章 7: Chapter 7
"Damn you, you wretched woman, you're so infuriating."
At the front lines of Sunagakure, Hanzō of the Salamander stood atop his summon, wielding a scythe and fending off an assault by two puppets. Opposing him was Chiyo, one of Sunagakure's advisors, known for her mastery over puppet jutsu.
"Heh, Hanzō the Demigod, is this all you've got?"
When Chiyo learned of Hanzō's incursion from the Third Kazekage, she had persuaded him not to recall elite forces from the Land of Rivers. She knew that if Sunagakure's forces were repositioned, Konoha would inevitably detect it, leaving Sunagakure vulnerable to attacks from multiple fronts.
From Chiyo's perspective, Hanzō's Rain ninja weren't numerous enough to pose an insurmountable threat. If things were handled right, repelling him was a viable option. And indeed, as Chiyo had predicted, Hanzō's greatest advantage lay in his toxic attacks—an area in which Chiyo herself was highly skilled.
Quickly, the casualties among Sunagakure's forces dropped significantly with Chiyo's intervention.
"Get lost! Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
A massive water dragon materialized beside Hanzō, surging toward Chiyo in the distance. As he released the jutsu, Hanzō hurled his scythe in the direction he anticipated she might dodge, preemptively calculating her movements.
"Puppet Technique: Mechanical Light Shield Seal!"
As the water dragon shot forward, Chiyo's fingers moved deftly, summoning three puppets before her. She positioned them in a triangular formation, extending their arms to create a chakra shield.
Seeing that Chiyo wasn't avoiding his jutsu, Hanzō maneuvered the chain of his scythe, launching it in a flanking attack from behind. Sensing the imminent threat, Chiyo swiftly bent low, narrowly dodging the deadly ambush.
After several exchanges, both combatants realized the challenge each posed.
"Hmph, let's call it a day, then."
Seeing no advantage to pressing on, Hanzō gave a cold snort, released his summon, and led his forces in a retreat from the battlefield. Only after Hanzō departed did the Sunagakure ninja watching from afar dare approach Chiyo.
"Lady Chiyo, should we pursue them?" one of the shinobi asked tentatively.
Chiyo rolled her eyes at the questioning jōnin and turned her gaze back toward the battlefield. Most of the corpses belonged to Sunagakure ninjas, while only a handful were from Amegakure.
"Hanzō the 'Demigod' certainly lives up to his reputation."
In this battle, Chiyo had brought along six jōnin and nine chūnin to encircle Hanzō, yet in the end, she alone survived.
"Hanzō, that old devil, clearly held back—absolutely no point in chasing him."
The jōnin who had questioned her wisely held his tongue, realizing now was not the time for further comments. One or two skirmishes meant little. Both sides were currently in a probing phase, gathering information without revealing their trump cards.
Chiyo traced a finger over the summoning scroll hidden in her robe, a smirk curling at her lips.
---
At dawn, at the gate of Konoha Village, stood only two chūnin gatekeepers and Danzo, leaning on his cane in solitude. That's right; Danzo intended to head to the Amegakure battlefield alone, ready to make his move.
Yesterday, the battle report delivered by Mitokado Homura had prompted the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, to summon Danzo immediately. According to the report, under Tsunade's command, Konoha forces had successfully crushed Amegakure's main contingent, containing the conflict within the Land of Rain's borders.
Toward the end of the report, the list of casualties and commendations caught Danzo's eye, where he saw Nawaki's name on the list of those honored for their achievements.
"Great, just great. How did he end up there?"
After Danzo questioned Hiruzen repeatedly, Hiruzen admitted it was with his consent that Nawaki had been deployed to the battlefield—at Nawaki's own insistence.
"Are you out of your mind? You're the Hokage, and he's just a genin! He says jump, and you ask how high? If he asked you to eat dirt, would you be gobbling it up?"
Inwardly, Danzo fumed at Hiruzen's decision. But at this point, arguing was futile.
In Danzo's eyes, Nawaki was indispensable—not only as a potential means of gaining leverage over Tsunade but also as a key to pursuing research on Hashirama's cells.
Just to be safe, he had already sent Uchiha Kurenai ahead, counting on her Sharingan's heightened perception to monitor Nawaki's surroundings and ensure there would be no explosive tags near him. In the meantime, Uchiha Sayuki, her elder sister, would manage Root in Kurenai's absence. Having placed the Tongue-Curse Seal on both sisters, Danzo was confident they would be loyal.
Lost in thought, Danzo was startled by a passing ninja's cough, shaking him from his reverie. He resumed his slow steps out of Konoha, disappearing into the forest under the watchful eyes of the two chūnin gatekeepers.
---
Several days later, in the Land of Rain.
Behind a thicket, three Amegakure ninja huddled together, exchanging uneasy glances. A young chūnin grumbled, "Man, I don't know when Lord Hanzō will be back."
"Lately, we've been chased down by these blasted Konoha dogs. Our once-mighty force has been scattered into these small squads."
"If Lord Hanzō were here, we wouldn't be in such a sorry state."
A middle-aged jōnin chuckled smugly, puffing out his chest. "Heh, heh, heh! You're asking the right guy!"
Then, with exaggerated caution, he beckoned them closer, glancing around before lowering his voice.
"Lord Hanzō has already signed a ceasefire agreement with Sunagakure. It won't be long before he returns to wipe out those Konoha ninja!"
"What? No way! So we beat Sunagakure, just like in our victory over the Land of Iron!" The young chūnin's admiration for Hanzō was clear—he couldn't imagine Hanzō losing a fight. The other chūnin, too, looked thrilled.
The jōnin knew more than they did, though—like the fact that Hanzō's fight with Sunagakure had ended in a draw, with neither side gaining much. Still, he chose not to burst their bubble. Keeping morale high was important.
Speaking of Konoha, though, those ninja were just unbelievable. Most of the ones sent were elite forces. Their variety of jutsu and hand seal speed was leagues beyond what the same rank in Amegakure could manage.
The jōnin had assumed that his status alone would be enough to outmatch Konoha's chūnin. But when he faced one of them—a member of the Uchiha clan—their Fire Style easily overwhelmed his Water Style, leaving him scorched like he'd just crawled out of a coal mine. He'd barely escaped with his life.
This was the downside of being a shinobi from a small village like Amegakure. They had no established clans or inherited techniques—many jutsu were simply out of reach.
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