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