This Konoha northeastern army, which had fought bitterly for more than half a year, was finally able to mostly withdraw back to the village for precious rest, leaving behind only a small number of elite troops to continue carrying out vigilance and surveillance missions at the border.
As soon as Orochimaru returned to the village, he attempted to contact Danzo Shimura and prepare to resume advancing the secret experimental project on the first Hokage cells and Wood Style, which had been temporarily shelved due to the war.
However, he received an unbelievable piece of news from Root's liaison personnel.
Without any prior signs whatsoever, especially without notifying him, the most important collaborator and lead researcher, Danzo, had unilaterally terminated all preparatory work related to the Wood Style experiments.
This news made Orochimaru feel both irritated and confused. He understood Danzo's thirst for power very well, especially after losing his right arm and right eye.
Did Danzo not understand that deeply researching the mysteries of the first Hokage's cells might be the only way at present to resolve his own disability predicament and obtain greater power?
Why had he suddenly abandoned it?
Had he found another faster and safer method?
The irritation and confusion in Orochimaru's heart did not last long before a new appointment order was delivered into his hands.
Due to the intensified abnormal activity from the Village Hidden in the Sand on the southwestern front and the sharply increasing pressure there, the village had decided to dispatch Orochimaru to the southwest to rendezvous with Tsunade and Jiraiya.
The legendary Sannin of the past would reunite once again after many years to jointly face the Village Hidden in the Sand's next larger and fiercer offensive.
And at the very moment Orochimaru received his transfer order, Shinichi, who had just finished a day of training, also received a new deployment order.
"Jonin Shinichi Higashino, due to the needs of the current situation, after deliberation by the Hokage's office, you are hereby ordered to depart in three days together with Jonin Minato Namikaze, Jonin Fugaku Uchiha, and Jonin Hiashi Hyuga."
"Each of you shall lead your respective forces and rush at full speed to reinforce the southeastern front. Upon arrival, you will immediately be incorporated into the southeastern army battle sequence under the unified command of frontline supreme commander Elder Koharu Utatane. Your specific defense zones and combat assignments shall be personally arranged by Elder Koharu Utatane..."
The third Hokage truly was an expert at balancing interests.
After reading the document for a while, Shinichi secretly laughed in his heart.
In terms of military achievements earned since the beginning of this great war, Shinichi Higashino was unquestionably the greatest contributor at present. Although Minato Namikaze's achievements were equally brilliant, especially his astonishing performance in mobile support and tactical assaults, comparatively speaking, he still fell slightly behind overall.
However, Minato Namikaze was older, more senior, had served as a Jonin in the village for much longer, and had even participated in the previous ninja war. His title, Yellow Flash, was also well-known throughout the Shinobi World.
As for Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuga, the two were the current Clan Heads of Konoha's two great noble clans. Their identities and statuses alone were extraordinary.
Even if their military achievements were inferior to Shinichi and Minato, neither of them could be placed beneath peers of the same generation or even younger juniors.
Thus, this southeastern reinforcement force ended up with four corps commanders, all of equal rank, with no supreme leader.
It acknowledged Shinichi and Minato's achievements and capabilities while also respecting the dignity and power of the two great noble clans.
Shinichi closed the deployment document, walked to the window, and looked toward the southeast.
Even Hiashi Hyuga, the head of the main house, was being sent to the front lines.
The village's military strength was truly stretched to the limit now.
Although in terms of comprehensive national power and ninja numbers, Village Hidden in the Mist was certainly inferior to the Village Hidden in the Stones and Village Hidden in the Cloud, and even more inferior to Konoha, Village Hidden in the Mist possessed one characteristic that none of the other four great ninja villages had, both an advantage and a disadvantage, being isolated overseas.
This meant they did not need to constantly guard against attacks from other directions while waging war against one powerful enemy like the ninja villages on the continent did.
Especially now, the only continental nations directly facing the Land of Water across the sea were the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning.
With Village Hidden in the Cloud firmly pinned down on the northern battlefield by the Village Hidden in the Stones, if Village Hidden in the Mist truly resolved to join the war, they could almost completely devote the majority of their forces toward the long southeastern coast of the Land of Fire without any worries!
Moreover, the current Village Hidden in the Mist could be said to be at one of the peaks of its strength since the founding of the village.
Among the older generation, there was Genji, the elder who had existed since the era of the first Mizukage.
Among the middle generation was the third Mizukage.
Among the younger generation were people like Yagura Karatachi, as well as Village Hidden in the Mist's great clans, the three noble houses, and the infamous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
As well as the Six-Tails Jinchuriki and Three-Tails Jinchuriki, both are perpetually shrouded in mist and mystery.
Thinking about Jinchuriki, Shinichi frowned slightly.
In the vague records of the Third Shinobi World War in the original timeline, the Jinchuriki of the other four great ninja villages had relatively clear information, with some even deployed directly onto battlefields as strategic weapons. Only the Village Hidden in the Mist's side remained almost completely blank regarding the Three-Tails and Six-Tails.
Aside from the Three-Tails implantation incident three years later that resulted in Rin Nohara's death and Obito Uchiha's descent into darkness, there was almost no information whatsoever regarding the Three-Tails and Six-Tails.
After arriving in this world, Shinichi had also tried investigating related information, but the answers he obtained were still buried in fog.
Forty years ago, when the first Hokage distributed the tailed beasts, the Three-Tails and Six-Tails had indeed belonged to the Village Hidden in the Mist.
But over the decades, exactly how had the Village Hidden in the Mist used these two-tailed beasts?
Had they successfully sealed them into Jinchuriki? Who were the Jinchuriki? Male or female? There was no certainty over whether those two Jinchuriki truly existed.
"Could it be that the Jinchuriki are close to reaching their limits? Or perhaps Village Hidden in the Mist has always had some insurmountable flaw in its tailed beast sealing and control techniques, causing the Jinchuriki to be extremely unstable and fundamentally unusable as conventional combat power?"
Shinichi speculated internally. The fusion between a Jinchuriki and a tailed beast was no easy matter, and the Village Hidden in the Mist's bloody mist policy was incomparably cruel. Their treatment of Jinchuriki would likely not be gentle either.
If the Jinchuriki were extremely unstable and therefore hidden away by the Village Hidden in the Mist as their final trump card, that would make sense. It would also explain why the Village Hidden in the Mist had never played this card during the previous two ninja wars.
But this was only speculation. At present, Village Hidden in the Mist might possess both a Three-Tails Jinchuriki and a Six-Tails Jinchuriki, or perhaps neither.
Like Schrodinger's cat, before opening the box, anything was possible.
"Still, what a pity. If only the Village Hidden in the Mist had waited another month."
Shinichi gathered his thoughts, feeling deeply regretful.
Because before long, his clone Isshin would officially appear at the nationwide grand gathering in the Land of Iron that assembled swordsmen from every major city and every major sword style.
After that tournament ended, Shinichi would obtain a brand-new occupation, along with the ability to draw an entirely new purple talent.
Additionally, Lightning Style-related talents or other talents could also advance to blue rank through his performance during the competition.
At that time, Shinichi's strength would undergo another enhancement.
Carrying this faint sense of regret, the three-day deadline arrived in the blink of an eye.
At the Konoha's main gate.
Morning light had just emerged, and the thin mist had yet to disperse. On the open ground outside the village entrance, a massive ninja force was completing its final assembly.
At the very front of the troops stood four figures shoulder to shoulder, the four corps commanders leading this reinforcement mission to the southeastern front.
The four exchanged only a few brief, low-voiced words, confirming basic matters such as the marching route and communication methods along the way, then spoke no further, turning toward their respective forces and issuing the order to depart simultaneously.