The front lines, the Uzumaki Clan camp.
"Outrageous!" Uzumaki Ashina shot to his feet, slamming the table. His eyes were bloodshot. Anyone who didn't know better would think he had Uchiha blood.
Beside him, Mito didn't even raise her eyelids. She knew very well what the intelligence report said.
Strike at the enemy's rear and force the Uzumaki, already stretched thin by a prolonged campaign, to withdraw. The Uchiha's plan was undeniably clever.
Their execution had been excellent, too.
Truthfully, Mito had never approved of getting close to the Senju. In her view, being dragged into the disputes of the Land of Fire was terribly unwise.
They were all brothers when the Senju needed them, of course. But if anything changed in the future, the Land of Whirlpools could easily end up caught between both sides, with nowhere to turn.
The Uchiha had stood firm in the Land of Fire for a thousand years. They weren't the sort of clan that could simply be wiped out.
The war wasn't even over, and the Uzumaki Clan had already tasted retaliation.
With that brat's Space-Time Ninjutsu, the clan members left behind were utterly helpless against him.
"Father, withdraw our troops," Mito advised.
"Alas." Uzumaki Ashina sighed deeply. With only father and daughter present, he finally spoke honestly about what was on his mind.
"Do you think I don't want to withdraw? But we can't."
"If our first war against another nation ends in defeat, the Shinobi World will think we're weak and easy to bully. That will bring endless trouble in the future."
There was one thing Uzumaki Ashina didn't say: he believed the Senju Clan had a reputation for keeping their word, and that they would surely become a steadfast ally of the Land of Whirlpools.
Everything they sacrificed now was