Departure

Early morning.

Konoha Village gate.

Dressed in the green flak jacket of a Konoha jonin and draped in a white cloak, Li Yu stood before a dense, dark mass of ninjas of all shapes and sizes.

Li Yu, leading the group, calculated the time and decided it was about right. He had several other ninjas in green flak jackets conduct a headcount.

Listening to the reported figures—511 people in total: 350 genin, 158 chunin, and 3 jonin, plus himself for a total of 512—he surveyed the sea of young faces. Many were fresh graduates from the Ninja Academy, their faces flushed with excitement as they chatted, treating the prospect of the battlefield as nothing more than a trifle.

Seeing this, Li Yu didn't waste words. He channeled his chakra and roared, "I am your lead jonin for this brigade, Senju Nawaki!"

"Everyone listen up: keep up with the formation and do not fall behind!"

"Move out!"

The unit departed on schedule. Over five hundred ninjas traveling in unison through the forest stirred up a massive flock of birds, the sheer scale of their movement truly impressive.

To accommodate the slower pace of the numerous genin and chunin and the uneven skill levels, Li Yu slowed their travel speed, feeling rather sullen.

That old man, the Third Hokage, really knows how to dump work on people, he mused inwardly. Claiming he wants me to look after the future of the village...

In my opinion, he's just afraid I won't pull my weight. He wants me to give 120 percent, resolve the battle here in the Land of Wind quickly, and stop holding back.

He glanced back at the sea of people and his three students following at a leisurely pace. My bonds with the village are growing deeper. Perhaps that was the Third Hokage's ultimate goal all along.

Uzuki Yugao, Yuhi Kurenai, and Sarutobi Asuma followed behind Li Yu with relaxed expressions, chatting idly from time to time.

"Yuhi Kurenai, I saw the teacher give you a ninjutsu scroll a while back. How is the jutsu? Is it powerful?"

"Of course it is. This jutsu was developed by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama," Yuhi Kurenai replied smugly, blinking her red eyes.

"Yugao, you're already living at the teacher's house, and he's your brother-in-law, so he certainly wouldn't treat you poorly."

She tilted her head proudly, tossing her long purple hair with a smile. "That goes without saying. I'm also learning a jutsu developed by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama."

Sarutobi Asuma, trailing behind the two girls, wore a bitter expression. Looking at the two proud little hens in front of him, he felt a sense of indescribable misery.

"Teacher, what kind of ninjutsu did he teach you two?"

The two girls turned back and spoke in unison, "We won't tell you." They exchanged a look and giggled.

Seeing their reaction, Sarutobi Asuma muttered under his breath, "Teacher is so biased."

What should have been a three-day journey took five full days due to the size of the unit, and they only reached the front lines then.

The first echelon, consisting of over a thousand ninjas, had already established a camp here.

A ninja wearing a green flak jacket stained with patches of dried blood approached them.

"You must be Lord Senju Nawaki, leader of the second unit, right? Nara Shikaku requests your presence in the forward tent."

Upon entering the tent, Li Yu saw a burly man with red hair wearing green ninja armor, with the character for "Food" emblazoned on his chest.

Seeing such a unique getup, Li Yu had already guessed his identity.

"Akimichi Choza."

There were two other ninjas in the tent discussing the map; he didn't need to guess to know they were Yamanaka Inoichi and Nara Shikaku.

He hadn't expected the Land of Wind battlefield to be commanded by Konoha's Ino-Shika-Cho trio. The original story hadn't specified how the Battle of Kikyo Pass was won, but it clearly didn't have much to do with the Sannin; Tsunade and Jiraiya were away from the village, and Orochimaru was obsessed with his research.

Seeing Ino-Shika-Cho on the Land of Wind front, Li Yu finally understood why Konoha had suffered such heavy losses despite winning the Battle of Kikyo Pass.

The newly ascended Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, along with the puppet-master and poison-expert Chiyo, the strategist Ebizo, and the entire force of the Land of Wind's ninjas—they were a formidable threat.

While Konoha ninjas had killed many Sunagakure forces due to their superior individual quality, they had also been slaughtered in large numbers by the Fourth Kazekage and Chiyo, dying in droves after being poisoned with no antidote available.

"Senju Nawaki, you've arrived."

"That's great."

"Over the past few days, we've had several small-scale skirmishes with the Sunagakure ninjas," Nara Shikaku said, pointing to several locations on the map.

"The follow-up reinforcements for the Sand have arrived as well. They may make a major move in the coming days."

After grasping the situation on the battlefield, Li Yu waved his hand.

"I understand."

"Shikaku, find someone to take me to the Wounded Soldier Camp to have a look."

Yamanaka Inoichi asked in surprise, "Nawaki, are you planning to..."

Li Yu replied with a smile, "Since Tsunade didn't come to this war, I shall look after the wounded ninjas on my sister's behalf."

"I've also brought ten members of the Senju Clan with me this time to serve as the Medical Unit." He placed heavy emphasis on the words "Senju Clan."

The trio of Ino-Shika-Cho felt their eyelids twitch at this. Nara Shikaku was the quickest to react, responding somewhat unnaturally, "In that case, that is excellent."

Li Yu said this to test the reactions of these Konoha noble clans on a small scale, preparing for the day when the Senju Clan would once again stand at the forefront.

He didn't hold this war with the Land of Wind in high regard; the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, was merely at the lower end of Kage-level strength in a one-on-one fight.

If Li Yu were willing, he could single-handedly flatten the Sunagakure ninja forces. Unfortunately, he had the Senju Clan behind him; he was not fighting alone, and his current priority was to win hearts and minds.

Leading the medical ninjas of the Senju Clan and calling for his three students, he arrived at the Wounded Soldier Camp.

They had barely reached the vicinity of the camp when they heard the screams and groans echoing from within, mixed with the crying of newly graduated survivors. It was a scene of utter chaos.

This was hardly surprising; the camp had been set up far away from the others to avoid affecting the morale of the ninjas on the front lines.

Arriving at the entrance of the tent, Li Yu lifted the flap first and strode inside, followed closely by the ten Senju medical ninjas.

Uzuki Yugao and Yuhi Kurenai, who had been standing at the entrance, hesitant to step inside, turned pale upon hearing the sounds. Sarutobi Asuma, being the only male among the three, forced himself to endure the discomfort and marched in.

Seeing Sarutobi Asuma enter, the two girls gritted their teeth, exchanged a glance, and walked into the tent together.

Once inside, they heard Li Yu instructing the ten medical ninjas on how to treat the wounded.

"If the Healing Jutsu cannot neutralize the toxins, extract them and research how to formulate an antidote."

"Stabilize the conditions of those with severe injuries; once the Supply Corps arrives, we will send them back to Konoha Hospital together."

Li Yu turned his head toward his three students who had just entered and beckoned for them to come over.

The three of them wove through the various injured ninjas, listening to their pained cries, and quickened their pace to reach Li Yu.

As they stood before Li Yu, their faces grew even paler, each one whiter than the last.

Li Yu wore a smile, the corners of his mouth curling upward as he spoke with a touch of dark humor, "Yugao, Yuhi Kurenai, I suddenly noticed that you two have grown quite pale."

"Ah."

"Ah."

The two girls gasped in surprise, not expecting Li Yu to say such a thing. Once they realized what he meant, they replied with shy indignation, "Teacher, what are you saying? We're ignoring you!"

Sarutobi Asuma, standing between the two girls, covered his mouth to stifle a laugh. Before he could even lift his head, he received a sharp rap on each side of his skull.

"Ouch!"

Sarutobi Asuma clutched his head with both hands, glancing pitifully at both sides, only to be met with the cold shoulders of the two girls.

"Hmph!"

Uzuki Yugao and Yuhi Kurenai crossed their arms over their chests, accentuating the curves of their developing figures, and tilted their chins up slightly, looking like two proud little hens.

Seeing the three of them like this, Li Yu felt quite gratified; he didn't need to worry about their rapport. After a couple of dry coughs, he said, "Teacher was just joking with you earlier to lighten the mood."

His expression shifted from a smile to one of solemn seriousness. "I am quite satisfied with how you all have performed."

"The place where newcomers on their first battlefield adapt the fastest is the Wounded Soldier Camp. You cannot let the brutality of the battlefield prevent you from displaying your true strength."

"This is the first lesson I am giving you on the battlefield. The second lesson is that joking helps to eliminate negative emotions."

After hearing Li Yu's explanation, the three of them nodded in agreement, understanding their teacher's painstaking efforts.

"Teacher, we understand."

"Good. Now, go and help out as well."

In just a few hours, they had treated over a dozen ninjas with minor injuries and stabilized the conditions of those with severe injuries, preparing them for transport back to Konoha.

The Medical Unit received thanks from many ninjas, and quite a few were able to return to their squads to continue fighting. The remaining task for the Medical Unit was to manufacture Antidote Pills based on the extracted toxins.

Li Yu only provided guidance from the sidelines this time and never once treated anyone himself; he brought the Senju Clan along specifically to save his own chakra.

For several days, there were only small-scale, probing attacks back and forth, and the Fourth Kazekage Rasa and Chiyo never appeared.