The advancement of the Sand Hidden Ninja forces was very smooth. Although as they went deeper, the enemy's resistance gradually strengthened, Chiyo and others considered this a normal phenomenon. No matter how disjointed the assistance, once the defensive perimeter shrank, it was bound to intensify.
Uchiha Kagami also guessed that if it was too smooth, it might still arouse suspicion from the enemy. So, he adjusted his side's defense according to the enemy's advance speed and combat power, and the Sand Hidden ninjas indeed didn't notice anything amiss.
After two weeks, the Sand Hidden ninja forces had entered the heartland of the Land of Rivers, just a step away from the strategic stronghold of River City. This was the decisive battleground Uchiha Kagami had chosen. Once this place was captured by the enemy, the Sand Hidden Village would completely escape its predicament. With its strategic position for both advance and retreat, he knew Chiyo would never give it up.
Just as Uchiha Kagami expected, Chiyo had no reason to let go of this strategic location. From intelligence, she learned about the current defensive situation of the Konoha ninjas and understood where their focus lay. For her, if River City wasn't captured, the current advantage could still be lost, but with River City, it would be different.
Both sides, by coincidence, regarded this as the place for the decisive battle. Chiyo was eager, while Uchiha Kagami's expression was solemn. Their thoughts differed due to the circumstances. Regardless, the day of the decisive battle was slowly approaching.
When Uchiha Kagami received news that the Sand Hidden ninja forces had arrived near River City, he breathed a slight sigh of relief, because the enemy had entered the pit, and all that was left was to fill it.
"Now is the time to fight a decisive battle with the enemy. I know that many people are feeling indignant and angry about our retreat these past few days. Due to various considerations, I had no choice but to shrink our defense line, but now we have no retreat. Once River City is lost, it will be our defeat, disappointing the Hokage-sama's expectations, and causing a severe setback to the righteous war of the entire ninja world." Uchiha Kagami said to everyone at the war council.
Everyone looked solemnly at Uchiha Kagami. Regardless of the ninjas at squad leader level and above who knew the detailed combat plan, the lower-ranking ninjas, under the comfort of their superiors, had transformed their unwillingness and frustration into motivation, just waiting for the moment to erupt. Uchiha Kagami's words undoubtedly gave them the key to unlock their shackles.
"For Konoha, for the Land of Fire, for the peace of the ninja world, I hope you all fight bravely, and I will fight alongside you!" Uchiha Kagami declared loudly.
And Uchiha Kagami was answered with a unanimous "Yes!", the sound equally loud, audible even outside the tent. After the war council ended, from the top ranks downwards, everyone began to act. Regardless of their ninja type, they went to their assigned posts, and even the samurai army was deployed.
"Finally, it's here." Hatake Sakumo stood fully armed in the camp, watching the Konoha ninjas running around. Beside him stood Asuna and others.
"The day of the decisive battle, it's bound to be tough. Risa, will you be alright?" Mizuki slightly adjusted the ninja tools on her body and asked Yamanaka Risa.
Yamanaka Risa nodded and said, "No problem, I've been training hard these past few days."
In the upcoming battle, the intensity of the fighting would undoubtedly be unprecedented. Yamanaka Risa, responsible for intelligence and perception, would undoubtedly bear immense pressure. Although Yamanaka Risa's strength wasn't exceptional, she was the central link for Hatake Sakumo.
"That's good. This way, we only need to pay attention to the enemies in front of us." Hatake Sakumo turned and said, "Mizuki, you must protect Risa well."
"Understood. The troublesome enemies will be up to Sakumo-bro and Asuna." Mizuki said.
At this moment, Asuna was placing chakra reserve blocks into the specialized slots in her combat uniform. To adapt to the new ninja tools, the Konoha Ninja Village's combat uniforms had been improved, while also leaving ample space specifically for the new ninja tools.
"Use them sparingly, unless it's an extremely urgent situation." Hatake Sakumo said, seeing Asuna's actions. He knew those were chakra reserve blocks containing that special chakra.
Although Asuna had made further progress in her Sage Mode training, in this battle, which could be called a decisive battle, it was uncertain whether she would once again exceed her own control capabilities as she did last time.
"Yes." Asuna nodded to Hatake Sakumo, "I will be careful."
Hatake Sakumo looked at Asuna's expression, nodded lightly, then turned to look at the subordinates gathering before him, and said in a deep voice, "Let's go."
Such a scene was constantly playing out in the Konoha ninja camp, and thus, the battle later known as the "Battle of River City Defense" began.
The moment the Sand Hidden ninjas and Konoha ninjas met, fierce fighting immediately erupted. Various ninjutsu and ninja tools flew through the air, mixed with Konoha's unique explosive cannons and Sand Hidden's puppet mechanisms, causing violent explosions in each other's positions.
Uchiha Kagami stood on the wall of River City, his Sharingan activated, staring intently at the battle below. Although he didn't believe the Sand Hidden ninjas would use their full strength at the beginning of the battle, no one could be sure what tactics they would employ, so he still needed to be cautious.
According to intelligence from the Anbu, the Kazekage Ebizo of the Sand Hidden Village might have left, which was actually within Uchiha Kagami's expectations, because this battle was undoubtedly a turning point for the Sand Hidden Village—and of course, for the Konoha Ninja Village as well—how could Ebizo not come to such an important war?
For this battle, the Sand Hidden Village specifically withdrew troops from the Land of Rain. If they could successfully open up a situation in the Land of Rivers, they could also abandon the seemingly fragile, yet swamp-like, Land of Rain.
The forces in the Land of Rain were not many, but the terrain and environment were unique, and there was also Hanzo, whose strength was off the charts. Furthermore, based on Fumori Masaki's suggestion, Hanzo had begun guerrilla warfare in the Land of Rain. Under the restraint of Konoha's ninja forces in the Land of Rivers, the Sand Hidden ninjas could not fully commit to the Land of Rain, and with a limited number of troops, the Sand Hidden ninjas gained absolutely no advantage in the Land of Rain.
The Land of Rain was indeed a very troublesome place; otherwise, in the normal timeline, Hanzo would not have been able to withstand the invasions of the Lands of Fire, Wind, and Earth, ultimately forcing the three great nations to withdraw from the Land of Rain. Even if Konoha was the final victor, it could not be overlooked that they had not truly conquered the Land of Rain, and the released Konoha Sannin were proof of that.
Hanzo made excellent use of the Land of Rain's terrain advantage, effectively making it impossible for the Sand Hidden ninjas to advance or retreat. If it weren't for the Land of Rivers also being difficult to deal with, some within the Sand Hidden Village might have still believed the Land of Rain could be penetrated, and the Sand Hidden ninja forces remaining in the Land of Rain would have long wanted to leave.
As the situation in the Land of Rivers changed, the Sand Hidden Village decided to wage a true decisive battle, resolutely withdrawing troops from the Land of Rain and deploying them into the Land of Rivers. This also represented their attitude: they were determined to win this battle.
Uchiha Kagami was certain that Ebizo had come to the front line, but when he would make his move was still unknown. This person had to be dealt with by him. According to the information provided by Danzo, Ebizo was skilled in strategy and used Wind Release ninjutsu, as well as the secret sand techniques invented by the previous Kazekage. In comparison, Chiyo, whose strength was similar to his, specialized in puppet techniques. The difference in their areas of expertise determined who would face them.
In the First Ninja Platoon, the strongest was undoubtedly Uchiha Kagami, followed by the young Hatake Sakumo. This young man, with his exceptional talent, had elevated his strength to a formidable level, and the experience he lacked was being compensated for in this war. He was a rising star of the Konoha Ninja Village and possessed extensive experience in dealing with puppets. Even if there were areas where he was inferior to Chiyo, with Asuna and Mizuki, he could surely compensate for it.
However, dealing with a Wind Release master like Ebizo, even if ordinary Wind Release ninjas meant nothing to Hatake Sakumo, having a ninja skilled in Lightning Release deal with him was never a good choice. Moreover, from the perspective of their respective positions, Uchiha Kagami, as the supreme commander of the First Ninja Platoon, was the most suitable.
"It's a matter of kings against kings, soldiers against soldiers, I suppose." Uchiha Kagami stared at the two sides in fierce combat, saying in a deep voice, "So, when will your 'king' emerge?"
At this time, near River City, on the open and flat ground, samurai armies were confronting each other and charging. This was the only terrain where they could effectively operate. Once they entered more complex areas, the close cooperation and numerical advantage of regular armies would be difficult to utilize, and they could easily be scattered and slowly picked off by ninja forces.
Therefore, current ninja world wars primarily involved large-scale charges by samurai armies, while ninja forces took on responsibilities in areas where samurai were less effective. At most, they would use a few hundred samurai to wear down the opponent's stamina and create opportunities for themselves. The status of samurai was indeed becoming increasingly lower.
And the unique explosive cannons of the Konoha Ninja Village were even more effective against samurai armies. Facing large-scale charging samurai, a few shots could easily clear out a group of people, and the explosion's light and impact could further deter the enemy. Because of this, the Sand Hidden ninjas understood that the key to victory still lay in the struggle for and infiltration of complex terrain.
The main areas of conflict between Konoha and Sand Hidden were the rugged roads or towering strategic points near the Land of Rivers. These were originally part of River City's defensive barriers. For traditional samurai armies, such terrain would naturally be very disadvantageous, but for ninjas, it was different.
Once any area was lost, Sand Hidden ninjas could launch long-range attacks on dense samurai armies, thereby disrupting their formations and creating opportunities for their own samurai armies to charge. This was the nature of battles between ninjas.
Uchiha Kagami waited patiently for the enemy to appear, but he didn't expect their patience to be so great. After a day and a night of fierce fighting, the enemy still hadn't appeared, instead allowing both sides to gather their remaining forces and prepare for the next accumulation of strength.
"Are they trying to test our defensive capabilities? Once they fully understand our situation, that should be when the Sand Hidden ninjas go all out." At the war council, the strategist's analysis was endorsed by Uchiha Kagami. Uchiha Kagami was not at all polite, directly stating that it was fine for the enemy to see, as this would make it more likely for them to commit their full strength.
Uchiha Kagami even decided that in the upcoming battle, he would personally lead an attack. In wars between two sides, whichever side's commander appears first, to some extent, indicates their weakness, and the possibility of the Sand Hidden ninjas launching a full-scale attack should become higher.
Although some believed that having the commander attack so early was not a good choice, especially since Uchiha Kagami's strength had inevitably declined after losing an arm, even though rigorous training had brought it close to his previous level, the gap undeniably existed.
Uchiha Kagami, overriding all objections, still decided to personally lead the charge. He actually also intended to demonstrate his current abilities. Except for Fumori Masaki, no one else knew about the Mangekyo Sharingan. Although some people had seen Uchiha Kagami's unique Mangekyo Sharingan that day, not many saw it, and they didn't know the legend of the Mangekyo Sharingan, so they naturally couldn't make the connection. Therefore, the Mangekyo Sharingan would be his trump card.
Uchiha Kagami knew what kind of power his Mangekyo Sharingan possessed. Even with one arm lost, his strength had already surpassed his past peak. And this was something others didn't know, and the Sand Hidden ninjas naturally couldn't know about it. If they thought they had accurately judged Uchiha Kagami's current state, they would surely suffer in the future.
Uchiha Kagami now intended to deceive the enemy. Deception was one of the qualities of the ninja profession. To traditional samurai, it was a despicable act, but for ninjas, it was commonplace. If someone thought a ninja's behavior was despicable, it merely meant they hadn't grasped the essence of traditional ninjas.
In the battle the next day, after Uchiha Kagami carefully observed the battlefield, he led a fifteen-man squad to a certain front line. After advancing to the Mangekyo Sharingan, his ordinary Sharingan also had greatly increased visual prowess. Already skilled at long-range genjutsu, he hadn't even arrived there when he cast genjutsu on the Sand Hidden ninjas above, with the obvious result that they didn't last long and the unfavorable situation completely reversed.
This situation was quickly sent to the Sand Hidden ninja command camp, informing the high-ranking Sand Hidden ninjas of the matter.
"Is that so, Uchiha Kagami has made his move."
"It seems the intelligence about him losing an arm is true. Although he looks to be performing well, his strength must have declined."
"To have this level of strength is still quite well-maintained, but that's all there is to it. It seems our opportunity will arrive very soon."
The Third Kazekage, Ebizo, who was present at the front line, looked at the intelligence in his hand and said to everyone. Joy was active in his eyes.