Ryuichi was the first to let out a cold snort.
"Brat from the Uchiha, it's not that I don't trust you, but have you ever even been on a battlefield? Do you have any idea what reconnaissance actually is?"
"If a scout slips up for even a second, they get captured. And once that happens, life is worse than death.
You say you can do reconnaissance without a scratch. Are you trying to make a fool out of all of us?"
Ryuichi's tone was icy.
He had never expected this Uchiha brat to brag like this.
He honestly had no idea what Mito-sama had seen in him.
Kotarou just shook his head, then covered his left eye with his left hand.
His right hand opened, and flowing sand surged out from his palm, gathering bit by bit until it formed a single eyeball.
Only then did Kotarou speak.
"Jiton Shinshi no Me (Magnet Release - True Sight Eye)."
As soon as he said it, the eyeball floated up from his hand, slowly circling once around Ryuichi.
Ryuichi was stunned.
What ninjutsu was this?
Wait… Magnet Release!
Every member of the Senju clan turned to stare at Kotarou.
A kekkei genkai.
Magnet Release, a kekkei genkai that ranked alongside Hashirama-sama's Wood Release.
Their gazes changed instantly.
The way they looked at Kotarou softened considerably.
Whether Kotarou's Magnet Release was strong yet or not, just having a trusted aide with dual bloodline limits at Tsunade's side was a huge boost for her.
"Ahem… Kotarou-kun, tell me, what does this True Sight Eye actually do?"
Tsunade had long since known about Kotarou's dual kekkei genkai, so she wasn't particularly shocked.
What she wanted to know now was the practical effect of this Magnet Release ninjutsu.
Kotarou naturally wasn't going to be coy.
He smiled.
"This technique is called the True Sight Eye. You could also think of it as a Detection Eye."
As he spoke, Kotarou opened his left hand.
Everyone could clearly see that the eyeball in his eye socket had disappeared, and they all sucked in a sharp breath.
"The True Sight Eye shares everything it sees directly with my left eye.
And even if the eye is discovered and destroyed by the enemy, it doesn't really hurt me.
It just means I won't be able to use it again for a while."
Kotarou smiled slightly.
"The range?"
Tsunade pinched her chin and asked, deep in thought.
Kotarou glanced back at Tsunade's serious expression and answered just as seriously.
"A radius of ten kilometers."
Tsunade's mouth fell open.
Even Ryuichi's eyes went wide.
Ten kilometers.
It didn't sound like much, but for ninja, if you can detect enemy movements in a ten-kilometer radius and feed back information in real time, it was basically equivalent to putting your unit in an unassailable position.
Senju Ryuichi drew in a lungful of cold air, then fixed Kotarou with a deep look before bowing at the waist.
"My apologies, Kotarou-dono. I was ignorant. Please forgive me."
One had to admit, the Senju were prideful too.
But once they realized they were in the wrong, they would directly apologize.
They knew their mistakes and corrected them.
The Uchiha clan, on the other hand?
They would probably just remove the person who had displeased them.
Kotarou hurriedly talked to Ryuichi.
"Ryuichi-nii was only thinking about the safety of this unit.
Besides, you can't blame someone for what they don't know.
Once we're on the battlefield, I'll probably be the one depending on Ryuichi-nii to protect me."
Kotarou showed none of the usual Uchiha arrogance.
In fact, his personality resembled the Senju far more.
After this episode, almost everyone in Tsunade's Senju unit had developed a favorable impression of this "little brat from the Uchiha clan."
"Tsunade-sama, could we have someone carry me later?
When I'm observing, it's hard for my body to move properly."
Kotarou scratched his head, smiling a little awkwardly.
Ryuichi burst into hearty laughter.
"Tsunade-sama, leave that to me. Kotarou is watching out for the safety of the entire unit, after all."
With that, he squatted down and hoisted Kotarou onto his back, striding steadily forward.
Seeing this scene, Tsunade's lips curled upward.
As expected, Kotarou-kun was capable.
"All right, Ryuichi, I'll leave it to you. Kotarou-kun, report immediately if you find anything."
Tsunade smiled.
"No problem!"
"Got it!"
The two voices overlapped, one from Kotarou and one from Ryuichi.
Soon after, they crossed the border and entered the battlefield.
The Land of Rain… how should one describe it?
It rained constantly, day in and day out.
The further they went, the heavier the rain.
It was nothing like the Land of Fire, with its gentle sunshine and pleasant scenery.
After about an hour of marching, Kotarou suddenly spoke.
"Stop."
All of the ninja froze where they stood at once, pulling out kunai and shuriken and shifting into combat stances.
They stared ahead with firm expressions.
Tsunade did the same.
She didn't turn around, just looked toward Kotarou.
"Kotarou, what is it?"
Kotarou's voice was cool.
"Ten kilometers ahead, there are two hundred elite Rain ninja, twenty jōnin, fifty chūnin, and over a hundred genin, heading straight toward us."
Ryuichi snorted.
"Just a small unit. What's there to be afraid of?"
Tsunade also nodded slightly.
But then Kotarou spoke again.
"Tsunade-sama, I recommend we shift left and avoid them for now.
They're carrying gas canisters in their hands.
I suspect it's Hanzo's original salamander venom, and they're all wearing gas masks on their heads."
Tsunade's expression finally changed.
"Everyone, move left and pull back quickly. Keep your movements light and erase any traces as you go."
In just ten minutes, Tsunade's group had already moved up a slope to the left, turning back to look at the area where they had been standing earlier.
The Rain ninja reached the position Tsunade had occupied a short while ago and looked around in confusion.
Weren't they told there was a unit here?
How could there not be a single person?
When Tsunade saw the gas canisters in their hands, she couldn't help breathing a quiet sigh of relief.
She herself didn't fear poison, but her subordinates might not fare as well.
"Kotarou, why didn't we go to the right? Wouldn't the view be clearer there?
Now we've gone up the mountain. How are we supposed to get back down?"
Tsunade frowned slightly.
Kotarou grinned.
"Because to the right… there's a fat yellow sparrow waiting."
The words had barely left his mouth when, from their vantage point on the slope, they saw another group of ninja suddenly appear at the spot where they had been standing earlier.
"Doton Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu (Earth Style - Headhunter Jutsu)!"
"Doton Yomi Numa (Earth Style - Swamp of the Underworld)!"
"Doton Doryō Dango (Earth Style - Mausoleum Earth Dumpling)!"
In an instant, a crowd of Iwa-nin appeared, launching a surprise attack on the Rain ninja.
A barrage of Earth Style techniques crashed forth, cutting down the Rain ninja like a scythe through wheat, wiping out nearly half their force in a heartbeat.
One had to admit, that old man Onoki really knew how to train soldiers.
The moment the Earth Style techniques went off, the Rain-nin were butchered.
The commander of the Rain jōnin bit down hard before barking an order.
"Smash the canisters!"
Purple gas erupted, instantly engulfing the battlefield.
In just a short while, the Iwa-nin unit had all collapsed.
They had never expected the Rain ninja to have this move in reserve.
Some of the stronger jōnin hadn't gone down yet, but their limbs were already growing weak.
At that moment, the surviving Rain ninja launched their counterattack.
Their eyes burned red.
They hacked down the shinobi from a great nation with crazed swings of their blades, their eyes full of hatred.
The great nations had always picked their small countries as the battlegrounds.
Their families and friends had died one after another before their eyes, all because of these great nations.
Watching this scene, the Senju unit felt a burst of relief.
If they had dug in their heels and fought earlier, they didn't believe they would have done any better than the Iwa-nin.
Soon, the gas dissipated.
The hundred-strong Iwa-nin unit had been completely wiped out.
As for the Rain ninja, around twenty were still standing.
They were gulping down air, hands that gripped their blades trembling.
That tremble was the sign of bodies pushed to the point of utter exhaustion.
(End of Chapter)
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