"Ah, it feels great after a bath."
Ayane walked over from the other side of the forest with her wet long hair, her skin slightly covered with moisture, appearing fair and rosy.
Following silently behind her was Ruri.
Hakushi glanced at the two of them, quickly took out a kunai from the ninja tool bag, and said to Ayane and Ruri, "Before you come over, state the password."
"Password?"
Ayane was taken aback.
Ruri remained expressionless as she began to form seals, gathering chakra in her mouth, and then spat it out:
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive fireball shot directly toward Hakushi.
Hakushi dove to the side, awkwardly dodging the fireball's attack.
Seeing the trees behind him consumed by the fireball, cold sweat ran down his face.
"How's that for a password response?"
Ruri smiled slightly, seemingly prepared to unleash a second fireball.
Hakushi stood up, twitched his mouth: "O-Okay. It was just a joke, no need to attack with Fire Style directly, right?"
"Isn't it more convincing this way?"
Ruri said confidently.
"Yeah, it's much more convincing than just a plain password..."
Hakushi sighed, rubbing his sore butt.
"Hakushi-kun, really, I thought we actually had some agreed password beforehand."
Ayane walked over and said.
Just as Hakushi was about to say something, Ruri looked around, not finding Sakumo, and asked, "Where did Sakumo-sensei go?"
"He went to search for ingredients; there isn't much food in the bag, so we need to restock at the outpost tomorrow."
Hakushi took out a backpack and said.
"I really want to eat at Ichiraku Ramen. Eating dry rations and wild game outside all the time, I've almost forgotten what ramen tastes like."
Ayane patted her stomach, complaining while sitting on a rock.
"Endure it for now. Once the war is over, things will get much better."
During these days, the food Hakushi and the others had been eating was mostly cold items. Only when food was scarce did they source locally, but the food was quite simple, catching fish from the river, or finding some wild vegetables and mushrooms in the forest to fill their stomachs.
"Hakushi-kun, why not invent some portable ramen?"
"Soldier Rations Pill might be something to consider, but as for ramen, forget it."
Hakushi shook his head, ignoring Ayane's request.
"Alright, just eat more at the outpost tomorrow. Did you and Sakumo-sensei notice anything unusual here just now?"
Ruri carefully observed the surroundings, maintaining a high level of vigilance.
"No, Sakumo-sensei and I were just chatting about the next Hokage."
Hakushi spoke truthfully.
"Huh, Hakushi-kun, are you interested in that kind of thing?"
Ayane seemed a bit curious.
Hakushi glanced at Ayane.
"Because Sakumo-sensei is the Jonin closest to the position of Hokage. In another ten years, after the Third grows old, Sakumo-sensei will likely be the most called upon to become Hokage. Even the Sannin would be overshadowed by him. It's just a logical conclusion."
Hakushi analyzed rationally.
Neither Ruri nor Ayane argued against Hakushi's view.
In fact, the Konoha White Fang indeed had the highest call for Hokage among the current Konoha Jonin, even the Sannin were slightly inferior.
"The village is like a country. To rise politically, you need more than just support from the civilian sector. Sakumo-sensei lacks support from the ninja clans, so his personality isn't suitable for becoming Hokage. Sometimes, fame is a double-edged sword, both a catalyst for promotion and a..."
Ruri leaned against the tree, crossing her arms in front of her chest, an earnest expression on her face. By the end, she didn't finish her sentence.
As a key cultivation prospect from a prominent family, Ruri wasn't ignorant of politics; she just wasn't interested in it.
Sakumo's prestige, strength, and character were indeed sufficient, but the support from civilians alone wasn't enough to become Hokage.
In Ruri's eyes, the so-called civilian ninjas had no complete unity, with complex factions and overly scattered interests. Without someone to consolidate them, they could never grow into something significant.
In contrast, most ninja clans had already formed a community of interest, knowing what they needed to do, what they would gain, and what they would sacrifice, with aligned goals.
"Listen, the so-called Hokage... it's just a boring game of power shifts among the upper ranks, unrelated to the lower tiers."
Hearing Ruri's statement, Ayane seemed a bit worried on her face: "Um, Ruri, isn't it a bit inappropriate to say that? I feel one needs to be recognized by the whole village to become Hokage."
"Are you an idiot? If they didn't, the Hokage's reputation would be tarnished within the village long ago. Aren't you from a major ninja clan? Isn't your standing and insight enough to see the essence of the Hokage? To me, as long as there's power and the desire, the Hokage position is within reach. Sakumo-sensei just lacks that kind of ambition, so he's an excellent Konoha Jonin, but definitely not suited to be Hokage's material."
Ruri's face showed a confident smile, as if her views never err.
Ayane puffed her cheeks in anger, feeling a bit indignant.
"Alright, alright, you two. It's still a long way until the next Hokage is chosen. At least for now, the most important thing is to complete the mission handed down from above."
Hakushi quickly stepped in as the peacemaker.
Hakushi had long understood Ruri's character.
She didn't hold much respect or awe for the position of Hokage itself.
She only respected the ninja named Hiruzen Sarutobi who became the Third Hokage.
She esteemed powerful ninjas, not the position of Hokage.
As long as you go along with this thought, Ruri's intentions are actually very straightforward and easy to understand.
Before long, Sakumo returned from hunting, bringing back two wild rabbits and some fish, which were to be enjoyed as dinner that evening.
Before that, they needed to find a safe place to hide their tracks in this vast forest hunting ground.
◎
The next day, they arrived at the nearest outpost.
It had already been damaged, with many buildings collapsed, and over a dozen Konoha Ninja lying in the ruins, blood everywhere.
Accompanying Sakumo's team was a small squad of Anbu.
This Anbu squad consisted of one squad leader and three members.
The squad leader was a Jonin, while the three members included one Special Jonin, and two Chunin.
Hakushi was desperately trying to save a Konoha Ninja lying in a pool of blood, whose chest cavity had been blown apart by an Explosive Tag, hovering at the brink of death.
Yet he was still clinging to life, displaying a strong will to survive.
With the outpost buildings completely destroyed, Hakushi had to perform emergency surgery outside, but he wasn't confident about the survival rate.
When they arrived here, the Konoha Ninja had already missed the best time for surgery.
Whether he could survive was left to fate and whether he could pull through.
Sakumo and the others didn't disturb Hakushi's surgery while they began searching for other traces in the ruins.
"It was a large-scale Earth Style Ninjutsu that directly collapsed the outpost's buildings, followed by a sudden ambush, leaving the people here unable to defend. At the first encounter, the enemy almost wiped them out."
The Anbu squad leader, wearing a mask, gave a brief explanation after professional inspection.
"A Jonin, six Chunin, eleven Genin couldn't even put up a fight?"
Sakumo's eyes were grave.
"It's very likely the same special Hidden Sand forces your team encountered over two months ago."
The Anbu squad leader said.
"Has their identity been verified?" Sakumo looked at the Anbu squad leader.
"The leaders are a male and female Hidden Sand Jonin, the son and daughter-in-law of Hidden Sand Advisor Chiyo, also top experts in the Hidden Sand Puppet Corps. As for the Earth Style Ninja in their team who can easily divide the battlefield, there's no news for now."
Sakumo nodded after listening.
At this moment, Ayane walked over and reported to Sakumo: "Teacher Sakumo, some supplies from the outpost have been taken, and what's left has been burned. What should we do next?"
"After this, head to other outposts. By the way, can you send another Anbu squad?"
Sakumo looked at the Anbu squad leader.
"It's impossible. At any time, two Anbu squads must remain in the village. Another Anbu squad is assisting secretly on the front lines, gathering intelligence. Right now, the only available Anbu squad is ours. Even with the Security Team's help, the village's defense has already become very weak."
"Anyway, I hope some more personnel can be dispatched, preferably experts in tracking. I know village personnel is tight, but now's not the time to worry about these matters."
"Understood, I will report to Lord Hokage. Whether we can dispatch more personnel depends on Lord Hokage's decision."
"I'm counting on you."
The Anbu squad leader made a hand gesture, and the other three Anbu comrades nodded and left using Instantaneous Body Jutsu.
"Will it work, Teacher Sakumo?" Ayane asked.
Sakumo shook his head, not daring to guarantee that the village would definitely send more people to investigate.
With Ayane's Byakugan alone, the investigation range was still too limited.
The enemy forces also had excellent Perception Ninja, skilled in counter-reconnaissance, purposefully targeting weakly defended outposts for surprise attacks, causing chaos within the Land of Fire. Over time, it easily put immense pressure on the Konoha Ninja at the front lines.
But the Land of Fire is so vast, and the movements of that Hidden Sand unit were always elusive, with no pattern to follow, complicating the search.
Back with Hakushi, he had finished the surgery and was bandaging the external wounds of the injured.
"Hakushi, how is it, can he wake up?"
"Such things depend on how strong his will to survive is. I've done all I can."
Hakushi packed up his medical kit and put it back in his backpack.
Sakumo patted Hakushi on the shoulder.
"You've done enough; Medical Ninja aren't gods."
Hakushi didn't intend to say anything to Sakumo's comfort.