Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Chapter 34 The Unexplained Confidence of the Loess Plateau

Temporary command post in Iwagakure Village, on the border of the Land of Earth.

The atmosphere inside the tent was so oppressive it felt like water could drip from it.

"Bang!"

The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, slammed his hand on the map, his small frame bursting with astonishing fury.

"Useless! A bunch of good-for-nothings!"

He pointed at the group of dejected Iwagakure Jonin below, his beard trembling with rage. "A full two weeks! We launched over a dozen probing attacks, each one anticipated and we were completely outmaneuvered! We suffered nearly a hundred casualties, and we didn't even get a glimpse of their main camp! Tell me, what happened?!"

"Is Konoha's Illusionary Eye Wall truly insurmountable?!"

The tent was completely silent; no one dared to speak.

The Konoha forces led by Uchiha Kagami, relying on their flawless intelligence system, stood like an invisible, intangible, yet indestructible wall, firmly blocking their path.

The Earth Release techniques that Iwagakure prided itself on—stealth and surprise attacks—were laughable, like child's play, in the face of those damned Sharingan. Every intention they made was thoroughly analyzed by the enemy commander—that guy named Nara Shikazuki.

This feeling is like you've meticulously prepared a grand performance, only to find that your opponent not only got your script but also sat in the front row eating sunflower seeds, pointing fingers at your performance.

Frustrated, extremely frustrated.

"Father, please calm down."

A deep and resonant voice broke the deathly silence inside the tent.

A tall, robust young ninja with a square face and an honest, reliable appearance stepped forward. He was none other than Onoki's son, the Third Tsuchikage, and one of the most outstanding members of the new generation of Iwagakure—Kiwatsuchi.

"Call me Hokage-sama!...Speak, what's your plan?" Onoki glanced at his son and asked irritably.

"Yes, Father. I believe that our previous failures were due to our over-reliance on conventional stealth methods."

Huang Tu pointed at the map and said confidently, "The Uchiha's Sharingan is indeed powerful; it can see through chakra flow and see through most disguises. But surely their eyes can't see through a hundred meters of rock underground?"

His words stunned everyone in the tent.

One hundred meters underground? What does that even mean? The density and pressure of the rock layers there are so high that ordinary earth-style ninjas simply cannot stay there for long periods of time, let alone move long distances.

A strange light flashed in Onoki's eyes: "Continue."

"I beg Father, permission is granted to lead an elite Earth Release unit and use my recently developed secret technique, Earth Release: Deep Earth Submersion Technique, to bypass all of Konoha's reconnaissance and defense lines from a depth of a hundred meters underground and launch a surprise attack on their main camp!" Huang Tu's voice was filled with powerful confidence.

"Deep Earth Submersion Technique?" Onoki was somewhat surprised.

"Yes."

Huang Tu patted his chest proudly and said, "This technique allows our team to swim like fish in water deep underground. Not only is it fast, but it also produces almost no chakra fluctuations or vibrations on the surface. Unless the Konoha ninjas can put their ears to the ground, they will have absolutely no chance of detecting us!"

"Our objective isn't to entangle with their main force, but to strike at their heart! We'll decapitate their commander, Uchiha Kagami, and capture that Nara clan strategist alive! Once the command system is thrown into chaos, that so-called 'Illusory Eye Wall' will naturally crumble on its own!"

After listening, Onoki fell silent.

He stared at the map, his fingers tapping on it incessantly.

It must be said that this is a very bold and extremely tempting plan.

If successful, it will be able to reverse the current passive situation.

"How confident are you?" Onoki asked in a deep voice.

"Perfect!"

Huang Tu answered without hesitation, his tone filled with the pride of being the future heir of Iwagakure, "Father, please believe me! The Uchiha of Konoha will never have imagined that the Will of Rock would deliver a fatal blow to them from the most unexpected place beneath their feet!"

Looking at his son's confident eyes, Onoki finally showed a satisfied smile on his tense face.

"Okay! I approve!"

……

It was late at night, dark and windy.

In a wasteland dozens of kilometers away from the Konoha border camp, Huang Tu and his carefully selected twenty elite Earth Release practitioners had already assembled.

"Is everything ready?" Huang Tu asked in a low voice.

"Yes, Captain!" the team responded in unison.

"very good!"

Huang Tu slammed his hands on the ground. "Remember, this operation is a do-or-die situation! We'll show those guys in Konoha what real Earth Release is all about!"

"Earth Release: Deep Earth Submersion Technique!"

hum-

A peculiar chakra fluctuation spread out, and the ground beneath Huang Tu and the twenty team members behind him seemed to turn into liquid. Their bodies silently sank vertically into the earth, leaving no trace.

One hundred meters underground, there is absolute darkness and deathly silence.

Immense pressure was pressing in from all directions, but the members of the Loess Squad, all wearing specially made pressure-resistant suits and protected by secret techniques, felt no discomfort whatsoever.

"Hehe, how does it feel?"

Huang Tu used chakra to transmit his voice, joking with his deputy beside him, "It's much cooler down here than on the ground."

"Captain, your technique is truly amazing."

The second-in-command exclaimed sincerely, "I can't sense any movement on the ground. Those Uchiha ninjas are probably still staring blankly at the horizon."

"Of course!" Huang Tu laughed smugly. "No matter how sharp their eyes are, they're still on their heads. I really want to see their horrified expressions when we crawl out of their commander's tent!"

"Hahaha!" A suppressed laugh rang out from the squad.

Led by Huang Tu, this surprise attack force, buried deep underground, moved like ghosts, rapidly "stealing" towards the main camp of Konoha.

Along the way, Huang Tu continuously used his unique sensory ninjutsu to probe the situation on the ground above.

everything is normal.

The chakra fluctuations were stable, there were no alarms, no chaos, and even the footsteps of the patrol team were exactly the same as in the previous days, orderly and methodical.

"Ha, a bunch of blockheads." Huang Tu's confidence grew stronger.

Finally, an hour later, they arrived at the designated coordinates—directly below the main command post of Konoha.

Huang Tu could clearly sense that several powerful chakra sources were located tens of meters above his head, one of which was their target, Uchiha Kagami.

"Everyone, get ready!"

Huang Tu lowered his voice, his heart pounding with excitement, "On my command, three, two, one... Charge!"

"Let the Uchiha of Konoha prepare to face the wrath of the rock!"

A triumphant smile spread across his face as he led his confident troops, who transformed into rows of earthen-yellow drills, hurtling toward the ground!

He was completely unaware that his every move was being seen clearly by pairs of scarlet Sharingan eyes on the ground.