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Sunagakure, Kazekage Building conference room.
Despite the late hour, a dozen high-ranking Sand Ninja officials were still gathered in the conference room, their brows furrowed in discussion over the next battle strategy.
However, their expressions alone revealed that the meeting was not progressing smoothly.
After the Third Kazekage briefly outlined his plan, the entire conference room fell into a dead silence.
Finally, it was Kazekage Advisor Chiyo who first rose from her seat, stating gravely:
"Lord Third, you are being too aggressive!"
"The total number of Ninja capable of action in all of Sunagakure, even including students still in the Ninja Academy, is barely over twenty-five thousand."
"If we follow your suggestion and deploy twenty thousand of them to the Konoha battlefield, the Land of Wind will become unprecedentedly vulnerable."
"Although Amegakure and Iwagakure have signed a temporary armistice with us, who can guarantee they won't break the treaty before the war ends?"
Another Kazekage Advisor, Monzaemon, had a different opinion: "Break the treaty? What would they gain? Why must we, Sunagakure, expand outwards if not for this barren land!"
"If Amegakure and Iwagakure invade, do they want to extract money from our empty treasury, or do they want this land that is entirely desert?"
"I say, now is the time to fight with our backs against the wall!"
Ebizo frowned, puffing on his pipe, his eyebrows drooping as if they would touch the ground:
"What if Konoha transfers troops from other fronts? What if Konoha, to eliminate us in one fell swoop, compromises with those two scoundrels, Ōnoki and Ay, and trades some land for time?"
"Can we stop them?"
"Ebizo! If you're afraid to die, then go home now!" Monzaemon bristled, as the oldest person present, a pillar of the Village since the First Kazekage's era, he was also the most unrestrained when speaking, his voice hoarse, "Sunagakure only needs water, not cowards!"
"Monzaemon!" Chiyo slammed her hand on the table and stood up, "The battlefield is not a place for you to act wildly!"
"Ha."
Seeing that the meeting was about to be thrown into chaos again, the Third Kazekage, seated at the center of the conference table, finally spoke:
"If I had a choice, I wouldn't want to go to such lengths."
"However…"
"The Daimyo sent me a message."
"..."
As soon as he spoke, everyone present fell silent and turned to look at him.
Unlike Konoha, where most people live in stable and prosperous conditions, satisfied with the status quo and lacking ambition,
every person living in the great desert of the Land of Wind is forced to unite and seek resources from outside due to limited resources.
As the Third Kazekage, who was able to unite Sunagakure and, with limited resources, support the largest Ninja population from the First Kazekage's era to the present, his strength, ability, and charisma were all exceptionally outstanding.
However, even a person like him faced insurmountable difficulties.
The Third Kazekage surveyed the room, his voice slow and heavy: "As everyone knows, our Land of Wind is renowned among the Five Great Nations for its poverty and barrenness; over eighty percent of its land is desert, its population is only one-sixth that of the Land of Fire, and its national tax revenue is less than one-eighth."
"Yet, the Land of Wind supports half as many Ninja as the Land of Fire."
"To this end, the Daimyo has maintained a high-tax policy throughout the country for fifteen years… He can no longer sustain it."
Upon hearing this, everyone present involuntarily lowered their heads.
At this moment, they also understood why Lord Third would propose such a crazy, almost reckless, strategy.
"Therefore, this is our last chance."
The Third Kazekage pointed to the map on the table: "Now, we have pushed the front line across the Land of Rivers and into the Land of Fire."
"Behind this front line before us, there are still three defensive lines, with Kikyo Castle as the final rallying point."
"Besides us, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Hidden Mist are all pressuring Konoha on their respective fronts; the forces Konoha can deploy will definitely not exceed one-third of their total Ninja."
"Our goal is to eliminate this one-third of Konoha Ninja and break through Kikyo Castle."
He looked up at the people before him, speaking earnestly: "You all must know that for Konoha and the Land of Fire, even if Kikyo Castle is breached, all they lose is their forward defensive perimeter on the Sunagakure front; it is impossible to eliminate Konoha in one fell swoop."
"However, for our Land of Wind, as long as we can establish a defensive standoff with Kikyo Castle as the front line, and quickly, before the war ends, annex the Land of Rivers between our country and the Land of Fire, occupying its river sources located on the plateau… then our Land of Wind will truly have the opportunity to prosper!"
"The precious source of water will change the fate of the entire Land of Wind."
The Third Kazekage spoke, his expression growing serious and solemn: "What's more, Konoha today is at its weakest since the First Hokage founded the Village."
"The Senju Clan, which could rival the Uchiha, has been depleted; the Third Hokage is short-sighted, completely lacking the strategic brilliance of Senju Tobirama; and Konoha is simultaneously restrained by multiple Villages externally."
"Yet, our Sunagakure is united internally, has no external enemies, and has been biding its time for fifteen years, accumulating a force of twenty thousand."
"All of this combined means it is time for our Sunagakure to defy fate."
As his voice fell, he rose from his seat and bowed deeply to those before him.
"For Sunagakure, for the Land of Wind…"
"I hope, gentlemen, you will lend me your strength."
...
By the time Sawara Kiri and his group arrived at Kikyo Castle, the forward rallying point, everyone was covered in dust from their journey.
On the latter half of the journey from Konoha to Kikyo Castle, they constantly encountered small Sand Ninja squads that had infiltrated the Land of Fire to harass the rear forces.
These small squads were few in number, typically two or three people, and never engaged large forces. They would strike and immediately flee, attacking in dispersed groups, never overly pursuing battle results.
While this form of harassment did not cause many casualties for their unit, it kept this rear reinforcement unit in a state of constant tension, making them jump at every shadow along the way.
They hadn't even reached the battlefield yet, but they had already experienced the taste of the front lines.
It wasn't until they entered Kikyo Castle that everyone relaxed slightly.
However, upon seeing the scenes unfolding within Kikyo Castle, their hearts suddenly tightened again.
Uchiha Megumi turned her head, looking at the queues of civilians being evacuated from the city, carrying their families, old and young, along with their valuables, and guided by Ninja, moving outwards. She lowered her voice, somewhat puzzled:
"Kiri, they are…?"
"They are being protected."
Sawara Kiri spoke calmly, his gaze profound.
Due to the widespread use of the Three Body Technique and explosive tags, in wars between countries, it was common for Ninja to disguise themselves as civilians, blend into cities, live among them, and then instigate riots at critical moments.
Many times, due to inability to identify or accidental involvement, many civilians would die.
Therefore, evacuating civilians in advance before a major war was indeed a form of protection for them.
However, Sawara Kiri also discerned another matter from this action—the Konoha side's future predictions for this war were quite pessimistic.
Namikaze Minato also looked solemn, quietly watching the teams of Ninja sweeping across the rooftops of the city like birds.
Amidst the bustling crowd, some were fully armed, leaving the city; some carried stretchers, bringing wounded into temporary medical camps; others, still bandaged, or missing limbs, still held weapons, gazing at everyone around them with vigilant, bloodshot eyes.
The murky scent of blood and gunpowder filled the entire Kikyo Castle; everyone moved quickly and silently along the roads, with only the clear wails and groans of the injured and disabled echoing from afar.
"This is… true war."
Namikaze Minato murmured, his expression subtly heavy.
"Alright, alright!"
Hatake Sakumo, as the captain, clapped his hands, feigning nonchalance, drawing everyone's attention back. He smiled as if nothing was wrong: "First, let's go to the General Headquarters!"
"I'm not boasting, but this time, I, your teacher, am one of the frontline Deputy Commanders!"
"You foolish little pawns, if you don't want me, Lord Hatake, to assign you dangerous missions, then quickly say something nice to me."
"Eh—?!"
"You can't really manage things anyway."
"You're being rejected, Lord Sakumo."
They all wore expressions of disdain.
"Wait! I'm telling you—!" Hatake Sakumo immediately looked exasperated, annoyed, "Hearing that title, you should at least show some respect for the Commander!"
And so, everyone burst into laughter, and the air in front of Kikyo Castle's gate was filled with cheer.
That joyful laughter became a uniquely vibrant splash of color above this black and white battlefield.
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