Ask and you shall receive. This chapter is dedicated to @joshaya4everstydia and @Andrea159123 This is a special thank you for all the support.
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Battle Ground, The Hidden Rain Village
"It's finally here!", a Leaf shinobi barges in the tent, what he clutches in his hand will determine an end to the bickering between Fugaku Uchiha and Hayate Namikaze. The two formidable shinobi stand back as they make space for the messenger.
"Lord Hokage has officially dispatched this hawk to inform us of his final decision".
Outside the tent, the pressure grows by the second. It's the dead of night, but no one could afford to blink an eye because the Hidden Stone menaces on. In The Village Hidden in the Rain, it mercilessly rains upon the battle site and it might serve as the perfect opportunity for the Hidden Stone to attack.
The tent holds its breath as the messenger unwraps the scroll. Hayate and Fugaku exchange a glance as the messenger begins to speak, "I, who have been chosen by my predecessor to hold the title of the Third Fire Shadow of The Hidden Leaf request that the forces lead into battle by Fugaku Uchiha and Hayate Namikaze shall await the arrival of my disciples, The Three Legendary Sanins until further notice".
The two formidable shinobi took a moment to digest Lord Third's request.
"I object", Fugaku declares lucidly and searches Hayate's face for any trace of agreement.
"Shinobi from the Hidden Stone are already aware of our presence on this battle site. Sitting here waiting for Lord Third's disciples will do no good".
Hayate fixes his gaze elsewhere and his mind begins to race back and forth. What should he do?
"Now that's something we could both see eye to eye", Hayate remarks, making sure to flash Fugaku a friendly smile.
"But we can't defy the Hokage's orders!", a Chunin shinobi protests as he managed to catch their attention.
Fugaku and Hayate narrow their eyes at him, reminding him who's in charge.
"But Lord Third isn't on the battlefield now is he?", Hayate apprises, his features getting illuminated by the flickering candles as he watches the newly appointed Chunin.
"Lord Fugaku, Hayate Namikaze", the voice of Ichiko Uchiha cuts through the current argument. Ichiko steps up towards Hayate and Fugaku, the entire tent has fallen silent at her intervention. She exchanges glances between the Uchiha leader and Hayate Namikaze.
"I see that the fear from the Hidden Stone has rendered two of our fine shinobi immobile", Ichiko smirks, crossing her arms over her chest as she treads closer. Her long dark braid falls back in a straight line. Rumour has it that she had recently unlocked her Mangeykō Sharingan.
"Lord Fugaku and Hayate Namikaze, you fret too much", she lowered her eyes as she said this, her Leaf headband glistening under the small flicker of the candles.
"If no one has any ideas or objections then I'm taking lead since these two are in a tight position", Ichiko announces, her eyes narrowing in search for someone's objection.
"No way!", the Chunin newbie persists, but his voice was cut short when Fugaku raised a hand, a stern frown rests upon his face. He darts his eyes to Ichiko and inquired, "What's your plan?".
Ichiko unfolded her arms and adjusted her headband. The rumbling thunder momentarily rendered everyone silent before Ichiko spoke.
"By utilizing the speed of the formidable Namikaze and the visual prowess of the Uchiha I say that both of you forgot that we have the upper advantage here", Ichiko directed her gaze at Hayate and Fugaku, her eyes narrowed as Hayate answered.
"We are well aware of that Ichiko, but everyone's Chakra is pretty much depleted by now and the need for Ninja Medics has become more crucial".
Ichiko closes her eyes for a second, a frown cemented between her eyebrows. When she opened her eyes again, the look on her face suggested that she had figured something out. And so she goes on to ask Hayate, "Hayate can you check if there's any other Chakra within a ten mile radius?".
Hayate seemed skeptical at the moment, but the expression on Ichiko's face made his body move on its own. He crouched down on one knee and pushed his two fingers in the dirt.
A bead of of sweat trickled down his face as he affirmed, "Yeah, they're approaching the battle site".
Unlike everyone else in the tent, Ichiko was the only one who was remained unfazed by the news. Her eyes were fixated in a random direction as her mind keeps on wandering different places. Involuntary, she clasped the pendant of the necklace that she wore and began plotting strategically.
"Okay", she broke the silence for the last time because shortly she would be explaining her plan and then they'll take immediate action.
"Listen carefully", her eyes wandered those of her exhausted comrades as she concealed her racing heart with a stern face. "I'll take position on the longest tower around this part of the village since I still have enough Chakra left to perform the Firaball Jutsu".
"Fireball Jutsu won't work well against Earth Style users let alone in this pouring rain outside. The weather isn't in our favor", Fugaku chirps in, having accidentally pushed one of Ichiko's wrong buttons by interrupting her. Still, she managed to keep her cool and further advanced, "Don't worry about the rain, Lord Fugaku. I have the Uchiha crest on my back for a reason. The main purpose of me standing on one of the Hidden Rain's towers is to give our comrades the signal once I have spotted shinobi from the Hidden Stone".
"Before I give you the signal to get in position for battle we'll first go out assemble our remaining shinobi".
Her eyes connect with Hayate's blue once as she informs, "Hayate, you'll use your Teleportation Technique in order to escort the wounded to the Medical Tents, which are roughly a good distance away from our current location. You shall give me your marking kunai so I can cast it towards the Medical tents once I catch sight of it".
"Understood", Hayate obliged since neither he nor Fugaku were able to come up with anything useful.
No objections seemed to be coming anytime soon and that gave Ichiko the cue to go on.
"Inform every Uchiha to savor their chakra in order to perform the Fireball Jutsu. When the Hidden Stone makes their approach you'll immediately throw your share of kunais and shurikens in the enemy's direction. Don't give the enemy a chance to weave signs or perform Jutsu, the Uchiha will supply enough flames to make the kunais and shurikens flammable. Don't waste your efforts", she stressed the last bit.
"Any questions?", Ichiko inquired, observing her comrades' faces carefully.
Hayate swallowed a lump in his throat and asked, "but the exhausted shinobi..."
Ichiko didn't waste any time as she immediately responded, "that's also where you come in, Hayate".
"What am I supposed to do?"
Ichiko smiled and said, "You have a way with words, Hayate, go out and resurrect their drowned spirits".
Hayate couldn't help the tint of blush that appeared on his cheeks, thankfully the tent was dimly lit by the candles, making it go unnoticed. A small hint of a smirk appeared on his lips as he whipped out the marking kunai and pelted it towards Ichiko's direction. Ichiko, being the splendid shinobi that she is caught it with her left hand while her gaze was fixed elsewhere.
It seemed like Hayate had took Ichiko's words by heart, and so did every other Leaf comrade present in the tent. After exchanging mutual glances and nods with each other, the tent was left empty as everyone started to put Ichiko's plan into action.
First, Ichiko had concentrated her chakra at the soles of her feet, before she leaped at one of the highest towers in their current area. She climbed as fast as she could and didn't look back. Once she had reached the peak, she made sure to scan the area in search of Medical tents.
Secondly, Hayate rushed towards his exhausted Leaf comrades, the rain drenching him to the bone.
"Alright listen up!", he declared loudly, his eyes scanning the surroundings.
The Leaf shinobi, despite their tired physical and mental states, gave Hayate all ears.
"I know you're tired. I know you want to go home, but The Hidden Stone is approaching and as fellow Leaf shinobi we ought to show them our strength and spirit".
The field was silent as Leaf shinobi listened intently to Hayate's compelling tone of voice. He had that tone that would persuade anyone and Ichiko knew that from the very beginning.
"I know you're yearning to hold your beloved ones more time. There's no shame in fearing for your life or being scared of war. But despite all that's negative, despite all the doubt and fear that encroaches your heart, I can clearly see that, even in this blinding rain that signifies how the heavens are deeply grieving, your Will of Fire shines brighter than any other time, brighter than any daylight ".
Hayate finished sparking hope within his comrades, just as Ichiko had pinpointed the location of the Medical tents. She took Hayate's kunai and flung it towards the direction of the tents. The rain soaked her hair heavily and her heart began beating faster.
There they come.
Ichiko forced her eyes to glow with the crimson hue as the Hidden Stone shinobi came clear into view. It was going to take so much chakra to keep the flame lit in the pouring rain, but Ichiko won't take no for an answer. From her peripheral vision she spotted Fugaku assembling members of her clan to execute the plan she'd proposed.
She felt nervous, as if it's the first time she'll be performing the Fireball Jutsu. However, she was still willing to take that leap. And so once she realized that the Hidden Stone shinobi had advanced further, she focused her Chakra at a single point in her chest and raised two fingers.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!!"
Abruptly, the flames that erupted from her mouth were bold enough to catch the enemy's attention as well. Hayate and Fugaku, having caught sight of Ichiko's flames that turned droplets of rain into instant vapor quickly assembled in their respective positions as they knew that what was coming ahead was greater than anything else.
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A/N:- Don't fret, next chapter might be longer. Also I wanted to address something. So in the original story it is said that the third great ninja war took place during three to five days. However, since this is a fan-fiction I've decide that the third great ninja war will take place over a span of five years...yeahhh...so what you're reading now is the first year of the third ninja war. Let me know if you liked this chapter and the new characters... I know y'all are asking youselves 'where is Hanabi?' And to that I'd like to tell you to be patient, this is all relevant...As always don't forget to vote cause you guys keep me going. Till next time! <3
~A