"Father, Konoha has succeeded again."
"No matter how many times I witness it, I must admire Konoha shinobi's creativity! Such a grand-scale Lightning Release ninjutsu—even Kumo can't achieve this... If that boy created it, then I can't help but recall a terrifying enemy."
Senju Tobirama!
Even in death, a figure who gave every village headaches.
Ōnoki stood silently.
After staring into the distance for a long while, a thread of doubt emerged in his heart.
Did Konoha mobilize their forces just to bombard Kusagakure?
No.
There must be another reason.
Ōnoki grew cautious, sensing he'd overlooked something.
As he pondered, Kanda Kyōichi formed hand seals in the distance. A terrifying tsunami of water surged through the forest, extinguishing lingering flames and scattering the corpses' traces.
Then, the Konoha shinobi withdrew.
"This was a show of force."
Ōnoki felt he'd grasped part of Konoha's motive.
To intimidate Kusagakure.
The Kusa ninja were never steadfast allies. They sided with Iwa now only because Iwa occupied their land—tomorrow, they might betray Iwa for Konoha's strength.
Days ago, Konoha had already repelled them with ninjutsu, killing many Iwa and Kusa ninja.
Thus—
Another demonstration like this, and these Kusa rats might truly turn against him.
After Konoha left, Ōnoki and his silent son Tsuchi approached cautiously. He sensed surviving Kusa ninja organizing the aftermath—among them, the Kusakage himself.
Asama Naruki.
His theory gained more weight.
Even if Kusagakure didn't outright betray them, they'd likely remain passive, avoiding active support.
No one could guarantee clear skies forever. If Konoha could strike today, they could rain lightning on Kusagakure tomorrow—the village couldn't withstand Konoha's wrath.
What a terrifying technique!
He had to find a countermeasure quickly.
...
"Ōnoki has left."
"After today, he'll never trust Kusagakure again. Their credibility is zero—betrayal wouldn't surprise anyone."
Kyōichi marched back with the troops.
Given the weather, only a small force had been deployed—the majority remained guarding the border against potential Iwa attacks.
After all—
Who could rule out Ōnoki pulling a reverse stratagem? Instead of spectating, he might raid their main camp.
Without contingencies, they'd suffer dearly.
Kyōichi wasn't reckless.
While intimidating Kusagakure was one goal, the real purpose was diverting attention to cover Minato's infiltration.
This dazzling performance had ensnared Ōnoki and Kusagakure's focus—
Even Hyūga Fuji's team didn't know the true objective.
Back at camp, they debriefed briefly before dispersing—only the Sandaime and Kyōichi remained, awaiting Minato's toad.
"Hokage-sama, there's no need for such urgency. You could've summoned me after receiving word. You should rest..."
Kyōichi sighed.
He'd rather not wait, but the Sandaime insisted.
"Ah, Kyōichi, you must understand an old man's heart. Since Sensei's death, I've sought only to stabilize Konoha—with little success, but caution remains my nature."
The Sandaime sighed heavily. "Those twelve are Konoha's future pillars!"
"Compared to Ōnoki, you truly seem the elder."
Kyōichi couldn't resist the jab.
Ōnoki was older, yet the Sandaime's spirit had aged faster.
With Minato's team's strength, casualties were improbable—Obito's squad wasn't even deployed, and Kyōichi had given multiple safeguards.
The Sandaime lamented, "I've rarely gambled in life... yet since you and Tsunade appeared, I find myself betting more often."
"I'm glad you're adapting. High risk, high reward."
Kyōichi felt no particular honor.
The Sandaime's excessive caution made him easy to manipulate.
As the saying went—
"A gentleman can be bullied with principles."
Without Kyōichi's interference, wouldn't the Sandaime still be Kusagakure's punching bag?
Since exploitation was inevitable—
Why shouldn't the exploiter be me?
Kyōichi justified himself shamelessly.
Of course—
The Sandaime remained oblivious to these thoughts, his worries fixated on Minato's team.
Fortunately, chakra fluctuations soon signaled the toad's arrival.
The familiar amphibian materialized above a Flying Thunder God kunai.
It scanned the room before locking onto Kyōichi: "Minato says he's reached the Land of Earth's border. He asks when to attack."
"Let me think..."
Kyōichi rapidly assessed.
Striking now offered advantages:
1. The storm would keep Ōnoki wary of their Lightning techniques, fixating his attention here.
2. Minato's team would spend less time infiltrating, reducing exposure.
3. Kusagakure likely wouldn't interfere...
Decision made:
"Now!"
"Ribbit?!"
Toad Kōsuke blinked, then vanished back to Mount Myōboku to await Minato's summon.
"Hokage-sama, this time you needn't act as before. Your mere presence will suffice."
Kyōichi explained.
Repeating their earlier performance would provoke Ōnoki's full retaliation.
Dust Release could erase anything—
Even lightning.
By disrupting the Sandaime's technique, the natural lightning would go uncontrolled.
But without action, Ōnoki would remain distracted—far more effective than direct confrontation.
Yet the Sandaime hesitated:
"If I don't engage Ōnoki, who will?"
"Me."
Kyōichi's tone brooked no argument.
The Sandaime frowned. Kyōichi versus Ōnoki...
"Are you confident?"
"Frankly? Not entirely. But if I can't win, I can stall. Of course, if you have better candidates, I'd gladly slaughter other Iwa-nin."
Kyōichi preferred not chewing tough bones—and Ōnoki was the toughest.
The Sandaime mentally reviewed options:
Himself. Danzō.
Danzō was unreliable—
That man...
Utterly untrustworthy in crises!
Resigned, he acknowledged Kyōichi as the only viable Ōnoki-counter. Still, he objected:
"I came to the frontline specifically to fight Ōnoki. Letting you take my place is improper."
"If that's your concern, discard it. I'm not keeping you back just because you're Hokage, or out of respect for elders—but because you're our strongest Lightning user here."
Kyōichi elaborated:
Only the Sandaime could solo-guide lightning with the Thunder Swords. While Kyōichi could tap into his Yin Seal's tailed beast chakra for Lightning Release...
It was pointless.
The drained individuals wouldn't recover quickly, weakening their overall force.
"Additionally, I hope you'll assign guards for the rookies."
"That was already my intention."
The Sandaime pondered. "Send Maruboshi You know his capabilities."
"Agreed."
Kyōichi had no objections.
Kosuke wasn't yet decrepit—among elite jōnin, he ranked highly. Protecting rookies while fighting was well within his means.
With plans set, the Sandaime summoned all shinobi.
Expecting no further action after the Kusa mission, the troops were surprised by another assembly.
This time, the Sandaime held nothing back:
"An elite twelve-man squad has infiltrated Iwa's rear! With the eastern front under pressure, we must end this swiftly—"
"The decisive battle begins today!"
As the Sandaime rallied the troops, Kyōichi headed to Rōshi's sealed tent. Summoning a massive Katsuyu clone, he...
Drained most of Rōshi's energy to replenish his reserves.
Then—
"Seal Team—open a temporary gap. I need his tailed beast chakra."
Indeed.
Kyōichi came to "recharge" from Rōshi.
Though inactive lately, testing the Eight Trigrams Seal's effects had consumed considerable tailed beast chakra.
"Kyōichi-sama, is this...?"
"Relax. With me here, he's no threat."
Kyōichi dismissed Rōshi as negligible.
Not that he believed Rōshi would cooperate after a few heart-to-hearts—hence draining his physical and mental energies first.
As the seal loosened, tailed beast chakra seeped out.
Rōshi regained some awareness—
Only for Kyōichi to absorb that too.
"..."
Rōshi was speechless.
Humiliating as it was, this man exploited prisoners to the fullest.
Outside, the giant Katsuyu split into smaller clones.
Their purpose eluded him, but they certainly weren't for show. His stolen chakra would likely fuel Kyōichi's "tailed beast mode."
At least he bore no love for Iwa.
Kyōichi absorbed chakra until his Yin Seal overflowed, reluctantly stopping.
"Rōshi, Four-Tails—my thanks."
"I'll thank you when you stop robbing me blind."
Rōshi weakly retorted.
The instant Kyōichi finished, the seal clamped shut—denying even basic energy recovery.
"Heh."
With few encounters remaining, Kyōichi considered devising a bulk-chakra storage method.
"To express gratitude, I invite you to Konoha as our guest. Our hospitality here is lacking."
With that, a Katsuyu clone swallowed Rōshi whole—
To be delivered to Tsunade via Shikkotsu Forest.