Does Managing a Lot of People Make You a Kage?

Accumulating Impure World Reincarnation requires patience.

Pulling monsters also requires patience.

The Mist Ninja who died in Leaf Village can attest to this; he was a very patient person.

Several tens of minutes later, the foreign ninja reappeared in the shadows of the woods.

The foreign ninjas who went to attack the Cloud Ninja have returned.

Compared to when they set out, their numbers were much smaller, and most of them were injured.

But they brought good news.

The breached stronghold was the entrance and exit of the Poison Insect Road; this ancient path had finally been found.

There was also bad news.

There were over a hundred Cloud Ninja in the stronghold, but they failed to capture them, allowing nearly half of Cloud Ninja to escape.

The Cloud Ninja acted decisively after being attacked; they immediately began to retreat without engaging in prolonged combat for the sake of kills.

Based on this performance, it's clear that the Cloud Village Army has deployed elite troops to their strongholds.

"Excellent, excellent." Hearing the reports from the returning ninja leaders, Uchiha Shingen was exceptionally satisfied. "They're all elites."

The ninja leaders who came to report fell silent, feeling quite embarrassed.

I told my boss I'd been beaten up.

As a result, the leader praised the opposing team as elite.

Something just doesn't feel right.

"Stop dawdling, let's go." Uchiha Shingen had observed their expressions. "Only the elite are worth fighting."

Having already spent too much time here, the foreign legion finally set off again, like a black tide, surging towards the ancient road that could determine the course of the war between the two sides.

The force of around four thousand men, when assembled, still created a considerable visual impact. Among these foreign ninjas, even the least experienced had spent more than a year on the battlefield, making them highly adaptable to combat and fully deserving of the title of ruthless bandits. When they gathered together and no longer concealed their whereabouts, their imposing presence was quite impressive.

The malevolent aura they emitted caused the birds and beasts in the forest to flee in terror.

Soon, the Cloud Ninja's stronghold, which had been completely evacuated, came into view. The foreign ninjas swarmed in and quickly turned the camp upside down.

Due to limited capacity, most foreign ninjas were unable to enter the base and could only stop outside.

The Cloud Ninja's retreat was rather sudden, but they still left some things behind at their base, including a small amount of military equipment, food, and medicine.

Perhaps because they left in such a hurry, these supplies were all preserved in good condition.

It seems they were truly prepared to be relentlessly pursued and killed by the enemy.

The foreign ninjas could see this too, but they weren't afraid.

While the foreign ninjas were looting the spoils of war, Uchiha Shingen stepped onto an ancient path behind the base that had been deserted for decades.

Neither the Poison Insect Road nor the Seaside Road were man-made.

The Seaside Road is a very narrow and long flat area. After being governed by the kingdoms of Rai and Shimo, it is now a habitable area. However, the Poison Insect Road is a winding river valley hidden deep in the mountains.

It was impossible to rectify, which is why it was abandoned.

But this place is actually a treasure trove. According to records, it is home to hundreds of rare medicinal plants that are hard to find on the mainland.

Strange peaks and rocks appeared before Uchiha Shingen. Walking into the crisscrossing valleys, he saw ancient trees reaching for the sky, dense shade, and all kinds of lush green plants twisting and turning, some diagonally spanning the riverbanks, some leaning against each other on the mountainside, and some teetering on the cliffs.

A bird flew through the forest, its flight deterred from landing by the large number of humans below, but it still attracted a swarm of bees and insects, whose buzzing was incessant—this is the origin of the passage's name.

The Poison Insect Road is not just a passageway for humans; it is a strange primeval forest with a wide variety of animals, all hidden in this intricate forest labyrinth.

Uchiha Shingen turned his head and saw that the foreign ninja leaders who had been shouting "Whoever stops me from making money will be killed" were now looking away.

These leaders truly hadn't expected that the legendary Poison Insect Road would turn out like this.

To encounter the Cloud Ninja in this place would truly be a case of the brave prevailing in a narrow encounter, without a doubt.

Fighting here is a battle where one side is somewhat familiar with this valley, but for the other side it's hell; every blade of grass and every tree here can kill.

"Are you scared?" Uchiha Shingen asked.

The leader of the Sound Village did not miss the fleeting killing intent in Uchiha Shingen's eyes.

The Sound Ninjas are experts at this, because they have a leader whose moods are hard to predict.

"Shingen, please let us lead the charge." The leader of the Sound Village) village stepped forward and volunteered.

With his killing intent dissipating, Uchiha Shingen knew he no longer needed to kill to establish his authority.

The way to manage these mercenaries is simple: feed them money, and kill them immediately if they disobey.

After all, they love money and are both bullies who prey on the weak and fear the strong.

"Okay, don't worry, I'll clear the way with you," Uchiha Shingen said. "I'll tell you how to get through here. Take out the insect repellent medicine I asked you to prepare before. If you don't have enough, gather some here. Once you're ready, we'll enter the valley."

Chapter Seventeen: Does having many people under your control automatically make you a shadow?

Foreign Legion members are facing a choice.

Either you go through this seemingly beautiful but potentially deadly river valley, and then follow the big shots to plunder it to your heart's content.

Either they'll be used as fertilizer for this primeval forest by a big shot who's generous with his money but even more generous with his killings.

They chose the first one.

Moreover, the fact that the bigwig seemed to know the valley quite well gave them some comfort.

Following Uchiha Shingen's instructions, after preparing the medicine and taking necessary precautions, the Foreign Legion began their forced trek into the valley.

Within minutes of entering the valley, unexpected events began to occur.

A cliff covered with lush greenery, its structure perhaps damaged by the overly vigorous root system, suddenly became unstable as a large number of ninjas passed beneath it, and a section of the rock face collapsed.

Uchiha Shingen would still try to save him from this danger.

Yellow sand rose from the ground, forming an umbrella shape that caught the falling rocks above, allowing the foreign ninjas to pass through safely.

But this is just an appetizer.

For example, a giant centipede might suddenly crawl out from an old tree nearby. This isn't dangerous for a ninja; these things are quite common even in the Leaf Forest, and a single Kunai can kill them.

It's a typical example of something that looks good but is useless; it only fools people with its appearance.

But not all living things are like that.

For example, the anaconda. In the Hokage world, excluding those from Ryūchi Cave that are fed by Natural Energy, it is the largest of all normal snakes. If a low-ranking ninja is attacked by one of these things without warning, he will die.

The reason why tasks like eliminating ferocious beasts are done by Genin is because, for Genin, these are already considered combat-related tasks.

But the real danger lies in the various poisonous insects.

If it weren't for Uchiha Shingen's specific research into this place and the fact that his prepared medicine could deal with most of the common toxins here, a large number of the Foreign Legion ninjas would have died, instead of just suffering from persistent pain, dizziness, and numbness.

But no one dared to voluntarily fall behind.

It's not that I'm afraid of Uchiha Shingen, it's that I'm afraid of this forest.

In fact, they were right to think that way. If anyone wanted to rest, Uchiha Shingen would never stop them, because he would never let the army's march stop.

Resting here? They must be bored and have nothing better to do.

About ten miles into the valley, the first person to die instantly inevitably appeared.

Based on combat strength, that's a Chunin.

This level is already good enough for Water Walking.

But as he was crossing a seemingly unharmed area covered with leaves, he suddenly stepped into it and was dragged down by the creature inside before he could struggle free.

The ninjas, filled with shock and rage, unleashed a flurry of escape techniques, revealing the culprit.

They didn't recognize anything, but the former Chunin was now only half a body.

It was like flipping a switch; victims started appearing one after another.

In this environment, the ferocity of these foreign ninjas was fully unleashed.

Having come this far, no one would say they want to go back.

Besides, Uchiha Shingen wasn't entirely idle.

For example, he would use Scorch Release Kagutsuchi: Kagutsuchi to clear a path through an obvious nest of poisonous insects.

Seeing the creatures being Scorch Release technique, the foreign ninjas' eyes were filled with a mixture of pleasure and cruelty.

Once the Totsuka Blade is unleashed, no living creature will remain.

For Uchiha Shingen, even if he could protect himself with a partial Susanoo, he hoped to get out of this forest as soon as possible.

For people with trypophobia, this is an unbearable place.

Everyone wore masks that had been prepared in advance; even face masks wouldn't do, as the gaps were too large, and insects might fly in unimpeded.

Besides using his escape technique to clear a path, Uchiha Shingen also used his Summoning Technique to bring out his old friends from Ryūchi Cave, something he hadn't done in a long time.

The ninjas of Sound Village were no strangers to the snakes of Ryūchi Cave. When they saw those giant snakes, which were unruly in front of Orochimaru, become obedient and completely subservient to Uchiha Shingen, their awe deepened.

However, the Foreign Legion's enemies were not these birds, beasts, and insects from the beginning.

After traveling several hundred miles, the surrounding environment began to change.

Traces of human cleaning began to appear.

Uchiha Shingen had already awakened his Sharingan, and he could also enter Sage Mode if needed.

Cursed Seal and Tailed Beast Chakra? Not really, we don't need them yet.

After all, Cloud Lightning Gorge isn't located here.

Suddenly, a large amount of Chakra reaction appeared in Uchiha Shingen's eyes.

Their "appearance" appears in the Sharingan.

It's Explosive Tag.

Uchiha Shingen raised his hand in a stop gesture, and the messenger ninja beside him immediately relayed the order.

The foreign ninjas were capable of using the calls of various birds and beasts to give simple marching commands.

The foreign legion halted, a palpable sense of menace spreading through them; everyone knew what that meant.

Uchiha Shingen turned to look at the ground, and there he saw "landmines" that were only found in Iwagakure.

These two old rivals are actually quite aligned on the issue of dealing with Leaf Village.

I wonder if they ever considered that they would be driven back to their village by Leaf Village this time. Uchiha Shingen's patience over the years had been almost completely worn down after the outbreak of the Ninja World War.

Actually, from the very beginning, he didn't really believe in this nonsense about the Five Kage.

He's being called a Kage Senju Hashirama? He should take a good look at himself in the mirror!

Just because there are a lot of people in charge doesn't mean it can be called a shadow? That's ridiculous!

Uchiha Shingen crouched down and plunged his palm into the soil.

Lightning Release: Earth Flow.

The azure light illuminated his face.

The soil here is rich in moisture and minerals, making it an excellent medium for conducting lightning strikes.

A simple Lightning Release used to ambush an enemy's lower body becomes a completely different spectacle in the hands of Uchiha Shingen.

The ground crackled and popped, with pebbles and dirt exploding continuously. It was as if branches were sprouting from the ground, as the Lightning Release overflowed and burst forth from the earth.

In the end, the lightning, like waves, washed over the land ahead, and all the "landmines" were rendered useless, no different from ordinary mud.

Uchiha Shingen stood up, wiped his hands, and used his Sharingan to confirm once again the Explosive Tag array hidden in the forest ahead.

Wind Release: Infinite Sandstorm Great Breakthrough

This technique was not invented by Uchiha Shingen, but by Gaara.

However, Gaara needs the power of Shukaku to perform this technique, which is not so troublesome for Uchiha Shingen.

This technique is a combination of Sand Technique and Wind Release: Great Breakthrough.

The wind howled, whipping up sand and creating a sandstorm that blotted out the sky.