochimaru betrayed him, completely ignored his orders, and launched the all-out attack without caring for his safety.
The command of the frontlines was taken over by Tsunade, completely out of his control.
And finally... This unprecedented victory had nothing to do with him.
In fact, according to prophecy, his name would be nailed to the pillar of shame in Konoha's history.