Chapter 125 Konoha's Military Deployment
Chapter 125 Konoha's Deployment (Third Update)
Meanwhile, half an hour earlier, within the Land of Fire, in the rear of Konoha's border defenses.
A Konoha ninja frowned as he gazed at the forest stretching to the horizon.
The area he was in was already a plain; beyond it lay the vast inland land of the Land of Fire.
At the same time, it was completely out of the restricted area and patrol range.
"They're not back yet—"
The Konoha chunin glanced at the sky and murmured.
His companions had already gone to the base in the forest to report on their daily missions, and should have returned long ago.
It's a bit strange.
After waiting a while longer—
Just then, an insect suddenly flew to his side and circled around him a few times.
The man initially tried to drive them away, but quickly recognized that these were insects controlled by a member of the Aburame clan using secret techniques.
He stretched out his finger, and sure enough, the insect landed on his fingertip.
Immediately, it flew down to his feet and slowly crawled on the ground, using its body to trace a few words on the ground.
"!!!"
Upon clearly seeing the font and the message it conveyed, the Konoha Chunin instantly broke out in a cold sweat.
He stared into the distance, his eyes wide with shock.
The next second, he ran away quickly without looking back.
As night fell, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had been busy all day, was preparing to rest.
But suddenly, a guard pushed open the door to his office.
His expression betrayed his panic.
"Lord Hokage, something terrible has happened! Our border with the Land of Rivers has been occupied by the army of the Sand Village!"
What?!
Upon hearing this, even the usually composed Sarutobi's eyes widened instantly.
After a moment of hesitation, he immediately said in a deep voice, "Gather everyone!"
"yes!"
The guard obeyed and turned to leave.
Sarutobi rubbed his eyes, plopped down in a chair, and looked exhausted.
His brows were instantly clouded with worry.
The Sand Village's army has launched a surprise attack on their Land of Fire?!
The village received no prior intelligence whatsoever.
Did Sunagakure (the Village Hidden in the Sand) reach some unknown cooperation with the Land of Rivers?
Sarutobi remained relatively calm. The outbreak of war was not unexpected—after all, they had already received a warning beforehand.
Surprisingly, it unfolded in this way.
Moreover, it was Sunagakure, the village considered least likely to start a war, that launched the attack against them—
In an instant, Sarutobi's thoughts were in turmoil—he began to delve into all sorts of information and intelligence related to Sunagakure in the past.
The sudden deployment of troops by Sunagakure may seem like a surprise attack—but given the state of their village, their willingness to take action must have been premeditated.
"When did it start?"
Sarutobi squinted and muttered something.
The Sand Village has lost its Third Kazekage and is now leaderless, making it naturally weak—are they neglecting the village's development?
Who exactly gave them this confidence?
No—they couldn't possibly be unaware of the cost of war.
If someone dares to take action, they must be well-prepared.
Soon, the entire high-ranking officials of Konoha arrived upon hearing the news, quite quickly.
It includes not only Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo, but also Orochimaru, the heads of various clans, the heads of various organizations in the village, and the younger generation who have already shown their talent, stepped onto the battlefield, and begun to be valued by the village.
Everyone was on high alert, and the atmosphere was tense.
They have already inquired about the person who sent back the battle report.
The conclusion that was drawn weighed heavily on everyone's spirits.
Because what is certain now is that their borders have fallen—the fact that they could conquer an entire war zone in such a short time, even with a small number of troops deployed by their village, is enough to show that Sunagakure is coming with great force and has a large military strength.
They had planned it much earlier.
"However—judging from the speed at which the battle reports are coming back, the situation is very unfavorable for us. Our people must have been completely wiped out by Sunagakure, otherwise—we should have received the news long ago. Who is leading the Sunagakure army to achieve this? The Third Kazekage?"
"A senior executive said in a deep voice."
Could someone with such battlefield dominance be the Kazekage?
In other words, the Third Kazekage has not disappeared; it is highly likely that the Sand Village is staging a play to deliberately mislead the outside world.
It was designed specifically for the current attack on the Land of Fire.
"No—according to our intelligence analysis, the Third Kazekage has indeed disappeared, and for some time now. The affairs of Sunagakure are currently being handled by that old woman, Chiyo. Besides, given the huge commotion earlier, coupled with Sunagakure's furious and indiscriminate accusations, it doesn't seem like a hoax—"
"The village is immediately placed on standby!"
Sarutobi took a drag of his opium, refrained from participating in the discussion, and gave instructions to his subordinates.
After saying that, he looked at another person and said, "Mobilize your forces and proceed to the combat zone immediately."
"The notification has already been sent out."
The latter responded.
"Not only the border of the Land of Rivers, but also the Land of Earth, the Land of Lightning, and the coastal areas must be fortified."
Sarutobi spoke up.
The great war has begun, and the people Konoha is going to deal with are definitely not just Sunagakure.
News of this war will spread quickly; perhaps some of the other villages already know about it.
Once word gets out, those old rivals of Konoha who are always looking for trouble will definitely take the opportunity to invade.
It should be noted that the disappearance of the Third Kazekage caused quite a stir in the ninja world, planting a time bomb for the potential escalation of the conflict into a full-blown war.
Several villages sensed that war was about to break out, and it was just a matter of who would take the first step.
In other words, Konoha cannot commit all its forces to the battlefield against Sunagakure at the moment. Even if there is a large gap in military strength and combat power, it is not something that can be done in a day or two to annihilate an entire Sunagakure army.
Moreover, the enemy was well prepared.
If there is no time to return to defend or mobilize troops, then bad news like the one about the border being overrun by the Sunagakure army could happen again.
They must be prepared in advance for enemies that might suddenly appear from other border areas.
It's not just Konoha—it's all five great ninja villages. From now on, they all need to be extremely careful!
They were caught off guard by Sunagakure's trick.
With this thought in mind, Sarutobi glanced at Danzo intentionally.
It should be noted that Danzo was previously certain that given the current state of Sunagakure, they would absolutely not dare to start a war.
The results of it?
Not only did they choose it, they were also the first to make a move.
Moreover, once they make a move, it's a ruthless one!
Danzo noticed his old friend's gaze, but showed no remorse or unease at being slapped in the face by reality. Instead, he remained expressionless and calm.
At this critical juncture, Sarutobi was no longer in the mood to settle scores with Danzo; the war was his priority.
He looked at the group of villagers before him, and the feeling was particularly strong—
Compared to the last Shinobi World War, the village has very few people left who can be assigned to important roles in this war.
The borders of the entire Land of Fire could become large-scale battlefields. With insufficient top-tier combat power, the only option to withstand the pressure is to let the new generation fill the gaps and begin their true training.
This is also an opportunity for these younger generations.
"Orochimaru—you will immediately lead your troops towards the Land of Rice Fields and pay attention to any movements from the Hidden Cloud Village."
"Yuichiro, Hazuki, Aoki—you will lead a group of people to the Land of Grass to defend against a possible attack by Iwagakure."
Sarutobi then quickly and briefly made his combat deployment.
Konoha is very experienced in this kind of war—especially those characters who experienced the Second Shinobi World War, who know what to do and what not to do.
"Yes."
Everyone accepted the order.
Next, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned his gaze to the faces of several young people in the village.