A Fine Beginning
An unnamed valley.
The peaks on both sides are not very high, but the mountain range stretches and undulates, making the whole mountain quite majestic.
The mountain was bare, with hardly any vegetation. It wasn't originally an earthen mountain, but a stone mountain. The mountains of the Land of Rain were all pure stone mountains. Because of the endless rainfall, the topsoil on the mountains would be washed away, and only stone mountains could stand for thousands of years without falling.
The Sand Village's supply depot was built in the valley, and a winding road emerged from the valley, passing right next to the supply depot.
Two patrol teams of Sand Ninja were wandering around the surrounding rocky forest.
The vegetation coverage in the Land of Rain is quite low, not much better than that in the Land of Wind. This is all due to excessive rainfall. Even transplanted plants will be drowned within half a month. However, due to the erosion caused by the rain, complex stone forests have appeared, with huge rocks of varying heights and sizes densely packed together.
There is a stone forest right outside the valley, which is also a key target for patrols.
"I've never hated rain as much as I do now..."
"That's right, every time it rains in the village, it's like a celebration. I always thought I loved the rain, but this damned Land of Rain has ruined my mood..."
The two patrols were not far apart, talking loudly to each other, seemingly quite relaxed, unless one looked at the dark, dull yet exceptionally sharp Kunai held tightly in their hands.
The Sand Ninja exchanged glances, cautiously exploring the stone forest bit by bit. It wasn't that they had actually discovered any clues, but rather that the stone forest was too complex and was a perfect place for an ambush; there was no chance that someone from Konoha might suddenly appear.
Konoha and Sunagakure were wreaking havoc on each other's rear territories. Every now and then, someone would visit supply depots like these, either leaving behind a couple of corpses and then turning a small depot to ashes.
Frequent major battles and constant minor skirmishes, with packs of hyenas roaming the wilderness, waiting to deal with the remains of those that couldn't be cleared away—this is the current state of the Land of Rain.
The four countries had long been locked in a bitter struggle on this land, turning hundreds of miles of land into a bloody millstone, squeezing out countless lives.
The Sand Ninja chatted idly, but their attention was taut, and they dared not relax for a moment.
Raindrops fell, crashing heavily against the protruding edges of the rocks, splashing out in tiny droplets.
Suddenly, a silvery-white lightning bolt caught the eyes of the Sand Ninja.
Katsuki leaped out from the shadow cast by the rocks, his agile figure like a cheetah, the short sword in his hand his sharpest fang, a hazy ball of silvery lightning obscuring the tip and making its trajectory unreadable.
White Lightning Strike.
Sakumo's signature technique did not tarnish his reputation in Katsuki's hands.
The short-range thrust, enhanced by the stimulation of Lightning Release Chakra, pushed the sprint speed to its limit, and the high-intensity burden on the body was negligible!
"·····Ah ah······"
The Sand Ninja's throat bobbed up and down, and with the momentum of his impending death, his vocal cords trembled as he let out an incoherent roar. However, the roar was so soft that even Katsuki, who was standing right in front of him, couldn't hear what he said.
With warm liquid sliding down her fingers, Katsuki supported the Sand Ninja's corpse, drew her short sword, and gently laid the body on the ground.
Six corpses lay silently on the ground: Katsuki, Otome, Kamiya, and Hoshio, one each. Uchiha Fugaku had taken care of two of them. No one was injured. Although the Sand Shinobi were very vigilant, none of the attackers were weak. Fugaku was Jonin, needless to say, and Katsuki and the other three were also among the Chunin, otherwise Fugaku wouldn't have picked them out.
The raid was carried out with minimal cost and maximum speed, successfully eliminating two patrol teams without alerting the Sand Ninja stationed at the supply depot. This was a very good result.
However, few people showed any joy. All five teams were composed of highly Genin individuals. Even Otome and Nawaki, who were Chunin -level strength. The rest of the team members were all Chunin, plus one Jonin from the Uchiha Clan.
With such formidable strength, if they can't take down a few Genin from the Sand Village patrol, they might as well find a place to slit their own throats.
Chunin are not commonplace; Genin are the main fighting force. Supply depots like these are usually guarded by mixed Genin and Genin teams. This is standard practice, regardless of which faction they belong to, and they are equipped with the same resources.
That's why we say Konoha is serious about this operation. They've assembled a team of Jonin and Chunin, and it's a team of twenty pure Chunin- level experts, plus four Jonin. It's definitely a big move.
"Katsuki, intelligence."
After discarding the Sand Ninja's corpse, Fugaku's hands were dripping with blood mixed with rainwater. His fierce eyes resembled those of a predatory beast on the hunt, sending chills down one's spine. He strode over to Katsuki's side and immediately began asking for information.
Has the location of the Sand Ninja in the supply station changed?
"Four teams left... here... here..."
Katsuki stretched out his hand and used his blood-stained finger to draw a rough sketch in the recessed part of the rock wall, clearly marking the positions of the remaining twelve Sand Ninja. However, he could only sense the location of each person and had no way to detect the internal structure of the building.
Fortunately, there were fifteen of them. The reconnaissance ninja wasn't just Katsuki. Ishibayashi was not far from the supply station, and at such a short distance, the other sensory ninjas could also show off their skills. The limelight couldn't be stolen by one person; this was a team operation.
Based on the information gathered by the others, Fugaku pondered for a few breaths before making a decision and beginning to assign tasks.
"Kamiya, you and I will deal with the two squads guarding the granary. Katsuki and Hoshio, your two squads will take care of the squad guarding the supply warehouse. Kikuchi and Koizumi, you go and deal with the squad in the Sand Village barracks."
They called out names one by one, and each person's tasks were explained clearly.
The granaries are of utmost importance. If the remaining Sand Ninja have any skilled fighters, they are most likely located within the three granaries. These are defended by two Sand Ninja squads, so Fugaku personally led one squad to take action.
While there was only one squad each in the supply depot and barracks, their side had double the number of people, and their strength should be able to overwhelm the Sand Ninja.
"Alright, let's continue. Be quick and efficient. Learn from Katsuki and Kamiya. I don't want any casualties to occur here."
Uchiha Fugaku waved his hand, uttering a remark that was hard to decipher—whether it was a blessing or a curse—before leading Kamiya's squad out and stealthily making their way towards the supply depot.