After entering the Land of Rivers, what everyone saw was a chaotic battlefield. Currently, the Land of Rivers was the main battlefield for the Land of Fire and Land of Wind forces. With both the Hokage and Kazekage present, the intensity of the battle was unprecedented, exceeding even the initial war between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. After all, back then, only a portion of elite Kumogakure Ninja had come from the Land of Lightning, and they had not committed their main forces. Once the war had reached a stalemate, neither side's main force had launched a reckless offensive, so naturally, the scale was not comparable to this.
Before them, samurai from the two countries were crowded together, drawing their swords to attack the enemy. Amidst the massive crowd, one could also see Konoha Ninja and Sunagakure Ninja weaving back and forth. Clearly, they had accidentally stumbled into a local battlefield.
"Good grief, I don't know whether to call this good luck or misfortune," Fūmori Masaki said with a wry smile.
They had just gone through a chase with Sunagakure, and their Chakra was more than half depleted. In terms of their condition, they were not well-suited for participating in battle—not that they couldn't, it just wasn't ideal. Fortunately, because of the chaos on the battlefield, the Sunagakure pursuers could no longer surround and ambush them at will, as they could on their home turf in the Land of Wind.
Hyūga Kei sensed that the pursuers led by Chiyo were arriving soon and warned Fūmori Masaki. Fūmori Masaki consulted with Danzo Shimura and decided to join this battlefield. Although it would be somewhat dangerous, at least they wouldn't have to face those desperate and seemingly crazed Sunagakure Ninja alone.
"Let's go!" Following the order, everyone immediately leaped out of the forest where they were hiding and charged straight into the battlefield between the two sides.
The appearance of Fūmori Masaki and his team quickly attracted the attention of others; one side rejoiced while the other worried, and it was obvious who was who. These allies performed very well, quickly taking down a group of Samurai from the Land of Wind, and also pinning down the Sunagakure Ninja, thereby eliminating some of them.
By the time Chiyo and her group arrived, the Land of Wind side had completely fallen into a disadvantage, showing signs of imminent collapse. Seeing this, no matter how unwilling Chiyo was, she could not easily intervene. Like Fūmori Masaki and his team, Chiyo and the others had consumed a great deal of Chakra, and their current state was also very poor. If they had arrived earlier, they might have been able to put up a fight, but now the Samurai Corps of the Land of Wind was on the verge of collapse and could not be considered much of an asset. While Fūmori Masaki and his team might not have much strength left, they still had the high-morale Samurai of the Land of Fire and some Konoha Ninja. Even if they could win, it would be a pyrrhic victory, and they would be unable to pursue Fūmori Masaki's team.
And if they couldn't capture Fūmori Masaki's team, what would be the point of wiping out these Samurai?
Chiyo glared at the retreating Fūmori Masaki and his team. She truly wished she could use space-time teleportation to leap directly over the Samurai Corps blocking her path. Unfortunately, she did not know how to use space-time Ninjutsu like the Flying Thunder God, so she could only stare in frustration.
What was even more infuriating was that Fūmori Masaki seemed to sense her gaze and looked back. Perhaps he meant nothing by it, but Chiyo felt he was showing contempt for her. She couldn't help but clutch her chest, feeling as if she were about to explode with anger.
"So close, yet so far..." Ebizo sighed from the side.
No one expected to run into a battlefield here, which ended up giving Fūmori Masaki and his team a chance to escape. Watching the Samurai about to surround them, Ebizo wisely chose to retreat. He was not the type to waste effort venting his emotions, and although Chiyo had the heart to do so, she barely maintained her sanity and left with her younger brother.
After Hyūga Kei used the Byakugan to see that the Sunagakure pursuers had left, he smiled at the others. Seeing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. This long chase had finally ended, and they could safely return to the Konoha camp.
"I didn't expect to run into you two here, and you even helped us win this battle." The speaker was a Konoha Ninja who had participated in the battle. Upon learning that the arriving allies were the team that had gone to the Land of Wind to execute a mission, he was greatly surprised. After confirming the truth through the secret code, the responsible captain immediately selected a few capable people to escort Fūmori Masaki and his team to the camp.
"You helped as well; otherwise, the Sunagakure pursuers might have kept coming, and I don't know what our outcome would have been," Fūmori Masaki said.
"Being able to help is our honor, and looking at the results, you two protected more of our people," this young Konoha Ninja said with a smile.
"Mutual aid is key; we are all comrades defending the country together," Inuzuka Shigeru from the team interjected at this moment.
"That is correct," Fūmori Masaki nodded slightly.
Guided by the others, Fūmori Masaki's team located the Konoha base camp. After checks, they entered. Hearing the news, Tobirama immediately rushed over. Seeing familiar faces, his heart eased, and he said, "Welcome back."
Everyone else was arranged to rest, while Fūmori Masaki and Danzo Shimura still needed to report the mission situation to Tobirama. Due to the rapid response of Sunagakure, this operation could not be considered particularly successful, but it could not be called a failure either. Some important supply locations and transit stations within the Land of Wind had been destroyed, and for a country like the Land of Wind, this alone had a significant impact.
"On the battlefield, we have also felt that the Land of Wind is showing signs of running out of steam. The mission executed at the risk of danger has ultimately yielded results," Tobirama said. "The four who sacrificed themselves are also heroes. Remember to report their names and backgrounds; the Village will make arrangements where possible."
A system like this, which grants honor to Ninjas who have made great sacrifices and compensates their families, was now slowly being implemented in Konohagakure. Tobirama was also considering establishing a graveyard in the Village to leave their names behind; this initiative would become the future Memorial Stone.
Besides these matters, the two also spoke about Chiyo and Ebizo. Hearing the characteristics of the two, Tobirama's expression became somewhat grave. "That person named Chiyo is extraordinary. The poison used by Sunagakure has caused us great trouble, and it is said that it was developed by this woman."
The young Chiyo had already shown her edge; however, Konohagakure did not yet have a good method to resolve the poison, so they could only be careful not to be poisoned on the battlefield.
Fūmori Masaki said, "Research on poison must be conducted early. Currently, Sunagakure has not yet flexibly utilized the poison. If their methods of use become more varied, we will be in trouble if we don't have an antidote."
From the duels between Senju Tsunade and Chiyo, it could be seen that either Konohagakure could withstand Chiyo's poison offensive without being defeated, or Chiyo only began to flexibly use the poison she developed after Senju Tsunade had grown up—at least for now, Sunagakure's usage was not yet flexible.
However, Fūmori Masaki felt the former possibility was higher. The profession of a Ninja involved all sorts of underhanded tactics, especially those who used poison. Expecting her to only become enlightened after twenty years would mean he was the one who wasn't enlightened.
However, even if they could maintain a stalemate without being defeated, Fūmori Masaki wanted to minimize losses as much as possible. Things like poison, if used well, were more troublesome than direct killing. Moreover, if they really waited twenty years—or even ten—for Senju Tsunade to mature and learn Medical Ninjutsu, it would be better to start researching it himself now. The medical model that had already begun to take shape was definitely better than in the original history; perhaps they wouldn't even need Senju Tsunade to figure out the antidote.
"Hmm." Tobirama nodded, agreeing with Fūmori Masaki's opinion.
When discussing the issue of Medical Ninja, it was inevitable to mention Fūmori Masaki's proposal to Hanzou. Upon hearing this, Tobirama thought for a moment and felt that sending Medical Ninja to treat the epidemic in the Land of Rain was indeed a good way to win hearts, but—
"We are also relatively short on Medical Ninja here; if we spread them out, it would be somewhat disadvantageous for us," Tobirama said. "However, your method is good. I will have an envoy go to negotiate with the Land of Rain. As long as the pressure of war is relieved, Konoha can send Medical Ninja."
Tobirama spoke the truth; Konohagakure itself needed Medical Ninja. And with this said, the Land of Rain would inevitably do its best to help the Land of Fire defeat the Land of Wind. After all, no one would refuse the temptation of being able to solve an epidemic. Even if there were some short-sighted high-level officials, Hanzou, who would become a demigod in the future, certainly wouldn't watch these people block the good fortune of the Land of Rain.
In other words, this was a thorough and open conspiracy; he wasn't afraid that the Land of Rain wouldn't jump in, Fūmori Masaki thought.
the new third hokage of konoha