Burning Their Boats, Tsunade the Unreliable

Kazekage's Office.

Rasa's eyes were tightly closed, but the movement of his eyelids revealed that he was not at peace either.

Sunagakure is currently facing a severe shortage of manpower, not only in ordinary chunin Genin, but also in Jonin- level combatants.

Fortunately, Konoha had no intention of invading the Land of Wind, so he was able to transfer some ninjas from the front lines back to the village for emergency relief.

But damned Mist Village, they're digging up the roots of Sunagakure!

Just as Rasa was becoming increasingly agitated, there was another knock on the office door.

"Knock knock knock"

His eyes snapped open, revealing a chilling rage.

But before he could speak, the door was opened.

Upon recognizing the people who entered, Rasa immediately composed himself and said in as gentle a tone as possible, "What brings you two here? Didn't you just return and rest for a few days?"

"If we keep resting, we'll be attacked at our doorstep soon."

The visitors were Chiyo and Ebizo.

Chiyo, the Chiyo sister, Earth Flow ahead and arrived in front of Rasa in just a few steps.

His younger brother, Ebizo, however, walked at a leisurely pace, taking small steps yet keeping up closely behind.

Rasa's face showed a rare hint of embarrassment. Ultimately, he bore a great deal of responsibility for the current situation in Sunagakure.

"Don't make that face. Be prepared to pay the price for every decision you make; that's a skill a leader should have."

Chiyo showed no mercy to Rasa, and now was not the time to talk about saving face.

"The Mist Village has already launched an attack on us, but now the most crucial factor is not the Mist Village."

Rasa was puzzled. Even though Mist Village had infiltrated the Land of Wind, weren't they the most crucial element?

As if she could read Rasa's mind, Chiyo didn't mince words and gave the answer directly.

"No matter how much Mist Village jumps around, as long as we send troops to resist, they won't be able to penetrate the Land of Land of Wind. But Konoha is different. If they also invade the Land of Wind at this time, we simply won't be able to resist."

At this moment, cold sweat poured down Rasa's back. His long period of restraint in Konoha had almost made him forget that this was not a docile sheep, but a hungry wolf that would eat people.

"With two fronts to fight, can the village still spare any ninjas?"

"Foolish! Why are you still thinking about fighting at a time like this? You're the Kazekage, not a hothead. You should admit defeat when it's time to do so."

Rasa stared wide-eyed at Chiyo in shock, his finger involuntarily pointing at Chiyo, trembling. He was speechless for a long time. If the person who said this hadn't been Elder Chiyo, Rasa would have definitely assumed that this person had ulterior motives.

Is this the only way?

After a long silence, Rasa finally managed to utter a single sentence.

Chiyo breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Rasa was softening his stance. She was afraid that Rasa had suffered too many losses at the hands of Konoha and would stubbornly refuse to budge, which would be a real problem, since he was now the true Kazekage.

Now that the most difficult hurdle has been overcome, it's time to see how their assistants perform.

"That's the worst-case scenario, but it's not like we can't try."

Rasa finally understood why so many people dislike people who talk in a slow, drawn-out manner. One moment you feel like you're in hell, and the next you're back on earth. No one would feel good about that.

He clenched and unclenched his fists repeatedly, several times, under the cover of his Mizukage Haori, before finally calming himself down.

"Please enlighten me Elder Chiyo."

"Konoha is not having an easy time either. We have to face Mist Village, and they have to face Iwagakure and Cloud Village. I guess they are also eager to end the state of war with us so that they can transfer their troops to other battlefields as soon as possible."

However, before that, they will definitely launch a probing attack to gain the upper hand at the negotiating table and force us to admit defeat or even pay compensation.

Upon hearing this, Rasa also made a plan in his mind. Although he wanted to stop the war with Konoha, he absolutely could not admit defeat. He had to use war to promote peace, show the determination to First Shinobi World War the death, and force Konoha to make concessions.

Chiyo Rasa's resolute expression, Chiyo knew he understood her intentions, so she stopped rambling and got straight to the point.

"Kazekage, mobilize the entire village! If all the Konoha Ninja Clan are willing to send their elites to resist Mist Village, then the Sunagakure Ninja Clan are no cowards either."

"Alright, convene Jonin Council and mobilize all the ninjas in the village. All the ninjas of my clan will be thrown into this war; it's all or nothing!"

Chiyo and Ebizo exchanged a glance, both impressed by Rasa's courage. Regardless of what he had done before, his willingness to risk his entire family for the village was admirable enough.

The Sunagakure Jonin Council was quickly convened, and the results satisfied Rasa and Chiyo.

When everyone realized that this battle would determine the life or death of Sunagakure, especially after learning that the Kazekage had staked his entire clan, they all mustered their last remaining strength, forming a fighting force of up to 2,000 people.

After the team was formed, instead of supporting the East Coast which had been invaded by Mist Village, they headed directly north, heading straight for Konoha's Southern Front.

It was a do-or-die mentality, a determination to achieve their goal at all costs.

While the Mist Village was sharpening its swords and preparing for battle, the Sunagakure were gearing up for war, Taiichi was not idle either.

The next day, the sky was clear and the Camp was fully set up after a day of construction. All that remained were some Defense Barrier that needed careful arrangement.

Taiichi got up very early again. After finishing his morning prayers, he went straight to the Central Army Tent. He wanted to ask Tsunade about Sage Mode.

Good morning, Master Taiichi.

"Lord Taiichi, have you eaten?"

"Master Taiichi, I have a daughter I'd like to meet."

Along the way, familiar and unfamiliar ninjas greeted Taiichi from time to time, and of course, sometimes strange questions were mixed in.

Taiichi responded with a smile, but he could only remain silent when asked to introduce his daughter.

It's not that Taiichi looks down on others, but looking at your 300-pound physique, which surpasses that of an average Akimichi Clan ninja, it's hard to believe that your daughter would be such a stunning beauty.

Ultimately, Taiichi is just an ordinary person. Although he is still young, women still like beauty.

"Taiichi, where are we going?!"

Fugaku, dressed in the traditional clothing of the Uchiha Clan, walked slowly from a distance with his hands tucked into his sleeves, showing no trace of the decisive and efficient person he had been recently.

Knowing there haven't been many battles lately, they've even stopped bothering with their combat uniforms.

"Go to the Central Army Tent and find Teacher Tsunade."

"Then you'll be disappointed. I just came from over there, and I didn't see Lady Tsunade in the tent."

Taiichi was surprised to hear this. He looked up at the sky. It was almost eight o'clock. As the commander-in-chief of the front line, why wasn't he in the Central Command Tent at this time? Was he out inspecting the Camp?

Seeing Taiichi's surprised expression, Fugaku seemed to have found something interesting. He looked around and saw that the nearest people were more than ten steps away, so he sneaked up to Taiichi and whispered in his ear.

"If you're looking for Tsunade, go to the tent where she's resting. She slept in very late yesterday too."

After saying that, he immediately distanced himself, then added solemnly, "Don't tell anyone that I said this to you!"

Taiichi watched Fugaku, who was trying to distance himself from the situation, with amusement. He never expected that the head of the clan would have such an amusing side.

He gave an OK sign, indicating that he wouldn't betray him.

After bidding farewell to Fugaku, Taiichi didn't go directly to Tsunade. Instead, he went to the Central Army Tent to see if there was anything he needed to do.

The Central Army Tent was already bustling with activity, everyone carrying out their usual tasks.

Only the Commander's seat in the middle was currently empty.

Taiichi's arrival naturally attracted everyone's attention, Nara Kaoru was the first to greet him.

"Taiichi, are you here to see Lady Tsunade?" He gave a helpless smile and glanced at the empty seat. "As you can see, Lady Tsunade hasn't arrived yet!"

Taiichi at the dusty main seat, his lips twitching slightly, before staring at Nara Kaoru's dark circles, his face full of sympathy.

"Let me see what tasks I can do. I rested yesterday, so I need to get some things done. We'll see—"

Taiichi turned his head and looked at the bustling scene inside the tent.

You all seem really busy too.

"Well!"

Nara Kaoru was so moved she almost cried. There were still people who understood the plight of the working class like them. Unlike that Fugaku Uchiha, who walked past the Central Army Tent in his everyday clothes without even coming in to greet them.

"Stop talking, it's all just trivial stuff. It's the same every time we re-camp."

"There really aren't any missions these past few days, everyone's pretty free. We'll have some free time after we finish setting up camp, Taiichi, you should take this opportunity to rest as much as possible."

The two chatted for a while longer, and Taiichi realized that Nara Kaoru was also using this opportunity to slack off and temporarily escape his tedious work.

Until everyone else couldn't stand it anymore and roared, "Nara Kaoru, you better come back right now!"

Only then did this guy slowly say goodbye to Taiichi and throw himself back into his work. But as he left, Taiichi could still hear him complaining.

"This is so troublesome! I really want to sleep!"

Amidst the resentful gazes of his advisors, Taiichi left the Central Army Tent a disheveled state; it was inappropriate for him, an idle man, to be there now.

In particular, not only was he idle himself, but he also lured one of their key laborers into being idle as well. This was intolerable to both the uncle and aunt, so it was only natural that he was kicked out.

Taiichi stepped out of his tent, he looked up at the sky and began to understand why Tsunade hadn't come to oversee the Central Army Tent until now.

Sleeping in late is one reason, but the resentful looks in the eyes of these staff officers are probably another.

Laziness is contagious. At this moment, Taiichi was no Taiichi in a hurry. He leisurely strolled to the outside of Tsunade's tent where she was resting. Without even needing to activate his senses, his keen hearing allowed him to hear the even breathing sounds inside the tent.

"So she really is sleeping!"

Taiichi was speechless. What time was it? He still wasn't awake. Had he been drinking again yesterday?

Taiichi didn't bother waking Tsunade; who knew if she was grumpy in the morning? It wouldn't be pleasant if she became his punching bag.

However, he couldn't just do nothing. Taiichi walked around Tsunade's tents in circles. Anyone who didn't know better would think that Taiichi was guarding Tsunade.

Several passing ninjas, witnessing this scene, couldn't help but give Taiichi a thumbs up, praising his filial piety, which made Taiichi feel embarrassed.

One lap.

Two laps.

Five laps.

Taiichi noticed a change in Tsunade's breathing inside the tent.

Ten laps.

Twenty laps.

The breathing inside the tent grew heavier and heavier, but the person remained stubbornly in bed, unwilling to wake up.

Thirty laps.

Forty laps.

"Taichi Matsushita, get in here!"

The roar echoed throughout the camp, drawing surprised glances from all the surrounding ninjas.

What's going on? Just a moment ago it was a heartwarming scene of an apprentice guarding the gate for his master, how did they turn into enemies in the blink of an eye?

Taiichi made an apologetic gesture to the curious glances around him, then straightened his clothes and, with an expression of heroic sacrifice, slipped into Tsunade's tent.

"What's wrong with Taiichi? Did he offend Commander Tsunade in some way?" A young, bewildered ninja looked at the older ninja beside him with a puzzled expression and a thirst for knowledge in his eyes.

"What do you know? That's what you call a deep bond between master and disciple. Only true friends can be so unrestrained and casual."

The older ninja, with the air of someone who had been through it all, lectured the younger ninja on the true meaning of interpersonal relationships.

Taiichi entered Tsunade's tent, immediately enveloped by a strong smell of alcohol. Looking at the bottles scattered all over the floor, he knew exactly what had happened the night before.

At this moment, Tsunade was still in a semi-dazed state. As a top-tier ninja, how could she not know that Taiichi was pacing around outside her tent?

At first, she thought it was just a routine patrol, but as the patrol went around and around, she quickly realized something was wrong.

With a little more careful observation, she immediately knew who was causing her trouble.

I didn't want to pay any attention to it, but who would have thought that this brat would keep pacing around outside like that? That's why I let out a roar without thinking just now.

"Oh! Teacher Tsunade, you've stolen alcohol again! How many times has this happened now?"

Tsunade jolted awake, fully waking up.

Damn it, I was half asleep and let that kid just walk in.

She pretended to be drowsy, sitting up with sleepy eyes, looking as if she hadn't woken up yet, pointing her bare jade arm at Taiichi.

"Who let you in? Get out right now!"

Taiichi's lips twitched, looking at Tsunade speechlessly. It's said that you can never wake someone who is pretending to be asleep. Faced with Tsunade's unreasonable behavior, he could only feel helpless.

Turning away from Tsunade's tent, Taiichi looked up at the azure sky, silently listening to the rustling and clattering sounds coming from the tent behind him. He sighed, thinking that his master could be quite a headache sometimes.

Ten minutes later, the noise inside the tent finally subsided, and Tsunade's voice came from inside again.

Come in!

Taiichi sighed, turned around, and went back into the tent.

The camp was tidied up neatly this time. The beds were made, the clothes were put on, and more importantly, the bottles scattered all over the floor had been cleaned up. Even the smell of alcohol in the camp had been removed by Tsunade using some unknown method.

This is to eliminate evidence of a crime.

Taiichi, seeing this, wisely refrained from Tsunade's drinking again, fearing that Tsunade might become angry and turn the tables on him.

"Speak, what's the matter that you came to see me so early in the morning?" Her tone still revealed her dissatisfaction; the aftereffects of her morning grumpiness hadn't dissipated yet.