By the time they returned to headquarters, dawn was already breaking.
They encountered no more enemies along the way. The escorting ninjas brought Akashi and Yimu directly to the medical unit.
After their wounds were briefly treated, the two returned to the camp to rest.
The next day.
All the Konoha ninjas who had survived the battle had returned, including Kudo Yukiyuki and Shingetsu.
According to the frontline reports, eighteen had been killed or wounded, and five were missing—a severe loss indeed.
At the same time, only four Konoha ninjas had been killed or wounded in another skirmish. However, several corpses were too mangled to identify, having been blown to pieces for unknown reasons. It was rather perplexing.
Orochimaru's results, meanwhile, were exceptionally impressive.
In a single night, he defeated the force led by Pakura. Apart from her and two jonin who escaped, the rest were completely wiped out.
The Sand Ninja's morale suffered a crushing blow, and their front line retreated.
The Konoha forces pressed their advantage and pursued them.
Given the severity of his injuries, Akashi was not assigned any tasks and remained on standby in the camp.
The same went for Shingetsu.
At noon, Akashi gnawed on a rice ball as he gazed into the distance. Suddenly, he heard familiar footsteps approaching from behind. The other person stepped over a supply crate and sat down beside him.
A skewer of grilled fish was held out before him.
A rare hint of gentleness appeared on Shingetsu's lovely face.
"Thanks for this time."
"What do you mean?" Akashi looked confused.
"If it hadn't been for what you taught me, I might not have made it back yesterday."
Shingetsu gave him a brief account.
After they had split up, she had also been caught by enemies. Fortunately, she had used