During that time, the Kirigakure Village mobilized its ninja forces on a large scale, but intelligence reports indicated they hadn't yet launched a full-scale assault, focusing instead on gathering their forces.
The situation was similar in Kumogakure.
Meanwhile, in the west, Sunagakure and Iwagakure launched simultaneous offensives.
Sunagakure advanced through the Land of Rivers to attack the western borders of the Land of Fire, while Iwagakure directly assaulted Grass Village.
Within a short span of time, the Four Great Nations had nearly simultaneously launched attacks against Konoha.
That night, Kumogakure had yet to initiate its assault, but Raj and Minato secretly crossed the border, infiltrating Kumogakure territory from the Land of Iron.
They stealthily advanced, and with Raj's keen sense of smell, they quickly located the Kumogakure's encampment.
However, finding the location was only half the battle.
Approaching the camp, unleashing a single devastating attack, and retreating as Tsunade had envisioned proved far more challenging than anticipated.
The Kumogakure's ninja patrols covered a vast area, and their encampment was situated deep within mountainous, forested terrain.
This was deeply frustrating.
"Meow?"
"I'll draw them out first. You find an opportunity to strike at their main camp."
With those words, Minato vanished in a flash.
Such efficiency, such decisiveness.
'Speechless.'
Raj secretly admired his resolve, settling down to wait for the opportune moment.
Before long, the "honest man" began causing chaos.
Waves of screams and alarm cries erupted from three or four different locations, making it sound as if an entire Konoha force had arrived.
'To be fair, Minato's speed was only slightly slower than my full-speed burst.'
Raj secretly admired him.
When the chaos erupted, it immediately entered Sage Mode to amplify its senses, primarily to locate the Third Raikage.
The Raikage's emergence point would undoubtedly be near the enemy's main camp.
Moments later, the formidable old warrior charged down a mountain, heading straight toward the area where Minato was causing trouble.
Raj swiftly moved to intercept him.
Its speed was impressive as well.
Before long, it reached the mountain peak overlooking the camp and began slowly gathering Sage Chakra.
'Raikage, I'm here to raid your base! Sage Art: Spiraling Sphere Shuriken!'
!!!
Midway through his charge, the Third Raikage sensed the terrifying surge of chakra and immediately looked up.
He spotted the silhouette of a cat perched on the mountain's rocky summit.
From the cat's mouth, a chakra sphere was rapidly expanding.
"Damn it! A!" The Third Raikage's expression twisted in alarm.
In an instant, he unleashed a massive surge of Lightning Release chakra and charged toward Raj's position.
But the distance was too great; he couldn't possibly return in time to defend the camp.
Just then... ROAR!
A deafening roar shook the camp.
A spectral blue beast, resembling a tiger wreathed in eerie blue flames, erupted from the camp's heart, its appearance both terrifying and majestic.
From its maw, a colossal chakra sphere rapidly coalesced.
"It's Matatabi!"
"Lord Yugito..."
"Tear that cat to shreds!"
Within the camp, some cheered while others seethed with hatred.
Many still clung to their animosity toward the Tailed Beasts.
However, neither Yugito nor Matatabi cared about the opinions of these petty fools; their sole focus remained: The cat!
Nearby, the Third Raikage's mood darkened further.
While Yugito possessed remarkable talent in controlling the Tailed Beast, she had never fully unleashed its power.
Now, whether the Two-Tails, Matatabi, had sensed the chaos and erupted, or whether Yugito had deliberately released it... If it was the former, they were in deep trouble.
Reality offered no time for contemplation.
The Two-Tails' Tailed Beast Ball collided with the spiraling Rasenshuriken.
Through the dust, A could be faintly seen shouting orders for everyone to retreat.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shook the battlefield.
The colossal clash of Chakra shattered the earth and crumbled mountains.
The entire mountain range was engulfed in a Chakra storm as Matatabi roared and swept its tail, obliterating the camp in a single strike.
Yet this attack harmed surprisingly few.
In fact, had Matatabi not swept the camp away, the Kumogakure camp would have been completely annihilated by the Chakra storm.
Only Yugito herself was flung away.
Collapsing rocks crashed down on her.
As her Tailed Beast transformation faded and she was about to be buried alive, the Third Raikage arrived like a bolt of lightning.
His hand, sharp as a spear, shattered the boulders with a single strike.
The chaotic Chakra currents washed over him, but his defenses remained impenetrable; even the residual force couldn't harm him.
After all, this was the man who had withstood the Eight-Tailed Beast's Tailed Beast Ball unscathed.
'Phew, good thing Yugito's alright,' the Third Raikage thought, relieved.
Yugito was still young, and he hadn't expected her to fully control the Two-Tails.
During her transformation, he'd almost feared she had lost control.
But her earlier act of sweeping the camp away proved she hadn't been completely dominated.
Of course, Matatabi hadn't fully conceded either.
After exchanging a blow with Raj, it immediately withdrew its power as soon as the opponent retreated, clearly intending to let Yugito die.
But now...
In the distance, a massive storm materialized out of thin air, and the two figures vanished in an instant.
The Third Raikage felt utterly humiliated.
"Lord..."
"Healers, tend to the wounded! Quartermasters, take inventory! What are you standing around for? Move!" he roared.
"Yes, sir!"
The group sprang into action.
Before long, the casualty report came in.
Not counting the wounded, the second Rasenshuriken alone had annihilated six entire squads.
Some survived, but their injuries were so severe that even if healed, most would likely never be fit for combat again.
The Third Raikage's expression darkened.
This was Konoha's counterattack.
He had anticipated Konoha might retaliate, especially since the Eastern Leader was the renowned Princess Tsunade.
Given any opportunity, she would never miss a chance to strike back and assert her authority.
He had considered every possibility-except for Konoha deploying two Flying Thunder God Technique users simultaneously, capable of wielding such devastating Ninjutsu.
They had killed four Konoha squads, and Konoha had retaliated by wiping out six of theirs.
The simplest form of revenge.
But with the Flying Thunder God Technique, it was impossible to defend against.
"Father."
"I underestimated them this time, but next time won't be so easy."
The Third Raikage handed Yugito over to the approaching Medical Ninjas, took a deep breath to calm his fury, and began to strategize with cold, calculated precision.
There was no doubt: that Wind Release Ninjutsu was terrifyingly powerful.
Wind Release counters Lightning Release... Whether that technique could harm him or not, evasion was the best course of action.
However, the cat's speed and the Flying Thunder God Technique were proving to be an unbearable headache.
The Third Raikage pondered for a long time, but couldn't devise a countermeasure.
It was simply too overwhelming.