Chapter 14 – The Ninja World War
Inside the hidden base of the ROOT division in Konohagakure, Shimura Danzō's face was twisted in confusion and rage.
Where did this unknown third-party force come from?
According to Hatake Sakumo's report, there were not only Kumogakure shinobi involved in the attempted abduction of Hatake Kyūjō—but also another group, a mysterious third force that had clashed with the Kumo ninjas at the scene.
The resulting chaos had given Kyūjō the perfect opening to escape.
But that didn't make sense.
Wasn't he, Shimura Danzō, supposed to be that "third party"? If so... who the hell were these people?
His mind whirled with doubt, but after a moment, he simply scoffed and muttered coldly, "That Hatake brat... he got lucky this time. And you too, Konoha's damned White Fang… Hatake Sakumo… just you wait, both of you."
— — —
The attempted kidnapping by Kumogakure triggered a chain reaction across the shinobi world.
Before Konoha even had a chance to issue a formal protest, the long-standing illusion of peace—fragile and quietly simmering for over two decades—finally began to crack.
The reasons were complicated, but it all boiled down to the growing imbalance between nations. The disparity in wealth and resources among the great shinobi villages and their host countries had reached a breaking point. From the shadows, hardline factions began to rise.
Among the major players were Hanzo of Amegakure, Shimura Danzō of Konoha, Ao of Kirigakure, and the Third Raikage of Kumogakure.
Hiding behind the rhetoric of "balance and justice," these leaders began pushing for military expansion—seizing resources, territories, and influence through force.
In other words, they were all preparing for war. And they had been doing it in secret for a long time.
The Land of Rain, caught in the middle of the great nations of Earth, Fire, and Wind, had become an unspoken battleground for covert operations and proxy wars.
The one who eventually sparked open warfare was none other than Hanzo of the Salamander—Amegakure's fearsome leader.
But instead of acting with political tact, Hanzo—perhaps high on his own legend as the so-called "Demi-God"—abruptly sent challenge letters to both the Third Kazekage and Konoha's Hiruzen Sarutobi... at the same time.
The wording was blunt, arrogant even, as if demanding that Konoha submit to his will.
It nearly made the calm and wise Hiruzen lose his temper.
The Kazekage was no less enraged.
You had to admit, picking a fight with two major villages at once… Hanzo was bold. Reckless, perhaps, but undeniably bold.
But arrogance comes at a cost.
Even if Amegakure had once been a victim in the shadows of greater nations... in the shinobi world, small countries were always the ones to suffer.
Hanzo's mistake wasn't provoking a fight—it was provoking two superpowers at the same time.
Had he only targeted Sunagakure, he might have actually had a shot.
— — —
The moment Hiruzen received Hanzo's challenge, he knew war was inevitable.
As the leader of the world's largest shinobi village, failing to respond would have been a disgrace to the title of Hokage.
But Hanzo wasn't someone to underestimate.
He was not only a monster in personal combat, but also had the formidable Amegakure as his base of operations.
— — —
While Hiruzen gathered Konoha's strength for the coming battle, something else happened in the Hatake household—
The birth of a prodigy.
Hatake Kakashi, future "Copy Ninja," was born into the world.
Seeing the unmasked baby Kakashi, his uncle, Hatake Kyūjō, nearly pulled out a phone from his nonexistent jeans pocket to snap hundreds—maybe thousands—of baby photos. (Just kidding.)
— — —
Despite being swamped with war preparations, Hiruzen still took the time to send a congratulatory gift to the Hatake family, specifically to Sakumo—the White Fang of Konoha.
Right now, Sakumo was Hiruzen's sharpest blade.
Even compared to his three most beloved students—Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru—Sakumo was on another level.
Hiruzen knew it well.
Aside from Kakashi, many future key figures had already been born: Genma Shiranui, Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yuhi, Might Guy, and even Obito Uchiha.
Kyūjō had made a point to check on Obito... and frankly, didn't see anything special.
He left him alone.
Slaughtering babies was not something a true swordsman did.
If Obito someday fell into darkness like in the original timeline, Kyūjō could just take care of him with a single punch... or one clean sword strike.
— — —
Roughly a week later, Hiruzen had completed all military preparations.
He deployed his three prized students—Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru—to the front lines.
All of them were still in their early twenties, yet together they commanded over 80% of Konoha's elite forces as they marched toward the Land of Rain.
Hiruzen was confident.
After all, Amegakure wasn't just facing Konoha—they had also antagonized Sunagakure.
With two great nations bearing down, what chance did Hanzo have?
As for which of the three students would inherit the title of Fourth Hokage, Hiruzen had already made his decision quietly.
He just didn't realize... none of them were particularly interested in the job.
— — —
Over in Sunagakure, provoked by Hanzo's challenge, the village sent one of their own Kage-level forces—Chiyo, the legendary puppet master.
Unlike Konoha's massive deployment, Suna sent only a small squad led by Chiyo herself.
It might've seemed unbalanced in numbers, but they had confidence.
— — —
Meanwhile, Hatake Kyūjō's team wasn't deployed at all.
Despite Jiraiya—their sensei—being one of the commanding officers, Kyūjō and his team were given no wartime assignments.
Kyūjō figured it had something to do with his older brother Sakumo.
Hiruzen was likely preparing Sakumo as a hidden trump card.
Currently, Sakumo was being kept in Konoha, lying low... acting as bait.
And sure enough, from what Kyūjō knew of the timeline, that bait was about to catch some big fish.
If Kyūjō were sent to the front lines, it might complicate things for Sakumo emotionally.
Another possibility? Hiruzen might've wanted to preserve Kyūjō and Namikaze Minato for the future. Losing talents like them too early would be devastating.
After all, large-scale ninja wars weren't about one-on-one battles.
Most ninja were just disposable pawns.
A hundred Genin casting low-level ninjutsu could still overwhelm a single Jōnin.
That's why the big villages trained thousands of Genin and Chūnin—they were live ammunition.
Casualties were high. Potential didn't matter if you died before blooming.
Even if Kyūjō believed he was strong—especially with his mastery of Colorless Haki, making him immune to most basic attacks—he had no interest in fighting for Konoha's ambition.
Besides, he already knew how this war would end.
He and Minato accepted their exclusion from the war without complaint.
Minato followed orders without question.
Meanwhile, Kushina Uzumaki kept grumbling, cursing Hiruzen for not letting her join the battlefield.
She had no idea... she was a Jinchūriki of the Nine Tails.
There was no way Hiruzen would let her near the front lines.
— — —
Soon, Sunagakure's elite unit led by Chiyo clashed with Hanzo and the Amegakure shinobi.
Without Hanzo present, the rest of Amegakure's forces struggled to hold back Konoha's advance—especially with Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru at the helm.
The trio were already far beyond average Jōnin.
They were Half-Step Kage level—three monsters with armies at their backs.
Without Hanzo to stop them, the outcome was obvious.
— — —
So what about Hatake Sakumo?
According to Kyūjō's analysis, his older brother had already reached the same level as Hiruzen.
Stronger, even, than his original counterpart from the main timeline.
Kyūjō's presence in this world had quietly elevated Sakumo's growth.
Both were swordsmen, and Sakumo had drawn inspiration from Kyūjō's techniques—especially his mastery of "Kenshin Tomei," the True Transparent Sword style.
As a result, Sakumo reached his peak a decade earlier than canon.
And from there, every step forward would be a new summit.
Kyūjō couldn't wait to see how far "Konoha's White Fang" would go.
— — —
Meanwhile, the battle between Hanzo and Chiyo wasn't going as planned.
Whether by accident or strategy, Suna had sent the one person best equipped to counter him.
Chiyo's puppets were immune to poison.
And as a poison master herself, she needed only minutes to analyze and neutralize Hanzo's toxins.
But Hanzo wasn't to be underestimated.
Even without his salamander venom, he was still a fearsome warrior with his chained sickle and sword techniques.
He shredded dozens of Chiyo's puppets with sheer brute force.
Though he hadn't injured her directly, the loss of so many puppets clearly agitated her.
With a furious expression, Chiyo screamed, "Hanzo! You old man breathing through a hose! Are you insane!? You dare insult our Kazekage!?"
"Spare me, you dusty puppet hag!" Hanzo growled, spinning his chain-sickle toward her.
He was annoyed. Extremely so.
He couldn't use his poison. He'd only destroyed lifeless dolls. He hadn't landed a single hit on her flesh.
For someone called the "Demi-God," this was humiliating.
And his own army was still waiting on him to win.
If he couldn't defeat Chiyo... his challenge to two great nations would become a laughingstock.
The shame made his blood boil.
Just as he prepared to go all out—
Chiyo suddenly leapt back dozens of meters, having received a signal from her Suna comrades.
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