The difference between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain lies in this: in the Land of Fire, it never rains fire from the sky, but in the Land of Rain, it rains constantly all year round.
Torrential rain poured down on a dense forest nestled within a mountain valley of Amegakure, bringing with it an unshakable chill. Within this forest, on a thick branch high up in a lush tree canopy, a pair of calm eyes observed a narrow path not far away.
He didn't move at all, letting the heavy downpour soak his body entirely.
If one listened carefully, they could hear other faint noises hidden beneath the sound of rain—and gradually, as time passed, those sounds grew louder.
Treading through the muddy ground, six ninjas approached slowly along with a horse-drawn carriage. Cloaked in hooded raincoats, they were heading northwest toward the Front Line… where Amegakure's ninja were currently fighting against those from Iwagakure and Kumo.
Being deep within the Land of Rain, the ninja group lacked sufficient vigilance during their march. Their surveillance of the surroundings was superficial at best. Plus, the weather itself made things worse—the constant rain completely masked any traces or presence of hidden enemies.
Therefore, the team sensed no abnormalities. And when they passed by a particularly thick and lush tree, fully exposing their backs to whatever lay ahead, Haseo—who had been hiding among its branches—raised his hand and silently gestured downward.
Then, two iron arrows shot through the curtain of rain like thunderbolts, instantly piercing the backs of two enemy ninja. The vibrations of bowstrings and the whizzing of flying arrows were both swallowed completely by the storm.
Ambush!
Even though these ninja might have lowered their guard while traveling through their homeland, once their teammates fell lifelessly to the ground, they reacted naturally. Honestly speaking, their initial reflexes were quite good—meeting the standard reactions of qualified ninja. But by then, it was already too late.
They suddenly found themselves immobilized, unable to so much as twitch a muscle.
"Haven't you ever encountered Shadow Binding Jutsu before?"
A voice as cold as winter steel rang out in their ears. Moments later, three figures appeared directly in front of them. By spotting the leaf-shaped emblems on the enemies' forehead protectors, they instantly knew who they were up against.
"Konoha ninja? Why would you be appearing in such a place..."
Rather than being shocked by the unfamiliar technique—which was the Binding Jutsu—they were more astonished about why Konoha shinobi had shown up so deep in the Land of Rain... Unfortunately, none of them would ever get to find the answer to that question.
Helpless as fish on a chopping block, the captives were swiftly cut down without mercy by Haseo and his two companions.
The horse carriage remained standing alone in place. Then, the horse pulling it swung around and let out a sharp, rattling snort. Raindrops pattered down, the cold air bit through its nostrils, and the sudden stench of blood overwhelmed the poor beast—it had no idea what had just happened.
Not battle-hardened nor driven by hatred, Haseo's squad acted without hesitation or doubt when eliminating these enemies—just as unfeeling as any ninja needed to be under such circumstances.
This supply convoy was not composed of elite ninja. Amegakure is not Konoha; all its limited elite forces had been concentrated at the Front Line, leaving regular ninja to handle supply missions… So the ambush and assassination were wrapped up in just a few breaths.
With practiced ease, Renjiro dragged the enemy corpses deep into the woods for simple burial. At the same time, Chichio used kunai to cut the ropes blocking the cart, then pulled back the thick woolen cloth covering the cargo, exposing its contents.
"Rations, smoke bombs, explosive tags, kunai, and shuriken… all standard battlefield supplies," Chichio said after checking the goods, pulling down the cloth mask over his mouth and nose before reporting to Haseo.
"Restock what we've used on-site, then burn the rest," Haseo ordered.
They'd been inside the Land of Rain for a week already, launching three attacks against enemy supply lines. But every time, all they got were basic supplies—nothing worth bragging about.
As he spoke, Haseo untied the horses harnessed to the cart and gave one a firm slap on the rear. The animal whinnied and galloped away… He showed more care for animals than for his fellow ninja.
Now his squad gathered around the cart, replenishing their recently spent kunai and shuriken, then loading up on all the explosive tags before setting the entire vehicle ablaze.
"Fall back."
Haseo issued the withdrawal order.
As infiltrators in the Land of Rain, they never stayed too long at any operation site. From the moment the attack began, through the quick cleanup of evidence, to their departure, the total time wouldn't exceed five minutes.
Though things had gone smoothly during their first week, Haseo knew it wouldn't last. After all, Konoha hadn't sent just one or two infiltration squads into the Land of Rain. Even if each squad's individual damage wasn't great throughout the week, small damages can add up over time—in which case, even if every Rain ninja had rocks for brains, they should've caught on by now.
Once they realized Konoha's intent, security would tighten. Therefore, Haseo knew he must become even more cautious moving forward.
While swiftly relocating through the rain, Haseo spoke to the teammate beside him: "We've operated in this area for a full week now, and Amegakure has suffered the destruction of three consecutive supply teams at our hands. Naturally, they will notice something here. So according to prior arrangements, we'll begin our transfer to Area B next. We'll stay in that area for the next three to five days."
He'd strike unexpectedly but never engage in prolonged combat. Haseo employed classic hit-and-run tactics, always putting his own safety first.
What caught him off guard was how fast Amegakure responded.
Upon arriving at Area B—a location previously identified by Haseo—the squad went three full days without encountering a single enemy. It didn't make sense—they were deep inside the Land of Rain, so where was everyone?
It wasn't until the fifth day, right as they were about to pull out, that they finally came across an enemy squad.
The enemy looked like a supply unit, but the earlier silence left Haseo with a nagging feeling that something was off.
"Follow them, but hold off on attacking. Something feels off about this group."
Unsurprisingly, Haseo's instincts proved spot-on—especially when it came to sensing danger. Just as they silently tailed the enemy force, a sudden and violent surge of chakra crashed over them like a wave...
As if a powerful photoelectric radar had swept through, instantly revealing every shadow hiding in the jungle.
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