As a result, Kushina only played occasionally, while Tsunade, the big spender, got completely hooked.
"Orochimaru-sama, this is the information collected by the Anbu. According to the intel, a large number of Mist Village ninja are gathering and constructing military facilities on several islands, clearly preparing to defend against us using the islands as stepping stones to attack Mist Village."
"Is there any new information from the Land of Rivers?"
Orochimaru stared at the map, his pale face etched with exhaustion.
From preparing for war to now, where both sides were constantly testing each other, everything had gone beyond his expectations.
Mist Village had been incredibly cunning-more specifically, Yagura, that small guy, was extrely crafty. He never engaged Konoha directly, just resorted to constant harassnt and underhanded tricks.
Taking advantage of the fact that the Land of Fire and Konoha lacked sufficient warships, they kept ambushing Konoha forces.
To prevent Konoha from using the islands as stepping stones for an attack, they were even building military installations on the islands, linking them together like a chain.
If Konoha dared to use the islands as a springboard, they would be imdiately surrounded by Mist Village's army.
To make matters worse, with the onset of war, the sea was constantly shrouded in mist. Not only was visibility limited, but even Konoha's sensory ninja were significantly affected.
"There's nothing new as of now."
Nara Shikaku hadn't expected the war to evolve like this either.
Mist Village was indeed too cunning. There hadn't been a proper battle yet, but many areas were already suffering from Mist Village's sneak attacks.
There were even signs of Mist Village ninja activity near the Land of Rivers.
With Mist Village holding the initiative, Konoha was struggling to respond.
They had to find a way to destroy Mist Village's warships. Even if they couldn't destroy them all, they needed to take out at least so of them.
Relying solely on the village to build warships wouldn't be enough.
And commandeering rchant ships wasn't a wise option either-Mist Village would love nothing more than for Konoha's ninja to head out onto the open sea to fight them.
If Konoha fell for that trap, Mist Village would be laughing in their sleep.
Sitting back and taking the hits wasn't Orochimaru's style either.
They needed to force Yagura into a direct battle. Konoha had no fear of a head-on clash with Mist Village.
Even if the sea was Mist Village's ho turf.
What Konoha feared was Mist Village launching random attacks here and there, with the initiative in Mist's hands. This would keep Konoha on the defensive.
Forcing Mist Village into a large-scale battle wasn't difficult-if Mist Village wanted to hide, Konoha could just push forward.
Or they could find a way to destroy so of Mist Village's warships.
If their warships were destroyed, Mist Village wouldn't be able to build replacents quickly, leaving them no choice but to engage Konoha directly.
"Seems like everything has gone beyond my expectations."
Suddenly, Orochimaru let out an inexplicable chuckle.
"???"
Shikaku, his assistant, was utterly confused. What had gone beyond his expectations?
Orochimaru-sama, could you please not talk to yourself like that?
It's really hard for , as your subordinate, to follow!
Even with my high IQ, it's difficult to guess what your self-mutterings an.
Working for Orochimaru was truly exhausting.
"Shikaku."
"Orochimaru-sama!"
Nara Shikaku straightened up and stepped forward in response.
"Send a ssage to the village. Tell the third batch of ninja reinforcents to depart as soon
as possible. Also, inform the old man to send Takuya's squad over. I need their support."
"Yes, sir!!!"
Shikaku opened a blank scroll and began writing while keeping an eye on Orochimaru.
He wondered whether Orochimaru would choose to have Sakumo Hatake sent over.
To be blunt, if anyone could deal with the Mist Village ninja, Sakumo Hatake would be the one to give them a hard ti.
But unfortunately, Orochimaru had no intention of calling on Sakumo.
He only needed Takuya's squad to assist him, along with the third batch of reinforcents from Konoha.
On Konoha's side, Orochimaru was feeling troubled, but things weren't much better on Mist Village's end.
Since the Third Mizukage had declared war on Konoha, many of the Mist Village ninja were prepared for an all-out fight with Konoha.
But when Yagura was appointed as the frontline commander, he had no intention of engaging Konoha directly. Instead, he kept sending people on harassing raids and sneak attacks, using hit-and-run tactics.
As ti went on, more and more people in the village grew dissatisfied, particularly the Seven Ninja Swordsn.
Although they had lost Sahada, Mist Village had chosen new mbers to join the Seven
Ninja Swordsn.
"How cowardly."
Jūzō Biwa leaned against the ship's railing, purposely making a comnt.
"It seems the enemy has been spun around by our esteed commander and will soon be
defeated without a fight."
"Ha ha ha!!"
Jūzō's words drew laughter from the others.
Although Yagura was appointed as commander, many in Mist Village didn't respect him.
The Seven Ninja Swordsn, in particular, didn't see eye-to-eye with him.
And it wasn't just the Seven Ninja Swordsn-many others were also amused.
"I know you want to kill Konoha's Takuya Yagami and reclaim Sahada. I also know you're unhappy with , and you want to engage the enemy head-on instead of being sent on
sneaky missions."
Yagura, unfazed by their mockery, provocatively replied,
"Whether you like it or not, you'll have to deal with it because the Mizukage and the elders
appointed as the commander, not any of you."
"Tch, don't get cocky. One day, I'll take your head!" Jūzo scoffed, directly confronting Yagura
in front of many people.
Yagura didn't care. He crossed his arms and coldly said,
"Only weaklings resort to poisonous words to provoke others. To be honest, I don't have
much faith in you Seven Ninja Swordsn."
"Don't forget how Fuguki Suikazan was killed-struck down with one blow, his heart pierced
without any sign of struggle."
"Perhaps you think Takuya Yagami is just a kid, and you see as a coward who didn't dare to
fight him."
"I hope when you encounter Takuya Yagami, you'll still be able to laugh."
"And..."
Boom!!
A massive surge of chakra erupted from Yagura, locking onto the Seven Ninja Swordsn.
"Don't think that just because you're specially trained warriors from the village, you have the right to challenge ."
"If you try this again, I won't hesitate to take your heads back to the Mizukage and elders to
atone for your arrogance."
Yagura!!
With that enormous burst of chakra, Yagura transford from an unimposing little figure into a terrifying monster. The Seven Ninja Swordsn could no longer laugh.
Each one eyed Yagura warily, secretly preparing for anything.
With the growing influence of the Bloody Mist regi, it was no longer uncommon for Mist
ninja to suddenly turn on their comrades.
It had beco so frequent that it was barely noteworthy.
After all, many ninja were guilty of such acts.
Speaking of turning on their comrades, the Seven Ninja Swordsn rembered that Yagura
was the most ruthless when it ca to taking down his own.
Bonus chapter
Next Bonus: 2900 Power Stones ('')J
(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 340 at patreon/ Emiko1.
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