Sakura Haruno is Usefull

The Land of Frost lies northeast of the Land of Fire, blanketed year-round by snow and wind. Most of its territory is barren and uninhabited. The nation lacks its own military force, but due to its proximity to the sea and its strategic position as the gateway between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Fire, its significance in both military and economic terms far outweighs its harsh geography.

At this moment, Sakura and her companions had been traveling for three days since leaving Konoha and had successfully reached Jiraiya's front-line command post.

Sakura, wrapped in a heavy brown cloak, stepped on the thick snow, producing crisp crunching sounds. The snow nearly reached her calves, and as the pink-haired girl looked down at it, she couldn't help but ponder.

That the Land of Lightning would strike at Konoha was no surprise to her.

The Land of Lightning is dominated by cliffs and rugged terrain, with limited arable land. Like the Lands of Wind and Earth, it relies heavily on imported food to sustain itself.

Due to Sakura's strategic maneuvering and the Hidden Cloud Village's nearly reckless militaristic policies, their situation had become even more dire than that of the Hidden Sand and Hidden Stone Villages.

The vast number of soldiers consumed an alarming amount of food daily. When their supplies fell short, they would resort to plundering.

This behavior perfectly mirrored the Hidden Cloud's policies—brash yet calculated.

Although their ninja often appeared to be burly brutes, underestimating them as simple-minded muscleheads would be a grave mistake.

They were cunning enough to outmaneuver their enemies, and for years, the Hidden Cloud had been Konoha's greatest adversary.

Ten years ago, they exploited peace treaty negotiations to abduct Hinata. Not only did they anticipate that Konoha wouldn't pursue the matter aggressively, but they also had the audacity to shift the blame.

This happened when the war was already winding down. Beyond acquiring the Byakugan, it was clear the Hidden Cloud was unwilling to let the war end so easily.

Going further back, during the interim between the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars, the Hidden Cloud even attempted to kidnap the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki.

Their plan was nearly successful, thwarted only by Minato Namikaze at the last moment, allowing Naruto to be born.

Otherwise, Naruto's skin tone might have turned out rather... dark.

Now, Sakura had used resources to tighten her grip on the Land of Lightning's lifeline. This left them with no choice but to act.

For them, war was the best option.

Years ago, the Third Raikage had single-handedly faced ten thousand ninjas and dismantled the Hidden Stone's ambush, but it came at a cost. Now, the Hidden Cloud had an overabundance of ninjas they couldn't afford to sustain.

They had to seek opportunities elsewhere.

Reflecting on this, Sakura couldn't help but entertain a dark thought:

Perhaps they're sending their ninjas to die here just to ease their domestic pressure.

Looking at the tall pine trees around her, Sakura kicked one, causing the snow on its branches to fall, covering her in a flurry of white.

"Who knew Sakura could be so childlike?"

Kakashi leaned lazily against a tree, arms crossed, watching her antics with a hint of amusement.

Sakura, catching his teasing expression, walked over and kicked the tree he was leaning against.

The snow cascaded down, covering Kakashi as well.

He gave her a deadpan look, his usual dull-eyed expression revealing mild exasperation as Sakura delighted in her mischief.

In her past life as a Southerner, she'd never had the chance to see such heavy snow.

Sakura brushed the snow off herself, scooped up a handful from the ground, and shaped it into a snowball. She then flung it at Kakashi.

Kakashi deftly sidestepped, letting the snowball hit a dark-haired boy who was approaching them squarely in the face.

Sasuke, now covered in snow, looked irritated. But as his eyes met Sakura's laughing expression, the fire of annoyance in him quickly subsided.

He calmly brushed the snow off his face and said, "Jiraiya is looking for you."

In the command tent at the Fire-Frost front lines, Jiraiya sat wrapped in a thick cloak, tending to the fire and watching sweet potatoes roast in the embers.

Aside from Jiraiya, a few others were present, primarily division leaders.

The flap of the tent suddenly lifted, letting in a gust of frigid air that awakened the drowsy occupants.

"Ah, sorry for being late," Kakashi said cheerfully, his lone visible eye crinkling into a crescent. His tone, however, lacked any true apology.

"It's fine. There's no rush," Jiraiya replied, waving dismissively. He poked the roasting sweet potatoes with a stick and added, "You're just in time. They'll be ready soon."

The others offered no objections to Jiraiya's laid-back demeanor.

Sakura peeked out from behind Kakashi, scanning the room.

Other than Jiraiya, everyone else was unfamiliar, likely long-time border guards.

However, she was surprised to spot Baiyun Zaojian among them.

Wasn't he stationed along the border with the Land of Grass?

"And who's this?" one of the leaders asked, noticing Sakura's youthful appearance and finding it curious that she was included in a military meeting.

"Oh, this is my junior, Haruno Sakura. Don't be fooled by her age—she's sharper than me," Jiraiya explained nonchalantly.

Before taking command here, Hiruzen Sarutobi had thoroughly briefed him on the causes and scope of this war involving four major nations.

Although he wasn't entirely pleased with Sakura's actions, the situation was already set in motion, leaving him no choice but to go along.

"The Hokage's apprentice, huh?"

Hearing her credentials, the leaders' attitudes toward Sakura softened.

She responded modestly before quietly taking a seat beside Kakashi.

"Ahem. Since everyone's here, let's get started," Jiraiya said. "What are your thoughts on the situation?"

For the past few days, the Hidden Cloud had launched a few minor skirmishes, all of which Konoha swiftly dealt with. Beyond that, the Hidden Cloud was uncharacteristically quiet.

War is the great affair of the state.

The leaders exchanged glances, each waiting for the other to speak first.

Jiraiya's lazy gaze shifted to Kakashi.

"You, Kakashi. Share your thoughts."

Caught off guard, Kakashi hesitated before slowly responding:

"Uh, I think... we should wait and see.

"Let them act first. After all, they're the ones initiating this war, so they're bound to be more impatient than we are..."

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