Chương 258: Chapter 258
"Has the situation really deteriorated to such an extent?"
Inside the Iwagakure village in the Land of Earth, Ōnoki looked at the reports from the front line held in his hands, his expression extremely grim.
He truly didn't expect so many events to unfold on the frontline, so many incidents that gave him a headache.
Bungo was an outstanding young man, and at such a young age, he had already become a Jōnin, which was why Ōnoki was keen on nurturing him.
This young man was exceptionally talented and displayed a strong sense of responsibility and team spirit. Any village would want a ninja like him.
Ōnoki was no exception. Though in his heart, this youngster wasn't quite fit to be a Kage.
However, he was getting on in years and needed to put forth a suitable successor to silence others.
Previously, there was Kitsuchi, but he had already passed away.
Deidara was very talented and was someone he emphasized training, but Deidara had also gone missing.
Now, the only one he was willing to nurture was Kurotsuchi, but she was still very young.
To wait for her to become a qualified Kage would require a significant amount of time for training and refinement. Ōnoki must make preparations.
He had appointed Bungo as the temporary chief commander this time to indicate to everyone that he was grooming him.
Of course, he hoped Bungo would perform well so that he could yield a competent Jōnin.
But looking at the current situation, Bungo's performance wasn't quite satisfactory.
This unsatisfactory result wasn't because of his capabilities, as Bungo had been very cautious and meticulous, especially when faced with someone like Tsunade.
However, his misfortune was encountering a series of uncontrollable events, which pushed the war towards an unpredictable direction.
Ōnoki understood that Bungo couldn't be blamed for this, as no one could have predicted how things would unfold.
But wars are merciless; they don't consider reasons or excuses but only focus on the end result.
A significant mishap is just that, without any excuse or reasoning to justify it.
Iwagakure's current situation at the frontline had become precarious, as their logistic support routes had been directly cut off by the enemy!
And Konoha seized the opportunity of Iwagakure's significant troop withdrawal, intensifying their attack on Iwagakure's positions.
This forced Bungo to re-deploy troops to the frontline. The rear supplies could only be transported through other channels, which were mostly public routes.
Tsunade must have known about this, as she deployed several elite squads to target those locations.
Suddenly, Iwagakure felt like they were taken back eleven years, with Konoha once again as their opponent.
Such a situation really made Ōnoki's skin crawl. Even such a concealed route had been discovered.
In truth, he wasn't that concerned about the route being discovered. He had deliberately chosen to build it within the mountain range over the course of ten years while simultaneously reinforcing its defenses.
He couldn't believe that Konoha could destroy this place, especially since there was no bridge here.
However, reality was harsh. Based on the intelligence, it seemed Konoha hadn't discovered the location. Indeed, they hadn't bombed the place.
Instead, what they did was even more excessive: they obliterated the entire area!
According to information relayed by surviving ninjas, they witnessed two colossal blue chakra beasts colliding there.
Such a collision produced a wave of energy that decimated everything around, including their heavily fortified and robust logistical route!
"Two chakra giants, akin to monsters?"
Upon reading this description, Ōnoki immediately surmised that this must have been Uchiha's doing.
Subsequent intelligence from the Akatsuki organization clearly indicated this.
It was Uchiha Kaito who found out about Akatsuki's presence and wanted to take on Uchiha Itachi, deliberately luring them there for a showdown.
The Akatsuki, not to be outdone, engaged in an intense battle, leading to such an aftermath.
Upon reading this, Ōnoki felt somewhat numb.
He knew that there was animosity between the Akatsuki and Uchiha Kaito, and he initially intended for Kaito and Akatsuki to wear each other down.
But who would have known that Uchiha Kaito was so ferocious, and the strength of the Akatsuki greatly exceeded his expectations?
The worst part was, he never informed the Akatsuki about the location of their logistical route.
It was to be expected, after all, the Akatsuki were merely a hired war ninja organization. For money, they would do anything.
To avoid exposing his core secrets, it was only natural for him not to inform them. Anyone would have made the same decision.
However, such a seemingly correct decision led to the birth of this tragedy.
In the battle between members of the Akatsuki and Uchiha Kaito, the power they unleashed destroyed the logistical route that Ōnoki had spent ten years building!
Now, Ōnoki really felt like vomiting blood, but he knew he had to calm down.
The power displayed by Uchiha Kaito was truly terrifying, making him involuntarily think of the Uchiha Madara of the past!
Such strength put Ōnoki on high alert, especially since he has never truly overcome the shadow Uchiha Madara left on him.
"Furthermore, there's actually a Uchiha member in the Akatsuki, and his strength has reached such a level. Could it be that Kitsuchi..."
Actually, Ōnoki wasn't sure who had killed Kitsuchi.
He initiated the attack on Konoha to divert attention and to shift the internal contradictions in his village.
Moreover, Konoha's current situation isn't great, making them a target he believed he could take on.
Additionally, intelligence indicated that the Susano'o spotted on the border of the Land of Earth bore a striking resemblance to Uchiha Kaito's Susano'o, which was another reason for his decision to wage war.
However, looking at it now, he seemed to have made a mistake. He underestimated Konoha's resolve and Uchiha Kaito's strength.
He also underestimated the hidden talents within the Akatsuki; they even had a formidable Uchiha amongst them!
Yet, what's done is done. He had rallied public sentiment for the war, and now he was trapped by it.
Taking a deep breath, Ōnoki stood up and looked out the window.
Looking at the still harmonious and stable Iwagakure, his eyes began to firm up.
Although he knew he might have caused a big mess this time, it wasn't beyond salvage.
The destabilizing factors within Iwagakure have now been mostly cleaned up by him, and he could get ready to depart.
Originally, in his plan, he wanted to wait until the village was more stable before setting out.
If possible, he even wanted to take Kurotsuchi to the front lines to experience the war.
Because war refines a person and is the best place to quickly grasp the cruelty of the world.
However, it seems that this is now impossible, as the war has been quietly accelerated due to the confrontation between Uchiha Kaito and that mysterious Uchiha.
"It looks like I'll have to seriously move my old bones."
After a long while, Ōnoki sighed deeply, his gaze becoming severe at that moment.
"Uchiha Kaito, huh? I'm curious to see if you truly have the strength of Uchiha Madara!"
"Kaito, this guy, is just a troublemaker."
Inside Konoha village, there was also a large group of people who were equally troubled, such as Jiraiya and Nara Shikaku, among the other top-tier leaders of Konoha.
Kaito's destructive power was immense. Not only was he a force against enemies, but he also disrupted their decision-making.
For a moment, they truly regretted why they had agreed to Tsunade's decision to send Kaito out.
Within Konoha, Kaito might think from the village's perspective, but once outside, he didn't care as much about it.
And yet, they didn't dare to act against Kaito, because he was also one of the top decision-makers in Konoha.
First, he had a major confrontation with Orochimaru, almost revealing his position.
Then he fought with the Fourth Raikage and his brother. Even worse, he captured both of them.
These two have now been secretly sent back to Konoha and are being held in ANBU prison, waiting for the war to end before any further actions.
But they didn't expect Kaito to send them a message directly through Tsunade, explicitly revealing his intentions.
He's holding onto them for now to discuss matters concerning the Land of Soup. After the talks, the Eight-Tails can be safely returned, but the Fourth Raikage must die!
They couldn't figure out how the unfortunate Fourth Raikage had offended Kaito, but they knew this Raikage was likely in a lot of trouble.
Fortunately, Kaito didn't demand to kill him within the Fire Country but planned to do it after he left the country.
But on second thought, casually killing the leader of a major nation with just a few words, is this something a human could do?
They debated this matter for a long time, but the final result was two votes in favor, one against, and a bunch of abstentions.
//
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