The Aburame Clan's Troubles

Ueno Hayato received the mission order, glanced at it, and put it away. It was another unoriginal and dangerous mission.

The ninjas coming and going through the mission area were all Chunin, most of them wearing similarly lifeless expressions.

Over the past few months, the missions assigned to Chunin captains had all been the same: scout toward the Land of Rain. The mission had two possible objectives: obtain valuable intelligence, or suffer casualties exceeding half the team.

More than half the team dying was intelligence too. It could provide a fairly effective estimate of the enemy's troop deployment, though it was a terrible waste of ninjas.

But Konoha's new commander, Lord Danzo, did not care. He pursued results with blunt directness. Too many ninja sacrifices were the Hokage's concern.

When Ueno Hayato returned to camp, he saw his only subordinate cooking fish soup. The broth had already turned milky white, while red and green garnishes rolled through it, releasing a rich aroma.

Ueno took a deep breath of the fragrance, and his mood improved a little. He sat directly beside the campfire and waited for the soup to finish cooking.

The delicious fish soup had a faint kick of spice, while the tender fish melted in his mouth. He broke up a dry flatbread and soaked it in the soup, then, while it was still hot, noisily wolfed down a large bowl.

Ueno Hayato immediately felt an intense happiness burst from the depths of his heart. All his worries ceased to matter. In high spirits, his appetite grew, so he went for another bowl. There was a huge pot of fish soup, enough to fill four people.

Seeing his captain's appetite return, Aburame Tetsumaru smiled faintly and took large mouthfuls of his own fish soup.

Ever since Danzo had become commander, he had ordered counterattacks and continuously assigned assault reconnaissance missions to every squad. Aburame Tetsumaru jokingly called them "mindless boar-charge" missions.

From the overall perspective, Konoha had effectively traded away Sunagakure's fighting strength. With its powerful manpower reserves and medical system, the balance of strength between the two sides had reversed. The strategy's results were not bad.

But from the perspective of the frontline ninja squads, it was terrifying. Everyone felt they would not survive many more missions, leaving the rank-and-file ninjas demoralized.

War ultimately revolved around people. When the rank-and-file ninjas lost morale and harbored resentment toward their commander, it gradually affected the efficiency and results of missions.

While Konoha's advantage on paper grew larger and larger, its battlefield performance became increasingly disappointing. Shimura Danzō resorted to iron-fisted suppression, forcibly ordering squads to carry out their missions, but the results only grew worse by the day.

Although Aburame Tetsumaru believed no one in the entire Shinobi World knew how to command a war right now, Danzo's performance was still among the worst.

It was no wonder. In the age ruled by samurai, wars had been small in scale. One fierce general could conquer the world.

After ninjas replaced samurai, war further fragmented into battles between clans, and individual strength carried even more weight.

Wars during the Warring States Period involved only a hundred or so ninjas. There was no need for strategic planning, much less campaign command. Tactics, command, strategy, logistics, and supplies meant nothing when a Jonin on one side freed up his hands. One Fire Release could wipe out ten Chunin and Genin, and after a few ninjutsu, the enemy would all be dead.

By the First Shinobi World War in the era of one country, one village, the Five Great Ninja Villages could each organize over ten thousand ninjas for battle. The scale of war had expanded to unprecedented levels, and deploying several thousand ninjas along a single front had become routine.

Battlefields could stretch more than a thousand kilometers wide and reach five hundred kilometers deep. On such an enormous battlefield, even a Jonin was insignificant. They could no longer carry everything alone, and squad tactics finally gained practical value.

In an age of drastic change, some people adapted actively, while others stubbornly clung to the old ways. Shimura Danzō belonged to the latter.

Based on publicly available intelligence, Aburame Tetsumaru had concluded that after two months of continuous fighting, both sides' conditions had changed dramatically. The Sunagakure Ninja had shifted to a flexible defensive formation, specializing in surrounding and slaughtering Konoha squads that charged in headfirst.

The Konoha squads fled back with heavy casualties and reported the intelligence, yet the Konoha commanders seemed blind, showing no intention of changing tactics. It was as if they had a personal grudge against Konoha Ninja.

Since Aburame Tetsumaru had arrived as part of the first wave of reinforcements, Konoha had reinforced the Land of Rain front three to four times per month with new recruits and recovered veterans, sending a total of more than six thousand additional ninjas.

Konoha replenished troops faster, yet ten days after Sunagakure changed tactics, it had already neutralized Sunagakure's offensive. Nearly two months had passed since the two sides reached parity, yet the situation had not changed at all.

The problem lay with Danzo as commander. His gaze never reached the rank and file. Ninja squads had completely lost control in management, manpower was assigned recklessly, squad combat strength plummeted, morale sank, and resentment flourished.

The Konoha Ninja Army, where every soldier started out like a special forces king, was now fighting wars as rotten as African tribal conflicts—and dragging Sunagakure into the mud with it.

Squad combat strength was on the verge of collapse. That was not merely the opinion of the transmigrator Aburame Tetsumaru, but the consensus among frontline junior commanders.

The Ueno Squad had lost two members at once last time. The replacements afterward had been even worse and easily lost, resulting in the deaths of another seven Genin over time.

On paper, the Ueno Squad had unstable membership, so naturally its combat strength could not improve. But in reality, one ninja within the Ueno Squad had improved by leaps and bounds and had long surpassed the level of an ordinary squad.

In battle, Aburame Tetsumaru could always detect the enemy beforehand and always ambush them.

When a battle went poorly and they were forced to retreat, Aburame Tetsumaru could always hold off the enemy and cover the squad's withdrawal. No Chunin had ever broken through his interception.

All of this had been concealed through the tacit understanding between Aburame Tetsumaru and his captain. Ueno Hayato was no fool. After repeatedly carrying out boar-charge missions, without such a powerful subordinate supporting him, he would sooner or later die in battle.

Thus, it was perfectly normal for Captain Ueno to make a small omission in his battle reports.

If he did not conceal it, Aburame Tetsumaru could be promoted to Chunin and lead another squad as captain, while Ueno himself would have less than a one percent chance of surviving next month's missions.

After eating their fill, the two rested separately.

Aburame Tetsumaru stared intently at the beakers before him. Two beakers floated in the air, taking turns pouring water into each other, each time precisely pouring out half the water.

He did not use his hands at all. Three Summoning Threads pressed against the bottoms of the beakers, controlling their posture by shifting the positions of three contact points.

This was the third-stage training method for Aburame Tetsumaru's Summoning Thread control, meant to improve the precision of his control.

The first stage trained the extension distance of the Summoning Threads. He used Kikaichū to drag them as they flew around two large trees, expanding the distance as much as possible while keeping them connected, until they could extend three kilometers.

In truth, there was no end to training the extension of Summoning Threads. It depended entirely on how far the control ability of the second stage could reach.

The second stage trained control, beginning with picking up all kinds of objects until the threads could replace his hands in daily life. That was the limit.

The third stage was control at the very ends of the Summoning Threads. The goal was to release a thousand insects at once and still connect to them instantly.

As Aburame Tetsumaru trained with complete focus, the tent flap was lifted, and a tall figure entered with the sunlight behind him.

"Long time no see, Brother Shikuro," Aburame Tetsumaru said without surprise, calmly continuing his training.

Aburame Shikuro had informed him several days ago, and he had not concealed himself on the way here, so the Kikaichū had detected him from far away.

Aburame Shikuro watched Aburame Tetsumaru's training with interest for a while before finally shaking his head.

"Other than you, no one else in the clan can complete this kind of training."

Aburame Shikuro spoke with feeling. As the strongest member of the clan's younger generation, he naturally knew that Aburame Tetsumaru controlled large insects through Summoning Threads.

Aburame Shikuro's main reason for visiting this time was to deliver parcels—four enormous wooden crates in all.

After opening the crates for inspection, they found that most of the contents were insects, insect eggs, and pupae, along with a considerable quantity of various cultivation reagents. Aburame Tetsumaru beamed as he sorted and stored them, filling his tent to the brim.

Now his insect reserves were abundant again. Only a handful of insect species could be directly bred on the front lines; most still had to be sent from home.

The two brothers chatted while sorting everything out. They spoke of close brothers such as Shibi, Zhixin, Feng Jiao, Baiki, and Eiji, and briefly mentioned news about the Zhijie brothers, with whom they had poor relations.

Shikuro was a Jonin and the leading elder brother of his generation in the clan, so he was far better informed than Tetsumaru.

Among their brothers, Shibi and Zhixin had both graduated early and were following the Clan Head at the Land of Water front. It was said they were close to being promoted to Chunin.

Feng Jiao was in the Land of Rivers, while Eiji was recovering from his injuries in Konoha. Those two were still Genin.

Unfortunately, Baiki had died in battle in the Land of Grass.

When Baiki's death came up, the two brothers could not help feeling downcast, but it passed quickly. During wartime, death became so common that people went numb to it.

The supplies had been received, and they had exchanged nearly all their news. Aburame Shikuro prepared to leave directly, while Aburame Tetsumaru intended to see him off, so the two brothers walked out side by side.

Both brothers wore the Aburame Family's signature long coats and sunglasses, and they were even nearly the same height. They walked silently through the busy road.

Due to the clan's inherited low presence, several ninjas did not notice the brothers until they came within three steps of them, startling in fright.

They continued until they had left the camp and reached an uninhabited area. Only then did they stop.

"Tetsumaru, you've really been wronged this time."

"Mm, it's nothing. Honestly, I don't even want to be promoted."

A Konoha Genin. What an imposing title.

What was a Konoha Chunin? Cannon fodder among cannon fodder. When they died, they might not even get a line of dialogue—perhaps not even a face shown.

Yes, Aburame Tetsumaru had asked his captain to conceal his battle achievements, but his mission records were crystal clear. He had successfully completed twenty-one C-rank missions, fourteen B-rank missions, and, more importantly, two A-rank missions. He had long exceeded the standards for promotion to Chunin.

Aburame Tetsumaru understood that someone was blocking his promotion. The only person with the authority, ability, and shamelessness to do such a thing was Shimura Danzō, commander in the Land of Rain.

What Tetsumaru had never understood was Danzo's motive.

Though Shimura Danzō's thought process was bizarre, he was also extremely busy. Using such a troublesome method as blocking a Genin's promotion to make trouble for him surely meant he had some motive.

And since that motive lay outside Tetsumaru's field of view yet could still involve him, something must have happened on the clan's side.

Today, Aburame Shikuro gave him the answer. This was one part of a series of actions intended to suppress the Aburame Family.

"Brother, what does Lord Danzo want? And the clan actually dared to stand up to him?"

The Aburame Clan was a staunch ninja clan of the Hokage's faction, but its members were gloomy and taciturn in public and not particularly close to Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Many clan members admired Danzo's iron-blooded methods. Combined with the clan's poverty and Root's exceptional wealth, they had become entangled with Shimura Danzō.

The Aburame Clan had contributed greatly to Root's formation. Many elite clan members had joined Root and become deeply involved in it, giving them influence second only to the Yamanaka Clan.

Frankly speaking, Aburame Tetsumaru could not think of any reason for the clan to clash with the Root commander, unless...

"He wants people. He wants you, Feng Jiao, Zhihang, Zhifeng, Zhixin, and even Shibi."

"Has he gone mad?"

The next instant, Tetsumaru understood.

In present-day Konoha, the Sandaime Hokage's authority was growing ever greater, and the Clan Head had to consider the Hokage's feelings.

Another key point involved Tetsumaru himself. The clan was wealthy now and no longer needed to trade lives for money, so the benefits of joining Root were no longer obvious.

Finally, and most importantly, Shimura Danzō had taken "iron-blooded" too far. He used Root Ninja without the slightest care, and every Aburame ninja in Root had already died.

"All of them died? That can't be possible!" Aburame Tetsumaru was shocked. Though he did not know the exact number, Elder Shihui had told him the clan should have had dozens of elite ninjas in Root. Dozens! The entire Aburame Clan had only a little over a hundred ninjas altogether.

How many years had Root even existed? Not even ten years, and so many ninjas had all died?

Aburame Shikuro, known for his calmness, had a twisted expression. Even behind his sunglasses, his rage and hatred could not be concealed. "Thirty-four elite ninjas in total, including four Jonin. All dead."

"He still has the nerve to ask for more people? On what grounds?"

"He still dares to ask for Shibi? He dares threaten us? He dares suppress us? Bastard."

"This time, we'll make him pay!!"

This conflict did not involve only the Aburame Clan. The Yamanaka, Nara, Akimichi, and Inuzuka Clans had all joined in. Even the Hyuga Clan, which never treated its Branch Family as people, openly expressed dissatisfaction because too many had died.

Even if Branch Family ninjas were not people, they were still Hyuga property. They had all been squandered without a word. Even a filthy rich landlord could not tolerate that.

Therefore, Shimura Danzō had to compromise, or even the Sandaime Hokage would suffer backlash.

Of course, most of those clans still belonged to the Hokage's faction, so they would ultimately have to provide people to support Root. But the numbers would not be large, none of their direct-line children would be sent, and Shimura Danzō would have to pay an additional price.

In the end, it was merely internal strife within the Hokage's faction. It would not escalate to the point of tearing their faces apart.

It should not have been a major issue. As the faction leader, the Sandaime Hokage only needed to coordinate matters and make a final decision.

But Sarutobi Hiruzen delayed making a decision, simply dragging things out.

That made things awkward. Neither the clans nor Shimura Danzō could back down. The confrontation gradually escalated out of control, and the fierce struggle forced both sides to pay an enormous price.

Root could no longer recruit newcomers. Even its old members had been recalled to their clans. Aside from a few utterly grassroots civilian ninjas, Root had completely become an empty shell.

Shimura Danzō launched a frenzied counterattack, suppressing the ninjas of those clans by every possible means. The clans could only do their utmost to protect their core descendants.

Non-direct-line members like Aburame Tetsumaru were sacrificed. Merit went unrewarded, mistakes were always punished, and dangerous missions were deliberately assigned—crude and underhanded methods all.

Aburame Shikuro had been tasked with soothing people and keeping them informed, unifying their thinking and encouraging them to hold on.

Once he had explained everything, Aburame Tetsumaru showed no dissatisfaction. Aburame Shikuro then took his leave and hurried away.