My Techniques are a bit off

The next day, morning. Takigakure. Clear weather.

So-called "Taki" is the Japanese word for "waterfall."

Takigakure, as the name suggests, is a village surrounded by waterfalls; naturally, the country itself is likewise full of waterfalls.

Besides bringing large amounts of water vapor and a yearly half-season of rainy periods, in this autumn weather, the sunshine and temperature here are still fairly nice.

There was nothing unusual about Takigakure's ANBU today. They were patrolling their borders when suddenly they noticed a gigantic shadow passing through the sky.

"What is that?"

The ANBU aren't fools. They looked up at once, barely able to see a colossal summoned beast.

"That's the Sixth Hokage of Konoha's summoning beast!"

"Sound the alarm— whoosh~! Pop!"

After they launched the signal flare, the ANBU wasted no time rushing back.

The present shinobi world knows all too well that the Sixth Hokage is an insane little dwarf—he attacked the other four Great Nations during the Five Kage Summit without hesitation, so who knows what he'll do this time.

From their vantage, that truly enormous Mountain Drake was flying at a terrifying speed, disappearing from view in the blink of an eye.

The ANBU, anxious but helpless, could only hurry back.

Half an hour later, when they arrived at the outskirts of the village, they saw that colossal Mountain Drake sprawled lazily outside Takigakure.

And inside the village—dead silence.

With hearts racing, the ANBU split into two teams: one to probe the dragon, the other to head into the village.

Shortly after, the Mountain Drake rose back into the air, and the ANBU who had gone into the village heard a shocking report from their comrades:

Right when the dragon descended, countless shadows, like a surging tide, rushed into the village. Effortlessly, they subdued all the shinobi within and declared war on "Takigakure"—

They demanded that in one month's time, they must travel to a place called "Mountain Graveyard," where the Fourth Great Ninja War would commence—launched by the Sixth Hokage of Konoha against the entire world.

If they didn't show up, next time he came, he'd directly wipe Takigakure out…

What kind of nonsense is this?

Has the Sixth Hokage really lost his mind?

…

Seven hours later, Kumogakure.

"We've finally arrived," Link said, standing atop the head of his Mountain Drake, gazing down at the countless Kumo shinobi on high alert. He yawned.

The giant Mountain Drake summoned by Bubble's chakra can fly fast enough to cover the distance from the Land of Fire to the Land of Lightning in about three hours.

But along the way, Link had a spur-of-the-moment thought: if he wanted to declare war on the Five Great Nations—actually, the other four Great Nations—why not also rope in the smaller hidden villages as well? So he simply took his time hitting them one by one.

Takigakure was the first stop. Not very used to the routine, so it took a bit longer there; afterward, the process was pretty straightforward.

"Hmph!"

The Mountain Drake gently "parked" in the gorge near Kumogakure.

But because its body was so enormous, the gorge's narrow walls couldn't contain it. Under its immense bulk, the canyon collapsed into rubble.

At a casual shove of the beast's wings, both gorge walls snapped and crumbled.

Boom!

The dragon's belly slumped down, half-submerging itself in the rushing water below, sparks shooting out from the friction between its iron-hard scales and the rock wall. For the dragon, it was just a refreshing dip—childlike in intellect, it sent a happy feeling to its master.

"Rumble—!"

The sudden transformation of the terrain caused changes in the weather. In moments, thunder boomed and dark clouds gathered, an almost doomsday-like spectacle. Pair that with the dragon's savage visage, and it truly looked like some world-ending villain's arrival.

(Sigh,) please don't let it start raining—

If I end up drenched, that'll be a pain.

Link touched the dragon's head to communicate, then glanced up at the overcast sky.

Sure, shinobi can do amazing things with chakra, but they can't just part the rain like those fancy cultivator stories. Even if you're as strong as Hashirama or Madara, you'd still get soaked in a downpour.

Maybe one day we should develop some scientifically-based shinobi tool that repels rain…

he mused. And in that moment, Kumogakure's shinobi rushed forward to meet them.

"Sixth Hokage, what do you think you're doing?!"

The Fourth Raikage led the charge, roaring at the top of his lungs.

Behind him followed the two bodyguards, glancing about warily, for the Fourth Raikage's hotheadedness was famous.

Link waited until they climbed onto the dragon's body, getting within hearing range, before speaking:

"What am I doing?"

He grinned mildly. "I suppose I'm…declaring war."

Then he casually raised two fingers to adjust the zero-prescription glasses he'd bought earlier that morning.

"You bastard!"

The Fourth Raikage shouted in a rage, lightning flickering across his body. In a flash, he streaked forward like thunder.

If you want to protect a bunch of ants without killing them, you've got to control your strength well…

Link thought. He sighed gently,

"Too slow."

Boom! Boom!

The Fourth Raikage flew back out even faster, crashing into the two bodyguards.

Those shadow-clones—rather, living shadows—didn't even bother with him. They surged on, knocking aside every Kumogakure shinobi in their path, flooding into the village.

"Urgh!"

The Fourth Raikage, trying to stand back up for a second strike, was pinned down again by Eight Gates shadows. His two bodyguards likewise.

"What do you want?!" he demanded, pinned to the dragon's back.

Link was seated on a specially prepared, luxurious "king's throne," resting one cheek on his fist, his other hand drumming on the armrest. In a relaxed tone, he replied:

"Don't sound so hostile. It only makes you look insecure. As for what I'm here for…

…surely you've heard the news by now?

Kusa, Taki—I didn't do anything too extreme, nor did I kill your shinobi."

"When you want to step on ants without crushing them, you have to control your force. That's tricky, you know."

Pinned to the dragon's scales, the bodyguard named C said,

"Sixth Hokage, have you forgotten our alliance—"

"Rules," Link interrupted lightly, his voice full of amusement. "Are merely something those who can't live outside them create, to protect themselves."

Turning to the Fourth Raikage, his tone gentle:

"Fourth Raikage, if you don't want your village destroyed—

…come stop me. I'll give you all one month."

"In one month's time, meet me at the Mountain Graveyard—"

"Entertain me."

Then the shadows hurled the three away; throngs of shadows came pouring out of Kumogakure, re-merged under Link's feet.

High above, the Fourth Raikage felt a wave of helplessness as he watched that arrogant foe fly off, perched atop his giant beast.

You bastard…

~~~

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