The frontline intelligence that Fuguki had someone send back had already been reviewed by Yagura.
"Heroic Spirit Jutsu?"
"Konoha has this kind of Ninjutsu?"
"I've heard of something called Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu before."
"So, actually, is Heroic Spirit Jutsu the same as Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu?"
"They changed the name to make it sound better?"
Yagura's eyes flickered uncertainly.
"Senju Tobirama, Might Duy, Sarutobi Sasuke, Kushina Uzumaki, Sakumo Hatake..."
"These dead Konoha ninja have all been resurrected."
"The Hidden Cloud army, the Hidden Rock army, have all been held off."
"In other words, Konoha's strength is no longer so easily crushed."
"They're even stronger than when Konoha last mobilized their forces to launch a surprise attack on our Hidden Mist forces."
Yagura immediately issued an order.
The Hidden Mist Village Elders gathered, including Soma.
Hozuki Izumo stood at Yagura's side.
"Izumo, give an update on the current situation."
"Yes, Mizukage-sama."
Hozuki Izumo quickly summarized the frontline situation.
Yagura said, "Konoha has resurrected many of the dead. We don't have enough intelligence on this technique, so we shouldn't act recklessly for now, but doing nothing at all would just give Konoha more time."
"This is also a bad option."
"The Fourth Raikage has invited me. He hopes that our Hidden Mist Village, Hidden Cloud Village, and Hidden Rock Village—the three Kage—can sit down and have a meeting to discuss our next moves."
"What do you all think?"
Genji said, "Mizukage-sama, given the current situation, communicating with Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Rock Village might be a good choice for us."
"Konoha is now unpredictable."
"No one knows how strong Konoha will be."
"No one knows what Konoha's intentions are."
Yagura nodded.
"Then let's take a vote."
But in fact, everyone's thoughts were similar.
Konoha's situation was uncertain, and at this time, uniting would definitely be more beneficial.
The issue now was no longer about how to divide the benefits after defeating Konoha, but rather whether Konoha would retaliate against Hidden Mist Village, Hidden Rock Village, and Hidden Cloud Village.
The resurrection of the dead is only the beginning, and it has already stopped the armies of the three major ninja villages.
As time passes, the number of resurrected dead from Konoha will only increase.
If the other ninja villages can't find a way to counter this...
Yagura looked around.
"It seems that everyone thinks the same as I do."
"In that case, I will attend this so-called Three Kage Summit."
"Elder Genji."
Yagura looked at Genji.
"While I'm away from the village, I'll have to trouble you to watch over things."
"Rest assured, Mizukage-sama."
Soon, Yagura selected two guards, or rather, attendants.
The strength of a Kage is usually the highest in their ninja village.
There may be exceptions, but they are certainly among the strongest.
And the strength of the guards is likely to be inferior to that of the Kage.
One of the guards was Hozuki Izumo.
The other was a member of the Karatachi clan, likely a young junior whom Yagura favored.
What Yagura didn't know was that after his meeting ended, Genji immediately organized another meeting. In the name of the Third Mizukage, he summoned all the village's elders.
The Third Mizukage's shadowy figure appeared before them.
"The situation with Konoha is complicated. We cannot act recklessly. The mastermind controlling Yagura, based on his previous actions, clearly desires an intense ninja world war."
"If this time, he manipulates Yagura into deciding on a full-scale attack on Konoha, you must stop him, even if it risks arousing the mastermind's suspicion."
"Focus your main efforts on uncovering the secret behind Konoha's resurrection of dead ninja."
"Only by understanding this can we make decisions about what to do next."
The group exchanged glances.
"Yes, Mizukage-sama."
Soma returned to Forging Island.
At the moment, Hidden Mist Village wasn't much different from usual.
The situation on the frontlines wouldn't affect the daily lives of ordinary villagers so quickly.
After all, the battlefield wasn't near Hidden Mist Village.
It wasn't like the Nine-Tails incident, where Konoha received feedback so rapidly.
Soma glanced at the semi-transparent panel in front of him.
"3125."
"I'm still more than 800 points short of the 4000 reputation mark."
"Judging by the time, Chukichi should have reached the frontlines by now."
"4000 reputation points should be achievable soon."
"And as for the state of the ninja world, at worst, it will lead to an even more intense war."
"In that case, Hidden Mist Village will need even greater strength."
"With the Blueprint's progress stalled, I can actually start working on modifying the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords."
Soma took out the Bluntsword.
As a blacksmith, Soma's skills were actually quite impressive.
With the combination of various factors, he had already reached a master-level expertise.
This was a height that none of the blacksmiths in Hidden Mist Village, past or present, had ever achieved.
What Soma lacked was mainly materials.
The materials in Hidden Mist Village were extremely limited.
To put it bluntly, the Skillful Grade Sword was a compromise.
In the absence of better options, he had to "save" chakra metal.
However, with the downfall of the Hozuki Clan, the Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords fell into Soma's hands.
This partially resolved the materials issue.
He dismantled the weaker and less practical ninjato, using them as materials to forge new ones.
Forging stronger ninjato would be beneficial for Hidden Mist Village.
The previous Hidden Mist Seven Ninja Swords didn't have the same binding requirements as Zanpakuto.
However, mastering them was no easy task.
Otherwise, the Hozuki Clan wouldn't have set such strict standards for their users.
By allowing Soma to reforge these ninjato using their materials, the problem could be partially resolved.
"Chakra Smelting Technique!"
Both the axe and the hammer were placed into the furnace by Soma.
As he infused them with his chakra, the axe and the hammer gradually began to melt.
The two merged into one, becoming a single mass of metal.
Once the smelting was complete, Soma began hammering.
Ding!
Ding!
Ding!
The sound of hammering echoed through the forging room.
As Soma continued hammering, he was simultaneously contemplating the circuit design in his mind.
The Energy Storage Circuit was something Soma had already mastered.
"Just one Energy Storage Circuit isn't enough for this Zhanmadao—it doesn't meet my expectations."
"As for the second circuit..."
"Aside from forging techniques, my strongest skill is Water Release."
"Additionally, in Pioggia, there are circuits related to the conversion of water energy."
"Perhaps I can extract something from that."
"But a simple water-attribute chakra conversion circuit isn't enough."
"Water..."
"This means I'll need a third circuit."
"One Energy Storage Circuit to accumulate chakra."
"One water-attribute conversion circuit."
"To give the water power, there must also be some element of shape transformation."
This concept is actually the same as Ninjutsu.
Most Ninjutsu involves both nature transformation and shape transformation.
The combination of these two creates a Ninjutsu with special effects.
For example, Water Mist Jutsu and Water Prison Jutsu follow this principle.
However, there are also Ninjutsu that focus solely on one aspect to its ultimate form.
Rasengan is a typical example—using powerful shape transformation to become a destructive Ninjutsu.
But even Rasengan becomes much more powerful when Nature Transformation is added.
Naruto's Wind Release: Rasenshuriken is something that few ninjas can withstand.
Compared to the damage caused by the Rasengan, the difference is quite noticeable.
Soma began to conceptualize in his mind.
After half a day, Soma completed the forging of the materials. A large sheet of metal was laid out flat on the forging table.
Soma then walked into the next room, which was much quieter and cooler in comparison.
Soma was able to calm his mind and think more clearly.
The next day, Soma completed the design for the water-attribute conversion circuit.
It was done in one night.
However, in reality, he had already conceptualized it before; he only needed that night to test it and achieve the desired results.
"For a blacksmith, all achievements are not accomplished in one go; they are the result of continuous accumulation."
Soma had a deep understanding of this.
"Next comes the shape transformation circuit."
...
...
Land of Fire.
Indeed, the Fourth Raikage had chosen the Land of Fire as the location for the summit of the three kages.
At this time, the three ninja villages were all engaged in battle with Konoha.
Each had their own ninja forces in the Land of Fire.
Therefore, both in terms of safety and distance, the Land of Fire was the best choice.
A small conference room.
In the center was a round table.
Yagura, the Fourth Raikage, and Onoki sat down at three different points.
Each of their guards stood behind them—two for each.
This seemed to be a custom passed down from the First Hokage's meetings.
One Kage paired with two guards.
The Fourth Raikage impatiently spoke in a calm voice, "Tsuchikage, Mizukage, the situation is already quite clear."
"Konoha, in its desperate situation, has resorted to using extremely evil Ninjutsu."
"They are controlling the dead to fight for them."
"This completely violates the principles of a ninja—no, the principles of humanity."
"This evil existence must be destroyed, eradicated."
"Otherwise, it will be a disaster for the entire ninja world."
Yagura hesitated for a moment and said, "The problem now is that we don't have enough intelligence on Konoha. If we act rashly, we could easily fall into Konoha's trap."
"I think our priority is to gather intelligence on Konoha first."
Uchiha Obito was not present, and he did not give orders to Yagura.
Therefore, at this moment, Yagura had the ability to think for himself.
"Roshi has been taken hostage by Konoha; my Hidden Rock Village can't act right now!"
Onoki said.
The Fourth Raikage snorted coldly.
"Come on, Tsuchikage, if you really cared about the lives of your ninja, you wouldn't have used a sea of people tactic to kill my father. You were willing to sacrifice thousands of ninja just to kill him."
"Do I need to make it any clearer?"
"Konoha is evil and must be destroyed, but that is just our public stance."
"The real problem is that we have already completely offended Konoha."
"Our hatred with Konoha has reached a point of no return."
"In this situation, Konoha, having gained the power of the dead, will definitely seek revenge against us."
"My Hidden Cloud Village, you Hidden Mist Village and Hidden Rock Village, none of you can escape?"
"You think that Konoha will stop just because they pushed us back?"
"You think Konoha only seeks self-preservation?"
"The current Konoha is not the same Konoha from the time of Senju Hashirama."
Konoha during Senju Hashirama's era actually had the power to conquer the entire ninja world.
Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama, and Uchiha Madara together made for a formidable force.
If Senju Hashirama had truly attempted to conquer the ninja world, Uchiha Madara might not have defected from Konoha.
So why did he believe the words inscribed on the tombstone by Black Zetsu?
It was because Uchiha Madara had already lost hope.
Uchiha Madara himself harbored similar thoughts in his heart.
Thus, when he saw those words, they resonated with his own thoughts, leading him to believe them almost completely.
At that time, it was entirely due to Senju Hashirama's personal beliefs that Konoha did not bully other ninja villages.
"Once Konoha has revived enough dead, gaining the power to conquer the ninja world, do you think they will still hold onto Senju Hashirama's 'naive' ideas?"
"Impossible."
"This time, we have pushed Konoha to the brink of destruction."
"Now, between us and Konoha, there is only one path left."
"Either they die, or we die."
The Fourth Raikage stood up.
"To be honest, my Hidden Cloud Village does not want to cooperate with you."
"One who is self-righteous, selfish, and hides in the back."
"One who has a great enmity with my Hidden Cloud Village."
"I'm not asking you; I'm saving you."
"Of course, you can also choose to do nothing."
"Just wait for the outcome of the battle between my Hidden Cloud Village and Konoha."
"If my Hidden Cloud Village wins, you should be grateful."
"But if Konoha wins, your fate will be worse than that of my Hidden Cloud Village."
"Now, give me a response."
"Will you cooperate or not?"
Onoki and Yagura exchanged glances.
Then, they nodded.
Both were convinced by the Fourth Raikage.
"Let's cooperate."
Indeed, this time, the three major ninja villages had pushed Konoha too hard; the hatred between both sides had become irreconcilable. As long as Konoha had the strength, they would definitely retaliate.
Onoki and Yagura both put themselves in Konoha's position.
There was no way they would forgive Hidden Mist Village, Hidden Cloud Village, and Hidden Rock Village.
"Raikage, what are your thoughts? Should we immediately launch a full-scale attack on Konoha?"
"Not in a hurry, let's first gather intelligence on that resurrection Ninjutsu."
Onoki: "…"
Yagura: "…"
Just now, you spoke so aggressively and fiercely, as if you were about to rush to Konoha's doorstep for a life-and-death battle, but suddenly you calmed down?
The three reached a consensus.
However, what they didn't expect was that Konoha was currently even more aggressive than the three of them.
Konoha.
With a command from Orochimaru,
"Move out!"
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