Anbu Base.
Karatachi Yagura was delighted by Araki and Hozuki Mangetsu's arrival. It had only been half a day since Mangetsu had decided to sign the summoning contract.
"Did it work?"
Excitement flickered beneath his purplish-red eyes.
He had racked his brains over how to cover the Seven Ninja Swordsmen's successful retreat from the Land of Fire. The best solution he could think of was using the Giant Clam's steam-based genjutsu. If that failed, they might have to trade Anbu lives for the swordsmen's.
Judging by the actual outcome, such an exchange might not have been worthwhile, but at least it would not look like a loss on the surface.
After all, no one truly knew how much strength each nation's Anbu possessed. They were a black box, and no one could use them to gauge Mist Village's true capabilities.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen were different. They stood in plain sight as Kirigakure's face and calling card. If they suffered heavy losses in the Land of Fire, everyone would assume Kirigakure had entered a period of weakness and begin questioning its strength.
This kind of exchange was nothing more than swallowing broken teeth and puffing up a bruised face to save appearances.
Yet they had no choice but to keep up those appearances. At the end of the day, the Shinobi World still followed the law of the jungle.
Only by showing strength could they earn others' attention, respect, and even fear.
Otherwise, later on, both Kirigakure and Sunagakure would be equally poor and weak, so why did everyone think Sunagakure was easier to bully?
Wasn't it because the lingering dread of the Bloody Mist and its unfathomable mystery were still at work?
Compared to Sunagakure's poverty, which anyone could see at a glance, Kirigakure, hidden behind layers of mist,