Chapter 51 - 1: Edo Tensei (1/2)

A few weeks ago an organization called Akatsuki led by a man claiming to be Madara Uchiwa declared war on the five great Ninja nations, during the Five Kage Summit.

After this the Fifth Kazekage, the Fifth Mizukage, the Fourth Raikage, the Fifth Tsuchikage, and General Mifune agreed to form a Shinobi Alliance, pooling all their resources against Akatsuki.

Later the daimyō of the Five Great Shinobi Countries approved the coalition and the Sixth Hokage joined the alliance.

Both factions began by gathering their strength and collecting intelligence about the other side in preparation for the upcoming hostilities and finally Both the Allied Shinobi Forces and Akatsuki have amassed considerable forces for this war;

80,000 shinobi and samurai total make up the Alliance versus 100,000 Zetsu clones and reincarnated shinobi supplied by Kabuto making up Akatsuki's army.

The Allied Shinobi Forces created by the Five Great Nations and the Samurai of the Land of Iron consists of five main divisions, with Gaara of the Sand as the Regimental Commander.

The First Division consists of mid-range fighters and is led by Darui. The Second Division is made up of close-range fighters and is led by Kitsuchi.

The Third Division is under the command of Kakashi Hatake, and features both close- and mid-range fighters. The Fourth Division contains only long-range fighters under the control of Gaara.

Shikamaru is Gaara's right hand man and proxy commander of the Fourth Division as well. Finally, the Fifth division was created for the purpose of special operations, and features ninja with unique skills. Mifune is the leader of these special operatives.

There are also four special divisions formed for the war.

The Logistical Support and Medical Divisionled by Shizune comprises of medical ninja, the Surprise Attack Division led by Kankurō, has the task to ambush the enemy forces.

The third is the Sensor Division with Ao as captain, and finally the Intelligence Divisionheaded by Inoichi Yamanaka is intended to gather information and relay it to Gaara for strategy's sake.

Analysing their own and their enemy's location, the Allied Shinobi Forces have decided that Akatsuki will send a small fraction of their army by sea from the Mountains' Graveyard (Akatsuki's hideout) to Kumogakure, and that most of the army will travel by land.

This would require the army to move through both the Land of Frost and the Land of Hot Water.

An immediate evacuation notice was sent to both countries, and they will most likely evacuate to the south, in the Land of Fire.

The First Division, which is the mid-range battle division, is stationed in the northern part of the Land of Lightning, in order to prevent the Akatsuki from using the small gulf to infiltrate the area from Mountains' Graveyard.

The Second Division, or short-range battle division, is on the border of the Land of Lightning and the Land of Frost, sealing a northerly path into the Land of Lightning.

The Third Division, or the short- to mid-range battle division, was advancing fast through the middle of the Land of Frost, but was called into the northern part of the Land of Hot Water to aid the Surprise Attack Division.

The Fourth Division, the long-range battle division, is on the border of the Land of Lightning and the Land of Frost, sealing a southerly path into the Land of Lightning.

Mifune's Fifth Division, the special battle division, is aligned in a large arc from the north part of the Land of Frost, through the middle of the border between the Land of Frost and the Land of Lightning, all the way to just south of the First Division, in order to aid any of the divisions that need immediate response, and to finish the seal on the Land of Frost and the Land of Lightning's border.

So all the divisions awaited the fighting with enormous nervousness.

Day One, the War began!!

The Akatsuki, using the forbidden technique of Edo Tensei and genetically modified soldiers (Zetsu), caused great loss to the alliance, but on that first day the alliance had gained the advantage, both the Alliance and Akatsuki received massive casualties, having effectively halved both their battle forces.

The 80,000 strong Allied Shinobi Forces were brought down to 40,000 and the 100,000 strong White Zetsu Army was brought down to 50,000, on top of the several already sealed reincarnated shinobi.

During the day of fighting, members of the White Zetsu Army infiltrated the Alliance's ranks. Once night falls, the disguised Zetsu begin methodically eliminating key Allied personnel all across the battlefield.