With Hayashi and Uchiha Fugaku issuing their respective orders, the largest war in the history of the shinobi world officially began.
The Shinobi Allied Forces advanced in a massive formation.
At the front marched the First Division, led by Chiyo and Jiraiya. As the primary close-range combat force, they would be the first to engage the enemy.
Even faster than the First Division was the Surprise Attack Unit under Kitsuchi's command.
Using the Light-Weight Rock Technique, Kitsuchi soared through the sky alongside the unit's relatively small force, which consisted primarily of shinobi with flying summoned beasts.
Their mission was to bypass the enemy's front line and strike from the rear.
To avoid exposing themselves prematurely, they would remain hidden in the skies until the main forces engaged the enemy, only descending once the battle had begun.
Coordinating both aerial and ground forces required flawless communication.
Thanks to the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Transmission techniques, combined with Konoha's advanced communication technology, the Allied Forces established a real-time communication network capable of relaying information across the battlefield.
Meanwhile, the Sensor Unit and Medical Unit were divided into numerous smaller squads and integrated into every major division to provide continuous support.
The remaining combat divisions followed closely behind the First Division.
None of the shinobi knew what awaited them.
No one could say whether they would survive long enough to witness victory or fall during the opening clash.
As the vanguard, the First Division faced the greatest danger of all.
Even so, every one of them had already steeled themselves for battle.
Thus, an army numbering in the tens of thousands surged toward Amegakure.
From the sky, the movements of the Shinobi Allied Forces resembled a massive tide closing in from every direction, forming a complete encirclement around the Hidden Rain.
"Report!"
After advancing nearly eighty kilometers, Inoichi Yamanaka, wearing a partially enclosed combat helmet, suddenly spoke.
"We've located the enemy."
"How many?" A immediately asked.
It was the question everyone wanted answered.
After a brief pause, Inoichi replied with visible shock.
"The enemy numbers approximately twenty thousand... led by the Six Paths of Pain."
"Twenty thousand?"
Rasa's expression stiffened.
"They have that many forces?"
Even he was caught off guard.
The Shinobi Allied Forces numbered only a little over thirty thousand, while the vanguard itself consisted of merely a few thousand shinobi.
Facing twenty thousand enemies with only the advance force...
That was an overwhelming numerical disadvantage.
Only Konoha had ever experienced something similar before, during the early stages of the Third Shinobi World War, when it fought against multiple great nations simultaneously.
Where had Akatsuki managed to gather such an enormous army?
"The distance between both sides is less than eight kilometers," Inoichi reported immediately. "At our current speed, the First Division will make contact with the enemy in roughly ten minutes."
Hayashi immediately issued his orders.
"The enemy should be White Zetsu clones. Individually, they aren't particularly powerful, but their overwhelming numbers make them dangerous."
"Order the Second Division to advance at full speed as well."
"Understood!"
...
On a cliff overlooking the battlefield, the Deva Path stood silently, gazing at the approaching sea of shinobi stretching across the horizon.
Behind him stood the remaining Five Paths of Pain.
Further back waited an army of twenty thousand White Zetsu, commanded by a spiral-faced White Zetsu.
According to White Zetsu, this particular clone possessed the First Hokage's Sage Art Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands and was among the strongest of its kind.
To Nagato, however, none of that mattered.
The objective of this battle was simple.
Destroy as much of the Shinobi Allied Forces as possible and force the Five Great Nations to surrender the Nine-Tails.
A cold wind carrying fine grains of sand swept across the cliff.
The orange hair of the Deva Path fluttered gently, while the black cloak adorned with red clouds billowed loudly in the gale.
As the minutes passed, the dark line on the horizon steadily grew larger until thousands of shinobi came clearly into view.
Five minutes later, the First Division arrived before the enemy.
Thousands of shinobi halted simultaneously, raising their eyes toward the opposing army.
"Nagato..."
Jiraiya stepped forward first, his eyes filled with complicated emotions.
"I heard about everything from Hayashi and Minato, but I couldn't believe it."
"How did you end up like this?"
Hayashi had already explained the truth to Jiraiya.
Now, seeing Yahiko's body being used as the Deva Path filled him with guilt.
After all...
Yahiko's death had ultimately been tied to Konoha.
"Jiraiya Sensei."
Nagato's cold voice echoed through the Deva Path.
"There's nothing to regret. I've grown stronger. You should be happy for me."
"...Happy..."
Jiraiya forced down the emotions threatening to overwhelm him.
He wasn't merely Nagato's former teacher.
He was now one of the commanders of the Shinobi Allied Forces.
This was a battlefield.
Personal feelings could not interfere with his duty.
"Sensor Unit, listen carefully."
"The Six Paths of Pain are here, which means Nagato's real body can't be far away."
"Begin searching immediately."
"Yes!"
A Hyuga clan shinobi acknowledged the order without hesitation.
Jiraiya fixed his gaze on the Deva Path.
"As your Sensei, if my student has chosen the wrong path..."
"...then it's my responsibility to set him straight."
The Two Great Sage Toads already rested upon Jiraiya's shoulders.
As they continuously gathered natural energy for him, orange pigmentation spread around Jiraiya's eyes.
He entered Sage Mode.
At that moment...
The Fourth Shinobi World War truly began.
...
"The war has begun."
Standing atop the towering structure in Amegakure, White Zetsu looked toward the distant battlefield.
"Yes."
Black Zetsu nodded calmly.
"The war has begun."
"What do we do next?" White Zetsu asked.
He wasn't referring to the battle itself.
He meant Uchiha Madara.
According to the original plan, Madara was supposed to be revived at this stage.
However, as Madara's chosen successor, Uchiha Fugaku clearly had no intention of bringing him back.
"When a pawn starts thinking for itself, it inevitably becomes troublesome."
Black Zetsu let out a cold laugh.
Knowing he would eventually die, Madara had prepared several contingencies.
Uchiha Fugaku had been the first.
If that pawn developed ambitions of his own, then Black Zetsu and White Zetsu would simply carry out the second plan.
That plan was straightforward.
They would personally seize control of Nagato and force him to use the Rinne Rebirth Technique to revive Madara.
"But Nagato is still controlling the Six Paths of Pain while fighting the Shinobi Allied Forces," White Zetsu pointed out.
"Fighting?"
Black Zetsu sneered.
"If he truly had the power to stop the Allied Forces, I wouldn't be planning to dispose of him."
"Unfortunately..."
"He doesn't."
"In that case," White Zetsu said, "there's no reason to wait any longer."
"Exactly."
Black Zetsu's expression turned cold.
"A pawn should understand its purpose."
"Nagato lacks the ability to change anything."
"He should simply fulfill the role he was given."
Madara had entrusted the Rinnegan to Nagato for one reason alone.
To preserve the eyes until the day he could be resurrected.
Nagato had always been nothing more than a tool.
A vessel.
Of course...
Madara himself had also been nothing more than a pawn.
The tragedy was that pawns rarely realized they were being used.
Instead, they convinced themselves they were the ones moving the pieces.
Nagato.
Uchiha Fugaku.
Even Madara himself.
None of them truly stood at the top of the board.
"Let's go."
Black Zetsu slowly opened the tower's door.
"I've waited for this day for a very long time."
He stepped into the endless rain outside.
Once he was gone, the towering structure fell completely silent.
=≠=
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