At this time, the tension in the Land of Water had noticeably escalated.
Given the sheer number of Konoha ninjas dispatched for infiltration and espionage, if the Hidden Mist still hadn't noticed the anomalies within their borders by now, they wouldn't deserve their title as one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
If that were the case, they might as well skip fighting the Great Ninja War and just surrender directly.
The activities of Konoha ninjas operating within the Land of Water had undoubtedly left some traces, and it was impossible for the Mist to remain oblivious to them.
Take Hagoromo, for example. While he had silently neutralized that first squad of ninjas—and thoughtfully utilized a combination of genjutsu and electrocution to ensure no blood or obvious signs of struggle were left at the scene—his method of handling the bodies was also highly covert. He sealed them directly into scrolls and carried them off, which was incredibly portable.
Even if other enemies came to investigate, they wouldn't be able to tell that a battle had occurred in such a desolate place, let alone realize that a squad of their own had died there.
But could this guarantee that his tracks remained hidden forever? Theoretically, that was impossible. No matter how covert and meticulous his cleanup was, he couldn't cover up one simple, glaring fact: an entire squad of enemy ninjas had vanished into thin air.
They were patrolling a predetermined route and were expected to make regular reports. When those reports failed to come in on time, the Mist would inevitably realize something was wrong.
Confirming their deaths was merely a matter of time. Hagoromo's methods could only delay the discovery of his activities, not prevent it entirely.
However, by the time the enemy noticed the anomaly, conducted a search, and confirmed that a squad had indeed been wiped out, the culprit—Hagoromo—would be long gone.
Factoring in the activities of other Konoha ninjas, and the worst-case scenario that some might have already been captured, it was a certainty that the Mist would launch a nationwide manhunt.
Konoha had anticipated this and formulated countermeasures. Simply put, every squad executing the mission operated entirely independently. Aside from their own team members, they had no idea who else was participating in the operation, nor did they know each other's infiltration points or routes. S
o even if the enemy captured a few people, they would at most learn that Konoha was infiltrating; they could never use the captives to follow a single thread and pull up the entire network.
So, in this currently high-stress environment, what exactly was Hagoromo doing?
He was calmly playing the role of an onlooker—and he was doing so literally, gnawing on a slice of melon while letting his gaze casually wander the streets.
The Hidden Mist ninjas hadn't discovered him, yet he had actually escalated his actions. Under feasible circumstances, he had wiped out another enemy squad. Unlike the first time, however, he left one alive and successfully extracted some intel from them.
Though admittedly, the methods he used during the extraction process weren't exactly civilized.
The most crucial takeaway was that he learned of the Hidden Mist's upcoming moves. Because their supplies for large-scale operations had been destroyed, launching an immediate counter-offensive against Konoha wasn't feasible and required preparation time.
But the Mizukage couldn't just sit back and let Konoha walk away after taking such a massive advantage, so they were naturally going to retaliate.
Their planned method of retaliation was virtually identical to Konoha's: dispatching elite ninjas to infiltrate the Land of Fire. The key difference was that the Mist's primary objective was sabotage and causing casualties, rather than intelligence gathering.
However, the moment Hagoromo obtained this intel, he immediately realized it was practically invalid, because the Mist would very likely be forced to cancel that plan.
The reason was simple: Konoha had acted before they did. Internal stability trumps everything.
With a significant number of Konoha ninjas currently running loose inside the Land of Water, the Mist's top priority was naturally rooting out the enemies in their own backyard. As for retaliating against Konoha? That would have to wait until things stabilized at home.
It was hard to say whether Orochimaru's mission arrangement was a lucky coincidence or premeditated brilliance. If it was the latter, then this was a textbook example of "anticipating the enemy to seize the initiative."
The Konoha ninjas operating behind enemy lines had stirred up the entire geopolitical situation in the Land of Water. It might seem like the Mist was making a mountain out of a molehill, but was that really the case?
Small-squad ninja operations were equivalent to special forces warfare. The Mist naturally couldn't ignore them. If they maintained high vigilance and actively tracked the Konoha ninjas, it would consume massive amounts of energy, but it could effectively pin the enemy down and force them to accomplish nothing.
If they ignored them or relaxed their guard, however, the infiltrators could easily turn the Land of Water upside down.
The combat capabilities of small ninja squads could not be underestimated. Left unchecked, they could potentially execute major sabotage that altered the course of the war, perhaps even carrying out decapitation strikes.
If enemies were left roaming the Land of Water, who was to say some suicidal maniac wouldn't attempt an assassination run on the Mizukage?
After all, the details surrounding the Third Raikage's death were more or less clear by now. As a non-participating third party in that specific conflict, the Mist might not know the exact identity of the Konoha ninja who assassinated the Raikage, but they were certain that a Konoha ninja did do it.
Right in the middle of a battlefield between the Cloud and the Stone, no less.
So under the current circumstances... to be honest, the Mist would much rather Konoha launch another thousand-man charge for a head-on clash, rather than dealing with these sneaky infiltration tactics.
Unfortunately for them, Konoha wasn't about to grant their wish. For the vast majority of the time, a ninja's duties were rarely honorable and out in the open.
The last time Hagoromo was in the Hidden Mist executing the Byakugan retrieval mission, it was the dead of winter, and the Land of Water frequently saw snow. Now, however, it was summer, and the environment was slightly uncomfortable.
The rainfall here currently rivaled that of the Land of Rain, but their climates were similar yet distinct. If the Land of Rain was gloomy and wet, the Hidden Mist was hot and humid.
Nearing noon, Hagoromo was sitting brazenly under a roadside pavilion, holding and gnawing on a fruit literally known as a watermelon.
He acted no differently from an ordinary civilian. The highest echelon of acting is to deceive even yourself, and Hagoromo genuinely considered himself an ordinary person most of the time.
Pedestrians were rare on the road ahead, though ninjas would occasionally pass by.
Hagoromo appeared listless, but his mind was actively plotting his next move. After all, he had been here for a full week and hadn't achieved any real results yet.
Should I infiltrate deeper into the Hidden Mist Village for intel?
He dismissed the idea after a moment's thought. Better not. Accurately describing the act of sneaking into the Hidden Mist Village under such tense circumstances... that would simply be walking to death.
Furthermore, the pre-mission operational guidelines explicitly advised against infiltrating the village itself.
Just as Hagoromo was deep in thought, his peripheral vision caught sight of another Hidden Mist ninja passing by. He kept his head down, pretending to focus on his melon, but his peripheral vision was more than enough to observe the situation clearly.
A Hidden Mist ninja passing by wasn't the crucial part. The crucial part was the person following right behind him.
This filled Hagoromo with deep, profound bewilderment.
Why would this person appear so openly in the Land of Water?
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