Everyone understood the tremendous benefits that would come from capturing Thunder Gorge, but they also recognized that the fortress was extraordinarily difficult to breach!
Shihouin Naraku was well aware of Nara Shikaku's concerns and explained his reasoning:
"I understand that Thunder Gorge won't be easy to assault, and we don't need to fight to the death here.
However, if we attack this position, the Raikage will definitely lead reinforcements to support the garrison, which puts the tactical initiative in our hands.
This is far better than simply waiting here defensively for the Hidden Cloud Village's counterattack."
Siege the point to attack the reinforcements?!
Nara Shikaku suddenly understood. Although Naraku was ostensibly setting his sights on Thunder Gorge, his real target remained the ninja forces led by the Raikage himself.
"In that case, there should be no major problems with this strategy."
"The advantage of attacking Thunder Gorge is that even if the Hidden Cloud Village suspects we might only be feinting, they still have to send reinforcements because neither the village nor the Land of Lightning can withstand the consequences of Thunder Gorge being breached."
"Exactly right!"
Naraku snapped his fingers and continued explaining his plan:
"Although our primary target is the Raikage's forces, there's no need for us to engage them in direct confrontation. That ninja army will be composed entirely of elite fighters. If we face them head-on, we'll suffer devastating casualties."
"So my real strategy is for all our ninja to conduct a feint attack on Thunder Gorge together, then separate a portion of our troops to quietly infiltrate the Land of Lightning. They'll hide along the enemy's inevitable route, allow the vanguard and main force to pass, and save our killing blow for the logistics and supply convoys!"
"After we eliminate the Cloud forces' supply and logistics capabilities, their morale and fighting spirit will surely crumble. Even if the Raikage uses his personal prestige to pressure them, it certainly won't solve the fundamental problem."
Nara Shikaku felt there were no major flaws in this plan, but he had one significant concern:
"Other aspects of the strategy are manageable.
However, we have no way of knowing the Cloud forces' marching route in advance.
The path they must take runs through the interior of the Land of Lightning.
If we send too few people there, we won't be able to create a meaningful breach.
If we send too many people there, it becomes equivalent to a direct invasion of Lightning Country."
"Leave that problem to me!"
Whether it was the existence of the Sky Comet Dragon or the Flight Technique he had mastered, Naraku could easily enter Lightning Country airspace and locate the Cloud forces' marching route.
There were far too few ninja in the world who could achieve sustained flight, and the five great nations rarely considered aerial threats in their defensive planning.
Detailed Preparations
Next, Naraku, Shikaku, and the other staff officers began making careful arrangements for this complex operation. Countless details needed to be finalized and coordinated.
For example, determining who would lead how many ninja in the surprise attack, and who would command the forces remaining behind to conduct the feint assault on Thunder Gorge.
Intelligence transmission and supply distribution, personnel deployment, and numerous other factors all needed to be determined in advance.
The staff officers argued intensely, their faces reddening as they debated even the smallest tactical details.
But everyone shared the same ultimate goal: ensuring Konoha's victory in this war!
After hours of heated discussion, everyone finally agreed on the finalized plan.
The next step was mobilizing the ninja forces and preparing to implement the battle strategy.
At Naraku's command, the troops assembled, and Shihouin Naraku led the ninja army toward Thunder Gorge.
After more than two hours of forced marching, the Konoha forces successfully arrived at the approaches to Thunder Gorge. They organized their formations and prepared to attack at any moment.
"We deliberately allowed several waves of Cloud ninja scouts to escape along the way. The news should spread quickly to their command."
Shihouin Naraku looked up at the towering Thunder Gorge fortress. In the middle of the narrow mountain pass, a magnificent fortification stood like an immovable guardian, blocking all would-be invaders.
"Just looking at this fortress makes my scalp tingle!"
Nara Shikaku understood perfectly that with their current number of Konoha ninja, capturing this stronghold was completely impossible!
Of course, this assessment was based on Shikaku still not fully comprehending the true extent of Shihouin Naraku's power.
The Lone Advance
"Easy to defend, nearly impossible to attack!"
"Order everyone to maintain their positions! No one else is permitted to approach the fortress until I take action!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Konoha forces formed battle lines, ready to attack at a moment's notice!
After surveying the surrounding terrain, Shihouin Naraku began walking toward the Thunder Gorge pass step by step.
Naraku made no attempt to conceal his approach, so the Cloud ninja defending the pass spotted him immediately.
Because the Lightning Country border had been breached, the Cloud defenders were already on high alert. When they saw Naraku appear, they immediately sounded the alarm!
"Enemy contact! Hostile approaching!"
"Alert! The Konoha forces are forming battle lines at the base of the mountain!"
"Send word to the rear immediately! Thunder Gorge is under attack from Konoha!"
"Don't panic! Those Konoha dogs will never break through the impregnable fortress we've constructed! Stay sharp and focused!"
"Only one enemy has appeared?!"
"There's just a single ninja approaching, and he appears to be... No, wait - that's Shihouin Naraku! The supreme commander of the Konoha forces!"
"Kill him!"
"Ready crossbows! Aim carefully! Fire!"
The sharp twang of bowstrings echoed across the pass as the mechanisms were triggered, sending spear-like bolts flying through the air like lightning!
The projectiles pierced the atmosphere with tremendous force, bursting toward Shihouin Naraku with terrifying destructive power.
"BOOM!"
Stone fragments scattered in all directions as a deep crater was instantly created in the ground!
Shihouin Naraku seemed completely oblivious to this barrage and continued his steady approach toward the pass.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Crossbow bolts rained down like a deadly storm, bombarding Naraku's position continuously and saturating the entire area with projectiles.
No matter how powerful these weapons were, if they couldn't hit their target, they couldn't cause any harm to Naraku whatsoever.
He walked calmly through the rain of bolts without slowing his pace at all, steadily approaching the fortress.
"Impossible!"
"Damn it!"
"The target is too small and mobile! We'll never hit him at this rate!"
"Stop wasting ammunition! He can't possibly breach our fortress single-handedly!"
Testing the Defenses
While slowly advancing toward the enemy stronghold, Shihouin Naraku drew Kurikara from its sheath.
With a metallic ring, a pitch-black crescent-shaped blade wave slashed outward and struck the solid fortification with lightning speed.
"BOOM!"
Stone debris flew everywhere as a very noticeable sword mark appeared on the massive wall!
However, compared to the towering and incredibly solid structure, a single blade mark was indeed not particularly significant. Even though the attack's power was enormous and could penetrate the building material, it didn't cause substantial damage to the overall fortress.
Immediately afterward, several more sword waves slashed against the structure, leaving ugly scars across the tall defensive walls!
"Hahahaha..."
"You actually thought the fortress we built could be breached so easily! How absolutely ridiculous!"
"No one in the entire ninja world possesses the power to break through this stronghold!"
The commotion on the mountainside was so loud that the Konoha forces below could observe everything clearly.
This fortress was indeed too powerful to be overcome by conventional human strength!
"Truly impressive!"
Shihouin Naraku raised his eyebrows as he studied the magnificent stronghold before him!
From what he understood, all the materials used to construct this fortress had been transported from distant locations by the Hidden Cloud Village through tremendous effort, specifically to create a building that no enemy could possibly breach!
There was also an unconfirmed rumor that the original purpose behind building this pass was to defend against the God of the Shinobi World - Senju Hashirama - and the Shura of the Shinobi World - Uchiha Madara!
In Naraku's opinion, this rumor wasn't entirely without foundation.
After all, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara had dominated the entire ninja world with their overwhelming power, so it wasn't difficult to understand why other nations would undertake such massive construction projects for defensive purposes.
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