Mastermind of the Akatsuki

After hearing Tobirama Senju's words, the Third Hokage and Jiraiya exchanged uneasy glances. One was the strongest fighter in the Hokage lineage, and the other was a former Hokage who had already "died." Neither had a clear grasp of Konoha's current military strength.

Orochimaru was also unfamiliar with Konoha's situation, so it was finally the Root leader Shisui Uchiha who stepped forward to give a detailed explanation of Konoha's present forces.

Currently, Konoha has about 20,000 ninjas, including both active and retired shinobi, roughly split evenly. Of these, about 5,000 ninjas had already been deployed to the front lines. These were all at least of Chunin rank, elite ninjas from the general populace and major clans.

The remaining 15,000 ninja stationed inside Konoha mostly had ranks below Chunin, making it difficult to form another competent ninja force.

Upon hearing this, Tobirama Senju's expression grew troubled. The 20,000 ninjas, with only about 7,000 capable fighters, were roughly the same number as when he once led Konoha. What was the situation back then? And what was the Third Hokage facing now?

He had left Konoha with a solid foundation. Had the village followed his plans, it would at least not have fallen into such a dire state, even if it hadn't regained the glory of Hashirama's era.

What troubled Tobirama most was that Jiraiya, a direct Hokage successor, didn't even know Konoha's actual status. Instead, Shisui from the Uchiha clan, who controlled the military forces, had exact numbers.

This strongly suggested that Tsunade, the Hokage, was merely a figurehead, while the real power lay with Shisui Uchiha. This was a bitter pill for Tobirama to swallow.

At that moment, several masked Root ninjas entered the laboratory. They first reported on Konoha's status for the day to Shisui, then noticed the presence of the former Hokage statues and were shocked.

Why were the former Hokage suddenly in the lab? Seeing Shisui, they recovered composure and quietly left the room, vanishing without a trace.

Tobirama noticed these Root ninja coming to report and sensed something familiar about them. It was likely all of them were Shisui's subordinates, each possessing the elite Jonin-level chakra.

This only reinforced Tobirama's belief in Uchiha dominance over Konoha's military. His feelings grew even more complicated. But now wasn't the time to dwell on this, he needed to allocate forces properly to defeat the two biggest threats to Konoha: Madara Uchiha and Byakuya.

---

Somewhere in a canyon within the ninja world.

After days of preparation, a shinobi alliance army composed of ninja from various villages gathered in the canyon to be inspected by their leader, Byakuya, and five captains.

Byakuya roughly estimated the number of troops at around 80,000, an unprecedented scale and quite possibly the last time such a massive ninja force would be assembled.

The Five Kage, witnessing this scene, were moved. Before becoming leaders of their villages, they had all endured brutal ninja wars, and even then, the scale of ninja forces was limited.

Usually, battles involving dozens of shinobi were considered major campaigns, and fights involving hundreds or thousands were recorded in the annals of the ninja world's history.

The reason was simple: ninjas are an extremely versatile and powerful troop type. Speed, strength, and firepower of just one ninja can equal that of an entire army. Four ninja working together could have the effect of thousands of soldiers, this was why ninjas replaced traditional samurai.

Therefore, large-scale ninja armies were rarely formed unless absolutely necessary. Even the Five Kage felt refreshed seeing tens of thousands of ninja gathered in one place.

Exchanging glances, Byakuya began a rousing pre-battle speech to boost morale.

---

After an impassioned speech, the canyon erupted with thunderous cheers. The allied shinobi, energized like they had been injected with adrenaline, were full of confidence for the upcoming great ninja war.

After the rally, the Five Kage returned to the command center, their faces heavy with worry.

The allied shinobi army had been formed, but Madara Uchiha had yet to appear on the front lines. Was he trying to wear down the alliance through delay?

According to information from Byakuya, the Turtle Island hiding the tailed jinchuriki had been attacked.

Byakuya successfully repelled Madara's subordinates and protected the jinchuriki, but Jiraiya had vanished during a sneak attack.

Jiraiya was one of the legendary Three, how many shinobi in the world could confidently defeat him?

Thinking this, the Five Kage glanced toward Byakuya. Even though only a shadow of Byakuya was present, they instinctively felt a sense of reliance on him.

The reason was simple: Madara Uchiha was beyond the power of any Kage-level ninja. Only another transcendent ninja like Byakuya could somewhat restrain Madara.

Byakuya, resting with eyes closed, seemed to sense the Kage's gaze. Slowly opening his eyes, he said, "Everyone, Madara has arrived!"

"Madara has arrived?"

Hearing this, the Five Kage were momentarily stunned. How had they not known of Madara's coming?

At that moment, several ninjas entered the command room and reported to the allied leadership, "Honored leaders, according to the reconnaissance team's intel, tens of thousands of chakra signatures appeared 50 kilometers away on the wasteland. It's most likely Madara's army."

The Five Kage's expressions darkened, secretly impressed by Byakuya's sensing abilities.

As Five Kage, their chakra sensing was outstanding, able to detect chakra several kilometers away. While not as refined as highly skilled sensory Jonin, their ability was formidable.

But Byakuya's sensing range of 50 kilometers was terrifying, surpassing the limit of the Byakugan and most sensory jutsu.

Yet why were there tens of thousands of chakra signatures?

Could it be all the White Zetsu that had previously attacked the Five Great Shinobi Villages? The number of White Zetsu was astonishing, nearly equal to the ninja alliance itself, no wonder Madara was confident enough to declare war on the entire ninja world.

After a moment's thought, Ōnoki looked at Byakuya and asked, "Byakuya, leader, Madara is at our doorstep. How should the ninja alliance respond?"

Byakuya smiled at Ōnoki and said, "Of course, we go meet Madara. Isn't the ninja alliance united to fight Madara?"

Ōnoki nodded, silently sighing to himself. He was getting old; hearing Madara's name still instinctively filled him with fear.

"Well said. Let's march toward Madara then."

Regarding Byakuya's order, no one present expressed any objection. They worried about Madara Uchiha launching a sneak attack, but they held little concern for a direct frontal war. No matter how strong Madara was, he could not possibly stand against eighty thousand ninja. Although the number of White Zetsu was intimidating, they were ultimately a mindless horde of beasts. As long as the villages cooperated with their ninjutsu defenses, they posed no real threat.

---

Several hours later, the Allied Shinobi Forces and Madara's troops appeared on the wasteland. This was once a forest but had been leveled recently in battle, leaving only a barren surface, an ideal place for a decisive fight.

Upon arrival, the Five Kage immediately looked toward the enemy. When they saw the opposing ninja, they couldn't help but frown.

The allied forces included many Kage-level elite fighters. As long as Byakuya could hold Madara down, these remaining Kage-level ninjas could overwhelm the masked men with sheer numbers. After defeating the masked men, they would then support Byakuya. This confidence in victory was their main reason for wanting a direct battle with Madara.

But when they truly observed Madara's forces, they suddenly realized the other side also possessed numerous Kage-level elite, many of whom were traitors from the major villages. This included Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki, and other notorious figures from the black market. Although outnumbered, their presence shattered the plan to gang up on Madara.

While the Five Kage surveyed the masked men, Byakuya and Madara exchanged glances.

Days ago, these two had already discussed the nature of this Shinobi World War, debating how it should unfold. Initially, Madara had dismissed the war as trivial. In his view, the only worthy opponents were the First Hokage and Byakuya. Instead of wasting time battling the Five Kage, it would be better to face Byakuya directly.

However, Madara was not entirely confident in defeating Byakuya and didn't want to break ties just yet. He had been waiting for Byakuya and Obito to gather all the tailed beasts and then launch a decisive strike at the critical moment.

After hearing Byakuya's war plan, Madara's lips curled into a slight smile. If this was how the war was to be fought, it might be interesting after all.

Ending their gaze, Byakuya spoke to Madara, "Madara Uchiha, if you give up now, the Allied Shinobi Forces will forgive past offenses, and in the future, you can live with some freedom under the coalition's watch."

Madara laughed wildly upon hearing this, "Byakuya, at our level, it's just survival of the fittest. And from what you say, it sounds like you could take me down whenever you wish?"

He paused, then said meaningfully, "Also, you must be a Wood Clone here, right? Do you really think this group of kids can defeat me, Madara Uchiha?"

Before he finished, Madara formed hand seals and was instantly cloaked by his Susanoo.

Unlike other Uchiha, Madara's Susanoo had four arms on each side, allowing simultaneous offense and defense.

In an instant, Madara's Susanoo fully formed, towering fifty meters tall.

This alone shocked the allied shinobi, but what shocked them more was that Madara simultaneously summoned five Susanoo.

Seeing five massive demonic figures, the allied shinobi swallowed hard. Unlike the last Five Kage Summit where every participant was an upper ninja, many allied shinobi had never witnessed such a terrifying spectacle and could hardly imagine Susanoo was a human technique.

The next moment, all five Susanoo launched their attack toward the Allied Forces.

Seeing this, the Fourth Raikage and the elders of Kirigakure immediately used Body Flicker Technique and attacked the Susanoo.

Under their fierce assault, the Susanoo faltered and began to tremble.

After several minutes, the Fourth Raikage and the Kirigakure elders defeated the Susanoo and gasped for breath upon returning.

Although they had beaten the Susanoo, the allied forces' morale dropped further. It was hard for the allied shinobi to believe that just a few Susanoo could make the Five Kage overwhelmed.

Witnessing the defeat of his Susanoo, Madara placed his hands on his hips and looked at Byakuya with contempt, "Byakuya, are you not going to personally fight? Or do you want me to first deal with the pesky Five Kage? Or maybe I should crush your Wood Clone and your last illusion myself?"

Hearing this, the allied shinobi quickly looked toward Byakuya, thinking that their leader might truly just be a Wood Clone, and if that was the case, what hope did they have?

Byakuya smiled and then threatened, "Indeed, this Wood Clone alone does not guarantee my victory over you, but guess where my true body is right now?"

Madara sneered, "Is it protecting the jinchūriki? You worry I would sneak attack them, but I disdain such tactics. Once I defeat the Allied Shinobi Forces head-on, I'll find you for sure."

Byakuya shook his head with a playful tone, "Madara, you misunderstand. My true body is indeed near the jinchūriki, but my goal isn't to protect them, it's to protect the Shinobi World."

Madara's expression darkened, "Protect the Shinobi World? What do you intend to do?"

Byakuya replied calmly, "Madara, there are many ways to prevent you from obtaining all the tailed beasts. The Allied Forces can defeat you directly or kill the jinchūriki. If the jinchūriki dies, the tailed beasts will die with them, at least until they can be reborn. During that time, you won't be able to threaten the Shinobi World."

Madara's face grew grim, "Are you threatening me? If you don't get the tailed beasts, I can retreat for a while and destroy your villages. That's just waiting decades."

Byakuya scoffed, "Can your resurrection jutsu really last decades? Compared to your Infinite Tsukuyomi plan, I think the villages can afford some sacrifices."

Madara's tone turned serious, "Tell me, what exactly do you intend by saying all this?"

Byakuya slowly began, "I want to play a game with you, a wager. The outcome will decide the Shinobi World's future and the fate of us both."