At the border town in the Land of Rain, most of Iwagakure's main force had already gathered.
Onoki had long since dispatched a large number of ninja squads to probe the border of the Land of Fire. Some of the bolder jonin teams had even crossed into Fire Country itself, dismantling the traps left behind by Konoha's ninja, sensory barriers, explosive tag traps, chakra wires, poisoned hidden weapons, and every other nasty surprise they could find.
This was no longer the usual war fought in the buffer zone of the Land of Rain.
This was a blatant invasion of the Land of Fire.
After all, Konoha's greatest deterrent, the mighty Nine Tails jinchuriki, had temporarily disappeared. Meanwhile, Iwagakure still had two tailed beast jinchuriki it could rely on.
Inside Iwagakure's temporary war room, the atmosphere was grim but eager.
"We still haven't established contact with Roshi. He probably won't take part in this war. Han is already on his way."
Kitsuchi delivered his report to the Third Tsuchikage in his usual calm, steady tone.
He knew full well that Roshi, the Four Tails jinchuriki, had long been at odds with the old man and had left the village years ago to become a wandering monk.
Still, Kitsuchi also understood Roshi's reasons. The man wanted to train in solitude and master the Four Tails' violent power so he would not harm the villagers.
"Hmph! Good! If that bastard doesn't want to come back, then forget him! What a waste of the Four Tails' power!"
The old Tsuchikage floated in the air as he cursed, clearly furious. Still, he had never branded Roshi a rogue ninja.
A jinchuriki was too important. They were strategic weapons.
If Iwagakure ever truly faced disaster, Roshi would return to defend his homeland.
"Lord Tsuchikage," a stoic man with spiky brown hair said, speaking up at the side, "Konoha's response this time seems a little too slow. Either they are trying to lure us in, or there is some serious problem in their ranks."
He was Gari, one of Iwagakure's famous elite jonin and a member of the Explosion Release Corps.
He had already personally entered the Land of Fire, yet he had not encountered the fierce counterattack he had expected. That alone made him uneasy.
During the Third Shinobi World War, Iwagakure's ninja would have been intercepted in the Land of Rain before they even had a chance to touch Fire Country's borders.
As the strongest nation in the world, the Land of Fire had never tolerated enemy ninja from the Five Great Nations stepping onto its soil once war began.
"According to the reports from our spies, the higher ups in Konoha likely just finished attending the Third Hokage's funeral. They should already be on their way to the border."
Kitsuchi continued his analysis in a level voice.
By all logic, this should have been the best possible chance to storm into Fire Country and loot a few towns first.
And yet, something still felt wrong.
The danger in his instincts refused to go away.
If one followed pure logic, Konoha should not have made such a basic mistake.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Onoki barked. "Send five thousand ninja straight into the Land of Fire and let them strip everything they can get their hands on!"
As a Kage, he believed the most important thing was decisiveness. If an opportunity appeared, hesitation only ruined it.
Still, he kept another five thousand Iwa ninja in reserve, ready to respond to any sudden change.
"Understood!"
The Iwa ninja in the room all grew excited.
Being able to plunder without restraint, what could be more satisfying than that?
But at that very moment, someone burst into the war room.
"Urgent intelligence! Lord Tsuchikage, the frontline scouts have just sent back their latest report!"
The intelligence ninja nearly shouted the words, his face flushed with excitement.
"The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, has appeared at the border of the Land of Fire, but he only brought thirty or forty ANBU with him!"
"And none of Konoha's main force has shown itself at all!"
"What?!"
Onoki's eyes widened. Then he straightened in midair, his old spine suddenly seeming far less bent.
"That blond brat really only brought a few dozen ninja?"
His voice was full of disbelief, but underneath it ran unmistakable excitement.
Could it be?
Had Iwagakure finally found the chance to repeat its greatest feat?
Could they actually wear down and kill the Fourth Hokage the same way they had once killed the Third Raikage?
"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage!" the intelligence ninja replied, still energized. "None of our reconnaissance teams has detected any sign of Konoha's main army!"
"Lord Tsuchikage!"
Gari immediately stepped forward, unable to hide his excitement.
"It doesn't matter whether this is a trap. It doesn't matter whether Konoha's main force is hiding nearby. We have to take this chance and test Minato Namikaze!"
"Even if we can't kill him, we can at least crush those few dozen ANBU elites and make Konoha pay a heavy price!"
To him, the answer was simple.
If it really was a trap, then they would just smash it head on with overwhelming numbers.
And if Minato Namikaze had truly become arrogant enough to bring only a few dozen ANBU, then Iwagakure would profit beyond measure.
"Damn right!"
Onoki slammed his hand down, his voice ringing through the room.
"Mobilize the entire army! Launch a full scale assault into the Land of Fire! Bring down Minato Namikaze and Konoha's ANBU!"
This was the perfect opportunity.
And this time, the Third Tsuchikage intended to fight personally.
He wanted to test whether Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God was truly invincible, or whether his own Dust Release was more terrifying in the end.
If Minato made even one mistake, he would die to Dust Release on the spot.
With a single order from the Tsuchikage, the entire Iwa army surged toward the Land of Fire.
They had once surrounded and worn down the Third Raikage.
Now they would do the same to the Fourth Hokage.
Just the thought of it made their blood run hot.
The massive movement of Iwagakure's troops terrified the civilians and lower ranking ninja of the town and the nearby towns. Everyone began fleeing in panic, desperate to escape the coming storm.
On the Fire Country side, the border civilians also abandoned their homes one after another.
They had never imagined that one day the flames of war would truly spread onto the soil of the Land of Fire.
Ever since Konoha had been founded, that had almost never happened.
Not far away, the ANBU that Minato had sent out to gather intelligence returned one by one, sweat pouring down their faces.
The Hyuga jonin among them, the one who possessed the Byakugan, had gone completely pale after seeing the endless sea of Iwa ninja. He could barely force a word out.
Fortunately, they had already sent their wills and final letters back to Konoha's rear camp.
Now all they could do was wait for death, or place their hopes in Brook and pray for a miracle.
Every one of them had already pasted explosive tags onto their own bodies.
If the worst came, they were ready to die together with the enemy, even if all they could accomplish was dragging a few Iwa ninja down with them.
------------
Kurenai Yuhi, a mere Chunin, never imagined that only a few days after joining the reserve guard, she would be thrown into a war mission where death was practically guaranteed.
Part of her thought their side had no chance at all.
Another part desperately prayed that Brook, this so called big shot, was not just boasting, and could really crush Iwagakure's invasion by himself.
Uchiha Shisui's three tomoe Sharingan spun wildly, ready to shift into the Mangekyo at any moment and reveal the power he had kept hidden.
Kakashi Hatake silently drew the newly reforged White Fang blade, prepared to follow in his father Sakumo Hatake's footsteps and stand as a true powerhouse.
Might Guy had already begun warming up. He was ready to open the Sixth Gate of the Eight Gates if necessary. If he pushed everything to the limit, he might even force open the Seventh.
Only Minato Namikaze remained calm.
He stood at the front of the group with a Flying Thunder God kunai in hand, his expression steady and unreadable.
"Yohoho! So many people showed up at once. Looks like all the Iwa ninja are here. Good. That saves me the trouble of hunting them down one by one."
Brook slowly rose into the air atop a Super Beast Imitation Drawing, Fierce Tiger, smiling gently at the pale faced ANBU behind him.
"Stop shaking. Wipe off that cold sweat and stand obediently at the rear. When this is over, your job is to collect the spoils."
More and more Iwa ninja poured in.
When they saw that Minato Namikaze and the Konoha ninja had not fled, their excitement only grew.
"Surround them! Set up the sealing formation! This time, that brat is going to die!"
The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, had never forgotten what happened in the Third Shinobi World War.
Back then, Minato Namikaze had single handedly slaughtered several elite Iwa squads, wiping out over ten jonin in total. That blood debt had become a grudge Onoki could never let go of.
Minato had used that record, along with his victory over Kumogakure's A and B, to ascend to the seat of Hokage.
And to Iwagakure, that loss had been unbearable.
Their village had fewer than twenty thousand ninja in total. During the Third Shinobi World War, they had committed over ten thousand to the battlefield, more than half their total military strength. Jonin were rare even in a great village, yet Minato had erased nearly a tenth of Iwagakure's jonin himself.
It was because of that terrifying record that Onoki had once issued the infuriating order:
"If you encounter the Yellow Flash, you may abandon the mission."
The Flying Thunder God Technique truly was monstrous, and that blond brat truly was terrifying.
The moment Onoki gave the order, several Iwa sealing teams rushed forward, intending to encircle Minato and the others and complete a large scale barrier formation.
It was meant to do two things at once, restrict Minato's Flying Thunder God and prevent the Konoha ANBU from escaping.
Behind Brook, the ANBU all looked grim. Their faces had already gone white.
Brook only laughed.
"You old fossil, not only is your back crooked, your eyes are useless too. How dare you ignore me?"
The next second, his Conqueror's Haki erupted together with Soul Shock.
Countless streaks of red lightning flashed across the battlefield. The sky seemed to dim. The earth cracked. Trees bent low under the invisible pressure, and the ground itself began to tremble.
The Iwa ninja who had just closed in suddenly felt a crushing force descend on them.
Most of the genin rolled their eyes back and dropped unconscious on the spot.
The chunin went weak in the knees, collapsing to one knee as they struggled to hold on for even a few seconds.
Even Onoki and the stronger Iwa ninja felt their pupils contract violently. Their bodies shook on instinct, and fear spread through their hearts like ice water.
Behind Brook, the Konoha ANBU and the members of Minato's personal guard stared in shock.
Kakashi's mask was pulled down by his own slack jaw.
Might Guy bit his lip, fists clenched tight, his eyes burning with dazzling admiration.
Shisui's three tomoe had already shifted into the Mangekyo as he stared in awe at Brook's overwhelming figure.
Tenzo looked excited beyond words.
Kurenai Yuhi's face flushed bright red. Her mouth hung open as she stared upward.
A miracle.
It really had happened.
Lord Brook had not been exaggerating. He truly was this powerful.
He really could stun thousands, even tens of thousands, with a single burst of will alone.
At that moment, the thirty elite ANBU of Konoha felt hope return to their chests.
This battle... might actually be winnable.
But Brook's assault had only just begun.
"Super Shinra Tensei!"
A terrifying repulsive force exploded outward from his body.
Like a storm wave sweeping across the land, it tore up great chunks of earth and blasted rows of Iwa ninja backward, sending them flying through the air.
"Summoning Jutsu, Gedo Statue!"
A hideous withered tree like monster appeared with a roar, its mouth gaping open as countless chakra dragons burst forth. They tore through the fallen Iwa ninja, draining away all their chakra and leaving behind nothing but shriveled corpses.
"Hell God, Ultimate Form!"
"Underworld Secret Art, Gates of Hell!"
A giant grim reaper apparition rose behind Brook, and a gate to the underworld opened wide, devouring the souls of the dead ninja before they could be drawn into the Pure Land of the Sage of Six Paths.
"No! Stop him!"
Onoki finally snapped out of his shock.
"Dust Release, Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
He clapped his hands together, then opened them, forming the radiant cone of Dust Release between his palms. Without hesitation, he launched it straight at Brook himself.
As long as Brook died, all of these techniques would stop.
"Preta Path, Sealing Absorption Barrier!"
A massive absorption shield appeared around Brook.
He wanted to see for himself whether Onoki's Dust Release was stronger, or the Rinnegan's chakra absorption.
Any ninjutsu formed from chakra could be absorbed by the Preta Path. Even senjutsu techniques like Jiraiya's Sage Art: Goemon or a Super Massive Rasengan were no exception.
Only raw natural energy was dangerous enough to turn the absorber into stone.
Onoki's expression changed drastically.
It was the first time in his life he had seen someone block Dust Release head on.
Not even Madara Uchiha had ever dared do that.
Brook laughed.
"So it really can block it. Just as I thought. How could Dust Release ever be truly invincible? At the end of the day, it's still just a bloodline elimination made from wind, earth, and fire transformations. How could it rank above the Rinnegan?"
The absorption barrier not only blocked Dust Release, it was even devouring the chakra within it.
Utterly domineering.
And even if the barrier had failed, Brook still would not have feared Onoki's Dust Release at all.
Because Kamui completely countered it.
Obito had once used Kamui to rescue Sasuke from Onoki's cubic Dust Release in an instant. That alone proved that against a technique with a clear casting delay, Kamui was a perfect answer.
Dust Release was powerful.
But in front of Brook, it was far from unbeatable.
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 10–50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
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