It was at nine o'clock the next morning when we saw Sakumo; Hakushi and the other two had arrived at the Konoha camp on the front line of the Land of Fire.
There was basically no change from before, except the atmosphere here was tenser than before.
Although the task of cutting off the Hidden Sand's supplies last time was 'failed' because of Root's interference, Sakumo completed it beautifully on his side.
He single-handedly destroyed an important supply point for the Hidden Sand, causing their attacks to become waning.
"In other words, as long as we get through this winter, does it mean the Hidden Sand will collapse on its own?"
Hakushi asked.
It's already early October, and the weather is slowly getting colder, especially in December when the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers will enter a harsh winter season.
The Hidden Sand Ninja doesn't have the adequate resources to last through this winter, and by early next spring, the situation will become very unfavorable for the Hidden Sand.
"That's basically correct, but if the Hidden Sand will actually retreat, we are not sure; we can only say it's likely."
Sakumo nodded.
In the absence of sufficient supplies, launching a final fierce attack to break open an entry into the Land of Fire is also an option for the Hidden Sand.
After all, leading this operation is the Third Kazekage, and we must be fully prepared.
Especially at such times, we must pay utmost attention, not giving the Hidden Sand Ninja any chance to exploit.
"So, what is the mission assigned to our squad?"
"It's the same as before, searching for isolated Hidden Sand squads to eliminate, to alleviate the pressure on the front battlefield from the sides."
Sakumo replied this way.
He was very clear about his limitations as a ninja; he had no large-scale ninja technique attacks, all his strength came from Taijutsu and Swordsmanship.
Therefore, he finds enemies with large area ninja technique attacks troublesome, but on the other hand, his Taijutsu Instant Body, and Swordsmanship, are all at a pinnacle level.
If the enemy cannot keep up with his speed and lacks means to defend against the White Fang Short Knife, for him, killing the enemy takes just one slash or a few slashes.
Hakushi and the other two are also very aware of this.
He is a ninja with a very evident set of weaknesses and strengths.
Suited for small-team-scale combat, in large-scale battles, his strength would be restricted instead.
Because on the front lines, he has more to consider, like avoiding the kunai and explosive tags flying from unknown directions; if encountering many comrades in distress, whether to rescue or not is also a question worth serious thought.
In this way, his Swordsmanship would become hesitant and sluggish, unable to exert full strength.
Sakumo didn't have much to complain about this.
Ninjas are assigned work suited to their abilities and personalities.
He is only suitable for making such action operations, just like the Sannin cannot undertake his job, and he similarly cannot undertake the Sannin's work.
"You've just arrived today, so rest here for a day, we'll start the mission tomorrow morning."
"Understood."
Before leaving, Sakumo said a word to Hakushi: "Oh, by the way, if you're free, you can go check out the medical camp area, right now Medical Ninja are still in shortage at the front here, even just for a day, it could relieve some pressure there."
"Understood,"
Hakushi nodded, then headed toward the medical camp.
Relieving the medical team's pressure was true, but Hakushi also knew it was just a consoling remark from Sakumo.
Anyhow, treating patients is the duty of a Medical Ninja, Hakushi had no reason to refuse.
However, in Hakushi's view, the current inadequacy in the number of Medical Ninja in Konoha was entirely due to its flawed recognition and execution strategy, leading to such a result.
Konoha's attention to medical education also emerged from the medical reform proposed by Tsunade a few years ago, prompting the cultivation of Medical Ninja.
Initially, Konoha hadn't prioritized medical reform.
In their eyes, tilting resources towards combat-weak Medical Ninja was less favorable than nurturing stronger ninjas to strengthen the village's combat power.
Yet after experiencing the incredibly horrendous Land of Rain war, they discovered that diverting resources to strong ninjas resulted in a high mortality rate, thus enforcing medical ninjutsu courses in the Ninja School.
Hakushi was a member of the first batch of Medical Ninja experimental class of the medical reform, clearly knowing Konoha's neglect in cultivating Medical Ninja.
If Tsunade hadn't proposed this reform... perhaps Konoha would not have prioritized the career of Medical Ninja even now.
(PS: Remember in the original work, when Tsunade proposed medical reform, all the high-level officials and Jonin including the Third Hokage were not interested in Tsunade's proposal, only Katou Dan supported Tsunade, maybe because he desired Tsunade's affection...)
Upon reaching the camp area of the medical unit, Hakushi was met by the painful cries of the wounded, mixing with the scent of disinfectant and blood piercing his nostrils.
Given the limited camp area, some wounded could only lie outside for shoddy treatment.
Prioritizing the rescue of severely injured ninjas, then to treat those moderately and lightly injured, this was the Konoha medical unit's guideline.
Here, Hakushi also saw Tsunade, but he did not approach for a conversation, as Tsunade was there performing medical ninjutsu to heal the injured.