"If I die, so be it. As long as you all remain alive, that is enough." Sasori patted Kanon on the shoulder.
"Ahhh~ Master Sasori, you're still spouting those pretty words."
"He truly is a veteran artist, isn't he?"
Hearing Deidara's mockery, Sasori gnashed his teeth. "You bastard, Deidara, do you want to die?"
"Want to discuss art?" Deidara raised his explosive clay.
"If it's a discussion you want, let's have it." Sasori raised his puppet.
"Stop fighting!" Kanon said helplessly. These two were exactly the same as they used to be.
"Is this situation really okay?" The masked man watched the "Art Trio" bickering and felt somewhat speechless.
Kabuto, hearing this, let his lips curl slightly.
"The number of Reanimated shinobi is quite large; controlling them is a bit troublesome."
"Right now, I am only centrally controlling their movements."
"Eventually, I will take full authority."
"Once the war begins, their personalities will be wiped away, turning them into killing machines. There is no need to worry."
With that, Kabuto closed his eyes. "However, this must be tailored to the individual."
"There are a few for whom the opposite approach is better."
"Retaining their emotions is the only way to trigger chaos among the enemy."
"That is their weakness."
The masked man stepped forward, giving instructions to Kanon and Kabuto.
"Kanon, your original body will follow the previous five Kage. I will take the Jinchuriki and leave."
"As for you, Kabuto, you will stay here to manipulate the Reanimation."
Hearing the masked man's orders, Kabuto was somewhat puzzled. "Are you not taking White and Black Zetsu?"
"I am leaving Zetsu as a watchdog for Sasuke, to prevent you from taking him away during the gaps in the war."
"I have already sent a hundred thousand White Zetsu traveling through the ground, as moving a large army above ground is too conspicuous." The masked man let out a cold sneer.
"Then let us depart as well." Kabuto looked at Kanon with a smile.
"I understand." Kanon's hands formed a cross.
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof!
Dozens of plumes of white smoke emerged. Unlike the original's red clothing, these clones all wore blue Uchiha coats.
Seeing a dozen exquisite young girls wearing fox-face masks appear, Kabuto and the masked man nodded slightly.
On Deidara's giant bird, Sasori and Kanon stood at the back.
"Sigh, Kanon-chan, your original body is actually going to the front lines with the former four Kage. If you miss the art I'm about to perform, won't you feel a bit of regret?"
"Not at all. If my shadow clone sees it, it counts as me seeing it." The girl in the blue coat stood between Sasori and Deidara, surveying her surroundings.
Kanon's sensory abilities were exceptionally strong. After flying for only a short while, she had already discovered some traces.
"As expected, the two fish that escaped the net back then can still be put to use now." Deidara grinned.
"Yes, let's utilize them." Thin threads appeared in Sasori's hands.
At that time, Anko Mitarashi's reconnaissance team had four members. Tokuma Hyuga had been slain by Kanon, and Anko Mitarashi had been captured. The remaining two had become the ones who escaped the net, but this was exactly Kabuto's scheme.
…
The Shinobi Allied Forces.
Gaara looked at the crowd below, remembering everything Naruto had done for him.
"That man cried for me, his enemy! He viewed me, someone who had hurt him, as a friend!"
"He saved me! We were once enemies, but he is also a Jinchuriki!"
"Between two people who share the same pain and understand each other, there can be no resentment!"
"At this time and in this place, there are no enemies!"
"Because everyone bears the scars left behind by the Akatsuki!"
"Whether it is Madara Uchiha or Kanon Uchiha! They are all our enemies!"
"The Sand, the Mist, the Stone, the Cloud, and the Leaf... these no longer exist!"
"There are only..."
"Shinobi!"
"If even so, you still cannot forgive the Sand!"
"Then take my head after this war is over!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of everyone present changed.
"Now, the enemy intends to take the friend who saved me!"
"Once the enemy gets him, the world is finished!"
"I want to protect my friend, and I want to protect this world!"
As Gaara spoke, he shouted to the crowd.
"But I am too young, too shallow, and insufficient to accomplish such a thing alone!"
"So... please, lend me your strength!"
Gaara bowed to everyone. The morale below was instantly galvanized, and everyone began to cheer.
Since even Gaara had said there was no resentment, how could they not contribute their own strength? The Shinobi Allied Forces must now work together with one heart to crush the Akatsuki's conspiracy.
Kankuro and the other captains saw the change in the people's expressions and smiled with relief. The more hot-blooded the group, the stronger they would be once assembled.
Seeing Gaara's growth, Temari and Kankuro, his older sister and brother, smiled with pride.
"Those who agree, follow me!"
"Let's go and take down the Akatsuki!"
Immediately, Gaara charged at the front, followed by eighty thousand shinobi of the Allied Forces and their captains. This war was unprecedentedly grand, with eighty thousand people departing from the base in Kumogakure.
Watching the relatively young Kage depart, Tsunade, A, and Onoki, standing atop the highest building in Kumogakure, all wore smiles.
"The Fourth Great Shinobi War… the victors will be us!" A shouted.
"Of course!" Onoki nodded.
"Mm," Tsunade agreed.
Gaara continued to lead the charge to the front lines, shouting to those behind him.
"Let us work together and fight until our very last breath!"
"For our friends, and for this world!"
…
The Surprise Attack Division, flying through the air, had already taken the lead and separated from the main army. Their task was to gather intelligence first and then report back to the troops.
While Omoi was lost in thought, Kankuro interrupted him.
"Omoi! Hey! Omoi, are you listening?"
"We are preparing to descend! This is enemy airspace, don't daydream!"
"Um, can I ask a question?"
"Ask what?"
"The captain and I are about the same age; this is your first time experiencing war, right?"
"Mm."
"Aren't you afraid?"
Kankuro seemed to see Omoi's confusion. He raised his fist to encourage everyone: "Listen up, the outcome of this war depends on the actions of us, the Surprise Attack Division."
"The number of casualties is the same. Just think about how to succeed!"
"If you want to protect your family and your comrades."
…
Deidara raised his hand, and the mouths in his palms began to knead clay into bombs. Below, the two fleeing Konoha shinobi were struck with terror.
Those were all C1 Clay Spiders.
Boom!
Massive explosions erupted below.
"Has he started carpet-bombing with explosive clay? I need to gain some more distance..." While the man was still thinking, a spider had already landed on his shoulder.
Boom!
The man was instantly blasted into a mist of blood.
Sensing the explosion, only the Aburame clan ninja remained on the field.
Kanon's lips curled slightly as she activated her Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
"Do you really think you can disrupt my chakra sensing with a few bugs?" Kanon's hands formed seals, and a massive Great Fireball accurately struck the ground in front of the Aburame ninja.
Seeing the Aburame ninja halted, Deidara and Sasori sneered.
"As expected of the infiltration and reconnaissance team, but don't underestimate the strength of the Art Duo."
"Since they use bugs, let's treat them to this." As Deidara spoke, he kneaded out many Explosive Clay: Twin-Winged Birds.
Each one, like a bat, began to search at high speed. In an instant, they found the ninja and exploded, and even the contact person who came to meet him was blown to pieces.
…
Changes were also occurring within the Shinobi Allied Forces.
The First Division had already followed the main army and began to divide into groups to leave.
Meanwhile, the Surprise Attack Division had already begun setting traps. Based on previous intelligence, Kankuro deduced that the enemy was using Reanimation, so they prepared a sealing area at a point the enemy was bound to pass.
"This is... an Interference Jutsu!"
"What's wrong?" Kankuro asked the ninja.
"Someone is using an Interference Jutsu. My sensing is inaccurate. Something is approaching!"
"Is it the enemy?" Kankuro looked toward a patch of grass where there was movement.
Muta Aburame staggered out and collapsed on the ground.
"It's Muta Aburame! I can tell from his chakra."
"He was the one from the Aburame clan in the advance reconnaissance team."
Immediately, one person rushed forward, wanting to check the situation.
"Wait! Hey!" Kankuro seemed to spot something amiss.
"There's a trap ahead, I'll bring him back," the Konoha ninja shouted.
"Hey!" Kankuro felt that things were getting more and more suspicious. If it were the enemy, how could they possibly let him come back?
"Run! It might be a trap!" Kankuro shouted.
Beside him, Hoheto Hyuga also activated his Byakugan to observe the man's chakra flow.
But it was too late.
Just as the man helped Muta up, Muta shouted weakly.
"Stay away from me..."
————
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