Bang!
Natsuro pushed open the doors to the conference room. This building had been recently constructed specifically for the Five Kage to conduct their meetings. It housed a large conference hall and rest areas for each Kage.
Of course, even though there was a room designated for the Hokage, this was still Konoha territory, so he usually didn't rest there.
By the time he arrived at the meeting room, the other four Kage were already present. Since they were staying in the building, they had arrived quicker than Natsuro.
"You're here, Hokage," said the Fourth Raikage, tossing a scroll to Natsuro. "Konoha's scouting team seems to have found Akatsuki's base."
Natsuro said nothing and sat down at his seat. He quickly read through the contents of the scroll.
The location was called the Mountain Graveyard, situated in the northern part of the Land of Fire. Crossing into the area from within the country wasn't too difficult; at most, the Land of Fields (Ta no kuni) blocked part of the path.
"Give the order, Hokage," the other Kage said after Natsuro finished reading.
Natsuro closed his eyes in thought for a moment, then replied, "No need to rush. First, send word to these nearby nations to begin evacuating their people. Once the Fourth Great Ninja War starts, these areas will become battlefields."
He pointed to the Land of Fields, the Land of Frost, and other small countries.
The others nodded in agreement. Even though such large-scale evacuations couldn't be hidden and essentially amounted to announcing they had found the enemy, no one opposed the plan.
After all, these were still nations, albeit small ones, with populations in the hundreds of thousands. That wasn't something they could just abandon on a whim.
Seeing no objections, Natsuro continued, pointing to the northern border of the Land of Fire. "At the same time, we'll build a temporary military base here. You should inform the shinobi and samurai under your command to gather here and begin transporting all supplies to this location."
"If the enemy dares to stand against the combined forces of the Five Great Shinobi Villages and the samurai, it means they have some kind of trump card. We must prepare for a prolonged campaign."
"Hokage-dono, how are we supposed to construct a temporary base?" Mei asked with a frown. If it were just tents, they wouldn't need to build anything. But clearly, Natsuro meant something more.
"For key resources, like medical supplies and food, Tsuchikage will use Earth Release to build secure storage facilities," Natsuro said, turning to Ōnoki.
"Understood. Leave it to me," Ōnoki nodded solemnly.
"There are also structures that require better conditions, like facilities for treating the wounded. These will be built by Konoha. Yamato," Natsuro called, and a masked ANBU appeared beside him.
"Remove your mask. We're allies now; there's no need for secrecy," Natsuro told him.
"Yes." Yamato took off his mask, revealing his slightly stiff face.
"Let me introduce him. This is Yamato, the only shinobi in Konoha who possesses the Wood Release bloodline. He'll be responsible for constructing important buildings," Natsuro announced.
The other Kage were surprised. While they had heard rumors of a Wood Release user in Konoha's ANBU, they hadn't expected Natsuro to use him for construction.
Yamato himself looked a little awkward, but he couldn't deny it, his Wood Release was perfect for this kind of task.
"Of course, we won't waste manpower on construction. Outside of these essential buildings, everyone else will use tents for rest," Natsuro added.
"Lastly, once the Allied Forces have gathered, we'll conduct a war mobilization ceremony," Natsuro said, his tone growing serious.
"This is an unprecedented alliance, but as you all know, simply banding together won't make our shinobi and samurai cooperate seamlessly. That's why this mobilization is crucial."
As Natsuro spoke, the others grew serious as well. They understood what he meant. The Five Great Shinobi Villages had harbored grudges against each other for decades, those feelings wouldn't disappear overnight just because of an alliance.
Natsuro looked around at their expressions before settling his gaze on Gaara. "Kazekage, as the overall commander of the allied combat units, the task of mobilization falls to you."
"Yes." Gaara's eyes flickered briefly, but in the end, he accepted the heavy responsibility.
After thinking for a moment, Natsuro turned to the Raikage. "Raikage, is there anything you'd like to add?"
The Fourth Raikage, acting as Chief Strategist, looked at Mabui and Shikaku Nara and cleared his throat.
Mabui and Shikaku exchanged glances and provided some detailed follow-ups, nothing too surprising. For example, using shinobi to help evacuate civilians if necessary, and so on.
Once they finished, Natsuro nodded and tapped the table.
"Now, for the final topic, troop deployment."
This was the key issue. Even as Supreme Commander, Natsuro couldn't unilaterally decide how the troops would move.
In fact, the general plan had been discussed back when the units were first formed. What remained was to finalize how to station the five combat divisions around the central base.
Fortunately, the teams had been assigned based on skillset, not village origin.
As a result, every unit had members from all five villages in relatively equal numbers. This meant that no matter how they were deployed, no one could accuse Natsuro of favoritism.
Thanks to that, the discussion, though intense, concluded quickly.
He couldn't imagine what it would've been like if every village had insisted on keeping their own ninja together. No leader would want their forces to serve as the vanguard, and whoever was assigned to the front lines would definitely feel resentful.
In that case, no amount of mobilization would unify them.
"Well then, everyone, for the future of the shinobi world, let's begin!" Natsuro declared.
"For the future of the shinobi world!" the others responded in unison before disappearing from their seats. Each went off to prepare their forces for war.
After everyone left, Natsuro stood and gazed into the distance, the corner of his mouth lifting.
"War… is finally about to begin."
The evacuation of the small countries and the construction of the base didn't take long.
Soon, the Five Kage and Mifune gathered again, this time in the central command building of the newly built base.
"You've all received the reports, haven't you?" Natsuro asked from his seat.
The others nodded, but their expressions weren't good. Despite repeated warnings, disorder had already broken out within the Allied Forces.
And the war hadn't even started yet!
Verbal spats were happening everywhere. If they hadn't repeatedly emphasized unity, the soldiers might've already come to blows.
The most distressed among them was, of course, Gaara. As overall commander of the forces, just seeing the chaotic state of the army gave him a headache.
But now wasn't the time to complain.
"It's time," Natsuro said. "Let them know it's time to gather."
He looked over at the other leaders. "Gaara, Kakashi, Darui, Kitsuchi, Mifune, get ready. Especially you, Gaara. The success of this unprecedented joint force depends on you."
"Yes!"
The Five Kage sent word to their assistants to begin assembling the troops.
Soon, from the observation platform, they saw it, an endless sea of people.
"Whew… I haven't seen a force this massive in a long time," Ōnoki said, awestruck. This was a sight unlike anything in shinobi history. No single village could muster an army of this size.
Even Ōnoki, with all his years of life, had never seen such a sight.
"Indeed… Even if I die here, I'll have no regrets," the Fourth Raikage added, just as overwhelmed.
Natsuro looked down at the army below with a calm expression. Though the numbers were impressive, the formation was disorganized. Compared to the armies he'd seen in his previous life, where individual strength was nowhere near that of chakra-wielding shinobi, their discipline and coordination far surpassed this ragtag force.
Of course, Natsuro understood this was a hastily assembled force. Expecting it to match the standards of the professional armies in his memory would be too much.
Once the shinobi below had all found their assigned divisions and grouped together, Natsuro looked toward the five unit leaders and gave them a slight nod, signaling they could proceed.
The five nodded gravely in return, then exited the building and stepped onto the highest rooftop platform, gazing down at the eighty thousand shinobi below.
Even though they'd already been awestruck inside the building, standing out on the platform and seeing it all again stunned them once more.
But no matter how overwhelming the sight, their resolve didn't waver.
The first to step forward was Kakashi, his ever-lazy fish-eyed expression unchanged, as though none of it really concerned him.
Next was Darui of the Cloud Village, walking out with a yawn and a sleepy look that made it seem like he wasn't quite awake.
Those two stood out the most. Kitsuchi was far more serious, his broad and solid figure alone gave people a sense of security.
Gaara stood with arms folded, staring coldly at the sea of shinobi below. Though visibly struck by the scene, he didn't show the slightest nervousness.
Mifune stood at the rear, smiling with satisfaction. In his lifetime, he never thought he'd witness this, a day when the Five Great Shinobi Villages would set aside their hatred and unite their strength.
"Hokage, do you really believe the Kazekage can pull this off?" the Raikage asked, his gaze still on the five figures outside.
"Then tell me, who else do you think can pull it off?" Natsuro asked in return.
The Raikage fell silent. He wanted to say himself, but meeting Natsuro's gaze made him hesitate. Fine, he had to admit, even he might not be up to the task.
"This is a task no one can perfectly accomplish," Ōnoki added. "It's just a matter of how well, or how poorly, it's done."
Natsuro nodded and said, "So, trust the Kazekage. His experiences are actually far richer than any of yours. He used to be a Jinchūriki. Even after becoming Kazekage, he actually died once."
"Hokage-dono is right. We should trust the Kazekage," Mei added, eyes fixed on Gaara's figure. She had seen it from the start of the Five Kage Summit.
Gaara didn't have Ōnoki's shrewdness, nor the Raikage's brute force, nor Natsuro's unfathomable depth. Simply put, he was a bit naive, but in an endearing way.
And it was precisely that kind of untainted heart that might create a miracle.
At this point, the Raikage could only nod. He muttered something under his breath, Mei's ears twitched, her face darkened, and a black, fiery aura seemed to rise behind her as her blood-red eyes locked onto the Raikage.
"W-What is it now?" Even the Raikage was startled by Mei's sudden transformation.
"Say one more word and I'll kill you~" Mei smiled sweetly while speaking those terrifying words.
The Raikage wasn't her subordinate, though, so he glared back, ready to argue.
"Enough. Don't start. The Kazekage's about to begin his speech," Natsuro cut in. At the same time, he discreetly whispered something directly into the Raikage's ear.
The Raikage blinked, then glanced at Mei and said no more.
Mei frowned and gave Natsuro a sideways look. She had a feeling he'd said something unflattering about her, but with no proof, she could only keep quiet too.
Natsuro hadn't said much. He had simply told the Raikage how old Mei actually was, that she was still unmarried, and how some of his words earlier had… unfortunate double meanings.
Once he heard that, of course the Raikage had no intention of provoking her further.
At that moment, all four Kage focused their attention on Gaara's speech. His words were simple, just his personal experiences.
But sincerity was what moved people most. The crowd below fell completely silent, and the only sound that echoed across the battlefield was Gaara's voice.
When his speech concluded, a thunderous cheer erupted across the land, shaking the ears of the four Kage.
Natsuro smiled. Even though he already knew from the original story that this moment would happen, he still couldn't help but worry whether Gaara could truly pull it off when it came down to it.
Now it was clear, Gaara had succeeded beautifully.
That kind of morale, if this were only a short war, was more than enough. Though he had been preparing for a long campaign, he knew the Fourth Great Ninja War wouldn't last very long in reality.
And so, the five unit commanders led their respective divisions, all heading in the same direction.
Gaara led the way, at the forefront, charging into the battlefield of the Fourth Great Ninja War!
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Currently on Chapter 394 - A Declaration of War