Naruto: Hyuga Warlord

According to the Jonin Unit's coordinated deployment, on December 5th, Year 38 of Konoha, Hyuga Soushu led his Ninja Force squad as the first reinforcement unit heading westward.

Before departure, Hatake Sakumo personally came to see him off. In front of many Konoha ninjas at the village gate, he handed Soushu a summoning scroll for the Ninja Hawks and instructed that he could contact him directly if needed.

Such treatment had clearly never been given before.

Soushu naturally accepted this gesture—one laced with clear favor—with calm composure, then marched westward with his unit.

At this time of year, it was already midwinter, with heavy snowfall making troop movement difficult even for ninjas.

More specifically, the newly graduated Genin within his Five-Finger Chunin Squad were especially troublesome.

Their skills weren't just weak—they also knew practically nothing about surviving in snowy terrain.

As a result, by the second day after leaving the village, three Genin had successively come down with severe colds after loosening their jackets mid-march due to overheating, further slowing the unit's pace.

In addition, these young Genin—fresh from the academy and full of dreams of battlefield glory—caused all sorts of ridiculous mishaps: falling into icy pits after misstepping on snow-covered ground, deliberately stomping across frozen river surfaces only to plunge through when the ice cracked, or shouting loudly while crossing valleys, triggering avalanches.

If not for Soushu holding her back, Mahiru Uchiha—who held a deep disdain for recklessness—might have drawn her blade and cut down those undisciplined rookies right then and there.

Thankfully, they eventually arrived safely at the Western Border Base within the prescribed time, though the cost was high—all Genin except Might Duy and Maruboshi Kosuke ended up either completely exhausted or injured.

"Captain Soushu, you've certainly had a tough journey," said Shirakawa Namiko—the commander of the Western Border Force—as she hosted a feast to honor their arrival and shake off the journey's fatigue, finally allowing herself a sigh of relief. "With the Byakugan [the all-seeing eye of the Hyuga clan] here, I can finally sleep soundly!"

Although Soushu's squad had suffered many casualties, the medical teams stationed at the border base could quickly restore the injured using powerful medicines.

More importantly, during their entire march, Soushu's unit hadn't encountered any abnormal situations, indicating that the defenses were temporarily stable—at least, Suna had yet to penetrate deep into the Land of Fire.

"Is the border situation really that serious?" Soushu asked as he sipped warm soup. "According to the intelligence Captain Sakumo provided before we left, Sunagakure shouldn't be launching an offensive so soon, should they?"

"Recently, things have changed somewhat," replied Shirakawa Namiko, the Jonin, looking slightly embarrassed. "Some unusual phenomena appeared two days ago."

"All personnel at several watchposts deployed outside the camp vanished overnight," interjected Yechame Hamako, captain of the First Squad in the Western Border Force. "And there wasn't a single trace of battle left behind at the scene!"

"Oh?" Soushu raised an eyebrow, curiosity sparking. "Wait… doesn't the Western Line have scouts?"

"You must understand, the Konoha outposts always have reconnaissance and medical ninjas on standby. These specialized ninjas, although somewhat limited in other areas, ensure Konoha Ninja Forces maintain an intelligence advantage and continuous combat capability.

The main base has a limited number of reconnaissance ninjas, barely enough for camp surveillance, and some were even reassigned by Jonin Kudachi Mitate to reinforce the frontlines in the Land of Rain."

Shirakawa Namiko said helplessly, "Therefore, I hope Hyuga Soushu can locate those infiltrating Sunagakure ninjas; otherwise, the morale might..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but Hyuga Soushu understood what he meant.

Theoretically speaking, a reinforcement unit shouldn't be thrown into battle so quickly after a long journey, especially with so many casualties already among its ranks. However, Shirakawa Namiko had no choice but to make the request as soon as they arrived.

"Exactly where are the watchposts that encountered trouble?"

Hyuga Soushu exchanged glances with Mahiru Uchiha before asking.

"I've got the map right here!"

Yechame Hamako immediately pulled out a map and spread it out—it was clear she had come prepared.

Upon seeing it, Hyuga Soushu immediately grasped why Shirakawa Namiko was so anxious that he couldn't sleep.

Centered around the location of the Western Border Base on the map, the original watchposts in both the northern and southern directions were marked with heavy losses. Nearly all the defensive watchposts slightly farther away from the two flanks of the border base had been wiped out—meaning the main encampment had effectively lost monitoring capabilities on both wings. If infiltrating Sunagakure forces attacked from these flanking positions, they could launch a direct assault on the main base.

With just one glance, Hyuga Soushu calculated that seventeen watchposts had already fallen. Assuming each had a three-ninja team configuration, it meant fifty-one ninjas' lives were now unaccounted for—they were either dead or missing.

"How many ninjas are currently stationed at the main camp?"

Mahiru Uchiha asked.

"There are well over 800 people in total, though more than three hundred are deployed within the Land of Rivers."

Yechame Hamako replied.

Although Mahiru officially held the rank of Chunin, since she was personally accompanied by Hyuga Soushu, clearly her status was different. Yechame Hamako thus disregarded any difference in their ranks.

"Could this be a prelude to a large-scale Suna attack?"

Hyuga Soushu asked frowning.

"No, because we recently launched a raid and destroyed Suna's logistical supply base. Based on their current strength, they wouldn't recover so quickly."

Shirakawa Namiko explained, "Based on current evidence, my best guess is that one or multiple puppeteer teams from Suna have infiltrated our defenses. Otherwise, our forward units stationed inside the Land of Rivers wouldn't have noticed anything."

"However, my unit will need quite a while to regroup and rest, so I hope Commander Namiko can assign additional combat squads to assist with this counter-infiltration operation."

Hyuga Soushu affectionately patted Mahiru-chan on the head and said, "Furthermore, given the unusual nature of this mission and the near-complete lack of enemy intelligence, how exactly do you plan to set a completion standard, Commander Namiko?"

"Just find them—no matter what it takes!"

"Shirakawa Namiko wasn't trying to force anyone either: 'Also, Yechame Jonin will have five Jonin squads on standby!'"

He originally thought he'd need to argue and persuade Hyuga Soushu to take this difficult task, but to his surprise, it went through so smoothly that there was no need for any harsh conditions.

"In that case,"

Hyuga Soushu nodded, then ordered: "Toshimichi, Koujun! You two stay here at the camp with the Chunin forces. All actions must follow my signal or Captain Yechame's orders!"

"Yes sir!"

The two Tokubetsu Jonin who'd been listening carefully responded immediately.

"Also, would you mind handling some basic adaptation training for Captain Kosuke's Genin unit?"

Hyuga Soushu asked.

There had been too many problems exposed during the march. If those freshly graduated Genin were thrown directly into a combat zone, they probably wouldn't survive three hours.

"No problem!"

Kosuke Maruboshi accepted without hesitation.

"Do you have any ideas, Soushu-san?" Shirakawa quickly asked.

"Nothing complicated — just sit tight and let them come to us."

Hyuga Soushu pointed toward the farthest remaining watchpost on the left (north) side of the main camp: "Just replace the current guards at that watchpost with the most cowardly Ninja from our unit."

Judging from the map, that isolated watchpost stood about fifty kilometers from the main camp. Even though his Byakugan could only reach five or six kilometers when fully focused—nothing special by Hyuga Clan standards—it still easily outperformed nearly all sensor ninjas relying on detection jutsus for reconnaissance.

Plus, five or six kilometers made perfect ambush range.

"Why those kinds of people?"

Shirakawa felt puzzled.

"Cowards will raise the alarm at even slight suspicious activity. Even if it's a false alarm, it's better than having brash heroes charge out recklessly and get themselves killed!"

Hyuga Soushu shared his frontline experience from the Land of Rain: "Besides, I can't keep my Byakugan active all the time watching that watchpost. Who knows whether they'll take the bait or not! My chakra reserves won't last that long."

"Very reasonable."

Shirakawa Namiko and Yechame Hamako exchanged glances before simultaneously nodding in agreement.

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