At the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Rivers, a new Sunagakure outpost had been established.
But due to the severe lack of supplies, the camp had been built in a rushed and crude manner.
Across the entire encampment, there were only a few dozen tents for the shinobi to use. Most of the Sand shinobi could only find a patch of open ground and sit down wherever they could, resting in silence.
A heavy gloom hung over the camp.
Every Sand shinobi wore a look of grief and exhaustion, quietly nursing the wounds left in their hearts.
For a time, the newly built stronghold was wrapped in an atmosphere so bleak and oppressive that even the air itself seemed hard to breathe.
At the center of the camp stood a large tent.
This was Sunagakure's new frontline headquarters.
At that moment, all of the Sand shinobi's jōnin commanders had gathered inside.
But compared to before, the number of jōnin present had dropped by nearly a third.
As for the others…
Why were they absent?
The answer was obvious.
"Let's hear it. What should we do now?"
Chiyo sat in the main seat, her face visibly haggard as she spoke.
The casualty count from this battle had already been completed.
And after looking over those blood-soaked numbers, every jōnin commander in the tent had felt their hearts turn cold.
"…Should we withdraw?"
After a long silence, one jōnin finally spoke up, his voice cautious.
In truth, he wasn't the only one with that thought.
Many of the Sand shinobi present had already begun considering retreat.
Before this, they had held the overwhelming advantage in numbers, yet they had still been crushed mercilessly by Konoha.
Now, they had fewer than 3,700 men left. Their numerical advantage was nearly gone.
How were they supposed to keep fighting Konoha like this?
Even if they continued stalling and waited for the village to send reinforcements, hardly anyone had any real confidence left.
Because now, no one could stop that bastard shining in golden light.
At this point, every Sand shinobi feared Yagami from the bottom of their hearts.
That fear, however, did nothing to stop them from cursing his name in silence.
The moment she heard someone suggest admitting defeat and retreating, a burst of anger rose in Chiyo's chest.
Retreat now?
Wouldn't that mean they had already lost this war?
And if that happened, then what had all those comrades died for?
Wouldn't their sacrifice have been for nothing?
More importantly, this war had been started by Sunagakure.
Did they really think Konoha would simply let them go if they chose to withdraw now?
Impossible.
"No! We absolutely cannot retreat at a time like this!"
Just as Chiyo was about to explode and berate him, Rasa's weak yet steady voice rang out.
"Let's not even talk about whether we can still defeat Konoha right now…"
"But if we retreat here, wouldn't that mean throwing the gates wide open and allowing Konoha to march straight into the Land of Wind without resistance?"
"Don't forget—this war was started by Sunagakure. If Konoha invades the Land of Wind now, they can justify it as a counterattack."
Hearing Rasa speak, Chiyo gave a slight nod, some of the tension in her expression easing.
At the very least, Sunagakure still had younger shinobi who could see the bigger picture.
"Then tell us," Chiyo said, looking at him. "What do you think we should do now?"
After hearing Rasa's words, most of the people present nodded in agreement.
What he said made sense.
Still, a few remained hesitant, fear written plainly on their faces.
After all, not everyone could face death so calmly for the sake of the village.
"We hold the border and buy time," Rasa said, his expression grave.
"Buy time?"
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone inside the command tent turned toward him, waiting for him to continue.
"Yes. We wait."
Seeing that all eyes were on him, Rasa did not hesitate and continued speaking.
"Ever since the end of the Second Shinobi World War, the Five Great Nations have spent years rebuilding their strength. The major powers have long been restless, just waiting for a chance for war to break out again."
"Now that a war has started between us and Konoha, the other nations won't be able to sit still."
"It has already been several days since we declared war."
"If my judgment is correct, then the other three great hidden villages should already be making intense preparations of their own."
"So as long as we can hold out for a few more days, Konoha will no longer be able to focus all its strength on us alone."
"At that point, if we launch a counterattack, it won't be impossible for us to turn this around."
"So right now, we must remain at the border."
"First, to stop Konoha from invading the Land of Wind."
"Second, to wait for the right opportunity to strike back from a desperate position."
Although Rasa's voice was weak, the force behind his words was unmistakable.
And his analysis was sound.
For a moment, the Sand shinobi gathered inside the headquarters nodded one after another.
It was as if they had finally glimpsed a sliver of hope again.
"Good. Then we'll do as Rasa says."
After a few seconds of silence, Chiyo made the final decision.
Retreat?
How could they possibly retreat?
She, Chiyo, would never retreat so easily.
During the Second Shinobi World War, her son and daughter-in-law had died at Konoha's hands.
That loss had left her a lonely old woman.
And now, in this war, another one of her close relatives had been captured by Konoha.
Old hatred and new hatred had piled together, burning inside her like fire.
How could she possibly swallow this humiliation?
And beyond personal feelings, Rasa was right.
At this point, they had no way out.
If they retreated now, Konoha might truly march straight into the Land of Wind.
Which meant the situation between Sunagakure and Konoha had already reversed completely.
They had begun this war as the invaders.
Now, they had become the side desperately preparing to defend their homeland to the death.
After the meeting ended, Chiyo and the other jōnin quickly passed the contents of the discussion throughout the camp.
She wanted the Sand shinobi army to fully understand the danger now hanging over the Land of Wind.
At the same time, she hoped to use the banner of defending their homeland to reignite the shattered morale of the Sand shinobi.
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