Just as Uesugi Shinji and Might Duy's battle came to an end, the fighting on Terumi Mei's side had also concluded.
She and Rin had ultimately overpowered the Ino-Shika-Cho team. Akimichi Tōshi and Yamanaka Santen had both been killed on the spot, while Nara Suzaku had survived thanks to the two others' desperate efforts to protect him.
Nara Suzaku wasn't someone who feared death, but his two partners had sacrificed themselves to save his life because they believed he was capable of organizing the remaining Konoha Ninja and leading their retreat.
For shinobi like them, who took death in stride and valued the bonds between comrades even more, dying on the battlefield was sometimes a release. The one who survived was the one who needed greater courage!
Nara Suzaku forced down his grief and the urge to fight to the death, shouldering his responsibility as acting commander and immediately organizing the Konoha Ninja's retreat. Thanks to his efforts, Konoha's forces weren't completely wiped out; roughly three tenths of their shinobi escaped the battlefield.
This ambush, initiated by Kirigakure, ended in a crushing defeat for Konoha. Though Kirigakure had also suffered considerable losses, they had achieved two strategic objectives.
First, they had eliminated what little fighting force Konoha Village still had available to deploy freely. Second, they had completed the secret mission assigned by the Fourth Mizukage: capturing their target, Nohara Rin, alive.
What made Uesugi Shinji wary, however, was that the Uchiha Clan boy he had sealed with Ice Release had disappeared without a trace. After the battle, he searched the entire battlefield but still couldn't find him.
He had been tied up by Might Duy at the time, but he had never let his guard down or stopped observing his surroundings. Aside from a few Konoha boys who had