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Two days later, Shin and his team returned to the Land of Rain.
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Since the last battle, there had only been minor skirmishes between Konoha and the Suna-Ame forces.
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These skirmishes involved small teams of Shinobi disrupting supply lines and assassinating key personnel.
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Danzō had left the Suna front and gone to the Iwa front, where Hiruzen was struggling.
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Hiruzen, despite his strength, was having a hard time against the Third Tsuchikage, ōnoki.
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ōnoki, despite his small stature, was a powerful Shinobi.
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He also had the Kekkei Tōta, Dust Release, which could disintegrate anything it touched.
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And he had the support of Rōshi, the Four-Tails Jinchūriki. Rōshi and ōnoki might not get along, but they were united against Konoha.
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Hiruzen couldn''t handle it, so he had sent for Danzō and put Sakumo Hatake in charge of the Suna front.
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Shin and his team didn''t see Tsunade or Konan when they returned. They must be at the medical tent.
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At the medical tent, Shin found Konan.
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"Shin-nii, you''re back!"
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Konan''s eyes lit up, and she ran towards Shin.
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"She only sees Shin. How heartless," Mikoto said with a pout.
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"I even taught you how to refine Chakra, Konan. You''re so ungrateful," Kushina added.
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"Mikoto-neechan, Kushina-neechan."
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Konan greeted them sweetly, then went back to Shin, making Kushina even more jealous.
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"You''re back. What mission were you on?"
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Tsunade emerged from the medical tent. Shin hadn''t told her where he was going.
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"Nothing much. Just dealt with a missing-nin. Anything happen here?"
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"Nothing major. Suna and Ame have only been sending small teams to harass us. No major battles."
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Tsunade shook her head, then looked at Shin curiously. He had time to deal with a missing-nin?
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"Since I''m here, I might as well practice my Medical Ninjutsu."
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Shin said. He hadn''t had a chance to use the Mystical Palm Jutsu since learning it from Tsunade.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
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Now was the perfect opportunity. There were plenty of injured Shinobi here.
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"Don''t do anything reckless," Tsunade warned.
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"Don''t worry. You don''t think I''ll kill them with the Mystical Palm Jutsu, do you?"
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...
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Two months passed. Shin celebrated another birthday; he was eleven now.
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The System gifted him a Common Replication Card, which he used to copy the physique of a Taijutsu master, further enhancing his physical abilities.
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Shin had a dream: to defeat Six Paths Madara with Taijutsu.
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With the System''s help, it wasn''t just a dream; it was a real possibility.
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Perhaps in the future, he would find this dream too small.
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During those two months, there were dozens of skirmishes between Konoha and the Suna-Ame forces. Konoha won every time.
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And Hanzō was practically traumatized by Shin. Shin had defeated him so many times that Hanzō was now terrified of him.
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Suna was still holding on, refusing to surrender. The cost of surrender was too high.
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As for Amegakure, if even Suna couldn''t afford to surrender, they definitely couldn''t.
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But thanks to their alliance with Amegakure, they had the advantage of familiarity with the terrain.
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"Do you have a plan? We don''t want to die with you."
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Hanzō confronted the Third Kazekage.
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His tone was harsh. He blamed the Kazekage for dragging him into this mess. But it wasn''t entirely the Kazekage''s fault; Hanzō had been tempted by the rewards offered.
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"I sent a message to ōnoki, but that old fox said they''re struggling themselves and can''t spare any forces."
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The Kazekage said angrily.
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According to the intel, ōnoki was currently overwhelming Konoha. They were far from "struggling."
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He simply didn''t want to help Suna. Their alliance was just a verbal agreement; it could be broken at any time.
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Hanzō glared at the Kazekage. This Kazekage was too naive. He shouldn''t have joined this war for a bit of profit. Now he was stuck.
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"Don''t you have any other plans?" Hanzō asked.
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If the Kazekage couldn''t come up with a viable plan, Hanzō would have to prepare for Amegakure''s withdrawal.
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"Our Sealing Team has finally released Bunpuku from that seal. He can rejoin the battle now."
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"Do you think one Jinchūriki can defeat Konoha? Have you forgotten how he was captured in the first place?"
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Hanzō''s frown deepened. This Kazekage was unreliable.
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"Ebizo has sent a letter to Kumogakure, inviting them to join us. If Kumo joins the war, Konoha will be forced to divide their forces."
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Hanzō hadn''t expected the Kazekage to try and enlist Kumo''s help. But would it work?
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The Kage weren''t idiots. Could Suna really convince Kumo to attack Konoha?
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The Third Raikage wouldn''t do it without a good reason. What could Suna possibly offer?
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"How confident are you that you can convince the Third Raikage?"
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Hanzō asked. This was important. It would determine his next move.
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"I''m eighty percent sure I can convince Kumo to join the war."
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The Kazekage said confidently.
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Hanzō was skeptical, but he chose to believe him for now.
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After Hanzō left, the Kazekage sighed. Eighty percent? He didn''t even have twenty percent confidence.
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But he knew that if he told the truth, Hanzō would have second thoughts. So he had to act confident. He had successfully deceived Hanzō for now.
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But after Hanzō left, the Kazekage started to worry. Defeating Konoha was proving to be difficult. He didn''t have any good options.
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