Naruto - Minato Namikaze SI

[Chapter Size: 2100 Words.]

Third Person POV

Konoha, Year 41.

...

...

Minato suddenly returned to the camp after a Jonin ninja delivered an urgent message in the middle of the morning during their training session at the practice field. As soon as he arrived with his team, he noticed the camp was in turmoil. The ninjas appeared worried, their faces betraying no tranquility as they rushed back and forth.

"We were attacked!!"

"Those bastards from the Land of Clouds!"

"I knew some of the victims; they just massacred two outposts!!"

Minato ignored the heated discussions among the ninjas and quickly made his way to the main tent, leaving his team behind. At the entrance, the guards standing watch recognized him and allowed him through.

"You may enter. The commander authorized it as soon as you arrived," one of them said.

With a brief nod of gratitude, Minato stepped inside. Inside the tent, he found several team leaders engaged in a heated discussion with Commander Aburame. Everyone seemed tense. The moment they noticed Minato's presence, the conversation halted, and the commander directed an order at him.

"You've arrived, boy. I hope you're prepared, as we discussed yesterday... In the end, we suffered a full-force attack. Everything you need to know is in this scroll," the commander began in a firm tone. "Commander Sakumo has also sent orders. We are forming a main team with the best ninjas to accompany you. You, myself, and others in this room are included."

Minato nodded without speaking, prompting the commander to continue.

"Meanwhile, your team will stay behind, joining the reinforcement group. Is that clear?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," Minato replied, maintaining his serious demeanor.

The commander handed a scroll to Minato. "Here is the attack report, along with Commander Sakumo's instructions. I want you to inform your team and prepare them to join the reinforcements. As for you, prepare to join the main team, which is already on its way, gathering ninjas from each camp."

Without further words, Minato nodded and left the tent. Outside, he headed straight to his team's tent but was intercepted by them before entering. They were eager to know what was happening, as the situation seemed grave.

Minato explained briefly what the superiors had planned for them.

"Why do we have to stay behind? We could go with you!" Mikoto complained, visibly frustrated.

Minato sighed, trying to calm her down. "I know, Mikoto. But this isn't up to us. Besides, avoid using your full power, especially you. We can't draw unnecessary attention right now. It's not worth it."

He was warning her to keep her Mangekyō Sharingan hidden from the village. Mikoto huffed but nodded, acknowledging Minato's logic.

"Don't worry, Minato! No matter where we are, we'll do a great job!" Duy said, trying to cheer the group up.

Minato managed a small smile at this. "I trust you all. Now, I need to prepare. I'll see you on the battlefield," he said.

As Minato withdrew to prepare, the camp continued to buzz with news of a massive attack. The ninjas from the Cloud Village had destroyed two outposts in the north, led by the Raikage himself and two jinchūriki. This had resulted in the death of 500 Konoha ninjas, enraging the entire village. The Cloud Village forces were using their full strength and had taken control of one outpost, as if waiting for Konoha to respond.

The hatred among the ninjas was overwhelming, and everyone wanted to retaliate with deadly force. This drove Sakumo Hatake to act swiftly, mobilizing the best forces along the border for a counterattack.

It didn't take long for Sakumo to arrive at the camp, accompanied by several ninjas he had gathered from other camps, all ready to depart. He looked at the assembled ninjas alongside Commander Aburame and nodded.

"Are the ninjas ready?" he asked in a firm voice.

"Yes, Commander!" Commander Aburame responded.

"Good…" Sakumo began. "From now on, you are all under my command," he said, and everyone nodded in agreement.

Minato, now dressed in his Jonin uniform, joined the group. Sakumo observed him for a moment before nodding in approval.

"Now, follow me. We'll advance ahead while the other camps prepare additional reinforcements. I don't want delays as we move through the other camps," he instructed.

Quickly, the group led by Sakumo began to move, stopping at various camps and integrating more elite Jonin ninjas into their ranks at each location. The objective was clear: reclaim the lost territory and face the leaders of the Cloud Village with the strongest force from the northern border.

Minato remained silent but felt the intense gazes directed at him as soon as they reached Camp 4, the Uchiha camp. The members of the clan didn't hide their dissatisfaction with him after hearing that the clan's daughter had claimed he had challenged them.

However, the most piercing looks came from Fugaku, who seemed to want to kill him with her eyes, and Mazu, Mikoto's father and a commander also summoned to join them. Mazu's gaze reflected not only disapproval, as though Minato had corrupted his daughter, but also a cold, analytical scrutiny. Minato ignored them.

By the time all the camps had contributed reinforcements, the group comprised at least 100 ninjas, selected from the very best, including most of their respective commanders.

Sakumo gathered everyone for a quick meeting before they advanced to the area where the Kumo forces were concentrated.

"As you know, we were attacked without warning. We will respond to the Raikage. We don't yet know exactly what he hopes to achieve with this, but I want to understand his motivations first. There's no logical reason to launch an attack of this nature; it disrupts the entire balance of the war. We will respond appropriately, but I intend to uncover his reasons," Sakumo said, his gaze scanning the crowd. "For that reason, I will negotiate with him initially. However, remain on alert and ready to fight with full force. The Cloud Village cannot be trusted right now, especially since they have two jinchūriki and their best ninjas, as confirmed by the reports."

Minato listened attentively alongside his camp's commander, who had left a trusted deputy in charge of coordinating reinforcements back at Camp 6. Among the gathered forces, Minato noticed several members of the Uzumaki clan, identifiable by their red hair and Uzushio headbands. They had likely been drawn from the easternmost camp, possibly while on a support mission or requested for their expertise in sealing techniques.

"Let's go, then. Advance on my order!" Sakumo declared.

The 100 ninjas began moving at high speed toward one of the two destroyed outposts. Upon arrival, Minato observed the area, now devastated and shrouded in mist. Using his sensory abilities, he discerned the presence of at least a thousand enemies scattered across the area. Raising his eyebrows, he recognized the Raikage at the center of the opposing troops.

As soon as the Raikage noticed their arrival, he took a few steps forward, crossing his arms and waiting for Sakumo to approach.

"So, you've come," said the Raikage, his voice dripping with irony.

Sakumo raised a hand, signaling his forces to halt, and advanced alone, stopping 30 meters from the Raikage. His expression serious, he raised an eyebrow at the Raikage's remark. "You launched an attack against us without warning. I didn't expect the Cloud Village to stoop to such cowardice," he mocked, his irritation evident.

"Cowardice? You speak of cowardice?" retorted the Raikage sharply, his eyes blazing with anger. "Your village has been abducting our ninjas, committing acts of terrorism, and now you have the audacity to call us cowards? I didn't expect such shamelessness from Konoha."

'I sense no lies…' Minato thought. His sensory abilities detected no deceit in the Raikage's words. The man's anger felt genuine, though Minato couldn't pick up on deeper emotions.

"What are you talking about? We haven't set foot in your territory since before that battle in the Land of Sound. I don't know where you're getting these accusations," Sakumo replied firmly. Though his anger was real, he maintained his composure. The recent attack had cost hundreds of lives and destroyed two outposts, leaving Konoha no chance to mount a defense against the sheer scale of the Raikage's offensive.

"Don't give me excuses!" the Raikage snapped back, his fury undiminished. "I've faced Konoha ninjas conducting attacks in my country. I won't stand by and let it continue!"

"That's impossible. We have no infiltration operations in your territory, Raikage. Don't come at me with these lies just to justify a cowardly attack that disrupts the balance of the war," Sakumo replied, his voice now darker.

The Raikage narrowed his eyes. "Lies? Then let me prove it!" He gestured to one of his ninjas. "Bring the bodies!"

A Cloud ninja quickly advanced, holding a scroll. Sakumo remained silent, observing from a distance as the ninja began to activate the storage seals. With a puff of smoke, several bodies appeared on the ground.

"First, our ninjas began disappearing, and then came attacks from your side. Look at them!" the Raikage exclaimed furiously, pointing to the bodies. "Explain this, Sakumo Hatake!"

"…" Sakumo looked at the bodies, attempting to identify them. They were clearly ninjas, marked by Konoha headbands and uniforms. Many bore severe wounds, and one body appeared to have self-detonated, as if in a suicide attack.

"Tell me, are you saying this body, which we retrieved after it detonated part of my village, is a lie too? Many of our citizens are dead," the Raikage growled, staring directly at Sakumo.

It was difficult to discern more from the remains. Suddenly, one of Konoha's commanders stepped forward without warning, positioning himself beside Sakumo and examining the body closely.

"Commander Sakumo, this ninja is one of the missing from Camp 3," he said.

"So, this is one of the ninjas who was abducted?" Sakumo asked before turning back to the Raikage, his anger now evident in his voice. "You must be joking! These ninjas have been disappearing for months from our routes. And now you're bold enough to kidnap them and claim they attacked your village? What a pathetic excuse!" Sakumo roared, furious. To him, there was no other explanation for the disappearance of these ninjas except a capture operation orchestrated by the Cloud Village.

The Raikage, hearing this, reached his limit. In the next moment, he released his chakra, his fury manifesting as an overwhelming presence felt by everyone around—a chakra comparable to that of a tailed beast. "You dare accuse me of this? I expected many things from Konoha, but this is unacceptable!" the Raikage shouted, as an aura of lightning began to envelop his body.

Before anyone could react, the Raikage shattered the ground beneath him and charged at an astonishing speed toward Sakumo. The commander quickly prepared himself, alongside another leader at his side. However, the area around them erupted from the impact of the Raikage's attack. Sakumo was launched backward, managing to evade the direct blow, while the other commander was sent crashing to the ground, gravely injured, unable to react to the Raikage's incredible speed.

"Prepare to attack! We will avenge what Konoha's ninjas have done to us!" the Raikage commanded, as his allies readied themselves for combat.

Konoha's ninjas also began organizing, prepared to face the enemy's assault. Minato stood among them, his mind already racing. He noted that the Raikage seemed genuine in his accusations. 'He wasn't lying… Whoever is behind this is stealing the bodies and using their chakra to blend in. This method creates perfect chaos and shifts the blame between Konoha and the Cloud. Only one being could orchestrate something like this. Madara must be working behind the scenes to weaken the villages,' Minato thought, analyzing the situation.

However, there was no time to dwell on these thoughts. In the next instant, the troops from Konoha and the Cloud charged at each other. Minato surged forward alongside the northern border elite, prepared to confront the enemies. Sakumo, having recovered, steeled himself to face the Raikage directly, who was advancing toward him with full force.

Even though Minato knew the Cloud Village was being manipulated, he wouldn't show mercy—not after the attack they had launched. Moreover, this was his chance to retaliate for their attempt to capture Kushina. A flash of anger appeared in his eyes at the mere thought of it.

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