Lord Haseo, are you heading to the front line? Has anything changed in the war?
"Yeah, I'm going to the Land of Rain, Kushina. As far as I can tell, nothing much has changed in the war. But I've already stayed in the village long enough. Now it's time for me to go check the frontline personally. Otherwise, people will start accusing me of slacking off on my duties—and who knows, maybe even dock my pay.
Besides... because of the quiet period recently, now many people probably already forgot my name."
Well, this was just offhand. In truth, Haseo never cared much whether others remembered his name or not. Actually, he had never been interested in seeking fame across the ninja world. His reputation came naturally as a side effect of his actions, not because he ever sought public acclaim.
Kushina seemed somewhat reluctant—she'd grown accustomed to Haseo staying in Konoha these days.
Seeing her expression, Haseo reached out and gently patted her head as he said, "Be careful inside the village, my dear daughter. Especially watch out for people with yellow hair."
You need to watch out for those early crushes.
"Who do you mean? Are you talking about Minato, Lord Haseo?"
"...!"
Haseo's hand froze mid-pat. Well, trying to prevent things now might already be too late. Suddenly, Haseo could understand Third Hokage's feelings from certain moments.
Ahem—it was just a brief detour from the main story. Anyway, moving forward, Haseo would be assigned by Third Hokage to the battlefield in the Land of Rain on the Western Front. However, there was something unique about his deployment—he wouldn't be integrated into Konoha's overall frontline system. In other words, he wouldn't need to take orders from Danzo Shimura and would have freedom to act independently on the battlefield.
This special privilege was arranged deliberately to avoid conflicts between Haseo and Danzo. In theory, so long as Haseo operated alone, if he could display his combat capability effectively on the battlefield, it would already be sufficient.
His personal deterrence alone could cause shifts in the tide of battle.
Yet there was one point that Third Hokage emphasized particularly—that although Haseo enjoyed autonomy, he absolutely couldn't deliberately interfere with Danzo Shimura's strategic deployments and battle arrangements.
If Danzo was commanding his own unit properly, Haseo should pursue his solo operations without hindering the former's plans—that would be completely unacceptable under those circumstances.
Regarding this, Haseo agreed immediately without hesitation. Unless Danzo himself foolishly tried to issue him commands directly, why on earth would he go out of his way to mess up Hanzo's military plans... He certainly understood his own limits well enough.
After coming to Kagenami Base to handle some affairs, and making follow-up arrangements for his upcoming absence, Haseo would travel toward the battlefield in the Land of Rain together with Tsunade and Orochimaru tomorrow afternoon.
For Haseo, this would be both a familiar battlefield and a long-overdue return to the Land of Rain.
As for the arrangement on the Kagenami side... Well, let's not exaggerate—Haseo hadn't really made any significant preparations. Basically, he'd just told Uzumaki Shikou that he was going to the battlefield soon.
As for the rest of the matters, Shikou would be able to handle them herself.
Haseo then returned home. He still needed to prepare a bit before heading to the battlefield.
However… he didn't really need to prepare much at all. When he got back, he found everything already fully prepared in advance—both medicine and various ninja tools were neatly organized into two separate ninja tool pouches, and even his pair of swords had been carefully maintained.
Additionally, a backpack contained folded clothes and other personal items.
All of this was far more meticulous and thorough than anything Haseo would have prepared himself. Looking at it all, Haseo couldn't help but feel amazed inside. He wondered when he had grown so used to this kind of treatment. Was this what people meant by "graduating from the single life"?
Two people really were different from being alone. Take Sakumo Hatake as an example—whenever he left Konoha, Tsumiki Nono always packed some nutrient-dense trail rations for him.
So how could anyone really blame Haseo for enjoying the comfort a little? When someone willingly shows you their gentle side, can you honestly resist?
...
The next afternoon, the three shinobi preparing to return to the Front Line gathered together. None of them carried much luggage; each had just a single standard backpack.
Except for Tsunade, who naturally felt some concern over her younger brother, the other two remained completely composed. Without any unnecessary greetings or delays, once reunited, the three immediately left Konoha, heading west toward the Land of Rain.
Maintaining a steady pace but without rushing, they had plenty of time—their plan was to depart in the afternoon and arrive at the Front Line by early morning the next day.
"Orochimaru, your seal is holding up fine, right? You're sure you can keep control over the Nine-Tails? That thing is quite cunning; don't let it run wild unexpectedly."
While walking, Haseo spoke beside Orochimaru. He had been silently monitoring Orochimaru's condition, which currently appeared stable, yet reminders like this were still necessary.
If the Nine-Tails suddenly goes berserk, things are gonna get ugly.
"I can certainly guarantee no problems will occur. Thank you for your concern."
Orochimaru was confident the Nine-Tails was fully sealed—he saw no chance of problems arising.
"No, you misunderstood me. I wasn't expressing concern for you. What I meant was, if the Nine-Tails does go wild, well—you know exactly what I mean. I happen to be especially good at dealing with Tailed Beasts."
As he spoke, Haseo gave Orochimaru an unusually soft smile.
Normally, only Tsunade received such expressions from him.
Yet, Orochimaru now only felt shivers running down his spine, nearly gasping for breath—he realized that Haseo hadn't been showing concern at all. He had just delivered a hidden warning.
If Orochimaru failed to handle the Nine-Tails properly, then it would be Haseo's turn to take over—and at that point… whether from ground level or off to the side?
Either way, it'd definitely be quite a spectacular view.
Seems like Haseo was getting better at expressing himself—even if he was still terrible at keeping casual conversation going.
As night fell, the trio stopped to rest. After replenishing their energy and water supplies and taking a short nap, they got back on their feet and continued their journey.
Thanks to this routine, they arrived right on time at Konoha's front-line camp in the Land of Rain when dawn broke.
However, they didn't go directly to meet Shimura Danzo, who was stationed here as commander-in-chief. Because upon arrival, they learned that Konoha had just launched an attack, and the attacking squad had already set off before their arrival.
Without hesitation, the three immediately began chasing after that unit.
When they finally caught up and reached the battlefield, they found the battle had mostly concluded.
There was absolutely no need for their involvement. In the end, Konoha's side achieved a major victory.
This was because during this battle, Konoha's side deployed a "mysterious force" for the very first time.
Some things, some plans—Haseo had long since forgotten about them, yet within Konoha, they were still moving forward step by step.
Now then, how should I put it…?
Maybe something like—
The Master of Kagenami makes his debut in the Land of Rain,
While the Samehada Large Squad wreaks havoc upon Sunagakure.
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(End of Chapter)
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