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A sweeping victory on this scale was bound to bring massive, transformative changes to the Hidden Waterfall and the Hidden Grass.
But the shockwave it sent across the entire ninja world was absolutely unparalleled. Although the technology tree in this world had developed in strange, skewed directions, there were still significant breakthroughs in essential areas—and ninja, of course, had their own specialized methods for everything.
This was especially true given the Fourth Raikage's highly publicized, intentional march straight to the borders of the Land of Waterfalls. Naturally, the eyes of the entire ninja world were locked onto this region. Even the Hidden Sand and the Hidden Stone—who were currently maintaining a wait-and-see approach—had deployed their necessary reconnaissance teams deep into the area.
The news that Menma had led the Waterfall ninja in a preemptive strike broke almost the exact second the two armies clashed.
The frontline scouts from the various villages witnessed it all firsthand.
The clash between the colossal forms of the Six-Tails and the Two-Tails was particularly earth-shattering. The scouts immediately transmitted the intelligence back to their respective village leaders through their dedicated, secure channels. But the situation on the battlefield shifted at breakneck speed.
This was an incredibly high-stakes collision.
Most scouts had predicted a prolonged, bloody stalemate. A small minority thought the Cloud ninja might just bulldoze straight through.
No one—absolutely no one—predicted the final outcome: a total, crushing victory for the Waterfall ninja.
Out of three thousand elite Cloud ninja, less than a thousand managed to escape.
The Two-Tails Jinchuriki was highly suspected to have been captured. The Fourth Raikage, A, had reportedly suffered catastrophic injuries and only managed to escape under the desperate cover of his subordinates.
When that intelligence first came through, the scouts from the major villages practically refused to believe their own ears and eyes.
But the truth was laid bare right in front of them. The brutal, undeniable reality.
They had witnessed the catastrophic rout of the Cloud ninja with their own eyes.
Whether they wanted to believe it or not, it was happening. Driven by a frantic urgency, these scouts worked like madmen, transmitting the gathered intelligence back to their home villages as fast as humanly possible.
The news spread across the ninja world like wildfire.
Every single nation and ninja village was shaken to its core.
And the first to receive the news was, without a doubt, the Hidden Leaf Village. They had dispatched their own army to the Land of Waterfalls, but they were running a day or two behind the Cloud forces.
The Leaf's vanguard was currently separated from the battlefield by the entire Land of Frost.
This massive force—nearly four thousand Leaf ninja strong—was led by Jiraiya, who had rushed to join them the moment he received Tsunade's urgent summons.
Shikaku and Inoichi were also present, coordinating from the center.
They were backed up by the absolute elite Jonin of the Hidden Leaf, including Kakashi and Asuma.
The original plan had been simple: rendezvous with the Cloud forces near the Land of Frost, and then march on the Land of Waterfalls together.
But the Fourth Raikage's arrogant, unilateral decision to push ahead had blown that plan out of the water.
Initially, this wasn't seen as a critical issue.
Shikaku had easily predicted that the Fourth Raikage was making a play to seize control of the operation. He had even provided Jiraiya with specific countermeasures to handle the Raikage's power grab.
But no one could have anticipated the fallout.
That one "minor issue" had triggered an unbelievably catastrophic outcome.
In the Land of Frost, at the Leaf's forward operating base.
This wasn't their intended staging ground, but the rapidly deteriorating situation had forced the Leaf forces to set up camp here temporarily.
A preemptive strike.
The Fourth Raikage is comatose with severe injuries. The Two-Tails Jinchuriki has been captured.
Over half of the three thousand Cloud ninja are dead or wounded. The survivors have routed and fled back across their own borders.
The Waterfall ninja did not pursue. Instead, they pulled back to fortify their defensive lines.
The intelligence reports from the frontline scouts echoed in the silent tent.
Inside the main command tent.
Jiraiya sat in the center seat, his face grave.
Below him, the Jonin—Shikaku, Kakashi, Asuma, and Inoichi—wore expressions of utter solemnity.
Even Shikamaru—who had specifically petitioned his father to let him join the frontline forces—stood there, a complex mix of emotions warring on his face.
Is Menma really this strong now? Strong enough to beat the Fourth Raikage in a one-on-one fight?
They were the same age. They had sat in the same classrooms at the Ninja Academy for six years.
If Shikamaru could just calmly and easily accept this reality... well, that would be a miracle.
"This is the latest intelligence from our frontline scouts. While it hasn't been independently verified yet, based on everything we know, I believe this information is accurate," Shikaku said from the first seat on the left, his voice heavy with grim certainty.
This operation.
It was supposed to be a joint strike by the Leaf, the Cloud, and the Mist. But now, the Mist forces were still two full days out, and the Cloud army had completely imploded. If the staggering casualties among the three thousand Cloud ninja weren't enough of a disaster...
The near-fatal injury of a sitting Kage and the capture of a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki were devastating blows that would severely destabilize the entire Hidden Cloud Village.
But more alarming than the Cloud's defeat was the sheer, terrifying power the enemy had displayed.
It completely shattered their initial projections.
Especially Menma Uzumaki.
In a straight one-on-one fight, with no outside interference, he had decisively beaten the Fourth Raikage. That level of power placed him firmly at the absolute ceiling of the current ninja world.
Facing an enemy like that...
Shikaku knew they had to drastically escalate their strategic threat assessment.
They couldn't afford to judge this situation using outdated metrics.
What a terrifying kid...
Beneath his calm exterior, Shikaku shook his head, deeply unsettled. When he drafted the original battle plans, he thought he had placed Menma's threat level impossibly high.
But looking at the reality on the ground...
Menma's actual power still far exceeded his most extreme projections.
But what was truly terrifying wasn't just his raw strength. It was his iron will and ruthless strategic mind.
Exactly!
Even without hard evidence, Shikaku's gut told him that this entire masterclass in warfare was orchestrated solely by Menma. This wasn't Orochimaru pulling the strings from the shadows, as the rest of the world believed.
This was Menma's absolute, unilateral dominance.
Realizing this, Shikaku's wariness toward Menma skyrocketed to infinite levels. At the same time, a deep sense of regret gnawed at him. If only Menma could have stayed in the Hidden Leaf... imagine what he could have done.
But it was a pipe dream.
It was a fantasy that Shikaku couldn't change, no matter the circumstances.
So, he allowed himself exactly one second of pointless regret before forcibly shoving the thought out of his mind.
"My recommendation is that we halt our advance immediately. We need to deploy more scouts to the front lines and send specialized intelligence operatives directly to the Hidden Cloud Village to gather as much actionable intel as possible. We hold our position, wait for the Mist forces to arrive and consolidate, and only then do we decide on our next move," Shikaku said. He paused slightly, his gaze sweeping over Kakashi, Inoichi, and the other Jonin in the tent before finally settling on Jiraiya in the command seat.