All four squads were led by members of the Inuzuka Clan. In the dark forest, their tall, muscular Ninja Dogs moved lightly and silently, like ghosts. The Inuzuka ninja wore dog-skin coats and ran on all fours alongside their Ninja Dogs.
They gathered all the scent information, but in the end, found nothing... Obito's blast of fire had burned away every trace of the enemy's scent, leaving only the choking smell of roasted meat.
The charred, dry smell bothered both the Ninja Dogs and the Inuzuka ninja, making their noses itch.
"Big Sis, we didn't find anything!" "Nothing here, either." Another squad gathered nearby. "My Ninja Dog smelled blood earlier, but the trail disappeared after we followed it for a while."
Uzumaki Mikayo ran with the injured Rock Ninja on her back. A faint, pearly-white light radiated from her body.
It was an innate ability of hers, one that erased her "presence" while she was on the move—
Whether it was scent, which ordinary people could detect, or more advanced observation and sensory techniques, such as the Byakugan or chakra sensing, none of them could find her. She had no time to think. The appearance of the Inuzuka ninja made her raise her guard to the highest level.
The soft rustling of her feet against the grass and trees sounded louder in her ears because of her wariness, making her even more cautious.
Could the enemy hear that sound? This was her first time on a battlefield—or, one could even say, her first time carrying out a mission like this. Her heart was in her throat.
A seasoned ninja probably wouldn't have worried about that rustling. They would have paid it no mind, even if it were louder, and considered it normal.
But she wasn't a seasoned ninja.
With someone on her back, she hid whenever she encountered other ninja, waiting for them to leave before quickly moving on.
The strain had left her drenched in sweat, yet she held her breath, afraid that breathing too heavily would draw the pursuers to her. A large tree stood ahead, so she carried the injured man over to it, hoping to lean against the trunk and rest.
But as soon as she leaned on it, the two of them tipped backward and fell into the tree. They tumbled down a flight of man-made steps.
Uzumaki Mikayo's skin was scraped and bruised all over by the steps. Beneath it, countless nerves cycled through information she herself didn't know she was receiving, controlling her subconscious and guiding her choices at crucial moments.
Those nerves had brought her here, prompting her to turn and step this way without conscious thought.
The same nerves had also arranged what she would encounter next...
She set down the injured man and began searching the pitch-black cavern.
Before long, she found a tent. Inside lay the dead Hyuga Ken, his dark, empty eye sockets staring at her.
Uzumaki Mikayo instinctively took a step back, nearly falling to the ground. Only then did she recover and look around. "What is this place? Incubation tanks, nutrient solution... What happened to this man's eyes?" Gathering her courage, she examined Hyuga Ken's corpse. She untied the cloth wrapped around his forehead, revealing the Caged Bird.
Is he a ninja from the Hyuga Clan? Uzumaki Mikayo wondered. Suddenly, an idea occurred to her. If we take this body, could the Rock Ninja grow Byakugan too?
Cloning wasn't all that new in the shinobi world. If they took this corpse back with them...
The thought took hold of her at once.
Her teammate finally woke up. "Where are we?" In the back of his mind lingered the memory of listening to Uchiha Kin's "silver tongue." "Yan Liu, don't listen to that guy... Don't believe a single word the Hidden Leaf people say."
"Kaede, you're awake? Thank goodness." She quickly explained what had happened. Kaede said, "Could this Hyuga have been from the branch family, trying to escape his fate here, only to fail?"
Uzumaki Mikayo said, "That's probably it. But what happened doesn't really matter to us. Kaede, the important thing is that we've obtained a corpse from the Hyuga Clan—and its significance isn't the information it holds, but..."
"The Byakugan?"
"Exactly!"
"Then we should hurry back. Yan Liu, I can move now. You carry the corpse, and I can walk on my own."
"I think we should wait a little..." Uzumaki Mikayo was very cautious, which surprised Kaede. But as soon as his surprise arose, it strangely vanished. Behind him, a web of nerves rapidly processed information, sent out a signal, then quickly sank back into hiding.
The Hidden Leaf forces searched here all night, then spent the entire next day searching before giving up. They couldn't afford to waste any more time here.
The front lines were in dire straits. The Rock Ninja were advancing steadily, and the Hidden Leaf was struggling to hold them back. Every bit of manpower was precious.
That afternoon, an order came down from headquarters: some of the Medical Ninja were being sent to the front lines to fight.
The words "Medical Ninja" and "fight" sounded like a strange combination.
Uchiha Kin's medical squad naturally found themselves busier than ever.
"Captain, are all the Medical Ninja being sent to the front lines? Will they send us next?" Jasmine asked anxiously.
Golden Chrysanthemum sighed. "I never thought things would get so desperate."
Uchiha Kin gave a noncommittal "Mm" and reassured them. "Don't worry. No one will send us to the front lines until the very last moment." Uchiha Kin was confident in that—his Nerve Secret Technique was his guarantee.
The commander at the front lines was an even greater "guarantee." No one understood the value of a Medical Ninja like him better than Orochimaru!
Everyone in this world had a price. Whether they became cannon fodder or were held in high regard ultimately depended on their abilities.
Clink. The forceps pulled out a shuriken and dropped it into the tray, then extracted another...
In just a short while, Uchiha Kin had removed more than twenty shuriken from the wounded man.
Then Jasmine and Golden Chrysanthemum applied medicine to the wound and bandaged it.
Medical Ninjutsu?
With manpower in short supply, they had stopped using Medical Ninjutsu. They relied on medicine to stop the bleeding and left recovery to the body's natural healing process.
There were fewer Medical Ninja, but the number of wounded had risen sharply. They had no choice but to stop using Medical Ninjutsu on patients whose injuries weren't life-threatening, conserving as much chakra as possible so they could treat the critically wounded.
Outside the medical tent, wounded soldiers lay in the open, injured people scattered everywhere...
Uchiha Kin stepped out of the tent and walked among the wounded. Whenever he saw someone who had lost an arm or leg, he offered a few words of comfort. "Don't be upset. We're swamped right now, but once the war is over, I'll help you get your limbs restored... Of course, you'll have to provide the materials yourself, and pay for the medical care, too."
"Lord Kin, thank you so much." "Lord Kin." His promises cost him nothing, but moved the ninja to tears.
Before you continue