Before the Battle

"Captain, with so many people deployed by Sunagakure, their logistics must be under immense pressure. Why did they infiltrate this location?"

Shuichi replied, "Actually, they're not entirely reliant on logistics anymore. According to intelligence from the village, many villages and refugee settlements in the Land of Rivers have disappeared, which is likely the work of Sunagakure."

Aburame Shihei and Hyuga Akiha's expressions tightened. The enemy was now acting without any scruples. Once evidence of their plundering of the refugee camp was obtained, the small country's mission clients would never trust Sunagakure again. This also showed that the enemy was willing to do anything to achieve victory.

Aside from this, it's highly likely that Sunagakure came with a desire for revenge, since Shuichi himself was the one who destroyed their Medical Unit, though he would certainly never admit it.

"Let's go, we'll ambush the two more nearby teams, then return to Kikyo Castle."

As the sun set, Shuichi's squad returned to Kikyo Castle.

This ancient border town has now been transformed into a small war fortress, serving as the only stronghold on the front lines of the Land of Rivers.

Upon entering the city, many Konoha Ninja sat in twos and threes in various areas.

A quick glance revealed that many people were injured, and many teams had only one or two people left, all with numb expressions.

Shuichi entered the central house and saw a blonde female ninja with a ponytail resting her chin on her hand, looking somewhat tired.

"Tsunade- senpai, Shuichi's squad has completed their mission. This is a report." Shuichi's voice seemed a bit loud, making it clearly audible in the enclosed space.

"Why are you yelling like that? Do you have more chakra than you can use?" Tsunade said irritably. "How about I assign you a mission to assassinate Rasa and Chiyo? That'll help end this boring war quickly."

"Haha, you think too highly of me." Shuichi decided not to confront her directly. "If I really receive this mission, I will do everything in my power to complete it. I happen to have quite a bit of inheritance, how about you take it all for gambling?"

"I take back what I said before, you're even more annoying than Orochimaru."

Tsunade took the Scroll, examined it, and noted the results. Looking up, she saw Shuichi standing there with a relaxed expression and spoke again, "Are the Third Hokage and the others really planning to just drag this out like this?"

"You saw those people outside. If the fighting continues, the casualty rate will only increase. Don't ordinary ninjas have lives too?"

Shuichi was speechless. "What's the point of criticizing a mere tool like me?" he thought. "The battle plan is already set. Now that Sunagakure's desire for revenge is at its peak, we should slow down our offensive..."

Just as he was about to say something, a figure emerged from the side door of the room, interrupting him.

The newcomer was a girl with a pure and innocent appearance. Shuichi closer look and exclaimed, "Oh, it's Shizune! Long time no see!"

"Shuichi-kun? I hope I didn't disturb you and Lady Tsunade?" she said apologetically.

Despite being a disciple of the same Sannin, she was remarkably low-key and not well-known within the village.

"It's nothing," Shuichi replied, then said to Tsunade, "Anyway, the village wants to end this war as soon as possible, so we'll need your help then..."

After leaving the commander's room, he found his teammates and rested; he knew he would be busy for the next few days.

In the dead of night, Kikyo Castle was completely silent. Even though there were quite a few ninjas in the castle, not a single conversation could be heard.

By the moonlight, one could vaguely see a few ninjas quickly leaving their base. They might be insignificant compared to the total number of people in the city, but their swift movements indicated that they were all elites.

Aoba City, a key city responsible for transporting grain and supplies along the western front of the Land of Fire, has become busy again after a period of inactivity.

As dawn broke, a supply convoy set off for Kikyo Castle.

Although they had only just begun their journey, their strong and powerful strides clearly indicated that they were all Genin outstanding physical abilities, not ordinary people.

"Genji, is Konoha about to launch another large-scale war?" a kind-looking young man asked.

Ahead, Genji was already bored, perked up a bit after hearing his question. "I'm not entirely sure, but that should be it."

After saying this, he glanced around mysteriously and whispered, "However, from what I've observed, this batch of supplies is less than a third of what it was during last year's great war, and the proportion of medicinal herbs is much higher. It seems that even with Konoha's strength, continuous battles with various countries won't be easy!"

The honest young man was startled and silently noted this detail. He then sighed, "Sigh, when will this war end!"

"Hey, I'd love to fight a little longer. Those of us in logistics aren't in much danger. Maybe some more lucrative positions will become available after the war, which would be a good thing for us."

"... What you said makes some sense..."

While Konoha began preparing for war, Shuichi's squad was still busy with the task.

On the border of the Land of Rivers, three figures scouted back and forth across various terrains. Hyuga Akiha even maintained his Byakugan throughout, clearly indicating that he took this matter very seriously.

Heading north along the border, they did not stop when they approached the junction of the three countries, but instead plunged headlong into the Yamanaka without hesitation.

"We've arrived. It's just ahead. This Barrier Spell Formula belongs to the village."

Shuichi stood in front of a rock, Hand Seals, and then poured chakra into it. Soon the scene before them changed. They were not surprised to see the cave entrance that appeared; this was the village's secret stronghold.

"Teacher, we have completed our reconnaissance of this route and can confirm that Sunagakure has not tampered with it." Inside the cave, Shuichi and Orochimaru reported to their leader.

If ninjas from other villages were here, they would be astonished by the strength of this place. Besides Sannin, one of the Orochimaru, there are also elites from many Noble Clan in Konoha. Instead of appearing on the front lines, they are hiding in a place like this. It's obvious that they are plotting something.

"Thank you for your hard work. The other areas have been cleared as well. Now we'll see what Sunagakure does. We'll need you to continue tracking their main force's movements." Orochimaru replied calmly.

The Konoha High Command's plan is to completely eliminate the threat from Sunagakure in one battle. Kikyo Castle is now a bait. Even if it means paying a heavy price in a short period of time, they must end one front as soon as possible.

"How's it going in the Land of Grass? Is Iwagakure still making steady progress?" Shuichi asked.

"Yes, if we want to drive them out again, we'll have to commit a huge force." Orochimaru showed him the strategic map, and among the many attack routes of Iwagakure, the bridge that converged in the central area immediately stood out—the famous Kannabi Bridge.

"The village plans to cut off this crucial supply line, which will make it impossible for Iwagakure's tactics to continue, giving us the opportunity to concentrate most of our forces to fight Sunagakure."

After Shuichi understood the higher-ups' decision. He had fought against Iwagakure before and knew that the tactics of grouping up multiple people had both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is its strong frontal combat capability, while the disadvantage is its poor mobility and heavy reliance on logistical support.

The key to breaking the deadlock lies in the fact that Iwagakure dares not use the most conventional fighting methods in the Shinobi World to fight Konoha, which is to split up into small teams of 4 to 6 people. This is because encountering a master like Namikaze Minato would be tantamount to suicide, not to mention that Konoha has the Byakugan, which is very effective against their stealth reconnaissance.

Therefore, their tactic was to fight in groups of hundreds of men, advancing together.

However, the majority of them Genin and ordinary Chunin. Their long-range operational capabilities are far inferior to those of Jonin. If they lose their supply lines, their combat effectiveness will decline sharply in a short period of time, and they will eventually be forced to retreat.