After a long run, 'Ai' finally returned safely to the Hidden Cloud Village Defense Zone, and breathed a sigh of relief.
In fact, he had prepared himself for being chased from the beginning, but he did not encounter any significant ambush until he returned to the Camp.
It must be said that this 'test' turned out much better than he had expected, and he completed it smoothly without needing to make any preparations.
As soon as Ai returned, Yotsuki Kōmon and the other high-ranking Jonin Hidden Cloud Village immediately convened a battle meeting.
On the table where they held their meeting was a map, in which a section of the western part of the Land of Lightning was marked in bright red, indicating that it was enemy-occupied territory controlled by the Land of Night.
Within the red-marked enemy-occupied territory, some areas were discovered by their reconnaissance teams, but most remained shrouded in mist, impossible to glimpse.
If we don't dispel all this fog, ascertain the strength of the Land of Night's forces, and plan our advance route, then the counter-offensive plan is out of the question.
There was no other way; they were simply too terrified of being beaten over the past six months.
Not only are they suppressed at every turn, but even the investigation teams they send out operate with extreme caution, as if they are playing a cat-and-mouse game with the Land of Night, and being caught almost certainly means certain death.
Unfortunately, they are now the mice being toyed with by the cat.
"As expected, the defenses in this area are relatively weak, which matches the findings of the previous survey..."
A Hidden Cloud Village Jonin to the red area in the enemy-occupied territory on the map, which was the place where 'A' was teleported to by the Heavenly Transfer Technique.
They couldn't possibly investigate all of the Land of Night's occupied territories, but through their long-term efforts, they were able to uncover quite a bit of information about some areas.
They even knew that most of the Land of Night's main force was stationed in Maple City, though the exact number was uncertain.
If they hadn't been aware of this, they wouldn't have let 'Ai' parachute in so easily; otherwise, it wouldn't have been a divine intervention, but rather walking into a trap.
After all, the Heavenly Transfer Technique can only teleport in one direction; returning requires 'Ai' to run on her own two legs.
This is why Ai fled immediately after annihilating the two Land of Night squads; if he lingered any longer, he would never be able to return.
"Besides that, I have two more findings. First, I noticed that in their occupied territory, they set up strange square stone towers at intervals. The previous survey team also saw similar things on the edge of the enemy-occupied territory. I suspect that those are Chakra receiving devices used to remotely control the puppets."
'Ai' extended his first finger, and before the others could speak, he extended his second finger:
"Secondly, I found these drugs on the two Land of Night squads that we wiped out; they should be the banned drugs they used."
As she spoke, Ai took out an exquisite iron medicine box from her ninja tool bag, which was engraved with delicate Red Spider Lily patterns.
The all-metal medicine box is highly resistant to pressure; even if subjected to powerful attacks, it will not easily deform or damage the medicine inside.
"Such sturdy and beautiful craftsmanship, hmm, very much in line with the style of that General of the Land of Night, always creating buildings that are both practical and luxurious."
A Hidden Cloud Village Jonin up the medicine box, examined it carefully several times, and gave this assessment.
The other Hidden Cloud Village Jonin also smiled, as they saw a glimmer of hope for breaking the deadlock, and the atmosphere of the meeting was much more relaxed than before.
Then, the Cloud Hidden Cloud Village Jonin the medicine box, revealing the capsule-shaped medicine inside.
These capsule-shaped medications are clearly divided into three types: red on the left, blue in the middle, and green on the right.
There is one red pill, two blue pills, and three green pills.
"According to the reports from our personnel, red can generate Tailed-Beast Chakra, blue is a regular amplification type, and green is used to heal injuries. Everyone, I believe you all know what this means."
These words resonated with the other Hidden Cloud Village of Jonin.
If it weren't for these drugs, the ninjas and Samurai of the Land of Night would have had virtually no chance of matching the overall strength of the Hidden Cloud Village.
With these drugs, the ninjas and Samurai of the Land of Night could not only fight them head-on, but also have an advantage in a protracted war.
My initial joy was instantly dampened, and I sobered up considerably.
Even after learning these secrets of the Land of Night, they didn't actually have any good way to break the deadlock.
As for these drugs, they are not unimportant, but they are not of much help to the current situation. Putting aside the cost and success rate of the research, the time involved alone means that they cannot be completed in a short period of time.
Subsequently, they stopped paying attention to the medication; they couldn't afford to waste their energy on such trivial matters.
"Everyone, I have good news to tell you."
Just as everyone was beginning to frown and worry about their next move, Kōmon suddenly spoke up.
Good news? Everyone was taken aback and looked at the Kōmon with suspicion, wondering what good news could possibly be out of the ordinary.
"I've already communicated with the Lord Raikage in the Land of Frost. Just as we're executing our counterattack plan, he'll be transferring Kapui to assist us." (A Izayoi Storm Release ninja fighting Izayoi)
"Really? Have they finally given in?"
"Won't those two, Kinkaku Ginkaku, have any objections? If those two brothers start causing trouble, it could lead to big problems."
The moment the Kōmon was spoken, it caused a huge uproar at the meeting.
Even Ai, Tazbi, and Yugito looked surprised.
When the situation here became tense, they did consider asking the Land of Frost for help.
However, all his attempts to send messages were met with silence, receiving only sarcastic and cynical replies.
Unsurprisingly, these replies were the work of the brothers Kinkaku and Ginkaku.
If it weren't for these two brothers interfering, given the Second Raikage's personality, he would have sent people back to defend long ago.
After all, they knew from the beginning that their Second had opposed war from the start, and with the unexpected turn of events in the Land of Night, they naturally hoped to end the war as soon as possible and restore peace and development.
This left many pro-war faction members feeling uneasy. Perhaps their Second's decision was right; this war, which they and Hidden Mist Village had jointly planned, should never have happened in the first place.
They decided when the war would begin, but how it would end was not something they could decide.
Although the Hidden Cloud Village had neither decided to begin nor ended the Land of Night's affairs, the Land of Night had already seized the initiative.
Their demands have now shifted from initially sweeping through the Land of Night to considering it a victory if they drive the Land of Night out of the Land of Lightning.
As for annihilating them completely? They wouldn't even dare to dream of such a thing right now.
" Lord Raikage has reached an agreement with the Kinkaku and Ginkaku duo, so there shouldn't be any unexpected issues. You can rest assured about that."
Kōmon's words dispelled some people's worries.
Having received the promise of Kōmon, some people felt at ease, but they didn't want to face the enraged Kinkaku Ginkaku.
Those brothers could not only Partial Tailed Beast Transformation, but also wielded the bizarre and terrifying Six Paths Ninja Tools. Even within the Hidden Cloud Village, little was known about the abilities of those tools.
Those brothers would never lend out the Six Paths Ninja Tools to someone else unless they were dead.
Even though they were proponents of war, they felt that the brothers' personalities were too extreme and they were too unsociable.
"Great! With Kapui's Storm Release and his Sensory abilities, I'm sure we can stop that wretched ' Ghost ' woman!"
Many of the Hidden Cloud Village Jonin were invigorated.
The ' Ghost ' they were referring to was naturally Komurasaki.
During this period, they suffered greatly at the hands of Komurasaki; more than half of their guerrilla units sent out for reconnaissance were wiped out by the enemy.
Encountering other Land of Night squads, although it's a tough battle, escaping unscathed is quite easy. But when it comes to Komurasaki, the squads they encounter always mysteriously disappear without a trace. If reinforcements arrive even a moment late, most of the time they can't even find the bodies; they've simply vanished into thin air.
Therefore, the code names given to her are varied, such as Invisible Assassin, Ghost, etc. In addition, there are also titles such as Komurasaki Who Pierces Throat and Komurasaki Who Cuts Off Heads.
The reason is that they found some of the bodies and discovered that most of the victims had been stabbed in the throat or beheaded, with the stabbings specifically targeting vital organs.
They all hated Komurasaki to the core, but they couldn't find a way to deal with her.
They have top-tier ninjas capable of fighting the enemy, but they lack Sensory abilities.
A ninja with Sensory abilities, but lacking the top-tier strength to match them.
Only top-tier ninjas, coupled with powerful Sensory abilities, can effectively restrict their opponent's movements.
Within their Kumogakure, only the Anbu Chief, Kapui is proficient in both Storm Release and Sensory Ninjutsu, possesses both of these demanding qualifications.
I believe that everything will be alright once Kapui is transferred here.