"Keep sending more people! Send someone to take care of them!"

"No, we can't send anyone else. We've already lost fifteen jōnin. Continuing with this piecemeal tactic will only deplete all of our defensive forces!"

"Then what do you suggest? Do you want those Konoha ninja to keep trailing us? If we don't deal with them now, don't you think a whole group of Konoha ninja will show up and wipe us out? If that happens, our army is finished!"

The command center of the Cloud ninja was stationed on the back of a giant woolly hippopotamus, a creature from Turtle Island that had been domesticated by the Cloud Village for use as a transport. It could climb mountains, cross rivers, and moved at a decent speed on land. Most importantly, it had an excellent load-bearing capacity, so much so that they had built a wooden house on its broad back.

Indeed, the Cloud ninja had actually set up a wooden cabin on the woolly hippo's back.

Inside the cabin, more than twenty advisors coordinated the movements of over fifteen thousand troops, using radio communications, sensory ninja techniques, and trained ninja beasts. Counting the previous casualties, their total force exceeded twenty thousand—a deployment that represented nearly all of the Cloud's military resources left from the Third Great Ninja War!

To be honest, managing such a large force was exhausting for these twenty or so advisors. Their brains were running so fast they were nearly boiling. In the freezing weather, their foreheads were drenched with sweat from their frantic efforts, and now, the guards informed them that Konoha ninja were tailing them. How should they respond?

This was undoubtedly adding insult to injury, causing the already pressured advisors to erupt in frustration.

They had immediately sent troops to eliminate the Konoha ninja, but none had returned. Three squads had been lost so far!

Thus, a division emerged:

Some believed they had to eliminate this group of Konoha ninja, or they wouldn't have peace of mind. Others felt that continuing to send people to their deaths was pointless and that they should instead tighten their defenses. As long as Konoha didn't send a large force, the command post's defenses would hold.

While they were arguing, a sudden voice interrupted:

"I'll go."

The advisors turned to see the speaker—it was Yugito Nii.

"Huh? Lady Yugito..."

It was true that Jinchūriki were often disliked in their villages, but strong Jinchūriki held high ranks. While these advisors may have harbored private disdain or dislike for Yugito, they couldn't afford to be disrespectful in public.

"Leave those Konoha ninja to me. You focus on the frontlines."

"But... Are you sure?"

The advisors hesitated.

Yugito's recent behavior had changed noticeably, and these advisors were well aware that she was no longer the fierce Two-Tailed Jinchūriki she once was. Even the Raikage had repeatedly instructed them not to involve her unless absolutely necessary.

They hadn't planned to deploy Yugito so early, but her sudden request was unexpected.

"What's the problem? Do you have a better solution? If I don't act, you'll have to send nearly every jōnin here to deal with those Konoha ninja. Don't be fooled by their small numbers—there are some powerful individuals among them! If we wait for reinforcements from Konoha, I can't guarantee we'll be able to handle the situation."

Leaning against the door, Yugito spoke calmly.

She now despised war.

But she hadn't forgotten she was a Cloud ninja. Watching her comrades die one after another, she couldn't remain indifferent. Her loyalty to the village overpowered her hatred for war. Still, she had a plan to capture the Konoha ninja alive. She knew the true goal of this war wasn't to destroy Konoha's army but to force them to the negotiating table and end the conflict.

So instead of waiting idly, it was better to take the initiative.

"Well..." The advisors exchanged glances, realizing that Yugito's concerns were valid. Without a better option, one of them spoke, "Lady Yugito, please take two squads with you."

"Very well!"

Seeing that the advisors had reached a consensus, Yugito readily accepted their minimal request for close monitoring. She had no intention of betraying the village, so this was a non-issue for her. She swiftly mobilized with two squads of Cloud ninja, heading toward the Konoha ninja trailing the command center.

...

"These Cloud ninja don't seem like much of a threat!"

Uchiha Chisao wiped the blood from her face with her sleeve, grinning at Yakushi Nonō. "Nonō-nee, why don't we just charge in?"

"Don't be reckless! Have you forgotten about the Two-Tails Jinchūriki?"

Yakushi Nonō was treating Ringo Ameyuri's wounds. Despite Uchiha Chisao's dismissive attitude, the truth was there were a few skilled fighters among the Cloud ninja. Ringo Ameyuri had suffered cuts to her arm and side, and Kakashi's left arm had been fractured while protecting Jūri.

The Cloud ninja weren't pushovers.

But Yakushi Nonō's team was exceptionally strong, even by Konoha's standards. Few ninja could rival them. Uchiha Chisao's abilities likely ranked her fourth among the Uchiha, behind Madara, Shisui, and Fugaku.

Many veteran jōnin in the clan couldn't best her in one-on-one duels.

Kakashi's prowess also spoke for itself. In the original timeline, he became the Sixth Hokage, a position no weakling could achieve. Despite not being an Uchiha, his Sharingan consumed his chakra relentlessly, yet he wielded it with ease—better than some of the original Uchiha.

Then there was Ringo Ameyuri, a prodigy of the Hidden Mist Village's Lightning Style, and one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. She wielded the Thunder Blades with skill on par with Uchiha Chisao, though her lightning-based techniques often clashed with Uchiha's abilities. But when it came to facing Cloud ninja, Ameyuri's blade was unstoppable!

"The Two-Tails Jinchūriki... I wonder when I'll awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan?" Uchiha Chisao muttered gloomily.

She had learned that the clan leader, Shisui, and Elder Fugaku had all awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, and many within the clan were striving to awaken it themselves. The awe-inspiring power of Susano'o had sparked an unquenchable desire in many.

The Uchiha were a clan that revered strength!

Their arrogance stemmed from their power, and their pursuit of strength was ingrained in most of them. Outliers like Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi, who didn't care about power, were rare exceptions.

Ironically, these exceptions, like Shisui and Itachi, were incredibly gifted, advancing rapidly and leaving many of their clansmen envious.

"Just wait," Yakushi Nonō said patiently.

"As long as we don't lose track of them, there's no need to engage directly with the Cloud ninja. Our mission is to scout and track; destruction and sabotage aren't our responsibility. Chisao, acting on your own isn't the behavior of a good ninja."

With that, she finished tending to Ringo Ameyuri's wounds.

Her gaze turned to the northwest. The curtain of snow and wind obscured her vision, preventing her from seeing too far, but she knew that the Cloud Ninja command center was not far ahead. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw two small, ink-colored sparrows flying through the storm, heading straight toward Ameyuri and diving into the blank space on the scroll in her hand.

New intel had arrived!

But—

"Ten o'clock direction, everyone on high alert!"

After reading the message on the scroll, Ameyuri quickly issued the warning.

Everyone immediately shifted their gaze to the ten o'clock direction. A dark red figure burst through the storm like crimson lightning, speeding through the air. Judging by the trajectory, it was aiming directly at Ameyuri!

However, Kakashi reacted instantly!

In a flash, he formed three hand signs—Snake, Boar, Dog—and slammed his hands to the ground, infusing refined earth-style chakra into it.

"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"

The ground shook as a thick stone wall, decorated with dog head carvings, rose up like a fortress, standing between the advancing figure and Ameyuri. She was safe behind the wall, but she wasn't a weakling either. Whether in the ANBU or the Root, she was considered a top-tier fighter.

She didn't waste the time Kakashi had bought her. With a quick shake of the scroll in her hand, a giant ink-colored eagle flew out, and Ameyuri leaped onto its back, ascending into the sky just in time to dodge the terrifying attack. From the air, she saw the stone wall crumble under the assault, the flying debris almost knocking her eagle out of the sky!

But,

Its mission was accomplished!

"It's the Two-Tails Jinchuriki! The attacker is the Two-Tails Jinchuriki! Be careful, everyone."

Ameyuri knew this was a bit of hindsight, but there was no helping it. No one expected the Two-Tails Jinchuriki to arrive so quickly. She had barely managed to get the intel in time, and maybe even exposed herself as the team's sensory ninja, narrowly avoiding being smashed to pieces by Yugito.

She wasn't underestimating herself, just being realistic. She knew she couldn't match a Jinchuriki in battle; she wasn't one of those Uchiha monsters.

Fighting a Jinchuriki?

Better leave that to the experts more suited for combat!

As a sensory ninja, her mission was to keep track of the Cloud Ninja command center and prevent them from slipping away. If they got away, all their efforts would be for nothing.

"So fast!" muttered Yakushi Nonou, her face as calm as water.

She knew the Two-Tails Jinchuriki was guarding the command center, which was why she had tried to rein in Uchiha Chisao's reckless charge. Unfortunately, they hadn't made it to the command center, and now Yugito had come to them! This was one of the worst-case scenarios she had considered.

"Kakashi, Chisao, Yuriy, don't you dare die!" she shouted.

As her words faded, Yakushi Nonou threw a special smoke bomb.

But in the next second, the half-tailed beast Yugito let out a deep growl, and the resulting gust blew the smoke away completely. Yugito glanced upward, spotting the ink-colored eagle in the sky. Judging the distance, she realized that unless she fully transformed into the beast, she couldn't reach that altitude.

"So close!" Yugito thought, full of regret.

If she had captured that sensory ninja right away, there wouldn't have been any need for further fighting. As soon as they shook off these Leaf Ninja, the command center would be safe. But that was just wishful thinking, since she wasn't sure if there was another sensory ninja among them.

In fact, there was.

Kakashi's ninja dogs also had tracking abilities, but since Ameyuri was present, he had opted to conserve his chakra…

"Earth Style: Rock Pillar Spears!"

Kakashi was no longer holding back on his chakra.

Facing off against a Jinchuriki, trying to conserve chakra would be suicidal. Seeing the Two-Tails Jinchuriki shatter the Earth Flow Wall was enough to extinguish any thought of close combat. Though he had trained in Hardening Jutsu, he hadn't reached the point where his body was harder than stone.

At this point, long-range jutsu was the best option!

As for genjutsu...when he saw the two different types of chakra surging inside Yugito, he knew his genjutsu would have little effect. Even with his Sharingan, he hadn't mastered the Uchiha clan's illusion techniques.

Sharp rock spears shot up from beneath Yugito's feet, their speed and power both impressive.

But Yugito's agility exceeded Kakashi's expectations. Twisting her body with incredible flexibility, she dodged the spears like a boneless cat, avoiding all the strikes. But as she dodged the rock spears, she noticed a pincer attack coming from both sides.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire!"

"Lightning Style: Star Beads!"

Uchiha Chisao and Ringo Yuriy attacked from left and right.

The flying fireballs and crackling lightning beads hurtled toward Yugito. While the Tailed Beast Cloak offered her protection, it didn't mean the attacks wouldn't hurt. Seeing the incoming attacks from both sides, Yugito chose to dodge. She ran across the barren land with lightning speed, evading the pincer attack and redirecting her focus toward Uchiha Chisao.