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Konoha Year 37.
The flames of war had finally ignited.
Both Iwagakure and Sunagakure launched simultaneous attacks, marking the full outbreak of the war.
Fortunately, on both fronts, Hatake and Jiraiya were there to hold off the fierce advances of the enemy shinobi villages.
They managed to establish two lines of defense.
Konoha, Iwa, and Suna were now locked in a deadlock.
Reports from the front lines constantly flowed back to Konoha, and the entire village felt the heavy atmosphere of war. Prices for food and ninja tools skyrocketed.
Even though the enemy's advance had been halted, the war's impact was far-reaching, with no signs of prices decreasing.
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen sat in his chair, puffing on his pipe, smoke rings curling in the air, as he looked at his old teammates.
Danzo sat with his eyes closed as if meditating, while Koharu and Homura frowned over the latest reports from the front lines.
They were the small group responsible for deciding the direction of the ongoing war.
"Iwagakure and Sunagakure must have formed an alliance," Koharu said, breaking the silence.
"Otherwise, they wouldn't have attacked simultaneously."
"At least there's no movement from Kumogakure or Kirigakure yet, which might be the only good news," Homura added.
"But what about the situation in Amegakure? The village can't support a third front," Koharu continued, both of them now looking expectantly at Hiruzen for a solution.
The village had already committed a large number of shinobi to the two fronts, especially against Iwagakure. That front required a significant force to defend the vital trade routes between the three nations and to monitor Taki and Kusa, who were notorious for siding with the strongest.
As for the Suna front, it was relatively easier to manage. The Land of Rivers, located between Konoha and Suna, wasn't in a position to challenge Konoha's forces, given its sparse population. They could focus solely on Suna without external interference.
However, Suna was no pushover.
Combined, these two fronts accounted for seventy percent of Konoha's forces.
The remaining shinobi were needed to defend the village itself, leaving only a small reserve.
Amegakure was crucial, situated at the intersection of three nations. Not only would they have to contend with Iwa and Suna, but the Ame shinobi were also a troublesome factor.
But reducing the forces on either front would only invite disaster, allowing Suna and Iwa to push deeper into Konoha territory.
Hiruzen struggled to find a viable solution.
"What do you think, Danzo?"
He passed the problem to Danzo, who slowly opened his eyes.
"Send the Uchiha to the Suna front. It's the best option."
This suggestion made Hiruzen hesitate before finally deciding,
"We'll discuss this further."
The Uchiha clan was primarily stationed to defend against Kirigakure. Although there was no movement from Kiri at the moment, they needed to remain vigilant.
The others understood Hiruzen's concern. The Uchiha had many skilled shinobi, and if they were sent to the front lines, they could easily accumulate battle merits. With merit came reputation, and Hiruzen feared he might not be able to control them.
Handling just one Uchiha Jin was already challenging enough.
"This Uchiha Jin seems to have an unusually high number of battle merits," Homura observed, scanning the reports that showed Jin's considerable achievements.
Hiruzen sighed, rubbing his temples.
"He submitted one A-rank jutsu and six B-rank taijutsu techniques from the front lines."
The group fell silent for a moment until Koharu finally voiced her doubts.
"Does he even have time to research jutsu on the front lines?"
"He created them before, only submitting them now."
The thought irritated Hiruzen. Jin had found a loophole in the system, but it wasn't one they could easily close. After all, his jutsu were incredibly effective. If more shinobi could create techniques like his, Konoha's power would increase significantly.
"Humph," Danzo snorted. "Let's focus on what to do about Amegakure."
Hiruzen quickly changed the subject.
"Then, I'll send Orochimaru to lead the forces in Amegakure."
"That's a mistake, Hiruzen. Orochimaru isn't ready for this," Danzo interrupted.
"I'll lead the forces in Amegakure."
"You're needed to counter any moves by Kumogakure," Hiruzen replied, causing Danzo to frown. Kumo had suffered greatly during the First Shinobi War and had yet to fully recover. It was unlikely they would make any aggressive moves.
This disrupted Danzo's plans to scout for talent on the front lines.
"Sending an inexperienced Orochimaru to lead the forces... you'll regret it, Hiruzen," Danzo said, his face darkening.
"Danzo, I am the Hokage," Hiruzen reminded him, finalizing the decision.
The news that Orochimaru would lead the forces in Amegakure spread quickly, a move intended to encourage the village's shinobi to contribute to the war effort.
Might Duy, who was helping a wealthy merchant move goods, overheard the news from passing shinobi.
"The front lines, huh?"
Duy fell into deep thought.
At the end of a long day of moving goods, he went to the mission office to collect his payment.
Looking at the 2,000 ryō note in his hand, "Diapers, milk, clothes, future ninja tools, school fees..."
He calculated carefully, sighing as he did so.
With muddy hands, he carefully placed the money inside his jacket.
When he arrived at the door of his modest home, he heard a gentle voice inside.
"Gai, you need to grow up strong and help your father."
Duy smiled as he pushed open the door and stepped inside.
"I'm home."
His gentle wife was soothing their newborn baby. Seeing Duy return, she simply said,
"Dinner is on the table," and continued to comfort the baby, who was reaching out and laughing.
"You've had a hard day," Duy said awkwardly, scratching his head. "I'm sorry, today I only earned 2,000 ryō."
His wife smiled. "It's enough to cover our expenses for a while."
Duy sat down at the table and began eating the meal his wife had prepared.
With a gentle wife and an adorable son, he was actually quite content.
Even on a genin's income, they could just barely make ends meet. If he worked hard, they could even save a little by the end of the month.
As long as they could continue living peacefully.
But... could they really?
Duy stopped eating, his lips twitching as he suddenly began shoveling food into his mouth at a furious pace.
"So delicious! This is absolutely delicious!"
His strange behavior didn't go unnoticed by his wife. Despite his usual cheerfulness, Duy was sometimes as naïve as a child.
Sensing something, baby Gai also settled down and fell asleep.
His wife sat down at the table.
"Alright, tell me, what's wrong?"
Face to face, Duy set down his bowl and chopsticks, his unkempt beard smeared with rice.
Taking a deep breath, he finally blurted out in a loud voice, "I want to protect the village. I want to give you both a better life. I want... to go to the front lines!"
(End of Chapter)