The Nightmare Continues

The Sunagakure Medical Station was desperately waiting for the supply convoy, but the convoy reported that it would arrive two days late. Once word got out, the entire medical station erupted in complaints. Many wounded men gave up on treatment in despair and died.

The death toll at the medical station had already surpassed five hundred. Now the logistical convoy was in trouble too, pushing the station to the brink of collapse.

And that night, the true nightmare descended upon the Sunagakure forces...

Silver hair tousled above a white short blade strapped to his back. Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang of the Leaf, led an assassination squad into the Hidden Sand camp under cover of darkness. They were like ghosts in the night, arriving without a sound.

The assassination squad crept along a wall toward a row of Sunagakure barracks. Sakumo gave a slight wave of his hand, and two of his men slipped silently into a room with their blades drawn. A short while later, they quietly withdrew as though nothing had happened. But the fresh blood dripping from their blades told the truth: everyone inside was dead.

The Konoha assassination squad had struck successfully. The White Fang had confirmed that ordinary Hidden Sand ninja were lax in guarding against surprise attacks. He used hand signals to assign each person a target, then waved again. The squad immediately scattered and vanished into the night, as if they had never been there.

The White Fang personally hunted down a mid-ranking commander in the Sunagakure forces. Hanging upside down from the ceiling, he watched his prey on the bed with cold eyes. He reached behind him and slowly drew his short blade. Its white edge glimmered faintly, and the temperature around him seemed to drop several degrees. The man sleeping in the bed noticed nothing.

Suddenly, Sakumo vanished from where he stood. The next moment, he was at the doorway, slowly sliding his blade back into its sheath. Not a drop of blood stained the White Fang's blade, but blood was spreading across the bedding, soaking the entire blanket red...

When the White Fang stepped outside, his squad had already regrouped. A line of dark figures was concealed in the shadows of the sand-built huts. The mission was complete; it was time to retreat.

The White Fang melted into the shadows, and the assassination squad vanished with him. They came and went without a trace, impossible to detect. Only the faint smell of blood in the air proved they had ever been there...

As planned, the White Fang and his men targeted the enemy's lower- and mid-ranking officers. In one night, they killed seventeen squad leaders and three company commanders. Sunagakure had lost so many officers at once that Ebizo had no choice but to promote replacements. At first, those promoted were pleased. After all, a higher rank meant better treatment.

But the next day, the White Fang and his squad killed another twelve squad leaders. Then came the third day...

Ebizo was at his wit's end. Even if he wanted to promote more people, nobody was willing to become an officer anymore. The assassination squad killed only officers, and some even asked to be demoted, hoping to return to being ordinary ninja. Ebizo could only laugh bitterly. Worse still, all the new replacements were inexperienced rookies with practically no command experience. The situation was deeply worrying.

Sunagakure quickly took countermeasures, strengthening protection for its lower- and mid-ranking officers. On the Konoha command center's advice, the squad led by the White Fang abruptly changed targets. They began killing ordinary ninja instead—one from each group of Sunagakure ninja sleeping together.

In one night, the White Fang's squad visited more than twenty Sunagakure barracks. The next morning, many woke to find the comrade beside them had become a blood-soaked corpse. Their fear was beyond measure, and it spread rapidly through the Sunagakure forces.

In truth, the White Fang's squad had not killed many people. Compared with the casualties on the main battlefield, their numbers were insignificant. But the psychological terror caused by the "White Fang of the Leaf" and the "Death God of the Night" made everyone blanch at the names. No one wanted to die in their sleep without knowing what had happened.

As the assassinations continued, some Sunagakure ninja even felt relieved when they discovered that it was their comrade who had been killed. The White Fang had not chosen them. The Hidden Sand ninja spent every night on edge, waking from nightmares in a panic. They were jumpy during the day too, their faces growing haggard and drained.

The medical station's inability to help left them dissatisfied, angry, and despairing. The convoy's delays and dwindling supplies brought them close to breaking. The White Fang's assassinations filled them with fear and panic, leaving them afraid to sleep at night. Blow after blow drove down morale among the Hidden Sand. The ninja had no heart for battle; some had already deserted, while others had gone mad under the pressure.

Then Konoha and Sunagakure clashed in their second major battle. The Sunagakure ninja had learned their lesson and fought desperately to protect themselves and avoid injury. Even so, more than nine hundred were killed or wounded. With the Hidden Sand focused on defense, Konoha's casualties dropped considerably. Konoha pressed its advantage, forcing Sunagakure to retreat twenty kilometers before it could steady its lines.

The front had suffered one defeat after another this month, and Sunagakure had already retreated more than 120 kilometers. Konoha's forces had advanced more than 200 kilometers into the heart of the Land of Wind. Morale among the Hidden Sand was abysmal, and fear and pessimism filled its camp. The ninja were on the verge of madness from terror and despair.

The Sunagakure ninja were dispirited, listless, tense, and irritable. Every little sound set them on edge; they had grown so jumpy that even the slightest rustle made them panic. They all had sallow faces, dark circles under their eyes, and bloodshot eyes. Anyone who didn't know better would think Sunagakure had somehow produced a whole bunch of Shukaku Jinchuriki. Little Gaara certainly wouldn't have to worry about being the odd one out here.

During the day, the Hidden Sand ninja struggled to stay alive against Konoha's fierce attacks, terrified that one wrong move would get them wounded by a Konoha ninja, only to die screaming at the medical station. At night, they took turns standing watch as they slept; otherwise, they might find a corpse in their tent the next morning. Some had even started sleeping during the day and staying up at night.

Even so, after discussions at the Konoha command center, the White Fang changed his strategy once more and began directly assassinating the ninja on watch. The decision meant that when the Hidden Sand ninja heard they had to stand watch at night, they started wailing and pleading as if they were facing execution. At least those on the execution block knew when they would die. Those standing watch had no idea...

In short, every Hidden Sand ninja feared for their life. It felt as if no one in the camp was safe. When they learned that the supply convoy was late yet again and that it had brought considerably fewer supplies, even their last shred of hope vanished.

Perhaps all they could do was hope Sunagakure would surrender soon and bring the war to an end...

Chiyo was treating the wounded, a medicine bottle in her hand. A month of relentless work had left her haggard, as though she had aged ten years overnight.

"Lady Chiyo, the person in charge of the central supply depot sent me to tell you that the blood plasma is completely gone! We only have enough medicine for a thousand people left." A messenger ninja knelt before Chiyo, trembling all over.

"What? Even the central supply depot has run out of supplies?! That's half of Sunagakure's supplies!" Chiyo turned around, her face full of shock.

"More than 4,600 people have been wounded these past few days, most of them from blood loss. We've already used up thirty thousand bags of blood. The person in charge of the central supply depot has informed Lord Kazekage back in the village, and they're trying to find a solution..."

"Then what does the central supply depot still have? Send it all here!" Chiyo felt ready to snap. Her anger had nowhere to go.

"There's... some gauze... and sutures..." The Sand ninja's voice grew quieter.

"Send it all here! What about the supplies brought in by this convoy?" Chiyo paused to think. There were still some supplies on the convoy; they might help tide them over.

"L-Lady Chiyo... the convoy was ambushed this time. The ninja guarding it thought Konoha would do what they usually did—just scare and harass us before running off—so they didn't react immediately. They never expected Konoha to actually attack... All sixteen carts of supplies were burned. Including the blood plasma, the medicine..." The Sand ninja lowered his head even further, waiting for the eruption.

Chiyo froze. One piece of bad news after another struck at her fragile heart.

What were they supposed to do without those supplies? The medical station had ground to a halt! Dying in agony at a hospital was even more despairing than dying in battle. Many ninja would rather die than seek treatment at the medical station...

Just then, a Sunagakure ninja hurried over. "Reporting, Lady Chiyo! Tsunade is leading an elite Konoha force in an attack!"

"Understood. Inform the troops. Prepare to retreat." Chiyo spoke calmly. She had no idea how many times they had retreated in the past few days. It was almost becoming a habit.

The messenger ninja didn't leave. He looked uneasy, hesitating before he spoke. "Lady Chiyo, the Konoha ninja are shouting a slogan as they attack..."

"What slogan?"

"'Capture... Chiyo... the old hag... alive...'"

"Crack!" Chiyo crushed the medicine bottle in her hand. Her face twisted with fury, her eyes wide and round, and smoke seemed to rise from her headband.

"This is too much! Damn Konoha! How despicable! Damn that Monster Strength Woman! I'll fight you to the death!!!" Chiyo roared in fury.

But perhaps she had forgotten that she had used this very tactic against Tsunade. Whenever Tsunade went to take charge at the medical station, Chiyo would lead her elite troops onto the battlefield.

Maybe now she could finally understand how Tsunade had felt back then.