Naruto: Reshaping the Shinobi World with Sasori

Chapter 133 Is this how Sunagakure operates? (Fourth update)

Somewhere in the Land of Fire.

Boom boom boom!

The sounds of roaring and explosions rose and fell.

Between the flat wilderness and the complex mountainous terrain, ninja figures could be seen constantly flashing and pursuing.

From the air, flames and thick smoke rose from various places on the ground, along with various ninja techniques being unleashed, destroying the environment.

This was the second day since Minato and Shikaku returned to the main force.

Led by Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Konoha army finally stepped into the ambush zone that Sunagakure had prepared in advance.

Despite being on guard, the reconnaissance team at the forefront accidentally triggered some traps and was attacked by the Sand Village lurking in the shadows.

Immediately afterwards, the Konoha army followed, and the two sides quickly began to fight.

The traps and mechanisms of Sunagakure—though well-hidden—could still be detected and destroyed by experienced Konoha ninjas. However, the army was too large and eager to reach the border battlefield, so they didn't want to waste time on them.

Therefore, some teams were still targeted.

Fortunately, Hiruzen Sarutobi had been wary of this, and while some of Konoha's troops were injured, the number was small—so it didn't cause any major harm.

Whoosh whoosh—

On the ground, a large number of Konoha ninja were chasing after the Sand Village that had appeared.

It was described as a battle—but the fighting strength and troop strength of the two sides were not even on the same level.

The Sand Village, which was lying in ambush, had many of its inhabitants killed in a very short time.

"Hokage-sama—"

A squad leader from Konoha approached Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"How is the situation?"

Sarutobi asked.

"The number of Sunagakure troops is small, and it seems to be a temporary force that was sent to ambush us. They are completely incapable of fighting us. Many Sunagakure troops have already been scattered and fled into the distance. Our people are chasing after them."

The squad leader reported to the leader.

"Don't stop, the core team keeps going."

As he ran, Hiruzen Sarutobi issued orders to several officers in the surrounding army.

"yes!"

The group dispersed as instructed.

The size of the Sand Village forces is not enough to warrant the Hokage's personal intervention.

After saying that, Sarutobi looked at the squad leader nearby and asked, "What about us?"

"Only the reconnaissance team encountered some problems. As for the casualties of other personnel, we'll have to wait for the medical team's statistics—it shouldn't be too many. The area covered by the Sand Village's traps isn't too large, so the damage they can cause us is within a controllable range. It's just that the density of the traps is relatively high, and it will take some time for our manpower to search for and destroy them."

At this point, the squad leader looked on with respect, "Thanks to the Hokage foresaw that the enemy would have this move—which minimized our losses."

"Um--"

Sarutobi pondered for a moment, then nodded. "After all, time is limited—Sunagakure's surprise attack on the border is a swift and efficient attack. They won't be carrying too many supplies—this is the Land of Fire, not their Land of Wind—setting up a large trap will require a lot of materials."

"Try to kill as many enemies as possible. If you can't catch them, don't linger. Just drive them away."

Sarutobi gave the order.

"Yes."

Upon hearing this, the squad leader quickly left.

This should just be a trial tactic used by Sunagakure to deal with their Konoha army. It's not their core force, and it's pointless to focus their energy on these remnants—this kind of combat design and troop size poses a very limited threat to their army.

Sarutobi thought to himself.

Time passed little by little.

The Konoha army continued its advance.

The main force of the army did not engage in battle with Sunagakure. Instead, it sent out a few Jonin, who, relying on their numerical advantage, led some lower-ranking ninjas to defeat Sunagakure's raiding force.

The effect was obvious. In less than half an hour, news came from below that Sunagakure had been defeated and had all fled.

This also indicates that Sunagakure's operation has failed!

Faced with Konoha's counterattack, the enemy simply couldn't withstand it.

"Arai?"

Of course, Konoha's gains were not only a setback for Sunagakure's operations.

They also obtained some information from Sunagakure through various means.

They learned who the commander of the Sand Village army was.

Upon hearing the name, Sarutobi couldn't recall who this person from Sunagakure was.

Only after being reminded by those around him did he realize that she was a shadow guard and assistant to the Third Kazekage.

Elite Jonin of Sunagakure.

"It's him?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi kept up with the main force as they traveled, his mind filled with doubt.

Arai was also someone who participated in the entire Second Shinobi World War.

In other words, if Sunagakure's series of tactical arrangements against Konoha were all made by this person, then during the last Shinobi World War, with Arai present, Sunagakure shouldn't have struggled so much on the battlefield.

boom!

Just then, an explosion was heard in the distance.

It was the sound of the detonating tag.

"What happened?"

Sarutobi was startled.

Then, he immediately looked to the side of the marching column.

Then they saw some black dots emerge from the horizon and approach them.

"Hokage-sama—it's Sunagakure again—"

A moment later, a captain approached from the rapidly moving formation, his face grim.

"Is it the same group of people?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned and asked.

"Um--"

"Resolve this quickly."

Sarutobi said solemnly.

"Yes."

The latter turned around and did as instructed.

They prepared to lead their men to continue cleaning up this group of Sunagakure remnants who were still determined to cause trouble.

However, soon enough, these Sand Villagers ran away again.

The enemy had no intention of fighting a death battle with Konoha.

These sand formations sometimes gather together and sometimes disperse.

It's a completely annoying guerrilla tactic.

It's important to understand that even if only two or three Sand Village ninjas were wandering around under the noses of the Konoha army at this moment, Konoha would definitely take action; they simply couldn't ignore it.

However, taking action means that Konoha's marching formation will inevitably undergo some changes.

Once or twice is fine, but being harassed this frequently is disgusting, even if it doesn't have any real impact.

"The initial large-scale traps were not intended to reduce our numbers at all; they were simply meant to mislead us into thinking that the Sand Village's ambush had failed and that we had successfully passed through the trap zone, thus lowering our guard slightly—assuming that there would be no more ambushes or traps for at least a certain distance ahead—"

"This is a psychological tactic."

Sarutobi quickly realized the true intention and tactics of Sunagakure in implementing this strategy.

The enemy has a small number of personnel and operates in a dispersed manner, which makes them far more flexible than the entire army of Konoha.

Furthermore, they must have scouted the surrounding area on their way here and familiarized themselves with the guerrilla and retreat routes.

As they continue their march, this Sand Village team will undoubtedly appear frequently—if they want to eliminate them completely, they will have to send troops specifically to deal with them.

Moreover, regardless of whether there are traps ahead, even the strange noise caused by the sudden explosion of a single detonation tag could affect the morale of the entire army and put them under pressure.

It's like a mouse jumping around at the feet of an elephant—it poses no real threat, but it just makes you uncomfortable.

Upon realizing this, Sarutobi's eyes turned cold.

This tactic—a bit underhanded, but—is very effective.

The younger man named Arai—his malicious intentions made Arai feel a sense of dislike even before they met.