War was an incredibly dull affair, and a game of balance.
Only evenly matched sides could wage war. When their strength differed too greatly, it wasn't war—it was slaughter.
The battlefield between Sunagakure and Konoha was now a game of balance. Neither side engaged in major battles; instead, they kept sending out small squads of ninja to probe and hunt each other...
They fed more troops into the fight, and the killing continued...
Casualties were high, but few true Jonin died, especially elite Jonin. Most of the dead were Chunin. As for the Genin, they were just numbers.
Konoha and Sunagakure both exercised restraint. For nearly a full year, there had been no major clashes on the battlefield. Throughout that year, Suifeng had kept testing himself against Pakura.
Whenever Pakura appeared before a Konoha squad, Suifeng would show up. Once he did, Pakura had no choice but to face him. If she didn't hold Suifeng back, she could inflict casualties on the Konoha squad, but her own squad would suffer as well.
In the end, Pakura and Suifeng both began operating alone. They had several one-on-one fights on the battlefield, but neither could get the better of the other. A new balance had emerged.
Thanks to Suifeng's success in holding off Pakura, the name of Konoha Anbu operative Chrollo began spreading across the battlefield. He had become a renowned strong fighter, though his reputation wasn't exactly flattering...
But Suifeng wasn't satisfied.
It wasn't that he disliked his reputation. He was dissatisfied with his strength.
Over the past year, he had turned ten. Three months ago, Orochimaru had even arranged for his rank to be changed to Special Jonin, but he still hadn't reached Kage Level.
His Strength Enhancement Technique had improved by leaps and bounds. The progress was obvious, yet