Night fell.
The Sand Village and Konoha both sounded the signal to withdraw.
"Give me a bit more time—I'll definitely finish off that old hag Chiyo for good."
Tsunade said as she pulled senbon needles out of her body.
Orochimaru could only stand by helplessly.
At least Tsunade and Chiyo were fighting fiercely, back and forth.
But on his side…
Whenever the Third Kazekage wanted to fight, Orochimaru could only accompany him for a few exchanges. When the Kazekage lost interest, Orochimaru could only keep a tight watch on him, not daring to relax for even a moment.
The gap in strength made Orochimaru realize it once again—
In the face of absolute power, everything else was meaningless.
It had been the same with Hanzo. All schemes and tricks were worthless before overwhelming strength.
Though, back then… it seemed they had lost, and Konoha had won.
If Shiken were here, what would he do?
Aburame Shiken: What else is there to do? If you can't beat him, then don't fight him. Picking a fight with someone you can't defeat—are you sick or something?
Bullying the weak while avoiding the strong…
Inuzuka Ryoha: cough cough Hey, you stole my line.
Lethal methods, picking off the small fry, avoiding powerful enemies, surviving to the end—that's my ninja way.
Inuzuka Ryoha sent a "like."
"Hisss—damn, that hurts, that hurts."
At this moment, Inuzuka Ryoha was cooperating with Inuzuka Rinko, applying medicine to his wounds.
"Man, what a loss… I knew I shouldn't have fought someone on Rasa's level. After hours of fighting, I'm covered in injuries. If I'd gone to bully some chūnin and genin instead, I could've broken through their formations dozens of times by now."
"Ryoha, next time don't block those kunai for me. I'm not weak—you know they can't hurt me."
"No way. Don't even think about taking away my chance to play the hero and save the beauty."
"You smooth talker."
Inuzuka Rinko smiled gently, her expression full of happiness as she quietly watched him.
This was her future husband—a man who would protect her forever.
"Look at that kid Ryoha's mouth—he sure knows how to talk. Rinko, you better hold back. Don't give in to him so easily at a time like this."
Outside the tent, the Inuzuka clan head peeked in, his eyes practically splitting with rage.
That was his daughter!
And just like that, she'd been taken by that yellow—no, white-haired brat. It hurt just thinking about it.
Smack.
"Grown man, and you're still spying on the kids? Get lost already."
Inuzuka Reika slapped the clan head hard.
Inside was her son. And besides, wasn't her son outstanding? Plenty of families with daughters had already come to her to sound things out. If he married their daughters, they should feel honored.
A common trait among parents—they all think their own child is the best.
But when both sets of parents came face-to-face, it was obvious this would take quite a long discussion.
Fortunately, Inuzuka Misa acted as the mediator, dragging both of them toward her tent.
Eavesdropping was one thing, but arguing outside someone else's tent? Even she didn't think she had the nerve for that.
Not long after they left…
Minato Namikaze arrived.
Seeing what was happening inside the tent, he decisively tossed a scroll in and left.
Go in there and get fed dog food? Hmph. That kind of thing would never happen to me, Minato Namikaze.
Inuzuka Ryoha picked up the scroll.
Seeing the Aburame clan emblem on it, along with a special code only a few of them knew, he immediately realized it was a message from Aburame Shiken.
"Rinko, keep watch around the area for me."
"Got it."
Inuzuka Rinko activated her enhanced sense of smell.
Hm? That's Father… Mother… and—wait, Mother-in-law's scent too? Did they come by just now?
After opening the scroll—
"Damn it! Slacking off himself and wants me to do his work for him? Has he lost his mind?"
"Rinko, I'm going to find Tsunade-sensei. You should head back and rest first."
"Ah… okay."
Actually, I wanted to rest here…
Inuzuka Rinko ultimately didn't say it.
After all, she was a girl—she had her pride.
At the same time, Orochimaru also received an identical scroll, a mysterious smile appearing on his face.
Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze had already set off toward the coastal battlefield.
The hardest-working man in the ninja world—none other than me, Minato Namikaze.
...
Finally, in the early hours of the next morning—
"Kamito, this is yours. Hiyasu, this is yours. Also… is there somewhere safe? I want to take a short nap."
Uchiha Kamito and Hyūga Hiyasu looked at Minato, who had heavy dark circles under his eyes.
Damn—just how badly had Shiken worked him? How did he end up like this?
Aburame Shiken: ??? What did I do? I just asked him to deliver a message. Don't slander me.
"My tent is the safest. Go get some rest."
"Alright, thanks, Kamito."
After Minato went to rest in Uchiha Kamito's tent, the remaining two exchanged a glance and headed to Hyūga Hiyasu's tent.
"Release."
Both scrolls revealed the exact same sentence:
"Ōnoki of the Hidden Stone has mobilized. The Hidden Stone has no remaining backup plans. Act freely."
Just one sentence—and he split it into two scrolls? Is Shiken insane?
The two looked at each other.
A pair of Byakugan and a pair of Sharingan reached a perfect understanding—
Exactly what you're thinking.
Aburame Shiken: How would I know you two are glued together all day? Don't tell me you're… like that?
"The Hidden Stone has no backup? What about the Four-Tails and Five-Tails? What if Shiken miscalculated in the end?"
Uchiha Kamito said shamelessly.
"They were probably terrified by Hideki's side. The Eight-Tails—capable of entering full Tailed Beast transformation—and it still got killed just like that. Who knows if Konoha still has more ways to deal with Tailed Beasts?"
"That pendant was seriously useful. I wonder if there are more. Logically, Tsunade has one—Nawaki should have one too, right?"
"Who knows? As everyone knows, the difference between men and women can sometimes be greater than the difference between species."
"Wow, Hiyasu—since when did you become a philosopher? You're talking in full sets now."
"Cut the nonsense. How could we go during the day? Shimura Danzō doesn't allow us on the battlefield."
"If I want to go to the battlefield, do I need his permission? With eight hundred Uchiha standing behind me, who would dare say a word?"
"Oh? Playing the 'Eight Hundred Warriors'? Their ending wasn't exactly great, you know."
"Tch. How about we spar? Eight hundred of us versus your six hundred. Don't worry—we'll go all out."
"Shameless."
"Thanks for the compliment."
Hyūga Hiyasu looked at the unruly Uchiha Kamito.
As expected… Shikaku is still more likable. Shikaku, I miss you.
...
Another clash between Konoha and the Hidden Mist was about to begin.
"Uchiha Kamito, what are you doing here? Planning to betray the village? Danzō-sama never approved your presence on the battlefield."
A masked Root operative immediately stepped forward and shouted harshly.
"So noisy. Genjutsu."
Uchiha Kamito's Sharingan flashed—
The Root operative collapsed instantly.
Seeing Kamito make a move, the other Konoha ninja immediately went on guard.
Is the Uchiha clan rebelling?
The remaining Uchiha simply watched Kamito quietly, waiting for his next move.