Several days later.
A shinobi force arrived at the border of the Land of Fire and headed straight into the Land of Grass.
As for Kusagakure's response?
They might show you respect in peacetime, but in wartime, who did they think they were?
Whoever had the bigger fist had the right to speak. Faced with one of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Grass had no ability to resist.
Within the Shinobi World's vast forests, shinobi were as tiny as ants, yet they could wield ninjutsu capable of destroying heaven and earth.
"There are six squads ahead. Their highest Chakra levels are at the Chunin rank..."
Perched on a tree branch, Hyuga Hiashi and his younger brother Hizashi Hyuga, serving as scouts, activated their Byakugan and calmly reported the intelligence ahead.
The impulsive Kiba Inuzuka even bared her teeth in a bloodthirsty grin.
"We were targeted the moment we entered the Land of Grass? Perfect. Let's see what the Grass Shinobi are made of."
Yet Shikaku Nara, on a branch nearby, wore a grave expression as he warned everyone.
"Everyone, be careful. Lord Orochimaru led an elite force ahead of us to clear the way. The shinobi who made it this far should be scouts sent by Kusagakure, or mercenaries hired by them to gather intelligence.
"Do not let your guard down. Engage carefully."
The figures on the branches all grew solemn. On the battlefield, no one would care about their backgrounds.
"Yoru, you experienced the battlefield in the Land of Rain. You have the most experience."
Although Shikaku Nara was skilled at devising battle strategies, most of them had only carried out missions within the Land of Fire since graduating.
And those had all been missions in the standard three-person shinobi squad format. This time was different. This was war!
Faced with everyone's questioning gazes, Uchiha Yoru spoke in a calm, low voice.
"Combat involving squads of more than ten shinobi differs from what we've done before. The enemy has six squads. Don't give them a chance to surround us and turn this into a melee—that would put us at a disadvantage..."
None of them had experience in large-scale shinobi brawls involving more than ten people. In particular, they had never coordinated their ninjutsu with one another. They could easily interfere with each other, weakening their own combat strength instead.
The enemy, on the other hand, if they were already accustomed to such fighting, could greatly amplify their strength through the coordination of over a dozen shinobi.
"Good. We'll use Plan B!"
Shikaku Nara showed his approval. The others took deep breaths as well, their expressions turning serious as they prepared for battle.
Uchiha Yoru calmly swept his gaze over the group. The situation in the Shinobi World must have been dire, or the village would not be so eager to train this group of second-generation shinobi.
Under normal circumstances, they would have steadily advanced to become Chunin one after another. But this time, a large number of Chunin appointments had clearly been issued all at once.
"Yoru, follow the battle plan!"
Uzumaki Kushina took a deep breath, her expression equally grave as she stood beside Uchiha Yoru.
Shikaku Nara, Choza Akimichi, and Inoichi Yamanaka formed the classic Ino-Shika-Cho team.
Kiba Inuzuka and Shibi Aburame formed a two-man team.
Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga served as the sensory team.
Uchiha Yoru, Uzumaki Kushina, and Minato Namikaze formed one team.
In just a short while, they had formed three temporary teams in addition to Ino-Shika-Cho. After becoming Chunin, they no longer had fixed squads like they had as genin.
Special teams like Ino-Shika-Cho were naturally an exception.
"Kushina, be careful!"
Minato Namikaze glanced at Uzumaki Kushina with a grave expression and offered a concerned reminder, but Kushina merely gave a rare cold snort.
"Don't hold us back."
As a civilian shinobi, Minato Namikaze had achieved decent grades after graduating from the Ninja Academy. But in the Shinobi World, lineage and family background mattered.
Minato Namikaze came from a civilian background and possessed neither a Bloodline Limit nor inherited secret techniques. Though he was on Jiraiya's team, he could only be considered fairly good overall.
Among civilian teams, he would count as a genius. But among this group, who either hailed from powerful bloodline families or clans with secret techniques, he seemed rather ordinary.
After all, Minato Namikaze had yet to grow into his future self. His Chakra reserves might have been decent among civilian shinobi, but before he displayed talent for Space Ninjutsu, he could only be considered an ordinary genius.
Perhaps his reflexes were exceptional! But that was not enough.
"The enemy is coming. Follow the plan!"
At the cold shout, they instantly became shadows and concealed themselves within the forest.
Shikaku Nara, the sharpest mind among them, narrowed his eyes as he watched the figures rushing toward them in the distance.
"Were they scout squads deliberately let through to accelerate our growth?"
This deployment in the Land of Grass was not merely meant to shift the battlefield there. More importantly, it allowed Konoha to train its forces through a small shinobi village while weakening it at the same time.
These scout squads with low Chakra reserves had clearly been deliberately allowed through by Orochimaru's vanguard.
Whoosh, whoosh...
Within the dark forest, eighteen shinobi spread out in formation, advancing toward this place in battle formation.
In the silent forest, the crisp snap of a Steel Wire suddenly rang out, instantly putting everyone on alert.
"Not good!"
A loud shout rang out, followed by a chain of Exploding Tags detonating in succession, erupting with violent noise and firelight.
"A trap!"
Fragile Steel Wire had been specially set up for traps. This blast instantly killed one shinobi and severely wounded two others.
Of the six squads, one shinobi squad had immediately lost its combat capability.
"Haha, the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku has arrived!"
A bold and comical laugh echoed through the dim forest as a white-haired shinobi appeared atop a high tree branch.
The sight left the opposing shinobi stunned!
"Konoha Elite Jonin Jiraiya!"
Though he had not yet earned the fame of one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya was already a representative Elite Jonin of the Land of Fire. Information on him had long been etched into the minds of shinobi from every nation.
At the sight of that wild, imposing figure, the group's faces filled with fear.
"Run away quickly! The enemy is an Elite Jonin. We have no chance of winning!"
In an instant, as the group chose to retreat at full speed, three figures appeared from their left flank.
Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique
The three figures stood at forty-five-degree angles. Uchiha Yoru, at the lead, formed hand seals and drew in a deep breath. His chest swelled sharply, and in the next moment, a terrifying stream of fire shot forth in a straight line.
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
Minato Namikaze and Uzumaki Kushina, to his left and right, completed their hand seals at the same time. In an instant, both expelled a terrifying gale from their mouths.
The wind fed the flames, and Uchiha Yoru's Fire Release surged in power.
"Not good!"
Rumble!
Driven by the gale, the flames transformed into a terrifying fire dragon and lunged forward. In panic, some of the shinobi tried to defend themselves while others attempted to evade.
Rumble!
"Argh!"
Amid miserable screams, the terrifying fire dragon swallowed several figures whole.
"Damn it, there are Shuriken hidden within the Fire Release!"
The instant the Fire Release faded, a dense barrage of Shuriken flashed toward them.
At the same time, one person in the crowd suddenly contracted his pupils. In the next moment, he slashed with his shinobi blade, cleanly cutting off the head of the person beside him.
Another person hurriedly dodged in terror, but one of his arms was cut off instead.
"Argh! Captain, what are you doing?!"
"Damn it, he's been controlled!"
Amid the screams and startled cries, it turned out that the man had been struck by a secret technique of the Yamanaka Clan.
"No, it's a shadow! It's the Nara Clan of Konoha!"
"Jiraiya is fake!"
At that moment, the shinobi impersonating Jiraiya in the distance turned into a puff of white smoke, revealing Shibi Aburame's figure.
Woof, woof!
Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms
For a time, ninja hounds appeared all around them, along with countless insects and the Hyuga Clan brothers, Hizashi and Hiashi.
With the Konoha Shinobi coordinating with one another this time, they directly threw the enemy's formation into disarray.
Especially with their various secret techniques, along with the suppression of Uchiha Yoru's Sharingan Bloodline Limit, this was clearly an unequal slaughter even though both sides were Chunin.
Other than Minato Namikaze, every one of them relied either on a Bloodline Limit or clan secret techniques. Even Uzumaki Kushina possessed terrifying Chakra.
Only Minato Namikaze displayed decent talent in Wind Style Ninjutsu. For all his other combat methods, he relied on nimble close-quarters fighting with a kunai.
The novel will be going on a trial recommendation next week. The light novel category is so competitive now—the editor said I nearly didn't make it.
So please, brothers, remember to keep reading next Tuesday. There will be a recommendation battle next Tuesday.
Before you continue