Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Chapter 415 The Hidden Cloud Village on the Brink of Collapse

Onoki stayed behind, quietly watching the figures recede into the distance, a cold glint in his eyes.

"The lightning from Kumogakure should stop."

He murmured softly, a thin layer of Dust Release chakra surrounding his body, and slowly rose into the air.

In mid-air, the field of vision becomes extremely wide.

He saw the distant, continuous mountain range, which was the natural barrier of Cloud Village.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountain, another elite squad from Sunagakure was also taking advantage of the torrential rain to rapidly advance towards the border.

A three-way attack.

Even the Third Raikage at his peak would have found it difficult to withstand such a dense barrage of attacks.

Not to mention the Fourth Raikage, who had just taken over a mess.

He took a deep breath of the fishy-smelling air, then transformed into a yellow streak of light and sped toward his target.

Meanwhile, within the Land of Rain.

The three members of Xiao's team were lying in ambush beside a secluded forest path.

Yahiko kept his head down, and cold rain dripped from his hair onto his headband.

"That team just now was the Iwagakure's earth-blasting unit."

Yahiko lowered his voice and spoke to Nagato and Konan behind him.

Xiao Nan looked away from a blank sheet of paper, which turned into dust at her fingertips and dissipated.

"The equipment is excellent, the ninja tools are all top-of-the-line, and they even have devices that can conceal chakra fluctuations," Konan added.

Nagato sat quietly cross-legged under a large tree, his eyes slightly closed, but with his perception activated, every subtle movement around him was clearly visible.

"Not only that."

Nagato spoke, his voice carrying a youthful composure, "Along their route, a group of Sand Village ninjas are conducting a signal relay."

Yahiko turned his head, his brows furrowed tightly.

"The Hidden Stone Village and the Hidden Sand Village have appeared in the same area at the same time, and with such perfect coordination."

"This is war preparation."

Nagato stood up and looked northeast, towards the key canyon connecting the Land of Rain to Kumogakure.

"If it's war preparation..."

Yahiko's pupils contracted as he rapidly pieced together various pieces of information.

"Where is our Konoha?"

"Konoha..."

Nagato murmured to herself, her gaze piercing through the layers of rain, as if she could see that bustling village.

Yahiko stood up and took the spool from his waist.

"Ready to depart."

Yahiko did not hesitate at all.

Without any hesitation, the three of them adjusted their movements immediately after determining their location, and like three swallows flying in the rain, sped towards the border of the Land of Fire.

Rainforest.

Just ten seconds after they left, a rearguard ninja from Iwagakure stopped and turned around in confusion, looking at the spot where Yahiko and the others had been hiding.

There was nothing there except for the puddles.

"What's wrong?" his companion asked from a short distance away.

"It's nothing."

He shook his head, suppressing the strange feeling that lingered in his heart, and quickened his pace to catch up.

The rain intensified.

The branches of the dense forest swayed wildly in the gale.

Several days later, in Kumogakure.

Raikage's office.

boom--!!!

A loud bang, accompanied by the cracking of wood chips, shook the entire building.

The specially made desk, which was as solid as steel, was turned into a pile of twisted scrap by a single punch from the young Fourth Raikage, A.

The ink bottle exploded, and black liquid flowed like blood across the wreckage and the scroll.

Ai's fist was deeply embedded in the wood, and the veins on his bronze arm bulged like a coiled, angry dragon.

Fine strands of lightning chakra leaped uncontrollably around him, crackling and distorting the air with a slight heat.

A newly delivered frontline battle report lay scattered before him.

"Bastard! Bastard!!"

Ai's chest heaved violently, and he let out a beast-like growl. His eyes, burning with rage, were fixed on the glaring words on the battle report—request for reinforcements.

There was another person standing in the office.

Hidden Cloud Village's chief strategist, with the Raikage as his advisor, is Tsuchishiro.

He wore a single eyepatch covering his left eye, while his remaining right eye remained calm and still, as if the rage of the Rayleigh before him and the mess in the office were nothing more than a passing cloud outside the window.

He neither tried to dissuade nor comforted anyone; he simply stood quietly, waiting for the first lull in the storm.

"Toshiro."

Ai abruptly raised his head, his violent aura rushing towards him, "Why do the Sand Village, the Iwa Village, and that scum from the Amegakure Village dare to declare war on our Kumogakure at the same time!"

Tsuchishiro bowed slightly, speaking at a measured pace, each word crystal clear.

"Lord Raikage, this is not a declaration of war, but... a long-planned hunt."

He reached out and pulled out a few scrolls from a relatively intact pile of documents, carefully avoiding the mess on the ground, and spread them out on an open space in front of Ai.

"The combined forces of the three villages, the western defense line, the third, seventh and ninth squads were all wiped out. Iwagakure's demolition unit tore open a gap, and the border village fell."

He paused, then picked up the second roll.

"In the south, the Sand Village's puppet division, in coordination with the Amegakure's infiltration forces, launched a surprise attack on the logistics supply depot."

Tsuchishiro's commentary was so calm it was almost cruel, like a chess player reviewing a game he was destined to lose.

"The aftermath of the Battle of the Land of Whirlpools is more severe than we anticipated. Countless ninjas from the village were lost in that battle, and there is a severe shortage of Chunin. Our current forces are simply insufficient to deal with the combined forces of the three villages."

"That's enough!"

Ai rudely interrupted him.

How could he not know!

His father's death in battle and the destruction of the fleet still echo in his mind day and night, like poisonous thorns piercing his flesh and leaving him bloodied and mangled.

Ai's fists clenched so tightly they cracked. "Send up every single unit we can! I'm going to lead the charge myself and twist those bastards' heads off one by one!"

After a moment of silence, Tsuchishiro spoke in a calm tone, almost as if stating a fact.

"I can't unscrew it."

"What?!"

Ai's anger was instantly ignited. He grabbed Tsuchida by the collar and lifted the old minister up with one hand.

I said, "I can't unscrew it."

He was lifted into the air, breathing with some difficulty, but his single eye still calmly met Ai's gaze. "Iwagakure has Onoki, Sunagakure has the Third Kazekage, Amegakure has Hanzo. What do we have? A young Raikage who lost his father and was blinded by rage, and a village that was crippled in the Land of Whirlpools and has yet to recover."

These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over Ai's anger.

He slowly released his grip, and Toshiro staggered back two steps, straightening his collar.

A deathly silence fell over the office, broken only by Ai's heavy breathing.

"Lord Raikage, please forgive my bluntness,"

Tsuchishiro's voice finally took on a heavy tone, "If you personally go to the front lines, and are defeated... or killed in battle, Kumogakure will truly be finished."

These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over Ai Feifen's furious anger.

He froze.

Yes, he is the Raikage.

He was no longer the impetuous young man who could charge into battle alongside his father with sheer passion.

His life was now intertwined with that of the village and countless villagers and ninjas.