The Raikage gave Uchiha Shaoyu one last look and heavily patted his shoulder.
"Elder Shaoyu, it's up to you. Remember, safety comes first, the objective second. Kumogakure's future depends on you bringing back results alive."
"I will not fail the mission."
Shaoyu replied with a smile.
Before long, this super-elite squad—led by an elder with Kage-level strength, supported by the future Raikage and Uchiha elites, with ten top jōnin as its backbone—quietly departed Kumogakure.
Several days later, the squad successfully infiltrated the Land of Rain. The sight before them was already vastly different from peacetime.
Beneath the endlessly rainy sky, traces of devastation left by war could be seen everywhere.
The earth was scorched black, houses had collapsed, makeshift graves stood untended, and the air was thick with dampness, gunpowder smoke, and the faint scent of blood.
From time to time, distant explosions and cries of battle drifted over, showing that the fighting was still ongoing.
"According to the latest intelligence and our previous analysis, the three great nations' main battlefields in Amegakure are concentrated along the eastern and northern borders. The fighting there is the fiercest, and it is also where special units are most likely to appear."
Inside a concealed cave, Uchiha Shaoyu spread out a detailed map and spoke to the others.
"But that also makes it the most dangerous place. We could easily be dragged into a large-scale conflict."
His finger moved to an area in the central-western part of the map, a region with relatively more mountains, complex terrain, and fewer reports of fighting.
"Here, there may still be small-scale clashes and faction infiltrations, but large armies would have difficulty deploying."
"It is more likely to be an area where small and medium ninja clans, wandering ninja, or squads carrying out special missions operate. It