The Nightmare Begins

The Hidden Sand had slowed its offensive over the past two days. After all, the reckless, suicidal assaults they had launched on the front lines in recent days had resulted in losses far more severe than those suffered by Konoha. The death of Dosa, a disciple of the Third Kazekage, had also dealt a heavy blow to the Hidden Sand's morale, leaving their troops in desperate need of rest. Just as the Hidden Sand's momentum faltered, Konoha suddenly launched a counterattack, forcing the Hidden Sand to mobilize their troops to meet them.

Yellow sand whipped up by the gale drifted through the air as the two sides stood in a tense standoff amidst the scorching desert. The Hidden Sand had deployed 8,000 men today, and Konoha's numbers were roughly the same; the formation looked quite spectacular.

As soon as the battle began, the ninjutsu specialists on both sides unleashed a barrage of mid-to-long-range techniques. With dozens or even hundreds of people using the same jutsu simultaneously, the effect was staggering. The battlefield roared with constant thunder as fire, wind, lightning, earth, and even water-style chakra collided violently, erupting in brilliant displays of light. Great waves of chakra released ferocious, overwhelming power across the field, mercilessly swallowing the tiny figures of the men below.

Konoha's ninjutsu combat strength was formidable, and they naturally held the upper hand in the exchange. Once both sides had exhausted most of their chakra, the ninjutsu squads retreated, and the medical teams braved the danger of incoming attacks to rush forward and rescue their wounded comrades.

"Kill them! Everyone, charge!" At the wave of the Konoha captains' arms, the ninjas who had been waiting in the rear shouted and surged forward. The two sides quickly became embroiled in close-quarters combat. The Konoha ninjas attacked with extreme ferocity, as if everyone had been bottling up a breath of rage that could only be vented upon the Hidden Sand.

"Lightning Style: Earth Flash!" A Konoha ninja slammed his palm onto the ground, sending electricity racing across the sand toward the enemy. Three Hidden Sand ninjas were struck by the arc, collapsing to the ground in paralysis.

Another Konoha ninja immediately drew a kunai and rushed forward to stab each of them twice. Blood began to pour uncontrollably from the wounds, and the three men wailed in agony. Yet, he didn't deliver the killing blow, choosing instead to move on to a new target and continue his assault.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" A massive fireball swept through, leaving the Hidden Sand ninjas jumping and scrambling to avoid the flames. "Good! Two severely wounded." The Konoha ninja nodded, satisfied with the effect of his jutsu, and turned to attack other targets.

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio also joined the fray. Still harboring deep resentment over Dan Kato's injury, they unleashed a storm of violence upon the Hidden Sand ninjas.

"Shadow Stitching!" Shikaku performed the hand seals, and a dozen shadows instantly pierced through a squad of Hidden Sand ninjas. Each shadow struck with surgical precision at an artery before Shikaku released the technique. He left the dozen men to clutch their bleeding wounds, writhing and wailing on the sandy ground.

"Partial Multi-Size Technique!" Choza's palm grew to a massive size, and with a single slap, he sent several men flying like swatting flies.

"Choza, take it easy! Don't use too much force and kill them all!" Inoichi cautioned from the side.

"Oh! Right!" Choza nodded, switching to flicking them with his fingers. "Pop! Pop! Pop!" He sent the Hidden Sand ninjas, who had been immobilized by Shikaku, flying one by one like glass marbles. The ninjas sent flying certainly didn't die, but they were left with broken bones throughout their bodies...

Similar scenes were playing out all across the battlefield.

When Hidden Sand ninjas were crippled by ninjutsu, the Konoha forces didn't rush in to finish them off; instead, they allowed the enemy's comrades to carry the wounded away. Konoha ninjas used specially crafted kunai to inflict clean, rapid wounds, causing the Hidden Sand soldiers to collapse as blood gushed from their bodies like fountains. Konoha ignored these wounded enemies and continued to attack the next target. They even disregarded the Hidden Sand's medical personnel, allowing them to move freely across the battlefield to treat and transport the injured.

It was only then that the Hidden Sand realized something was wrong. Within an hour, out of the 8,000-strong Hidden Sand force, over 800 had been wounded, while only 20 had been killed—most of the casualties were simply losing their ability to fight due to excessive blood loss.

These 800-plus wounded were immediately transported to the rear medical station by another 800 men. This sudden reduction in combatants by one-fifth left the Hidden Sand at a disadvantage, and the now-outnumbered force faced an even fiercer assault from Konoha. Over the course of the morning, another 700 Hidden Sand soldiers were wounded.

The Hidden Sand commander finally sensed the disaster and ordered a retreat. By then, over 1,500 Hidden Sand soldiers had been wounded and rushed to the medical station.

Chiyo was in her sand-hut, studying a map.

"Sister, it's a disaster!" Ebizo, usually composed, burst into Chiyo's room, his face etched with panic.

"What happened?" Chiyo was stunned; her brother rarely lost his composure like this.

"Sister, hurry to the medical station! If we're late, it'll be too late—the medical station is on the verge of collapse!" Ebizo said, pulling Chiyo along as they ran toward the station.

When Chiyo arrived, she was dumbfounded. The entire medical station was bursting at the seams. Not only were the beds and chairs filled with the wounded, but people were lying in the hallways and even the doctors' offices. The injured ninjas were packed all the way out to the front gate. A massive number of casualties lay in the open space, their screams and wails filling the air. Even the vast courtyard was completely filled, and a faint, metallic scent of blood permeated the atmosphere.

"Doctor! Doctor, come quickly! My comrade won't stop bleeding!" one ninja shouted, desperate for help.

"My leg is broken, please save me!" another screamed in agony.

"My comrade has severe burns! Someone, help!" another yelled. The entire area was a cacophony of shouting and noise, as if everyone were competing to see who could scream the loudest.

"Let go of me! I need to see the next patient!" a medical worker pushed away the several ninjas clinging to him.

"Doctor! See mine first!" "No, I was here first!" "Stop arguing! My brother's wounds are the worst! Doctor, please, look at my brother!" "Doctor, the wound on my leg won't stop bleeding!"... Several ninjas fought over a single doctor, quickly devolving into a shoving match.

"One at a time! Maintain order!" Chiyo immediately rushed forward to separate them. When they saw it was their commander, Chiyo, they dared not act out further and quickly backed away.

"Go treat the next patient! Prioritize the most severe injuries!" Chiyo ordered the doctor.

"Yes, Lady Chiyo!" The doctor hurried away.

Chiyo quickly summoned the person in charge of the medical station, her face dark enough to freeze. "What on earth is going on here?!"

"Lady Chiyo... Konoha's offensive was fierce today, but for some reason, they only wounded our men without killing them, and they let us carry them back for treatment. In just one morning, we've had 1,500 wounded. The Konoha forces are also using a new type of kunai; if you're grazed, the wound festers, and if you're stabbed, you bleed uncontrollably. It's incredibly difficult to stop the bleeding or stitch the wounds." The person in charge looked miserable as he handed a Tri-blade Kunai to Chiyo.

The medical ninjas were utterly overwhelmed. The station had been packed for hours, and they were all spinning in circles. Everyone had a mountain of problems to solve, and they were completely at their wits' end.

Chiyo examined the dagger carefully and sniffed it. "It's poisoned. The toxin causes wounds to fester rapidly, though this poison isn't hard to neutralize. Once this kunai stabs someone, the wound is triangular, causing rapid blood loss, and it's very difficult to stitch. The people of Konoha are truly insidious!"

"Yes, most of the wounded here were injured by these kunai," the person in charge nodded hurriedly.

"Have someone prepare the antidote, and tell the medical team to use more Hemostasis Jutsu," Chiyo decided, issuing her orders.

"That... Lady Chiyo, the medical team has no chakra left. There were too many wounded, and they exhausted their reserves while providing emergency care on the battlefield."

"What?! Then use hemostatic bandages, gauze, and coagulants! These are the materials needed for the antidote—find someone to prepare it immediately!" Chiyo was incensed.

"Yes! I'll go right now!" The official scurried away, looking dejected.

Chiyo began treating the wounded herself. She had barely treated a few when dozens more arrived, waiting for care. She didn't even have a moment to catch her breath.

Just then, a Hidden Sand ninja ran over in a panic. "Report! Lady Chiyo, our stock of blood bags is running low!"

"What? Notify the main supply depot and have them send more blood bags!" Chiyo was furious. Why was everything in short supply, and why were problems popping up everywhere?

"Yes, My Lady!" The ninja left.

Chiyo treated another person and was about to exhale when another ninja ran up and knelt before her. "Report! Lady Chiyo, we don't have enough materials for the antidote; we can only prepare 300 doses!"

"What are you people doing? Go to the main supply depot and get more!" Chiyo's order was laced with helplessness.

"Yes, My Lady!" The ninja hurried away.

No sooner had he left than a third ninja ran over, breathless. "Report! Lady Chiyo, the medical station has run out of gauze! What should we do?"

"..." Chiyo was rendered speechless.

Chiyo spent the entire afternoon personally treating the wounded. Looking at the thousands of people still lying on the open ground, she felt a chill run down her spine. The wounded wailed in agony, and the Medical Station was shrouded in a bleak and miserable atmosphere.

Due to the lack of timely treatment, over 40 Hidden Sand shinobi had died on the battlefield, while more than 280 had perished within the Medical Station, and the death toll continued to climb. It was only after blood plasma arrived from the supply depot and the antidote was produced that the situation finally began to improve.

"Sister, the people of Konoha are truly despicable and treacherous; they are actually using our own tactics against us! They have inflicted heavy casualties on our combat personnel to deplete our vital strength. At the same time, they are consuming our supplies, eventually dragging down Hidden Sand's logistics and medical capabilities. Damn it! The enemy will likely ambush the transport teams!" Ebizo was furious. He had thought Hidden Sand was ruthless enough, but he hadn't expected Konoha to be even more so. This was a tactic they had pioneered, and now Konoha was using it to slap them in the face.

Chiyo looked at the chaotic hospital and sighed, "Sigh, they might be doing exactly that right now..."

Chiyo's words proved to be true; a Konoha harassment squad was currently raiding the transport teams in the desert.

Just a moment ago, a Konoha ninja had used a Water Style jutsu to create a patch of temporary quicksand beneath the desert floor, causing a Hidden Sand transport vehicle to sink into the sand by accident. The entire transport team was forced to halt, and the ninjas scrambled desperately to dig out the vehicle; they couldn't just abandon a truck full of supplies like that. It took them two full hours of effort to finally pry the vehicle loose.

Unfortunately, the nightmare had only just begun. Immediately afterward, the Hidden Sand transport team encountered a relentless series of traps set by Konoha. Either someone would trigger a mechanism and get injured by flying kunai, or several Explosive Tags buried along the road would suddenly detonate, blowing a vehicle to pieces. Some even stepped into pits filled with sharp, pointed spikes.

What was even more maddening was the endless "sparrow harassment" from the Konoha ninjas. One moment, a Konoha ninja would suddenly appear via Body Flicker, throw a kunai rigged with a string of Explosive Tags to destroy a vehicle, and immediately escape underground using Earth Style.

Over there, another Konoha ninja would jump out and use an Earth Style jutsu, causing Earth Spears to sprout from the ground and ruin the tires of two more trucks before vanishing in the blink of an eye.

From time to time, a ninja would even charge out to assassinate the transport personnel. Whether they succeeded or not, they would immediately turn into a puff of white smoke; the Konoha ninjas were all using Shadow Clones, refusing to engage in a direct confrontation.

The Hidden Sand transport team had only traveled 10 kilometers, yet they had been attacked over a dozen times. With the constant stopping and starting, the captain of the transport team was on the verge of a breakdown.

The harassment intensified at night. Inside a hidden tent deep in the desert, a dozen Konoha ninjas were resting. Three Konoha ninjas walked in, identified themselves to the sentry, and found places to sleep.

At the same time, three other ninjas were woken up by their companions: "Time to get to work!"

The Konoha ninjas, well-rested, stretched their limbs. "Finally our turn. You all get some good rest. We'll take turns! We're going to wear these guys out!" After saying this, the three ninjas walked out of the tent and disappeared into the desert.

Immediately afterward, the Hidden Sand transport camp was raided, much to the misery of the Hidden Sand ninjas.

"Clang, clang, clang, clang!" Someone was banging on drums and shouting, waking everyone up. Elsewhere, the Konoha operatives suddenly appeared and set a fire. On this side, a kunai with an Explosive Tag was tossed into the camp; on that side, a small Fire Style jutsu ignited a tent. By the time the Hidden Sand ninjas gave chase, the Konoha operatives were long gone, or they simply used Shadow Clones to stall them.

Sometimes, the Konoha ninjas would throw a Flashbang, and the Hidden Sand ninjas would rush out on high alert, only to wait for a long time with nothing happening. Just as the Hidden Sand ninjas relaxed their guard and went back to sleep, the Konoha harassment squad would suddenly appear and assassinate several guards...

In short, Konoha's plan was to ensure the entire Hidden Sand convoy had no peace for the whole night. When the Hidden Sand ninjas rose in the morning, everyone had dark circles under their eyes. They didn't know how many enemies there were, where they were, or what the situation was, yet they themselves had been driven to exhaustion.

A full day passed, and the transport team had only covered 18 kilometers—slower than an average person walking.

Upon learning the news about the transport team, Chiyo was burning with anxiety.

"Sister, Konoha is trying to drive us to our deaths!" Even the usually calculating Ebizo was feeling depressed.

"Notify the transport team and tell them to try and travel through the night; they can rest properly once they return!" Chiyo gave this order helplessly.

"Send elite troops to meet the transport team! Order everyone to increase their vigilance!" Ebizo added.

Unfortunately, did Hidden Sand think this was the end? The nightmare had only just begun!