"Well, at least he managed to drag his half-dead body back to camp. Not many people could do that."
The Sannin didn't have it that rough during their fight with Hanzo of the Salamander, but don't forget—there were three of them, while Hatake Sakumo was alone.
To achieve such a feat alone was already commendable.
"Oh, it seems I should congratulate him," Orochimaru said with a sly smile. He noticed Takashi handing over a glass vial and couldn't help but ask, "A new type of poison?"
"Hmm," Takashi replied, sitting down and rubbing his throbbing temples. Working during the day, attending meetings after hours, and being dragged off to learn Senjutsu in the middle of the night—it was taking a toll. Severely sleep-deprived, Takashi was in poor spirits.
"Not exactly new—it was taken from Sakumo-senpai's body, and it's related to the Salamander. Look into it for me, would you?"
Before twenty seconds had passed, Takashi was already sound asleep.
Orochimaru lifted his head, a hint of confusion in his eyes. Has the workload in the medical unit really gotten this overwhelming?
It doesn't seem that way.
---
"So, you're telling me the casualty count for our troops is significantly higher than Konoha's?"
Arriving at the camp, Chiyo needed to take control of everything, including battlefield intelligence.
Listening to her subordinates' report, Chiyo's eyebrows were almost tied in a knot. So far, Sunagakure, Konoha, and Iwagakure had each deployed nearly a thousand ninjas to the Land of Rain.
Despite the chaos of the multi-sided skirmishes, Sunagakure's casualty rate was much higher than Konoha's—something Chiyo couldn't accept.
Setting aside the ambushes, even in direct combat, their casualty rate was higher than that of other villages. And what did that imply?
It suggested that Sunagakure's shinobi weren't as well-trained as Konoha's.
Chiyo wasn't about to take that lying down.
She picked up a record scroll and scanned it carefully. Then she sneered, "Hah! Konoha came well-prepared, even arranging all kinds of antidotes."
Damn it!!
Is it just because they're rich?
If Sunagakure had such resources, they wouldn't have been the ones to initiate this war.
For a moment, Chiyo was both envious and jealous.
Among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, you couldn't definitively say which village had the best rank-and-file soldiers. In one-on-one combat, Konoha's shinobi had an advantage. In small-scale skirmishes, Sunagakure had the upper hand. But when the numbers increased, Iwagakure's shinobi were the most ferocious.
The reputation of the Earth Release Corps wasn't just for show.
Many of Sunagakure's shinobi were skilled in poison techniques, but unfortunately for them, Konoha had invested heavily in countermeasures.
Various antidotes were in place, effectively neutralizing one of Sunagakure's key advantages.
In the ensuing battles, Sunagakure was bound to take heavy losses.
"What's the meaning of all these reports of squads going missing?" Chiyo's frown deepened.
There wasn't much good news to be found.
No one would be pleased in such a situation.
"It's Amegakure," one reporting ninja spat through gritted teeth. "Ever since the conflict escalated into a full-blown war, Amegakure has been targeting us, especially Hanzo the Salamander."
While the three Great Villages were embroiled in chaotic warfare, Amegakure had adopted a "fight anyone and everyone" stance.
Sunagakure, however, bore the brunt of their attacks, largely because the Third Kazekage had tried to make Hanzo of the Salamander his "pet." That humiliation had been etched into Hanzo's mind ever since.
"Hmph, that old venomous snake… I'll get him eventually."
Chiyo knew exactly why Sunagakure was being singled out. It was all because the Third Kazekage had tried to humiliate Hanzo.
Trying to subjugate someone like that was blatant disrespect. The fact that Hanzo hadn't lashed out immediately and fought the Third Kazekage on the spot showed remarkable restraint.
Retaliation was inevitable.
On the surface, Amegakure was fighting everyone—Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure. But in reality, Hanzo was focusing more of his efforts on Sunagakure.
"If he wants to target us, then let's give him a response."
Taking a beating without retaliating—what would that do for Sunagakure's pride?
Others might fear Hanzo the Salamander, but Chiyo wasn't among them.
As the saying goes, "An eye for an eye." Chiyo was ready to send Hanzo a fitting gift.
If you don't want to be my "pet" and you continue your unhinged retaliation, then don't blame Sunagakure for not showing mercy.
---
Konoha's Camp.
Still sleep-deprived, Takashi was summoned to attend a meeting.
Nara Shikashin, sitting at the head of the table, held a pointer in his hand and gestured at the map hanging on the wall.
"According to the intelligence gathered by the village, tensions between Sunagakure and Amegakure have escalated in recent days."
The map was marked with circles, representing villages and towns within the Land of Rain.
"Within just a few days, Sunagakure has launched attacks and raids on towns and villages throughout the Land of Rain. The only places spared were the Daimyo's palace and Amegakure's headquarters."
Sunagakure's retaliation had come fiercely. Chiyo wasn't someone known for her mercy; she led her troops to attack the settlements in the Land of Rain without hesitation.
Except for the Daimyo's palace and Amegakure's central stronghold, everywhere else suffered under the onslaught. If Amegakure weren't so difficult to breach and the Daimyo's palace off-limits, Chiyo likely wouldn't have spared those two places either.
Right now, Amegakure had become a living hell.
Under this wave of retaliation, countless citizens of the Land of Rain lost their lives. Even those who survived had little chance of enduring the ongoing war.
With everything that happened, one could say the Land of Rain had been destroyed.
Total chaos—absolute disarray.
Not only had the war erupted years earlier than originally anticipated, but Hanzo of the Salamander also had his sights set firmly on Sunagakure. And Sunagakure wasn't one to back down; they retaliated fiercely.
Danzo, damn you! This is all your fault!
The drastic change in the situation could largely be attributed to Shimura Danzo. If he hadn't been hell-bent on eliminating Takashi and using information to win over Hanzo, the provocations between Konoha and Sunagakure wouldn't have escalated into war so quickly.
Without that intel, Hanzo wouldn't have tried to negotiate with Sunagakure, and there wouldn't have been a chance for the Third Kazekage to humiliate him.
A demigod wouldn't easily let such an insult slide. His fixation on targeting Sunagakure was proof enough.
On the surface, he was fighting everyone—Konoha, Iwagakure, Sunagakure—but behind the scenes, he was laser-focused on making Sunagakure suffer.
Somehow, without doing anything directly, the butterfly effect had fanned the flames of chaos across the ninja world.
"What Sunagakure is doing is excessive. Wars shouldn't target civilians."
"Exactly."
"If Sunagakure had any humanity, they wouldn't have started this war in the first place!"
One after another, voices rose up, cursing Sunagakure's actions.
Do your consciences not hurt?
Takashi found it all a bit amusing. Sure, Sunagakure was despicable, but was Konoha any better? And what about all of you sitting here?
Takashi wasn't one to be overly righteous, but he couldn't help finding the scene darkly humorous.