The Forward Battlefield

It was not as though Konoha and the Kumo Ninja could only clash within the Land of Hot Springs.

If they truly wanted to collide head-on,

either Konoha or Kumogakure could bypass this land entirely and strike directly into the heart of the other's country. But first, the unspoken understanding among the Five Great Shinobi Villages was to keep their battlefields within these smaller nations. Unless one side held an overwhelming advantage, they would not easily bring the flames of war onto each other's soil, leaving some room for maneuver. Second, so long as the forward strongholds had not been completely uprooted, the forces able to penetrate deep behind enemy lines were almost always small elite units, such as the AB Brothers during the Third Shinobi World War—the raiding squad led by the current Fourth Raikage A and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B.

Large forces could never evade Konoha's layers of defenses and searches to infiltrate deep into the Land of Fire. This war was also different from the previous three Shinobi World Wars. At its core, it was merely a probing move by Fourth Raikage A. Although the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's Attack was known throughout the world, and the Fourth Hokage had died in it, just how much Konoha had actually lost

was still unknown.

For the time being,

Fourth Raikage A could not commit too much strength.

Moreover, only a little over a year had passed since the Third Shinobi World War ended.

The major shinobi villages were all still licking their wounds.

Kumogakure was admittedly in better shape, having avoided widespread casualties in the Third Shinobi World War. Yet the loss of some of its top-tier combat power, led by the Third Raikage, had still damaged Kumogakure's foundations. Thus, even someone as hot-tempered as Fourth Raikage A had to proceed cautiously, gradually increasing the stakes along the border.

He wanted to test where Konoha's limit lay.

The moment Fourth Raikage A saw Konoha's weakness,

this violent shadow would certainly launch a war without hesitation!

Thus, the struggle over the strongholds established by the two great shinobi villages in the Land of Hot Springs was of utmost importance. Of the Uchiha Clan reinforcements dispatched this time, nearly half were assigned to strongholds deep within the Land of Hot Springs.

The remaining half were assigned either to logistical strongholds along the Land of Fire's borders rather than in the Land of Hot Springs, or to reconnaissance and defensive outposts extending along both sides.

This had been agreed upon long ago.

However,

after they successfully arrived at the Northeastern Border of the Land of Fire, just before splitting up and advancing into the heart of the Land of Hot Springs,

a small accident still occurred.

"What did you say? Suzaku! I don't understand what you mean. Why are you suddenly assigning more of our Uchiha Clan personnel to the Mount Hot Spring stronghold? This is completely different from what was agreed upon at the start!"

Inside the stationed supply camp,

Uchiha Kogen, the leader of the Uchiha contingent this time,

and a highly senior clan member already past thirty, looked at Nara Suzaku before him. His face held both confusion and deeply suppressed anger as he asked in a low voice!

Entrusted by Fugaku and the many elders,

and appointed to lead the Uchiha forces on this expedition,

Uchiha Kogen possessed an exceptionally calm and steady temperament.

He did not anger easily, much less let subjective emotions make him rashly reach hasty decisions.

He also possessed the formidable individual strength of a Jōnin.

It could be said that among Fugaku's generation, he was one of the most dependable clansmen.

There were several whose strength matched or even surpassed Kogen's, but there were very few more dependable than him.

Yet even someone like Uchiha Kogen

had nearly failed to restrain the emotions deep in his heart upon suddenly hearing Nara Suzaku, the overall coordinator, say that over two-thirds of the Uchiha Clan's personnel needed to be transferred into strongholds in the Land of Hot Springs. In particular, some of the younger members would have to reinforce Mount Hot Spring, the most brutally contested stronghold.

The trace of anger in his tone

was enough to fully demonstrate Uchiha Kogen's current mood.

Across from him, Nara Suzaku remained calm and composed as he said, "This is an order the Hokage personally conveyed at the last minute. The defensive pressure around Mount Hot Spring is too great, and the garrison needs to be strengthened. It is not only your Uchiha Clan. Our Nara Clan, as well as the Aburame and Inuzuka Clans, are also transferring personnel there. This is merely a normal deployment. Kogen, I trust you have no objections?"

Nara Suzaku looked at Uchiha Kogen before him, his gaze slightly profound as he spoke.

As a strategist of the Nara Clan,

and one deeply trusted by the Third Hokage,

Suzaku was well aware of the Uchiha Clan's current circumstances within Konoha.

Even from the perspective of the bigger picture,

let alone on a personal level,

Suzaku did not particularly like the Uchiha Clan.

In his view, the Uchiha Clan had only one advantage: their individual strength was relatively formidable. Their unruly and arrogant nature truly made every major ninja clan in Konoha dislike them. The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's Attack half a year ago had pushed the nerves of all the major ninja clans to their limits. If not for analyses of the situation that led to certain objective conclusions, which made it unlikely that the Uchiha Clan had been mad enough to go that far, along with several other important considerations,

there were no shortage of people among those ninja clans

who wanted to wipe out the Uchiha Clan outright.

Nara Suzaku had not gone that far.

However, he agreed with the idea of restricting the Uchiha Clan.

This marching plan and the subsequent personnel assignments for the strongholds

had been proposed and arranged by him,

then approved by the Third Hokage and put into effect.

The Uchiha Clan had to continue to exist.

That was the fundamental premise.

But necessary weakening and testing were also only proper.

Suzaku understood his Hokage's intentions very well.

Therefore, he spared no effort in this matter.

After hearing Suzaku's words and seeing the expressions of the leaders from the other major ninja clans within the tent, Uchiha Kogen's expression shifted slightly. Then, after slowly exhaling a breath of stale air, he said softly, "I understand. The Uchiha Clan will obey the village's arrangements."

He wanted to fight for something,

but he was also mindful of his clan's current situation.

Especially after recalling his clan head's instructions before departure, Kogen ultimately forced down the restlessness in his heart.

"Since Kogen understands, then we will proceed according to the established plan. Everyone must set out this afternoon and reach your respective strongholds before tomorrow morning. Kumogakure's attacks have grown more frequent and more intense recently. We must reinforce our comrades at the front immediately!"