"Sunagakure's offensive has indeed been rapid and aggressive. On the very day war broke out, they already reached Ame's outskirts—almost like how Konoha once pushed into Ame during the later stages of the previous great war. However… their first wave of attack was soon driven back.
Ame seems different this time. Though still just as tough as before, this time they're showing a much stronger will to fight.
Ame is fighting fiercely and far more strategically."
After delivering supplies, the Third Hokage began discussing frontline reports with Haseo… although technically, he wasn't sharing anything new—just summarizing what had come in over the past three days since the war broke out.
"That's natural. People can learn and improve over time… Since Konoha once penetrated Ame, having experienced that situation before, Ame would naturally have learned how to deal with it again. In a sense, Suna has fallen into the same trap that Konoha once did.
As for Ame being able to counter Suna's confident assault, it's not hard to imagine. Although Suna's strength far surpasses Ame's, one side is aggressively attacking while the other is defending familiar territory. The advantage balances out, neutralizing much of Suna's superiority.
If Suna wants to crush Ame like smashing a walnut with a hammer, theoretically speaking, it's possible. But at least now, they haven't brought down a heavy enough hammer yet—at the very least, they should have deployed the Kazekage by now." Haseo replied after a moment's thought.
Suna temporarily stumbling was good news for Konoha—it bought them extra reaction time.
What Haseo said made perfect sense. If Suna wanted to directly crush Ame, they indeed needed to commit greater force. But that's only theoretical. Practically speaking, Suna could never fully mobilize all its forces.
What about Wind Country's northern and western fronts? Surely those need defending. Could you really let Konoha and Iwagakure advance unchecked? That's not how provocations work.
In complex wars, there are always directions for offense and defense. Concentrating all resources overwhelmingly on one single point equals self-destruction… The ninja world's situation is intricate, and war affects everything through even a slight tug.
This isn't just a direct one-on-one battle between Suna and Ame. Otherwise, wouldn't Ame have surrendered already?
"There's another factor too. While all major ninja villages were recovering and restoring strength these years, because of the chaos caused by Sanshouo Hanzo's rise to power, Ame has remained in turmoil. Such chaos has both pros and cons. The downside is the worsening decline of Rain Country, while the upside is that Ame's shinobi might be more accustomed to the atmosphere of war—at least in the early stages of conflict." Haseo added afterward.
Major ninja villages enjoyed peace while Ame's shinobi were constantly embroiled in internal fighting—you can well imagine the combat readiness they've developed.
Meanwhile, when facing a powerful external enemy, Rain Village's internal conflicts could very likely be temporarily suppressed. Whether supporters or opponents of Hanzo, all would redirect their hostility toward the invaders, becoming united in hatred.
Third Hokage nodded his approval of Haseo's analysis. "It's fortunate that Rain Village hasn't completely fallen; otherwise things would become complicated."
"Our forces have already entered the Land of Rain. Although Hidden Rain seems capable of understanding our intentions, they haven't taken particularly hostile actions yet. Therefore, the corridor connecting us to Sunagakure's forces remains intact. In recent days, we've engaged in several tentative battles with them, and neither side has gained a decisive advantage."
"Iwagakure arrived slightly later than us in the Land of Rain, but their current situation is roughly similar to ours."
"It's just using tigers to swallow wolves. Salamander Hanzo hopes Leaf will share the pressure from Sand, or perhaps he expects great nations to counterbalance each other while Hidden Rain waits for opportunities to reap benefits. But sooner or later, Rain will definitely turn against Konoha because it is undeniably the village they hate most," Haseo explained.
"There's no way Rain Village would be foolish enough to dispatch major forces to separate Leaf from Sand—that'd be equivalent to fighting two enemies at once!"
"Furthermore, due to Konoha's past actions against Rain during the previous war, compared with Iwa and Sand, Rain feels more resentment toward Leaf reentering their territory. This hostility arises from the grassroots up—even Hanzo of the Rain Village cannot suppress it completely."
With three major ninja villages involved plus Rain itself, one can imagine how chaotic the Land of Rain would become soon.
"This is troublesome... Rain's Hanzo, Sand's Chiyo, and Kazekage Kamakura are all experts in poison techniques. What concerns me most right now is their mastery of poisons."
Haseo glanced sideways at Third Hokage. Sometimes being too close prevented seeing things clearly. At this moment, The Third hadn't fully realized the caliber of medical ninja among his students—precisely during this war did Tsunade's medical ninjutsu begin shining brilliantly, spreading her reputation as [Lady Katsuyu] across all nations.
"[Hokage-sama], your disciple will play an unexpectedly significant role in this war. Indeed, the legend of [Balanced Sannin] begins here."
"I do trust Jiraiya and the others, but they're still quite young." Like any normal elder, The Third had the tendency of any parent—always seeing his disciples as children no matter how old they got, subconsciously ignoring their maturity. "Still... where did you get 'Balanced Sannin'?"
"To be honest, that's my creation."
"..."
Third Hokage shook his head—he lacked the playful whimsy typical of younger generations. "In any case, under these mutual constraints, the western front won't conclude soon. My concern lies in believing Cloud and Mist won't remain passive forever."
"We currently maintain an alliance relationship with Kumo, so I've already dispatched envoys there tentatively proposing joint operations. However... even I myself harbor little hope regarding this matter."
As for Mist, although Konoha had no prior conflicts with it, it still couldn't be trusted. So while the western front is engaged in battle, we must monitor Mist's movements on the eastern front.
I may not want to fight on multiple fronts, but we still need to stay vigilant.
"Just like during the previous war?"
"Yes. For now, I'll leave the Rain Country battlefield to Danzo Shimura. The village needs to prepare some forces ready to respond to Kumo, and this task I intend to assign to Torifu Akimichi… his role will be similar to that in the previous war.
As for the task of monitoring the eastern front, as mentioned earlier, Haseo, it will be entirely under your responsibility."
"I understand, Hokage-sama... How many people can I specifically take with me for this mission?"
Haseo had already been informed about this beforehand. It was precisely because there was such a mission to assign him that he could remain inside the village right now—otherwise, he would have been sent to the battlefield in the Land of Rain long ago... Although Haseo's personality was somewhat... well, his combat effectiveness was definitely recognized, so it was important to make the best use of every talent and resource.
Combined with some shinobi from your Kagenami group, I can allocate about 150 people to you," said the Third Hokage.
That number made Haseo fall silent for quite a while before he continued asking hopefully, "One hundred and fifty jonin?"
"A normally proportioned unit." The Third gave Haseo a look akin to 'you must be kidding.'
Needless to say, his hopes were dashed.
A normal unit, of course, mostly consisted of chunin, with only small numbers of jonin and genin. Wanting to take 150 jonin with him to perform surveillance? As if taking 150 jonin along for surveillance wasn't ridiculous enough? Dream on.
"So my job is to handle an entire force of 150 men against all of Mist while you, Hokage-sama, sit comfortably here giving orders? Doesn't seem quite fair somehow... What if Mist suddenly launches a massive invasion into the Land of Fire and lays siege to us?"
Following standard protocol, Haseo started complaining.
At times like these, he completely ignored that whole 'absolute obedience' rule every ninja was supposed to follow... Well, 'absolute obedience' only applied after a ninja accepted their orders, but Haseo hadn't technically accepted his yet.
Though for regular ninja, accepting any assigned mission without question was also an absolute rule; refusal wasn't even an option.
"You're to relay the intelligence immediately. As for the rest... Hmm, I'll wish you luck."
If there really was a large-scale invasion, Konoha would undoubtedly dispatch new forces to reinforce the eastern front, but until then, Haseo's unit would have to hold its ground.
War isn't pretend-play for kids—it's life or death. The Third Hokage's plan was perfectly reasonable.
Yet none of that stopped Haseo from thinking he was nothing more than a cruel-hearted old bastard.
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