Keshi Nara, who remained at the Daimyo's court in the Land of Rice Fields for rest and regrouping, felt an overwhelming sense of disgust and helplessness upon receiving the report from the messenger ninja—as if he had just swallowed a dead fly.
No matter how much he prided himself on his intelligence and cunning, before Hyuga Soushu's blatant use of authority and power, he was completely helpless.
It was standard procedure for personnel to be dispatched from the Ninja Force headquarters to verify battle reports. It was also reasonable to recall wounded soldiers for medical treatment. Furthermore, deploying twenty operational squads to the buffer states along the Northern Border was fully within Commander Hyuga Soushu's authority as head of the force.
But the problem lay precisely in the fact that Hyuga Soushu's arrangements were flawless.
As a result, Keshi Nara could find no loopholes to exploit. For Nara ninjas lived for finding loopholes in the system—this made the situation all the more unbearable for them!
"Did our esteemed Commander leave absolutely no other instructions?"
Sarutobi Kōhei, the Jonin in charge of the Seventh Battalion, asked with a frown, clearly displeased.
Although Hyuga Soushu acknowledged Keshi, the Chief of Staff, as the second-in-command of the Ninja Force, the position wasn't officially recognized. That meant not every battalion leader felt obligated to obey him.
Especially the commanders of the First and Second Battalions—the strongest units under his command—were men unwilling to stay quiet. They challenged authority during the first military meeting. Now they stood with us against a common enemy—but that didn't mean they could be trusted.
They were both from civilian ninja families. Outside of shared goals, they had little in common with the Hokage faction's die-hard loyalists.
"Forget it," Keshi Nara said after thinking briefly, quickly grasping Soushu's likely intentions, although he himself had no better options at the moment. "We should demarcate defensive zones as soon as possible. Kumo will definitely retaliate."
"Are we really going to sit around and wait like this? That brat from the Hyuga clan is still the commander of the Ninja Force!"
Sarutobi Kōhei grumbled in dissatisfaction. "And if we send back all the wounded for treatment at the main camp, the number of ninja we can actually control will only be about a thousand! Fighting against those Kumo savages with such numbers would be nothing short of suicide!"
"What else do you expect me to do?" Keshi Nara suddenly exploded, shouting furiously. "Do you want to lead the Ninja Force back to camp right now and kill that Byakugan brat? Or are you considering defecting directly to Kumo?"
"Don't forget—the combat forces on the Northern Front are already under our control! Even if we take this dispute to the Hokage Tower, we wouldn't stand a chance! Not to mention all our previous actions would surely come to light!"
"At that point, I'm as good as dead anyway—but even as a Sarutobi clan Jonin, you won't escape Danzo's grasp either, that maggot lurking in the shadows!"
After that outburst, Kōhei stood there too stunned to reply.
"It's a hassle, but please go again and notify all the leading jonins to attend a defense strategy meeting."
Keshi Nara let out a long sigh before telling the messenger ninja, "They should get here by tomorrow morning at the latest. Otherwise, if Kumo reacts too quickly, we won't have enough time to prepare."
"Understood."
The messenger ninja, who had witnessed this farcical scene, didn't say much more and left directly.
"You've got a point,"
The tent remained quiet for a long while before Sarutobi Kohei, his face pale, finally spoke with difficulty, "But surely there must be some opportunity for resistance?"
"This is the trend of events."
Keshi Nara said helplessly, closing his eyes, "The command of the Ninja Force is in that pale-eyed brat's hands; clearing operations fall squarely within his responsibilities. Even our current defensive arrangements are just precautionary measures. So what exactly do you plan to do now?"
"Just wait to die?"
Sarutobi Kohei once again found himself at a loss for words.
"But it's not necessarily that bad. Maybe we can prove our worth through Kumo itself."
After deep calculation, Keshi Nara finally found a theoretically feasible path forward.
"What do you mean?"
Sarutobi Kohei asked urgently.
"We launch an offensive across the border into the Land of Lightning and escalate things dramatically!"
Keshi Nara said through clenched teeth, "And we must act fast—immediately after that Uchiha clan's [Intelligence Director] confirms each squad's battle results!"
"Isn't that just asking for death?"
Sarutobi Kohei was immediately startled.
As the leading jonin responsible for the Border Forces, he knew Kumo's strength better than anyone else. Plus, Konoha was currently engaged on multiple fronts, leaving little room to spare its Ninja Force. If they actively provoked a full-scale village war, who could tell how many troops the village could muster to resist Kumo's thunderous counterattack!
The reason they had successfully wiped out Kumo's infiltration unit this time was mainly due to a surprise attack and secondly because they had effectively organized the Ninja Force to conduct an encirclement battle with local superiority. Yet even so, over two hundred casualties had been sustained from the twenty operational squads, all of whom were exhausted, their ninja tools and supplies greatly consumed. They urgently needed resupply from the Ninja Force headquarters — without it, they'd have no real fighting power left.
The problem, however, was that Hyuga Soushu's order had only been verbal. Although he had designated Keshi Nara as responsible for Northern Border defenses, there had been no official announcement, nor had additional supplies been allocated to various operational squads. Under these circumstances, how could they possibly take the initiative in declaring war against Kumo?
"When the leading jonins come tomorrow, don't say whatever pops into your head."
Keshi Nara's first words immediately blocked any chance of Sarutobi Kōhei speaking freely.
"I understand."
Although feeling extremely frustrated, Sarutobi Kohei verbally agreed, hoping to hear out Keshi Nara's strategy.
"At that time, I'll have someone bring up the supply issue, then propose that everyone write letters individually to the Main Camp urging them to expedite the dispatch of supplies."
Keshi Nara said slowly, "As for marching north and actively engaging Kumo, we'd only need to assemble three hundred ninja. As long as we can wipe out several enemy watchposts and casually tour a few towns in southern Land of Lightning before returning immediately."
"But wouldn't that kind of operation be meaningless?"
Kōhei Sarutobi first sighed in relief, but his contrarian spirit quickly flared up again. "This kind of small-scale conflict doesn't even count as declaring war!"
"I just need an excuse! Understand? An excuse is all I need!"
Keshi Nara had finally had enough of that idiotic monkey. "Do you think I don't know our Northern Border forces can't match Kumo's main army? Do you think I actually want to die?"
"Foolish!"
"All we're trying to do is stir up the stagnant waters! Not literally go out there and die!"
"If we continue maintaining this lukewarm status quo, that Byakugan brat will eventually devour us completely!"
"Got it now?!"
Nara shouted that final sentence almost roaring.
And it was the first time he had ever snapped like that.
Although Sarutobi's mind remained clouded with confusion, he wisely chose not to push further against Nara's obviously unstable state this time.
"But when exactly will the turning point come?"
It took a long silence before Sarutobi finally piped up with another question.
"The rainy season is coming soon in the Land of Rain."
Keshi Nara said slowly. "As long as Orochimaru can lead our troops to achieve a decisive victory, the village will immediately recall its stationed forces and eliminate the threat posed by dissenting ninja clans."
"At that point, we won't have to remain under someone else's thumb anymore."
"As long as Orochimaru takes action, everything will improve!"
"The rainy season has arrived."
When Hyuga Sōshū exited the Central War Tent, light drizzle had just begun falling from the sky.
Even though they were in the Northern Border region, April's end marked the beginning of the heavy rainfall season.
"Right now, the Land of Rain should've turned into a swamp already."
Mahiru Uchiha, walking close behind him, sighed and looked up at the sky. "Those two and a half years were pure hell!"
"After all, using Fire Release or Explosive Tags in heavy rain is as pointless as trying to use Water Release ninjutsu in the Land of Wind."
Hyuga Sōshū quipped casually.
"That's true."
The Uchiha girl still wore a flush on her cheeks from their recent intimacy. She raised her head, gazing toward the increasingly torrential downpour darkening the sky like poured lead. "This season should be when that semi-god's power reaches its peak, right?"
"Based on experience, yes."
Sōshū took Mahiru-chan's hand and led her toward the dining hall. "Let's get something to eat. You've been overworked."
"I haven't!"
Mahiru's face flushed an even deeper shade of red.
Raimei Canyon, Land of Lightning
Raikage Headquarters in Kumo Village
"Crash!"
With a thunderous bang familiar to all Kumo ninja, a solid wood desk smashed through the window of the Raikage Headquarters' office and flew outside.
The Anbu Kumo ninjas standing guard outside instantly leaped into action, catching the heavy desk midair and preventing it from harming any villagers passing below.
"Those damn Konoha vermin!"
Even villagers walking past the Raikage Headquarters could clearly hear the enraged roar echoing from inside the office.
However, the villagers of Kumo were experienced and well aware of Lord Raikage's nature, so they took no offense, simply glancing briefly before returning to their daily routines.
Meanwhile, the Anbu ninja of Kumo quickly set up a soundproof barrier to prevent Lord Raikage from saying something he might regret. If inappropriate words spread outside, it would be a serious issue.
"Please calm down, Lord Raikage."
Inside Lord Raikage's office, the Jonin from Kumo who had returned with the devastating news—of the complete annihilation of the infiltration unit currently deployed in the southern buffer states—was drenched in sweat, his back bowing lower and lower until he was nearly at a ninety-degree angle.
"Why should I calm down! How else am I supposed to calm down!"
The Third Raikage, overwhelmed by grief and fury, cried out to the heavens: "My eight hundred elite ninja!"
Worse still, along with the total loss of this infiltration unit, Kumo also lost its operational foothold in several buffer states led by the Land of Rice Fields!
Each bit of operational influence meant a continuous inflow of funds into Kumo; for Kumo, those funds were vital for strengthening its military power and improving village infrastructure.
When weighing the gains and losses, in the eyes of the Third Raikage, this was no longer just about those eight hundred ninja!
In the long run, the loss of operations in the southern buffer states was equivalent to Kumo losing thousands of ninja—far more than just eight hundred!
There comes a line you don't cross—and we've crossed it!
"We received absolutely no effective warning from our Intelligence Division!"
One elder rose inside Lord Raikage's office, directly pointing at the head of the Intelligence Division—who couldn't even lift his head—saying, "This is outright dereliction of duty! Because of the Intelligence Division's mistake, those fine young men died needlessly!"
"I..."
The head of intelligence was speechless.
He couldn't possibly say the commanding Jonin responsible for that infiltration squad had repeatedly assured him Konoha wouldn't act rashly!
"You will return first, sort through urgent matters, then report to Anbu for questioning!"
The Third Raikage rudely cut short his attempt to explain.
...
The intelligence chief, clearly burdened with guilt, offered a silent bow before exiting Lord Raikage's office.
The Third Raikage saw nothing wrong with this punishment and didn't think it necessary to assign someone to follow the former intelligence chief in case of desertion or anything similar.
After all, Kumo had always been known for unity. Except for the rebellion started by the Gold and Silver Brothers during the First Great Ninja War, there had never been any rogue ninja from Kumo—a stark contrast to the other four great hidden villages.
"Lord Raikage, our main force remains locked in a standoff against Iwagakure,"
one elder from Kumo rose to speak, "If we are to declare war on Konoha, we must first ease tensions slightly with Iwagakure."
"Also," added another elder, "Mist has sent us fewer and fewer messages recently—we cannot afford to weaken our coastal defense forces too much."
These were indeed actual difficulties, not mere excuses.
Because of Kumo's nature, the reason why they are willing to split the mission shares with Konoha and even insist on penetrating into the southern buffer states by giving rebates at their own expense is to obtain as much funding as possible to develop the military power of their Hidden Village.
The reason for this is also very straightforward; the First Great Ninja War consumed not only Konoha but also the Kumo bloodline, which suffered heavy losses during the war and still hasn't fully recovered its strength.
Therefore, if they continued waging several more battles under full mobilization, Kumo's economy would be on the verge of collapse.
"First, confirm the movements of Konoha's ninja force, then dispatch a ninja force of equivalent scale to launch a counterattack. But don't get bogged down in prolonged combat—make sure to retreat immediately after finishing the strike."
A group of Kumo Jonin jotted down the orders with great care.
Kumo has never been a docile or obedient Hidden Village. Even though it now appears strong on the outside but hollow within, the more dire the situation, the more it must feign fearlessness and treat war like a mere game!
"A, I'll leave this matter to you," said the Third Raikage, turning to face his son and heir. "Do you have confidence in carrying out this revenge plan?"
"I will definitely complete the mission!"
A, the Raikage's heir, was relatively satisfied with this assignment.
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