A squad of Mist ninja moved forward quietly and swiftly. It was clear they were highly focused, alert, and agile—nothing in their surroundings could escape their eyes, not even the slightest rustle in the wind.
Or rather, any ninja entrusted with such reconnaissance and patrol duties couldn't possibly be a rookie. The safety of the entire camp depended on these vigilant shinobi.
They performed their duty conscientiously—they were the eyes of the Mist.
Unfortunately, attitude alone doesn't always matter. In this world, there are differences in vision, and such gaps cannot be bridged by training or sheer determination alone.
The squad advanced in a standard formation. Positioned left, center, and rear, it was no surprise that the one standing in the middle held the position of team leader.
Just as they passed beneath a large tree, an upside-down figure appeared suddenly within the leader's field of vision. He hadn't even managed to register any other features of the figure, only one thing burned into his mind—that pair of eyes.
In the center of crimson irises were pitch-black pupils, and surrounding those black pupils were three evenly spaced, equally dark tomoe arranged in a clockwise pattern.
"Sharingan..."
Before he could even finish that thought, the ninja's consciousness was already gone.
As for the other three, they had also silently fallen.
Sakumo Hatake wielded a massive, exaggeratedly shaped blade and crushed one opponent's skull into mush—he had brought Samehada along since, for a swordsmanship genius, wielding such a heavy weapon wasn't difficult at all.
With Samehada's unusual nature, it could always come in handy when least expected, so carrying one wouldn't hurt.
Haseo's body crackled faintly with electricity. Haseo snapped the necks of the remaining two enemies simultaneously, and then the arcs faded away.
The gap wasn't limited to visual perception alone—it extended to ability as well.
Everyone accompanying Haseo was an elite jonin. As for Sakumo Hatake, no introduction was needed—handpicked from Hyuga and Uchiha lineages, their combat strength was unquestionable.
Especially when launching a sudden ambush, four enemies weren't enough to go around, leaving whoever hadn't scored a kill feeling awkward—thus Hyuga Soei scratched his nose lightly.
He hadn't even gotten a chance to fight.
The battle started without a sound—and ended the same way. Not even the faintest scent of blood lingered nearby because none of the enemies had bled—the methods used by these Konoha ninja were nothing short of brutal. It was hard to believe that just moments ago, they'd been trading snacks like a bunch of elementary schoolers.
The young Mist squad leader had already fallen into a Genjutsu cast by the Sharingan.
A ninja from the Uchiha clan nodded toward Haseo, who then stepped forward and questioned the captive, "What is the scale of the Mist's front-line camp? And who is the commander?"
"He seemed reluctant at first, but still answered Haseo's question without hesitation. 'There are 2,000 Mist ninja at the Front Line, commanded by the Third Mizukage, Hozuki Riman.'"
Haseo exchanged a glance with his three subordinates before all four simultaneously shook their heads.
This ninja was clearly bullshitting. Mist didn't even have that many ninja in total, let alone having the Mizukage himself overseeing operations.
In this phase of war, it was already rare for a Kage to appear on the battlefield even once. Let alone stay there permanently—especially after recognizing Haseo's threat level.
This wasn't a chaotic era anymore, nor was it the early period following its end. Now, staying at headquarters and directing from the center was the true duty of a Kage; personally engaging on the frontline only happened under exceptional circumstances.
The Third Mizukage wasn't like the Second Mizukage. Only the Second Mizukage would rush impatiently to the battlefield.
Besides, the Third had just lost an arm recently. Even if he recovered as quickly as possible, adapting to combat with one arm would inevitably take time.
Therefore, what the enemy said wasn't truthful… Haseo believed there was no flaw in the Sharingan's Genjutsu. It was very likely this captured ninja simply lacked knowledge about the actual situation at Mist's Front Line.
Rank-and-file fighters not knowing the exact size of Mist's forces wasn't hard to understand—if commanders deemed troop numbers confidential, then most personnel wouldn't have any idea how large their forces actually were.
How in the world do you keep count when you're talking about nearly a thousand ninja constantly moving around and frequently coming and going for missions?
Moreover, the identity of Mist's commander was also kept secret.
Konoha hadn't hidden Haseo's identity. First of all, Mist might already have learned about him earlier through espionage channels. And since the two sides had already clashed once, Haseo being the commander on Konoha's side was already known information to Mist. There was nothing left to conceal.
Also, Haseo had technically achieved a small victory over the Mizukage. His reputation could be enough to keep them on edge… at the very least, it gave Konoha's morale a boost.
As for Mist concealing their commander's identity, it was more than likely due to security considerations… After all, not long ago, another exposed commander nearly got ambushed and killed. Such things needed prevention.
"Your squad number, your squad's mission frequency, and the time you arrived at the Front Line," Haseo switched to a less direct line of questioning.
"I arrived at the Front Line two days ago. My squad is the 16th Squad of the 7th Battalion. We conduct two patrols daily, and this was our first one today."
Going out twice a day and still running straight into Haseo's team on one of 'em—this guy really was unlucky.
"If the Mist battalions weren't numbered randomly but sequentially, then at least 700 soldiers must've been stationed here two days ago. I wonder what kind of personality this mysterious Mist commander has. If he was the kind who needed everything just so, then the 7th Battalion would definitely be the seventh battalion formed, meaning there should logically have been six others before it," Haseo remarked.
Compared to how a squad typically consisted of four members in most cases, the term "large squad" was a rather broad concept. Fifty people could be considered a large squad, and so could a thousand. However, considering the ongoing war, a hundred seemed to be the standard size for large squads on both sides.
Haseo then asked several questions regarding provisions, rotations, rest periods, and other relevant matters. Based on the ninja's answers, he concluded that the Mist forces were currently around eight hundred strong, give or take a few.
In other words, the Mist forces were roughly equal to or slightly weaker than Konoha's troops.
This made Haseo sink into thought. If both sides were nearly evenly matched, it would be difficult to completely crush the Mist Front Line all at once.
"Lord Haseo," Hyuga Soei asked from the side, "should we capture another Mist team to cross-verify the information?"
"No need for that... This man's following statements have no issues and can serve as mutual corroboration. Also, the Mist isn't stupid—they'll soon realize that an entire team has gone completely silent. In response to our infiltration, they will definitely take targeted actions."
Haseo had already gotten roughly the information he needed, so he decided it was time to retreat. He wasn't reckless—no point in taking stupid risks now.
Though truthfully, even going alone for a quick scout near the Mist camp probably wouldn't pose much of a problem.
But Haseo gently brushed his fingers over the small pendant around his neck and smiled faintly, deciding not to test his luck.
Within his scientific worldview, Haseo didn't believe in superstitions, nor did he think mysticism truly held any power. He simply believed there was no need to recklessly tempt fate, so he chose not to do so—this was just being practical.
Life may be brutal, but it's still better to be breathing than buried.
P.S.:
I missed last month's one chapter update—I really am an honest man.
Both chapters count as yesterday's updates.
Too much chatting in the group last night meant I had to wake up early to post today.
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