A few hours later, inside Konoha's main camp in the Land of Frost.
Although they encountered several scattered Kumogakure squads on the return journey, the enemy forces were either too few in number or too weak. Before they could send out any warning, they were swiftly wiped out.
Whenever they ran into larger groups that might alert Kumogakure's frontline main force, the Konoha side decisively avoided engagement and chose to detour instead.
In the end, this force of more than a thousand shinobi—made up of Shinichi's unit, Root elites, and the eight-hundred-man reinforcement force—crossed the border without incident and safely returned to Konoha's main base camp.
Outside the camp gates, Konoha shinobi who had already received the news stood solemnly in two rows. Their gazes carried undisguised respect and shock as they watched this force return from hell itself.
All the wounded—especially those who had lost too much blood and were already close to unconsciousness—were quickly and carefully carried down and sent to the rear field hospital to receive the highest level of treatment.
And Higashino Shinichi, the young captain who had led a legendary force to achieve battle results worthy of being written into the history of the ninja world's wars, walked shoulder to shoulder with the Third Hokage beneath countless burning gazes filled with admiration and even awe as they steadily headed toward central command.
Morning light fell across his bloodstained forehead protector and calm profile, his silhouette straight and unwavering.
At the same time, on the other side of the Land of Frost, inside Kumogakure's main camp command tent.
The Third Raikage sat alone before the command table. Those sharp eyes that had once made countless enemies tremble in fear were lowered as he silently stared at the words on the paper before him for a very long time without moving.
The tent was deathly silent, filled only with the sound of his heavy, slow breathing.
No one knew how long passed before he finally raised his head and slowly swept his gaze across the commanders of every division waiting quietly inside the tent. Rare exhaustion could be heard in his voice.
"Send the order to every division and every unit… withdraw."
Although the Third Raikage was deeply unwilling to accept it, he also understood that the war could no longer continue. Their forces were still massive in scale, but…
"Yes, sir!"
The commanders accepted the order solemnly before filing out of the tent one after another.
The Third Raikage remained seated in place for a long time without moving. Much later, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, as though he wanted to sneer, yet it also sounded like an extremely faint self-mocking laugh.
"What a… lucky bastard."
Of course he knew that for that brat to rampage through the heart of Kumogakure's territory and repeatedly survive certain death was far more than mere luck.
That required monstrous battlefield instinct, supreme command ability, precise control over both enemy and ally psychology, and the insane courage to gamble everything even in the depths of despair.
But…
Perhaps using luck as an excuse would make Kumogakure—and himself—feel just a little better.
…
April 1st, Konoha Year 47.
The Konoha–Kumogakure War that had drawn the attention of the entire ninja world finally reached a turning point after a week of repeated large-scale battles within the Land of Frost.
Kumogakure was the first to withdraw all forces from the Land of Frost, retreating to fortify the southwestern border of the Land of Lightning.
Konoha, meanwhile, had no intention of escalating the war further by continuing the pursuit.
After all, Konoha's primary objective had always been to force Kumogakure out of the war, not fight them to the bitter end. Even though Kumogakure's logistics and medical systems had already suffered devastating damage, if they were truly cornered and chose to launch a desperate final battle at all costs, Konoha would likewise suffer losses it could hardly endure.
And at that point, the only beneficiaries would be Sunagakure, which was still at war with them, Iwagakure, which had been eyeing them covetously, and Kirigakure, which had long since grown restless and was on the verge of making its move.
They would reap all the rewards without lifting a finger!
Thus, after confirming Kumogakure's withdrawal, the Konoha expeditionary force that had advanced deep into the Land of Frost also began an orderly retreat under the orders of Supreme Commander Sarutobi Hiruzen, embarking on the journey back to the Land of Fire.
The news spread through the ninja world like wildfire.
...
Sunagakure, Kazekage's office.
"Trash! Kumogakure are a bunch of useless trash!" Rasa slammed the intelligence report onto the table, a rare flash of anger erupting from him. "Does that brat Higashino Shinichi really have luck that ridiculous? Even this couldn't kill him?"
He stared at the densely marked encirclement routes across the map of the Land of Lightning, routes his subordinates had pieced together from every fragment of gathered intelligence. His brows furrowed tighter and tighter.
To repeatedly escape pursuit on the scale of tens of thousands of enemies could no longer be explained away with something as simple as "keen perception" or "exceptional strength."
For a moment, Rasa even began to suspect that Higashino Shinichi was some kind of protagonist from a novel.
Otherwise, how could he survive certain death every single time?
That had been true during Sunagakure's assassination attempts, and it was true again during Kumogakure's encirclement in the north.
...
Land of Earth, Iwagakure high-level council chamber.
He actually escaped that too?
That brat's luck really is absurd.
The same thought rose within the heart of the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki.
After sighing inwardly, he looked toward the massive map hanging on the wall.
The rich and fertile Land of Fire was certainly tempting, and the terrifying potential displayed by that Konoha brat named Higashino Shinichi was indeed deeply alarming.
But Ōnoki had always been a pragmatist grounded in reality. War was a contest of comprehensive national strength and immediate military power.
And after preparing for war for so long, what the village urgently needed now was tangible results that could immediately stabilize the village internally, boost morale, and seize resources.
Even if Higashino Shinichi might one day grow into a figure comparable to Uchiha Madara or Hashirama Senju—
That would still be twenty or thirty years in the future.
As for what they would do if Higashino Shinichi truly became another Uchiha Madara by then?
Ōnoki could only choose to trust in the wisdom of future generations.
And so, in the end, his gaze locked firmly onto the map of the Land of Lightning.
Kumogakure had just suffered defeat. Their forces had taken heavy losses, their logistics had been damaged, and now was precisely the moment when they were internally unstable and externally weakened.
Compared to trying to bite through the hard bone that was Konoha, tearing off a chunk of flesh from a wounded tiger clearly carried far less risk and offered far more immediate returns.
As that thought formed in his mind, a cold and pragmatic plan gradually began to take shape.
...
Kirigakure, Mizukage's office.
The Third Mizukage silently finished reading the report in his hand and remained silent for a long time.
"Mizukage-sama! How much longer are we supposed to wait?" A violent voice shattered the silence. The clan head of the Kaguya Clan made no attempt to hide his impatience. "My clansmen's bone blades have long since grown thirsty for battle! Please declare war on Konoha immediately!"
Though he addressed him as "sama," there was not the slightest trace of respect in his tone—only arrogance and impatience.
"Wait a little longer."
The Third Mizukage did not even raise his head. He merely replied with those four calm words.
...
Just as Konoha's expeditionary force began its journey home and undercurrents stirred within every major ninja village—
Inside the Land of Iron, at the headquarters of World Weekly, the telephone in the editor-in-chief's office suddenly rang.
"Hello? Is this Mister Peter Parker? What guidance do you have for us this time? Is it about the latest developments on the northern front—" The editor-in-chief's tone instantly turned enthusiastic the moment he heard the familiar voice.
At present, the most closely watched event in the ninja world was undoubtedly the war between Konoha and Kumogakure.
And as one of the ninja world's largest neutral newspapers by circulation, World Weekly had spared no effort in covering this focal war between Konoha and Kumogakure.
At the center of every recent topic stood one person without question: the youngest genius jōnin in Konoha's history—Higashino Shinichi.
Eleven years old. Strength rivaling famous veterans. The feat of infiltrating deep behind enemy lines alone and throwing the battlefield into chaos.
Any one of those achievements was enough to ignite public discussion.
Countless gambling houses had even opened betting pools over whether this legendary boy could survive Kumogakure's encirclement by tens of thousands of troops and return alive.
And this mysterious "Peter Parker" had, since the middle of the war, repeatedly provided firsthand "inside information" regarding Higashino Shinichi's movements. The speed of his intelligence and the richness of its details had continuously pushed World Weekly's sales and influence to new heights.
The editor-in-chief guessed that this Peter Parker was likely some Kumogakure shinobi involved in the encirclement operation, perhaps even someone who had personally witnessed Shinichi's battles multiple times.
As for why he never suspected the source was from Konoha?
Why don't you just say he's Higashino Shinichi himself?
The editor-in-chief had once joked to his subordinates like that.
"Mhm… I see… so that's how it is… perception abilities?" The editor-in-chief nodded repeatedly while rapidly jotting notes onto a memo pad. But when he heard the term, his pen suddenly paused, confusion appearing on his face. "Mister Peter Parker, could you explain exactly what these perception abilities are? Our readers might…"
The person on the other end of the line seemed to fall silent for a moment before patiently explaining: "Perception abilities are a rare and special capability possessed by certain shinobi. They allow one to transcend ordinary senses such as sight and hearing and detect chakra, the movements of living beings, and even hostile intent within a certain range. They are extremely valuable in warfare…"
"Oh! Understood! Crystal clear! Thank you so much, Mister Peter Parker! Your leaks are always so timely and professional!" The editor-in-chief suddenly understood and repeatedly thanked him before respectfully hanging up the phone.
After putting down the receiver, the editor-in-chief rubbed his temples and sank into thought.
Perception abilities?
And he wanted that highlighted prominently?
But who among ordinary readers would even understand that stuff?
Even he himself barely understood it. How was that supposed to sell?
The editor-in-chief curled his lips. As a media professional deeply familiar with public psychology, he knew perfectly well that the masses had no real interest in specialized ninja concepts like "perception abilities," nor any intuitive understanding of them.
What people loved were legends, miracles, and dramatic heroic stories.
After pondering for a moment, the editor-in-chief's small eyes suddenly lit up. An idea struck him.
He picked up his pen and wrote what he considered an explosively eye-catching headline onto the manuscript:
[The Boy Who Survived Disaster! Uncovering the Survival Journey of Konoha's "Miracle Child," Higashino Shinichi]
Yes! That was the real hook!
Compared to a dry "Detailed Explanation of Perception Abilities," words like "miracle," "survived disaster," and "luck" were obviously far more capable of attracting attention and sparking discussion and imagination.
He immediately began writing furiously, using vivid language to repeatedly dramatize how this genius boy had "luckily" escaped Kumogakure's massive dragnet time and time again, how he had "coincidentally" avoided deadly ambushes, and how he had "miraculously" survived certain death over and over.
After writing the final period, the editor-in-chief blew gently on the still-wet ink with satisfaction. He was confident this report would once again trigger a surge in sales.
...
Sigh… the ninja world still has a very long road ahead when it comes to public education.
On the other end of the telephone line, Isshin set down the receiver and shook his head helplessly.
Unlike concepts that were easy to understand at a glance—such as "great strength," "high defense," or "fast speed"—"perception abilities" were abstract and vague to non-shinobi groups, and even to many genin.
Yet his Entry System specifically required the outside world to form a clear and distinct understanding of one of his traits.
More troublesome still, the difficulty of generating purple Entries had far exceeded his expectations.
Take Fire Release Mastery for example. That had been the first Entry he managed to elevate to purple.
It was built upon the shocking achievement of "breaking the strongest shield," a feat powerful enough to shake every nation and ninja village, combined with the Land of Fire's full-scale official propaganda campaign, along with the fact that concepts like "flames" and "high temperatures" were things even ordinary civilians could intuitively understand.
In other words, a purple Entry required both the deep recognition of top-tier powerhouses and widespread awareness among the general public. It demanded both "quality" and "quantity."
But in contrast, Clear Insight—
Top-tier perception abilities possessed immeasurable value in high-level combat and strategic warfare. Every Kage-level expert and elite shinobi among the various villages already understood that clearly and were even deeply wary of it.
But how was he supposed to transform that "invisible" value into a concept that a broader audience—including ordinary civilians who barely understood the ninja world—could clearly grasp and form a deep impression of?
Difficult.
Extremely difficult.
Don't tell me I'll eventually have to personally provide free public education to the entire ninja world?
Shinichi frowned inwardly.
Wouldn't that make me some kind of saint?
What a pain.
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