"If we cause a commotion, I can use a large-scale Fire Style Jutsu. And because there are important supplies there, the Hidden Sand ninja won't use large-scale ninja techniques to attack, so this is advantageous for us. However, escaping from the Hidden Sand's encirclement won't be an easy task. I remember you made a lot of useful gadgets before heading out this time."
Ruri glanced at Hakushi.
"I didn't expect they'd come in handy so soon."
Hakushi sighed helplessly, took out a scroll from his Ninja Tool Bag, spread it on the ground, and after unsealing the Sealing Jutsu on it, a pile of items appeared with a puff of white smoke.
"What are these..."
Ayane picked up a ball similar to a Smoke Bomb, her curiosity piqued.
"These are poison smoke bombs. Their area and duration last longer than average smoke bombs, and there's also an antidote."
"But if the enemy uses Wind Escape to spread them..."
"It's fine. I'll use Fire Style Jutsu then. If the enemy attacks with Wind Escape, it will only strengthen my Fire Style Jutsu and expand its range."
In this way, the enemy's Wind Escape can't be used easily, and the three of them can make a feint attack using the poison smoke, causing chaos there.
However, afterwards, they'll face a massive pursuit from Hidden Sand ninjas, so they need to carefully plan their escape.
By now, the sky had darkened. The canyon region at the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers was already shrouded in night, with a cold wind blowing.
"We'll discuss the retreat plan on the road. We have to reach the mission location by midnight, leaving less than six hours, so time is very tight."
This is a surprise attack plan, so there isn't much time to devise strategies. They must destroy the supply point before it's relocated.
Otherwise, once the intelligence is outdated, finding the Hidden Sand's supply point location again won't be an easy task.
◎
Deep in the night, Konoha Camp at the border of the Land of Fire was so quiet you couldn't even hear the insects chirping.
Inside a tent, the dim light of a simple electric lamp only illuminated the center, while the edges remained shrouded in darkness.
Tsunade stood in front of a table, sorting through intelligence reports.
Since this intelligence was of great importance, it needed to be scrutinized very carefully.
At this moment, a white-haired ninja came in from outside.
"Tsunade, still working? It's already this late."
The newcomer was Jiraiya, one of the Sannin like Tsunade, who smiled and greeted her upon entering.
"It's you, Jiraiya. What's up?"
Tsunade glanced up at Jiraiya, then continued to examine the intelligence closely.
It was clear she wasn't in the mood for conversation.
Seeing Tsunade like this, Jiraiya sighed softly and said, "I'm really sorry about Nawaki. If only I had been there at the time..."
If he had returned quickly when the Hidden Sand and Konoha went to war and looked after things with Orochimaru, perhaps Nawaki's tragedy could have been averted.
But it was too late; the dead cannot be revived. Seeing the reduced smiles on Tsunade's face compared to before made Jiraiya feel both worried and guilty.
"This has nothing to do with you!"
Tsunade's tone was very cold and hard.
Hearing Jiraiya bring up Nawaki, Tsunade felt a pang of pain in her heart, but she quickly composed herself and wasn't about to be defeated by such matters.
She was carrying the life and death of many Konoha ninjas on her shoulders, and she couldn't afford to show weakness now, lest people look down on her.
"..."
Jiraiya stood silently to the side, without arguing against Tsunade's words.
"Since you're back, just quickly do your own work. Don't interfere with mine here."
Tsunade's tone softened slightly, but her intent to send him off was clear.
Jiraiya said nothing, but his face showed a disappointed expression.
"Wait!"
Tsunade suddenly called out to him.
"What's the matter?"
Jiraiya felt puzzled.
"The mission to raid the Hidden Sand's supply point is Sakumo's team, correct?"
Tsunade suddenly asked a question unrelated to the current situation.
"Yes, it's Sakumo's team. Since the mission is crucial, Sakumo was considered the most suitable, so the top brass assigned it to his team."
This mission to cut off the Hidden Sand's supply point would impact the future progress of the war.
If they successfully completed it, the Hidden Sand Village would crumble due to insufficient supplies, and Konoha would achieve great results with minimal sacrifice.
At that point, both sides would enter peace talks to end the war that had dragged on for over two years.
Failure would mean the war continues, which wasn't a favorable outcome for Konoha and the Land of Fire.
The best outcome would be to end the war quickly, leading both sides into peace talks and concluding the war through negotiations.
Jiraiya had great faith in Sakumo's abilities and, by extension, high hopes for this mission.
Not just him; the village was probably already drafting the peace treaty documents between Konoha and the Hidden Sand.
Seeing Tsunade's increasingly worried expression, Jiraiya felt a sudden twinge and urgently asked, "What happened?"
"This intelligence conflicts with the plan I and Orochimaru devised. Also, this isn't the usual Anbu contact signal..."
Tsunade took out a document from the pile.
Upon hearing this, Jiraiya's face changed.
"Jiraiya, when you received intelligence from Anbu in the village, are you sure it wasn't swapped?"
Tsunade frowned at Jiraiya.
Because it was crucial, the intelligence transmitted from Konoha this time had been handed to Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, personally, to ensure it reached the front lines flawlessly.
"Impossible! I was moving with Sakumo's team the whole time, no one could have tampered with the intelligence!"
Jiraiya grabbed the intelligence from Tsunade and read it carefully.
His expression grew increasingly grim.
"Wh-what's going on? This content doesn't match what Teacher Sarutobi instructed!"
Jiraiya's shoulders started shaking, unable to believe the intelligence before him.
"Looks like you were deceived. If there were no incidents on the way, there's only one possibility: the Anbu you encountered in Konoha wasn't one of Teacher Sarutobi's subordinates."
Tsunade's words hit Jiraiya like a bolt from the blue, leaving him rigid, breaking out in cold sweat.
This was utterly disastrous!
Failing the mission was secondary; if, because of his carelessness, they fell into the enemy's trap, leading to Sakumo's team never returning, that would be the real issue.
"No, I must go save them!"
Jiraiya, dripping with sweat, ran outside the tent, disregarding everything else.
"Wait, Jiraiya, don't be reckless. Even if you rush over now—"
However, by the time Tsunade caught up, Jiraiya had already vanished into the dark night, nowhere to be seen.
"That idiot, rushing in for rescue like this is an easy way to get ambushed!"
Tsunade cursed softly, left helplessly glaring at the entrance of the tent.