"Don't cause trouble," Tsunade warned Hyuga Arin.
She had also noticed Hyuga Hiashi in the distance. She knew all too well that if these two ended up together, something would happen.
The last time they'd been on the same team, they'd nearly come to blows more than once.
And judging by the smile on Arin's face right now, he was definitely harboring some improper thoughts.
"Got it~" Arin replied casually, the grin on his face refusing to fade.
Tsunade frowned slightly, but didn't press the issue further.
The group entered the command tent.
At present, the person in charge of this main frontline was a member of the Hyuga clan.
Hyuga Hikaru.
A branch-family member—once a prodigy—who had eventually become Hyuga Masayuki's personal guard.
In fact, Hikaru's career path was originally the one the Hyuga main house had planned for Arin.
Hikaru was still wrapped in bandages. Even while injured, he continued issuing orders without pause.
When Hikaru saw Orochimaru and the others enter, he smiled—
but the moment his gaze landed on Arin, that smile vanished.
Arin's existence had become a taboo within the Hyuga main house.
Unfortunately for them, he had the Hokage's ANBU backing him.
They couldn't touch him openly.
Hyuga Masayuki had originally planned to deal with Arin after the war.
Too bad—
he'd died directly on the battlefield.
What a shame.
Didn't even drop any experience or Byakugan.
In Arin's opinion, Masayuki's death was seriously not worth it.
"Lady Tsunade, this is all intelligence related to the frontlines…"
Hikaru handed a scroll to Tsunade, along with several detailed reports.
This was effectively a transfer of authority.
With his heavy injuries, he could no longer continue as overall commander.
Now that Tsunade was present, her status made her the natural successor.
As for Jiraiya and Orochimaru, they were merely jōnin without special command authority.
Hikaru's rank didn't place him above or below them.
But Tsunade was different—her background alone put her above all other ninja.
Konoha might appear fair on the surface, but in reality, everything was tied to background and lineage.
Tsunade skimmed through the documents and quickly began issuing orders.
"Orochimaru's squad—head to the northwest front.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya, stay here."
"Yes!" they replied in unison.
No rest at all—straight to work.
Soon, a ninja led the three of them toward the northwest front.
The Kumogakure battlefield was very different from the Iwagakure front.
The Iwa front, located in the Land of Grass, was mostly plains. Battles there began with digging trenches.
But the Land of the Moon was full of mountains.
Here, the strategy was to occupy high ground and establish control over the surrounding area.
The northwest front consisted of five mountain peaks already taken by Konoha, connected into a continuous defensive line that completely blocked Kumogakure's advance.
Arin's squad was assigned to the central mountain.
"Your task is simple—stop all Kumogakure ninja that appear here."
The ninja who brought them over was from the Shimura clan, specialists in Wind Release.
Byakugan countered close-range combat.
Shimura Wind Release countered Lightning Release.
Kumogakure was being hard-countered from every angle.
Unlike the Kirigakure front.
Kirigakure's Hidden Mist Technique specifically countered the Sharingan's lack of penetrative vision,
and their Water Release countered the Uchiha clan's Fire Release.
Well—what could you do? They were Uchiha.
Arin shook his head and sighed as the Shimura ninja used Body Flicker and vanished.
He had his own post to defend.
"So we just… wait here?" Nawaki couldn't help asking.
The last time he'd been on the Kumogakure front, he'd been guarding supply lines—acting as the pursuer.
He'd fallen into a trap, and his squad had been almost wiped out.
"We won't have to wait long," Arin said, activating his Byakugan and looking ahead.
Every major pass of the mountain was firmly held by Konoha ninja.
For Kumogakure to cross the mountains was extremely difficult.
They could try going around—but they'd be immediately detected by the Hyuga and intercepted.
Originally, Konoha's defensive line hadn't been here.
But after Hyuga Masayuki's death, Konoha suffered a massive defeat and was forced to retreat to this position.
What should have been a crushing loss was forcibly turned around by terrain alone.
Still, Kumogakure had no intention of giving up.
They were continuing to probe, trying to break through.
Within Arin's Byakugan vision, a small Kumogakure squad was rapidly approaching.
"One jōnin, two chūnin," Arin said, rubbing his chin as he glanced at Nawaki and Aburame Mushihime.
A kunai appeared in his hand. He flipped it once, weighing it.
"This distance is just perfect."
"Sniper Mode—Guessing Game Time!!"
Blue flames ignited along the kunai's edge.
"Enemies?" Nawaki and Mushihime turned toward Arin.
"Pretty much," Arin replied.
He casually tossed the kunai upward.
At the instant it fell, he slapped it forward.
"Whoosh!"
The three-man Kumogakure squad moved rapidly through the rocky terrain.
Konoha's defensive line was just ahead.
"Prepare for battle!" the Kumogakure jōnin shouted grimly, drawing the long blade from his back.
The two chūnin followed suit.
At that moment—
"Whoosh!"
A fireball streaked in from afar.
Lightning crackled over the jōnin's body as he converted chakra to Lightning Release, stimulating his cells and boosting his speed.
His figure flashed, appearing behind the fireball.
The two chūnin did the same, lightning flashing as they dodged past it.
"Blue flames… a bloodline limit?" the jōnin muttered, turning back to observe—
—but the blue fireball behind them suddenly expanded, transforming into normal flames.
From within, nine dragon heads erupted.
"ROAR!!"
The instant the flames expanded, all three tried to sprint forward to escape.
One chūnin was a step too slow.
He was instantly incinerated into ash.
The other chūnin managed to escape—but both legs were burned away, his upper body slamming to the ground as he screamed in agony.
One dragon head smashed down toward him.
The jōnin vanished in a flash of lightning, leaving only crackling sparks behind.
Lightning Body Flicker.
"ROAR!" "ROAR!" "ROAR!" …
Dragon roars echoed endlessly.
The Kumogakure jōnin landed on a rock outcropping—only to realize the nine-headed fire dragon hadn't disappeared.
It was coming for him.
"Alive?!"
His expression changed drastically.
Nine dragon heads surged toward him.
He could only rely on Lightning Body Flicker to evade.
The nine-headed dragon was huge—and slow.
"Like something straight out of myth…"
He landed on a slope, turned, and ran uphill to escape the dragon.
But a blue fireball had already appeared in front of him.
It expanded instantly, forming a fire dragon that smashed directly into him.
This time, there was no chance to flicker away.
He was swallowed by flames.
Before long, Kumogakure would come to understand the pain Iwagakure once felt.
Three experience notifications flashed before Arin's eyes:
15,487 / 1,487 / 1,547
"Hmm… Kumogakure's mobility is pretty strong," Arin muttered.
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