The border region of the Land of Fire—
"Kumogakure really took a big loss this time. Their Eight-Tails jinchuriki, Killer B, was injured, and the injuries aren't light."
"Looks like in the days ahead, Kumogakure's entire force is basically stuck at the border."
"Iwagakure has already begun pursuing the troops led by Konoha's Fugaku."
"But when facing Iwagakure, Konoha didn't flee in panic. Instead, they're calmly and steadily withdrawing from the battlefield."
"The situation on Sunagakure's side is the same. They've also launched a pursuit against the unit led by Uchiha Rengoku."
"Uchiha Rengoku's force is still maintaining a steady pace, merely retreating in an orderly manner at a slow speed."
The current state of the ninja world made Tobi beam with delight.
"Oh wow, now this is going to be interesting. If things keep developing like this, I'd say Iwagakure and Sunagakure are really going to suffer this time."
His words were full of undisguised mischief. Well, there was no helping it. Tobi was the type who loved nothing more than chaos in the world.
Just now, Tobi was reporting the battle situation to Black Zetsu, while Hiruko stood quietly to the side, listening.
For those of them who wanted to get involved in this war, having first-hand, accurate intelligence was absolutely crucial.
Only by clearly understanding the real situation on each battlefield could they formulate the most appropriate and effective response strategies.
It was worth mentioning that although the ninja armies of the major villages varied in strength, their overall marching speeds were actually quite similar.
At least for now, there was no situation where Iwagakure or Sunagakure was moving faster than Konoha.
Of course, the reason Iwagakure and Sunagakure were able to catch up to Konoha was simple. They were sacrificing precious rest time and going all out to chase their target ahead.
Konoha, on the other hand, rested whenever it was time to rest, calmly recuperating and building up strength.
Those enemies who had endured long-distance pursuit without sleep were already utterly exhausted, both mentally and physically heavily drained.
Under these circumstances, a clear gap in combat strength naturally formed between the two sides.
Konoha's people were not going to flee back to the village.
And Iwagakure and Kumogakure not only had large numbers, but also had powerful jinchuriki as their backing.
If Konoha's ninja holed up inside the village and refused to fight, the enemy would simply use Tailed Beast Bombs and flatten Konoha directly.
Therefore, to protect Konoha, blocking the enemy outside the village was undoubtedly the wisest strategy at present, and also the one that would minimize their own losses.
This also reflected Konoha's full confidence in its own strength.
At the same time, it might also be a helpless move forced by circumstances, after all, Konoha was truly short on manpower right now.
However, all of these plans and calculations were merely the one-sided thoughts of those three villages.
Black Zetsu, who had been lurking in the shadows waiting for the right moment, knew very well, 'Minato Namikaze has already been successfully resurrected, and judging from various signs, he is very likely the Nine-Tails jinchuriki.'
As for who would suffer the greatest losses in the end of this battle, Black Zetsu did not know, but the answer clearly would not be Konoha.
At this moment, Black Zetsu turned to look at Hiruko beside him and asked, "So, what are you planning to do? Take the opportunity to attack Konoha Village, or strike first at these two forces that are active outside?"
Hiruko let out a disdainful cold snort, "Hmph! Do you really think I'm stupid? With the powerful forces of Iwagakure and Sunagakure available, why would I run off alone to attack Konoha Village?"
At this moment, Black Zetsu was secretly sneering in his heart. He thought that if Hiruko hadn't rashly gone to Konoha last time and gotten thoroughly beaten, then with this guy's current arrogant, overbearing personality, he would probably go strolling into Konoha no matter what.
But in reality, Black Zetsu had misjudged Hiruko's thoughts this time.
Although Hiruko was indeed extremely arrogant at this moment, deep down the only people he truly feared were members of the Uchiha clan.
That was why he deliberately chose this timing.
While Konoha was locked in fierce battles with the other two villages, he would seize the chance to strike down the Uchiha elites.
"Then which side are you planning to go to, Sunagakure or Iwagakure?", Black Zetsu asked, because the enemies to be faced on the two sides were very different.
On the surface, one side was guarded by Uchiha Rengoku.
The other side, meanwhile, was jointly guarded by Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Itachi.
After thinking for a moment, Hiruko replied, "There are so many people on Uchiha Fugaku's side. Naturally, the gains will be greatest there."
Hiruko calculated in his heart that as long as Iwagakure could successfully tie down Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Itachi and prevent them from breaking away, then he could completely without worry drive the Chimera to unleash indiscriminate bombardment on Konoha's forces.
After all, for ordinary ninja, breaking through the defense of his Steel Release was practically an impossible task.
Once the formation fell into chaos, whether Uchiha Fugaku died or Uchiha Itachi died, the number of people who could threaten Hiruko would decrease.
"That works too. At most by tomorrow noon, Iwagakure's people will catch up to Konoha's. The location shouldn't be far from here."
Black Zetsu was more than happy to see Hiruko go stir up trouble. Whether he succeeded or not, it was all good news to him.
———
The next day, when the sun was hanging high at the center of the sky, a burst of urgent, dense footsteps came from far to near.
Iwagakure's pursuing force finally caught up with the unit led by Uchiha Fugaku.
Within the ranks, Uchiha Shisui swept his gaze toward the approaching Iwagakure troops, and his heart jolted in alarm.
Iwagakure was a black mass of people, at a glance at least seven or eight thousand strong, surging toward them.
"Clan Head, Iwagakure has really dispatched a huge number of people this time!", Shisui said solemnly to Rengoku's clone.
This clone was the same one that had appeared earlier on the Moryo battlefield.
After coming here, it could not only sit in command and oversee the entire battlefield situation, but also transmit critical intelligence between both sides in real time. It was extremely practical.
"Sunagakure's side will probably need about two more hours before they directly encounter my unit."
"I'll hide myself for now. When the critical moment arrives, I'll deliver an unexpected 'big gift' to Iwagakure."
Ever since Rengoku successfully awakened the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, his pupil power and chakra could be transmitted to his clones through dojutsu.
Because of this, this clone was almost no different from the main body.
This time, with Iwagakure coming to attack, they were guaranteed to suffer a huge setback here.
"I understand, Clan Head."
After the resurrected Shisui had in-depth discussions with Uchiha Itachi, he gained a much clearer understanding of the enemies they would face in the future.
He knew that those enemies hidden in the shadows were on a completely different level from the strong fighters of these ordinary ninja villages.
Therefore, regarding Rengoku's goal of unifying the ninja world, Shisui supported it without hesitation.
Especially after all the parasitic forces within Konoha had been completely uprooted, allowing the Uchiha clan to finally ascend the Hokage seat for the first time.
This undoubtedly deepened Shisui's admiration for Rengoku even further. Now, Shisui followed Rengoku's words without question.
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