Chapter 1 The Beginning
Autumn, year 36 of Konoha.
The leader of Amegakure, Hanzo of the Salamander, known as the half-god of the ninja world, suddenly announced to the entire ninja world in a high-profile manner: For the peace of the ninja world, to break the class oppression of the five great ninja villages on ordinary people, and to liberate the freedom of the ninja people at the bottom, after integrating and discussing the opinions of several Daimyos struggling in the cracks between great nations, he brazenly invited Konoha and Sunagakure, his neighbors, to war.
At the same time, the Third Kazekage of Sunagakure, unwilling to be outdone, readily accepted Hanzo's invitation to war.
While Sunagakure was actively preparing for war, it also used the pretext of the various injustices encountered during the signing of the agreement at the First Five Kage Summit to send a signal of war to Konoha at the same time.
As the strongest ninja village among the five great nations, the Third Hokage naturally did not hesitate and immediately issued a stern condemnation of the two countries for disrupting world peace.
The condemnation statement from the Daimyo of the Land of Fire to the countries of Rain and Wind naturally fell on deaf ears. Hiruzen Sarutobi was helpless and 'forced' to respond, mobilizing troops and strategizing under the watchful eyes of numerous forces in the ninja world.
Suddenly, the ninja world was in an uproar.
Except for Kirigakure, which was isolated and overseas and severely weakened by the defection of the Golden and Silver Brothers, and Iwagakure, which was disrupted by Orochimaru, all the forces caught between the great nations of Fire, Wind, and Rain reacted swiftly, joining this rare great nation war.
...
Konoha's West Gate.
Hatake Sakumo, having shed his ANBU captain's uniform, slung a short sword over his back, donned his forehead protector, and gazed sternly at the five hundred Konoha elites from various clans below.
A formidable force composed of members from the three great families of Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi, along with old families like Sarutobi, Kurama, and Yuhi, and three hundred and fifty ninjas selected from the Konoha standing army. Standing at the front of the formation, a capable ninja dressed in the traditional attire of the Uchiha clan was particularly eye-catching.
On a temporarily erected platform, Sakumo stood beside a man wearing a Konoha Jonin vest, with a fan-like clan crest embroidered on his back and shoulders. He was the current clan head of the Uchiha, the eighteen-year-old Uchiha Fugaku.
The morale is excellent!
Hatake Sakumo nodded inwardly, withdrew his gaze from the team below, and turned to praise Fugaku beside him.
"Fugaku-kun, you are truly a man of your word!"
"The addition of fifty Uchiha elites who have awakened the Sharingan and are skilled in Fire Style jutsu is greatly appreciated by Sakumo!"
Uchiha Fugaku's slightly stiff lips curved slightly, and he gently shook his head.
"Commander, you flatter me!"
"Senior Orochimaru has been very open with me, and as a part of Konoha, how can the Uchiha clan stand by idly when the village is in trouble?"
Hatake Sakumo inwardly disdained Orochimaru a bit and nodded to Fugaku.
"In that case, on the battlefield of the Land of Wind, Sakumo will have to rely heavily on the fellow comrades of the Uchiha clan!"
Uchiha Fugaku nodded slightly, his thoughts drifting back to the scene of his previous conversation with Orochimaru.
"Fugaku-kun, the outbreak of the Second Great Ninja War is a foregone conclusion."
"For the Uchiha clan to truly integrate into the village, mere public opinion spread by myself and Teacher Sarutobi is far from enough!"
"In this great war, Teacher Sarutobi intends for Sakumo-senpai to lead the forces towards the Land of Wind."
"However, as far as I know, Sakumo-senpai is still short of a deputy."
"If Fugaku-kun is interested, perhaps you could lead your clansmen to give it a try."
"If you can achieve excellent results on the battlefield of the Land of Wind, perhaps the image of the Uchiha clan in the village will greatly improve after the Second Great Ninja War concludes!"
"What do you think, Fugaku-kun?"
Orochimaru's words moved Uchiha Fugaku, the clan head who desperately wanted his clan to integrate into the village.
It had to be said that since Uchiha Madara's defection, the Uchiha clan's position in Konoha had been very awkward.
Although they nominally competed with the Hyuga clan for the title of Konoha's strongest clan, they knew their own situation. Apart from a few rational clansmen, most Uchiha clansmen had already harbored some restless thoughts in their hearts.
If these dangerous thoughts were not eradicated in time, they would inevitably sow great hidden dangers for the Uchiha clan in the future.
Especially after Orochimaru had slightly revealed his powerful strength, Uchiha Fugaku became even less optimistic about the clan members' attempts to subvert Konoha's current system.
Coupled with Orochimaru's current status among Konoha's high-ranking officials, following Orochimaru's arrangements and heading to the front lines with Hatake Sakumo's team was the best opportunity for the Uchiha clan to integrate into Konoha.
Therefore, Fugaku meticulously selected a group of clansmen and resolutely led the team himself to join the front-line forces against Sunagakure.
"Uchiha Madara could lead his clan and the First Hokage to establish Konoha. Although Fugaku dares not compare himself to them, he is unwilling to watch his clan decline under his leadership!"
"Orochimaru, after the war ends, I hope you can give the Uchiha clan a satisfactory answer!"
"Otherwise..."
"Even as clan head, I may not be able to suppress the backlash from the more radical elements within the clan!"
"At that time..."
...
Konoha's East Gate.
Unlike the murderous aura of the Uchiha clan outside the west gate, the composition of the personnel heading to the Amegakure battlefield was much more complex. The biggest difference was the ridiculous gas mask worn by every ninja around their necks.
The Aburame clan were honest people with little presence. If no one bothered them, they could hide in their large trench coats and play with their insects all day.
There was no need to say much about the Inuzuka clan. What was more interesting than interacting with people was communicating with their beloved dogs?
The Hyuga clan, however, maintained their dignified demeanor. Although they occasionally exchanged a few words with their teammates, most of the time they stared with their Byakugan, vigilantly observing their surroundings, fearing that someone would suddenly attack and harm the members of the main family protected in the center.
The remaining ninjas drawn from Konoha's regular army stared wide-eyed at the group of women led by Nadeshiko Mao, who had come to bid farewell to their lover, with a longing that any male animal could recognize.
Orochimaru shook his head speechlessly, suddenly feeling that having too many female ninjas in the village was not necessarily a good thing.
Tsunade, seeing him shake his head, poked Orochimaru's soft flesh at his waist with her finger, glanced at Jiraiya who was being affectionate with Nadeshiko Mao, and quietly asked:
"Orochimaru, do you think Jiraiya has really changed his ways?"
"Lately, I haven't heard any complaints from people in the hot spring district about being peeked at."
Orochimaru caught her restless little hand and threw it aside, saying calmly, "Isn't that good?"
"Don't you want to be peeked at while bathing?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and good-naturedly slapped Orochimaru's back.
"What nonsense are you talking about!"
"I don't have that kind of hobby!"
"If anyone dares to peek at me, I'll smash their heads!"
Orochimaru's lips curved slightly, and he turned his gaze back to the formation below.
"The Aburame, Inuzuka, and Hyuga clans will each send a squad to scout ahead! The remaining ninjas will follow behind."
"Target, the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain, depart!"
"Arrive at the front lines within three days!"
"Yes!"
(End of Volume 1!)
(This volume is titled "Turning Water into an Abyss" and mainly lays the foundation for Orochimaru's early achievements of becoming supremely powerful and some arrangements for his future takeover of Konoha. Only with a solid foundation and a stable rear can Orochimaru go further.)
(The visit to Iwagakure in this volume has laid a small foreshadowing for Orochimaru's official entry into the ninja world in the future. I wonder if any readers have guessed what it is?)
(Here's a hint, it's related to a secret technique!)
(Next volume, the Second Great Ninja War!)
(Daily updates guaranteed at 8,000 to 10,000 words, if there's an issue, I'll take leave a day in advance, so please feel free to add it to your collection!)