Standoff and Wedding

April, Year 41 of the Land of Night (Year 32 of Konoha)

In the battle between Iwagakure and Hidden Mist Village, whose main battlefields are in the eastern region of the Land of Water, Iwagakure still holds the advantage overall.

However, as time went on, the air combat forces, which relied on flying ninja tools, found it increasingly difficult to operate against the Kirigakure Ninja.

One reason is that Hidden Mist Village somehow acquired some flying ninja tools produced by the Land of Night. Although the quantity was small, it still gave Hidden Mist Village a certain degree of air superiority.

This prevents them from being constantly on the defensive against Iwagakure's Sky Supremacy, only able to take hits on the ground.

On the other hand, Hidden Mist Village, one of the Five Great Nations ninja villages, has a deep foundation. Under the relentless attacks of Iwagakure, they have continuously improved their Water Release Ninjutsu and finally, two months ago, successfully developed several ultra-long-range Water Release Ninjutsu that can be used for aerial counterattacks.

It's easy to imagine that the hardships Hidden Mist Village endured were not in vain, but rather a lesson learned from their mistakes that spurred them to improve their Ninjutsu abilities, making them more comprehensive.

Therefore, since last month, despite having the overall advantage in Iwagakure's several probing operations against Hidden Mist Village, Iwagakure managed to exploit gaps in their Hidden Mist Village in some areas and break through their defenses in one fell swoop.

"That old bastard Genji is a tough nut to crack."

At a meeting at the Iwagakure Camp on the front lines, Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage, was extremely troubled by the increasingly difficult situation.

Except for the first two or three months, the Iwagakure offensive was unstoppable and dealt a heavy blow to the Hidden Mist Village. However, since February of this year, as the Hidden Mist Village also equipped themselves with a small number of flying ninja tools and improved many long-range Water Release Ninjutsu, the speed at which the Iwagakure accumulated its advantage has clearly slowed down.

What's most frustrating is that Genji, the Fourth Mizukage who came from the Warring States Era, is both a cunning fox and a tortoise that's impossible to catch.

"Judging from their attitude, they probably won't easily confront us head-on."

"That's right, and it's also dangerous to continue pushing the front line now. The front line is already too long, and there are defensive gaps in many parts of the occupied territory."

"Lord Tsuchikage, let's scale back our operations. I think we can abandon some less important areas to reduce our burden."

Some key Jonin felt that pushing the front line forward and continuing to pressure Hidden Mist Village was not a good thing.

Moreover, Hidden Mist Village had already recovered some of its disadvantages in certain areas, Iwagakure could no longer use a steady and methodical strategy to further erode Hidden Mist Village's living space.

"I disagree. Retreating to defense is a coward's idea!"

"That's right, we still have the advantage, and we absolutely cannot shrink our battle lines!"

"I propose we continue to apply pressure and force Hidden Mist Village out for a decisive battle. At this point, it's a matter of seeing which side can't hold out first!"

There were also many radical voices; they were incredibly excited to make a name for themselves and felt they should accelerate their attack on Hidden Mist Village to further expand the advantage they had painstakingly accumulated.

"This is too reckless! Can't they see the situation? We can no longer rely on accumulating advantages and continuously Hidden Mist Village!"

"The core objective of reducing the number of Hidden Mist Village elites has not yet achieved half of its intended effect, which shows the Mizukage's style of doing things."

"The Fourth Mizukage most likely guessed our intentions, so no matter how much we pressure him, he wouldn't be foolish enough to engage in a head-on confrontation at this time."

"We're looking for an opportunity to strike, and they're also looking for a chance to counterattack. We must be cautious now!"

People with differing opinions argued fiercely at the meeting.

One side leans towards a conservative, contractionary approach, while the other believes in continuing to push forward.

Ōnoki was already used to this.

He tapped the table, which calmed the arguing parties down.

"Keep an eye on the movements of Hidden Mist Village first; now is not the time to engage in a decisive battle with them."

Ōnoki ultimately decided to retreat to a certain front line, observe Hidden Mist Village's next moves, and then consider how to attack.

He was worried that if he rashly engaged in a direct battle with Hidden Mist Village, he would lose all the advantages he had accumulated and put Iwagakure at a disadvantage.

In fact, after seeing Genji's strategy, which resembled that of a turtle hiding in its shell, Ōnoki realized that it would be almost impossible to catch Hidden Mist Village again, just like at the beginning.

Upon hearing Ōnoki's decision, some people, even if unwilling, had no choice but to obey.

"Also, the princess of the Land of Night is about to get married. Let's send a gift in the name of Iwagakure."

At the end of the meeting, Ōnoki made a brief remark and then adjourned the meeting.

Generally speaking, even among allies, there's no need to specifically bring up this kind of issue at such a meeting.

But the Land of Night is a special country. Their princesses represent a different level of status compared to princesses in ordinary countries.

Moreover, the person who is about to marry this Princess of the Land of Night is no ordinary person, but the star-level top ninja of the Land of Night known as ' White Fang '!

◎

The Land of Night.

Unlike the complex situation outside, the overall atmosphere was relaxed and stable due to the impact of the princess's marriage.

This independent and self-reliant style of doing things at its own pace undoubtedly showed outsiders the confidence and strength of the Land of Night, completely unaffected by international tensions.

"What a pity, today is Maki's wedding, but my husband is at a crucial moment and can't come."

At the wedding, Kicho and Izayoi stood together, looking at the newlyweds not far away, their faces showing regret, as if they were very sorry that Yayoi could not come.

"There's nothing to regret; we can make up for it later."

Izayoi shook her head; she knew what was important and what wasn't.

Faced with Yayoi's significant transformation, even her daughter's marriage had to take a backseat.

"However, the fact that my husband didn't come might be over-interpreted. For example, people might say he has serious health problems after retirement and can't come out casually..."

Kicho's lips curved slightly, as if she had thought of something amusing.

"Well..."

Izayoi paused for a moment, glancing at the people from various countries who had come to attend the wedding. Many of them were indeed scanning and assessing something.

She and Kicho attracted the most attention, probably because they didn't see Yayoi at the wedding and found the situation suspicious.

After all, their husbands were quite old, and the elderly ninjas who had survived that special era all had serious health problems to varying degrees.

This association is not without basis.

However, only family members know their own situation. Their men are in good health. Unlike most ninjas, they have always focused on health preservation and conditioning their bodies since they were young.

As a result, their wives have also learned various health preservation and body conditioning techniques. In addition, with the continuous research and improvement of longevity methods over the years, they now look as young and tender as eighteen or nineteen-year-old girls.

The upper limit of natural lifespan has thus been raised significantly, allowing people to live at least another eighty or ninety years naturally.

When she stands next to her daughter, no one would associate them with mother and daughter; they would be mistaken for sisters.

Yes, the mother is the younger sister, and the daughter is the older sister.

They all lived such long lives and seemed to retain their youth, but Yayoi, as the main subject, was even more remarkable.

After completing the first stage of Chakra Transformation, the upper limit of natural lifespan has far exceeded that of ordinary humans, and one is free from illness and pain.

Even though he's in his fifties or sixties, he still has the energy and drive of a twenty or thirty-year-old at night.

Thinking of this, Izayoi quickly shook her head. Why was she getting so carried away?

It's definitely not because her husband is currently asleep and there's no one to nourish her body that she's having these wild thoughts.

Although she did act out for several days before falling into a deep sleep.

But can the Uchiha's actions be called absurd? It was just to train New-Type Sharingan.