The Fanatical Military Inspector and the Covert Interception of Frontline Intelligence

The wind of the Land of Wind blew against their faces like fine sandpaper.

The army's marching columns stretched for miles as they advanced across the wasteland at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind. The dust they kicked up obscured half the sky, while the ninjas' footsteps beat out a dull, orderly rhythm that merged into a suffocating tide.

Namikaze Minato wore the specially made Jonin Flak Jacket of the commander-in-chief as he walked at the very front of the column. His back was perfectly straight, his golden hair swaying faintly in the wind, but that once-dazzling gold now seemed stained by the yellow sand filling the sky, appearing somewhat dim.

He could not feel the passion and fighting spirit of the thousands of troops behind him.

All he felt was a cold gaze operating like a precision instrument, following him from behind like a shadow.

That gaze came from Hyuga Hiashi.

And from the hundred Hyuga Branch Family ninjas behind him, all dressed in plain white garments utterly out of place amid their surroundings.

Their official designation was the "Battlefield Inspection and Logistics Support Unit," directly assigned under Minato's command. But from the moment they left Konoha, they had never exchanged a single unnecessary word with the main force.

They formed their own ranks, speaking little and saying even less. Their marching steps, rest intervals, even the motions of drinking water were perfectly uniform, like puppets controlled by an invisible string.

There was no fear of war in their eyes, nor any concern for their comrades. There was only an almost frozen fanaticism toward some supreme existence.

Minato knew that they were not loyal to him, the commander-in-chief, nor even to Konoha.

They were loyal only to the mark of the "Waning Moon"