Yang Release chakra is filled with life force. Under the control of medical ninjas, it can cause cells around a wound to divide rapidly, promoting faster healing. Mastering Sage Jutsu further enhances the ability to treat internal injuries and other complex conditions. However, Sage Jutsu consumes a great deal of chakra, and ordinary medical ninjas can hardly use it more than a few times before exhausting their chakra reserves. But with the use of healing talismans, they only need to channel a small amount of chakra to guide the talisman's energy, allowing them to perform extended surgeries. The medical camp is well-stocked with these talismans, which can sustain long hours of treatment.
This is all thanks to Danzo, who, as the Hokage's advisor, managed to secure so many medical supplies from Konoha. However, Danzo's situation has become increasingly complicated. Upon returning to Konoha, he learned the true reason for his recall, nearly having his lungs explode from anger.
"I've never done such a thing! Root would never go as far as to kill the Minister of Finance!" Danzo said angrily, his voice filled with frustration. The only thing that could provoke his subordinates into such actions would be if he were struck with a heat stroke.
"Why didn't you let the Yamanaka clan extract information from the brain of the body?" Danzo asked sharply, glaring at Hiruzen Sarutobi, internally cursing him. That damn Sarutobi had pressured Root into suppressing the information from reaching the frontlines.
"Even if the brain was not destroyed completely, the Yamanaka clan's ninjas wouldn't be able to extract useful intel," replied Nara Shikaku, calmly offering the reminder.
It was all Sarutobi's fault! Danzo cursed silently. If he had known this earlier, he would have acted accordingly, rather than being forced to return after a month in shame, his efforts undone in front of everyone.
His tactics had already been in motion for nearly half a month. If he could have continued for a little longer, he would have eradicated the Iwa Ninjas, securing the greatest achievement since the war began. With his success on the battlefield in the Land of Grass, he would have been well on his way to becoming a prime candidate for the Fourth Hokage.
This was a plan Danzo had carefully devised, but Sarutobi's actions regarding the death of the Finance Minister had sabotaged his efforts. His public rise to fame was thwarted, and his chance at becoming the Fourth Hokage evaporated. In the Hokage election, a strong reputation was key.
Danzo was still largely unknown to the lower-ranking ninjas. Without fame and accomplishments, his name wouldn't even be recognized by most of Konoha's citizens. If he were to suddenly emerge as a candidate for the position of Hokage, many would question: "Who is this man? What makes him worthy of being the Fourth Hokage?"
Danzo felt deep frustration, but he knew that at this point, Konoha had to answer to the Daimyo. And that answer meant Danzo being confined within Konoha and stripped of all his official titles.
"I won't let this go just like that," Danzo muttered after a brief silence, leaving the Hokage office in a huff.
"If you can find the true culprit, then so be it. But Danzo, you cannot leave Konoha," warned Hiruzen Sarutobi as Danzo was about to leave.
Danzo did not respond, his face calm as he exited the Hokage Building. However, his old comrades in Root, including Sarutobi, knew full well that Danzo was seething with anger. The decision to recall him from the battlefield in the Land of Grass had been a difficult one for Sarutobi, but Konoha could not afford to lack a dark side.
The Hokage served as the beacon of hope for everyone, while Root acted as the shadow, reinforcing the Hokage's light. But if the shadows ever tried to step into the light, Sarutobi would cut down that dangerous thought without hesitation.
Meanwhile, the war in the Land of Grass raged on. With time, the conflict escalated into a brutal, full-scale battle. Iwa Nin's combined Earth Release jutsu proved incredibly powerful. Even a group of middle-ranking ninjas using Earth Release could cover an area of over a hundred meters, and even Konoha's elite jōnin struggled to withstand such an overwhelming attack.
As for the compound ninjutsu strikes, they were not as effective. Earth Release was one of the most defensive of the five basic elements, and unless faced with a powerful Lightning Release attack, it was nearly impossible to break through Iwa Nin's defensive Earth jutsu.
After engaging in battle with the Iwa Nin, Miyamura Yagami realized there had been serious miscalculations in his strategies. They had tried to divide the Iwa Nin's forces across the battlefield, but the enemy remained unfazed, sticking to their tactical approach and advancing slowly. If not for Konoha's strong medical camp, the ninja forces on the front lines would have already been pushed back.
Yang Release chakra wasn't just for healing—it also had the ability to restore stamina and chakra to injured ninjas. Under the guidance of medical ninjas, the healing talismans' Yang chakra acted as an all-purpose charger. The medical camp had been operating at full capacity, with each medical ninja treating one injured person, only for another to take their place.
Hyuga Mirai quickly calculated. In less than a day, over a hundred Konoha ninjas had been treated, with 113 returning to the battlefield in restored condition, while 27 were still recovering and required more time. Nearly a quarter of Konoha's ninjas had been injured—how many Iwa Ninjas had been wounded?
Mirai acknowledged that Iwa Nin's team-based combat was among the best in the Five Nations, but Konoha should not be so easily outmatched. Moreover, Iwa didn't have anywhere near as many medical ninjas as Konoha. How were they dealing with their injured?
The more Mirai thought about it, the more something didn't seem right. He activated his Byakugan, and instantly his vision expanded to a radius of ten kilometers.
He sensed chakra signatures in two directions. One was toward the frontlines, where scattered chakra responses appeared. These were likely Konoha's reconnaissance and patrol ninjas. The other direction, however, was nearly at the oblique rear of the Konoha camp, where there were chakra responses from at least forty to fifty individuals. Given the direction they were coming from, aside from Konoha's support troops, these could only be enemies who had taken a long detour around to the rear of the camp.
"Huh..." Hyuga Mirai exhaled slowly. The Iwa ninjas were sharp; if there had been a significant disparity in the number of forces at the frontlines, the reconnaissance ninjas would have reported it to Miyamura Yagami, leading to a strategic response. It seemed that Iwa had added reinforcements to the frontlines.
Mirai silently pondered. If he ignored it, he had the ability to escape, but with his current fame, the Iwa ninjas might target him, and escaping back to Konoha would be troublesome. If he alerted them, that, too, would be a hassle, but the potential gains would also be considerable.
"What's wrong, Mirai-kun? You suddenly activated your Byakugan." Aoki noticed the change in Hyuga Mirai and walked over to inquire. This boy was the core of the medical camp, so he couldn't afford to make any mistakes.
"Senior Aoki, don't you find this a bit strange?" Hyuga Mirai tilted his head and asked. "The battle on the frontlines has been going on for nearly a day. Aside from the twenty-seven critically injured Konoha ninjas, the others have all returned to the battlefield. Iwa's combined Earth Release is powerful, but they've likely sustained nearly a hundred injuries, and unlike us, they don't have a medical camp of this level."
Despite that, the fighting on the frontlines was still fierce, and it seemed like the Iwa ninjas had no intention of retreating.
Upon hearing this, Aoki immediately realized something was amiss. He, too, was an experienced ninja, and after a little thought, he agreed with Mirai's assessment.
"Mirai-kun, what did your Byakugan reveal?"
"I didn't see anything, but it's best to prepare," Mirai replied, shaking his head. It was already quite generous of him to provide a warning, and he wouldn't expose the full range of his Byakugan's vision.
"But if we do that..." Aoki hesitated. Although he was experienced, age had made him somewhat indecisive. With injured ninjas, logistics, and other tasks to handle, evacuating would be too troublesome.
"If you've decided, then carry it out quickly, Senior Aoki," Mirai said. Having said that much, he didn't press further. It was already generous of him to say as much.
Aoki thought for a moment, his face conflicted. After some internal deliberation, he made a firm decision. "Notify the remaining ninjas to be on high alert immediately. Send out reconnaissance ninjas and evacuate the injured!"
Aoki gave a series of decisive orders. With Miyamura Yagami absent, he was the one in charge of the camp. Though others were puzzled by his command, they still followed his orders.
However, Aoki was somewhat cautious—he only issued an alert and ordered the evacuation of the injured.
With the Byakugan's observation, Mirai could tell that the chakra responses from the Iwa ninjas were no small matter. They were undoubtedly an elite unit. With only five small squads of twenty ninjas in the camp, plus the non-combatant medical ninjas and over twenty injured, the situation looked grim.
"I'll join the reconnaissance mission," Mirai said. "There are no severely injured ninjas right now, and my Byakugan should be the best scouting tool here."
"Alright," Aoki said after some thought. He realized that Mirai had a valid point and agreed to his request.
With the mission order in hand, Mirai left the medical camp. During wartime, leaving the camp without an assignment was treated as an act of treason, punishable by being labeled a rogue ninja.
For Mirai, leaving the Konoha camp was the best option. If the Iwa ninjas launched a surprise attack from behind, it would be a problem. Even if he hid among other ninjas as a mere medical ninja, the Iwa ninjas wouldn't let him off so easily. It was obvious that they had gone to great lengths to encircle the camp—clearly targeting the medical ninjas.
Two kilometers away from the camp, Mirai used his Byakugan to observe the movements of the Iwa ninjas. He meticulously observed their appearance and the emblems on their headbands, confirming they were indeed Iwa ninjas.
"That's enough..." Mirai quickly took out a flare and fired it into the sky. In an instant, a bright signal appeared, transmitting an urgent message to the Konoha camp.
Not only did the Konoha ninjas see the signal clearly, but even the Iwa ninjas, three kilometers away, noticed it. While they weren't sure what the flare signified, its proximity indicated that someone in the Konoha camp had detected their movements.
After all, the Byakugan's range was renowned throughout the ninja world, and it could clearly see the movements of enemies from several kilometers away.
"The Konoha ninjas might have discovered our presence! Speed up!" Explosive Roar shouted, ordering his team to stop their slow advance and speed toward the Konoha camp.
(End of Chapter)
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