Deep in the Mire

The battle between the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and Might Duy had thoroughly alerted Konoha.

Though they did not know the outcome of the battle or just how far Might Duy had gone, the terrifying traces left behind made them understand that even if the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had emerged victorious, they could not possibly have escaped unscathed!

In order to keep the Seven Ninja Swordsmen here for good, Konoha continuously dispatched ninja to hunt them down, causing Yoru and the others to repeatedly encounter Konoha ninja during their retreat.

If Yoru had been alone, then even in his current terrible state, with his Chakra nearly exhausted and less than a tenth of his combat strength remaining—

With the strangeness of Kido and Shunpo, these so-called pursuers would have been nothing to him.

But the problem was—

Yoru was dragging along three half-crippled Ninja Swordsmen!

If a real fight broke out, never mind Yoru—the three Ninja Swordsmen would certainly die.

In fact, under special mission circumstances, Yoru might have learned from Kisame and killed his own comrades. But now that Might Duy's battle was over and the mission had ended, Yoru naturally had to consider the bigger picture and preserve Kirigakure's remaining forces as much as possible.

Therefore—

Yoru could only fend off Konoha ninja reconnaissance while dragging the three half-crippled Ninja Swordsmen around the border, waiting for the Three Ninja Swords to recover.

Yet this prolonged stalemate was like stepping into a mire.

The deeper he went, the more deeply he sank.

A day later.

At the border of the Land of Fire.

Inside the main tent of Kirigakure's encampment.

Several figures stood before an enormous sand table, their expressions incomparably grim.

Hozuki Mangetsu had brought the Konoha Frontline Troop Deployment Details back to camp, while also informing them that one of the Three Ninja, Jiraiya, had crossed the border and arrived at the front.

At first, they did not believe it.

According to the information supplied by the intelligence division, Jiraiya should only have recently left the Iwagakure Front. There was no way he could have reached the Kirigakure Front so quickly.

But yesterday, Jiraiya had led a group of Konoha jonin and appeared directly on the main battlefield, confronting Yagura head-on.

With a top-tier combatant like Jiraiya aiding them, Konoha's morale soared and their combat strength rose dramatically. Forget taking Tsunan Town—even retreating had nearly proven impossible for Kirigakure, and they suffered severe losses!

"Jiraiya has already reached the frontline battlefield, so where are our Seven Ninja Swordsmen?!"

"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen only entered the Land of Fire's border a few days ago, yet Jiraiya, their target, has appeared directly at the front! I have no idea what those bastards in the intelligence division are doing!"

A tall, burly ninja with two red dots between his brows slammed a fist down onto the sand table and roared.

He was a Kaguya Clan Jonin. Jiraiya's appearance yesterday had cost the Kaguya Clan several major fighters. For Kekkei Genkai Clans like theirs, that was undoubtedly a tremendous loss.

"I gave you Jiraiya's intelligence long ago, but you turned a deaf ear to it. You even thought it was an excuse for our squad's mission failure."

Mangetsu's face was hidden beneath a white mask, but anyone could hear the mockery in his indifferent voice.

"Besides, our mission did not fail. Not only did we successfully destroy several large warehouses in Souta Village, causing enormous trouble for Konoha's logistical supply lines, but Lord Yoru also killed Konoha's mastermind, Nara Shikaku, who had come to provide support!"

"We painstakingly obtained the Konoha Frontline Troop Deployment Details, only for you useless fools to cast them aside! Your heads were full of nothing but relying on your numerical advantage to forcibly swallow up Tsunan Town before Konoha's reinforcements arrived. How could you possibly not fail?!"

"What did you say?!"

The Kaguya Clan Jonin glared furiously at Hozuki Mangetsu.

"I said you're a bunch of brainless idiots!"

Mangetsu did not yield an inch. His mocking tone made the already oppressive atmosphere inside the tent sink even lower.

For certain battle clans with simple minds and strong limbs, such words were undoubtedly pouring oil on the fire.

"You're courting death! You little brat from the Hozuki Clan..."

"Enough!"

Karatachi Yagura, standing at the head of the tent, was not particularly tall and even wore a baby face, looking exceptionally young. Yet he coldly shouted and forcibly stopped the internal conflict that was about to erupt.

"This time, it was indeed our mistake. Our misjudgment of the situation and intelligence not only rendered ANBU First Squad's achievements meaningless, but also led to a defeat and enormous losses."

"But now is not the time to shirk responsibility. If all of you keep dwelling on who was right and who was wrong, then there will be no need to fight this war at all. We might as well return directly to the Land of Water!"

At those words, everyone present shut their mouths and said no more.

The Land of Water's conditions were actually quite harsh. Kirigakure was situated on an island surrounded by the sea on all sides, and its resources were so scarce that they rivaled the barren deserts of the Land of Wind, where one could not even find a single hair!

All they had left was fishing.

And under the Blood Mist's high-pressure environment, what kind of fishing or aquaculture industry could Kirigakure possibly develop?

Only war, only invasion, only seizing this opportunity while Konoha was weakened after its fierce battles against the other three great nations!

That was Kirigakure's only chance to come ashore!

"Jiraiya's appearance has greatly boosted Konoha's morale, but that is not a major problem."

"Although Sunagakure has surrendered, the Iwagakure Battlefield has not yet ended, and Kumogakure's army still remains along the border. Those two sides will greatly help us tie down Konoha's forces."

Yagura swept his gaze around the room and said in a grave voice, "Although there was an error due to faulty intelligence, as long as the Seven Ninja Swordsmen return to the fold, along with the main force arriving around tomorrow, the advantage in this war will still be ours!"

Konoha's current forces had been split into three, with each battlefield requiring a commander to hold it down.

Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, was stationed at the Iwagakure Front, while Shimura Danzō, the Darkness of the Shinobi, guarded the Kumogakure border.

The strongest rising star, the Golden Flash, was still shuttling between the Lightning and Earth battlefields, with no time to spare for the Kirigakure warfront.

Under such circumstances, even with Konoha's abundance of talent, they were stretched rather thin.

As long as the Seven Ninja Swordsmen returned and Kirigakure's main army arrived, Kirigakure would hold an absolute advantage in both elite combat strength and troop numbers.

Even with Jiraiya in Tsunan Town, he could never be a match for Kirigakure!

Hearing Yagura's words, the expressions of those in the command tent finally eased, and confidence returned to their eyes.

Only Hozuki Mangetsu's expression remained dark and icy.

The moment he had brought back the intelligence, he had requested reinforcements, only to be dismissed as fabricating military information.

"Jiraiya and the Konoha Jonin Corps? What kind of joke is that? The intelligence says they only just left the Iwagakure Battlefield. Stop making trouble here!"

Helpless, Mangetsu could only set out with Yurui and the others. But by the time they arrived, there was no trace of Jiraiya or Yoru anywhere.

A day had now passed. Jiraiya had even appeared on the main battlefield, yet Yoru was still nowhere to be found...

"Urgent! Urgent battle report!"

Suddenly, a Kirigakure Ninja rushed into the tent, his expression panicked and terrified.

Yagura's face darkened. "Calm down. What happened?"

The Kirigakure Ninja took several deep breaths. Though a pale mask concealed his face, everyone present could still sense his panic and helplessness.

"The scouts report that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen encountered an unknown Konoha powerhouse deep within the Land of Fire and suffered heavy losses. Lords Pipa Juzo, Suikazan Fuguki, and Raiga Kurosuki were severely wounded and rescued by Lord Yoru. They are currently recuperating near Kumamoto Prefecture."

"Konoha has also learned of this, and its elite forces are advancing toward Kumamoto Prefecture!"

"What?!"

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone present was shaken, staring at the Kirigakure Ninja in disbelief.

The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, in whom they had taken such pride—had they gone silent after entering the Land of Fire because they had encountered a Konoha powerhouse?

And now Konoha was even going to surround and wipe them out?!

"Wait!"

Yagura spoke in a low voice. "Pipa Juzo, Suikazan Fuguki, Raiga Kurosuki... what about the other four?"

"This..."

The Kirigakure Ninja let out a sigh. "Judging from the intelligence intercepted from Konoha, the other four Ninja Swordsmen... have likely all..."

"Died in battle."