In Konohagakure, the flood was raging.
Almost everyone in the village knew that the person who sprayed the water this time was a Kirigakure ninja named Satsuma Rentaro.
After all, this person directly sprayed it in front of them!
So in their cognition, there was no one else at all. This matter was done by Satsuma Rentaro alone.
As a result.
The Anbu, including Aoba, who went to the front line, were naturally cleared of suspicion.
At this time.
Although it was a little late and everyone in the village was bathed in the bright moonlight, they were still working on fighting the flood. After all, no one could fall asleep in this state.
On the other side.
Hiruzen stood on the top of a house, his hands constantly forming hand seals one after another. He quickly used Earth Release Ninjutsu, controlling the water in the village to flow in the direction of the forest.
"Is this Satsuma Rentaro the one from the Uzumaki Clan?"
A big question mark appeared on Hiruzen's head. Logically speaking, this possibility had been eliminated. After all, he and everyone had just seen Satsuma Rentaro's figure. It was simply too powerful to be described. His thick chakra was like a tailed beast in human form. He just sprayed a few mouthfuls of water, and Konohagakure became like this. However, there were many things in his mind that he couldn't explain clearly. He still felt that something about Satsuma Rentaro was very similar to the ninja of the Uzumaki Clan who treated Danzo.
...
At the border of Country of Fire.
Inside the tent.
Aoba fell asleep.
He did not have anything to worry about. He had already set up all the arrangements before he left Konohagakure.
What he needed to do now was to carry it out step by step.
After all...
In addition to ABC's three different plans, there was another plan that needed to be carried out, and that was his own task.
What Aoba needed to do now was to sleep peacefully.
That was all.
However.
Aoba was at ease.
The other ninjas in this tent were not so at ease. They could only watch Aoba silently, afraid of missing any details.
Aoba was too relaxed.
This was too strange.
Even Hokage's Anbu could not understand what was going on.
Aoba did not do anything.
However, it made them feel that there was something wrong with Aoba.
Or perhaps...
It was because Aoba was too calm!
Usually, on the first night of their first day on the battlefield, very few people could sleep so soundly. This was a bit beyond their expectations.
...
Gradually.
A night passed.
Aoba moved as if telling the other people here that he was going to wake up.
After that.
His eyelids moved slightly.
He was ready to open his eyes.
During this process, the ninjas staring at Aoba just now seemed to have received a secret signal and began to quickly put on a new posture, as if they had just woken up to make Aoba feel that he was not being monitored.
"Good morning!"
Aoba looked at the other ninjas in the same tent with sleepy eyes. He acted very naturally as if he did not notice their abnormality at all.
Isn't it just acting?
Aoba now knew that these people were acting, but he pretended not to know. Compared with their acting, he was on a higher level.
"Hello, my name is..."
The ninja who introduced himself to Aoba last night immediately opened his mouth, intending to introduce himself to Aoba again, preparing to close the relationship with Aoba in this way. This was also the reason why they were arranged to be in the same tent as Aoba.
Now they were in the same tent.
During this period, they would either be fighting or living together.
Slowly.
Time would pass.
They would definitely become familiar with each other.
This can also be regarded as a comrade-in-arms who has been on the battlefield together. This way, it would be easier to draw closer to each other and discover Aoba's secret through various details.
It was just that...
The ninja had just opened his mouth.
Before he could finish speaking.
He was interrupted by Aoba's words!
"I'm not interested in what your name is."
Aoba indifferently got up. After that, he directly walked out of the tent, and his whole face changed from sleepiness to determination.
"I'll say it again."
"I'm not here to make friends."
"I'm here to fight!"
Aoba's tone was very cold. After he finished speaking, he walked out of the tent, leaving these Hokage's Anbu in silence.
"..."
These Hokage's Anbu were all dumbfounded. They looked at each other and saw the same gaze in each other's eyes.
This youth called Aoba was a bit too awesome!
He could actually reject a person so many times!
This...
However, Aoba's reason made them unable to refute anything. After all, it was a very important matter to focus on the battlefield and not let other things affect their focus.
...
After Aoba left the tent, it was still early and not completely bright yet. There were traces of damp and cold water vapor in the air, which could almost make people feel refreshed.
"Konoha's water is so noisy!"
The corners of Aoba's mouth slightly curled up. While sleeping, he had already been awakened by a piece of information. However, he did not show it. Looking from the outside, he still seemed to be asleep.
He already knew about the flood in Konohagakure.
The clone who had done this, the one who had turned into Satsuma Rentaro, had already removed himself after spraying the water and sent everything he saw and heard to Aoba.
"It won't be long before they call us back!"
"Before the order comes..."
"I have to do something."
"I can't come here for nothing!"
Aoba had already started implementing his plan.
Aoba ignored these Hokage's Anbu, not because these people were monitoring him, nor because they approached him for a purpose, but because it was as he said...
He didn't want to make friends!
Aoba now felt that his friends were enough.
One was Minato.
The other was Teuchi.
As for Fugaku, he could barely be considered third.
There was nothing else.
Aoba had once opened his heart and tried to accept the two young girls when he was at the Chunin Exams without him noticing.
But...
The heavens did not grant his wish!
The actions of the two girls had greatly disappointed him.
Even he did not want to overthink this kind of thing. On the surface, he did not seem to care much, but in his heart, he was unwilling to be framed, especially his teammate.
And...
This kind of teammate did not even listen to your explanation!
After being taught a lesson by the two young girls, Aoba no longer planned to have any interactions with Konohagakure.
As long as they were familiar with each other.
Then there would be trouble finding his head.
It would be better to not have these things.
...
As time went on, the sun gradually covered the earth, bringing warmth to the air here.
The Anbu who had arrived at the front line had all woken up. Now they were all gathered together, looking like they were going to do something.
Aoba was also in the crowd.
Now, he felt more and more deeply about whether these people were sent to their deaths.
Because.
They were only standing here.
Other than standing there, they did not do anything else.
And the Hokage's Anbu Captain, who had called them over, had yet to arrive.
Another ten minutes passed.
Just when the people here were getting impatient, the Hokage's Anbu Captain arrived and came out of everyone's sight.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
This Hokage's Anbu Captain immediately cleared his throat. He wore the mask but his eyes behind the mask revealed an impatient expression as if he was very dissatisfied with the expressions of the people waiting here.
"Now that we have arrived at the front line, the war can start at any time. I hope everyone can be prepared!" This Hokage's Anbu Captain loudly said.
"????"
A lot of question marks appeared in everyone's heads. Now, everyone had no words to say. Because they really did not know what to say.
What did this mean?
Was it a joke?
Why are we preparing?
What are we preparing?
What after that?
Everyone had questions. They stared at this Hokage's Anbu Captain. However, this person did not seem to have anything added. He just stood there simply.
"What are you all still standing there for?"
Hokage's Anbu Captain, swept his gaze over these people, the impatience in his eyes almost overflowing.
"Go and prepare!"
This Hokage's Anbu Captain said in an unquestionable tone as if he was issuing orders to everyone.
"Prepare what?"
At this time, a person in the crowd suddenly spoke. The person who spoke was Eaton wearing sunglasses.
As Konohagakure Intelligence Division's Captain, Eaton wanted to fight at the frontline. He did not complain about going to the frontline as the vanguard. He just felt it was inappropriate to be the vanguard, but he still came.
However.
Now.
He suddenly realized that the situation was not what he had imagined.
At this critical juncture.
This Hokage's Anbu Captain actually couldn't speak clearly, making it hard to understand. Moreover, they didn't know what he wanted to express.
"Didn't I make it clear just now?" This Hokage's Anbu Captain looked at Eaton. His tone was filled with deep dissatisfaction. Everyone didn't know what had happened but it could be seen that he was in a bad mood today. After that, he said coldly, "Prepare to fight with Iwagakure ninjas!"
When Aoba heard this, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch.
This was really...
Listening to what you have to say is better than listening to what you have said!
It seemed that he had said something, but he didn't say anything, but his attitude and tone were vividly expressed as if he had already said many things.
"When are we going to fight?" Eaton asked coldly.
"I think you should ask Iwagakure's ninjas about this question. Ask them when they will start the war!" This Hokage's Anbu Captain said in a strange tone.
"What battle plan do we have?" Eaton asked coldly again. This time, his tone was even colder than before, and he was also at the critical point of exploding.
"We don't have any plans yet. Our goal is to come to the front line and defend the front line. When Iwagakure's ninjas launch an attack, we have to deal with them immediately!" This Hokage's Anbu Captain said loudly.
"What if Iwagakure doesn't launch an attack?" Eaton frowned even more. What was happening here was different from the battles he had participated in before. He seriously suspected that this Hokage's Anbu Captain had never been on the battlefield.
"Of course, that's for the best. Do you want the war to break out? If Iwagakure's ninjas did not launch an attack and retreat from here, that is the best outcome for this matter!" This Hokage's Anbu Captain replied. He had been by Hiruzen's side for a long time, and he had learned a lot about Hiruzen's ways of life.
"Can't we take the initiative to attack?" Eaton said helplessly. He felt that this way of fighting was too passive. They didn't do anything at all. They just waited here, waiting for the opponent to attack and then defending. Their situation would be in a passive state in an instant.
"I believe that no one here is willing to make a big deal out of this matter. If it doesn't end well, it will be even more troublesome. After all, our goal is to make peace. If the other party did not start a war, that is the situation we want to see the most." This Hokage's Anbu Captain said.
"..."
After asking a few questions, Eaton was completely speechless. He was thinking of attacking Iwagakure ninjas while they were in their most energetic state. They were going to shoot first and gain the upper hand.
But their leader obviously did not mean that.
Then he had nothing to say.
This was not a question of who was right and who was wrong.
This was a matter of philosophy.
The ideals of both sides were different.
After Eaton retreated and stopped talking, the atmosphere at the scene suddenly became quiet. No one said anything.
"If you have nothing to say, this meeting will be over." This Hokage's Anbu Captain said coldly as he swept over his gaze at the people at the scene.