Chapter 285: A Moment of Calm Before the Storm

Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 285: A Moment of Calm Before the Storm

"Sir! Konoha is in sight!" One of the soldiers from the vanguard shouted.

Ōnoki, the Kage from the Rock Village, smiled with excitement. "I can't wait to get there and rip those Konoha bastards apart, especially Minato's brat. I will enjoy sending him to meet his father."

The Raikage stood at the old man's side. "I understand your anger, but be wary of that young man. He may be the most dangerous ninja in that village."

"There are rumors that he has a technique that allows him to consume the Bijuus to get stronger," Killer B spoke in a somber tone, much different from his usual jovial one. "If he can do that…"

"Hmph! Those rumors are nonsense. Most humans can't even contain a single Bijuu. To have so many of them… he would have been long dead." Ōnoki had, of course, heard the rumors, but there was no way they were real. "Konoha is lying to everyone."

"I wouldn't dismiss them so quickly," Kabuto interjected in the conversation. "Whatever he is using to make himself stronger, it's definitely working. Don't forget that he was able to single-handedly kill someone like Orochimaru. That's not an easy feat by any means."

"Your former master was a freak," the Raikage spat the words. He had always hated that man and his nasty methods. "But there's no denying that anyone who was able to kill that monster is someone we should all be wary of."

"Who says I'm not wary? Hmph! I didn't live all these years by acting carelessly," Ōnoki looked offended. "I just pay no mind to crazy rumors. That doesn't mean that I intend to lower my guard around Minato's son. During the last war, that bastard killed over a thousand of my best soldiers just by himself… including my two sons." The old Kage felt his blood boiling just thinking about that man.

Another person approached the group, it was a middle-aged man with red hair and a generous beard.

By the reaction of the ninjas around him, everyone was wary of him and moved out of the way as he passed by.

"Everything is ready, My Lord. Just give us the order, and we will begin the attack."

"Rōshi," Ōnoki called the man. "You will remain at my side. Do you understand?" He was not going to risk losing the last jinchūriki they had.

The Tsuchikage had only brought him along just in case they needed an extra push for the assault, even if he thought it was a very unlikely scenario.

"Wouldn't I be of more use at the front? Me and the beast will make short work of Konoha's ninjas."

He was in possession of the Four-Tails, a monkey-like entity named Son Gokū. But Rōshi always referred to his Bijuu as 'the beast,' even though he knew its name, he refused to address the creature by it.

"Just do as I say. I don't want you running wild on the battlefield unless it's absolutely necessary." Ōnoki's tone was firm.

Rōshi nodded after hesitating for a moment. He knew his Kage was even more hard-headed than himself and would not change his mind. "Yes, My Lord." His eyes moved to the strange individuals standing close to Kabuto. "What about them? Will they really obey their orders?"

Kabuto frowned. He was already tired of being doubted by everyone. His mishap with Madara seemed to have cost him a lot of trust.

He looked at the three figures ahead of him, the First Hokage, Hashirama, along with the Second and Third.

"Orochimaru already used them in combat, and they presented no issues. My version of the jutsu is even safer than his, so they will definitely obey without hesitation." He avoided telling them that during that fight, Naruto had been able to break the loyalty seals on the back of their necks.

There was no need to worry, as these resurrected puppets were not meant to confront Naruto directly. Instead, they were going to be used to kill the current Hokage as quickly as possible. By destroying their chain of command, Konoha's remaining forces would fall with little effort.

"You better be right. We only allowed you to join us because of this nasty jutsu of yours," the Raikage said. He didn't like Kabuto one bit. He knew this young man was even more traitorous than his former master and would stab them in the back without hesitation if it became convenient for him.

"Well? Do we give the order? I'm anxious to start," Killer B said to his brother. He had a nagging feeling at the back of his head, and he was not the only one.

'Be careful, B… I don't like this.' Gyūki, the Eight-Tails, spoke in his mind.

'I know. You told me already.' He had been wary of this war from the beginning. But his brother insisted that it was necessary, that they could not allow Konoha to continue as they were. Everyone suspected that they had been collecting Bijuu for themselves, and the one behind it all was none other than Naruto Uzumaki.

'I cannot feel most of my brothers and sisters any longer. I fear the worst.' Gyūki said. 'Be wary of that Naruto. He is a lot more dangerous than everyone thinks.'

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Dawn arrived. Almost two thousand men and women stood across the tall walls that guarded the village of Konoha, looking into the distance at the approaching army.

They could be seen with the naked eye, marching between the sea of trees that surrounded their territory.

"I think the scout may have been right in his count…" Chōza Akimichi said, clear concern on his face as he caught glimpses of the incoming army.

"He definitely was," Inoichi added. "At least they don't have any heavy weaponry."

"They won't need it," Shikaku commented. "With those numbers, they can surround the village. Just a few thousand ninjas using Earth Jutsu will be enough to bring our walls down, and then we'll become an easy target."

Kakashi turned to Tsunade, who was staring into the distance. "Where is Naruto? I thought you had already called him." He did not like the idea of relying completely on one individual, but he was also well aware that without him, they were going to get stomped into the ground.

"Naruto will come," Tsunade said with absolute confidence. "He will come."

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