The three people behind didn't mention encountering Jiraiya again.
After all, he was an enemy.
There was no point in discussing it; knowing this intelligence was enough.
Because they took a slight detour, they entered the Land of Grass a little later.
However, this mission had no specific time limit or requirements; they only needed to intercept Konoha's people.
It didn't have much impact.
The Land of Grass, as a strategic buffer zone between the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire, also suffered from the ravages of war. However, Kusagakure couldn't compare to Hidden Rain Village... Hidden Rain Village at least had Hanzou, while Kusagakure was a completely'small Ninja Village' with no ability or capital to resist these two great nations.
But one smart thing about Kusagakure compared to Hidden Rain Village was that they directly sealed off their Village.
They didn't participate in the war.
You can cause trouble on my territory, but only if you don't harm the Village or its civilians.
This was a rare display of wisdom for a small Ninja Village during this Ninja World War.
For Hidden Rain Village, Kusagakure also posed no threat, so Amegakure significantly reduced its defenses along the border with the Land of Grass, making it much easier for the three to enter the Land of Grass from the Land of Rain, with no difficulty at all.
"The Land of Grass's situation is quite special due to its geographical location..."
"Small nations are like this, struggling to survive... This place holds some importance for both the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth, serving as an external territory that can prevent war from spreading to their own lands... Therefore, even the ambitious Hanzou wouldn't dare to easily attack the Land of Grass... If he dared to do so, he would immediately face a pincer attack from both Konoha and Iwagakure."
"Even for the Land of Rain, precisely because of the existence of the Land of Grass... the pressure they endure has indirectly lessened considerably."
After entering the Land of Grass, the several days of gloom and rain finally cleared completely.
The sun was bright, giving a feeling of pleasant weather... even people's moods improved.
Arai and the other two sat on a patch of grass. He took out a map and pointed with his finger, "We can't enter the Land of Fire... so this mission can only be carried out within the Land of Grass. After entering the Land of Grass, the enemy's supply team will follow this route to their destination where they are fighting Iwagakure... The area where we can act is only this one."
He circled a small area on the map with his fingertip, "This place is some distance from Konoha's border and also far from the battlefield; it's the very center of this route. This way, once we engage, regardless of whether the mission succeeds or fails... we can ensure that the enemy's reinforcements won't arrive immediately. Even if the enemy escapes, we'll have a window to pursue. If we can't eliminate everyone, we can still retreat safely."
"We'll arrive at the ambush location first, familiarize ourselves with the environment, and set up traps and mechanisms... Even if we spot the target, don't act immediately; first observe their configuration. The conflict between Konoha and Iwagakure is intense right now, and these supply teams basically run every two or three days... We're not looking for a quick victory, but rather to completely disrupt Konoha's supply route and deliver a heavy blow to their rear on the battlefield."
Arai said, looking at Sasori, "In other words... the essence of this mission isn't as simple as killing the enemy, because even if one team is killed, there will be a second team, a third team... What we need to do is, within a certain period... eliminate everyone who takes this route, trying not to leave any clues, forcing Konoha to find a new supply route. On this kind of battlefield, trying to find a safe route in an unfamiliar foreign country is quite a waste of energy and manpower... This is the most effective way to strike."
"If that's the case..."
Yubi took over, "We can't stay at the same point on the route for too long. Konoha's people aren't stupid; if their supply team suddenly disappears, they'll definitely realize that the enemy has discovered their route... They might send people to investigate or strengthen the combat power of subsequent teams."
"So... we need to retreat before they react."
Arai gave Yubi an approving look, "On the battlefield, any supply route is a lifeline for transporting blood to the front lines... Konoha's manpower is also stretched thin right now. Once a route is exposed, if they don't want to sacrifice more combat power in vain, they will most likely abandon it directly..."
"Looking at it this way, we can at most take out two of their teams."
Yubi thought for a moment and said, "Provided that... the personnel configuration of the opposing teams isn't that high."
Although he had fought against members of the Root organization, generally speaking, Yubi didn't have much combat experience against Konoha... He wasn't very good at assessing the level of Konoha Ninja.
He was familiar with Konoha, but in reality, it was a different matter.
However, even with only three people, Yubi saying he could kill two Konoha teams wasn't overconfidence, but because... the current battlefield situation was such that these supply teams generally weren't very strong, belonging to the logistics department, with no strict standards.
They were at the Chunin level, and there might even be Genin present.
All of this was possible... Moreover, with the war having progressed this far, Konoha's combat power was almost depleted, and they couldn't spare any elites for such missions; useful vanguards should have all been deployed to the front lines.
And on their side, they had Arai, an Elite Jōnin.
An Elite Jōnin against Chunin and Genin was purely a dimension-crushing strike.
The gap was too wide.
There are strengths and weaknesses even among Jonin... not to mention, they are not even in the same league.
Although Arai wasn't like Minato Namikaze, who could take down dozens of Ninja troops by himself, he was still the Kazekage's personal bodyguard, so he had the necessary skill.
"Understood?"
After discussing some more battle plans, Arai asked the two.
"Understood."
Only Yubi answered him.
"Let's go."
Arai didn't mind and nodded.
Then, the three headed straight for the direction where the target would appear.
The Land of Grass is smaller than the Land of Rain. Due to the conflict between Konoha and Iwagakure, besides people from Iwagakure and Konoha, there were also Ninja from other Ninja Villages appearing within its borders. Yubi and the other two even spotted a few Hidden Mist Ninja, but they did not expose themselves or engage with these people.
They were there for a mission.
These people went to the Land of Grass simply to gather various intelligence from the battlefield... to ensure their Village knew the war situation immediately.
Although the number of Ninja active in the Land of Grass was considerable and somewhat disorganized, overall, it was not as chaotic as the Land of Rain... Therefore, their travel speed was quite fast.
Upon arrival, they settled deep within this dense forest.
They quickly began setting up traps... waiting for their prey to bite.