Between the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind lie two smaller nations.
To the right lies the small nation known as the Land of Birds.
And slightly to the left is the battlefield of this great war: the Land of Stone.
Located at the farthest western edge of the Ninja World map, the Land of Stone suffers from harsh geographical conditions—half desert, half red clay plateau.
It is constantly covered in sandstorms, with extremely low visibility.
In terms of overall living conditions, it's even more severe than the Land of Wind.
Although the Land of Stone has inherited partial remnants of the ancient nation Loulan, most of them are damaged and incomplete technologies, which aren't very useful.
Because of these brutal environmental conditions, the Land of Stone remains chaotic.
Most towns have been reduced to ruins by constant sandstorms.
Meanwhile, struggling for survival and power, the descendants of the ancient kingdom and its current citizens fight among themselves year-round.
The entire societal order has collapsed into disorder.
Additionally, the area has become a hiding place for numerous rogue ninjas from both Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
This makes the Land of Stone one of the most turbulent nations in the entire Ninja World.
This was also one of the main reasons why the battle was chosen to take place here.
Let the fellow die instead of me!
After all, this is just theater playacting, and we must pay with some of our own ninja lives.
If we further placed the battlefield on our own territory, that would be too much of a loss.
Hmm?
Did the Land of Stone disagree?
Too bad. We didn't ask for your opinion.
You may cry if you wish, but you certainly have no right to refuse.
Play along and cooperate.
Perhaps then, you'll suffer a little less pain along the way.
Just like during the previous Great Ninja World War.
Konoha's three factions recklessly unleashed their forces upon the battlegrounds of Rain Hidden Village.
Weakness itself is crime enough.
...
At this moment, near the border of the Land of Wind,
Inside Sunagakure's military headquarters, right up against the Land of Stone,
Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, who had personally taken command of this campaign, listened carefully to the latest battlefield report.
"Status report: Our forces have already occupied over seventy percent of the Land of Stone."
"The Iwa forces continue adopting a defensive posture, withdrawing their troops and preparing strong resistance."
Nodding, Rasa asked further, "Has the Ancient Capital of Loulan been captured?"
"Not yet. Resistance from the Iwa forces within that region has been particularly fierce. Intense fighting continues for control of the area."
"Moreover, many rogue ninja and wandering shinobi hide within that region; the situation remains deadlocked..."
"It will likely take us some time before we can capture it."
The messenger reported quickly.
"Halt any direct offensive operations. Deploy additional personnel."
"Surround that ruined ancient capital completely."
"And issue an announcement to the opposing Iwa ninja. Grant them a three-day withdrawal period."
"Once those three days pass and they haven't retreated, deploy the tailed beasts and level that ruined city to the ground!"
"Yes, sir!"
The messenger immediately accepted his orders and withdrew to carry out his mission.
...
After the messenger left,
From behind and slightly off to the side of Kazekage Rasa,
His sister's husband, Yashamaru, quickly stepped forward and urgently asked:
"Lord Kazekage! Why? Why must you drag Gaara into such a dangerous war?"
"He is still just a child!"
"And using the power of the Tailed Beast inside him so frequently... his body won't be able to handle it!"
"He's your own son!"
Yashamaru, who deeply cared for Gaara,
was unwilling to see Gaara treated like a weapon, repeatedly thrown into battle.
"Yashamaru, I have my own plans. Just follow orders."
Clenching his teeth, Yashamaru asked again defiantly:
"Even if it costs Gaara his life?"
"Have you forgotten what you promised my older sister?"
Rasa frowned: "I haven't forgotten!"
Yashamaru: "Then why are you sending Gaara to his death?!!"
Rasa's eyes turned sharp, and he grabbed his brother-in-law by the collar, glaring at him intensely.
Yashamaru didn't flinch, staring back with firm determination in his eyes.
For Gaara, for his older sister's bloodline...
he wouldn't back down!
After a moment, Rasa finally released his 'brother-in-law'.
With a quiet sigh, he revealed the truth.
"Actually, this isn't a real war!"
Surprised and confused, Yashamaru exclaimed:
"What??"
Rasa: "It's just an act—an ambush..."
Now that the plan had come this far, there was no point in hiding anything from him anymore.
So he outlined the secret arrangement between himself and [Konoha Village].
"So that's what it was. This entire thing is a setup!"
"A trap designed to lure the rogue ninja organization known as [Akatsuki]?"
"But if it's just an act, then our sacrifices seem too great..."
"We've already lost dozens of ninjas..."
"...not to mention the use of a Tailed Beast."
"Is taking such a huge risk really worth it?"
Clutching his fist tightly, Rasa replied solemnly:
"Worth it!"
"Yashamaru, you understand this."
"Due to lack of funding, our village has always lagged far behind the other Great Hidden Villages in the development of Sealing Techniques."
"All these years, relying merely on the [Spirit Medium Sealing Technique], we couldn't even completely control the power of the One-Tail..."
"To fully master the Tailed Beast's power..."
"We needed a more complete, stronger sealing technique!"
Yashamaru was stunned at first, but gradually understood:
"This is the deal you made with [Konoha Village], isn't it?"
"It was all for Gaara's sake?"
Rasa nodded:
"You know that the Second Hokage visited [Sunagakure] not long ago."
"He offered the [Eight Trigrams Sealing Style] as one of the conditions for me to agree to participate in this plan."
"At the same time, he used the [Eight Trigrams Sealing Style] to re-seal the Tailed Beast inside Gaara."
"That was a technique strong enough to stably contain even the Nine-Tails!"
"With this seal, we no longer have to worry about losing control or the beast going berserk..."
In fact, the mighty [Eight Trigrams Sealing Style] could even draw the scattered chakra of the Tailed Beast back into Gaara as its Jinchuriki, fueling his growth.
Truly achieving multiple benefits at once!
That made it clear—this sealing art was a priceless legacy from the Uzumaki Clan.
This Eight Trigrams Sealing Style was far more powerful than the Spirit Medium Sealing.
Otherwise, back then no one would've gone after the Land of Whirlpools or even dared to team up just to wipe it off the map entirely.
"But even if the seal is solid, bringing Gaara onto the battlefield still makes no sense!"
"That Akatsuki group has its sights set on him. What if things go south…"
Yashamaru frowned hesitantly, still unwilling to drag Gaara into this matter.
"This is Gaara's fate as a Jinchuriki, and also our village's last chance!"
"We're running out of time!"
Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, clenched his teeth tightly, filled with emotion.
Among the three great villages—Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure—only the Nine-Tails and One-Tail remained now.
Konoha would never dare use the Nine-Tails in battle.
Therefore, Sunagakure had no choice but to use the One-Tail as bait.
There was simply no other option…
At the same time,
The revival of the First Hokage and the appearance of Madara Uchiha…
had caused all the major Hidden Villages to feel a level of danger they had never sensed before.
Sunagakure was naturally no exception either.
The pressure from those peerless experts from the Warring States era was absolutely terrifying!
Rasa clearly knew that he probably couldn't even defeat Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage.
Not to mention Hashirama Senju, the legendary "God of Ninja"?
When your strength falls behind others, you have no choice but to submit!
That was exactly why Sunagakure had immediately dispatched an envoy team,
putting aside historical grudges and swallowing their pride to ally with Konoha.
But Rasa understood all too well that such an alliance was only temporary.
If Sunagakure wanted to survive and grow stronger, it had to obtain self-defense capabilities by any means necessary!
One of the most critical ways to achieve this was through the Tailed Beasts.
If they missed this opportunity and failed to help Gaara fully master the beast's power,
then the future Sunagakure would be like jackals stripped of their fangs—
helpless sacrificial lambs on the feasting tables of rival ninja villages!
Thus, he had no choice but to stake everything on this gamble!
Benefiting from Konoha's plan to acquire stronger sealing techniques, more funding, and greater advantages!
"Don't worry! Gaara is my son, and he's also crucial to our village's survival!"
"No matter what happens, I'll do everything I can to ensure his safety!"
"I won't allow those criminals from Akatsuki to take him away."
"Besides, this time the three of us are the hunters, and Akatsuki are the prey."
"There's no need to over-worry."
Rasa spoke again, trying to calm things down.
His words eased Yashamaru's anxiety slightly, making him feel somewhat reassured.
However, suddenly recalling something, Yashamaru quickly asked:
"Oh right, Lord Kazekage, how can we be sure that the Akatsuki will definitely fall for this trap at this exact moment?"
"What if they hold back?"
"What if they wait until we and Iwagakure have exhausted each other, retreat before striking suddenly?"
"Wouldn't that be disastrous?"
Rasa gave a calm smile and countered, "Yashamaru, do you remember what excuse Iwagakure used to justify starting this war?"
Yashamaru: "I remember. They claimed one of their shinobi vanished mysteriously while carrying out a mission in the ruins of Loulan City."
!!!!
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