After all, Wind Breathing and Thunder Breathing share the same origins, and with Sun Breathing now available as a reference, the difficulty of combining them is significantly lower.
"If there's something wrong with your body, you need to cooperate with the examination, Qingshui-kun."
Kocho Shinobu leaned down with a smile, speaking to Qingshui while unceremoniously swatting his arm away and placing a stethoscope on him.
"By the way, what's the name of the new Breathing Style?"
"The new Breathing Style's principle is based on ionized wind in nature, so let's call it Separation Breathing," Qingshui said casually.
…
…
Naruto World.
Torrential rain poured from the sky. On the desolate, muddy plains, blood flowed like rivers, and the sounds of battle, wind, and rain seemed to become the main theme of the world.
After a long time, the Konoha shinobi retreated completely, leaving hundreds of corpses on the battlefield.
A "clunk" of mechanical twisting sounded, and Qingshui emerged from Big Ivan. A faint green glow emanated from his hands as he used healing jutsu to treat Pakura and Baki's injuries.
The overall combat power of their small squad was already considerable. They had begun to undertake important missions on specific battlefields, and the pressure they faced increased accordingly.
Fortunately, they could still manage; Baki and Pakura only had minor injuries.
The outcome of this battle could be considered a complete victory.
After the battle, Chiyo called all the Special Jonin and higher-ranked shinobi in the camp for a meeting.
"Excellent. Konoha's main forces have been repelled, and Hanzo is surrounded by Stone Hidden, isolated and without aid. Even if he manages to break through with the Rain Hidden shinobi, Rain Village will be severely weakened by this battle and will no longer have the power to launch an offensive."
Chiyo pointed at the map hanging on the wall, explaining the current situation.
Ever since Orochimaru was transferred to another front, although the Third Kazekage's eastward advance had been halted by the Konoha shinobi he led, Konoha's strength in the Land of Rain naturally diminished.
This was especially true given Shimura Danzō's relatively average command ability.
In terms of strategic vision, planning, and tactics, he was far inferior to Orochimaru. Coupled with Tsunade's incapacitation, Danzō and Jiraiya could only hold their ground and hope for a change in circumstances.
The small tricks Danzō played, like assassinations, had no effect after the first attempt failed against the now vigilant Sand Hidden shinobi. In fact, they backfired, sacrificing valuable resources that were meant as traps for nothing.
"On the eastern front, due to Orochimaru, the Third Generation's advance is temporarily stalled. However, we have completely taken over the entire Land of Rivers and established defensive lines. Konoha's counterattack has been repelled, and now both sides are in a tug-of-war in the Land of Rivers and the Land of Valleys."
"And we have also reached our limit. It's not a matter of logistics; through fighting to sustain ourselves, our material reserves are even greater than when we first entered the Land of Rain. We even have a large quantity of valuable supplies being sent back to the village. The issue is manpower."
Chiyo then removed some red flags representing Konoha and Rain Hidden from the sand table, replacing them with green flags representing Sand Hidden and yellow flags representing Stone Hidden.
Through the sand table, the division of power within the Land of Rain was clearly visible.
The southern and western areas were largely occupied by the allied forces of Sand Hidden and Stone Hidden.
The largest central area was previously held by Rain Hidden and Konoha, but was now divided between Sand Hidden and Stone Hidden.
Rain Hidden retreated to the north, which was Hanzo's stronghold, and Konoha also retreated to the east, backing up to the Land of Fire's border.
Over fifty percent of the Land of Rain's territory was now controlled by Sand Hidden and Stone Hidden.
With the occupied territory suddenly increasing by more than half, both Sand Hidden and Stone Hidden had reached their manpower limits after establishing basic garrisons in the occupied areas.
"In other words, we currently have sufficient defense but insufficient offensive capabilities. Although Konoha suffered a defeat, their main forces did not sustain significant losses. It will still be very difficult to defeat them. If we continue to press the attack, it will lead to internal vulnerabilities, and Konoha's desperate counterattack could inflict losses on us."
Chiyo summarized.
In short, with Hanzo still alive and Konoha's main forces intact, Sand Village's current strength was insufficient to annex the Land of Rain. Even occupying nearly a third of the Land of Rain was already their limit.
"Can the village send more reinforcements?" a Sand Hidden shinobi asked.
"That would be very difficult. Senior ninja academy students are already helping transport supplies at the border. There are no available slots for registered active shinobi, even freshly graduated Genin. We can't even pull any more shinobi from the retired ranks who have returned to service.
Besides, why would we need more reinforcements when we've already won?"
Chiyo shook her head.
"What about Waterfall Hidden to the north? Although they're not one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, they also have a Tailed Beast and are among the strongest of the smaller nations, not much weaker than the Land of Rain. If we could form an alliance with them…"
Rasa inquired.
"I've already sent someone to the Land of Waterfalls to deliver a message and discuss it. However, it seems they only want to protect their own territory and have no desire to interfere in other nations' wars."
Chiyo shook her head again.
Of course, Waterfall Hidden Village wouldn't dare to act, Qingshui thought to himself.
Ever since Kakuzu defected, killing all the former high-ranking members of Waterfall Hidden Village and stealing the Jiongu Secret Technique, Waterfall Hidden Village's legacy was almost broken, and they hadn't produced any notable masters since.
They only gained respect from other ninja villages because of the Seven-Tails, but if they were to actually deploy troops, their true weakness would likely be exposed.
But I wonder where Kakuzu is now.
He's an old-school Kage-level powerhouse. If I could find a way to contact him and offer enough money, I'm sure he wouldn't refuse a mercenary contract from Sand Village.
The Sand Hidden Jonin all voiced their opinions. While some good suggestions were made, they wouldn't have a significant impact on the overall situation.
"Qingshui, what about you? Do you have any thoughts?"
Toward the end, Chiyo suddenly asked Qingshui.
She believed her disciple had a quick wit.
"I'm thinking, if our current strength isn't enough to defeat Konoha, can we make Konoha retreat on its own?"
Qingshui stroked his chin as he spoke.
"Elaborate."
Chiyo said, interested.
"We could attack Konoha's rear strongholds again, like last time. Even if we don't have the same intelligence advantage now, if the Land of Fire is ravaged, Konoha will surely have to react, right? Even if the Konoha shinobi in the Land of Rain don't necessarily withdraw, we could at least find out how many people Konoha can still spare and if they have any remaining strength to send reinforcements to the Land of Rain battlefield."
Chiyo's mind raced as she considered the feasibility.
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