Yamanaka Chujiu returned Shisui's smile, then said softly, "Everyone did well. Rest while you can, then we'll continue forward."
"Remember, you must continue to follow orders strictly. No acting on your own."
"Yes, Lord Yamanaka Chujiu!"
The Konoha ninja gathered around Yamanaka Chujiu, their eyes filled with trust and reverence.
Yuhi Masara, the genjutsu squad captain who had been unconvinced before, now stepped forward of his own accord.
With a respectful and cautious attitude, he asked softly, "Lord Yamanaka Chujiu, was that you before as well?"
Yamanaka Chujiu looked at the Konoha ninja before him and nodded lightly. "It was me."
Other than the three Uchiha, everyone else was a veteran from the Northern Front. They had endured a string of crushing defeats and had also witnessed Yamanaka Chujiu's miraculous command.
Hearing Yamanaka Chujiu admit it, they let out excited, subdued roars. "That's wonderful!"
Their roars were quiet, but their emotions bordered on madness.
Ninja were professionals who lived with blades at their throats. Especially during wartime, they could be killed at any moment.
There was no ninja who did not like a commander capable of leading them to victory.
And a commander like Yamanaka Chujiu, who could not only lead them to victory but also keep them alive—how was he any different from a god who delivered people from suffering?
The Konoha ninja's fervor and near-madness were only natural!
Only the three Uchiha had just been transferred from the Eastern Front and did not know the full situation. The intelligence reports they had heard contained nothing but retreat after retreat.
They had thought the Northern Front was fighting terribly and teetering on the brink of defeat.
Even Uchiha Shisui, who knew Yamanaka Chujiu best, was completely bewildered at the moment, unable to understand why everyone else was so excited.