The Land of Hot Water's Small Town

Xing Ran's guess was just one of many possibilities. Subjectively, he still hoped for peace, as it would give him more time to consider his own issues. However, passively accepting never suited his style. Since the enemy might make further moves, Xing Ran, as a Medical Ninja, needed to make more preparations as soon as possible, with replenishing medicines being the priority.

In his past life, he had watched the anime with a god's-eye view. Xing Ran didn't have much information about this period of history. Normally, the war would have gradually weakened the Land of Lightning, leading to peace talks as local conflicts became smaller in scale.

This was Xing Ran's long-held view of the Third Shinobi World War, and what he had always hoped for. But the reason Murphy's Law is so insidious is that things tend to develop in the direction one least wants to see.

The two Yugitos had arrived at the frontline command post within the Land of Hot Water. Looking at the deployment map of the Konoha encampment reported this time, a proud, queen-like sneer appeared on her lips. Although it wasn't mentioned in the previous meeting, she knew that once the operation began, there would only be one chance to inflict significant losses on Konoha. After that, Konoha would surely strictly guard against Cloud Ninja attacks and might even counterattack.

However, those were matters for later. As long as they succeeded in one fell swoop, Konoha wouldn't have the strength to counterattack afterward. If they failed, there would be nothing to consider; she would definitely be replaced, and it would be up to her successor to think about it.

"You all did very well this time. I will report your achievements truthfully to Lord Raiden. You may go and rest." Yugito was very happy internally, but her authority as a superior was undiminished. Even when speaking to subordinates who had just earned merit, her tone was very calm.

After dismissing the three leading Jonin, Yugito began to consider troop deployment based on the intelligence at hand. Through this attack, the architectural divisions of the three Konoha encampments were almost identical. Combined with past experience and intelligence, she could basically confirm that the internal layout style of the Konoha encampments hadn't changed much. After confirming the locations of the armory and intelligence liaison office, she had a general idea of the layouts of the other camps as well. Therefore, by arranging for elites to deal with the intelligence liaison department first, they could delay Konoha's actions. Without real-time intelligence, the reinforcement troops' actions wouldn't be as decisive. This time difference could be exploited for either surrounding and attacking reinforcements or defeating them one by one.

The Land of Hot Water, located northeast of the Land of Fire, boasts beautiful scenery and abundant hot spring resources, along with a long coastline, making it a great place for leisure and vacation.

However, with the outbreak of war, small countries have always been battlegrounds for larger nations. The Land of Rain is like this, and the Land of Hot Water is no different.

The Land of Hot Water has its own ninja village, called Yugakure, later known as the "Ninja Village That Forgot War." After the war, the originally "combat ninja village" of Yugakure gradually declined. Although the war hasn't completely ended, this village that forgot war seems to have shown signs of this long ago.

Because the ninja village itself lacked strong combat power, and the vast majority of its ninjas, including the leader, had little motivation for war, the Land of Hot Water now only controls a small portion of its territory, including the Daimyo's Mansion (the capital).

If it weren't for the Land of Fire's lack of desire to seize territory, and the Land of Lightning's occupation zone bordering the Land of Fire, leading to mutual interference and localized wars between the two nations for various reasons, the Land of Hot Water would likely have been destroyed.

However, even with these two great nations fighting on their land, the Land of Hot Water would still distinguish between good and bad. The Land of Fire, in both its objectives and actions, has always been in a position that benefits the Land of Hot Water, thus they are very friendly towards the Land of Fire.

The Land of Fire is now laying the foundation for bringing the Land of Hot Water into their alliance in the future. In the eyes of Konoha's high command, this is preparation for establishing a buffer zone after the war. But for Xing Ran, this is the best place for nearby resupply.

Although the Land of Hot Water couldn't openly support Konoha nearby, the shops in their cities had to do business. The Cloud Ninja are invaders, and entering the city is problematic. However, Konoha has friendly diplomatic relations, so he could enter the city to buy things without issue, and bulk purchases would get better prices.

It must be said that sometimes, problems with one's own supply lines are not the sole reason for a lack of victory in battle; external factors are also very important. The resource replenishment Konoha received covertly in the Land of Hot Water could accelerate the trend of their diminishing strength and the enemy's growing strength, making it understandable why the Land of Lightning couldn't achieve victory.

Xing Ran and his group took a slight detour, but due to his speed, it only took half a day to reach the border town closest to the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Fire.

Wenton Town was originally a tourist hub, mainly receiving guests from the Land of Fire. Although it was somewhat desolate due to the war, it hadn't been directly affected, and people's lives were relatively stable.

Many shops along the street were closed, but quite a few were still open. Overall, apart from the tourism industry taking a huge hit, the market prices for food and medicine were actually much better than before.

As Xing Ran walked through the market street, merchants saw the Konoha headband he wore around his neck and would show him fawning smiles.

Ninja from Konoha were often big spenders, with high purchasing power and strong political awareness, meaning they wouldn't resort to forceful acquisition. They were the best patrons, no, trading partners.

Xing Ran's main purpose this time was to purchase medicines. Of course, since he had come all the way to the Land of Hot Water, enjoying a hot spring was also essential.

He had come here with Might Guy and the others in the morning. Might Guy's Squad was urgently tasked with transporting a batch of supplies back to the recently destroyed encampment. After Xing Ran explained that he needed to purchase some medicines, he left alone. Might Guy even reminded Xing Ran to remember to get a receipt, which was hard to imagine for someone like Might Guy.

Medicines could be reimbursed by the village, but there were limits. He couldn't buy too much or too expensive items. Might Guy couldn't explain the specific requirements clearly, but Xing Ran figured it wouldn't be fully reimbursed anyway. Xing Ran didn't care; it was just a matter of taking a few more gambles.

Besides this, Xing Ran also learned about the store in front of him, Wenton Grand Pharmacy. This pharmacy had a complex relationship with Konoha. It couldn't be considered a spy, but it was definitely a trustworthy partner.

The shopkeeper was very enthusiastic. As soon as he saw Xing Ran's Konoha headband, he knew what to do. The quoted prices for medicines were similar to those in Konoha Village. Xing Ran handed the shopkeeper a prepared list and paid the full amount upfront. This was impossible because many precious medicinal ingredients were needed, and the shopkeeper would need some time to retrieve them from the warehouse. Xing Ran paid a deposit of 50,000 Ryo and then set out to find a casino.