The Noon Here Was Quiet

Land of Rice.

Yuhara gazed into the boundless forest. Its lush greenery, with colors like a child's colorful doodles painted in especially vivid hues, carried a peculiar sense of terror. The unusual silence of the surroundings instead made it difficult for anyone inside to calm down...

This was a green hell capable of devouring everything—and waiting to devour everything.

The Konoha Ninja squad had already reached its designated position. So far, their luck seemed good, since they had encountered no enemies along the way. Based on the principle of prioritizing the mission, Rindou's squad was targeting that particular Cloud Hidden Ninja, so there was no need to create complications during the operation.

By now, the Ninja World War had entered its later stages. Although the scale of warfare between the various countries had shrunk considerably, that reduction in scale did not mean the intensity of the fighting had weakened. The truth was exactly the opposite. After years of mutual slaughter, hatred and hostility between enemy nations had accumulated further and further. When those emotions manifested in war, they only made the battles more intense.

This was Yuhara's first time on a battlefield—and not just any battlefield, but one belonging to the shinobi world. Although he could feel that suffocating tension, honestly speaking, he had no idea what he was supposed to do. His entire mind was blank.

Fortunately, the commander's leadership was up to standard. After reaching their position, Rindou immediately began arranging their battle formation. The man who usually wore a smile had a solemn expression now.

By assigning everyone to suitable positions and breaking down the duties of war into concrete tasks, they could expect beginners to learn quickly. Before long, they would understand what they were supposed to do...

Because those who failed to learn had all died.

In short, after reaching their position, the squad quickly deployed in a "Search and Encirclement Formation"—in other words, a "V" formation. In this formation, the two arms extending forward moved in the same direction like the hands of a clock as they searched for enemies. Once an enemy was discovered, the Ninjas on the outer perimeter would draw them toward the central point, allowing the squad to surround them as quickly as possible.

This formation was suitable for squads with superior numbers but weaker average combat strength. It made full use of their numerical advantage to overwhelm enemies with numbers. The problem was that it was somewhat too passive... In essence, it was a type of "Turtle Formation."

Of course, given that searching for enemies was the top priority and that combat between Ninjas had its own particular characteristics, the Konoha Ninja squad's battle formation was not tightly packed. The farthest search distance might extend more than twenty kilometers.

Squad leader Rindou stayed in the middle of the formation so that he could keep track of the battlefield in time. Yuhara's team was positioned at the rear junction of the V, which was arguably the safest location in the formation.

This good fortune had nothing to do with him being a beginner. Yuhara instinctively believed that it was the result of Rindou's personal bias... The squad leader might have arranged their position to protect his younger sister.

After the operation began, Yuhara and Xinliang hid in a bush. Jian Dong concealed herself in the crown of a large tree more than ten meters away, while Tigo's whereabouts were unknown.

To remain hidden, Yuhara could neither move around nor speak casually. There was also a chance that enemies might suddenly appear from behind the formation, so the reserve team had to remain completely concealed.

The forest was dimly lit, with only occasional birdsong drifting through the trees. As time passed, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.

Nothing happened on the first day. The same was true on the second.

The squad crouched in that area for seven whole days, during which nothing happened at all. Well, calling their formation a Turtle Formation was not quite appropriate. This was clearly "Spider Web Guard," or perhaps waiting for rabbits beneath a tree.

The fact that nothing happened did not mean they were relaxed. The Ninjas searching ahead went without saying, while Yuhara and the others in the rear could not move at all. They had to remain crouched there while keeping their minds highly focused... This was genuinely exhausting work.

Who knew when this miserable mission would end?

It would be best if the enemy never appeared.

Just as Yuhara finally lost control and began letting his mind wander, an especially crisp birdcall came from nearby, clearing his slightly muddled thoughts.

The sound traveled a long way through the quiet surroundings. Soon, another similar sound answered from the distance.

Yuhara did not think much of it at first. What was strange about birds calling in the forest? But Xinliang beside him took out a notebook, silently wrote a sentence with a pencil, and held it out for him to see:

"Beginning to adjust the search direction. The squad leader has approved it."

Yuhara nodded to show that he understood. He could not understand Konoha's coded signals, so he could only rely on the "translator" to convey the messages.

However, there was something strange about Xinliang's sentence. The squad appeared to be adjusting its direction according to plan, but the words "The squad leader has approved it" indicated that the adjustment had not been made entirely at Rindou's own discretion. Someone had likely offered him a suggestion or conveyed some information, after which he had reached a new judgment.

This meant that the squad very likely had a powerful Sensory Type Ninja providing the squad leader with battlefield awareness. But who was that Ninja?

Yuhara immediately thought of the answer.

The team's "radar" would inevitably be placed in the safest position. That person was neither Yuhara nor Xinliang, and certainly not Jian Dong. Therefore, it could only be Tigo.

Tigo was hiding extremely well. Even her teammates did not know her exact location; they only knew that she was somewhere nearby.

Well, the reason Yuhara's team had been assigned the safest position was not solely Rindou's personal bias. At most, that was only one factor.

And since Tigo could provide information to the squad from the farthest position, her sensory range had to be extensive. That was an essential ability for an excellent Sensory Type Ninja.

The squad began changing its search direction.

As noon approached, the forest grew increasingly damp and hot. Communication between Tigo and the squad leader also became more frequent, with birdcalls rising and falling one after another.

Each time she relayed a message, Tigo changed positions. Although she was very young, her professionalism as a Ninja was beyond reproach, and she had left no trace from beginning to end.

After a short birdcall, the "translator," Xinliang, almost immediately shoved his notebook in Yuhara's face. A few words were written on it:

"Prepare to engage the enemy at direction fifteen!"

Yuhara's thoughts—"How could a squad like this have a Sensory Ninja so far below standard?" and "Should they fight or flee upon encountering the enemy?"—were instantly wiped clean. Or rather, after seeing those words, Yuhara felt as if his entire brain had been erased. All he could hear was the pounding of his own heart inside his chest.

Yuhara unconsciously licked his dry lips. He could not tell whether the smell filling his nostrils was the earthy scent of soil or the stench of blood.

"Verifying the enemy's identity..."

"Target confirmed. The enemy is the Cloud Hidden Jonin 'Koto.' Two casualties."

"Beginning to guide the enemy's pursuit. Five casualties."

Information passed back and forth through the forest. From just one encounter, Konoha had already suffered five deaths—a casualty rate of twenty percent.

"The target is approaching the ambush area..."

Xinliang had only written half the sentence when birdsong rang out beside Yuhara and the others again. Xinliang then abruptly rose to his feet and spoke to Yuhara for the first time:

"Enemy reinforcements! The intelligence was wrong. The Cloud Hidden side isn't a two-man squad, but a four-man squad!"

Since the enemy at the head of the group was an Elite Jonin carrying out an infiltration operation, if his squad had doubled in size, it was best to consider their combat strength doubled as well... Weaklings did not take part in infiltration operations. Otherwise, the consequences of Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara's encounter would have been proof enough.

Yuhara's mind was already struggling to keep up, so after hearing this news, he became even more confused.

The forest seemed to grow noisy in an instant.

But before Xinliang and the other Ninjas could act blindly, squad leader Rindou's order came through first.

After hearing the order, Xinliang unconsciously tightened his grip on the kunai in his hand. He glanced at Yuhara, then said in a low voice:

"The mission...

Continues."

Yes. Even after this sudden change, the mission had to continue.

Because...

The squad being wiped out was a minor matter. Abandoning the mission was the greater one.