Iwa forces marched towards the land of grass led by Mû of the dust release.
They were at the borders of the Land of Earth and had set their camp around there.
Mū was reading Logistic reports when his student walked in.
"Mû sensei, We have gathered the intel about the distribution of Konoha and Uzu forces. It looks like we would most likely be fighting against the Uzumaki forces and a few Konoha teams that have joined them." A young dwarf Onoki respectfully reported to Mū.
"They are being led by four S-rank shinobi namely Kota Eizen, Hatsu Uzumaki of steel release, Yuriko Uzumaki of swift release, and Yoriichi Uzumaki, the demon swordsman. We should expect more than four hundred troops and less than 500 troops from their side."
Mū gave it a thought before he spoke up "So we have the numerical advantage. But we would have to capitalize on it. Hmm"
"But sensei compared to our 3 S rank on the frontlines, they have four of them. Does not this till the favor to their sides? There might be even more S-rank shinobi on their side." Onoki asked
"We don't have to worry about the S-rank shinobis unless their army is utterly being slaughtered. S rank shinobi don't take action in a straightforward war, not unless both sides are going all out or one is at a very big disadvantage."
"Why is that sensei? Why would someone throw out the numerical advantage and the power of an S-rank shinobi? Is not it kind of stupid?" Young Onoki curiously asked
"But would not that mean we would easily be able to win since we have a numerical advantage considering the non-S rank shinobi? We can call another S-rank shinobi from the village to even out the numbers. That way even if they are desperate, they would not be able to do much." Onoki said
"Hahaha Boy, Even though you are talented you still have a lot to learn. But you don't have to worry about it now, you would know about such things as you grow in age and wisdom." Mū said
Onoki could feel that his master was amused by his lack of knowledge. But no one could tell his master's expression since he was completely covered with bandages.
The bandages were because of his sensei playing with something that he should have never done. He played with a kekkei tota, dust release. He tried to create a dust release jutsu which was already dangerous enough. But the jutsu was something that dealt with the shinobi body itself.
As a result of this jutsu experiment, the outer layer of his skin turned to dust never to heal itself again. But that did not mean that all of that was for naught. Mū succeeded in creating a 'permanent' clone with half of his strength but it also had a drawback. His main body's strength was also halved when he used this jutsu. This meant half of his speed, strength, endurance, and chakra capacity.
His master wanted him to perfect this technique. But Onoki was scared. He had seen what the jutsu did to his master. What damage would it cause to him? He was already dwarf size, he did not want to get even more shorter.
But above all, he thought that he did not need this jutsu. He was strong and a genius. He does not only have a kekkei genkai of lava release but also the kekkei tota of Dust release. [A/N: Onoki had lava release in the Manga]
But his pride was shattered when he saw someone as old as him become stronger than himself. Yoriichi Uzumaki. He had seen the guy become strong enough to compete with someone like his master. He was not the only one. Even the disciple of Tobirama Senju was a genius among geniuses.
His desire to grow stronger resurfaced and he started training ever harder. He would not let other villages threaten Iwa, not now and not in the future.
Mū started explaining to Onoki the reason why S-rankers don't take part in the war "S-rank shinobi only fight against other S-rank shinobi in a war such as this. They usually stay back and command the troops. The reason is a single S-rank shinobi with the cost of his life could bring entire armies to knees. Let's just take our village for example."
"I could literally turn chunins and jonins into dust and they would not even be able to block the attack. The explosion corps commander could blow apart the very land that we are fighting for. If he is in the middle of the enemy army, their entire forces could be killed in a massive explosion."
"The same is true for the Uzushiogakure's S-rank shinobi. Kota Eizen can turn people into crustal statues and with a single tap of his finger, they would turn into crystal dust. That Yoriichi boy could materialize those black rods of his with the help of his dojutsu right in front of a shinobi. You can't occupy an S-rank shinobi with another S-rank shinobi either. Once they slip through, it takes only one single forbidden jutsu to turn the tides." Mū explained
Onoki digested the information before he asked "So what is our plan then, sensei?
------A/N----
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