I, The New Hokage of Konoha

After a day.

On an unnamed beach in the Land of Water.

Amidst sharp whistles, a flying ninjas tool from Konoha was currently circling in the air, searching for potential targets.

After scouting for a few minutes and finding no signs of life, it seemed as desolate as the saying goes, with no trace of any living beings.

The Konoha flying squad member manipulating the flying ninjas tool shook their head slightly, then changed course, heading towards another direction.

Soon, apart from the continuous rush of waves on the beach, the unnamed beach returned to its former calmness.

Until a quarter of an hour later.

Carefully waiting for some time and confirming that the Konoha flying ninjas tool wouldn't return, two splashes suddenly emerged abruptly from the nearby beach's surface.

The bodies of Mei Terumi and Chōjūrō surfaced gradually from beneath the sea.

As their feet finally touched the ground,

looking thoroughly disheveled, even Chōjūrō, who usually wore his trademark black-framed glasses, was absent. He planted one of his twin swords, named Hiramekarei, into the ground and collapsed onto the beach, panting heavily, saying, 'Finally made it back! It wasn't easy at all!'

On the side, holding another Hiramekarei that had been used as a makeshift float due to depleted chakra, Mei Terumi, although not collapsing as instantly as Chōjūrō, let out a visibly tired expression that she had been holding back.

Upon hearing Chōjūrō's exclamation, Mei Terumi couldn't help but glance at the ocean behind her, nodding heavily, 'Indeed, it wasn't easy!'

A day ago, nearly a hundred elite members from Kirigakure set out to sea with high spirits.

Now, only the two of them returned.

Suigetsu, Hagoromo, Ao, and several other Kirigakure ninjas, even some younger generation who willingly stopped in their tracks to ensure her escape as the Mizukage, all halted their steps.

She had fulfilled a part of their wishes.

There was still the most crucial part of their wishes to fulfill.

Mei Terumi turned, gazing toward the depths of the Land of Water, where Kirigakure, having weathered bloody storms and now suffering heavy damage, awaited her.

Pain, self-blame, sorrow, regret, and more had burdened her throughout the previous day.

By now, while not numb to it, Mei Terumi forcefully suppressed all those emotions with a strong will, knowing precisely what she needed to do at this moment, without further delay:

'It's time to go, Chōjūrō. It's not time to relax yet!'

'Sorry, Lord Mizukage!' Chōjūrō hastily got up at her words, scratching his head apologetically, then readjusting his twin swords Hiramekarei before resolutely following Mei Terumi's steps.

Thus concluded the sudden assault between Konoha and Kirigakure.

On the other side,

Having been unable to locate Mei Terumi for a long time and realizing it might be fruitless, Suigetsu ceased being greedy. Apart from dispatching some personnel to continue searching in hopes of luck, he himself returned, preparing to capture the two Jinchūriki from Kirigakure before anything else.

Unexpectedly, during the clash between the Six-Tails Jinchūriki, Utakata, and a wooden individual, Utakata left early after losing an arm as a price.

In the end, Konoha only managed to capture Isaribi.

Still, the outcome was somewhat satisfactory.

As the perfect Jinchūriki of the Three-Tails and also carrying the significant title of the Fourth Mizukage, Isaribi's capture dealt a significant blow to Kirigakure.

Furthermore, accompanying Mei Terumi, including the highly-ranked Ao, almost all elite Kirigakure ninjas were captured.

In this calculation, Konoha undeniably achieved a remarkably fruitful victory.

From then on, for at least a month or two, there was no further movement from Kirigakure.

'Maybe it's time to inform the village that we can send another batch of reinforcements back.'

Later, aboard the returning carrier, despite not achieving complete success, Suigetsu, still in a good mood, pondered about it for the greater good.

...

On the battlefield between Konoha and Kirigakure, the Kirigakure suffered heavy losses due to a surprise attack by the Iwagakure ninjas.

As Mei Terumi, full of resentment, returned to Kirigakure and was about to inform other allies about the news, she discovered she didn't need to, as the other three nations, especially Iwagakure, were already aware.

Pushing the timeline a bit earlier,

During the naval incident involving Konoha and Kirigakure,

On the battlefield in the Land of Grass, several hours after knowing about this through remote communication, Hashirama Senju no longer hesitated.

Under the immense pressure of enduring continuous attacks from over twenty thousand Iwagakure ninjas, he finally revealed his first trump card.

After issuing an order, outside the sea area near the Land of Earth, a force of four thousand ninjas, consisting of two thousand former Kumo ninjas and two thousand from Konoha, officially set sail toward the Land of Earth.

Leading this army was the former Raikage, Ei and Suigetsu.

Being situated in a remote location within the Land of Lightning, with only one thousand Konoha ninjas and a small number of former Kumo ninjas left to handle any trouble domestically, was enough.

To ensure the Cloud ninjas received respectable positions within Konoha, Suigetsu personally led this force of four thousand ninjas, launching a surprise attack on the Land of Earth's coastal areas under Iwagakure's radar, disrupting the rear of Iwagakure, diverting their attention, and paving the way for Konoha's ultimate goal after the aftermath.

It turned out his strategy was on point.

The four thousand-strong ninja army swiftly defeated a small number of Iwagakure coastal defense forces, landed successfully, and wreaked havoc along the Land of Earth's coastal cities, advancing further.

Soon, distress signals from the Land of Earth's rear and even orders from Tsuchikage's headquarters flooded the desk of Ōnoki.

Unable to curse the shamelessness and stupidity of the Kumo ninjas who had turned traitor, and equally afraid of the logistical line being cut off, Ōnoki hurriedly tried to dispatch an Iwagakure army to return.

However, just as the forces were reduced, together with the scarce remaining troops from multiple reinforcements on the front lines, their power wasn't enough to drive away the four thousand enemies.

While fretting with his colleagues, someone suddenly spoke up,

'Don't we still have two thousand Iwagakure ninjas stationed at the borders of Amegakure?'

Instantly, Ōnoki's eyes lit up.

'Almost forgot about this move!' He vigorously clapped his hands, then turned to Kurotsuchi, 'What's the latest update from Kirigakure?'

Kurotsuchi replied, 'In the latest communication, Kirigakure mentioned they still need some time for preparation and mobilization of resources, but they assure to officially launch an attack in two days. Also, they declined our proposal to join the Land of Grass or the Land of Rivers battlefields, opting to launch their attack on the Land of Fire.'

'Not ready yet? Humph! This old man wants to watch us bleed more with Konoha. Also, attacking the Land of Fire themselves, it's clear they're taking advantage of Konoha's current lack of manpower, seizing this opportunity for themselves, rather than shedding blood here!' Ōnoki sneered.

Of course, after saying so much, upon noticing Kirigakure's self-serving behavior, he felt relieved.

Seeing the current behavior of Kirigakure, they wouldn't side with the foolish Kumo ninjas.

Given that, with the departure of the two thousand Iwagakure ninjas stationed at the borders of Amegakure, a long-awaited scenario was about to unfold.