I woke up around six in the morning — the first thing I felt was a slight chill and the characteristic heaviness in my muscles after sleeping on the ground.
Figures were already stirring in the camp: some were doing pull-ups, some were yawning, and some were already eating.
Everyone took out the food they had managed to bring with them. Some unwrapped rice balls, dried meat, others bread or nuts.
But those who hadn't had time or hadn't thought to bring provisions were chewing military pills — nutritious but completely tasteless, leaving a strange metallic aftertaste in the mouth.
I ate half of my ration, washing it down with water from my canteen.
A short break, then — the command to move out. We set off again, taking the same positions in the squad.
Everything went according to yesterday's script: step by step, formation maintained, kunai at the ready, vigilance like a drawn bowstring, and seal training.
The only thing that didn't change was the heavy glare of that very genin. He still looked at me malevolently from under his brow, as if waiting for me to slip up.
I could feel his gaze almost physically...
Days passed like this — surprisingly quietly. And, to be honest, even a bit suspiciously.
I expected an ambush, nasty traps, or at least tense skirmishes with enemy patrols. All of that is too typical for missions crossing the border.
But — silence.
And then, on the third day, at noon, when the sun began to scorch through the leaves, Commander Gaku Inuzuka gave the stop signal.
— We're at the border. Hidden Grass Village settlement. "Currently under Iwa occupation," — he said, pointing ahead, where the forest started to thin and the ground became rockier.
The jonin's voice was coldly focused.
— We have to pass through a stretch about an hour long. This is the most dangerous section of the route. Enemy patrols are active here. We must move quietly, cohesively, — Gaku Inuzuka said in an even but firm voice.
His dog growled softly, as if confirming every word.
— However, movement of over a hundred ninjas at once is a target even a sensor would detect. Therefore, we're splitting into groups now.
He stepped forward, surveying everyone.
— Up to twelve people in each. Teams of three, already pre-formed, will join with others like them. Each group will have its own curator from the chunin ranks.
They will lead the advance and make decisions in case of contact. Act accordingly.
The crowd began to buzz, first confusedly, then more organized. Some already knew who they'd join, others looked around, searching for familiar faces.
I moved closer to Genma and Gai. Soon another trio joined us — a guy with a sword on his back and two girls in medical ninja uniforms. Then another — made up of three guys.
— This will be interesting... — I muttered to myself.
Our curator appeared almost immediately — a tall, broad-shouldered chunin with a long headband tied like a scarf.
— My name's Teiga. Won't say much, just move with me and don't mess around...
This chunin controls earth, I remembered how he used techniques in the ravine.
A focused silence fell over the group.
— Clear? — Teiga asked.
— Yes! — we responded in a jumble.
He nodded and gave a gesture signal.
— Follow me.
We moved into the forest, stepping softly, almost silently. There was no wind, even the birds were silent — as if nature itself had frozen, sensing that danger hung in the air.
Step by step, sip by sip, we plunged into a zone where any mistake could be the last.
I focused on the movement of my legs, on my breathing, on sounds behind and ahead. No crunch of leaves — so I was on the right track.
Gai breathed slowly. Genma kept glancing around, as if already sensing that now...
Somewhere ahead a dull explosion rang out.
Followed by a scream. Then a flash — and the forest was briefly lit by the cold gleam of an attack.
Somewhere very close, about three hundred meters from us, a fight had broken out.
Rustling, cracking branches, screams, and in a moment — new sounds: the clash of metal, kunai, shouts and... silence, pierced by rare technique blasts.
Our whole group instinctively stopped. One genin stepped forward, as if about to rush to help.
— Stop, — Teiga said sharply. His voice sounded like the fall of a guillotine. — Keep moving.
— But there... — someone from the back started.
— If they ran into a patrol, especially an Iwa reconnaissance team, there might already be an elite squad there.
If we all rush in, we'll lie down beside them. Got it?
Silence.
Everyone froze, tense, listening to the echoes of the fight still sounding somewhere deep in the forest.
Someone clenched their kunai, someone just gritted their teeth — but no one moved.
— They have sensors, — Teiga said quietly but firmly, his voice almost emotionless, as if cutting the truth with a knife.
— If we haven't been detected yet — this is our chance. Don't waste it.
I noticed some people exchanging looks. Inside, turmoil: leave your comrades when they might still be alive?
But reason understood: this isn't a test or training — this is war. Here emotions kill.
— The captain of this mission, Gaku Inuzuka, — Teiga continued after a short pause, — didn't take a separate squad without reason.
Most likely, he went exactly to the contact point. Our task now is to reach the camp and report the contact...
We were just drops in the river of war.
After twenty minutes of walking, crossing a lowland, we began to climb toward a hilly slope overgrown with thick shrubs and crooked trees.
The forest grew denser, and the air — damper, as if nature itself tried to hide what lay ahead.
Suddenly, Teiga, walking ahead, raised his hand. We immediately stopped, crouching.
He listened, looked around and, making sure all was calm, stepped off the trail.
— Follow me. Don't make noise.
We moved through the thicket, weaving between roots and moss.
And then, almost unexpectedly, a small clearing opened before us — but... empty.
I frowned. The camp should have been here. We had been heading toward it.
— Where's the camp?.. — someone whispered behind.
But at that very moment the air before us shimmered, like water disturbed by a stone.
And from the "void" came two shinobi in Konoha protective armor. They stood right in our path, watching each of us.
— Halt, — one of them said strictly. — Identify yourselves and state your purpose.
Teiga stepped forward and showed a folded order with the headquarters seals.
— Escort team under Jonin Gaku Inuzuka's command. Arrived by order of the defense headquarters. Advanced replacement group.
The shinobi took the order, checked the seals, quickly scanned the text. One nodded, the other pressed fingers to the ground — a barely noticeable chakra passed over the surface.
Go straight — said one of the ninjas.
And after walking about fifty meters straight ahead, where just a second ago there was only ground, the camp began to appear.
Tents, fortifications, watchtowers, barriers… All hidden by a powerful genjutsu cast on the terrain.
— Pass through. Head to the tents, you'll be assigned there, — said shortly one of the guards who followed us.
I swallowed hard. We really had arrived.
And now — the hardest part begins.