A special thank you to my patrons:
—Cain, Shahzaam, Varun Madhu, Mp Gaming, kevin Williams, Jose Carrillo, Jose Sierra, Salim, Silver, ManyEB, Archer Sterling, John Doe, Kyle Bates, Acedia, Zhandos Kauzhanov, Kylo Ren, Mursuland.
You can read 30 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - [email protected]/lessaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
—————————————————————
Sweep them all? What a joke!
The Land of Wind had a sparse population to begin with, concentrated mostly in the oasis regions.
These regions were all close to Sunagakure, the Hidden Sand Village, and were the focal points of its defense.
This meant that aside from these areas, what Kirigakure, the Hidden Mist Village, faced was nothing but endless, uninhabited desert.
To cause trouble, you need something to actually work with.
The environment was harsh, the weather was brutal, and Sunagakure, capitalizing on their intimate knowledge of both, employed every tactic of containment, harassment, and attrition. They frustrated you to no end, leaving you seething but powerless to retaliate.
The most critical issue was that every single resource consumed by Kirigakure's forces had to be transported thousands of miles across the sea from the Land of Water.
Not only was resource transportation painfully slow, it was also immensely complicated.
And in this godforsaken, barren wasteland of the Land of Wind, even if you wanted to replenish supplies through plunder, there was nowhere to plunder from.
Aside from some minerals buried beneath the sands, there was absolutely nothing.
Kirigakure did need those minerals, but could they really start mining operations in the middle of a war?
Sunagakure would be absolutely delighted if they did.
Ignoring direct confrontations on the main fronts, they relied on constant ambushes, sneak attacks, and exploiting the harsh environment to shatter morale.
One look at Ichifune's flushed face and bulging neck veins was enough to see just how utterly frustrated and humiliated he felt.
The situation was infuriating to the extreme.
"Commander, we are critically short of various antitoxins. The water supply is also a major problem."
Inside the command tent, everyone looked at Ichifune with grave concern.
Being harassed on the battlefield was one thing; what was truly unacceptable was that Sunagakure had resorted to poisoning the water sources!
This was the deadliest blow.
Proximity to the ocean didn't mean fresh water was abundant. In fact, sources of potable water were extremely scarce here, and now even those had been contaminated by the Sand ninja.
The poisoning was catastrophic enough, but the war had erupted too suddenly. The main invasion force hadn't completed all preparations before sailing forth in a grand display of might towards the Land of Wind.
Upon facing the enemy, they were met with a stark realization: where were the antitoxins?
Fighting a war against Sunagakure without adequate antitoxins—how was that even possible?
Damn it all!
Why were they saddled with this cursed situation?
Ichifune cursed under his breath, his anger boiling over as he slammed his hand on the table again, his aged face dark with fury.
"Find a way to secure the water supply! Then order the village to decipher Sunagakure's poisons immediately and send the antitoxins as fast as possible. If not, we might as well call off this campaign right now and wait here for death."
They had never considered Sunagakure's Puppet Corps particularly formidable before. Now, in the heat of war, the ninja of Kirigakure were learning firsthand what true vexation meant.
Puppet masters weren't powerful on an individual scale, but when their numbers reached a critical mass, and wave upon wave of puppets came swarming—the sight was nothing short of horrifying.
The most fatal issue was Kirigakure's lack of effective antitoxins. The standard-issue antidotes brought from the village were proving woefully inadequate.
That old crone, Chiyo, was a master poisoner, constantly developing new and insidious toxins.
The old antitoxins were useless against these new formulas.
"I fear time is not on our side," Terumi Mei interjected, her own head throbbing with worry. Her clan had committed significant forces to this campaign, and she herself was serving on the front lines.
Purifying water, analyzing poison compositions, developing new antidotes—all of these required precious time. And time was precisely what Kirigakure lacked most.
The war's sudden outbreak, combined with Kirigakure's unique geographical isolation...
They used to believe their remote location was a great advantage. After all, no matter how fiercely the other great villages fought amongst themselves, it never involved Kirigakure. The village could develop in peace and safety. Now, however... this unique geography might not be such a blessing after all.
Being difficult to attack also meant launching an attack on others was exceedingly difficult.
By the time they could slowly transport poison samples back to the village, have experts meticulously analyze them, and finally develop and produce new antitoxins—by the time all that back-and-forth was complete, it would be far too late. The moment would have passed, the situation irreversibly deteriorated.
"Perhaps we could seek assistance from another village," Terumi Mei suggested, her vision extending beyond the immediate crisis. "Konoha, for instance."
Since we cannot resolve these troubles ourselves, perhaps Konoha can.
Let us not forget, Konoha's Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, is hailed as the greatest medical ninja and a legendary 'Puppet Slayer.'
She is also the absolute natural counter to that old poison master, Chiyo.
One reason Konoha had historically suppressed Sunagakure—aside from the Sand's poverty and smaller ninja force—was its ability to swiftly neutralize the threats posed by puppet masters, particularly their poisons.
The unfortunate reality was that while Konoha could solve such problems quickly, Kirigakure clearly could not.
"Konoha? Would they even agree?" someone in the tent voiced the collective doubt.
Seeking help from another village, especially requiring the personal intervention of its Hokage, in the midst of their own war—the idea seemed far-fetched.
"Whether Konoha agrees or not, we must try," Terumi Mei insisted firmly. "Unless everyone here present can propose a solution to our current predicament. Let me also remind you all: this is the Land of Wind. Even if we locate new water sources, who can guarantee Sunagakure won't poison them again?"
They were the outsiders, the invaders. Expecting the enemy to adhere to any notions of chivalry or honor was pure folly.
If a method worked, poisoning water was just the beginning. If need be, Sunagakure ninja would probably be more than happy to force-feed the poison to them directly.
"Then who will go to Konoha?" another asked hesitantly.
The previous diplomatic envoy sent to Konoha had been unceremoniously expelled. That incident had led to numerous bitter exchanges between Kirigakure and Konoha. Going to beg for help now might very well result in the door being slammed in their faces.
The prospect of such a humiliating rejection made everyone in the command tent lower their gaze. They would rather endure the scorching sun and endless sands here than travel to Konoha only to be utterly snubbed.
Eyes shifted around the room, eventually settling on Terumi Mei.
After all, it was her proposal. Was it not only fitting that she be the one to undertake the mission?
In the end, Terumi Mei accepted the responsibility. She gathered a small team and set off for the Land of Fire and Konoha.
Hamstrung by these myriad complications, Kirigakure's military advance had ground to a crawl. For now, they could only hunker down in a sorry state, perpetually on guard against Sunagakure's relentless raids and ambushes. Until their fundamental logistical and medical issues were resolved, Kirigakure possessed little capacity for any meaningful offensive action.
Fortunately, wars were not decided in a matter of days. From inception to conclusion, they could span years of protracted struggle before finally reaching a resolution.
The troubles plaguing Kirigakure were but one set of challenges in the vast, complex tapestry of this conflict.
The war raged on, and its ripples continued to spread. One need not look far for evidence: the skyrocketing prices of goods and materials across all nations served as the clearest proof.
Konoha, having foreseen such turbulence, had prepared in advance by stockpiling vast quantities of essential supplies, allowing it to stabilize its internal market.
Thus, the village remained relatively insulated from the worst effects.
Matters beyond Konoha's borders, however, were beyond its purview. Stabilizing a nation's economy fell squarely within the domain of the Feudal Lord to address.