Zombie Sage in Naruto

Chapter 144 This world will go mad sooner or later
Everyone knew that the outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War was only a matter of time, and many farsighted people clearly realized this when the Second Shinobi World War ended.

But knowing this is one thing, the exact manner in which the Third Shinobi World War will break out, and which village will participate this time, remains unknown—at the very least, Kumogakure and Kirigakure will likely take action, as these two villages did not participate in the Second Shinobi World War on a large scale.

But no one expected that it would be Iwagakure (Hidden Stone Village) that would react.

"What? The Third Shinobi World War has broken out?? When did that happen? How come I didn't know about it!"

"There's something big going on in Iwagakure. It's strange that that treacherous Onoki would be the first to make a move this time. Given his style, he won't act unless the other villages are fighting tooth and nail, giving him an opportunity to take advantage."

The intelligence from spies from all sides that Iwagakure was mobilizing its forces in preparation for World War III caused astonishment among many, who couldn't understand what had gotten into Onoki.

It was only gradually understood afterward.

Onoki's son, Koto, died. It seems that Kaede Tsukasa entered the Land of Earth to carry out his mission because of the resurrection of the Four-Tails, and declared war on Onoki.

The two shadows met and declared war? This bypassed the village's decision-making level.

While Onoki was still trying to appease the powerful figures in the Land of Earth and the advisors in Iwagakure, Kaedeji had much more to consider, figuring out how to gain the greatest benefit from this war.

As for the declaration of war itself... it's not a big deal.

"Konoha ignited the Third Shinobi World War in 46, which was a year earlier than the normal timeline."

Kaede Tsukasa returned to Konoha with Rōshi and the Four-Tails, casually directing a zombie to crawl out of the ground to find Obito, while he himself sat in the Hokage's seat.

Normally, it should have been in Konoha 47 that Sasori of the Red Sand assassinated the Third Kazekage, causing Sunagakure to go berserk. Many Sunagakure villagers rushed into other countries to frantically search for the Third Kazekage's whereabouts, which intensified the conflict and led to the full-scale outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War.

The scale of World War III was far greater than that of World War II, with all five major powers participating, and the casualties far exceeded those of World War II.

Given how the original timeline was, Kaede Tsukasa felt that the current timeline he was in would only be more tragic! The more people died, the more advantageous it would be for him, and the smoother his future actions in advancing the New Tsukuyomi would be.

Soon, Obito arrived. He didn't care about the outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War. He first glanced at Rōshi, and then his gaze fell on the fan stuck in the corner of the wall.

"This is Madara's weapon."

"Hmm, I used it through a summoning ritual, and it really works great. If you like it, you can have it, since you're the current Madara." Kaede Tsukasa picked up the fan and tossed it to Obito.

Obito grabbed it in his hand. With this, he was more like Madara, and his strength could become even greater. However, Kaede Tsukasa's generosity made him more wary—was this guy really just indifferent to the fan, this divine weapon? Or had he tampered with the fan and was preparing to use it at some crucial moment in the future?

Obito quickly examined the fan with his Sharingan but found no hidden techniques.

"You even captured the Four-Tails. What are you planning to do with it? Will you just hand it over to Nagato like you did with the One-Tails?" Obito hung his fan on his back, or more precisely, on Tobi's back.

"No, we gave them the One-Tailed Beast as a safety net, to prevent them from being too weak and getting killed by some clueless guys. We don't need to do that now," Kaedeji said.

The Akatsuki organization was merely a tool that Kaede Tsukasa had his eye on, and besides, there were times when he needed the Four-Tails.

"My new technique requires a lot of chakra to support it, and the Four-Tails is just right."

"Oh? Could it be a technique related to Tsukuyomi? How long has it been, and you've already mastered all the information I gave you?" Obito's expression under his mask changed slightly.

"It's not difficult. I already have the Tsukuyomi eye technique. After obtaining Madara's research results, it's normal for me to make some improvements to my Tsukuyomi."

"What an annoying guy..." Obito was a little jealous. He found that Kaede Tsukasa could always talk about things that ordinary people would find difficult to do even if they tried their hardest, so easily and casually.

They were even more wary of what was going on with the new technique developed by Kaedeji. It was definitely different from the normal Tsukuyomi. Perhaps it was an enhanced version of the illusion, making it easier for the target to fall for it and become trapped in the illusion? Was it like a single-target version of Infinite Tsukuyomi?
From Obito's perspective, this is the only possible conclusion.

"You also need a lot of chakra... What, do you want to compete with Nagato for control of the nine tailed beasts?" Obito stared at Kaede Tsukasa with his Sharingan.

Kaede Tsukasa shook his head: "If everything goes smoothly, we only need one or two tailed beasts for the transition. However, if we can capture more tailed beasts as a source of chakra, it will undoubtedly be safer."

Obito grew increasingly anxious. He realized that he had to find a way to obtain the Mangekyou Sharingan, otherwise it would become increasingly difficult for him, as the nominal advisor of Konoha and Madara's successor, to interfere with Kaede Tsukasa's actions.

Once a conflict arose between the two, Obito felt he needed to have the power to deal with it. However, the Mangekyou Sharingan was something that couldn't be obtained just by wanting it.

Kaede ignored Obito's dilemma, and his will was quickly implemented by all departments and ninja clans in the village, and the huge war machine of Konoha Village was put into action.

The propaganda machine was activated first, and all kinds of war propaganda bombarded the land, greatly boosting morale and spreading Kaede Tsukasa's will throughout the Land of Fire.

The moment Konoha Village made its move, the numerous powerful figures who had long yearned for resurrection and extended lifespan immediately sprang into action, sparing no expense to mobilize their ninjas to accept Konoha Village's command.

In every town and village within the Land of Fire, anyone capable of creating chakra underwent propaganda and mobilization, eagerly anticipating the opportunity to exchange merit for a resurrection quota and a chance to extend their lifespan.

"Hahaha, I've been waiting impatiently for this for ages! Finally, another major war is coming! A single war can generate at least dozens of S-rank missions and hundreds of A-rank missions! Even just managing logistics or escorting supplies can give you a chance to earn points that are hard to come by in peacetime!"

"Well, there's no one I want to resurrect, but I really want to live forever..."

"Hmph, all of them are eyeing these rewards, can't they recognize their own strength? They'll probably be the first to die after all that effort! I'm different, I'll just go and steal their corpses and sell them to Konoha!"

"Corpses are the most sought-after products, but we also need to explain the origin of the corpses to Konoha Village, which is troublesome. There are countless corpses within the Land of Fire."

"The enemy is the Land of Earth, right? Iwagakure just lost Koto, and their forces are numerous. They're practically the perfect opponent!"

"The Hokage must have done it on purpose. Iwagakure has a large number of troops. If we defeat Iwagakure first, we can get the most corpses to replenish our forces. Then we can deal with the other guys at our own pace."

If one is without desires and content with one's lot, one will naturally not be swayed by this fervent atmosphere in the slightest, but such people are simply too rare.

In addition, Konoha Village has opened up a large number of opportunities to exchange strategic resources and ninjutsu. As long as you have earned a certain amount of battle merits, you can directly apply to the relevant personnel in Konoha Village. After completing the exchange, you must join Konoha Village to prevent resources and ninjutsu from overflowing out of the village.

The vast Land of Fire was in an uproar. The powerful and wealthy were green with envy, while ordinary ninjas with little opportunity for advancement were desperately trying to join the war.

With the Hokage around, even the dead have a chance to be resurrected, while the enemies are all potential zombies and resurrection and life-extending sacrifices, which is equivalent to the Fire Country's talent pool!
We won World War II, and now a new war has begun. How can we possibly lose?
In stark contrast to the fervor within the Land of Fire, other countries were also experiencing similar fervor.

Especially those three ninja villages that refuse to submit to Konoha Village, they cannot be allowed to fail no matter what!

Leaving aside villages like Kumogakure and Iwagakure, which have direct grudges against Kaedeji, even Kirigakure is already stirring. This village, known as the Village of Blood Mist, is so familiar with killing and death.

"The other villages are manageable, but the main issue is finding a way to contact Sunagakure. Even if we can't incite Sunagakure to attack Konoha, we can't let them... What, you're saying Sunagakure has already announced that they'll join the war alongside Konoha?"

"The war hasn't even really started yet, and these guys are already taking sides so rashly. It's really stupid!"

"It's hopeless. Who would have thought that one of the five great ninja villages would become like this? But it doesn't matter if they're gone. Apart from their military strength, they've actually already fallen out of the ranks of the great ninja villages."

What use is a village that can't even produce a single Kage-level ninja, even if it has several thousand ninjas? Moreover, many of these ninjas were forcibly captured from numerous towns in the Land of Wind and the Land of Grass, and there are often people who escape.

But Sunagakure did indeed do just that, completely bypassing the powerful figures of the Land of Wind and making a unilateral announcement.

Rasa, who had already succeeded as the Fourth Kazekage, didn't really have a choice. Given the state of Sunagakure, not only were the nobles of the Land of Wind alienated from them, but Sunagakure itself couldn't even produce a truly powerful figure capable of suppressing the situation.

If they still considered themselves a great ninja village, Rasa only needed to think about the terrifying shadow that Kaedejima had cast on Sunagakure to realize that it would be better to follow Konoha.

Having faced Kaedeji Tsukasa multiple times and been utterly defeated, Sunagakure knew Kaedeji Tsukasa's terror better than any other village.

"I have received a mobilization notice for war, but we don't have many ninjas that we can mobilize. I still think it's too early to declare our participation in the war now."

Yekura walked in. She is now an advisor to Sunagakure, assisting Rasa in managing the village. This is unavoidable, as all the older generation of Sunagakure has passed away, and only the two of them are outstanding among the younger generation, so they have to shoulder the heavy responsibility of leading Sunagakure.

Luo Sha looked at Ye Cang coldly: "When you and I disagree, my opinion should prevail. Since a decision has already been made, let's not dwell on this anymore."

"Tsk, you've become even more difficult to deal with since becoming the Kazekage..."

"If you have to go panning for gold in the desert every day, endlessly like a cheap puppet, your condition will be even worse!"

Rasa wasn't actually the Jinchūriki of the One-Tailed Beast, but heavy dark circles under his eyes were deeply etched on his face. The consequences of breaking ties with the Land of Wind were gradually becoming apparent. The most basic consequence was the decreasing government funding. This was only because the nobles of the Land of Wind feared that Sunagakure would become desperate and completely oppose the country, so they were only providing token amounts.

By maintaining a state of being neither fully fed nor starving, they watched as Sunagakure slowly lost its ninja, thus gradually weakening the village.

This forced Sunagakure to find a way to support so many ninjas on its own. With insufficient missions, the Fourth Kazekage was forced to work day and night to frantically mine for gold in order to barely make ends meet.

Yekura's mood would normally be worse after being reprimanded, but after glancing at Rasa, he realized that this guy was really going all out.

"So, when should we make our move against Iwagakure? Should we wait for orders from Konoha?"

"Iwagakure? What Iwagakure? Our main opponents have never been Iwagakure."

"Ok?"

"Takigakure is the ultimate goal of all our actions. We lost the One-Tailed Beast, so we must take back the Seven-Tailed Beast! As long as we have the Tailed Beasts, we will still be a great ninja village. Then we will rely on the power of Konoha to coerce the Land of Wind and make Sunagakure return to its original state."

Rasa has been eyeing Takigakure for some time now. Looking across the entire ninja world, only Takigakure is more suitable to be Sunagakure's opponent.

Yekura nodded repeatedly: "Seven-Tails, are we really a match for it?"

"If we can't beat the Seven-Tails, we can ambush its jinchūriki and bring it back."

Rasa said in a deep voice, "This time we will mobilize all our forces. While everyone thinks we will cooperate with Konoha to attack Iwagakure, we will storm into Takigakure in one fell swoop. Even if Takigakure is hidden inside the Great Waterfall, we can find them as quickly as possible with our overwhelming numerical superiority."

"Alright, we have no choice but to take a gamble. Hopefully, this isolated little ninja village doesn't have the ability to control the Seven-Tails." Yekura nodded, a grim expression on his face.

This operation can only succeed, it cannot fail. If it fails... then it's all over.

"How do you plan to reply to Konoha?"

"To be honest, we will immediately join the war against Iwagakure after we conquer Takigakure."

Rasa glanced at Yekura. He knew this woman was always a bit cunning, but sometimes she would only cause trouble: "If obtaining the power of the Seven-Tails would be enough to contend with Konoha, of course I would keep this operation a secret. But in reality, the Seven-Tails alone is no match for him. You don't want our country to become a large stockpile of magical sacrifices for Kaedeji, do you?"

Sunagakure quickly dispatched an envoy to Konoha to report the military movements to Kaedeji.

Kaedeji's order was that Sunagakure must send 4,000 men to attack the southern border of the Land of Earth. He didn't care how difficult Sunagakure's current situation was; he wasn't doing charity, so of course he wanted to squeeze every last drop of value out of Sunagakure.

This means that on the western front, Konoha only needs to deal with Iwagakure to the northwest, and has the assistance of Sunagakure's ninja forces.

“From this perspective, the pressure we face will be greatly reduced.” Shikaku pointed to the ninja world map and made arrangements. “If Sunagakure wants to spare some of its forces to attack Takigakure, the best way is to go through the Land of Fire, bypass the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass, which has effectively lost power, and attack Takigakure directly. However, I am not optimistic about their actions.”

Fighting on two fronts, how long can Sunagakure sustain itself given its current size?

"unless--"

"Unless Sunagakure gathers four thousand of its weakest and most demoralized ninjas to deal with Iwagakure, and Rasa and Pakura concentrate all their remaining strength and throw it all into the war against Takigakure, it's a huge gamble for them; if they lose, they'll lose everything."

Kaede Tsukasa took over the conversation, looking at the many people in the conference room.

The heads of various departments, as well as the patriarchs of the major ninja clans, are all here.

A relaxed expression appeared on everyone's face, knowing that the western front had always been a major problem.

The Sand Village is Konoha's number one enemy, has the strongest desire for the Land of Fire's rich lands, and is the most active in war.

Iwagakure has a large military force, and although it cannot compare to Konoha, it is still a formidable enemy that cannot be ignored. However, in the two previous Shinobi World Wars, Iwagakure mainly fought against its mortal enemy, Kumogakure, and did not go to the point of exhausting all its resources in the war against Konoha.

“That’s right. From this point of view, the newly appointed Fourth Kazekage does indeed have extraordinary courage,” Shikaku said.

At this moment, Fugaku, who was sitting upright, spoke up: "This kind of courage is probably more out of helplessness. He has already done his best to maintain the existence of Sunagakure. Since their goal is the Seven-Tails, it would be best if they succeeded, and they could take advantage of the situation to use the Land of Waterfall as a base to attack the heartland of the Land of Earth to the west. But if they fail, it will not be a good thing for us."

From the perspective of Konoha ninjas, if Sunagakure successfully conquers Takigakure and obtains the Seven-Tails and many of Takigakure's secret techniques, they might actually be able to survive. This wouldn't be good for Konoha, but if they succeed, it would indeed tie down more of Iwagakure's military power, which would be beneficial to Konoha.

If they fail... it will be a complete disaster, meaning that the last remaining elite troops of Sunagakure will suffer heavy losses and will not be able to provide much help to Konoha.

A buzzing sound immediately filled the conference room. No one sitting here was a fool; as Lu Jiu explained, they naturally understood what was going on.

Gradually, the discussion subsided, and everyone looked at Kaedeji, waiting for his decision.

"Let's do it this way. We don't need to worry about how Sunagakure allocates its troops. As long as they do it, that's enough. Even if it's just four thousand ragtag troops, it will reduce our losses. That's very important. Besides, these four thousand men will also have their uses."

Kaede Tsukasa sat in the main seat, turned to look at the people, tapped his fingers on the table, and made the decision.

His words startled people, but apart from a few people with truly high moral standards, most immediately thought that with these four thousand people, and many Iwagakure ninja who would also die, how many people in Konoha could be resurrected and have their lives extended?
"This is war, and whatever we do is right! How much trouble did Sunagakure cause us in the two previous Shinobi World Wars? Their current sacrifices are merely paying back a debt! And they are far from paying it off!"

"That's why the Sand Village is so obedient, only because the Hokage decimated them. Otherwise, they would be our main enemies! Many of my clansmen died at the hands of the Sand Village, and I need those guys to sacrifice themselves so I can revive them!"

The conversation in the conference room shifted again, with some people starting to calculate how much profit they could make from it.

Everyone knows that war is a systematic project, and every link is a crucial task, meaning that you can get more points than usual!

Especially now that we have this advantage, we have never been so relaxed. Look, the Sand Village, which is the most aggressive in tearing apart Konoha, is not only not an enemy, but will help Konoha deal with the Stone Village. Where has such a thing ever happened before?

"All of this was caused by the Hokage!" the clan leader of the Shiranui clan shouted.

The smaller the ninja clan, the more unburdened they are, and the smoother they are in switching roles compared to the larger ninja clans, without any psychological burden.

Anyway, Fugaku wouldn't do such a thing. He sat there with a straight face and a serious expression, already thinking about who to resurrect. He couldn't possibly do what some of his clansmen suggested, find Madara Uchiha's body, and then resurrect him, could he?
However, Uchiha Kagami seems like a good candidate...

At that moment, Fugaku remembered that the Hyuga clan had already obtained resurrection slots, and more than one! But it seemed that no one had been informed of who had been resurrected. Who could it be? It was so hard to guess.

Even if you want to revive a ninja who has been dead for a long time, as long as there is still a mutilated corpse, it is theoretically possible to revive them. However, the cost of reviving them is much higher. Normally, one revival slot is used to revive people who have been dead for less than a year. If you want to revive many people who have died, it is far from enough, and many slots are needed to make up the difference.

The number of corpses needed would probably increase exponentially, from a dozen or so to seventy or eighty? Or even... one or two hundred?

The thought sent a shiver down Fugaku's spine as he thought about it.

It's no wonder that most of the people in the house who wield some power are so enthusiastic, because the demand is truly enormous, practically a bottomless pit!

I don't know how many lives will be lost.

Hiashi spoke up: "So, who is the commander this time? He will lead the troops and Sunagakure to inflict a heavy blow on Iwagakure before Kumogakure and Kirigakure can make a move."

"Of course it's me. I don't think Lord Sakumo would compete with me for this position, right?"

Orochimaru, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. He had no interest in the meeting and instead kept staring at the person opposite him.

However, the person sitting opposite him was neither Sakumo Hatake nor Kushina Uzumaki, but a guy shrouded in a wide black robe. His face, which was occasionally revealed, seemed to be wearing a strange white vortex mask.

"Orochimaru, the village has decided that you will be in full charge of the war on the western front."

Kaede Tsukasa slowly stood up: "I will personally take charge of the war on the eastern front, and start by attacking Kumogakure! There are things I need there."

His demands for the Third Shinobi World War weren't actually that many. One aspect was laying the groundwork for the future expansion of the Tsukuyomi world, but there was something else he was determined to obtain: not a large number of corpses, nor the bodies of powerful individuals, but rather the land within the Land of Lightning...

A real waterfall!

(End of this chapter)