Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

...Living in this boundless desert under the endless terror of being hunted, the two supported each other. Seeing his companion suffering more than him, a tiny bit of superiority kept him going. If he were the only one left, what would be the point of playing? ╥﹏╥.

502. Uncle Ban: Three years later, then another three years.

The leaders of the two great ninja villages, Iwagakure and Konoha, gathered their forces and headed towards the border. Such a large commotion naturally did not escape everyone's notice, and the ninja world was in turmoil. Many people were speculating whether World War III was about to break out!

That doesn't seem right either. The war only ended a few years ago. Konoha suffered the most losses in the last war, and Iwagakure lost the most. Logically speaking, it's impossible for them to recover so quickly. Even if they did recover, they shouldn't be able to start another war so easily. After all, war is no joke, especially since it involves two of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, which could easily spread the impact of the war to the entire shinobi world.

But now even the leaders of the two major ninja villages have been mobilized, which means they're definitely preparing for a big battle.

With the large-scale conflict between Konoha and Iwagakure, the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere of the ninja world has been destroyed, becoming extremely oppressive.

...

"Black Zetsu, haven't you found a suitable candidate for the Uchiha brat yet? (▼he▼メ)"

In a basement somewhere in the Land of Water,

Since his fight with Shinto a few years ago, Madara's remaining life force has been further reduced due to summoning the complete Blue Giant. If it weren't for his Black and White henchmen's Earth Release techniques being fast enough to bring him back in time to insert tubes and replenish his life force, Madara would have died before completing his great mission and would have been playing cards with Senju and Senju the Second.

However, even if they manage to get back in time to insert a tube, it can take several years to recover.

Although his vitality was restored, everyone has their limits. At this point, Grandpa Ban was clearly much older than he had been a few years ago, and he was already quite old.

Now, the old man with the freckles was really getting anxious. With a dark face, he asked the black-clad young man beside him. He knew his own situation. If he had been healthy a decade or two ago, waiting a few more years wouldn't have mattered. He still had time to endure it.

But three years later, and then another three years later, ever since he fought that brat Golden Lion, he found that his condition was deteriorating and he was on the verge of kicking the bucket. He really doubted that he could wait for another three years.

He wasn't afraid of death. He had been killing people with his father since he was three years old. After so many years of life and death, he was used to it. Facing death was as simple as drinking water for him.

Moreover, he has far surpassed Hashirama in terms of firmness; Hashirama can't even see his taillights. He is quite satisfied!

However, his grand plan to destroy the world and be reborn is only halfway done. He has already given out the Rinnegan gift package, but after planning for so many years, he still hasn't found his successors. His parents have all grown up from question marks to teenagers!

Madara, who is about to suddenly pass away without anyone knowing when, is in a very bad mood. Is it that the Uchiha clan has run out of talent, or has he just been having bad luck all these years, unable to even find a suitable protégé...? (▼へ▼メ)

"...Lord Madara, the current generation of Uchiha brats are all useless; not a single one has the potential to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan..."

Madara was anxious, but the black-clad underling was even more frustrated. This body was aging and its vitality couldn't be restored. Seeing Madara grow older day by day, he had waited for thousands of years. This was the closest he could get to rescuing his mother, and of course he didn't want to miss it. But damn it, there really wasn't anyone in the Uchiha clan who had both awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan and was easy to fool!

Although they possess the method to awaken the Kaleidoscope, and their efficiency is much higher than those who stumble upon it by chance, the first requirement is to have great love in their hearts. Only when such people are stimulated by the enormous negative energy generated after their love is destroyed can they break through the limitation of the three tomoe and awaken the Kaleidoscope.

However, over the years, although the Uchiha clan's emotional life is more sensitive than that of ordinary people, there are far too few people they love. The three-tomoe Sharingan is already their limit. He has been waiting for this opportunity for thousands of years. In fact, he is even more anxious than Madara. If he misses this opportunity, he doesn't know how many more years he will have to wait. Reincarnation also requires waiting in line. Moreover, it will take a long time just to find the reincarnations of his two nominal nephews. And then there is the matter of his nephews awakening the Rinnegan, which will be even more difficult.

This was the closest his name had ever come to him since his two nephews had died, and he really didn't want to miss it.

But there's no way around it! Without a Mangekyou Sharingan user to represent him, he simply can't support himself in the ninja world, especially with Madara's name on him. He'd probably be killed off right after his debut...

"...Hmph! Those Uchiha trash! (▼へ▼メ)"

Hearing what the black-clad henchman said, Madara's face darkened even more, completely forgetting that when he was criticizing the Uchiha clan as trash, he might have dragged himself into the fray...

"Lord Madara, good news! Konoha and Iwagakure are about to clash!!"

Just as Madara and his black-clad henchman were discussing the development of the Uchiha clan's current talent pool, a white object emerged from the ground, its excited, speechless expression tinged with a hint of over-the-top exuberance. Madara listened, increasingly convinced of his suspicions: this was indeed Hashirama Senju's will. How could someone as cool and composed as him possess such a will? Black Zetsu was far more to his liking…

"Hmph...the war has broken out again so soon after the ceasefire. That traitor Onoki is doing a pretty good job!"

Although he didn't appreciate the White-Clad Brother and automatically assigned him to the periphery, the news he brought caught his eye. What was the purpose of instigating the Second World War? Wasn't it to weaken Konoha? Statistically speaking, he had achieved his desired result. Konoha did suffer significant losses in this war, but it wasn't ideal. Although Konoha's losses were substantial, none of its top-tier combatants were lost, and its core lineup remained intact. Therefore, despite the further weakening of its overall strength due to such heavy losses, Konoha's overall structure remained intact, and it would be able to recover in a few years.

So he was satisfied with the outcome of this war but also a little regretful. If one or two of Konoha's White Fang or the three legendary ninja had died, it would have been perfect!

But there was nothing he could do about these people not dying. He could only blame Onoki and his ilk for being too weak, especially Hanzo of the Salamander. He had initially thought Hanzo was someone special, after all, he had some ability to grow up in such a remote and impoverished place and lead the Land of Rain to success. But this guy couldn't even handle Hiruzen Sarutobi's three disciples, which was really disappointing. He was even thinking of having his black-clad underlings trick Nagato into replacing him after Nagato activated his "gift package." There was no point in keeping trash like Hanzo of the Salamander around.

503. Uncle Ban: Could it be that that brat Kima got cheated on?

He originally planned to find an opportunity to make a move, preferably to buy out one or two of Konoha's core players, since Konoha's current dominance was not in his best interest.

But to his surprise, before he could even begin, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Onoki, those two brats, were already at each other's throats. This was something he hadn't expected at all. Hiruzen Sarutobi was too heavily influenced by Hashirama Senju, spouting righteousness and morality all day long, chanting that everyone was a loving family. Therefore, the chances of Konoha initiating a war were very small. Moreover, it had only been a short three-year truce. If Onoki hadn't dug up Hiruzen Sarutobi's ancestral grave, Hiruzen Sarutobi would never have started a fight.

"It is understood that some time ago, Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha, left Konoha with her brother, Hashirama Senju's grandson, and was 'kidnapped' by Shiki the Golden Lion and taken to Sunagakure. Meanwhile, Iwa ninja spies lurking in Sunagakure seized the opportunity to capture Hashirama Senju's grandson and are now fleeing towards the Land of Earth. The Third Kazekage sent people to pursue them and also notified Konoha, so Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly led a group to the border in hopes of rescuing Hashirama Senju's grandson..."

The white-clad ninja enthusiastically explained that having multiple clones is convenient. Although he didn't know why his omnipotent clones had been unable to infiltrate Sunagakure to gather information since the Golden Lion returned to Sunagakure during World War II, and would inexplicably faint every time he approached the village, his clones could still see such a large commotion in Sunagakure even from the outskirts of the village. And extracting information from the Sand Ninja was still quite easy.

It can confidently say that there's practically nothing in the ninja world it can't find out, even the old lady Chiyo, whom Madara fought with Retsuto for, actually loved Tobirama Senju...ヾ(^?^)?

"Whoa... Hashirama's grandson? That brat actually got captured by Iwa ninja spies?"

Hearing what the white-clad junior said, Grandpa Ban was a little confused. He knew that his best friend had a grandson in addition to his granddaughter, but he had been busy planning his grand scheme all these years and rarely paid attention to him. He had only paid a little attention to his best friend's granddaughter because the Golden Lion, who claimed to be his die-hard fan, had a rumored relationship with her. Ever since his best friend passed away, he saw everyone as a scoundrel who wouldn't affect his plan to destroy the world and be reborn, so he couldn't be bothered to pay attention to them, not even his best friend's relatives.

So he knew his best friend had a grandson, but he didn't pay too much attention to him. But he was still his best friend's grandson, and he had inherited his best friend's talent to some extent. Just like his best friend's granddaughter, she had grown up quite well over the years. She was very skilled with superhuman strength, and her attacks could cause mountains to collapse and the earth to split. Although, in his opinion, his best friend's granddaughter's strength was only average, she was considered top-tier in the ninja world today.

If this granddaughter is so amazing, then her grandson shouldn't be too weak either, right?

But now it's been taken down by Iwa ninja spies?

Spies—this industry hadn't even emerged back when he was still in the public eye; it was Tobirama Senju who created it. But having witnessed the progress of the times, he knew that these so-called spies were nothing more than useless people from various villages who weren't very strong—they'd hesitate to kill anyone—but whose intelligence was just above average. The villages sent them to infiltrate various villages to extract useful information.

To put it nicely, he was a spy; to put it bluntly, he was just someone the village had abandoned. In reality, he was no different from cannon fodder on the battlefield. What kind of fighting power could such a person have? Yet, this piece of trash actually managed to take down Hashirama Senju's grandson.

Old Man Ban's mind is already muddled. Could it be that that brat Kima has been cheated on?

Hmm... Madara thought about it over and over and it seems that this is the only possibility. Otherwise, how could a proper grandson of Hashirama Senju be so weak as to be taken down by two useless guys...?

"It's strange, really. Both Tsunade and that brat are descendants of Hashirama Senju, but their talents are worlds apart. Tsunade may not have awakened Wood Release, but her talents in all aspects are quite high. However, that brat, apart from inheriting a large amount of chakra and life force from the Senju clan, has no other talents. His current Chunin status was only achieved by Hiruzen Sarutobi forcibly promoting him..."

The white-clad young man noticed the old man's question and offered an explanation.

Actually, when it first saw that kid, it was quite surprised that this good-for-nothing kid was actually Hashirama Senju's grandson. After all, the difference was just too great. Although it's true that every clan has one or two oddballs, that refers to their thoughts and personalities. For example, there was Uchiha Kagami from the Uchiha clan. This guy was also an oddball in the Uchiha clan, but his talent was outstanding. Even Madara saw that this kid was the most likely person to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan after Madara. Unfortunately, he died for some reason, and it's unknown whether he awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan or not.

This kid's personality is quite similar to Hashirama Senju's, but his talent... well, let's not even talk about it. He's not even as good as a regular Senju member. The crucial point is, this kid is actually Hashirama Senju's grandson! Where the hell is there any justice in that...?

"Lord Ban, do you think we should add fuel to the fire and make their fighting even more intense?"

The white-clad underling continued, "Although the boss doesn't treat him like a close brother, he really is a close brother. He always thinks about the boss's great cause."

If the battle between Konoha and Iwa ninja were to escalate further and involve the entire ninja world, it could very well lead to another world war. In that case, if Kirigakure, which they control, were to enter the fray, they could weaken Konoha's strength even more quickly and effectively.

"...No need. Hiruzen Sarutobi and Onoki aren't fools; they can't possibly go all out. We risk being exposed. If we are exposed, it could very well affect your grand plan, Madara-sama. Let's wait until we find a suitable candidate from the Uchiha clan!"

Just as Old Master Ban was about to readily nod, his black-clad henchman immediately stepped forward, subtly flattering him before advising him that Old Master Ban's time was now limited and he should focus his efforts on finding a successor, rather than wasting his time here.

That's right!

In his view, adding fuel to the fire and making the battle between Konoha and Iwagakure even more intense was just foolish nonsense. Why would Hiruzen Sarutobi fight Onoki to the death? And Onoki wouldn't directly confront Konoha. At most, they'd exchange a few blows until the tension subsided, and then it would be over. Both sides were holding back; if they frequently caused trouble, it would be easily noticed, and that would be disastrous!

504. Masato isn't interested in women....

"Well, it's just a small skirmish. Our bigger plans are more important. You guys keep an eye on the Uchiha clan for now, we'll talk about the rest later..."

Old Man Ban's eyes narrowed slightly. He was definitely not a superficial person. Moreover, he had been praised far too much over the years. What kind of praise hadn't he heard? It was only after the black-clad underling's reminder that he realized that these were just small fry. His grand plan was far from over.

It's all because of that idiot Bai Zetsu that his thinking has gone astray.

Madara waited irritably for the white-clad underling. "As expected of Hashirama Senju's will," he thought, "even in death, it affects me." (▼へ▼メ)

White Zetsu: (⊙_⊙) ? ? ? ?

........

"Lord Kazekage, Lord Jie, Clan Chief Mei Chuan and the others are ready and are just waiting for Konoha and Iwagakure to start their battle."

"Very good, now everything is ready except for the final push...!"

Meanwhile, in Sunagakure, Shinto, along with Tsunade, was using Observation Haki to keep a close watch on the two Iwa ninja spies who were deeply in love with each other. Inside the Kazekage Tower, Sunagawa and Ebizo were listening to their underlings' reports, looking like they were strategizing.

Everything was ready on the Sunagakure side, and both groups of people were sharpening their swords and waiting in full battle.

First, the team preparing to flank the Land of Fire is led by Sasori's father, a highly experienced individual who fought alongside Shinto in the Land of Earth raids. This team consists of elite Anbu members who also participated in the Land of Earth raids, possessing rich combat experience. Flanking into Konoha is the perfect fit. Although Konoha's White Fang and Hiruzen Sarutobi have already departed, the Land of Fire's defenses remain strong. This group is ideal for maximizing the results of raids in the Land of Fire; they have extensive combat experience and high tactical awareness. While Konoha faces numerous crises, their focus is on the Iwa ninja. As long as they don't become overly greedy and attempt to reach the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Fire, their chances of success are very high.

Another group preparing to flank the Land of Earth and raid from the rear were troops from various clans led by the clan leaders of the Yusa and Umekawa clans. Although they had no experience in raiding, the Land of Earth's defensive system was much weaker than the Land of Fire's. Even if the two were a little greedy, as long as they didn't fight amongst themselves, they would still be fine before Konoha and Iwagakure ceased hostilities and Iwagakure returned to their homeland.

Actually... this kind of small-scale jungle raid doesn't require both Yusa and Meikawa, the two clan heads, to be deployed at the same time. However, the current lineup of Sunagakure is quite awkward. In terms of top-tier combat power like the Double Flower Red Stick, not counting Chiyo, they have four.

Sunagawa, Masato, and Karin's mother's unborn Seven-Tails count as three, Sasori's father and mother together count as one, and each individually they can be considered half a Jinchuriki. Overall, they have two more than Onoki of Iwagakure and the Four-Tails Jinchuriki. However, their core fighting force is weak. In such a large village as Sunagakure, they can't find a single Red Staff. Sasori's mother is also half a Double Flower Red Staff, but with Sasori's father gone, this puppeteer unit needs someone to hold the fort, right?

Karin's mother, Sunagawa, and Ebizo would only let her go out and have fun if they were out of their minds. And given Uzumaki Shuri's situation, she wouldn't go even if they asked her to. Sasori, who had successfully lost weight and developed a ten-pack, exuded mature hormones at a young age. Although he was still a homebody and only occasionally competed with Kudo Yusaku and Yotsuba, Yotsuba was a woman. Especially after Yotsuba matured a lot in the past year and changed back into her backless dress, Karin's mother kept a close eye on her little boyfriend, afraid that Sasori's damn charm would seduce Yotsuba. She stayed close to Sasori all day long, practically sleeping with him.

If Sasori were a little older, and Little Sasori had already returned the salute, Shinto probably would have thought Karin's mother would have taken matters into her own hands. After all, Sasori couldn't beat her and wouldn't be able to resist...

Ebizo is actually a red stick (a high-ranking member in the Chinese Communist Party), and a long-time one at that!

Unfortunately, he hasn't fought in years. He only occasionally does aerobics with the old men and women in the park. He's not even sure if he can still fight. He wants to go to Sunagawa but they won't let him!

Masato was going to lure Tsunade into "pursuing" them again, so for the time being, there really wasn't a suitable leader for the expedition to the Land of Earth. Letting those elite Jonin lead the team was risky; if they got cornered, their own safety would be in question, let alone leading the team back. So, after much deliberation, Sunagawa and Ebizo finally thought of Umekawa's father, the current head of the Umekawa clan. Although he hadn't reached the Red Rank level yet, he was still a near-Red Rank fighter. Moreover, his intelligence was much higher than his father, who was still reluctant to die. Letting him lead the team wouldn't be a big problem as long as they were careful.

That's what they thought and that's what they did. When they summoned Meikawa Nei's father and told him, Meikawa Nei's father, upon hearing that he was going to lead a team to raid the Land of Earth, didn't have much to say. Although he was a little scared, he thought that if this raid succeeded, the benefits would be obvious, and it would further solidify the family's position in the village. Although that old bastard Yusaka was lucky enough to have a beautiful daughter who became the prince's wife, he had a whole bunch of sons, all of them male, and that guy Shinto wasn't interested in women at all... so even if he had a daughter, it wouldn't matter.

Actually, he had no choice. His youngest son, on whom he had placed high hopes, had been spending all his time in the study developing ninjutsu since finding his life goal a year ago, oblivious to everything else. He had originally planned to use his youngest son's teacher-student relationship with Masato to infiltrate the family, but now it seemed that he could only rely on his fists to consolidate the family's position.

So after hearing Sunagawa and Ebizo's plan, he nodded in agreement without hesitation. He even said that the village wouldn't need to provide any manpower; the Umekawa clan would provide the manpower for this operation, and he guaranteed that he would not keep any of the benefits to himself!

Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for a family to act independently in such a lucrative endeavor. However, Sunagawa and Ebizo saw through his thoughts and encouraged and supported this "healthy" competition, so they let him do it with peace of mind.

However, having connections in the court makes things easier. That very night, Yusako, who was visiting her daughter's house to see her beloved grandson, overheard about Sunagawa and Ebizo letting the Umekawa clan solo the game. This was outrageous! She rushed home, pulled out her treasured possessions and a CD from an unknown number of years ago by a geisha master, and ran straight to Sunagawa's office at the Kazekage-ro.

The next morning, Yusa walked out of the Wind Shadow Tower with a big smile on her face, and what was supposed to be a solo raid on the Land of Earth by the Umekawa clan turned into a joint raid on the Land of Earth by the Yusa clan and the Umekawa clan....ヾ(^Д^*)/.

505. Hiruzen Sarutobi: That damn dwarf really planned this all along!

"Damn bastards, they're running so fast... Can't you fly? Hurry up and fly up to stop them. (▼he▼メ)"

Across a vast expanse of yellow sand, with sandstorms raging, Tsunade witnessed the terror of the Land of Wind for the first time. Her previous visits had been blessed with clear skies and gentle breezes, the only noticeable change being the heat. This time, however, her mission to rescue Nawaki had been fraught with misfortune – a sandstorm had struck, making every step forward incredibly difficult. At this rate, forget about rescuing Nawaki; they'd be lucky if he were even found with a whole corpse by the time they caught up…

"Big sister, stop joking. It's just a sandstorm now, but it'll turn into a full-blown sandstorm soon. If I fly up there, I'll crash...-_-||"

Using his Observation Haki, Masato, pretending to be struggling to crawl forward, hung behind the two unfortunate Iwa ninjas and said innocently, "Just kidding, if we chase after them and save them now, what will we do after that?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Onoki are probably almost at the battlefield ready to fight. All he needs to do is make sure that Rope Tree, who is trapped in a large sack, is still breathing.

"...Damn bastards, don't let me catch them, or I'll tear them to pieces! (▼he▼メ)"

Tsunade, watching the swirling sandstorm, felt a surge of righteous indignation. In her mind, she cursed the ancestors of the two Iwa ninja brothers ahead countless times, but there was nothing she could do. Her own brother was in their hands. With such a fierce sandstorm, she hoped those two weaklings wouldn't kill her brother...

......

At this moment, on the border between the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind, both sides were fully armed, and the atmosphere was quite tense. In the center of the Iwa ninja camp, Onoki stared intently at the short, dead man not far ahead.

Meanwhile, Hiruzen Sarutobi, in the center position of the Konoha camp on the opposite side, was also staring intently at the short, red-nosed guy not far away. The henchmen around them could almost see the flashing light between their eyes.

As the saying goes, enemies are especially hostile when they meet. Not long after the last great battle, the deep-seated hatred between friends and family had not yet been resolved. Everyone's eyes were filled with hatred, and they were ready to rush into battle at the first command of their leader. Even the perfect ninja Minato Namikaze, who was making his first appearance, was unconsciously affected by the atmosphere. His face no longer had his usual gentle smile, and he was extremely nervous.