Naruto: Starting with Creating a Genius Persona

Chapter 132 Sunagakure Declares War (1/8)

Mid-December, 46th year of Konoha.

At noon, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, of Konohagakure in the Land of Fire, officially announced the start of a state of war.

The news swept through the entire ninja world like a hurricane in just one day, even causing a more violent shock and upheaval than the change of Kazekage in Sunagakure or the Cloud Ninja team's intrusion into the heart of the Land of Wind.

Almost all forces and intelligence analysts reacted with disbelief, even doubting the veracity of the intelligence.

To proactively declare a state of war?

This is completely inconsistent with Konoha's consistent behavior during the Fourth Shinobi World War!

Looking back at history, in the two previous Shinobi World Wars, Konoha was the last to switch to a wartime system after being forced to fight a full-scale war.

In everyone's perception, Konoha, the strongest ninja village with the richest land and the largest number of ninjas, has a strategic style that is more like a heavy and steady shield, tending to strike after being attacked and then unleashing amazing resilience to counterattack.

It is extremely rare for a country to so openly and resolutely bare all its fangs and adopt a posture of all-out confrontation before the start of a war.

Moreover, to date, no two countries in the ninja world have formally declared war!

The skirmish between Sunagakure and Kumogakure in the heart of the Land of Wind was publicly declared by both sides to be a defensive counterattack and a display of military might.

Neither side formally declared war on the other afterward, and the incident was vaguely portrayed as a serious border conflict and special military operation.

Even the Third Raikage, known for his fierce and decisive actions, never issued a formal declaration of war against Sunagakure or any other country in the name of the Raikage.

Konoha, however, declared war on it without any declaration of war from any side or even a large-scale border conflict breaking out. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, personally and forcefully announced to the entire ninja world that it had entered a state of war.

Leaving aside how the major countries and ninja villages reacted, the smaller ninja villages such as Amegakure, Kusagakure, and Takigakure felt a deeper chill and even panic in addition to their shock!

Konoha's proactive show of force undoubtedly intensified the tension of an imminent major battle, and also meant that the time when these forces caught in the middle would be forced to choose sides or suffer collateral damage would be brought forward significantly.

Regardless of external reactions, shortly after declaring a state of war, Konoha deployed a formidable force of 5,000 men under the command of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin, under the pretext of military exercises.

Under countless gazes, both overt and covert, they drove out of the village without any concealment, heading southwest towards the border with the Land of Rivers, making a grand advance.

"Has Konoha gone mad!?"

Sunagakure Village, Kazekage's office.

The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, who had just settled into his position and was secretly stepping up his final preparations for the war, suddenly stood up when he received this extremely urgent intelligence that almost overturned all his plans.

"What does Hiruzen Sarutobi mean by that?!"

He abruptly looked up, staring intently at the tense intelligence ninja and Ebizo and Chiyo who had rushed to the scene, his face ashen. "Is he going to initiate war against Sunagakure?!" he exclaimed.

This completely disrupted his rhythm and even the entire Sunagakure leadership's prediction of the situation!

Based on the common sense about Konoha held by Sunagakure and even the entire ninja world, Konoha should, like in the previous two wars, only passively and gradually mobilize its troops and switch to full-scale defense and counterattack after being clearly attacked and facing a border crisis.

Sunagakure's plan was based on this common sense. They intended to launch a meticulously planned and swift attack to breach Konoha's southwestern defenses before Konoha could complete its full mobilization and deployment, seize the initiative, plunder resources, and firmly grasp the initiative in the early stages of the war.

They have already been secretly mobilizing troops, stockpiling supplies, planning routes, and even sending small elite units to infiltrate the Kingdom of Sichuan for preliminary reconnaissance and sabotage.

Everything is proceeding according to the script that "as long as we launch an attack, everything will be fine."

But now?

Not only did Konoha take the lead, but it also declared a state of war without any pretext, thus fully activating the entire nation's war machine.

Even before the Sand Village's swords were fully drawn, they dispatched an army of five thousand, led by Jiraiya, a disciple of the Third Hokage, to prepare for deployment to the border!

What is this?

Although we are indeed preparing to wage war against you, how could you do this?

We are allies who have signed a treaty of peace, friendship and mutual assistance!

Ebizo's expression was grave as he slowly said, "Rasa, Konoha's actions are extremely unusual. This is unlike Hiruzen Sarutobi's usual calm and even somewhat indecisive style. It's as if they've changed decision-makers. It seems someone is helping Konoha make this decision."

Luo Sha closed his eyes, took a deep breath, turned around, his eyes sharp, and said in a deep voice: "Order that all advance reconnaissance units that have entered the Land of Rivers go into silent lie-in. Without orders, they are not to have any contact with Konoha forces! All frontline troops are to cease their advance towards the border and remain in place, awaiting further orders!"

"At the same time, in my name, I issue a formal diplomatic note to Konoha, questioning their sudden large-scale troop deployment on the border and demanding that they immediately clarify their intentions and exercise restraint!"

"There's no need, Rasa." Chiyo crossed her arms and shook her head. "Konoha isn't stupid, and neither is Hiruzen Sarutobi. The fact that they dared to send Jiraiya with five thousand men directly to the border means they're not just guessing, but already certain we're going to make a move!"

"Sending that note will do nothing but let Konoha laugh at our hypocrisy and give them more time to adjust their plans."

She walked to the huge border map and pointed to the line where the Land of Rivers and the Land of Fire met.

"Now, Konoha's army is marching out, and their defenses are becoming increasingly tight. With each day that is delayed, Jiraiya can strengthen the defenses, allowing Konoha's support and supplies to be delivered to the front lines more smoothly."

She raised her head, looking directly at Rasa, and said, "Take advantage of their unstable footing and act quickly! This is our only chance to gain the upper hand, and it's also the option with the least potential losses! Hesitation will only cause our comrades in Sunagakure to shed more blood on even stronger defensive lines in the future!"

The office was silent, save for the mournful sound of sand and dust whistling through the building outside the window.

Ebizo looked at his sister, then at Rasa whose expression was changing, and finally nodded slowly, acknowledging Chiyo's judgment.

Conventional diplomatic pressure and strategic deception have lost their meaning in the face of Konoha's unusual and direct military action.

Luo Sha stared at the map, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his head: "Pass on my orders!"

"All combat units, proceed to their designated attack positions at full speed, according to Operation Plan No. 1!"

"Logistics and support departments, activate wartime emergency procedures. All supplies will be distributed to the front lines with the highest priority!"

"Intelligence department, monitor the movements of the Konoha army at all times, especially the location and deployment details of Jiraiya's headquarters, and report back every two hours!"

"Order!"

"Three days later, at dawn!"

"Sunagakure, on the southwestern border defense line of the Land of Fire!"

"Launch a full-scale surprise attack!"

Three days later, an even more explosive piece of news swept through the entire ninja world like a tsunami, completely shattering the last fragile illusion of peace.

Under the leadership of the newly appointed Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, Sunagakure has brazenly broken the "Non-Aggression Pact" and launched a surprise attack on the border of the Land of Fire, officially declaring war on Konoha!

The reasons for declaring war were extremely sharp and hostile.

The newly appointed Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, in the name of Sunagakure, completely blamed Konoha for the disappearance and death of the Third Kazekage.

.

He asserted with absolute certainty that Konoha Village had used despicable and shameless means to secretly ambush and murder the Third Kazekage.

The mastermind behind this shocking conspiracy points directly to Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage and the supreme leader of Konoha, and was personally planned and executed by Danzo Shimura, the infamous ninja under his command.

The announcement went further, claiming that Konoha's previous high-profile declaration of entering a state of war and the dispatch of Jiraiya to lead a large army to the border were all a pretext to deceive the world. Its true purpose was to make the final troop buildup and pre-war preparations for this long-planned invasion!

This accusation instantly thrust Konoha into the spotlight, causing an uproar throughout the ninja world.

Konoha's response was equally blunt, stating that the Third Kazekage was murdered by one of their own, and the killer was none other than Sasori, the grandson of Sunagakure elder Chiyo.

This genius puppeteer, under the orders of Chiyo and Ebizo, secretly attacked and killed the Third Kazekage, and then turned his remains into a forbidden human puppet.

This human puppet, made from the remains of the Third Kazekage, was secretly placed in Elder Chiyo's residence as a twisted trophy, where she observed and played with it day and night to satisfy her own twisted psychology.

These shocking, even malicious, accusations enraged the Sand Village, which issued several official statements condemning Konoha for "shameless slander," "blasphemy against their ancestors," and "despicable intent." The frontline attacks suddenly became even more frenzied and reckless.

However, in the end, war is decided by strength.

Although Jiraiya's Konoha Southwestern Army was unable to fully construct an ideal defensive line of depth due to the significantly compressed deployment time, many defensive fortifications were still under construction, and some follow-up troops and logistical supplies were still on their way.

However, the Sand Village's uprising was also disrupted by a rushed start, and many planned tactical coordination and logistical nodes did not reach their optimal state.

Contrary to many people's expectations, the battle quickly devolved into a stalemate and a stalemate. Sunagakure failed to break through Konoha's defenses in the first instance and achieve a lightning breakthrough. Although Konoha failed to easily repel the invading enemy, it managed to stabilize its position.

Therefore, Sunagakure could only continuously dispatch troops from the rear, while Konoha's requests for supplies and personnel replenishment lists, marked in red, were constantly being sent to Konoha.

Just as the southwestern front was engulfed in flames, within Konoha Village, another, even larger army was completing its final assembly. Eight thousand elite ninjas stood silently in the designated departure plaza, their ninja tools complete, their gazes calmly fixed on the figure on the high platform.

Orochimaru.

He slowly scanned the crowd present, then, without any pre-battle mobilization, simply announced the marching order and discipline.

Subsequently, under the leadership of this most enigmatic of the three legendary Sannin, this massive army of eight thousand men slowly marched out of Konoha, their advance aimed directly at the northeastern direction of the Land of Fire.

As predicted in Shinichi Higashino's report, Konoha, while dealing with the fierce attack from Sunagakure in the southwest, has simultaneously shifted its focus of vigilance and defense to the northeast.

The shadow of fighting on two fronts has transformed from analytical predictions into concrete troop movements and formidable barriers along the national border.

Konoha Village.

On the streets, ninjas moved swiftly, their faces grave. The logistics and equipment departments were working overtime day and night.

In the hospital, medical staff busily organized equipment and medicines, while ordinary villagers also wore expressions of worry and unease, hurrying home and locking themselves in their rooms.

Shinichi Higashino stood in front of his window, gazing at the rapidly changing scenery outside, listening to the faint sounds of rallying orders and hurried footsteps in the distance, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

He knew that the Third Shinobi World War had officially begun from this moment on!