Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

Even if Iwagakure wins this life-or-death strategy, how many of the 5,000 Iwagakure ninja sent to the front lines will be left? They might have to bring in more troops from the rear. And the fact that most of the nearly 7,000 Konoha ninja stationed at the front lines will be killed or wounded is a minor matter. But if such an outcome is truly achieved...

Isn't that just making the Hidden Cloud Village benefit?

Jiang Si expressed his incomprehension: would Nara Shikaku, who is known as the intellectual pinnacle of the Naruto world, be so foolish? Or was he simply trying to intimidate the Iwa ninja with such a direct and brutal tactic, hoping to make them back down?

There are too many points of doubt!

It feels so out of place!

At this moment, Jiang Si truly felt overwhelmed with a thousand thoughts, yet unable to grasp any of them.

"Yellow Earth Mulberry!"

Therefore, he had to return and have a good discussion with his commander-in-chief to determine the next strategy for Iwagakure. It would also be best if he could contact his own Third Tsuchikage in the village, since he was already finding the current situation somewhat unpredictable and incomprehensible.

"Oh? Shoji, you're back! I was just about to look for you!"

A figure striding forward.

Huang Tu turned around the moment he heard Jiang Si's footsteps, a trace of sorrow on his face. In the past few days, his own ninja village had suffered nearly five hundred casualties, and most of the wounded were not minor injuries. Therefore, it could be said that their Iwa ninja front-line troops had lost one-tenth of their strength. There had been no such casualties in the previous advance. Now, only a few days after arriving at the Wuyuan Mountain stronghold, their casualties had been so great.

Even though ninja legions and ordinary armies are fundamentally different, they still have one thing in common: once a team suffers too many casualties, its morale will inevitably drop. At that point, no matter how strong they are, it will be difficult to turn the tide. They can't really fight against thousands or even more enemies by themselves!

Even Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, could be severely killed and sealed away if he were surrounded by a thousand-strong force that Konoha had prepared in advance. Not to mention Huang Tu and Jiang Si, no matter how strong a person is, their chakra and stamina are ultimately limited!

Therefore, the current situation is not difficult for the Iwa ninja, but it is still a bit delicate. Huang Tu himself is not sure. Even if Jiang Si did not return to find him today, Huang Tu himself plans to send someone to inform Jiang Si to come back. He also needs to find someone to discuss and plan together.

"Yes, Huang Tusang, I feel that Konoha's recent actions have been strangely aggressive. I'm worried that Konoha might be determined to wipe out our entire force here!"

Jiang Si stepped closer to the loess soil and got straight to the point.

There are many possibilities, but if we start from the simplest thinking, the most direct possibility is that they intend to wipe out their more than 5,000 Iwagakure soldiers. Even if Iwagakure can continue to mobilize troops, the loss of these 5,000 people will definitely severely damage Iwagakure!

Even if the probability is not very high, it is impossible to deny that the probability is completely zero.

Jiang Si felt that they had to consider all possibilities. If Konoha was really that ambitious, they should make some preparations in advance, whether it was to confront them head-on or to retreat, so as to deal with what would happen next.

"I share the same concern, Shoji. What do you think are the chances that Konoha will definitely keep us here?"

A few streaks of blood were faintly visible in Huang Tu's pupils, which was enough to prove that Huang Tu had not rested well at all in the past two days. As the front-line commander of the Iwa Ninja Army, it was easy for him to fall into worry and anxiety when he could not understand the enemy's intentions.

"Although the probability isn't very high, I think there's still a 30% chance. If Konoha really wants to mobilize further, and if they can ensure the basic defense of the three borders, especially if they reach some kind of agreement with Kumogakure, they could mobilize another five or six thousand troops to reinforce the front lines. If their intention is really to devour us, the extended battle lines on both flanks will clearly compress our intelligence gathering range and cut off our retreat routes as much as possible. Once the next batch of reinforcements arrives, they will directly encircle us from three sides. Even worse, they might send elite troops to bypass Wuyuan Mountain and infiltrate the Land of Grass. At that time, it's very likely that the scene of defeat in the third war will repeat itself!"

Not to mention that there is Jiraiya, a Kage-level powerhouse, in the Konoha camp on the other side. Even if there isn't, if Konoha's military strength expands to more than 10,000 people, and if they really do unfold smoothly from both sides as Shoji predicted, no matter how strong Shoji, Huangtu, Han and others are, they will absolutely not be able to avoid the defeat of their own ninja village.

After this period of confrontation, Shoji has truly realized that even though Konoha Village has declined, its foundation is still intact. Among the five great ninja villages in the ninja world, only Konoha and Kirigakure originally possessed a large number of bloodline clans, an advantage that the other three ninja villages did not have.

They can directly and wholesale ninjas with various bloodline limits and secret techniques. These people have an innate advantage in ninja battles at all levels. Some are good at individual combat (Uchiha, Gekko), but more are suitable for group combat (Hyuga, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Nara, Kurama, Aburamezuka, etc.).

As long as it's not a large-scale battle involving thousands of people, but rather a battle controlled within a hundred people, these ninja clans can provide a huge advantage. The clashes over this period of time have only kept the casualty ratio between Shoji, Iwagakure, and Konoha within the range of one to one. If the ninjas from both villages were to fight with ninjas below the Jonin level, the casualty ratio would definitely be worse for Iwagakure!

Because the Iwagakure side doesn't have that many bloodline limit ninjas, their advantage in Earth Release only refers to the Super Heavy Rock and Light Heavy Rock techniques. However, while these two techniques allow Iwagakure ninjas to control the weight of objects at will and gain the advantage of flight, not all Iwagakure ninjas can master them. These are techniques that can only be mastered by elite members of Iwagakure who have extremely high talent in Earth Release.

Otherwise, just based on their ability to fly, Iwagakure would be unparalleled in the world. But in fact, since the founding of Iwagakure, in the past few decades, including those who have died, the number of Iwagakure ninja who can master the Light and Heavy Rock Technique has never exceeded one thousand. In the current Iwagakure, there are only a handful of two or three hundred people who can master this technique.

This is a technique that does not require any special physique or bloodline, but it is extremely difficult to learn and master. Among those two or three hundred people, it is not certain that every one of them can actually make themselves fly. This technique requires extremely exquisite chakra control!

In some ways, the requirements are no less than those for medical ninjas!

Therefore, in direct combat, it is difficult for Iwa ninja to gain an advantage when they are outnumbered, which is the biggest source of Konoha's confidence in intimidating the other four great ninja villages in the past.

Even though Jiang Si still didn't think that the Third Hokage would have such courage and decisiveness, there were some things that had to be guarded against.

"Thirty percent? That's not a very low probability. So far, Kumogakure has not taken any further concrete action. It's hard not to suspect that the two sides haven't reached any further agreement targeting our Iwagakure!"

Huang Tu sighed softly. In a one-on-one fight, Iwagakure certainly needs to fear Konoha, but if the losses are too great, not to mention that Kumogakure is already eyeing them covetously, the crippled Sunagakure in the south also poses a considerable threat!

If it really comes down to a fight to the death, Sunagakure could still muster tens of thousands of troops. If such a threat were to erupt at the southern fortress while they were losing on the main battlefield, it would be a nightmare for Iwagakure.

"Is the Hidden Cloud Village still not taking any action?"

Jiang Si frowned slightly and said with a somewhat unpleasant expression.

Although it is clear that the course of war will never be changed by individual will, the move by the Hidden Cloud Village is really disgusting. Indeed, at the beginning, Shoji did not have high hopes for the Hidden Cloud Village, but in his opinion, the Hidden Cloud Village should at least suppress the Konoha garrison in the Land of Hot Springs and take over the Land of Hot Springs completely, right?

This is the basics, right?

Wasn't the Fourth Raikage known for his extremely volatile temper?

But why does everything that Kumogakure does now seem so effortless? This development, which is completely contrary to his predictions, makes Shoji feel like he's been thoroughly slapped in the face.

He realized that he had been too successful in the previous series of events, which made him subconsciously a little arrogant. His judgments, which seemed calm and rational, were still somewhat influenced by his own subjective opinions.

To put it bluntly, Shoji is being far too wishful.

However, life is bound to have some setbacks and blows. Although it was during the most important war between the two countries, the situation was not bad. In terms of appearances, Iwagakure still had the upper hand. The worst-case scenario predicted was just a prediction and did not happen. There was still room for everything to be salvaged.

Therefore, Jiang Si has also adjusted his mindset very well.

"Then it seems we must prepare for the worst, Huang Tusang. If things don't go as planned, we'd better abandon the Wuyuan Mountain stronghold immediately and return to the Land of Grass. We can rebuild our defenses there. And I believe that as long as we make some concessions, Konoha will most likely not push their luck. Even if they do pursue us further, we can handle things more easily in the Land of Grass. We can shorten our supply lines and are less likely to be surrounded and attacked by Konoha!"

Jiang Si took a deep breath, his mind racing, and after weighing the pros and cons of various situations in his heart, he said in a deep voice.

While this approach wouldn't bring their own ninja village much benefit, they hadn't suffered significant losses either. The largest casualties since the start of the campaign had occurred in the last few days, and they had already conquered the entire Land of Grass, achieving their initial objectives. With both face and substance secured, withdrawing wasn't unacceptable. At worst, they would continue to haggle with Konoha, and who knows, given the Third Hokage's personality, Iwagakure might even manage to extract more supplies or other compensation!

By all accounts, they seem to be the type who are guaranteed to make a profit.

After all, just as Konoha is now terrified of being attacked from both Iwagakure and Kumogakure, Iwagakure is also struggling to withstand the siege of the two great powers. Moreover, once Konoha is truly caught in a war with the two great powers, it's obvious that Sunagakure in the south will send troops in tandem. At that point, it won't be a question of whether they will make a profit, but rather how much they will lose!

"Yes, that's what I was thinking too. The more likely reason for such a strong attack is the Wuyuan Mountain stronghold. It's also highly probable that the Fire Kingdom's higher-ups have put some pressure on us. Jiang Si, for the time being, we need to slightly reduce our battle lines and try to avoid unnecessary battles! We need to preserve our combat strength to a limited extent. I'll contact the village immediately to further confirm the situation on the Cloud Hidden Village side!"

Huang Tu nodded heavily and said.

"Yes, I understand. Oh, by the way, Huang Tu-sang, how does the strength we've deployed on the eastern border compare to that of the Hidden Cloud Village?"

"Oh? You don't need to worry about that, Shoji. From the beginning, the Tsuchikage sent old Shizuku to the eastern border. For a while before that, he also had Date-san, who had just returned from the Land of Snow, to coordinate things. In addition, the Tsuchikage seems to have temporarily summoned Shisui-kun back from the Daimyo and sent him to reinforce the eastern front. Unless the Hidden Cloud Village launches a large-scale invasion, based on the balance of power between the enemy and us on the border, we are still in an advantageous position!"

Although the two countries are in a temporary alliance, to be fair, the level of hatred between them is only higher than it is lower. Even though they have come together for temporary interests, Onoki has never relaxed his vigilance against Kumogakure. Otherwise, as mentioned before, if Iwagakure were to launch a full-scale invasion, the pressure on Konoha would be far greater than it is now. It is precisely because Iwagakure still needs to allocate a certain number of troops to guard against Sunagakure and Kumogakure that less than one-third of the forces can be sent to the southeastern front line.

The situation in the south is relatively better. The duo of Wenya and Xingye, along with their mere two thousand garrison troops, can hold out as long as the Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure, or rather, the One-Tailed Jinchuriki, doesn't have to be deployed.

But the situation is different in the east.

Don't mention that Fourth Raikage.

The two tailed beast jinchūriki alone were enough to give Iwagakure a run for its money. In addition to the necessary military defenses, Onoki had already dispatched Roshi, the four-tailed jinchūriki, to the largest defensive outpost on the eastern border to guard against the Kumogakure. Later, to add another layer of security, he also sent Shisui, an Uchiha clansman with the Mangekyou Sharingan. Shisui was only slightly resistant to fighting against the Konoha ninja, but the other ninja villages felt no psychological pressure at all.

Naturally, he gladly accepted the order and went.

This is an important act to contribute to the village and further enhance the presence and trust of one's clan in the village, so Zhishui would certainly not refuse.

"Oh? Is that so? Then there's really no problem. Well then, excuse me, Huang Tu Sang!"

Upon hearing that his Tsuchikage had presciently arranged for Rōshi and Shisui to go to the eastern front, and that Date, an experienced man, was also stationed there, Shoji breathed a sigh of relief. With such a lineup, coupled with the three thousand garrison troops that were stationed on the eastern border year-round, unless the Fourth Raikage personally led the two Jinchūriki of the Tailed Beasts from Kumogakure, it would be impossible to break through his eastern border garrison in a short time. Even in the worst-case scenario, it would buy him some buffer time.

Jiang Si completely relaxed and bowed slightly to the yellow earth in front of him.

"Ok!"

He then strode away.

He couldn't be absent from the front lines for too long. Even with his support, the pressure on both flanks was still immense. If he were to leave for too long, all three lines could be breached. If all the outer positions fell, and they were compressed into a small area in Wuyuan Mountain, the situation would only worsen.

That kind of situation.

This is something that Iwagakure (Hidden Rock Village) is trying its best to avoid.

Even if we are to retreat, it must be an orderly and proactive retreat by ourselves, not a suppressed and defeated retreat. There is a fundamental difference between the two.

Therefore, the commander must immediately return to his frontline position.

356. The so-called trump card and response

Fighting head-on is one thing.

A roundabout strategy is another matter entirely.

Huang Tu and Jiang Si's guesses cannot be said to be entirely wrong. They did guess wrong about the attitude of Kumogakure, but at least they guessed right about Konoha's choice. That is, Shikaku's plan was indeed to take back the Wuyuan Mountain base at all costs. Shikaku originally intended to use Wuyuan Mountain to hold back the Iwagakure army. After losing this base, his plan would be completely passive.

If Jiraiya hadn't arrived to provide support, Shikaku would have just accepted it, since even with their numerical and quality advantages, they couldn't withstand the overwhelming power of the enemy's high-end forces. Losing a little was acceptable. However, Jiraiya's arrival, along with other issues that Shikaku later resolved, solidified his previous plan: to suppress the Iwa ninja forces at the Wuyuan Mountain base.

Although the main objective is to recapture the Wuyuan Mountain stronghold, if Shikaku sees an opportunity to completely wipe out the Iwa ninja frontline force, even if it is completely different from the initial plan, he will not hesitate at all.

The core of any plan is to help one's own ninja village overcome the crisis. If one can wipe out these 5,000 Iwa ninja troops, or at least cripple most of them, then the crisis facing one's own ninja village will be largely resolved. What reason does Shikaku have not to carry it out?

Even for the five great ninja villages, five thousand casualties would be enough to cripple them. Not to mention Iwagakure, a ninja village that always needs to be wary of three-way battles. If we can hurt them badly in one go, we won't have to worry about any major threats for the next few years, as long as nothing unexpected happens!

With the pressure from Iwagakure dissipated, Kumogakure became much easier to deal with. Given that his own village still possessed considerable resources, Shikaku was quite confident that he could ensure Kumogakure wouldn't dare to act recklessly.

Man proposes, God disposes; plans can't keep up with changes. Shikaku, as Konoha's most intelligent military figure, was well aware of all this!

Despite his seemingly contradictory actions, Shikaku consistently made the most correct choices in the changing situation, including anticipating the next move that Kumogakure might take.

Shikaku had also guessed some of the actions that his Third Hokage might have taken beforehand. These preparations were made in advance while the fierce and bloody battles were raging on the western front.

Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf Village)

Inside the Hokage Building.

Once again, they received a diplomatic note from the Hidden Cloud Village. They saw Tsuchida making further excessive demands in the name of the Fourth Raikage, as well as information from their own border ninja regarding the further actions of the Hidden Cloud Village's frontline troops.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression immediately darkened.

"What!? They want us to immediately relinquish our stronghold at Yuzumi Mountain, then evacuate all our personnel from the Land of Hot Springs within ten days, and they're even demanding the handover of Hiashi Hyuga!? Is this the Fourth Raikage's ultimatum!?"

In the office, the Konoha F4, who were sitting in their usual positions, raised their voices as they looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had a stern expression, with a hint of anger and surprise.

I was suddenly struck by this news.

Even with all his composure, Mitokado Homura couldn't control his emotions. His own side had already been so tolerant, yet Kumogakure still wanted to make such an excessive demand? Even according to the previous peace agreement, the transfer of the Land of Hot Springs base and the withdrawal of Konoha ninjas were to be completed in batches over six months.

Now they're expecting them to fulfill all the obligations within ten days?

Furthermore, they're demanding the hand over Hiashi Hyuga. Are they trying to drive Konoha to its doom?!

"What the Hidden Cloud Village has done is absolutely outrageous!"

Koharu Utatane's expression was equally unpleasant. Even when Tobirama-sensei died in battle, Konoha had never felt so humiliated. Now, they were being repeatedly humiliated, and they had no way to fight back effectively.

Sitting opposite the duo, Shimura Danzo also had a cold expression. Putting everything else aside, Danzo, as a prominent hawk in Konoha, was the one who found this development the most unacceptable. The actions of the Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure were what Danzo hated and despised the most. However, he did not say anything immediately, but seemed to be thinking about something.

"Yes, that Fourth Raikage probably felt he had us under control and wanted to use this method to force us to submit."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath, his tone clearly hostile. As mentioned before, the actions of the Hidden Cloud Village in this situation had truly forced Hiruzen Sarutobi into a corner, leaving him with a difficult situation.

Giving up the Land of Hot Springs isn't a big deal; at most, it will increase the pressure on future defense, but that's still within a manageable range. However, regarding Hiashi Hyuga, whether or not he's handed over, it will be a huge disadvantage for Konoha.