Root.
In the dim hall, rows of masked ninjas knelt on one knee, surrounding their leader.
Tanzō stood in front of a tactical board and tapped heavily with his cane on a region between the Fire and Earth Countries.
"This is your goal this time - the Land of Grass."
The Land of Grass, a small and weak country with limited national strength, is located between the Fire and Earth Countries. It's a well - known country that always switches sides.
"The Grass Ninja Village had a covenant with our Konoha before, but they've repeatedly indulged the Iwagakure ninjas to cross their territory and reach our Konoha border."
"This is a betrayal of our Konoha! And betrayal comes at a price!" Tanzō said with boiling killing intent.
He couldn't do anything to the Iwagakure Village, but could he not handle a mere Kusagakure Village?!
Konoha had been invaded many times. If they didn't respond firmly, others would only think Konoha was weak and easy to bully!
Strike one blow to deter a hundred.
This operation was to establish prestige and let the ninja world know that Konoha was still the same Konoha. Stay away from us!
Dong! Dong! Dong!
Tanzō hit the ground hard with his cane and scanned the crowd with a gloomy look.
"I need you all to act as a sharp sword and stab deeply into the heart of Kusagakure, so that they understand the consequences of offending our Konoha!"
"By all means, uphold the prestige of our Konoha!"
"Yes!" A group of ninjas, including Kaze, responded in unison, with a chilling aura of killing.
"Go!"
At Tanzō's order, ten squads quickly got up and walked out silently.
After leaving Root, the team leaders of the ten squads discussed briefly.
Finally, they decided to act separately, which would give them more mobility and threat.
The Land of Grass.
Kaze led his squad through the vast grassland, occasionally looking at the map in his hand and communicating with Yuto beside him.
"My young master, do you have any ideas about what we should do next?" Yuto asked casually.
This time, the opponent was Kusagakure Village, a weak - ass ninja village that couldn't even assemble a few Jonin squads. There was no need to be too nervous.
"Um..." Kaze obviously had no idea and immediately fell into thought.
"Ding! Detected that the host's mind is blank. This system will provide the host with several options!"
[Option 1: Advocate peace. Through peaceful condemnation, make Kusagakure Village realize its mistakes. Completion reward: Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.]
"What the fuck is this?"
After reading the first option, Kaze showed a "subway old man looking at his phone" expression.
This is just so speechless!
He directly deleted the first option and continued to look down.
[Option 2: Intercept and kill a Kusagakure squad as a gesture and report back to Root. Completion reward: Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique.]
[Option 3: Hunt down a hundred grass ninjas as a warning to others and defend the dignity of a great nation. Completion reward: Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet]
]
[Option 4: Cause a ruckus in Kusagakure Village and teach them a lesson they'll never forget. Completion reward: Fire Release: Blast Wave Wild Dance.]
Kaze looked surprised and said, "Two B-rank ninjutsu options?" His heart started pounding.
He knew so few ninjutsu, especially those for long-range attacks. So far, he only knew the Vacuum Sphere.
If he could get a B-rank Fire Release jutsu, it would definitely greatly diversify his attack methods.
"Let me choose between Option 3 and Option 4 then. Let me check." Kaze clicked on the skill descriptions and started reading.
[Fire Dragon Flame Bullet: Seven hand seals. A high-level Fire Release ninjutsu. Spit out three fire dragons from the mouth to attack the enemy, capable of instantly evaporating a pond.]
[Blast Wave Wild Dance (System Version): Three hand seals. A Fire Release ninjutsu that works with the Separate Wind. Releases flames within a spiral wind field, with fast spread, wide range, and great power.]
"Obviously, the Fire Release rewarded in Option 4 is stronger, but it's also more difficult to complete. I need to think this through carefully."
Kaze didn't rush to make a choice. Instead, he closed the system interface and started talking with his team members.
"How about we take down the next Kusagakure team first and see if we can get some intelligence, then make a plan for what to do next. What do you guys think?"
"My young master, I was thinking the same thing. Let's do it this way." Yuto immediately replied.
"We don't have any objections either." Minato and Ayako also agreed with Kaze's suggestion.
"Good." After looking at the map for a while, Kaze marked a location: "Let's go and wait here then."
It was a forest about twenty miles outside Kusagakure Village, located at the edge of several major roads.
Kaze and his three team - members were hiding in the forest, holding their breaths and quietly waiting for some unlucky Kusagakure ninjas to pass by.
Time ticked by, but no one passed by on the road in front of them.
They waited from noon until the full moon was high in the sky, and then from the moon setting and the stars fading until the sun rose. Finally!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
First, the sound of carriages came. Soon, a caravan of seven or eight people appeared in their sight.
"Pfft, these Kusagakure ninjas' disguises are so lame."
Before the caravan even got close, Yuto whispered teasingly in a barely audible voice.
"Indeed." Kaze smacked his lips and agreed with Yuto's view.
As these people were walking, their loose clothes would occasionally flutter up, revealing some ninja equipment.
It was just too obvious.
Ayako closed her eyes and sensed for a while, then said seriously, "If nothing goes wrong, these eight people should all be Genin."
"Then let's just launch a direct attack, my young master. Just be careful." Yuto suggested.
"Not a good idea." Kaze and Minato said in unison.
The two looked at each other and exchanged a knowing smile.
"This..."
Ayako couldn't help but wonder if it was just her imagination, but she always felt that her young master's smile... was a bit indulgent?!
"To be on the safe side, let's release some poison first and then fight."
"Hey," Kaze said with a grin.
He took out several packets of poison powder and skillfully smeared it on the back of the explosive tags. Then he wrapped the explosive tags around the kunai.
Well, a few poison - smeared explosive kunai were ready.
"I'll launch a feint attack to split their team. You guys find the right time to attack."
After saying that, Kaze grabbed a few kunai and disappeared from the sight of the three with a flash.
In the caravan of the Grass Ninja Village.
A young Grass ninja stretched himself and relaxed a bit.
"Finally, we're almost back to the village. The reward for this supply delivery is quite generous. It should be enough for me to have a good time for a while."
Hearing this, a middle - aged Grass ninja (Tora) shook his head and advised him in an experienced tone.
"Ogawa, save more money while you're young. Marry a good wife as soon as possible. Don't waste your money on other women."
The young ninja Ogawa said with a smile, "Senior Tora, in our line of work, we're living with our heads hanging by a thread."
"Who knows, we might die out there someday. I don't want to delay a girl. It's better to just meet each other's needs."
Tora slapped Ogawa annoyedly. "Get out of here. Stop being such a downer!"
"Our village now has the material support from Iwagakure Village. We'll have plenty of good days ahead. Just relax."
Listening to the conversation between Tora and Ogawa, a Grass ninja on the side interrupted worriedly.
"Senior Tora, now that we've accepted the support from Iwagakure, doesn't it mean we'll be on bad terms with Konoha?"
Not only him, but many Grass ninjas in the team were also panicked and echoed.
"Yeah, what if Konoha gives us trouble then?"
Tora was a bit speechless. "You guys are just over - worrying! Konoha has been in continuous wars and is badly damaged. It doesn't have the energy to deal with us."
"Besides, the elders of Iwagakure Village have said that they'll send troops to assist us when necessary. What else are you worried about?"
"If Konoha really dares to attack, then we'll kill all their men and snatch all their women back to the village to give birth!"
With Tora's firm words, the Grass ninjas felt a lot more at ease. Some even started daydreaming to boost their courage.
"What you said, Brother Tora. I'm actually looking forward to Konoha's attack. I've never had a taste of a Konoha woman."
"I wish I could also snatch a Konoha woman back home." Ogawa also showed a simple smile. "If I break her limbs, I should be able to have fun for a long time, right?"
He had a lot of ninja tools and was reluctant to use them on the women in his own village, but there'd be no psychological burden using them on Konoha women.
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