"Wasn't the Raikage seriously injured?"
Moving swiftly through the forest, Hyuga Akira asked curiously.
After all, the Hyuga clan head had nearly cost the Raikage his life.
Even with the Raikage gravely wounded, Kumogakure was still fighting like mad—
ninja really were just tools of war.
"The one injured is the Raikage," Orochimaru explained calmly. "The rest of Kumogakure hasn't suffered significant losses."
As long as the Raikage could issue orders—
others would do the fighting.
"Their morale has dropped," Jiraiya added, "but they have no intention of withdrawing."
Nawaki and Aburame Mushihime felt slightly out of place.
They couldn't really join the discussion—
nor analyze the situation.
Fresh graduates from the Academy were usually like this.
Tsunade walked silently beside them, lost in thought.
"Cloud ninja, huh…" Akira muttered with mild disdain.
Most of what they dropped were close-combat abilities.
Only things like Demon Brain or breathing techniques interested him.
The group picked up their pace slightly.
They had been holding back for Nawaki and Mushihime.
Though strong for their level—
they were still far behind the others.
The border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning was unusual.
Two countries lay between them.
One was the famous Land of Hot Water.
But the real battlefield was in the country between Hot Water and Lightning—
The Land of Moon.
A sparsely populated nation with no ninja village.
Strangely, the Land of Lightning had never annexed it.
Instead, it was left to exist as it was.
And now—
it had become the battleground between Konoha and Kumogakure.
Geographically, it leaned closer to the Land of Lightning—
meaning Konoha's supply lines were long and vulnerable.
Easily targeted by Cloud ninja.
However—
the Land of Lightning itself had little interest in conquering the Land of Fire.
The real aggressor—
was Kumogakure.
This war was driven by the village, not the nation.
Unlike others, where daimyo ambitions fueled conflict—
Kumo simply wanted to become the strongest ninja village.
Like a troublemaker stirring chaos everywhere—
yet Konoha still held the top spot.
What exactly were they even fighting for?
They passed through the Land of Hot Water.
Akira had suggested taking a short break there—
after all, it was a famous resort area, even during wartime.
It was also home to Yugakure—
a village later known as one that abandoned war.
But at this time, it was a well-known mercenary hub.
They accepted commissions from other villages—
fighting in exchange for payment.
Unlike other villages funded by nobles and merchants—
Yugakure worked directly for hire.
It had a reputation—
for producing lunatics.
Though only smaller villages hired them.
During great wars between the Five Great Nations—
smaller villages also fought among themselves.
The major villages didn't think much of Yugakure's strength.
Their madness didn't translate to real battlefield value—
just more corpses.
And wasted supplies.
The true peak of mercenary forces would be the Akatsuki—
though they hadn't appeared yet.
Ironically—
Yugakure would later become a peaceful village.
Sadly, Akira's proposal was rejected.
"We need to reach the battlefield as quickly as possible," Jiraiya said during a short break.
"No delays," Orochimaru added.
War came first.
"…Sigh."
Four sighs echoed at once.
Akira, Nawaki, Mushihime—
and Tsunade.
All equally disappointed.
"Tsunade!! You too?!" Orochimaru snapped.
What kind of teammates were these?!
"Been a while since I had a proper break…" Tsunade muttered, rubbing her shoulder.
Jiraiya nudged Orochimaru, blushing slightly.
"…It's not impossible."
"Your thoughts are written all over your face!!"
BOOM!
Tsunade punched him straight into the ground.
"No hot springs with you."
"Move out. Now."
No more talk of rest.
Nawaki patted Jiraiya sympathetically.
Akira followed suit with a sigh.
Mushihime copied them awkwardly—
patting Jiraiya and sighing as well.
"If you don't get it, you don't have to copy them…" Jiraiya said weakly.
Mushihime scratched her head, embarrassed.
After several days of nonstop travel—
they finally entered the Land of Moon.
Towering mountains stretched into the sky.
No visible roads.
No cities.
Only wilderness—
and occasional beasts, even ninja animals.
"The Land of Moon is known for its mountains and ninja beasts," Orochimaru explained.
"There are no cities here. Only hidden villages."
"And they're well concealed."
"Strange place," Akira muttered.
Soon, they reached a Konoha encampment.
Two Hyuga members stood guard.
"Well, if it isn't Big Brother Sora," Akira greeted one of them casually.
Hyuga Daikuu looked at him with a complicated expression—
and merely nodded coldly.
They were relatively close blood relatives.
Though the Hyuga shared lineage—
many branches were distantly connected.
Akira's branch traced back to the Warring States period—
even earlier than Hashirama Senju's era.
Their original main branch had long died out.
When that happened—
a successor would be adopted from another main branch.
Close-kin marriage within the main family…
was that really okay?
Daikuu and Akira belonged to the same lineage.
Daikuu then turned to the others, especially Tsunade.
"Lady Tsunade. Lord Orochimaru. Lord Jiraiya."
Another branch member activated his Byakugan to scan them.
After confirming no issues—
he greeted them as well.
They stepped aside.
Seeing Daikuu ignore him, Akira didn't bother pushing further.
He followed the group into the camp.
But as he entered—
his gaze shifted toward a figure training nearby.
A grin slowly spread across his face.
"Hyuga Hiashi…"
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