I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 507 No matter how many stains a person has, they don't want to be falsely accused and smeared by others.

"Konoha ninja suffered mass food poisoning? The operation was delayed by a whole day? The Third Hokage's son even revealed that this was a conspiracy by Kumogakure?"

On the other side of Leigu Ridge, where the two kingdoms of Lei and Shuang meet, inside the Cloud Ninja camp, Ziyui looked at the intelligence gathered with great difficulty by the intelligence agents, her face full of doubt.

Poisoning the enemy's food is not the style of the Hidden Cloud Village; it's more like something an insect would use to forage in the desert.

Furthermore, even if the Cloud Ninja were to poison the enemy, they wouldn't stop so easily! Delaying an entire day's operation?! It would have to be at least a hundred or two hundred times more!

Although she felt that this was a false rumor deliberately created by Konoha, Ziyu did not deny it immediately. After all, the camp was so large and there were so many things to do. In addition, with the previous incident involving the Third Raikage and others, Ziyu was overwhelmed and could not manage everything.

In many matters, he, as the commander, would provide a general direction, and then his subordinates would handle the execution. He looked at the Yun ninja who had come to report with a puzzled expression and asked:

"Did we do this?"

"No! Lady Suzuyui, this is absolutely a slander against Konoha!"

The Yunren who reported this looked righteous. He thought the same as Ziyou: Yunren would never do such a thing, and even if they did, they would never do it so casually!

Their Cloud Ninja fighting style has always been to throw handfuls of shuriken, toss out stacks of explosive tags, and bombard with ninjutsu wave after wave. How could they possibly act so petty?!

If they poisoned the food of the Konoha ninjas, then when the Konoha ninjas picked up their bowls, the first thing they would see was the poison from the Hidden Cloud Village, and only then would they see the Konoha food!

Seeing that her subordinates corroborated her suspicions, Ziyu nodded and said, "What a dirty trick to frame someone. What's everyone's reaction?"

Yunren shook his head and said, "It's not too good. The series of rumors before made everyone restless, and with this incident, they are all clamoring to rush over Leigu Ridge and teach Konoha a lesson."

Lord Yui, if this drags on any longer, I fear some violations of rules and regulations may occur. The Jinchuriki and the Third Hokage have suffered consecutive defeats, already causing low morale, and now, with these recurring rumors...

We, the Cloud Ninja, truly need a war. If this drags on any longer, your reputation and that of the Third Hokage will be damaged. There are already comments saying you're spineless.

Upon hearing this, Suzuyu's face darkened, and she roared, "What a bunch of idiots! Do you only train your muscles and not your brains?! Can't you even see how obvious it is that Konoha can't fight a protracted war?!"

Ziyui was not a proponent of war, or rather, he was not a mainstream proponent of war. He looked down on most of the ninjas in the village who only fought for the sake of war and never considered the gains or losses.

Their deeply ingrained warlike genes blinded them, making them see war itself as the meaning of war.

This wasn't just true for the large number of lower-ranking ninjas; even those in high positions within the village, who should have been looking far ahead, could only see the limits. When provoked, they would only think of retaliating, which was incredibly foolish!

But often, he has no choice in the matter. Even as the battlefield commander, he doesn't have complete control over the camp. For example, right now, he doesn't want to go to war with Konoha, but...

When are the Konoha troops expected to arrive?

Suppressing the urge to go out and angrily berate those short-sighted Yunren, Ziyou asked her subordinate, who pondered for a moment and said, "We will cross Leigu Ridge as early as the day after tomorrow."

Konoha seemed extremely anxious. If it weren't for the so-called "poisoning" incident, they might already be climbing Leigu Ridge today. Should we make some preparations?

"A standard ambush will suffice; our target should not be the troops led by Sakamoto Tatsuma."

After Ziyou finished speaking, his subordinates looked puzzled. Ziyou didn't keep them in suspense any longer and said, "Leave two thousand men behind. The rest of you, immediately head to the eastern port. Everyone, evacuate!"

"Where to move it?"

"A direct strike on the Land of Fire."

Upon hearing this, her subordinates finally realized that Yui intended to leave some men to entangle the Konoha forces while the rest would land directly in the Land of Fire's territory by sea.

Their investigation has confirmed that apart from the three thousand ninja troops, Konoha has no other reinforcements on this battlefield. In other words, once the Cloud Ninja successfully lands, they can advance swiftly and strike at the heart of the enemy.

Even if they left two thousand men to entangle with the Konoha troops led by Tatsuma, they still had more than eight thousand ninja troops, and countless ninjas were also stockpiled in the rear.

If two thousand men could hold off the Konoha forces for two days—no, just one day—then a steady stream of Cloud Ninja would surround Tatsuma and his men, while the eight thousand Cloud Ninja led by Suzuyui could launch a massive invasion into the heart of the Land of Fire.

"Wonderful! Lady Suzuyuki!"

His subordinates looked on with fanaticism. Suzuyu nodded and said, "Konoha is too eager for a temporary victory. Anyone who gets anxious will reveal a flaw."

Moreover, the difference in numbers cannot be overcome by even the greatest talent. Sakamoto Tatsuma only has a few cards to play; he will either be trapped or, like now, pursue a desperate victory.

Moreover, he successfully grasped the temperament of our Cloud Ninja, getting the entire village to vote, and nine times out of ten they would choose to fight Sakamoto Tatsuma head-on, after all, the Third Hokage's face must be regained.

Equating war with battle is the biggest mistake we can make. What we need to do is simply avoid following the path laid out by Konoha.

"I'll arrange it right away!"

His subordinates hurriedly left, and Yui solemnly examined the sand table in the command tent. His actions were unacceptable to the people of Kumogakure.

Unless he can achieve a great victory, there are still many forces within Konoha Village. It will probably not be easy to achieve a victory that satisfies the village in one fell swoop.

Even if it can't satisfy the village, it can still bring the greatest benefit to the village; everything is for the village's sake.

Having clarified her thoughts, Ziyu began to devise a more detailed plan. With an army of eight thousand men, it was impossible to hide their tracks, so it was almost impossible to infiltrate the heart of the Land of Fire silently.

Therefore, it is necessary to plan the route with the fewest encounters with the enemy. At the same time, something his subordinates didn't see earlier, there is a major flaw in this plan.

That's supplies.

After plunging into the Land of Fire, they were essentially cut off from the village, making it nearly impossible to replenish resources or personnel.

The supplies they could bring were limited, so how to obtain sufficient supplies within the Land of Fire became the most critical issue limiting their operational endurance.

Replenishing supplies like food and water isn't difficult; the real challenge lies in combat supplies—weapons, medicine. The more Ziyou plans, the more overwhelmed he becomes.

Even with ships from all the ports in the southeast, it might not be enough to move an 8,000-strong force in a short time, let alone transport more supplies.

Moreover, these ships will most likely not return once they go. Unless Konoha is stupid, they will not prioritize using all their remaining forces to resist them, but will destroy the ships and vehicles first.

Just before setting off, Ziyi finished a draft. He didn't send it back to the village, knowing they would definitely reject his proposal.

Then, he ordered all the ninjas on the front lines to fight the Konoha ninjas head-on and defeat Konoha. Judging from the numbers, the Cloud Ninjas certainly had the ability to do so, but Yui didn't want to encounter Sakamoto Tatsuma.

He is an uncertain factor!

Any ninja can have their combat power and influence on the battlefield calculated by multiplying the strength of a ninja with the lowest combat power. In Ziyu's eyes, even the Third Raikage, who is recognized as the strongest in the village, can be measured in this way.

However, this doesn't apply to Sakamoto Tatsuma. Based on the information gathered and compiled over the past two years, the "model" of Sakamoto Tatsuma created by Suzuyui yielded the answer that there is no solution.

Even if the conditions are changed to stronger Chunin, Jonin, or even Jinchuriki or Tailed Beasts, there is still no solution, and it is still impossible to know when Sakamoto Tatsuma will lose.

The appearance of the Third Raikage initially led Yui to believe that he would finally find the answer, but instead, Tatsuma Sakamoto once again demonstrated his immortality to the world.

Defeating Sakamoto Tatsuma is no longer an option at this point in time, so the wisest choice is to avoid him.

Watching the border crossing recede into the distance, Yui withdrew her gaze. Sakamoto Tatsuma had chosen a do-or-die tactic, and so had he.

"Bang bang bang~"

At Leigu Ridge, the rope tree triggered a series of explosive tags, but with skillful movement, it managed to dodge wave after wave of attacks.

Watching him emerge from the firelight, Tatsuma smirked and said, "These things can be left to the professionals."

"I'm a professional, and time is everything right now, isn't it?"

Nawaki rubbed his constantly buzzing ears, then flashed Tatsuma a mouthful of Konoha-white teeth. Tatsuma sighed and ordered the troops to continue advancing.

Three thousand people climbed over the highest point of Leiguling, and everyone felt uncomfortable because it was too warm.

Leigu Ridge, which separates the Land of Frost from the Land of Iron, is a natural barrier for the Land of Lightning and an important guarantee for the Cloud Ninja to dare to expose their chests.

Upon reaching the summit, Chenma noticed the land divided into black and white sections, one side covered in white snow, the other in black fertile soil—a truly spectacular sight.

As Nawaki began to descend the mountain and step on the mines, Tatsuma also crouched down, placing two fingers on the ground. He simultaneously used his chakra perception ability and Magnet Release, rapidly expanding a field of perception centered on him.

But soon, Tatsuma frowned. The number of Cloud Ninja here was surprisingly small, even though Konoha's reconnaissance had indicated that there were over ten thousand Cloud Ninja in this area.

"Tatsuma! Tatsuma!"

Suddenly, Inoichi rushed over anxiously and said, "Fishermen at the site of the Land of Whirlpools have discovered a large number of ships from the Land of Lightning approaching the Land of Fire!"

"Buzz buzz buzz~"

Just as the buzzing in Rope Tree's ears was heard in the firelight, a buzzing sound also filled Tatsuma's mind.

"Tatsuma, what do we do?! Should we turn back immediately?"

Seeing that Tatsuma remained silent, Inoichi urged him to speak, and Shikaku quickly arrived as well. Tatsuma's hand, which had been touching the ground, unconsciously traced his name on the ground. After a while, he finally spoke:

"Notify the village to mobilize all available ninja to intercept the Cloud Ninja. We...we..."

Chenma rose and stood atop the high mountain, his red eyes gazing intently at the fertile land ahead, and said, "Continue forward, there is no turning back."

(End of this chapter)