Only I can make Konoha Village great again.

Danzo Shimura's protest was suppressed.

Danzo and the Third Hokage had a fierce argument, which ended with the classic scene of "You regret it," "I am the shadow," and "Boom!"

After driving away Shimura Danzo, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt utterly exhausted, rubbing his temples and saying, "..."

"Regardless of Danzo, proceed according to the plan we've discussed."

"Yan, keep a close eye on the situation on the eastern front and report to me at any time."

"Koharu, you and Shinnosuke will strengthen Konoha's defenses to prevent Orochimaru and Yamanaka Hatsuku from taking advantage of the situation."

"Sarutobi, Utatane, Mitomon... and the elders of Shimura, please do your best to win over more Konoha ninja and consolidate our supporters in the village."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and the elders of the four clans responded in unison.

At this time, Orochimaru and Yamanaka Hatsukyu had already reorganized the Konoha army.

Eight hundred elite ninjas formed the core, each in charge of two to three squads, transforming five thousand seven hundred Konoha ninjas into a completely controlled army.

Marching is a form of military training; the massive army marched eastward in a grand procession.

Shan Zhongchu moved around the team, observing their emotions to identify problems of disharmony and providing solutions immediately.

His work was remarkably effective. As the scenery along the way gradually changed from dense forests to plains covered with sparse trees and shrubs, the Konoha army's ranks were already extremely orderly.

The ninjas also displayed a unified aura of strength as they moved.

At this point, the Konoha ninjas understood Yamanaka Hatsukyu's intentions and learned to adjust themselves.

Yamanaka Chujiu focused his main efforts on thinking about the situation on the Eastern Front.

According to the intelligence Orochimaru obtained, the total number of ninjas from Kirigakure who invaded the Land of Fire this time reached 11,000.

The Kirigakure army was personally led by the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, but the command was extremely chaotic and lacked unified coordination, with the Kirigakure ninjas fighting almost independently.

Furthermore, the re-implementation of the "Village of Blood Mist" policy by Kirigakure has led to numerous internal conflicts.

Some Kirigakure ninja wanted to seize more resources, while others secretly plotted to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage, and the strongest Kirigakure ninja wanted to make a name for themselves.

Most Hidden Mist Ninjas don't care about anything but saving their own lives, so they always go through the motions in battle.

Fortunately, the eastern part of the Land of Fire is bordered by the sea, with numerous rivers and lakes, and an extremely vast body of water, which is very advantageous for the Hidden Mist Ninja to make use of their Water Release ninjutsu.

Even more fortunately, because Shimura Danzo had left his post and returned to Konoha to fight for power, the Konoha ninjas were also without unified command.

Both sides were fighting haphazardly and indiscriminately.

However, even among weaklings pecking at each other, there are differences in strength.

Overall, Konoha ninjas are fewer in number, disadvantaged by their terrain, and significantly weaker in strength than Kirigakure ninjas.

Furthermore, the strongest Uchiha and Hyuga clans were severely countered, and they were forced to retreat by Kirigakure, losing many strongholds. They have now been pushed more than 100 kilometers inland.

"Orochimaru-sensei, according to the intelligence, the situation on the Eastern Front is much more severe than I imagined."

Yamanaka Hatsukyu complained to Orochimaru, "The Konoha ninja's retreat was chaotic, leaving too many supplies in the warehouse. The subsequent resupply couldn't keep up, and we've fallen into a desperate situation of lack of medicine and food, and morale has collapsed."

"It's all Danzo Shimura's fault!"

Orochimaru asked, "Chuku, just tell me straight, how are we going to win this war?"

Shan Zhongchu laughed: "Hehe, it's very simple."

"If you go ahead and arrive at the front line ahead of time to take over the command of the Konoha army, I believe you can instantly solve the problem of the collapse in morale and the lack of unified command."

"However, the eastern front is mostly watery, which gives the Hidden Mist Ninja an advantage in using water-style ninjutsu. We can't fight them there."

"So don't fight head-on. Just lead the Konoha army to retreat, lure the Kirigakure ninja away from the most advantageous terrain, and then..."

Yamanaka Chujiu took out a map and pointed to a place called Cui Ling Sen, saying, "We'll set up a huge trap to annihilate the main force of the Mist Ninja in one fell swoop, and then launch a large-scale counterattack."

Orochimaru nodded approvingly, "The plan is very thorough. Let's proceed accordingly."

"I'll go to the front lines to gather Konoha ninjas, while you set up a trap in the Green Forest and wait for me to lure them in."

"Yes, Orochimaru-sensei."

……

The eastern front was already a living hell.

Everywhere there were embers of gunpowder smoke, broken ninja tools, and cold corpses.

The grassland turned into scorched earth, the clear water was stained dark red with blood, and the air was filled with the smell of blood and gunpowder.

The Fourth Mizukage of Kirigakure only demanded an attack but did not provide any tactical command, and Shimura Danzo, the commander of the Konoha ninja, had been gone for almost two months.

The ninjas from the two great ninja villages fought each other in a chaotic mess for a month.

With their superior numbers, ample supplies, and excellent equipment, the Hidden Mist ninjas finally gained the upper hand on the battlefield, forcing the Leaf Village ninjas to retreat step by step.

The Hidden Mist ninja launched a relentless and aggressive attack, shrinking the living space of the Leaf Village ninjas and attempting to completely annihilate them.

"Captain, there are too many Hidden Mist ninja! We can't hold out any longer!"

The young Konoha genin's voice trembled, blood continued to flow from his wounds, and his face was filled with fear.

The Konoha Chunin leading the group was pale-faced and said weakly, "Hang in there, everyone! The village will definitely send reinforcements!"

"No matter what, we can't give up. Even if we die, we want to die with dignity!"

But his encouragement was useless because the facts were too outrageous.

Who would have thought that the Konoha ninja, fighting in the Land of Fire, would face a supply shortage even before the Hidden Mist ninja cut off their retreat?

And it's been interrupted for a month already!

No matter how brave and powerful the Konoha ninjas are, they can't defeat the Kirigakure ninjas on an empty stomach and with nothing to their hands.

The attacks from the Hidden Mist ninjas are becoming increasingly fierce.

A Konoha ninja was accidentally struck in the chest by a Kirigakure ninja's kunai, fell to the ground, struggled a few times, and then became still.

Another Konoha ninja was struck by a Kirigakure ninja's water-style ninjutsu. The powerful water pressure crushed his bones, and he quickly lost consciousness.

As their comrades fell one by one, the Konoha ninja had no choice but to retreat.

The despair in their eyes grew stronger.

Perhaps, we really won't be able to wait for reinforcements.

Just then, a ghostly figure appeared in the center of the battlefield.

His long black hair danced in the wind, and a cold killing intent flashed in his long, golden pupils. It was Orochimaru, who had gone ahead alone.

Without a word, he instantly appeared in front of the Hidden Mist ninja, his chakra transforming into a venomous snake that bit into the ninja's neck, injecting deadly venom.

"Who?!"

Upon seeing this, the Hidden Mist ninjas stopped their attack and looked at Orochimaru warily, their eyes filled with surprise.

The young Hidden Mist ninja had never met Orochimaru before, nor did he expect that he would venture into the battlefield alone.

But how could the ninjas of Konoha not recognize Orochimaru?

The despair in their eyes vanished instantly, replaced by courage that filled their hearts, and they shouted with abandon:

"It's Lord Orochimaru!"

"Konoha's reinforcements have arrived!"

"Long live Lord Orochimaru!"