Chapter 220: Chapter 220 If you die, even Jiraiya can't blame me
Chapter 220 If you die, even Jiraiya can't blame me
In a ruined place closest to the village where Yoru and others are.
A Konoha team of about fifteen ninjas, led by a leading ninja, searched forward.
Under the dim sunlight in the distance, the leading Konoha Jonin with a fat face had a very sour expression on his face. Judging from the clan emblem on his shoulder, he was obviously a member of the Shimura clan.
"Damn you white-haired brat, let me take the lead." Shimura Jonin cursed in a low voice with resentment.
This force was commanded and led by Jiraiya, and was used to intercept the remnants of Amegakure and guard against the City Of Dawn in the north.
Therefore, this action naturally cannot be carried out in a high-profile manner, nor can it be carried out in a grand manner into the Land of Rain.
Originally, they wanted to take advantage of the rainy and foggy weather in the Land of Rain to get to the center of the Land of Rain silently, so that they wouldn't have to take any risks.
But who could have thought that after a heavy rain, the weather would become sunny and bright.
There was no other way. Thousands of people couldn't just wait there. In order to prevent their whereabouts from being discovered, Jiraiya had to disband the troops.
They were divided into several teams, each of which was divided into several small teams. They broke away from the main force advancing at a constant speed and started to explore forward from the left and right wings.
He led the largest main force in the center, and the overall advance was in a "V" shape.
The location where the detachment is advancing is generally no more than a few kilometers away from the area where the main force is located.
This can not only ensure that you will not be discovered, but also provide timely support when the enemy is discovered, and cover a sufficient area.
It's like a big octopus, with several tentacles extending out, and then the main tentacles branch out.
If any node is attacked and encounters an enemy, the other tentacles can quickly gather, hold the prey in their arms, and eat it by the main force in the middle.
It was under such an arrangement that this Shimura Jonin became a member of the team on the far right and at the front.
He was sent out to lead the charge before daybreak. It would be strange if he was in a good mood.
Moreover, as a veteran jonin who has been a jonin for more than ten years and has participated in dozens of battles, he is actually very clear about his current situation.
That is, dangerous, very dangerous.
Jiraiya's main force was indeed not far away from them, and the other nearest team could provide support at any time.
However, this would also be risky. For example, if a squad or even a team were really ambushed by a large number of enemies, by the time they send out a signal and another squad receives the signal and rushes over, their bodies would probably be cold.
However, from the perspective of the overall situation of the operation, Jiraiya believed that this possible loss was definitely acceptable compared to the consequences of being discovered by the enemy and resulting in the failure of the interception operation.
So, to put it nicely, their team is equivalent to a "reconnaissance team", to put it bluntly, they are used to "clear mines", that is, cannon fodder!
Rather than saying they are a reconnaissance team, it is better to say that they are bait thrown out. As long as the enemy dares to bite the hook, the other "tentacles" will roll over and trap the enemy and swallow him.
This is the tragedy of being a bait, the fish is caught, but the bait is basically finished.
"Tsk, that brat is clearly seeking revenge for me questioning him in the previous meeting."
Shimura's eyes flickered slightly, and he thought to himself, "If my brother wasn't such a loser, I wouldn't have given you the chance to step on me..."
He is a veteran. Four years ago, when the Second Ninja World War had just started and Hanzo had not yet turned the table, he often confronted the people of Sunagakure on the border of the Land of Rain. He was also full of passion at the time.
Being frequently drenched in icy rain and soaked in mud while fighting against the Sunagakure Village was certainly hard, but what really drained away his courage and passion was watching the bodies of his colleagues being stuffed into body bags and transported to the rear.
That group also included several of his good friends from the Shimura clan, who would never live to see the spring flowers bloom in their clan.
He was so frightened at the time that in order to leave the front line, he even sent a letter back to his clan, begging his clan brother Shimura Danzo to let him return to the rear, but the reply he got was only indifference, without any sense of fellow clan member.
No wonder that guy dreams of becoming Hokage but never succeeds. Look at what happened to Sarutobi Hiruzen after he became Hokage.
The Sarutobi clan went from being a second- or third-rate ninja clan before the village was built to becoming the backbone of Konoha, and the number of jonin they have ranks among the top three in all of Konoha.
Look at his useless clan brother. After becoming the Hokage's assistant and the leader of the Root, he not only did not fight for the interests of the clan, but also looked at them with a cold eye. He is definitely an ungrateful ungrateful person.
Later, he finally waited for Hanzo to declare war and for the stubborn Sunagakure to retreat. Finally, he no longer had to soak in the cold rain, watch his colleagues lying on the bed wailing with serious injuries, and watch them turn smelly like salted fish.
However, not long after returning to Konoha, he was transferred to become Jiraiya's subordinate because of his experience fighting in the Land of Rain, and returned to this battlefield that was like hell...
Thinking of this, Shimura Jonin's face became even gloomier, and he cursed: "Aren't they just the defeated soldiers of Amegakure? Aren't they just a bunch of mud legs? They are not the elite ninjas of Sunagakure. Can they still turn the tables? Is it necessary to be so nervous?"
Thinking that he was sleeping soundly in a warm bed not long ago, but now being dragged back to the battlefield in the rain to feel the fear of death, he wanted to just use a wind release to crush the white-haired kid to pieces!
"Uncle...Captain Shimura."
A younger member of the same clan came over and whispered earnestly, "Do you want to rest here for a while? We are all a little hungry after walking so far."
Hearing this, the already depressed and angry Shimura Jonin finally found a way to vent his anger, and scolded him coldly: "Idiot! This is a battlefield, not your backyard. If you want to die, find a deserted place and commit suicide!"
He did resent Jiraiya and Shimura Danzo, but since he had lived so long he was no fool, and he knew very well the consequences of being lax on the battlefield.
He didn't want to be eaten as bait, nor did he want to be a bloated and stinking corpse in the ruins, nor did he want to be eaten by wild dogs that feed on carrion. He just wanted to go home alive!
Merit? Merit is nothing compared to life!
Previously, under Orochimaru, dozens of his men had been rewarded for their bravery and fearlessness, but it was not certain whether the small wooden boxes belonging to them contained their own remains!
Just as the Shimura jonin was scolding his fellow clansman, the three-member team in the front responsible for sensing suddenly stopped and gestured to the Shimura jonin behind them, indicating that they had discovered the "enemy situation".
"Hiss! Stop!"
The Shimura Jonin who was already on high alert, couldn't help but feel his heart skip a beat when he saw this. He suddenly raised his hand to signal the team to stop moving forward.
In an instant, the other Konoha ninjas stopped in tacit understanding, spread out and found suitable positions to hide and be on guard.
Just as the three-man team was about to throw an explosive tag over, a noise suddenly came from that place.
They saw a dirty black dog jumping out from the ruins of the farmhouse, turning its head to look over here with a ferocious yellow light in its eyes.
"Kuro! Run!"
At the command from the tender and trembling voice, the black dog jumped out without hesitation.
Swish! !
The Shimura Chunin swung out his arms without hesitation, and two kunai cut through the air, making a sharp whistle and shot towards the black dog.
Even though he was a hundred meters away and in a dim environment, he still shot the black dog accurately, but only hit its thigh.
"Ouch!"
Only a miserable howl was heard, but the black shadow did not stop at all. It struggled to get up and continued to escape.
At this moment, it was too late for Makoto to run away.
The three Konoha ninjas blocked Makoto from three directions in just a flash.
No matter how precocious Makoto was, he was just a seven-year-old civilian child.
Surrounded by three armed Konoha ninjas, the fear that came from his bones made his legs almost stiff. He took a few steps back and stumbled to the ground.
"Phew! Fortunately, fortunately, I thought it was someone, but it turned out to be just a little kid and a black dog."
Seeing the two figures that suddenly appeared, Shimura Jonin couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and stopped the ninjas who were drawing their weapons and said, "Don't kill that brat, capture him alive."
He certainly didn't feel sorry for the kid who was obviously a civilian from the Land of Rain. He just wanted to take this opportunity to ask the kid about the location of the nearest settlement.
In any case, a civilian kid would not pose any threat to them. A few candies could make him tell the truth. After they found the nearest settlement, they could rest there for a while.
"Captain Shimura." The Shimura clan Chunin licked his lips and whispered, "I'm almost vomiting from eating so much military ration pills these days. Can you take a look at that dog?"
Hearing this, Shimura Jonin licked his lips subconsciously.
They have been on the battlefield for nearly a month. Although they can occasionally chew some dried meat, they spend most of their time eating military ration pills.
Military ration pill is the food that ninjas eat when they go out to fight. It is made by grinding carrots, buckwheat flour, wheat flour, sweet potatoes, licorice, coix seed, glutinous rice flour, etc. into powder.
Similar to compressed dry food, although it can instantly restore chakra and can also fill the stomach, the taste is really unpleasant and difficult to swallow, and eating too much will cause indigestion.
That's not all, what's even more unbearable is the weather.
Damn the Land of Rain, the sun could be seen in the sky but it kept drizzling and the ground was muddy. He was hardly ever dry and felt like a moldy salted fish, smelly and rotten.
However, he is a ninja after all, and if he doesn't mention this, they can still endure it. But they are also human beings, and humans get tired and hungry. When reminded by their subordinates, the desires that have been dormant for several days surge up wildly.
The most primitive instinct of living things is not to reproduce, but to consume food to obtain energy for survival.
If a bonfire was lit and some delicious dog meat was roasted on it, Shimura Jonin would feel his saliva secreting faster when he thought of the fragrant dog meat shining on the fire.
"We are ninjas. Have you forgotten the three ninja prohibitions? Material things will paralyze a ninja's mind. Don't let me hear such complaints again!"
Shimura Jonin frowned, criticized him righteously, and then said seriously: "The dog may run back home. You take a three-person team to investigate there... Remember to bring it back."
"Yes!"
Realizing that he had agreed to his suggestion, Shimura Chuunin happily agreed.
Seeing him leading three ninjas to chase in the direction of the injured black dog, Shimura Jonin breathed a sigh of relief, looked at the others and ordered: "The rest of you, rest where you are, conserve your energy, and be on guard."
After saying that, he looked around him, his eyes stopped at a ruin that was more than five meters high. It looked like it should have been the residence of a well-off family, or even the residence of a businessman.
But now, it no longer exists, as if it has been turned into scorched earth by the Fire Release Ninjutsu. Most of the village has been destroyed.
In the devastated and broken house, there was only one house connected to the other half. The main beam fell to the ground, stubbornly supporting the wall that should have been destroyed.
However, this sturdy courtyard wall can be used as a cover, and even if an enemy suddenly appears, it can block most of the attacks.
After making sure that there was no one there and no danger, Shimura Jonin kicked open the tattered wooden door, sat down and leaned against the relatively dry wall.
Bang!
A ninja dragged Makoto and threw him in front of him, but Makoto lowered his head as if he was scared.
"Hey, be gentle, he's just a kid, not an enemy."
Shimura Jōnin pretended to be dissatisfied and criticized his subordinates. Then he looked at the embarrassed Makoto and tried his best to make his tone gentle and asked with a smile: "Kid, are you lost?"
Seeing that the kid was so scared that he stopped running away, the other ninjas realized that their captain was trying to trick him, so they stopped paying attention to this side and found their own alert positions to rest.
However, in response to Shimura Jonin's questioning, Makoto kept his mouth shut and said nothing.
"If you don't go home for too long, your parents will be worried." Shimura Jonin continued with a smile, "Tell me where your home is, and I'll send someone to take you home."
"..." Makoto still pursed his lips, lowered his head and whispered, "I don't have parents..."
Hearing this, Shimura Jonin was slightly stunned, but soon reacted and sighed: "you parents are dead, what a poor child."
As he said that, he stretched out his hand and wanted to touch Makoto's little head, but the moment he raised his hand, Makoto timidly took a few steps back and dodged.
Shimura Jonin didn't care and put away his hand that was hanging in the air.
"Although I hate that white-haired brat, I am a person who knows the rules."
With a smile on his face, he stood up on his knees and said, "Since he said not to kill innocent civilians at will, even if you don't want to say it, I won't kill you..."
Hearing this, Makoto's tense body subconsciously relaxed, but the next words made his body tremble again.
"As ninjas, we have many means at our disposal, and we can even make the dead speak."
There was no smile in Shimura's eyes. He looked down at Makoto and said, "I hope that as a civilian kid, you can survive this process."
"If you die, even Jiraiya can't blame me."
(End of this chapter)