Storms on the Horizon, Affairs Across the Lands

Within Sunagakure's military fortress, a group of people sat around a round table in the building at the highest point, their expressions grim.

"Konoha's White Fang dared to venture deep alone even after being exposed? And with only two people?" Rasa practically forced the words through clenched teeth.

If they were not idiots, then they must have taken all of them for idiots.

It was blatant contempt. They simply did not take them seriously at all!

Though infuriating, it was the truth.

In all of Sunagakure, fewer than five people could face Sakumo Hatake alone.

"Has Grandmother Chiyo found any trace of Pakura?" Karura's words carried hidden concern. After all, she had abandoned her teammate and escaped back alone.

Besides, Pakura and Karura had been close friends. Otherwise, they would not have gone to the Land of Lightning together.

"According to the intelligence we received, there seems to be no sign of the other two members of Konoha's White Fang's team." Chiyo's face was filled with hatred. She thought of revenge at every waking moment.

"Karura, you do not need to blame yourself for this. Given the circumstances, your choice was correct." Ebizo, on the other hand, looked as composed as ever, as though even the sky collapsing would not change his expression.

After that brief exchange came another deathly silence.

Other than Rasa's heavy breathing as he struggled to suppress his anger, there was no other sound in the room.

"Why do you think Konoha's White Fang entered deep into the Land of Wind with only two people?" Rasa suddenly asked, his words carrying a hint of alarm.

"Konoha's White Fang's strength cannot be measured by numbers." Chiyo curled her lip and snorted.

Meanwhile, Ebizo fell into thought. Then, his calm expression suddenly changed.

Everyone was startled by his reaction.

"What? Did you think of something?" Rasa asked excitedly.

"Konoha's White Fang has only a two-man team. Their purpose can be nothing more than assassination or sabotage." Ebizo's stirred emotions gradually settled. "If it is assassination, that is manageable. Only one or two people will die."

At those words, everyone's expressions changed slightly.

What did he mean, only one or two people would die? Were one or two people not people?

Although Ebizo's words were harsh, what he said next left no one able to get angry.

"But if their target is the supply lines..."

Among everyone present, aside from Rasa and Chiyo, no one could confidently claim that they could stop Konoha's White Fang.

Konoha's White Fang would deal with the Sunagakure Shinobi, while the other person only needed to set fires.

Two people could accomplish many things!

Bang!

Rasa slammed his fist onto the table. Though the force was not particularly explosive, it still jolted every cup on the table.

Water splashed from the cups, soaking part of the round table.

"If the supply lines are destroyed, there will be no point in fighting!"

"Then send elite squads to guard the transport teams?"

"One squad may not be enough."

Panic filled everyone's voices, while the expressions of the people seated at the head of the table grew even gloomier.

A bunch of useless parasites who only knew how to eat for free! They were completely useless when it mattered!

"Guard them? Heh..." A cold glint flashed through Rasa's eyes.

Leaving aside whether they could guard them successfully, even if either Rasa or Chiyo went, the pressure on the front lines would multiply.

Konoha was missing Sakumo Hatake, its supreme commander, but it still had two of the Legendary Sannin. Jiraiya and Tsunade were both Kage-level experts.

Furthermore, although Sakumo Hatake was the supreme commander, most of the decisions came from Shikaku of the Nara clan.

Comparing the foundations of both sides only made Rasa grit his teeth in fury.

"We cannot mobilize a massive amount of manpower and resources for just these two people!" Chiyo finally snapped out of her rage over revenge. After a brief consideration, she made her decision.

"Then what do we do? Let them act however they please?" Rasa demanded angrily, his voice carrying a trace of helplessness.

"No, we can set a trap!" As one of Sunagakure's few strategists, Ebizo immediately understood Chiyo's meaning.

"Oh? How?" Rasa's expression abruptly calmed as he asked in a low voice.

"First, we need to know what intelligence they obtained..."

In the Land of Rivers, the friction between Konoha and the Sunagakure Shinobi was growing more serious by the day, with no shortage of small-scale battles caused by those clashes.

Two Konoha Anbu carried a young girl as they swiftly moved through the forest.

They were none other than the Cat-Faced Anbu and Dog-Faced Anbu who had captured Pakura. After entering the Land of Rivers, they had taken the forest paths.

There was a reason they had not crossed the desert directly back into the Land of Fire and had instead chosen the forest.

The desert was certainly safer, but if they encountered Sunagakure Shinobi, it would be the enemy's home ground.

Conflicts broke out in the forest from time to time, but there, they could encounter allies.

There were also quite a few Konoha strongholds in the Land of Rivers, so they did not need to remain on edge at all times.

Besides, unless they encountered a large-scale force, an ordinary group of Sunagakure Shinobi could not stop a team of two elite jonin.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two leaped through the trees, as agile as monkeys.

Suddenly!

"Tibetan Mastiff, stop!" The cat-faced man halted abruptly, crouching on a branch as he called out.

The dog-faced man carrying Pakura immediately reacted and stopped in his tracks.

Two black figures stood in the middle of the path ahead, seemingly waiting for someone.

Though it sounded strange, the cat-faced man felt that they were waiting for the two of them.

"Who are you people?"

They wore no forehead protectors, yet they gave off an extremely dangerous feeling.

Alarm bells rang in the cat-faced man and dog-faced man's minds. They both felt that these two strange fellows were not to be trifled with.

"Lord Madara, we only need to let that little girl go." Black Zetsu gave a strange laugh. Tōka's purpose was clear: rescue Pakura.

Black Zetsu would not do anything unnecessary. He glanced at Uchiha Madara beside him.

Tsuchi-e no Jutsu allowed others to acquire the same appearance as its user and use every technique the user knew, including Kekkei Genkai and equipment.

However, they possessed only thirty percent of the original body's chakra, were controlled by the original body, and permanently lost their self-awareness.

Once their chakra ran out, they would die and revert to their original appearances after death.

How powerful was thirty percent of Uchiha Madara's strength? In any case, it was not something these nobodies before him could compare to.

Uchiha Madara knew the subsequent plan. He merely thought Black Zetsu wanted to recruit Pakura.

Still, a Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai was not worth him making a move.

This time, Uchiha Madara had used Tsuchi-e no Jutsu simply because he wanted to come out for a stroll.

"You always do pointless things." Uchiha Madara said.

"Do not put it like that, Lord Madara..." Black Zetsu smiled as he sank into the ground. He was not a combat type, so it was better to stay farther away.

Their conversation had not been deliberately concealed, because once Uchiha Madara acted, he would leave no survivors.

Even if the other side learned of it, it did not matter.

"Playing tricks!" the dog-faced man roared as he suddenly attacked.

His hands formed seals as fast as lightning.

Tiger—Ox—Monkey—Rabbit—Rat—Boar—Rooster—Ox—Horse—Dog—Tiger—Dog—Tiger—Snake—Ox—Monkey—Rabbit

Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!

He began with a high-level Water Release ninjutsu.

Crash!

A towering wave suddenly surged through the forest, roaring and rushing toward Uchiha Madara.

Its momentum was tremendous. The wave's shadow covered the forest for dozens of meters around it.

Dodging it was simply impossible!

Yet Uchiha Madara merely crossed his arms over his chest, disdain flashing through his eyes.

Every tree in the wave's path was snapped apart. Uchiha Madara's body looked as tiny as a rootless duckweed, as though he would be swept hundreds of miles away in an instant.

When the wave came within three steps of Uchiha Madara, mockery appeared in the dog-faced man's eyes. He thought the other man had been frightened stupid.

Victory was in his grasp. He would kill the man at once!

Yet an intense sense of unease rose in the cat-faced man's heart.

At that moment, Uchiha Madara slowly extended both hands, but his hand seals moved so quickly that they became afterimages.

Rat—Ox—Dog—Horse—Monkey—Boar—Tiger

Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!

Uchiha Madara gave a low shout, opened his mouth, and breathed out hellfire capable of destroying everything.

The flames were so hot that the air seemed to freeze. They spread across the surrounding area, burning everything within an enormous radius to ash.

The flames rose into the sky.

The great wave crashed down.

One red and one white collided violently.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...

In only a single breath, the towering wave that had seemed unstoppable moments ago was extinguished, turning into wisps of white smoke that vanished into the forest.

Then, the dog-faced man felt a suffocating presence rush toward him.

The crimson firelight made the dog-faced man and cat-faced man's pupils shrink sharply, as if they had witnessed flames burning the heavens.

In the Land of Wind lay an endless expanse of yellow sand.

The fierce wind howled, carrying sand that filled the skies.

One large and one small black figure walked one after the other. Their pace appeared torturously slow, but they were actually not moving slowly.

There was only sand as far as the eye could see, making it seem as though they were walking in place.

At this moment, their Anbu masks served as the best protection against the sand.

"Fox, what do you think a ninja is?" Sakumo Hatake glanced at Tōka, who had his head lowered and was clearly beginning to pant.

Hearing Sakumo Hatake's voice, Tōka froze briefly and looked up at him.

Then Tōka lowered his head again and continued walking silently, looking utterly exhausted.

Fatigue was one reason, but thirst was the greater one.

In this desert, the water in their canteens had run dry a day ago.

Tōka did not want to waste saliva talking nonsense, nor was he in the mood to chat idly with Sakumo Hatake.

"I believe that a ninja is someone who endures what ordinary people cannot endure." Sakumo Hatake did not get an answer from Tōka, but rather than getting angry, he continued speaking to himself.

Tōka listened quietly. It was rather similar to the First Hokage's view.

However, he did not agree...

"Captain, is this really a good time to discuss that?" Tōka said helplessly, rolling his eyes as he complained inwardly. You are amazing, you are Kage-level, you are a god of slaughter, you are incredible, you are not thirsty. I just want water!

"Hehe, it was merely a passing thought." Sakumo Hatake scratched the back of his head and smiled.

Naturally, he could see that Tōka was somewhat exhausted. After all, he was only a seven-year-old child, and his stamina naturally could not compare to an adult's.

That was why Sakumo Hatake had deliberately tried to divert Tōka's attention.

However, that only treated the symptoms, not the cause. They needed to find a town or oasis as soon as possible.

"According to the intelligence taken from the enemy, there should be an oasis nearby." Sakumo Hatake took out that crumpled map again.

There was no need to say it. They had clearly gotten lost, or at least missed the oasis marked on the map.

Tōka cast the map a speechless glance, only to spot a patch of green amid the distant yellow sands.

"Look over there!"

"Hm?!"

Sakumo Hatake followed Tōka's outstretched arm and indeed saw a point of green at the horizon, where yellow and white met.

An oasis? But it looked rather far away!

Had the constantly shifting sands changed the terrain and led them off their original route?

"Let us go take a look." Sakumo Hatake put away the map, then took out a palm-sized box and handed it to Tōka.

"What is this?" Tōka accepted it instinctively.

When he opened it, he found several black, mud-like pills inside.

Food? Tōka found them rather hard to stomach just by looking at them.

"Eat one, and you will not feel thirsty." Sakumo Hatake said.

"..." Tōka's mouth twitched. Could this thing really be eaten?

It was not that he was worried Sakumo Hatake would poison him. This thing simply did not look appetizing!

If Sakumo Hatake really wanted to kill Tōka, he only needed to raise a hand. There was no need to waste time.

Following his instructions, Tōka picked one up. It was somewhat sticky, and as he brought it close to his mouth, he caught a scent.

"Pickled plum?" Delight flashed through Tōka's eyes. He opened his mouth and put the "mud pill" inside.

Damn! That is sour...

Tōka's entire face twisted. It felt as though the teeth and tongue in his mouth no longer belonged to him.

Sourness stimulated saliva production. With a tooth-achingly sour pickled plum in his mouth, Tōka felt more refreshed than if he had drunk an entire river!

"Why did you not take these out sooner?" Tōka said unclearly.

"Pickled plums only stimulate saliva. They do not replenish the body's water." Sakumo Hatake explained. "There may have been a battle at the oasis ahead, so eat one to recover some of your energy."

Tōka held the pickled plum in his mouth without speaking. It seemed intelligent people did not necessarily become strong, but every strong person was intelligent.

Even those who seemed foolish, simple-minded, or honest had plans in their hearts.

"Let us go. In the desert, the thing you should trust least is your eyes." Sakumo Hatake said lightly.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two maintained a steady pace as they ran toward the green spot.

In the desert, missing two meals was no big deal, since Soldier Pills could replace food.

But going without water for a day made one's entire body feel uncomfortable, as though a ball of fire were burning inside.

As the two of them ran, the green speck gradually grew larger.

Sure enough, it was a real oasis.

A flicker of joy flashed through the black eyes behind the fox mask, and Tōka suddenly felt his heavy body grow much lighter.

"Captain, let's speed up!"

As soon as Tōka spoke, he ignored Sakumo Hatake and ran straight toward the distance.

Wariness flashed through Sakumo Hatake's eyes. A ninja could never let his guard down at any time.

He opened his mouth, but in the end, he chose not to dampen Tōka's enthusiasm. After all, he was only a seven-year-old kid.

Just after the two of them left, several ghostlike figures flickered across the sand dune. They were all draped in cloaks the color of sand...