Is This Guy Really Suited to Be Kazekage?

The Great Shinobi War had finally come.

And unlike the battlefield against Kusagakure, the war here was incredibly fierce. Ninja died on the battlefield every day.

It was clear... Kumogakure was serious!

They fought from morning until night, and the entire desert was covered in traces left by ninjutsu. Luckily, this place had already been a desert. Otherwise...

They would probably have become environmental destroyers again!

"No wonder everyone's so tired!"

After fighting nonstop for three days, even Rasa felt utterly exhausted.

Just think about it... He woke up early in the morning to Kumogakure Ninja's sky-shaking roars and the Sand Ninja alarms, then quickly returned to his unit and began fighting, followed by...

Battling from dawn to dusk!

And Kumogakure seemed to be doing it deliberately. From time to time, they even launched attacks at night, leaving the Sand Ninja on the defensive and struggling to cope.

Like this...

Who wouldn't be tired?!

The battlefield at Kusagakure had already been annoying enough, yet now... he had ended up on an even more annoying battlefield.

It left him with no time at all to pan for gold.

As for food... the two sides were about the same. They basically relied on Military Ration Pills to get by. After all, the Land of Wind was desert everywhere. If they wanted something to eat, they either had to purchase it from other countries or buy it in the Capital of the Land of Wind. But now... Sunagakure truly had no money~

The Wind Country Daimyo Estate had suddenly withdrawn its financial support for Sunagakure. On top of that, they had sent out a large number of Sand Ninja to search for the Third Kazekage, drastically reducing the number of missions in the village.

So...

Even the landlord had no surplus grain left. They could only survive on tiny, foul-tasting Military Ration Pills.

Of course... eating too much of this stuff was bad. It could easily cause vomiting, nausea, and other adverse reactions. Military Ration Pills made by less skilled hands could even threaten a ninja's health and life.

It could be said... this was quite a dangerous food.

It could only be used for emergencies and could not be eaten long-term, but... there was no helping it~

The Sand Ninja could only make do for now.

According to Chiyo, she had already arranged for ninja to go out and purchase supplies. Together with the food remaining in the village... although Military Ration Pills served as their staple food, the Sand Ninja could still have one meal a day with some actual grain or meat.

"The conditions are harsh, so everyone, bear with it!"

Ebizo stepped forward again. With a helpless sigh, he reassured the Sand Ninja as they ate lunch.

The Military Ration Pills were made by Chiyo. As for the taste... it was average—not particularly tasty, but not particularly awful either. At least it did not give them diarrhea or kill anyone, and that alone was enough to greatly comfort them.

Otherwise...

Sunagakure would probably lose this war by dying at its own people's hands first.

Rasa casually bit into a Military Ration Pill. One was about enough; two would be far too filling.

Still... probably no one would ever eat two of those things.

If they were talking strictly about numbers, the small force of ninja he had brought would not have much effect on the battlefield at all. After all... what use were just over thirty Jonin in a war this massive?

Of course, that excluded him... this Sand Ninja who could draw prizes!

It was just that the war here was so tense that he had practically no time to pan for gold throughout the day, making him feel as though he had lost several hundred million!

He took a fierce gulp of Kana-brand water, washing that awful taste straight down.

Fortunately, they did not have to eat Military Ration Pills every day at the battlefield near Kusagakure. There were fewer people there, and the food sent from the village was basically enough for them. Besides... a perfectly normal group of ninja had somehow turned into bandits for no reason...

Rasa felt that perhaps Kusagakure needed food even more!

So, they only needed to eat them casually during tense moments.

Looking at it this way...

Chiyo was actually quite exhausted. She was not making the Military Ration Pills alone, of course—she had several medical ninja working alongside her—but how could she not be busy when she had to command the battle and manage the Military Ration Pills at the same time?

So when he saw Chiyo walking toward him with a stern expression, Rasa paused, frowned slightly, and asked, "What is it?"

"She... can use Water Release?!" Chiyo frowned as well and said in a serious tone, "She can actually use Water Release?!"

"She? Kana?" Rasa looked at Chiyo in confusion, then nodded. "Yeah, she can!"

Was that strange?

Wasn't the Uzumaki Clan's main Chakra nature Wind and Water?

Of course, there could be mutations, but... what was wrong with simply having a Water nature?

However...

"No! That's not what I mean!" Chiyo shook her head, still looking stern. "You need to understand... this is the desert!"

"???"

And then?

"..."

Chiyo stared speechlessly at Rasa, who looked utterly confused and was even blinking at her. Only when she realized he genuinely did not understand did she helplessly sigh and shake her head.

"Did the Third Hokage never teach you? Or perhaps... you never attended classes at the academy at all?"

"..."

How was he supposed to answer that?

Rasa silently looked at Chiyo. Although the memories in his mind had not all vanished, they were simply too chaotic, and he had no desire to sort through them.

And sure enough...

Before he could speak, Chiyo, who loved teaching others, began speaking with a serious expression. "Water Release ninja attack or defend by gathering Water-nature Chakra. They generally manipulate nearby water to perform ninjutsu. However, that is not absolute. More outstanding Water Release ninja can use it even in places without water!"

"..."

Was that how it worked?

Rasa blinked again, frowned slightly, and looked at Chiyo before him.

"So... she's a genius?"

"She can be considered a genius. Being able to use Water Release in the desert, even simple Water Release, makes her a genius!" At this point, Chiyo's tone turned somewhat regretful. She shook her head with a sigh and said, "But... compared with Konoha's Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, she still falls somewhat short. Back then... I saw him once and was utterly amazed. His Water Release completely convinced me!"

"..."

You've got to be kidding!

Could just anyone be compared to that legendary man who seemed to have made a contract with the sea?

Rasa looked speechlessly at Chiyo, who was still sighing regretfully. After thinking for a moment, he realized that meant Kana's talent was pretty good.

After all, she was a member of the Uzumaki Clan.

Her enormous Chakra alone gave her limitless possibilities, let alone anything else.

So...

Rasa leaned close to Chiyo and waggled his eyebrows. "You're very satisfied?!"

"Water Release ninja are extremely important to Sunagakure!" Chiyo shot Rasa a glance before resuming her serious tone. "You need to know that Sunagakure currently has only a handful of Water-nature ninja!"

Whether it was fetching water for the village or becoming medical ninja, Water Release ninja were highly suited for both!

However...

"Sunagakure has Water Release ninja?"

Rasa looked at Chiyo with a puzzled expression.

"Aren't we mainly Wind and Earth?"

"..."

Was this guy... really suited to become the Fourth Kazekage?