"Lord Didaze!"
After Didaze got off the giant bird, the Iwagakure ninja greeted him respectfully.
"Go tally our casualties."
Didaze spoke after getting off the giant bird.
"Yes, Lord Didaze!"
The ninja bowed respectfully to Didaze, then went to count the fallen ninja.
With the ninja at work, the death toll was soon tallied.
"Lord Didaze, two hundred dead and seven hundred wounded."
The ninja responsible for the count reported respectfully to Didaze.
"Not too bad. Our casualties weren't too heavy."
Didaze nodded. He had thought the deaths on his side might reach seven or eight hundred, but most had turned out to be injuries.
After all, the raiding force Yotsuki A had brought consisted entirely of elites, with none below Chunin at the very least, while most of those stationed at the border were Genin.
"We have you to thank for that, Lord Didaze. If you hadn't turned the tide, our defenses would probably have been completely overrun."
The ninja offered Didaze a little flattery.
"What's your name?"
Didaze decided to keep this man as his attendant.
The man worked quite efficiently, and his words were pleasing to hear, too. Didaze planned to have him follow him from now on and help handle his affairs.
Although the original Didaze had been a captain, captains were nothing special. There were as many as ten at this border alone, nine of whom were Special Jōnin.
Only one was a Jonin.
"My lord, my name is Deido!"
The ninja was delighted. He knew of Didaze's potential, too. With that potential, becoming one of the higher-ups would be no problem at all. Even if he lacked the seniority now, he would certainly get there in the future.
"Deido?"
Didaze was puzzled. That name was far too slapdash.
"My parents gave me that name, hoping that, like soil, I could serve my purpose even if I was ordinary."
There was no change in Deido's expression as he spoke, as though he were recounting something that had nothing to do with him.
"Is that so? Then following me will be your chance to serve your greatest purpose."
Didaze patted Deido on the shoulder.
Although Deido concealed it well, he could not hide the trace of sorrow deep in his eyes.
"Yes, my lord!"
Deido immediately composed himself, adopting a serious expression.
"Lord Didaze, Lord Raito requests your presence at a meeting."
A ninja appeared, bowed to Didaze, and spoke.
"Raito?"
Didaze searched his memories of the man and soon found them.
He was the sole Jonin, as well as the supreme commander Ōnoki had specially dispatched to defend the border!
One could even put it this way: without the Tsuchikage present, no one else's orders carried any weight. Only Raito's orders counted.
"Go back and tell Lord Raito I'll be there right away."
Didaze spoke.
"Yes, Lord Didaze. Then I'll take my leave."
The ninja bowed again, then swiftly vanished from the spot.
"Lord Didaze, shall we?"
Deido looked at Didaze questioningly, as though asking whether they should go.
"Let's go."
Didaze quickly shaped a clay bird. As he tossed it out, the clay bird rose on the wind and instantly became a giant bird!
"Climb on!"
Didaze called to Deido.
Excited, Deido climbed onto the giant clay bird.
"The view from the sky really is so..."
Didaze soon brought Deido up to a height of a hundred meters. Although that was not particularly high, it was already a novel experience for Deido.
Under Didaze's control, the giant clay bird soon flew to the headquarters set up at the border.
This was where the captains held their meetings.
"Didaze, you're our great hero! Without you, we probably would have lost our position this time!"
Raito came straight up and hugged Didaze.
Raito stood two meters tall, his skin bronze all over, only a little lighter than the black people of Kumogakure.
Hugging Didaze was like holding a little chick.
"Big Brother Raito, the credit belongs to all of you. I just stole it from you!"
Didaze wriggled out of Raito's bear hug and spoke after taking great gulps of air.
"Nothing of the sort! Without you, Ze, we really might have lost our position. Besides, I don't remember you being this bashful!"
Someone rested a hand on Didaze's shoulder as he spoke.
"Stop teasing me, Dogen."
Didaze looked at the arm resting on his shoulder, searched his memories, and immediately remembered.
Dogen was his teammate. After being promoted to Special Jōnin, he had been assigned to the border alongside him to serve as a captain.
"All right, all right. Let's talk inside!"
Raito interrupted Dogen and Didaze and strode into headquarters.
"Let's go!"
Dogen patted Didaze and gave him a thumbs-up.
"Sure!"
Didaze replied with a smile.
Soon, everyone was seated inside headquarters.
"Everyone, first of all, I want to give Didaze special recognition!"
Raito stood up and spoke.
"If Didaze hadn't turned the tide, there was a very good chance our border defenses would have fallen this time. Even if Lord Tsuchikage recaptured them later, it wouldn't wash away our shame!"
Raito grew more impassioned as he spoke.
The other captains' expressions gradually grew solemn as well.
Their records had all been dazzling before this. How humiliating would it be to have a border defeat and a disgraceful retreat added to those records!
"I bear responsibility for this, and I apologize to you all!"
Raito bowed to the captains.
"Captain Raito, how are you responsible?"
"It was all the doing of those Kumogakure brutes! Anyone else in your place wouldn't have done as well as you!"
"Exactly! You don't need to shoulder the blame at all. Besides, we didn't lose our position!"
Several captains spoke up to give Raito a way out. In their view, he really had done nothing wrong.
Their only mistake was failing to anticipate Kumogakure's surprise attack. After all, Konoha was the strongest ninja village. It was one thing for Kumogakure not to help them attack Konoha, but to launch a surprise attack on Iwagakure instead was something they truly could not understand.
After all, even if Kumogakure seized a stretch of the border, how long could they hold it? Unless Kumogakure moved its home base here, Iwagakure would take it back sooner or later.
"I was indeed at fault. There's no need to make excuses for me. Besides, I have something important to tell everyone today."
Raito spoke.
"I want to hand my position as head captain over to Didaze!"
The moment Raito said this, the entire hall fell silent.
"Well... Didaze is still too young, after all. Lord Raito, isn't this a little inappropriate...?"
One of the captains could no longer bear the atmosphere and directly voiced the question everyone wanted to ask.