Naruto: Cultivating to Immortality

Chapter 139 The War Ceases

After a thrilling and fierce battle, Konoha finally defeated Sunagakure, allowing them to commit more troops to other fronts. At this time, Kirigakure was forced to evacuate the Land of Fire and relocate to a coastal area of ​​the Land of Whirlpools, severely restricting their movements. However, despite the dire situation, Kirigakure refused to admit defeat, firmly believing they still had a chance to turn the tide—if other ninja villages could inflict heavy losses on Konoha, they could seize the opportunity and launch a counterattack.

Meanwhile, the pressure on Iwagakure (Hidden Stone Village) grew increasingly immense. Konoha had redeployed most of its troops from the battle against Sunagakure to the front lines against Iwagakure, instantly erasing their previous numerical advantage. Fortunately, Jiraiya stepped forward at a crucial moment, his presence giving Konoha the strength to confront the Tsuchikage, Onoki, head-on. As a result, Iwagakure could no longer easily suppress Konoha on the battlefield as before.

With Minato Namikaze also being dispatched by the Konoha leadership to the Iwa ninja battlefield, it signifies that Konoha is eager to end this war, which has lasted for nearly three years, as soon as possible. Although Konoha possesses richer resources than other ninja villages, the Daimyo's budget cuts and the continuous drain from battles on all sides are making it increasingly difficult for Konoha to cope.

If only material resources were considered, Konoha might have been able to barely hold on. However, what truly devastated Konoha was the loss of its ninja strength. Numerous young ninja trainees bravely sacrificed their lives in battle, and the number of frontline troops dwindled to a dangerously low level. It is no exaggeration to say that Konoha could no longer afford any more losses. Every ninja was a precious asset to the village, and their departure undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to Konoha.

Konoha, like a weary warrior, desperately longs for the end of the war so it can rest and recover. Faced with the relentless, tidal wave of attacks from the Iwa ninja, Konoha's leadership, with the keen insight of hawks, has identified Iwa's fatal weakness. As the Iwa front advances, their supply lines, like an stretched lifeline, become fragile and easily broken. This undoubtedly presents Konoha with a golden opportunity, like a sharp sword piercing the enemy's heart, severing their supply lines. If they can successfully cut off Iwa's supplies, and with their frontline strength equal to or even surpassing that of the Iwa ninja, Konoha will surely see the dawn of victory!

Minato Namikaze was the valiant ninja who successfully severed the Iwa ninja's supply lines! With his astonishingly high-speed movement, he moved like a ghost across the battlefield, appearing and disappearing unpredictably to destroy the enemy's supply lines. After completing this arduous mission, Minato didn't hesitate for a moment, quickly and safely retreating, rushing back to the main battlefield to engage in a fierce battle with the Iwa ninja.

However, no one could have predicted that this seemingly ordinary mission would become the fuse that ignited future unrest in Konoha. The dramatic events experienced by Minato Namikaze's three disciples—Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara—had a profound impact on Kakashi Hatake. In that harrowing ordeal, Kakashi not only gained a powerful Sharingan but also endured immense pain: he lost an Uchiha clan member whom everyone believed to have died a heroic death. This heartbreaking past undoubtedly became an indelible wound in Kakashi's heart.

After a fierce battle, the Iwagakure ninja suffered their most devastating defeat since the start of the war, and were forced to retreat and admit defeat at the hands of the Land of Fire. Thus, the war between Konoha and Iwagakure finally came to an end.

However, at this very moment, the Hidden Cloud Village, deep within the Land of Fire, found itself isolated and helpless—they had to face a full-scale counterattack from the Hidden Leaf Village alone! This reality made the Hidden Cloud Village acutely aware that the war was hopeless and could not be sustained. After all, even the powerful Fourth Raikage and the Jinchuriki with the power of the Eight-Tails were helpless against the exceptionally talented and speed-oriented ninja, Minato Namikaze. Left with no other choice, they led the Hidden Cloud Village army out of the Land of Fire.

With the retreat of the Cloud Ninja, this thrilling Ninja World War was finally drawing to a close, but the dawn of peace had not yet fully arrived. People were silently praying, hoping for the signing of a peace treaty so that the Ninja World could return to peace and harmony.

However, beneath this seemingly calm surface, an undercurrent was brewing. The Hidden Mist Village seemed unwilling to accept defeat in the war, and they were secretly plotting an even more sinister scheme. For reasons unknown, perhaps due to failing to achieve their intended goals, the Hidden Mist Village decided to gamble everything and make a final stand.

On a dark and stormy night, the Hidden Mist Village dispatched elite ninjas to infiltrate the vicinity of Konoha Village, successfully capturing Nohara Rin, Minato Namikaze's prized disciple. They then used a forbidden technique to seal the powerful Three-Tails within Nohara Rin's body. This cruel plan aimed to use Nohara Rin as a pawn; once she was rescued by her comrade Kakashi Hatake and brought back to Konoha, they could release the Three-Tails and launch a surprise attack on the unsuspecting village.

In this way, Kirigakure could take advantage of the chaos and seize a precious opportunity to turn the tide of the war. Poor Nohara Rin, however, became an innocent victim of this power struggle. Her fate was forever altered, and she was involuntarily drawn into this terrible storm.

This thrilling operation ended in an unexpected way—Nohara Rin deliberately chose to die at the hands of Hatake Kakashi! However, it was this decision that triggered a series of dramatic consequences, giving birth to a powerful enemy who would launch a crazy revenge against the entire ninja world—Uchiha Obito.

Meanwhile, the Kirigakure's plan failed, extinguishing their last hope. Now, Konoha had successfully eliminated all ninja from all other villages within the Land of Fire, achieving a complete purge. At this moment, Konoha, with its combined strength, was unshakeable, even the similarly weakened Kirigakure could not withstand it. Faced with this situation, they had no choice but to abandon their last illusions and reluctantly sign a ceasefire agreement with Konoha.

The Third Shinobi World War, which lasted for nearly three years and resulted in extremely heavy casualties for ninjas on all sides, has finally gradually subsided. It can be said that every ninja village has been severely damaged by this war.

The most severely affected village is Sunagakure in the Land of Wind. The Third Kazekage, arguably the strongest Kazekage in history, mysteriously disappeared before the war even began, failing to participate in the fighting. The village also lost a significant number of core ninja in its fierce battle with Konoha, and a violent clash with the crazed Kirigakure on the border further exacerbated its already devastating situation. This has pushed what was once one of the top three ninja villages to its lowest point, making it the weakest of the five great ninja villages. The damage to its foundation makes a return to its former glory extremely difficult.

Secondly, there's Konoha. While Konoha achieved victory on every battlefield, the cost was unimaginable. More than half of the village's ninja were killed or wounded, and even members of various clans not officially part of Konoha's ninja ranks suffered over 60% losses. The Uchiha clan, Konoha's strongest, suffered the most severe losses, losing over 80%, truly crippling their foundation and potentially requiring decades to recover. The Hyuga clan, focused on strengthening their forces, avoided heavy casualties, but later dispatched many clan ninja to the battlefield to end the war, resulting in significant losses, though not completely destroying their clan's foundation. The Sarutobi clan, sent to intercept the Cloud Ninja's advance into the Land of Fire, suffered second only to the Uchiha. Facing the combined forces of the Fourth Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, the numerous Sarutobi clan members, lacking the resources of powerful clans and consisting mostly of chunin and genin, naturally suffered heavy losses. Ultimately, it was only after Konoha won on other battlefields that Minato Namikaze led a team to provide support. The Cloud Ninja, unwilling to fight the Konoha ninja alone, retreated, thus preserving a small foundation. The Sarutobi clan, painstakingly built up by Hiruzen Sarutobi over ten years, returned to the ranks of small clans.

Kumogakure (Cloud Village) suffered the fewest casualties among all the villages in this war, but those losses were all of its elite troops. Even its strongest fighter, the Third Raikage, perished on the battlefield, making him the only Kage to die in battle. The Third Raikage led Kumogakure's most elite ninja force in an attempt to break through the Iwagakure forces, but Iwagakure mobilized its entire ninja force to encircle and annihilate them. Although the Third Raikage ultimately took the initiative to cover the retreat to protect Kumogakure's elite forces, the breakout attempt still resulted in significant losses for Kumogakure's elite ninja.

Iwagakure suffered the most ninja casualties, but most were genin (lower-ranking ninja), and a very elite ninja force was still preserved. However, the severe depletion of resources and personnel left Iwagakure without the strength to continue the war.

The Hidden Mist Village completely failed to understand the strategic plan of all the other ninja villages. After suffering considerable losses in the battle against the Hidden Leaf Village, it launched another war against the Hidden Sand Village, causing heavy losses to the Hidden Mist Village as well.

With all the ninja villages no longer able to fight, the ninja world has largely returned to peace. Only the Cloud Ninja remain unwilling to sign a ceasefire agreement with Konoha. However, the Cloud Ninja are not confident in facing Konoha alone, and they are also worried about a surprise attack from the Iwa Ninja village on the flank. They can only remain in a stalemate, waiting for the right opportunity.

The ninja world has finally ended its state of war and returned to peace. This also gives Konoha Village the opportunity to recuperate and recover from the severe losses caused by the war.

Konoha Village also welcomed a long-awaited peace.