Konoha: The Soul King from the Uchiha Clan

Chapter 127 Another War

Time flies, and it's already early December. A month and a half has passed since the Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage on October 10th.

The destroyed buildings in Konoha Village have been partially rebuilt, and although the scars in people's hearts have not disappeared, they have scabbed over.

After all, the deceased is gone, and no matter how difficult life is, we must continue to live it.

The small-scale battles on the front lines have had some impact on Konoha Village, but not a significant one, and the village is gradually returning to its former prosperity and bustle...

Sunagakure did not react to Kumogakure's actions; instead, they focused on healing their wounds and diligently cultivating their inner strength.

Iwagakure has been secretly making small moves, constantly undermining Konoha's relationship with other ninja villages, with a particular focus on Kumogakure and Konoha.

Iwagakure is also making moves openly, gathering troops on the border and repeatedly shifting its allegiances, using this to intimidate and threaten Konoha in an attempt to gain some benefits from Konoha.

The Hidden Mist Village was the quietest, seemingly doing nothing, but their attempt to cover up their actions only attracted the attention of the Leaf Village's higher-ups.

The Konoha leadership increased the number of spies sent to Kirigakure, utilizing silent agents, and thus detected Kirigakure's clandestine activities.

On December 8, 1951, Kirigakure dispatched a thousand elite ninjas, who boarded ships and carried supplies, and rapidly approached the Land of Whirlpools.

The Fourth Hokage, Yagura, and others remained deeply troubled by the losses suffered at the end of the Third Shinobi World War.

Therefore, after the Hidden Cloud Village took the lead, the Hidden Mist Village made up its mind to start the war.

However, Kirigakure did not dare to wage a full-scale war against Konoha, fearing that other ninja villages would take advantage of the situation. Instead, they planned to test Konoha with small-scale battles to weaken Konoha's recovery speed.

If Konoha is defeated and the war goes as smoothly as expected, then the scale of the war should be expanded.

The Hidden Cloud Village basically shared the same idea.

It can be said that if Konoha truly reveals its weakness, the Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Mist Village, which have already made their moves, and the Hidden Stone Village and Hidden Sand Village, which have not yet made their moves, are very likely to work together to stage a pack of wolves devouring a tiger, just like in the Third Shinobi World War.

Even though Sunagakure is an ally of Konoha, even though everyone is still recovering...

Konoha spies risked their lives and did everything they could to send the intelligence out.

The intelligence traveled across oceans, islands, mountains, valleys, and forests, and was promptly transmitted back to Konoha.

Upon receiving the intelligence, the Konoha leadership immediately convened a high-level meeting.

This high-level meeting is not an F4 meeting; in addition to the F4, there are also ministers from various departments.

There was supposed to be a Jonin squad leader as well, but Nara Shikaku went to the front lines in Kumogakure, so he couldn't participate.

Although the position of Jonin squad leader is largely nominal, with no authority over personnel or finances, a Jonin squad leader who enjoys the Hokage's trust and possesses exceptional abilities can wield considerable influence.

Gen Uchiha is not currently qualified to attend this meeting; only the head of the police department within the entire Uchiha clan is qualified.

Unless the Minister of Police is absent or unable to attend, the Deputy Minister is not qualified to attend the meeting.

Fugaku Uchiha's visit was merely a formality.

Aside from the usual measures of strengthening security to prevent trouble from those with ulterior motives, maintaining village security and order, and assisting the secret service in arresting spies when necessary, Fugaku had nothing else to do.

Although it was just a formality, Fugaku never missed a single one; this was the only official way to participate in important village affairs.

At the meeting, no one discussed whether or not to fight. It was just a small-scale war, not a full-scale war, so there was no reason to back down.

The main discussion revolves around which border troops and forces from Konoha should be drawn from, how much material resources need to be mobilized, and who should be appointed as the commander.

The last question is of utmost importance. This is not the first time Konoha has experienced a war, and it already has established procedures and rich experience in dealing with other issues.

The position of frontline commander is not something that just anyone can do. It requires not only personal strength, but also command ability and the ability to control the battle situation.

There are quite a few Jonin in Konoha, but they are only capable of commanding a small number of people in battle. Commanding a ninja force of a thousand people would be a real challenge.

Most ninjas excel at tactical thinking but lack adequate strategic thinking.

Orochimaru, the most suitable candidate, was inevitably mentioned.

Jiraiya and Tsunade don't know where outside the village they are, and even if they were willing, there would definitely not be enough time.

It's not that there aren't people who could barely manage the job, but the risk is too great. We don't have the Ino-Shika-Cho (pig, deer, and butterflies) to assist us.

If they were to be defeated, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others could already foresee the dire consequences...

In fact, if the Hidden Cloud Village were to send out Jinchūriki or have the Fourth Raikage personally intervene, even with the assistance of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Sarutobi Shinnosuke would not be able to stop them.

Deploying Jinchuriki and having the Raikage personally intervene would undoubtedly escalate the scale of the war, so neither the Raikage nor the Jinchuriki of Kumogakure took action.

In a war of this magnitude, the Konoha ninja clans are unwilling to exert significant effort, and will only symbolically send a few members to participate.

For the sake of the village, Hiruzen Sarutobi had no choice but to agree to appoint Orochimaru as the front-line commander and sent someone to invite Orochimaru over.

Orochimaru didn't throw a tantrum and accepted the appointment.

Firstly, Orochimaru still harbored feelings for Konoha; secondly, he still had some illusions about Hiruzen Sarutobi; and thirdly, research materials were somewhat scarce.

The battlefield is undoubtedly the most convenient place to obtain research materials!

After the meeting, Konoha relayed orders to the southeastern border troops, instructing the border troops commander to deploy a thousand-strong ninja force to the Land of Whirlpools to block the Hidden Mist forces.

Even if the Land of Whirlpools were to cease to exist in name only, the Whirlpool Village would still exist, and the Land of Whirlpools would remain a battlefield between the two nations.

Upon receiving news that Orochimaru had become the commander, Gen Uchiha greeted Fugaku.

The reason is simple: Orochimaru wanted to take him to the battlefield.

Fugaku didn't say much, only telling him to "be careful" before agreeing.

Uchiha Gen had already come from the Third Shinobi World and was somewhat famous, so there was no need to worry too much.

As for the duties of the Ninth Squad, they were naturally taken over by the vice-captain, Uchiha Chen, since Uchiha Gen usually slacked off most of the time anyway.

His work attitude was so-so, not serious enough, but Fugaku and the three elders didn't hold it against him for such a small matter.

Besides being valued, the police department has also been in a period of peace for a long time, so its work style is inevitably a bit lazy, and it is quite common for them to slack off at work.

Honors are honors, but what does that have to do with slacking off at work?

It's only recently, due to the Nine-Tailed Fox incident, that our work style has become much more rigorous, but slacking off at work is still impossible to completely eliminate.

Having settled things within the clan, Uchiha Gen invited his three subordinates to dinner at a restaurant that evening before returning home to prepare for war.

During dinner that evening, Uchiha Gen mentioned that he was going to the battlefield, and the three women, while surprised, expressed their desire to follow him.

Uchiha Gen refused the three women's request to follow him, telling them to focus on their missions and improve themselves in Konoha.

Seeing that Uchiha Gen was adamant, the three women did not press the matter further.

They were very confident in their captain's strength, and with the protection of Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin, there was nothing to worry about.

However, to express their feelings, after dinner, the three women went to a shop and bought something similar to a lucky charm, which they delivered to Uchiha Gen's residence that very night.

Gen Uchiha didn't really believe in things like amulets; he just wanted peace of mind. But he still accepted the three women's kindness.

The items weren't valuable, and their effectiveness was uncertain, but the three women's actions still warmed Uchiha Gen's heart.

He treated them so well, transcribing and sealing advanced illusion techniques, teaching them advanced ninjutsu, and frequently treating them to meals.

Although it all boils down to lusting after someone's body, in the end, something still happens.

After seeing the three women off, Uchiha Gen went to bed early to rest, as he had to head to the Land of Whirlpools early the next morning.

Just as he lay down and closed his eyes, Uchiha Gen suddenly remembered something and sat up abruptly...

(End of this chapter)