"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage! As long as I live, I won't let anyone hurt Didaze!"
Kōdo bowed and swore.
"All right, Kōdo, take him with you. I still have documents to review."
Ōnoki nodded in satisfaction, then sat down at the Tsuchikage's desk.
Kōdo then led Didaze out of the Tsuchikage's office.
"Big Brother Kōdo, may I call you that?"
Didaze spoke after leaving the Tsuchikage's office.
He didn't want things to get awkward, so he deliberately found something to talk about.
"Of course! If you're willing to call me your big brother, then I'll protect you even if it costs me my life!"
Kōdo patted Didaze on the shoulder and laughed heartily.
"Big Brother Kōdo, let's go, then!"
Didaze shaped a Clay Giant Bird, then tossed it onto the ground.
"Let's go! I've been wanting to try flying through the sky myself!"
Kōdo was a little excited too.
After all, Kōdo couldn't fly, and Ōnoki couldn't very well use the Light-Weight Rock Technique specifically to take him flying.
As a result, Kōdo had never flown through the sky before, and he was extremely excited about riding Didaze's Clay Giant Bird.
"Let's go, Big Brother Kōdo!"
Didaze jumped onto the Clay Giant Bird and waved at Kōdo.
"Let's go!"
Kōdo followed right behind, jumping onto Didaze's Clay Giant Bird as he spoke with a smile.
The Clay Giant Bird slowly rose into the air.
Kōdo watched Iwagakure grow smaller and smaller. Before they knew it, the two were already several hundred meters in the air.
"So this is what flying feels like? It's quite a thrill!"
Kōdo spoke as he felt the wind blowing against his face.
"If you ever want another ride, Big Brother Kōdo, just come find me. I can take you for a spin anytime!"
Didaze spoke with a smile as he controlled the Clay Giant Bird's flight.
"There's no need. That would be too much trouble for you, little brother."
Kōdo shook his head.
He wouldn't go looking for Didaze just because he wanted to experience flying.
"It's no trouble, Big Brother Kōdo!"
Didaze said with a smile.
But seeing Kōdo's resolute expression, Didaze knew he wouldn't be able to persuade him.
Just like that, time slowly passed.
After nearly two hours of flying, Didaze arrived in the Land of Grass.
The battlefield between Iwagakure and Konoha in this war was in the Land of Grass.
After all, Hanzo of the Salamander's title of demigod was well earned, and Iwagakure didn't want to provoke him either.
Although Hanzo of the Salamander had declared war on their three nations, it was clear that he wouldn't leave the Land of Rain.
That meant the three villages only needed to avoid fighting the Shinobi World War in the Land of Rain.
So Iwagakure had chosen the Land of Grass as its battlefield. After all, the Land of Grass had no particularly strong fighters, and even its strongest leader was only equivalent to an ordinary Jonin.
That was completely negligible to a major nation.
"This is the place."
Kōdo spoke as he looked at the rows of tents below.
These were Iwagakure's stationed troops.
"I'm landing, then!"
Didaze slowly descended.
"Attention, everyone! Attention, everyone!"
The ninja responsible for reconnaissance detected Didaze's presence and immediately called out a warning.
The Iwagakure ninja instantly went on full alert, watching the Clay Giant Bird slowly descend from the sky.
"Who goes there!"
Although they didn't know who had come, the Iwagakure ninja didn't rush to attack.
After all, the other party didn't seem to intend to attack either, and the ninja hadn't sensed any killing intent.
"It's me. Lord Tsuchikage sent us to reinforce you."
Kōdo hurriedly spoke.
After all, he felt that if he waited any longer, the Iwagakure ninja might launch an attack.
Kōdo immediately jumped off the Clay Giant Bird.
"It's Lord Kōdo!"
Everyone recognized the newcomer and lowered their guard.
"So it's Lord Kōdo! You've come to the front lines too!"
"Wonderful! With Lord Kōdo here, we'll definitely be able to defeat Konoha!"
Nearly all these ninja knew Kōdo. After all, he was Ōnoki's chief secretary and an elite Jonin himself.
He was quite well known in Iwagakure; practically every ninja knew Kōdo.
"I'm not the main force this time. He is!"
Kōdo shook his head, then stepped aside so everyone could see Didaze.
"Who... is this?"
That was the first thought to cross practically everyone's mind. Many of them had no idea who Didaze was.
"Didaze? The Special Jōnin? I know him!"
One of them suddenly spoke up.
"A Special Jōnin?"
Everyone furrowed their brows.
A Special Jōnin certainly wasn't weak, but surely that wasn't enough to make Kōdo say something like that? Unless there was something else this person was hiding.
"Didaze is no longer a Special Jōnin. He's a Jonin personally appointed by Lord Tsuchikage."
Kōdo shook his head before speaking.
"All right, I still have business to attend to. I'm going to see Kitsuchi!"
Kōdo waved his hand, and everyone cleared a path for him.
Kōdo headed toward Kitsuchi's tent.
Kitsuchi's tent was more than ten times larger than the others and looked capable of holding dozens of people.
Kōdo and Didaze stepped into Kitsuchi's tent.
"We can't keep dragging this out. If we keep this up, we'll end up accomplishing nothing again..."
The moment Didaze entered, he heard someone speaking.
It was a man about 1.7 meters tall, talking to Kitsuchi, who was seated.
Beside them stood another man, two meters tall and wearing red armor.
Didaze recognized this man at a glance: Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki.
As for the man who was 1.7 meters tall, Didaze had no recollection of him. After all, the original work had offered pitifully little information about Iwagakure, covering basically just those few characters.
It was perfectly normal for there to be some ninja he didn't know.
"Hmm? Kōdo, what brings you here!"
Kitsuchi had been wearing a troubled expression, but the instant he saw Kōdo, he visibly brightened.
After all, Kōdo had the fighting strength of an elite Jonin. With him joining them, there might be a chance of breaking the deadlock.
"I'm not the most important one. The person beside me is."
Kōdo pointed at Didaze beside him as he spoke.
"He's the most important? Surely not, Kōdo!"
Kitsuchi wasn't quite convinced. Wouldn't someone stronger than an elite Jonin have to be Kage level?
To Kitsuchi, being important meant being strong. After all, if you weren't strong, how could you be important?
"There's no need to say anything, Big Brother Kōdo. I'll prove myself in the next battle."
Seeing the disbelief on everyone's faces, Didaze stopped Kōdo, who was about to speak in his defense.
Didaze knew words were useless. Only strength could make them accept him.
"Very good. I couldn't ask for a better attitude!"
Kitsuchi nodded in satisfaction too. Didaze's words suited him perfectly. A man had to prove himself in war!