Haseo's feet were no longer on solid ground, but instead above an endless "ocean."
Without warning, violent surging waters erupted like a whirlpool from beneath the squad's position, blasting upward. Even before the eruption, silent yet deadly attacks had already struck at Haseo.
This assassination attempt was completely unexpected for Haseo himself, so he had made no preparations—everything happened far too quickly and abruptly.
Fortunately, one Byakugan ninja managed to react at the very last moment—an individual who sees far enough could, in a sense, see into the future.
That split-second reaction made all the difference between life and death.
Massive waves burst upward like molten lava exploding from beneath the earth, instantly scattering the Konoha squad's formation. Then torrents of water rushed like a dam bursting its banks, swiftly flooding over the village once belonging to the Uzumaki clan.
The water churned violently until it gradually calmed. Only then did Haseo's figure reappear, standing atop a rooftop barely protruding above the surface.
One hand still held onto the Hyuga ninja beside him. With just a slight effort from one arm, he pulled the other man up onto that narrow foothold.
"Lord Haseo… are you alright?"
The Hyuga ninja coughed lightly. As he pressed his injured stump and lifted his face—twisted slightly by pain—to look at Haseo's current state, his voice faltered mid-sentence.
Fresh blood stained Haseo's clothes again, streaming down the tiled roof as droplets slowly dripped into the still-rippling water below.
Gradually, the area around his feet turned red.
A diagonal wound stretched from Haseo's right clavicle all the way down to the left side of his hip. This long, deep wound tore open to reveal half his ribcage beneath.
"It's nothing serious."
The massive blood loss quickly drained color from Haseo's face, yet he still said that.
Then he began forming hand seals with both hands, summoning a large slug using [Summoning Jutsu].
Upon appearing, the summoned slug first twitched its antennae before immediately splitting into two. One crawled onto the Hyuga ninja while the other remained beside Haseo, starting to emit Healing Chakra.
Haseo always carried a slug as a "portable energy reserve." However, what he summoned now through the Summoning Technique was naturally a slug with a completely different purpose.
"I've spent so much carefully-stored Chakra all at once. This time… I'm definitely going to get scolded."
He probably had been instructed to conserve these chakra supplies carefully. But under current circumstances, there was simply no way he could afford to be conservative.
Vibrant Healing Chakra started acting upon Haseo. Visibly fast, his wounds began closing rapidly. Yet once the slug exhausted all its Healing Chakra, only about half of Haseo's injury had healed—just enough for him to continue moving without being hindered.
"I'm sorry, my friend. This is all I can do for you."
While rapidly healing his own wounds, Haseo said this to the Hyuga ninja.
Katsuyu could help treat the other's injuries, but couldn't restore a severed limb under these conditions... If it hadn't been for that timely push from the Hyuga ninja earlier, Haseo wouldn't be simply injured right now.
The attack was aimed directly at Haseo, something others shouldn't have had to endure.
"It's okay, Lord Haseo," the wounded Hyuga ninja replied through chattering teeth despite the pain. "For someone like me, my eyes are most important. As long as I can preserve these eyes, I remain useful."
In this ninja's simple view—as someone born into a top-tier ninja sect—failing to detect the enemy's presence beforehand and allowing them to launch a successful ambush was already his fault.
Even with his Byakugan, he failed to use it properly, a serious offense in his mind, and he believed his actions were barely enough for even partial atonement.
Haseo gently patted the man's remaining shoulder and helped him struggle back onto his feet... Losing an arm needed no explanation to any ninja—it was almost like the end of their career.
Though hand seals held less importance for a Hyuga ninja who specialized in Gentle Fist and Dojutsu than they did for someone like Haseo—who heavily relied on forming seals—the sacrifice still commanded immense respect.
Other Konoha ninjas who had recovered from the initial shock now gathered around Haseo.
Nagisa Nara came over last, took a quick look at Haseo's serious injuries, and said quietly, "Haseo... it's The Third Mizukage."
"Yeah, I figured that out myself."
Haseo directed his gaze toward the far side of the water's surface, where a group of ninjas stood.
One individual among them was pulling a long blade out from a corpse—one of their fallen Konoha comrades.
In that single instant, half of the twelve Konoha ninjas Haseo had brought were already gone.
And the appearance of the enemy leader matched perfectly with the descriptions in their intelligence reports about The Third Mizukage.
"You know what?" Haseo said, tugging slightly at his outer robe to loosely wrap his wounds while tilting his head sideways toward Nagisa. "Now that I know the person responsible for the surprise attack was The Third Mizukage himself, my injuries seem somehow easier to bear. After all, we were at a disadvantage—they were hidden while we were exposed—and he is no ordinary opponent, just a jonin compared to me. So maybe I shouldn't feel like I completely screwed up after all?"
"...Haseo, is this really the time for jokes? Are you going to be alright?"
Haseo waved a dismissive hand, yet... obviously, everything wasn't fine at all.
"Why didn't our detection jutsu pattern respond when they invaded? How did they precisely know you'd come here and launched an ambush ahead of time? Could it possibly be... a spy?"
Nagisa Nara kept his eyes fixed on the enemies already advancing toward them, while doubts continued to surface in his mind.
"You're being overly suspicious about spies, Nara. Our detection technique pattern showed no problem and gave no reaction, which means they must have been lying in ambush here before we even activated our technique. As for their accurate timing of attack… it's just speculation and judgment.
Whoever commands the Eastern Front of the Land of Fire would most likely set up an observation point in the Land of Whirlpools, given its uniquely strategic location.
Besides, since this is still early in the war and there has never been actual fighting between Konoha and Mist, the commander of the Eastern Front of the Land of Fire probably took this opportunity to come personally for reconnaissance.
Furthermore, after arriving in the Land of Whirlpools, it was highly probable the team would pass through the old village of Uzumaki. Combining these three factors, this was indeed a gamble worth taking."
Haseo's reasoning—working backward from the outcome—made sense, but nobody had previously considered this possibility due to a strategic miscalculation.
The Third Hokage and Konoha's upper echelons believed Mist wouldn't move against the Land of Fire—not yet, at least. But they had miscalculated; the presence of the Third Mizukage here proved everything.
Haseo had never considered himself anything special, but as a frontline commander of Konoha, he was definitely someone worthy of the Mizukage's personal attention.
"In other words," Haseo continued, "from the time the Western Front conflict began, it's very possible the Mizukage has patiently waited here for three to five days straight, while we naively marched right into his trap. So I can't really complain about taking that blade—it was well-earned. But poor Hyuga lost his arm over this; that part was a bit unfair.
I have to admit, even after all these years as a ninja, my understanding of what a ninja truly is is constantly being challenged."
Any ninja bearing the title of Kage has always been the brightest beacon of their village—an individual certainly possessing extraordinary skills. Their principle is simple: remain motionless until the moment strikes, then unleash a deadly blow. This is the standard combat rule of ninjas.
As a commander, Haseo realized now he'd been somewhat naïve—thinking in terms of early, middle, or late stages of war didn't matter. War was war.
It could erupt at any moment into flames—an unstoppable blaze that would reduce every living body to ash.
Previously, Haseo had let his guard down slightly, because even within the command headquarters, he hadn't felt the real weight of being on the battlefield. Though war had already begun, it somehow didn't seem to touch him directly... Until now, when all the tension came rushing back.
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