Cannon Fodder Squad

Konoha 38.

The Second Great Ninja War had already lasted for over a year.

On the Land of Rain battlefield, Konoha, Hidden Sand, and the Rain Ninja had fallen into a meat-grinder-like melee. Even Ninja Academy students forced to graduate early had already been replaced several times over.

By comparison, the Land of Rivers battlefield had entered a stage of stalemate.

Although both Konoha and Hidden Sand had successively deployed reinforcements, with battles and skirmishes of all sizes continuing every day and casualties on both sides, both parties remained fairly restrained.

A large-scale ninja war between armies had yet to erupt.

The two nations used the Shinano River in western Land of Rivers as a natural boundary, forming a stalemate locked in a tug-of-war.

Overlooking the entire Shinano River defensive line, countless sentry patrols were scattered across the outskirts of both sides' encampments.

Konoha in particular relied on the Shinano River and the surrounding mountains and forests to construct a three-tiered defense along hundreds of miles of riverbank, strictly guarding against Hidden Sand elite forces infiltrating deep into their territory.

The Umino Patrol Squad was one such ordinary sentry patrol cannon fodder squad stationed on the outer perimeter of the defense line.

If this cannon fodder squad tried to stop Hidden Sand elites from breaking through the line, they definitely would not be able to hold them back. They might collapse at the first touch.

But they were still highly effective at sending warning signals.

The job was decent enough, though as for the risk of death, that depended on whether the Pure Land of the Six Paths felt like handing out boxed lunches that day. All they could do was pray that Hidden Sand's elites would not choose their sector for a breakthrough.

Better a dead fellow Daoist than a dead poor Daoist. The Tetsubishi Squad's sector downstream, where they had just collected their boxed lunches, was excellent terrain for a breakthrough. The Aoba Squad's sector upstream had broad, open terrain and clear sightlines, but they were a bottom-ranked patrol squad. If someone broke through at night, they might just manage to do so without a sound.

This sentry patrol mission looked dangerous, but in truth, it was not safe at all. Life and death depended on fate. Still, for a cannon fodder squad like his, it already counted as a good assignment.

With the Ninja World War underway, where could anyone carry out missions without danger?

By comparison, this sentry patrol mission was a downright cushy job. If he had not previously acquired some local specialties from the Land of Wind and had a friendly exchange with Nara, the Logistics Chief Strategist, he would never have secured such a good assignment.

As long as they held out for ten days and nothing happened in their sector, they would complete a C-rank mission.

That was far better than those suicidal assault and penetration missions.

The cannon fodder participating in assault missions had to gnaw Soldier Pills every day, and the mission merit they earned with their lives, after the officers of each squad took their cut, was only worth about one or two C-rank missions.

If their share ended up amounting to a B-rank mission, then they could only pray that they were strong enough to survive and enjoy those mission merits.

They fought and killed on empty stomachs only to barely earn a C-rank mission. This sentry patrol mission had a longer cycle, but it was stable and relatively safe.

At the very least, they did not have to starve every day while gnawing Soldier Pills and marching off to die. Even if Hidden Sand elites unfortunately chose their sector, they could at least die with full stomachs before getting stabbed, right?

"Captain, is it really okay for us to stew soup and grill beggar's fish every day? What if the Mobile Patrol Unit finds out—"

Umino Sasuke cut him off directly. "So what if they find out? At worst, we make a few extra portions and build some goodwill.

"If something happens in our sector later, for the sake of being able to mooch food and drink from us in the future, won't they come support us faster?"

Umino Sasuke paid no attention to the so-called battlefield cooking regulations and continued fussing with the pot of fish soup.

The heat was just right. Umino Sasuke lifted the ladle and scooped up a spoonful of milky white broth dotted with oil from the side of the pot. He perfunctorily blew on it, put the spoonful of soup in his mouth, and took a sip.

His throat bobbed, and the rich, savory flavor exploded across his taste buds and shot straight to his head.

Unable to resist, he took another slurp and closed his eyes to savor it carefully.

This was simply too comfortable!

The ninja world truly was land nourished by Nature Energy. Even the ingredients were enhanced versions, and the flavor on his tongue was downright heavenly.

He lifted the ladle, filled a bowl to the brim, and shoved it directly into his subordinate's hands.

"Liao, if you don't want to regret things later and still want to become a jonin, listen to your senior. Eat fewer Soldier Pills."

Looking at his young genin subordinate, whose eyes were full of clarity and stupidity, Umino Sasuke spoke earnestly. "Rather than letting you waste these adorable little Soldier Pills like this, it would be more practical to let me trade them for an Explosive Tag."

Inuzuka Ryo wanted to speak, but his gaze remained fixed on the milky white soup in his hands.

"Gulp~"

That familiar memory of flavor surfaced once more, like a bewitching, lovely figure that was impossible to forget. Inuzuka Ryo could not help swallowing.

It seemed that while discipline was what he called for, his mouth was far more honest.

How could battlefield regulations compare to the bowl of rich soup in his hands? If one bowl was not enough, then he would have two.

Umino Sasuke filled another bowl and set it directly before Inuzuka Ryo's Ninja Hound, Akitaru.

With delicious food before him, Akitaru wagged his tail furiously and barked with joy.

Inuzuka Ryo naturally wanted it too. It was not as if this was his first time. But with battlefield rules before him, he still felt quite burdened at the thought of completely casting aside the honor of his ninja clan.

However, seeing his good brother Akitaru so delighted and already digging in, the rich soup in his hands immediately seized the high ground of his mind, and Inuzuka Ryo stopped insisting.

"Thank you, Captain!"

Though Inuzuka Ryo desperately wanted to start drinking at once, he still maintained the most basic etiquette of a ninja clan. He properly expressed his thanks before blowing on the hot steam above the bowl and taking a small sip with refined restraint.

"Mmm~"

Inuzuka Ryo's eyes immediately lit up.

The assault on his taste buds shot straight to the top of his head. This heavenly delicacy was so fresh that his eyeballs nearly popped out of their sockets.

For a moment, what ninja clan etiquette? He immediately gulped down several more huge mouthfuls.

It was simply too delicious. The Captain's cooking improved every day!

With such delicious food before him, who cared about battlefield regulations? Whoever wanted to eat Soldier Pills could eat them.

Umino Sasuke looked at the teachable Inuzuka Ryo and nodded with a smile. Ninja should break convention.

Even Jiraiya, the [Number One Teacher in the Ninja World], taught them that ninja should not play by the rules.

Jiraiya would later teach a whole group of Kage-Level Experts, so his words could not be wrong, could they?

Seeing that even the stubborn Inuzuka Ryo had started eating, the two foodies Tejudo and Xiao Xiao hurriedly joined in. They filled huge bowls and began wolfing everything down.

That little foodie Tejudo drank from his bowl while still thinking about the pot below. He was clearly wondering when the beggar's fish buried in the fire beneath the pot would be ready.

If he had not been good at managing money, this group of half-grown boys would probably have eaten him poor.

After one meal, they had saved several more Soldier Pills.

Over a ten-day patrol mission cycle, they could save around forty Soldier Pills, which meant one more Explosive Tag.

Now that they were on the Front Lines of the Land of Rivers, that extra item was not merely an Explosive Tag. It was a lifeline.

Explosive Tags were good things. Ninja generally had high attack and low defense, making them fragile. Even Kage-Level Experts would likely be finished if they took a direct hit.

Soldier Pills were not as precious as Explosive Tags, but they were still emergency food carried by ninja during missions and military supplies as well. One pill could replace two meals, restore chakra, and was convenient to carry.

Several Soldier Pills paired with a small amount of water could sustain a month-long field mission.

They were truly indispensable medicine for murder and arson.

Even if he did not trade them on the Black Market, as long as he discounted forty-odd Soldier Pills by twenty or thirty percent, he could have a friendly exchange with the jonin Mitokado from the Logistics Department and trade them for an Explosive Tag, right?

It was never wrong to save up a few more Explosive Tags.

The end of the Shinobi World War was still far away. Even if he did not need the Explosive Tags now, they were strategic supplies even scarcer than Soldier Pills, so their prices would definitely soar later.

A single Explosive Tag already cost twice as much as it had during peacetime. That was what strategic supplies were all about.

Making those three kids eat fewer Soldier Pills was not just about saving for Explosive Tags. He was sincerely thinking of them too. This was a lesson of blood and tears from his own experience.

As wartime emergency food, Soldier Pills could serve as meals and restore chakra, with countless benefits. Yet they did not nourish the body like rice. Their taste was terrible, and while eating too many could quickly increase a ninja's strength, it would gradually hollow out their potential.

They were a double-edged sword, plain and simple.

How should one choose between the future and the present? It seemed obvious at a glance.

But in reality, there was often no choice.

No matter how good the future was, if one did not even survive the present, what future could there be?

For low-level cannon fodder ninja, eating one or two Soldier Pills every day not only easily solved mission logistics problems, but also allowed them to rapidly excavate their potential and improve their strength in the short term, helping them survive the hardest period as genin consumables.

After going through several life-and-death battles, becoming a Chunin would not be difficult.

Chunin tempered by war were undeniably Konoha's backbone. Though they were still cannon fodder, they had at least escaped the ranks of low-grade consumables and become high-grade cannon fodder, no longer easily discarded by village leadership.

If they could survive the high-risk ninja war and enter a period of Ninja World Peace, Konoha Chunin would definitely become high-income earners.

It might be an exaggeration to say matchmakers would wear down their doorstep, but finding an attractive wife would still be easy. If they married a civilian, not only would they not need to pay a bride price, they might even be able to demand a large dowry from their in-laws. They would be Winners in Life, no question.

The good news was that the Umino Sasuke he had transmigrated into was precisely one of Konoha's backbone: a high-grade cannon fodder Chunin whose potential had been hollowed out.

The bad news was that he stood on the front lines of the Second Shinobi World War in the Land of Rivers, wondering how to stay alive and hold on until the war ended.