The Three Legendary Sannin's Fates Diverge, Sunagakure Makes a Desperate Gamble

Chiyo looked at the familiar place before him and let out a sigh of relief.

He had finally returned to Konoha's frontline camp.

However, the sight within the camp made him pause slightly.

The once chaotic camp was now orderly. Tents of three colors were neatly arranged according to injury severity, while Medical Ninja wearing green armbands moved back and forth among them, every one of them focused and composed.

Judging from their condition alone, these Medical Ninja had changed considerably since they first arrived.

Sure enough, only war was a "shortcut" for rapid growth.

After finishing his report, a young Medical Ninja turned around and spotted Chiyo. His eyes immediately lit up.

"Lord Chiyo! You're back!"

Chiyo nodded in acknowledgment.

"Where is Lord Sakumo?"

"Lord Sakumo is in the command tent."

Chiyo nodded and quickly headed for the command tent.

As he lifted the tent flap, Hatake Sakumo was standing before a sand table, discussing tactics with several Jonin.

His silver-white short hair was damp with morning dew, and faint dark circles lay beneath his eyes. He was clearly exhausted.

When he saw Chiyo arrive, surprise flashed through his eyes.

He had not expected Chiyo to return so quickly!

"Did the mission go smoothly?"

"Yes, smoothly."

"That's good. By the way, what's the situation with Kumogakure?"

"They're too busy dealing with their own problems. They probably won't harass Konoha anytime soon."

Chiyo walked over to the sand table and looked toward its edge.

"However, before coming here, I found Iwagakure ninja. They may have already infiltrated the border."

Sakumo lightly tapped a spot on the sand table with his finger.

"As expected. I've already reported this to Lord Hokage. Lord Hokage's intention is to have Root make contact with them."

"We don't need to concern ourselves with Iwagakure."

After Hatake Sakumo finished speaking, a trace of amusement flashed in his eyes.

"You've just completed a mission. You should go back and get some proper rest first."

Chiyo gave him a surprised look.

Then he nodded, bowed, and withdrew.

After passing several tents, he arrived at the medical area.

The first thing he saw was a white tent in the center. Even from the outside, it was twice as large as the surrounding tents.

Seven or eight smaller tents had been set up around it.

The instant he lifted the tent flap, the strong scent of medicinal herbs rushed at him.

More than a dozen wounded lay quietly on temporary beds, while five or six Medical Ninja cast Healing Jutsu. The pale green glow of Chakra connected into a continuous sheet throughout the tent.

"Next."

Without raising her head, Tsunade wrote in a medical record. Her hair bun was somewhat loose, with a strand of golden hair hanging beside her cheek.

Chiyo deliberately made his footsteps heavier as he approached the examination table.

Tsunade frowned and looked up. When she saw that it was Chiyo, her eyes instantly widened.

Her pen clattered onto the table.

"You..."

She abruptly stood up, her chair scraping harshly across the floor.

In the blink of an eye, she was in front of him.

She immediately began feeling him over.

"Are you hurt? What about the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki..."

"Not a scratch."

Chiyo took hold of the hand she had placed on him, trembling slightly, then pulled Tsunade into his arms.

Tsunade struggled briefly before finally burying her face against his shoulder, taking in his familiar scent.

A few restrained chuckles sounded inside the tent, and the Medical Ninja tactfully looked away.

"Idiot... everyone saw."

Tsunade cursed under her breath. When she pushed Chiya away, even the tips of her ears had turned red.

"So what if they saw? Why should we care about them? Let's continue!"

Rarely, she did not argue back after hearing that.

The two embraced tenderly for a moment before finally parting.

"Come with me."

The rear tent was piled with medicinal herbs and Scrolls. Tsunade took a sealed kettle from a cabinet and poured a cup of water.

"That Chiyo from Sunagakure isn't all that impressive either..."

As she spoke, she suddenly laughed, pride curling at the corners of her eyes.

"Do you know how quickly I cracked her poison?"

Excitement filled Tsunade's face.

"From the moment the first poisoned shinobi was brought in to the time I formulated an antidote, it only took me half a day."

Her eyes sparkled in the morning light.

Seeing her proud expression, Chiya smiled as well.

"Lady Tsunade, it seems that aside from the title of Sannin, your medical skills will soon shake the Shinobi World too!"

"What Sannin? It's the title of a loser. What's there to be proud of?!"

Tsunade snorted coldly.

She had never cared much for the title of Sannin.

"Last time, when I fought that man from Amegakure, I gained a much clearer understanding of many of my shortcomings—especially when it came to Medical Ninjas.

Nowadays, whenever people hear 'Medical Ninja,' they think of someone who can only heal and is severely lacking in combat ability and strength.

Medical Ninjas possess recovery abilities and precise Chakra Control.

Using those two points, I want to develop a new ninjutsu.

A ninjutsu that will allow Medical Ninjas to step onto the front lines without fearing war!"

Hearing Tsunade's proposal, Chiya was momentarily dazed.

Was this Tsunade's original intention in developing Medical Ninjutsu?

It seemed that the Demi-God of Amegakure had been a powerful driving force for Tsunade!

Chiya then thought of the other two.

Orochimaru, who had previously been active on the battlefield, seemed to have begun changing after being defeated by that man from Amegakure.

Orochimaru was now rarely seen on the front lines.

Thinking back to Orochimaru and Danzo...

Orochimaru had probably made some kind of deal with Danzo and was temporarily placed in Root.

What else could he do after entering Root? It was nothing more than a convenient place to conduct experiments.

As for Jiraiya, he had already been assigned to the Amegakure battlefield, where the situation was becoming increasingly clear.

Jiraiya had probably requested that assignment himself.

After all, he could also keep an eye on those three little ones while stationed on the Amegakure battlefield.

"Developing a ninjutsu isn't that simple. Take it slowly!"

Seeing the seriousness on Tsunade's face, Chiya patted her soft shoulder.

"Mm, I think so too. I'll start working on it after the war ends."

Suddenly, hurried footsteps sounded outside the tent.

"Lady Tsunade! New critically wounded patients!"

Tsunade immediately straightened up.

She grabbed her medical bag and headed outside, then paused briefly at the tent entrance.

"Come to my tent tonight."

Her voice was so soft it was nearly inaudible.

Sunagakure's front lines.

Inside the dimly lit main camp, the high-ranking officers sat around a long table. The solemn atmosphere was so heavy it was nearly suffocating.

Chiyo and the other Sunagakure higher-ups sat at the head of the table.

Her fingertips lightly tapped against the tabletop, while no emotion could be seen on her stern face.

"The latest battle report: Hatake Sakumo led a team that killed a hundred members of Sunagakure's combat forces. The Poison Jutsu released earlier has been confirmed to have been completely neutralized by Tsunade. The Puppet Force's losses... have now also exceeded expectations."

Upon hearing the report, everyone immediately grew agitated.

"What?! Lady Chiyo's poison was cracked so quickly?! That was a deadly poison even the Demi-God of Amegakure feared!"

"Tsunade... as expected of a descendant of the Senju Clan, she's truly troublesome. Is there really no way to deal with Tsunade?!"

"..."

The conference room then descended into a brief uproar.

A Sunagakure advisor sighed, then dropped another bombshell.

"The most troublesome part is that the Daimyo has already sent an order demanding that we end the war as soon as possible."

"The Daimyo?"

The Sand Ninja advisor nodded.

"The war has dragged on for too long. The Land of Wind's economy can no longer bear the burden, and the Daimyo is unwilling to invest any more resources."

Upon hearing this explanation, an elite Jonin could not help but speak up.

"But are we just going to admit defeat like this?! Konoha's morale is soaring right now. If we retreat, they'll definitely seize the chance to counterattack!"

Chiyo, once the goddess of Sunagakure and the beloved wife of countless Hokage fans, no longer remained silent.

She drew in a deep breath and spoke.

"The question now isn't whether we retreat or not, but... whether we can still win."

Originally, Sunagakure's greatest advantages had been Chiyo's Poison Jutsu and the Puppet Force.

Now that the poison technique had been neutralized, the Puppet Corps was being suppressed by Konoha's frontline forces. On top of that, there was news that the Daimyo intended to cut military spending at this point...

"Our plan to raid Konoha's medical camp also failed. Now, Tsunade's Medical Team has become Konoha's strongest line of defense."

"Is there really no way left?"

"No. There is one final path."

Everyone looked up, their gazes focusing on Chiyo.

"Gather all our forces and launch one final all-out assault."

Everyone was stunned.

"Lady Chiyo, that's too risky! If we fail..."

"If we do nothing, then Sunagakure will truly be finished."

She swept her gaze across the room, her voice low and resolute.

"At this point, we can only gamble!"