"Send all refined iron to warehouses number six and seven!"
" Chakra Metal is stored in scrolls, in Warehouse Number Three."
" The Chakra paper is stored in warehouse number four."
"The components of the Giant Puppet Prototype have been placed in warehouses eight through fifteen."
"..."
Outside the Konoha camp, the supply storage area, which had been quiet for half a month, was bustling with activity as hundreds of transport wagons from the Sunagakure of the Land of Wind lined up to unload their full loads of supplies.
Dozens of Konoha Ninja, dressed as clerks, bustled among the caravan, constantly lifting the tarpaulins on the carriages to inspect the supplies, and occasionally shouting to the carriage drivers to send the supplies to a specific warehouse.
Outside, thousands of Konoha Ninja surrounded the supply storage area to prevent any possible accidents.
Outside the gate of the temporary supply storage area, Nara Shikahito stood on a makeshift platform, his face beaming as he observed the chaotic and bustling scene before him, his joy visibly evident.
"I've struck it rich! I saw sixteen carriages full of refined iron alone, and one carriage was filled with just the sealing scrolls containing Chakra papers."
Beside him, Shin'un, hearing Nara Shikahito's words and watching the scene of hundreds of carriages unloading supplies at the same time, nodded and said:
"Truly spectacular..."
As he spoke, Shin'un's gaze swept back and forth among the hundreds of carriages, searching for the ones that were transporting the Giant Puppet Prototype.
At this moment, the Sunagakure who had been standing stiffly behind the two Jonin forward a few paces and whispered:
"Gentlemen, now that the supplies have been delivered, may I first meet our Sunagakure ninja?"
"What's the rush?" Nara Shikahito said without turning his head, looking longingly at the magnificent scene before him.
"Hmm... the supplies haven't been inspected yet, so you can't take those thousand prisoners away, understand?"
"This... I understand." The Sunagakure Jonin readily, glanced at the dozens of Sand Ninja who had come with him below the platform, and said with a surge of courage:
"Of course we won't leave now, but since you're here to inspect the supplies, we naturally want to visit our Sunagakure ninjas as well."
"I think this is a reasonable request."
Upon hearing this, Shin'un glanced at the Sunagakure Jonin, not expecting that this person could say such a thing.
Turning their heads, Shin'un and Nara Shikahito exchanged a glance.
Nodding, Nara Shikahito Jonin a Konoha to the side.
"Take this Sunagakure Jonin and go see the thousand Sand Ninja prisoners who have gathered."
As he spoke, Nara Shikahito glanced at the Sunagakure Jonin.
"Go."
"Clear."
The Konoha Jonin the order, walked up to the Sunagakure Jonin, and extended a hand.
This way, please.
Thank you.
Nodding, the Sunagakure Jonin glanced at the backs of Shin'un and Nara Shikahito's heads before following the Konoha Jonin away.
"Is it alright to let him see those thousand Sand Ninja prisoners ahead of time?"
After the Sunagakure Jonin far away, Shin'un asked Nara Shikahito, who was beside him.
"Of course it's okay."
Nara Shikahito smiled and turned to look at Shin'un.
"You haven't been to the POW camp for the past month, so you don't know how those prisoners are doing now."
"It's no exaggeration to say that, apart from the Jonin who were kept Jonin solitary confinement by the Anbu and whom I was unaware of, the other two thousand-plus Sand Ninja were completely incapable of fighting."
At this point, Nara Shikahito's smile faded, and a hint of conflict appeared in his eyes.
"Previously, the Lord Third entrusted all the work of guarding prisoners of war to Shimura Danzō."
"You probably know Shimura Danzō. To prevent the more than two thousand Sand Ninja prisoners from rebelling, he made many targeted arrangements."
"It's a bit cruel to say it..."
"The prisoners were only given one meal a day at noon, which consisted of just a bowl of thin porridge. They were also forced to do manual labor. Every night, hundreds of prisoners crammed into a small room to rest."
"Based on this, Danzo devised a series of measures to prevent the Sand Ninja prisoners from having the energy to think, such as putting the prisoners in a cold and damp 'bathroom' where they couldn't sleep, and hanging them high up with their hands tied behind their backs, causing their arms to slowly dislocate..."
"Despite Shimura Danzō's indifference, some Root guard ninjas continued to commit various cruel acts against the Sand Ninja Village prisoners, including but not limited to imprisonment, humiliation, abuse, and torture..."
"And..."
Nara Shikahito paused for a moment, then frowned and said:
"After I took over the prisoner-of-war camp, I immediately screened all the prisoners. Apart from the dead prisoners, more than sixty Sand Ninja prisoners mysteriously disappeared."
"I suspect... no, I'm certain that these sixty-odd mysteriously disappeared Sand Ninja prisoners were the work of Shimura Danzō. I just haven't found out what he did with them yet?"
"More than sixty Sand Ninja prisoners..."
Upon hearing this, Shin'un pondered to himself.
"The only thing I can think of... is human experimentation."
"Did Shimura Danzō start conducting human experiments with Wood Release so early?"
"It's just unclear whether Hiruzen Sarutobi knows about this."
Shaking his head, Shin'un looked at Nara Shikahito.
"Whatever, given the current state of Sunagakure, they probably won't turn against us just because these Sand Ninja have disappeared."
"That's natural."
Nara Shikahito nodded, thoughtfully changing the subject about the prisoner-of-war camps.
"By the way, I received your transfer order today."
"Transfer order?"
Upon hearing this, Shin'un immediately understood and replied:
"Yes, the first batch of supplies for the Sand Ninja has been delivered. Once they take back their thousand prisoners, I won't need to stay in the Land of Rain any longer."
After saying that, Shin'un stopped talking, while Nara Shikahito frowned as he looked at the scene of more than a hundred carriages lined up in front of him, seemingly lost in thought.
After a period of silence on the high platform, Shin'un stared at a carriage in the distance, his eyes narrowing.
" Nara- senpai, I've seen something that interests me. I'll go take a look."
Raising an eyebrow, Nara Shikahito turned to look at Shin'un.
"That's the Giant Puppet Prototype, isn't it? If I weren't indispensable here, I'd like to go and see it too."
Hearing this, Shin'un smiled and turned to leave.
"Sizzle~"
Using his Lightning Body Flicker, Shin'un swept directly over the heads of the crowd on the ground, arriving directly at the entrance of Warehouse No. 8.
"Watch out! Be careful!"
"This component is located in area three!"
"Watch out, heavy pressure on the parts!"
I had barely settled into my spot when I heard the busy shouts of the warehouse manager.
Shin'un didn't care about any of that. Ignoring the obstacles in front of him, he walked straight toward the carriage he had noticed.
As he approached, Shin'un took another look at the carriage.
The carriage left deep ruts where it had traveled, suggesting that the goods it carried must have been very heavy.
Moreover, the carriage was loaded to the brim, and the items hidden under the tarpaulin were enormous, with one end extending directly out of the carriage bed.
"Whoosh~"
Lifting the tarpaulin on the carriage immediately reveals the contents being transported.
The object is roughly cylindrical, painted dark blue, and appears to have two bendable steel joints.
Upon seeing this, Shin'un's brows furrowed.
"A steel finger..."