"Stupid Grass Ninjas, don't they have even a little bit of brainpower?!"
The commander of the Iwa Ninja frontline, Higashi Shinin, angrily shouted. When Iwa first learned about the alliance between the Grass Ninja and Konoha, the Grass Ninja had already launched three raids against Iwa's logistical forces. The third attack, however, was repelled by Iwa's support troops, leaving many Grass Ninja bodies behind.
Afterward, Higashi Shinin sent scouts and learned that the Grass Ninja had sided with Konoha after Iwa's involvement in the slaughter of villages and assassinations in the Land of Grass. "These useless Grass Ninjas couldn't even think things through properly. The leader of this Konoha team is none other than Shimura Danzo, the man with the nickname 'The Darkness of the Shinobi World'. How could they fall for such crude framing tactics from the Grass Ninjas?"
Higashi Shinin's anger was evident as he vented his frustration. On one side, Konoha was putting increasing pressure, while on the other, the Grass Ninjas were constantly launching raids. Even though the Third Tsuchikage had sent reinforcements, Higashi Shinin still felt that the situation was becoming unsustainable.
"Has the scout team returned? What about Majiru's squad?" Higashi Shinin suddenly asked. At the mention of this, Majiru quickly entered after being notified by other Iwa Ninjas.
Majiru and Higashi Shinin were close friends, but before Majiru could speak, Higashi Shinin directly asked, "Majiru, how many people are there left in Konoha's camp?"
Majiru hesitated for a moment but quickly replied, "Around four hundred."
"What?" Higashi Shinin was stunned by this information. After a moment of silence, he slammed his fist onto the table and asked, "Why hasn't their number decreased? Have they received reinforcements?"
"I haven't received any news of reinforcements. But if they had any, Daishi would've reported it," Majiru responded, confirming that Konoha hadn't received any new reinforcements.
Higashi Shinin was confused. "Then why hasn't their number decreased? Is it that our raiding teams were just slaughtered by Konoha?"
"It might be related to Konoha's Hyuga Mirai," one of Higashi Shinin's subordinates spoke up, handing over a scroll. This was a shared intelligence between Suna and Iwa after their alliance.
The scroll contained information about Hyuga Mirai, with emphasis on his medical ninja abilities.
"An eleven-year-old medical genius?!" Higashi Shinin couldn't believe the information, but since Suna had no reason to send false intelligence, it was likely true. In that case, Konoha truly was a cradle for geniuses. First, there were the Sannin and White Fang, and now another medical ninja was rising at such a young age.
How could they fight against this? Many of Iwa's ninjas had participated in the Second Shinobi World War and had briefly clashed with Konoha. However, at that time, they didn't manage to gain an advantage, and Lord Onoki decided not to continue the battle. But now, with Tsunade in Konoha, it was a different matter. Her medical ninjutsu would make all enemy villages wary.
After a battle, injuries were inevitable, but a powerful medical ninja could significantly reduce those effects. A skilled medical ninja could even make a force of 200 ninjas fight like 400—quickly treating injuries and restoring stamina and chakra.
"Majiru…" Higashi Shinin began, but Majiru quickly interrupted. "Don't even think about it. Even though I'm skilled in reconnaissance, I can't infiltrate their camp. It's the Byakugan, unless you plan for a decisive battle with Konoha. Then there might be a small chance."
"Then let's have a decisive battle!" Higashi Shinin slammed the table, his decision made. The other Iwa ninjas present surprisingly did not oppose.
Everyone present understood the situation. Although Tsuchikage-sama had ordered them to hold the camp and wait for reinforcements, Higashi Shinin was overwhelmed by Danzo's ruthless tactics. If they continued to shrink back, Iwa would surely be slowly eaten away by Konoha. It would be better to rely on Iwa's Earth Release and take a stand in a head-on battle with Konoha.
...
At the Konoha camp in the Land of Rivers, a fierce battle had just taken place between Konoha and Suna. Both sides had sustained considerable damage.
The Fourth Kazekage had been ambushed by Minato Namikaze, who used special wood-style kunai to land a close-range Rasengan. Realizing things were not going in their favor, Suna immediately released the One-Tails Jinchuriki, Shukaku, onto the battlefield. Few ninjas could face such a calamity-level force head-on.
Suna had anticipated this and dispersed once Shukaku was released, but by the time Shukaku fully manifested, it was left facing only Konoha ninjas. Minato, seeking to cover the retreat of the Konoha ninjas, blocked Shukaku, but he lacked the offensive ninjutsu to deal with such a large beast. After holding out for a while, he was eventually injured by Shukaku.
The remaining Konoha ninjas who had retreated were ambushed by Suna's Chiyo, but thanks to Suna's lack of new poison research, the casualties were not as severe as they could have been.
When the news of the battle in the Land of Rivers reached Konoha, Sarutobi immediately dispatched Jiraiya with reinforcements. However, by the time Jiraiya arrived, Konoha had already retreated to the border between the Land of Rivers and the Land of Fire. A little further back and they would reach Kikyō Castle.
When Jiraiya appeared, Minato finally breathed a sigh of relief, a smile spreading across his face. "Jiraiya-sensei, now that you're here, I can relax."
After all, Minato had done well in holding off Rasa, but facing the One-Tails Jinchuriki was another matter entirely.
"Minato, I heard that you did quite well. Now, let's take down Suna together, the two of us," Jiraiya said with a hearty laugh, slapping Minato on the shoulder. Minato winced slightly from the pain but couldn't help but feel at ease, infected by Jiraiya's cheerful demeanor.
Minato's injury wasn't too serious. With the help of medical ninjas, he would recover in a few days and return to his peak. Other Konoha ninjas had similar injuries, but thanks to antidotes and treatment talismans, medical ninjas could perform surgery using the talisman's yang chakra with minimal effort. This allowed them to treat more ninjas with fewer resources.
"In fact, Minato, the old man wanted me to ask about something," Jiraiya said, leaving the tent for a moment before returning. "Why did you send a message through the Anbu? And why are you asking the Hokage to pay attention to Hyuga Mirai?"
"Jiraiya-sensei, you must not tell anyone about this..." Minato hesitated for a moment but finally decided to share the potential future events with Jiraiya. He refrained from revealing anything about the Uzumaki Clan or Naruto, but he clearly remembered everything about Hyuga Mirai and Orochimaru.
"Minato, is this for real? How did you know about this?" Jiraiya's expression darkened after hearing Minato's words. If this news had come from anyone else, Jiraiya would have assumed it was a lie, but coming from his disciple, he had no choice but to take it seriously.
"Jiraiya-sensei, I don't lie about matters like this. If I wasn't 100% certain, I wouldn't have mentioned it to the Hokage or you," Minato said with a bitter smile. After all, Orochimaru and Hyuga Mirai were both Konoha's heroes. Unless someone had control over him, Minato wouldn't slander them.
"Alright. I'll personally investigate this. I'll also inform the old man. But, Minato, don't say a word about this until I come to a conclusion," Jiraiya said as he patted Minato on the shoulder, speaking with seriousness.
"I understand, thank you, Jiraiya-sensei."
Minato knew that Jiraiya was looking out for him. After all, neither Orochimaru nor the Hyuga clan were easy targets for investigation.
However, Minato did promise Jiraiya, but in his heart, he couldn't let go. He had promised Naruto that he would do everything in his power to prevent that tragic future from coming to pass.
(End of Chapter)
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