Maruyoshi's tone was full of self-hatred. An entire elite force of over a hundred men had died at the hands of one man, and he was the only one who escaped.
His teammates and predecessors all fell on that "shady green battlefield".
The surrounding high-ranking officials were also heartbroken, after all, those who died were the pillars of the village. These were the elite of Sunagakure, and they fell so worthlessly at the hands of the nameless Anbu.
Chiyo was also saddened by the loss, but as the temporary leader of the village, she couldn't show her dejection, so she calmly asked, "So the news about Wood Release is true?"
"Yes, Elder Chiyo."
"Is the Wood Release user the Water Release prodigy ninja I previously leaked to the front lines?"
"Yes"
"Damn it, I underestimated that Anbu!" Chiyo slammed her hand on the table in frustration.
I originally thought Konoha had just produced a genius skilled in Water Release, but after hearing the news today, I realized that the Water Release genius has actually transformed into Wood Release genius.
This infuriated her. She should have paid more attention to that brat and sent more people to hunt him down. But now it was too late.
"Send a message to Rasa, telling him to send more men. Make sure that Wood Release brat dies on the battlefield. 100 men aren't enough, make it 500, 1000. Even if we lose the war, we must kill that brat. If we lose, we'll only have to pay compensation. But if we let this brat go, Sunagakure will truly have no future against Konoha."
Chiyo's face turned fierce. She had no goodwill towards the people of Konoha, let alone a peerless genius who had awakened Wood Release.
She was prepared for defeat in the war, and the corresponding Wood Release demons would have to die on the battlefield.
" Lady Chiyo, are we being too afraid of Wood Release? If we do, the loss to our village will be too great. Besides, we made an agreement with the daimyo that losing the war would mean losing a huge amount of financial aid."
A relatively young high-ranking member of the Sunagakure clan, who appeared to be only in his thirties, objected to Chiyo's decision.
He felt that Sunagakure didn't need to pay such a high price for a mere brat.
If they were to lose this battle, Sunagakure would have to wait ten years to recover to its former glory, and the village's strength would decline to its lowest point in history.
"That's right, that's what I think too. Even when Hashirama Senju was still alive, our Sunagakure was still thriving, wasn't it? Why are we now filled with fear? Besides, Hashirama Senju was Hashirama Senju, and that brat is that brat. Just having Wood Release doesn't make you as strong as Hashirama Senju."
" Hasegawa is right. Our Sunagakure should not boost the morale of others while diminishing our own."
Many Sunagakure- ranking members of Sunagakure echoed this sentiment, but upon closer inspection, it was clear that those who spoke up were mostly from the younger generation, while the older members remained silent.
Looking at the situation before her, Chiyo felt both gratified and somewhat disappointed. She was gratified that the younger generation of Sunagakure was full of drive and courage to face strong enemies, but she was disappointed that the younger generation was too optimistic and lacked strategic vision. If things were really that simple, the older generation present would not have remained silent.
Chiyo sighed inwardly and said wearily to the old man sitting beside her, " Ebizo, you should explain this to them properly."
She is indeed feeling physically and physically exhausted.
"Okay, sister."
"You young people didn't experience that era, so you don't know the extent of Hashirama Senju's power. Back when the Five Great Nations ninja villages were first established, he alone could suppress the other villages, preventing them from daring to cross the line. Only after his death did we dare to launch an attack on Konoha."
"Therefore, the other four ninja villages were all willing to ally with Konoha at that time, if..."
Perhaps because this history was too distant, the young executives present didn't seem to care much about what Ebizo was saying, and all looked rather uninterested.
Seeing the expressions on the faces of the younger high-ranking officials, Ebizo continued unperturbed, "I'm sure you all know about the Tailed Beast, right? You're also aware of the power unleashed by the One-Tail Beast from our village; only Kage Level ninja can subdue it. Yet, in Hashirama Senju's hands, the One-Tail was like a chick, utterly powerless."
Upon hearing this, the young executives present finally showed serious expressions.
Because they had witnessed the rampage of the One-Tail- Tailed Beast firsthand. On the battlefield, the One-Tail- Tailed Beast, with its enormous body, could stir up sandstorms that changed the color of the sky and earth with a casual wave of its hand, and could unleash powerful Wind Release with tremendous destructive force with a single breath.
Every move it made caused them a great deal of damage, and what made them even more desperate was that no matter what kind of Release Technique they used, they could not inflict any harm on the One-Tail. In the end, it was only with the help of the Third Kazekage, who was still alive at the time, and a group of Elite Jonin that the One-Tail was finally subdued.
Only then did the young executives present truly understand Hashirama Senju's strength.
Simply recounting Hashirama Senju's past glory wouldn't give them a direct sense of his power, but using the Tailed Beast as a comparison would make Hashirama Senju's strength clearer.
Then they listened as Ebizo continued, "The most obvious characteristic of Wood Release as Hashirama Senju's technique is its ability to counter Tailed Beast. You all know that Tailed Beast, as the core weapon of the village, have always been a means of deterring other ninja villages. But with Wood Release, the enemy's Tailed Beast can be restricted from exerting their power and waging war at will."
"Now that our enemy, Konoha, has acquired Wood Release, it means we've lost one of Konoha threats, while Konoha's Nine-Tails can pose a threat to us."
"Given this shift in power, we will still lose the current war. So you understand why we must eliminate the Wood Release brats at all costs. We are simply trading an unchanged outcome for a future that is more favorable to us."
Now the younger leaders understood why Chiyo valued Wood Release so much, even at the cost of the war, to eliminate the user of Wood Release. Wood Release posed a significant threat to a ninja village, not only because of the individual strength of Wood Release user, but also because it could directly enhance the village's overall strength.
Thinking about this, the young executives lowered their heads in shame. Their vision was not long-term enough; they were still only focused on short-term interests.
" Ebizo, we understand the importance of Wood Release. But how do we deal with the user of Wood Release? The people of Konoha aren't fools; they won't let us take action." A young, impatient high-ranking official asked.
He now has no objection to Chiyo's orders; the key question is how to implement the plan.
"I think my sister has a solution to this problem." Faced with the question from the younger executives, Ebizo turned his gaze to Chiyo, who was at the head of the table. The other executives looked at Chiyo with expectant eyes.
Finally, under everyone's watchful eyes, Chiyo slowly spoke, "First, we must accelerate the pace of the frontline offensive. Tell Rasa not to worry about losses; only fierce battles will keep Konoha's attention on the battlefield and prevent them from discovering that our target is Wood Release user."
"Secondly, in order to put pressure on Konoha, I plan to bring Bunpuku to the battlefield as well, forcing Konoha to send Wood Release user to the battlefield."