Chapter 97: Deployment to the Battlefield
A week had passed since the Uchiha clan head's wedding.
Konoha's southwestern front reinforcement unit had been fully assembled.
That morning, Kyosuke woke up early, packed a few things, and headed to the Second Elder's residence. There, he was to meet the two clan shinobi who would be serving as his personal guard.
When he arrived, he found the Second Elder sitting formally, with a sullen-looking Nagisa beside him.
Upon seeing Kyosuke, the Second Elder gave him a solemn nod and introduced the two expressionless shinobi standing behind him.
The first was a tall man, codenamed "Seven."
The second was a female shinobi, codenamed "Thirteen."
According to the Second Elder, both were jounin-level. Seven specialized in ninjutsu, and Thirteen in genjutsu.
After the introductions, the Second Elder said to Kyosuke with a grave expression, "From this day forward, these two are your personal shinobi. Their lives are in your hands. I hope you will use them wisely, to bring honor to yourself and to the clan."
"Yes, I understand," Kyosuke replied with equal solemnity.
He nodded to the two shinobi. "I'll be in your care."
"Yes, sir!" they replied in unison, then moved from behind the Second Elder to stand behind Kyosuke. This signified that from now on, they would follow Kyosuke's orders exclusively; not even the Second Elder could command them.
Beside them, Nagisa was listlessly kicking at a small pebble, her head bowed.
Kyosuke smiled and shook his head. He walked over and patted her on the head. "Train hard. I hope you'll be able to join me on the battlefield soon."
"Hmph, just you wait. I'll catch up to you in no time," Nagisa huffed, fighting back tears.
After a bit more small talk, Kyosuke saw that it was getting late and formally took his leave.
Watching him go, the Second Elder sighed. "I wonder how much stronger he'll be by the time we see him again."
"He'll be even more amazing, don't you think?" the Second Elder said to his heartbroken granddaughter, trying to distract her.
"Mm..." Nagisa replied in a low voice, then turned and slowly walked back to her room.
"Sigh." The Second Elder watched her go, a pang of sadness in his heart. He thought to himself, That damn brat, making my precious granddaughter so sad. Just you wait until you get back, I'll teach you a lesson.
Although he thought this, when he turned to look, Kyosuke was already out of sight, and a wave of sorrow washed over him.
"Sigh, I wonder if this old body of mine will last until that brat comes back."
"You have to do your best... the future of the Uchiha is counting on you..."
Soon, Kyosuke, leading his two shinobi, arrived at the outskirts of Konoha, the designated assembly point for the reinforcement unit.
After greeting the jounin in charge, the three of them joined the ranks and waited for the others to arrive.
Just then, a figure quietly approached Kyosuke. It was Hyuga Saori, who had arrived early.
Before she could even speak, Seven and Thirteen stepped in front of her, their eyes filled with suspicion. It was clear that if she made any sudden moves, the two shinobi would attack on the spot.
Kyosuke, noticing the situation, quickly explained, then walked over to the curious Saori.
"Tsk, as expected of the Uchiha's young master. Look at this entourage," Saori said with a teasing smile.
Kyosuke ignored her remark, explained the situation with the two shinobi, and then led her back to their position.
And with that, Kyosuke's four-person squad was officially formed.
After a while, the remaining members of the unit began to arrive. Kyosuke did a quick count; the reinforcement unit was at least a thousand strong. Genin made up about seventy percent, with chunin accounting for another twenty-five percent. The crucial jounin force was only about twenty or thirty strong.
It wasn't that Konoha, at the peak of its strength, couldn't deploy more troops to the southwestern front. But the Cloud ninja to the northeast were a constant threat. If it weren't for the Stone ninja keeping them in check, they likely would have attacked long ago. Therefore, Konoha had to keep a significant portion of its forces in reserve to defend against the Cloud and be ready to reinforce the northeastern front at any time. Even the Mist ninja to the rear had to be watched. Although Danzō had established some back-channel connections with the Mist, the relationship was not stable. If the situation turned against Konoha, it would be strange if those bloodthirsty Mist ninja didn't get involved.
So, while Konoha's strength was great, the potential dangers were not small.
"Alright, since everyone is here, let's move out," the lead jounin said after a final headcount, waving his hand to signal their departure.
The thousand-strong unit then set off toward the outpost established by Orochimaru.
Along the way, the unit moved at the maximum speed the genin could sustain. As for security, aside from sending out a few scouts, there were no other measures. It was unlikely that any rogue or wandering ninja would be foolish enough to attack a unit of this size. As for a surprise attack from the Sand, that was even less of a concern. To wipe out such a large force, even the Sand's elite would need at least a hundred men. If they could deploy such a large force without anyone noticing, then Orochimaru wouldn't be Orochimaru.
So, the journey was peaceful. Aside from routine rests, the unit was in a constant state of forced march.
Four days passed quickly.
Konoha's reinforcement unit had finally arrived near the border of the Land of Rivers and the Land of Rain.
That day, Orochimaru, leading all the jounin, personally came to greet them.
The thousand-plus ninja were then assigned to different teams. Kyosuke's group of four, however, was set aside. Given Kyosuke's status as Orochimaru's disciple, this special arrangement was not surprising.
However, Orochimaru was busy until late that night, and it was only then that Kyosuke finally had a chance to speak with him face to face.
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