What a Pity, You're Not...

"How did it go, Yukina? Did Iwa and Kumogakure split their forces?"

In the woods seven or eight hundred meters away from Chiba, Hirohiko's Three Tomoe Sharingan stared in the direction Chiba had left. His face still wore that poker-faced expression, but there was a trace of worry in his tone.

By now, five or six minutes had passed since Chiba left. At the speed he could move in the Gate of Pain state, he should have reached their previous camp already, perhaps even entered the battle between Iwa and Kumogakure.

Why does it feel like we've fallen for Chiba's scheme again? Isn't he the one fighting for his life up ahead while we stand here safely watching? The thought rose in him, leaving him somewhat uneasy.

Clearly, the current situation felt strangely familiar to him. It was like during the Defense Map mission, when they and Teacher Morino's intelligence team had taken a relatively safe route.

"They split up, but only Kumogakure did. They're currently heading toward somewhere within the Land of Grass. From what I saw earlier, they seem to be heading straight for their destination by the shortest route possible."

As his words fell, Yukina, her Byakugan activated, spoke and told him what she could see.

"Only Kumogakure?"

Hearing this, Hirohiko froze slightly. Among the possibilities they had considered, "only Kumogakure splits its forces" had been ruled out. Iwa also had sensory ninja. If Kumogakure split up, Iwa would do the same. Even if they did not know Kumogakure intended to split their forces, Iwa would have prepared for that possibility. With sensory ninja keeping watch, no matter how perfectly Kumogakure timed the split, Iwa should have been able to divide its forces and intercept them.

Even if Kumogakure's split had been flawless and they had truly