The Land of Hot Water had a warm and pleasant climate. Although it was already late autumn and early winter, the landscape remained lush and green. Yugito Nii walked through the foreign streets with great interest, her eyes wandering to take in the scenery, which was vastly different from the Land of Lightning.
This wasn't her first visit to the Land of Hot Water. During the Third Great Ninja War, she had been here once. However, she was much younger then and not as close to Matatabi as she was now. At that time, the infamous "Yellow Flash" was wreaking havoc on the battlefield, and she had been brought by the adults just to experience the atmosphere of war before being quickly sent back to the village.
Luckily, that deadly "Yellow Flash" was already dead. Even the "Leaf Hero" had recently met the end of his journey. Konoha had fallen into an unprecedented state of weakness. To fend off the opportunistic Mist Ninja, they had even thrown the young Nine-Tails Jinchuriki into the fight. Konoha's dire straits were evident from this. Though they barely defeated the Mist Ninja with their remaining strength, Konoha had only become weaker as a result.
Yugito reached the center of town and entered the largest and tallest building there—a hotel. This was the most luxurious hotel in town, which would normally be filled with tourists from all over the world coming to soak in the hot springs during this season. But the war had disrupted everything. The hotel wasn't housing tourists anymore, but Cloud Ninja from the Land of Lightning.
"Yugito, you're back!"
From the stairs, a middle-aged man wearing a black ninja hat and with a sealed left eye descended. Seeing Yugito enter the lobby, he raised his hand to greet her.
"Elder Dodai," Yugito greeted him respectfully, bowing slightly as she recognized the man.
Though many young male Cloud Ninja viewed Yugito as an aloof and unattainable beauty, in front of Dodai, this ordinary-looking middle-aged man, she couldn't maintain any sense of pride. Elder Dodai was the "strategist" of the Hidden Cloud Village, trusted by both the Third and Fourth Raikages for his wisdom.
"Any news?" Dodai asked.
Yugito had been sent by Raikage's orders to infiltrate Konoha's defensive lines and gather intelligence on the enemy's movements.
"No significant findings. The Konoha ninja flee as soon as they see me. My identity is fully exposed at this point. We captured a few prisoners, but they've been handed over to the interrogation unit. I don't expect much from them—they were all low-level ninjas, no members of Konoha's major clans. It's still unclear what Konoha's real intentions are. There wasn't even any substantial resistance."
"Your cover being blown was inevitable, so don't worry too much about it. Just make sure you don't reveal all your cards," Dodai said before shifting his attention back to the report. "No real resistance at all? It seems Konoha's weakness is genuine."
This war had been progressing remarkably smoothly. After defeating Konoha's border defense force at the border between the Land of Frost and the Land of Hot Water, the Cloud forces pushed southward without encountering much resistance, winning battle after battle. By now, two-thirds of the Land of Hot Water was under Cloud control.
As for why Konoha's border defense force was stationed on the border of the Land of Hot Water, the reason was simple: the Land of Hot Water was a small country allied with the Land of Fire, serving as a buffer to prevent war from directly reaching the Land of Fire.
"By the way, Yugito, are you here to see Raikage-sama? He's in his office now. You can head up yourself... Actually, I'll go with you," Dodai said after a moment of thought, deciding to accompany Yugito back to Raikage's temporary office.
Arriving at a door made of redwood, Dodai knocked twice. A deep, powerful voice called from inside, "Come in!"
"Pardon the intrusion, Raikage-sama," Dodai said respectfully before gently opening the door.
Following Dodai inside, Yugito immediately noticed how different the office was from the other rooms in the building. The luxurious furnishings had been removed, replaced by an almost shockingly simple decor. The white walls bore a few paintings of no particular renown, and to the left was a large desk and some sofas for receiving guests. On the right side of the room was a fully equipped gym.
At that moment, a large, muscular man with the physique of a bear was lifting a barbell that weighed over 300 kilograms. His tensed muscles exuded strength as he performed squats. This man, with light yellow hair, dark skin, and green shuriken-like tattoos on his arms and shoulders, was none other than the Fourth Raikage, A.
In this war, the Fourth Raikage was personally leading the charge, following the tradition of every Raikage before him, who would always lead from the front in times of war.
"Dodai? Back again?" A, still lifting the heavy barbell, glanced at Dodai and asked, "Is there urgent news? Or is it—Yugito?"
His expression shifted when he noticed Yugito, realizing the situation. "Ah, Yugito!"
"Raikage-sama," Yugito greeted him with a respectful bow.
"Yugito, since you're back, I assume the mission is complete?" A asked, continuing his workout while listening to Yugito's report.
"Based on my investigation, Konoha's fighting spirit is low. I encountered no significant resistance during my mission, which may be due to the fact that my identity as a Jinchuriki has been exposed. But from what I've seen, it doesn't seem like Konoha intends to mount a serious defense in the Kusa Mountain area, despite its geographical advantages," Yugito reported.
"You're saying they plan to keep retreating?" A asked, lifting the barbell even higher as he glanced at Yugito.
"Yes, Raikage-sama. I'm confident Konoha will continue to retreat," Yugito said firmly, showing no hesitation.
"Dodai, what do you think?" A turned to his strategist for input.
Dodai closed his eyes for a moment in contemplation before answering, "I support Yugito's judgment. Konoha doesn't seem prepared for a direct confrontation with us. They're likely waiting for reinforcements."
"Reinforcements? Didn't the Hyuga clan already arrive on the battlefield? Are you saying that old man Chōza Akimichi is going to personally take the field?" A asked.
The Hyuga clan, led by Hiashi Hyuga, had already joined the battle in the Land of Hot Water and reinforced Konoha's northeastern defense force, preventing them from being completely wiped out by Cloud's forces.
"No, not the Hyuga. I think they're waiting for the Konoha ninjas who recently defeated the Mist to return," Dodai responded gravely.
"You mean that Uchiha who captured the Fourth Mizukage? What's his name again?" A asked.
"Uchiha Sougen," Dodai replied.
"That's it, Uchiha Sougen. Capturing the Fourth Mizukage single-handedly? Sounds like a wild rumor to me," A said dismissively. But after a moment, he added, "Still, if you're right, Dodai, this Uchiha might be a serious threat."
"If even half the rumors are true, Uchiha Sougen is not someone to underestimate," Dodai warned.
"Fine, then. I'm actually looking forward to seeing what this Uchiha can do," A said, his fighting spirit burning even brighter.