Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

Now look what's happened!

The Sand Ninja cleanly and decisively admitted defeat and surrendered!

This, in turn, forced the Hidden Cloud Village into an awkward situation.

Taking it back isn't an option, and forcing it won't work either!

In his anger, the Fourth Raikage A replaced his desk with a new one.

The desk that shattered under a single punch had only been replaced a few months ago. Although Raikage's personal secretary, Mabui, was already used to it, she couldn't help but twitch her eyes slightly when she saw this scene.

The other Raikage's personal assistant, Samui, who was also a representative of the younger generation of geniuses in Kumogakure, was only seventeen or eighteen years old at the time. She sighed helplessly in her heart. Her Raikage was good in every way, but his temper was so easily triggered that it was really frightening. It was only because he had been by the Fourth Raikage's side for a year or two that he was so afraid of him.

There was a sense of apprehension in every single day.

"Damn Sunagakure! The Uchiha! Ending the war so quickly! Doesn't this completely disrupt our Kumogakure's plans?!"

Looking at the desk in front of him, which was already broken beyond repair and had shattered, the Fourth Raikage, A, still had a resentful expression on his face.

They had just put on a strong show of force, intending to take this opportunity to pressure Konoha. Their formation hadn't even been fully deployed yet. With the time it took to send messages, it was less than ten days before Sunagakure was completely defeated. How could this not enrage the Fourth Raikage, A!

Even if you can't beat them, can't you at least linger a little longer?

Even though Sunagakure was in a terrible state during the Third Shinobi World War, it still managed to hold out for a full two years before declaring defeat and withdrawing from the war. Now, considering everything before and after, it's highly questionable whether this war even lasted half a month!

Although using this word is somewhat inappropriate.

At this moment, the Fourth Raikage, A, was genuinely disappointed in Sunagakure. He hadn't expected Sunagakure to be able to defeat Iwagakure, but such a swift defeat was far beyond what the Fourth Raikage, A, had imagined!

"This was also expected. At first, what we wanted to see most was for Sunagakure and Iwagakure to engage in small-scale clashes and entanglements, which would have given us at least six months. However, that Kazekage clearly wanted to gamble everything to retake the northern fortress and chose to fight a head-on battle. This cannot be said to be a wrong judgment, but it can only be said that he overestimated his own strength."

"If there were only one Uchiha Shoji, there would still be room for maneuver. But with that Huangtu-kun present, the Kazekage's judgment seems somewhat frivolous. Even if he could maintain a balance of power with Uchiha Shoji in a direct confrontation, Huangtu could easily break the balance of the war, not to mention that he was defeated in a one-on-one fight. From this point on, the defeat and surrender of Sunagakure was inevitable."

In the lower position, Tsuchida, the highest strategist of Kumogakure, glanced at the general battle process and results of Iwa and Suna that had been passed back from his own scouts, and shook his head slightly. After all, Tsuchida was a Kumogakure ninja, and limited by the amount of intelligence, since neither Kyoto nor Shoji could truly see through Rasa's intentions in launching such a decisive counterattack, Tsuchida could only make this judgment according to common sense.

This is the most reasonable and common-sense approach.

To put it bluntly...

In Tsuchikage's view, this Kazekage was simply incompetent and obsessed with his own abilities, lacking any self-awareness, which led to his village's defeat.

If Rasa knew that Tsuchida and the others viewed him this way, he would probably feel wronged to death. He really just intended to put on a show, save face, and then stop. Rasa himself had prepared for the worst-case scenario that he couldn't beat Shoji and Kyoto. Who knew that Shoji could be so strong? Once the Mangekyou Sharingan was activated and Susanoo was activated, he directly and unilaterally suppressed Rasa in the fight.

This is what completely thwarted Rasa's plan.

This allowed the war to spiral out of control.

"Hmph! They have no self-awareness whatsoever. No wonder Sunagakure has gotten worse and worse over the years! They're just a bunch of good-for-nothings!"

The Fourth Raikage snorted coldly.

"This is inevitable. Sunagakure is indeed caught in a vicious cycle. Fortunately, as a ninja village in the southwest corner of the continent, it has managed to maintain a force of nearly ten thousand ninjas, which can still play a role in restraining the enemy. However, our plans need to be changed!"

Tsuchida gently shook his head and looked at the Fourth Raikage, A, with a serious expression.

"What? Are you also going to persuade me to give up the plan to deal with Konoha?"

The Fourth Raikage frowned, seemingly somewhat displeased, and said...

"No, Lord Raikage, you misunderstand. It's not about giving up, but about making a change. Just like the small-scale probing attack we launched six months ago, although the process and the final result weren't entirely satisfactory, we still achieved some of our initial goal. Now that Konoha has lost the Uchiha clan, its strength has definitely declined significantly. We can maintain this level of intensity and gradually squeeze Konoha's space on the border! But we need to be careful to control the intensity and the degree of control!"

Tu Tai said with a very serious expression.

245. The Situation Has Temporarily Calmed Down (Third Update)

"Strength and proportion?"

The Fourth Raikage, Aina, raised his yellow eyebrows slightly, a thoughtful expression on his face, and said in a low voice.

"Yes, Iwagakure is our old enemy after all. Now that the Uchiha clan has joined, it is clear that their strength has grown by leaps and bounds. They are a force we must be wary of for a long time to come. Before the landscape of the ninja world changes too much, we should not be the first ninja village to step forward. Just like this opportunity, it is best if other ninja villages launch the first wave of attacks first, and then our opportunity will come!"

"Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure each have irreconcilable conflicts, which will inevitably erupt at some point in the future. That's when we'll truly take action! Of course, our operations in the Land of Hot Springs can proceed as usual, and I doubt Konoha will resort to such a large-scale attack!"

Tu Tai smiled gently and said.

"You mean the pressure from the Land of Hot Springs shouldn't change, and all subsequent actions should be canceled for now?"

"Yes, after all, Iwagakure is watching from the sidelines, so we should be as cautious as possible!"

Tu Tai nodded and said.

"Hmph! Fine, do as you say. These arrangements are your responsibility. Go and inform Darui and Yugito that the subsequent plans are canceled. Let Simba and the others go to the front lines. We can postpone the rest for now, but the Land of Hot Springs must be included in the complete influence of our Hidden Cloud Village! Remember that, Tsuchidai!"

The Fourth Raikage, Ai, snorted coldly, leaning forward slightly. A glint of lightning seemed to flash deep within his pupils as he spoke in a chilling voice.

"Yes, Lord Raikage, everything is as you wish!"

Tsuchikage was already used to his Raikage's personality, so he bowed slightly and replied with a calm expression.

'Hmph! Iwagakure, Konoha, and the Uchiha clan—none of them can stop Kumogakure's ambitions!'

After Tsuchikage, Samui, Mabui, and the others left, the Fourth Raikage A slammed his fist on the desk, which was almost reduced to rubble, once again. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he murmured to himself, "..."

A determination that will not be easily changed.

This is just a plan that will be fine-tuned as the situation develops.

This not only reflects the personal style of the Fourth Raikage, A, but it is also the consistent attitude of the entire Hidden Cloud Village since its establishment!

Such a decision would undoubtedly make Konoha feel very uncomfortable. In the original plan, the Konoha F4 leaders, especially Hiruzen Sarutobi, intended to prioritize stabilizing the defenses of the Land of Hot Springs' borders and at least maintain the situation from six months ago before considering intervening in the Iwa-Sand War. It wasn't that Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't see the dangerous situation of Sunagakure, but as the Third Hokage who always acted cautiously and repeatedly, he was unwilling to take too much risk. If things were like this in his own village, it would be even more so in the case of Sunagakure.

Moreover, from Hiruzen Sarutobi's perspective...

Even if Sunagakure is in dire straits, it can still hold out for a while longer, right?

As long as things ease up a bit on their side, Hiruzen Sarutobi will definitely pull Sunagakure into his fold, even though he knows Sunagakure is unreliable and shouldn't be trusted too much.

But the threats from Iwagakure and the Uchiha clan are undeniable.

It's still necessary to win over Sunagakure.

This was Hiruzen Sarutobi's plan. This time, not only Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, but even Danzo Shimura unusually agreed with Hiruzen Sarutobi's judgment. However, plans can never keep up with changes. Before they could even finish dealing with their own border issues, Sunagakure surrendered cleanly and decisively!

While it's not fair to say that Konoha will lose anything, it's just very frustrating and complicated!

Especially when he saw that although the Cloud Ninja had not increased their forces, they had not relaxed their operations within the Land of Hot Water, Hiruzen Sarutobi was in a real headache. He was now somewhat unable to understand the current state of the ninja world!

What exactly is Kumogakure trying to do? Is that Fourth Raikage really out of his mind, so determined to relentlessly attack Konoha?

"Sigh, although it wasn't what we wanted, at least the Iwa-Suna War is over, and we can focus a little more on dealing with the Land of Hot Springs issue. Now it seems that we can at least determine that Kumogakure will not pose a further threat, and we just need to deal with it according to the current level of strength!"

In the newly built Hokage's office building in Konoha, the Land of Fire.

The Third Hokage, his brows furrowed, still sat in the main seat.

In the lower part.

Mitokado Hō and Utatane Koharu sat on either side, and it was Mitokado Hō who spoke at this moment.

"But it's still very strange. If we can't figure out what the Hidden Cloud Village's specific intentions are, any action we take will put us in a very passive position, being led by the nose by others, which could easily lead to problems!"

On the side, Koharu Tsurugi gently shook her head and said with a very serious expression.

"Then we can only detain them for later. The defenses of the Land of Hot Water cannot be compromised. If the entire Land of Hot Water falls under the influence of the Hidden Cloud Village, it will greatly threaten the security of our Land of Fire's borders!"

Mitokado said in an unquestionable tone.

"Yes, Yan is right. Although the intentions of Kumogakure are important, it's not something we can concern ourselves with right now. The Daimyo also sent an inquiry yesterday, hoping that we can resolve the border issue as soon as possible!"

At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was in the head seat, also spoke.

"Lord Daimyo?"

This remark surprised both Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

"Yes, it's probably related to the commercial trade of some nobles in the North. The Daimyo has also felt some pressure and has subtly told me that we must ensure the stability of the border and not allow it to be further affected!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded and said.

"That definitely needs to be paid close attention to!"

Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu both nodded and said with serious expressions.

"Well, let's send some more troops to reinforce the Land of Hot Water for now. We'll deal with the remaining issues in Iwagakure and Kumogakure later. What the villages and the Land of Fire need right now is stability!"

"Ok!"

"understand!"

This isn't a difficult choice to make.

Keep in mind that only three or four months have passed since the Uchiha clan left the village!

The turmoil in the village has not completely subsided.

He preferred to be conservative, even if it meant missing some opportunities, rather than taking any risks. In Hiruzen Sarutobi's view, his ninja village was large and powerful, and minor problems would not affect the overall situation.

That's how the Uchiha clan is!

The same applies to Orochimaru.

That's right, after Orochimaru and the Uchiha clan defected at almost the same time.

In less than four months, the news could no longer be kept secret and spread throughout Konoha. The village and even the entire ninja world were slightly shaken by the news!

246. Returning to the village

This news is only slightly less sensational than the Uchiha clan's defection. Although Orochimaru alone cannot be compared to the Uchiha clan as a whole, the value of Fugaku, Shoji, and Shisui alone is incalculable. However, their status is vastly different because the conflict between the Uchiha clan and the Konoha leadership is something that almost anyone with a certain position in the ninja world can see.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura practically had the words "beware of the Uchiha clan" written all over their faces. Although they were somewhat surprised by the Uchiha clan's decision to break away, they were only surprised by the method, not by the result itself.

But Orochimaru is different!

Orochimaru, a hero of Konoha who rose to fame during World War II, is hailed as one of the legendary Sannin and a direct disciple of the Third Hokage. He was also one of the most promising candidates for the Fourth Hokage. All of these identities demonstrate Orochimaru's status in Konoha!

How could someone like that choose to defect?!

Not to mention the other ninjas and ordinary people in Konoha, people from other countries in the ninja world were equally unable to understand and were extremely surprised and confused!

Under the combined effect of these factors, Hiruzen Sarutobi ruled Konoha for more than thirty years without causing any major internal chaos. Even so, some minor disturbances still occurred. For example, Orochimaru's former confidants were all subject to varying degrees of questioning by the village.

This is also why Hiruzen Sarutobi did not intend to continue hiding the news.

Orochimaru was, after all, one of the legendary Sannin of Konoha. He led the Konoha ninjas to defeat countless enemies and made great achievements. Even though he wasn't very popular, he still had a number of trusted subordinates!