On the Iwagakure side, they had already successfully advanced more than 150 kilometers into the Land of Fire.
Their losses weren't heavy, and the Aburame insect shadow clones that Konoha sent daily to harass them had been gradually reduced to almost nothing thanks to the coordination of several elite Iwagakure jonin.
However, the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, wore a deeply troubled expression.
He stared at the terrain map in front of him.
From here, it was only about three days' journey to Konohagakure.
If they ignored consumption and pushed forward at full speed, Ōnoki could even see the Hokage Rock as early as tomorrow.
But why was everything going so smoothly? This was war.
There were no large-scale interceptions, no ninja forces blocking their path.
Everything felt utterly unfamiliar to Ōnoki.
"Tsuchikage-sama, the hundreds of Aburame shadow clones that attacked today have once again been dealt with by the jonin led by Kitsuchi."
Kitsuchi entered and reported.
In official matters, he addressed him as Tsuchikage—
Kitsuchi would say that habit was carved into his bones.
"Kitsuchi, how many days has it been since I arrived at the front lines?"
"Tsuchikage-sama, it's been a week. We entered the Land of Fire four days ago. Because we've been advancing steadily step by step, we've only covered 150 kilometers. But if we accelerated at full speed, given Konoha's level of resistance, we could push forward 100 kilometers in a single day."
"Kitsuchi, why do you think we've been able to penetrate so deeply into the Land of Fire so easily? Konoha's defenses are practically nonexistent."
That was the one thing Ōnoki couldn't understand at all.
On Kumogakure's side, it was said they couldn't even approach the Land of Fire—Konoha had fought like madmen.
Iwagakure had already investigated the reason behind Kumogakure's temporary retreat.
A descendant of the Senju clan had used something left behind by Senju Hashirama to kill the Eight-Tails jinchūriki that Kumogakure could barely deploy.
Although that person had been pierced through by a single strike from the Third Raikage, their chances of survival were slim.
But trading for a jinchūriki—one still capable of fighting—was an enormous gain.
As for Konoha's leader, that Nara, he had led over five thousand men with the resolve to be wiped out, just to tear a chunk off Kumogakure.
In the end, Kumogakure lost three thousand men, and Konoha nearly three thousand as well. It wasn't a victory for either side.
The reason for the Third Raikage's withdrawal had also been uncovered—Konoha had left behind a Kage-level powerhouse in the Land of Lightning like a ticking time bomb, ready to die in battle within Kumogakure at any moment.
The destruction a Kage-level fighter could unleash without restraint made even Ōnoki's head ache just imagining it.
And yet, even that wasn't Konoha at its most ruthless.
The most ruthless one… was right across from him.
A contemporary of that Nara who fought with a do-or-die resolve, and that Senju who would drag down a general even in death—the true monster was that Aburame who, in the Land of Rain, had annihilated five thousand enemies without taking a single loss.
Originally, Ōnoki had planned to come up and erase him first with Dust Release, to hell with honor or fairness.
But he hadn't even managed to see Aburame Shiken.
And now, the smoother Iwagakure's advance became, the more uneasy Ōnoki felt.
The feeling was like—
Ōnoki lifted his head and looked.
Among the treetops, a fly slowly drifted through the forest.
Suddenly, it stopped.
A nearly invisible thread had wrapped around it.
Looking more closely, it was a transparent spiderweb.
The fly struggled for a moment, but no matter how it fought, it couldn't break free from the threads.
In the end, it could only go still, powerless.
Then, the spider finally emerged, slowly crawling toward its prey.
One bite—
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique."
A flash of white light burst forth.
The spider, the fly, the web—even several nearby trees—vanished without a trace.
Spider: What the hell is wrong with you? I'm just trying to eat, and you hit me with Dust Release?
At that moment, Ōnoki was drenched in cold sweat.
That's right… everything made sense now.
This had to be Aburame Shiken's trap. Otherwise, there was no way Iwagakure's advance could be this smooth.
"Kitsuchi! Kitsuchi!"
Ōnoki shouted his name.
Kitsuchi hurried in.
"Tsuchikage-sama."
"Retreat immediately. Withdraw back to the Land of Earth. Don't even stay in the Land of Grass—pull the army back to the Land of Earth at once and fortify the borders."
Kitsuchi wanted to ask why. They clearly had the advantage.
But based on past experience, his father—the Tsuchikage's decisions—were almost always correct.
So under Kitsuchi's command, the remaining seven thousand Iwagakure ninja began an orderly retreat back to the Land of Earth.
Although many elite ninja expressed strong dissatisfaction, they ultimately followed the retreat under Kitsuchi's persuasion.
After all, in Iwagakure, who would refuse to listen to a reliable guy like Kitsuchi?
If not for the fact that he had no such ambition—and that the Third Tsuchikage was his relative—Kitsuchi might have been forced into the position even if he didn't want it.
There were plenty of people who didn't want to lead but were pushed into it by their subordinates…
...
On Konoha's side, inside a tent deep within a secluded valley,
Torifu paced back and forth anxiously.
He was panicking. In just a week, he had allowed Iwagakure to advance 150 kilometers into the Land of Fire. In a few more days, they'd reach Konoha itself.
At that point, being accused of failing to hold the enemy would be the least of it—given Hiruzen and Danzō's personalities, he'd likely be charged with colluding with the enemy and betraying the village.
"Shiken, when exactly is your plan going into action?"
"In three days."
"Three days? If Iwagakure pushes forward recklessly, they could reach Konoha in a single day!"
"Then congratulations in advance, Torifu-sama. You'll achieve a great victory as early as tomorrow."
"...Sigh."
Torifu could only sigh.
Only Konoha's people truly understood just how terrifying the Aburame clan's insect breeding speed was when they went all out.
That was why, even at the risk of being branded a traitor, Torifu chose to support Aburame Shiken.
Not even mentioning the bigger picture—ever since the Land of Grass, Aburame Shiken had been leading his clan to cultivate their insects, all of them buried deep underground.
As Shiken put it:
"Iwagakure stands upon the earth, yet they can neither resist attacks from the sky nor defend against strikes from below. On what basis do they expect to win?"
It made perfect sense.
And yet, it left Torifu feeling strangely out of place.
Since when had ninja warfare become like this?
Had he stayed in the clan lands for too long and fallen out of touch with the world?
"Don't worry, Torifu-sama. The faster Iwagakure advances, the longer their battle lines stretch—and with that, their supply lines as well. At that point, all we need to do is conduct guerrilla strikes, interweave our forces, encircle them in fragments, and cut off their logistics. Eight thousand Iwagakure ninja may seem like a lot, but on the vast land of the Fire Country, they are nothing. When gathered, they become trapped beasts, unable to move; when scattered, they are loose sand, easily defeated one by one. This is a guaranteed victory, Torifu-sama. The Third Tsuchikage may be able to fly and escape—but he alone will escape."
Seeing how flustered Torifu was, Aburame Shiken briefly explained his plan.
Torifu, however, was a bit lost.
Such professional terminology… he didn't really understand it.
But he did hear one thing clearly—guaranteed victory.
"Shiken, go ahead and do it. Leave everything else to me…"
"Torifu-sama, Iwagakure has begun retreating."
"What?!!!"