In a place like the desert, the daytime heat felt as though it would bake every drop of moisture out of their bodies, while the nights felt cold enough to freeze their blood. Had Kazemori Masaki and the others not been trained ninja, they would probably have given out long ago on their first mission in the desert, one so long and demanding.
Since entering the Land of Wind, they had repeatedly infiltrated the oases supplying its army and destroyed the supplies there. Whenever they encountered large numbers of samurai, they simply stopped what they were doing and left. Those samurai could not catch Kazemori Masaki's group at all, while the Sunagakure ninja who could keep up were outmatched in both numbers and strength. Once they had been drawn far enough away from the army, they were all killed.
After repeated raids, the Land of Wind's logistics suffered a considerable blow. Its troops near the Land of Rain gradually lost ground in their struggle against the Land of Rain's army and the reinforcements from the Land of Fire. After causing trouble for the troops there, Kazemori Masaki and the others moved on, heading toward the Land of Wind's camp in the Land of Rivers, where its main force was stationed.
Their good fortune did not last long before they met with a counterattack from the Sunagakure ninja. This was hardly unexpected. After all, Sunagakure's ninja were renowned for their small numbers and high quality; their response could not possibly be that slow. In fact, it came much faster than the group had anticipated.
Kazemori Masaki and Danzo had no intention of fighting the Sunagakure Ninja sent to hunt them down. That was not their mission, and what was the point of wasting strength and manpower? They were better off keeping