Naruto's civilian cannon fodder starts with the three-body technique

Chapter 380 Blitzkrieg
Daimyofu, the Land of Wind.

The once solemn and majestic palace is now filled with an atmosphere of panic and oppression.

The daimyo of the Land of Wind, dressed in a magnificent silk robe, paced anxiously before the throne. His once well-maintained face was now filled with shock, anger, and fear.

"Useless! The Third Kazekage was a complete and utter piece of trash!"

The daimyo abruptly stopped, grabbed a beautiful jade artifact from the table, and smashed it to the ground with a piercing shattering sound. "So much military funding is allocated every year to support tens of thousands of ninjas in Sunagakure, and what is the result? They can't even defend their own village, which was captured by a detachment from Konoha. It's an utter disgrace! That money might as well have been fed to the dogs!"

The ministers, who stood with their hands at their sides, were all silent and trembling, their heads bowed, not daring to meet the wrath of the daimyo.

However, these people secretly grumbled in their hearts: If the Daimyo hadn't been constantly cutting Sunagakure's military budget for various reasons over the years, and even misappropriating it multiple times, leading to a decline in the treatment of Sunagakure ninjas, outdated equipment, and a lack of young talent, how could Sunagakure have fallen into such a state? In the past, when had any enemy ninja army been able to penetrate so deep into the heart of the Land of Wind, even to the point of besieging the capital? It's too late to say these things now.

Seeing no one respond, the daimyo's anger intensified. He pointed at the group of "good-for-nothings" below and shouted, "Speak up! Are you all mute? The Konoha ninja army is about to attack! Where is your usual ability to fight for power, make money, and seize land? Now, come up with an idea!"

A deathly silence lasted for a moment. Finally, an older, seemingly bolder, minister stepped forward shakily and spoke cautiously: "Your Excellency, in my humble opinion, Konoha's recent military campaign is solely for profit. Perhaps we could try negotiating? If we can pay a sufficient price to force them to withdraw, thus protecting the capital and your safety, it might be the best option at present. After all, Konoha is also facing the pressure of fighting on two fronts. They may not be willing to linger in the desert of the Land of Wind. Once a treaty is signed, they should withdraw."

These words, intended to ease tensions, instead ignited a powder keg.

"Negotiation? You want to surrender?!" The daimyo glared at the old retainer, his eyes flashing with murderous intent. "Are you trying to make me bow down to those damned ninjas of the Land of Fire?! This is treason! Guards!"

From the shadows, a blurry figure appeared silently like a ghost, and the next moment, a flash of cold light appeared.

puff!

The old minister who proposed the negotiations didn't even have time to scream before his head flew into the air, splattering warm blood all over the ministers beside him. The headless corpse swayed and then fell heavily to the ground.

"Ah!" Several civil officials cried out in fright, their legs went weak and they almost collapsed to the ground.

Daming's face twisted in anger as he shouted, "Listen up, all of you! Anyone who dares to speak of surrender will be charged with treason and their entire family will be executed!"

The heavy stench of blood and the threat of death instantly stunned all the ministers. Their faces turned pale, and their bodies trembled like fallen leaves in the autumn wind. No one dared to utter a single word of "peace."

The daimyo looked at his terrified subjects and sneered, "Now, all of you, find a way to contribute all your private soldiers and guards to me. Also, immediately send orders to all the oasis garrisons you can still contact, abandon your posts, and return to Daming Prefecture at full speed to defend the capital. Everyone will be rewarded! If you can't hold it... you'll all perish with this city!"

After issuing this almost insane order, the daimyo irritably dismissed his courtiers.

In the empty hall, only he and the figure that had once again disappeared into the shadows remained.

"Shadow." The daimyo's voice trembled slightly, "Tell me the truth, with the daimyo's current strength, can you hold out?"

The figure known as "Shadow" slowly emerged from the shadows; it was a ninja completely wrapped in a black bodysuit, with even his face covered by a strange animal mask.

His voice was low and hoarse, devoid of any emotional fluctuation: "Returning to the Daimyo is difficult. Umino Sasuke's strength is unfathomable; he was able to suppress the Eight-Tails on his own. I believe my strength is at most on par with Ebizo, and I am no match for him. Princess Tsunade is equally formidable; her medical ninjutsu and superhuman strength taijutsu are extremely difficult to deal with. In addition, her two thousand Konoha elites are in high spirits, while our elite troops are mostly scattered in various oases suppressing the sand bandit rebellion. The Daimyo's standing garrison is insufficient in number and of uneven quality. In terms of high-end combat power, we are at an absolute disadvantage."

"Sand bandits! Those damned sand bandits again!" The daimyo gritted his teeth in anger. "If they hadn't suddenly launched a large-scale uprising, tying up a large number of my troops, the capital wouldn't be so vulnerable!"

He selectively ignored the fact that he had been continuously reducing standing forces in order to save expenses.

Shadow paused for a moment, then said, "Now that things have come to this, complaining is useless. The most urgent task is to buy as much time as possible, consolidate our forces, and strengthen our defenses. Perhaps we can send out negotiators to pretend to negotiate, but in reality, delay the process and buy us time to send troops back to reinforce our troops."

Daming took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He walked to the window, looking at the yellow sand swirling outside, his eyes filled with resentment and jealousy.

"My rabbit cousin is really lucky!" he muttered to himself, his tone bitter. "The Land of Fire is vast, rich in resources, and has a large population. It can support such a huge military force in fighting on two fronts. If I had inherited such fertile land as the Land of Fire and possessed a sharp blade like Umino Sasuke, I would have expanded my territory and achieved hegemony long ago. Why am I trapped in this damned desert, and now we are being attacked by ninjas!"

This jealousy and hostility towards the cousin of the daimyo of the Land of Fire has a long history, stemming from both a conflict of national interests and resentment over the injustice of personal fate.

After a long silence, he turned to Shadow and said, "Do as you say. Immediately select negotiating representatives and send elite guards to escort them to meet the Konoha Ninja Army. Offer higher terms to show 'sincerity' and make sure to stall them. At the same time, issue emergency orders to all garrisons you can contact as quickly as possible, ordering them to return to the Daimyo's capital at all costs!"

Shadow hesitated for a moment: "My lord, if we withdraw all the troops stationed in the major oases, then the bandit rebellion that we finally managed to suppress might..."

"We can't worry about that now!" the daimyo interrupted him roughly. "The bandits are just a minor ailment. If Daming Prefecture falls, everything will be over. Let's get through this crisis first! Go now!"

"Yes!" The shadow said no more, its figure flickered, and it disappeared into the shadows once more.

Soon, a negotiation team from the Land of Wind, carrying a white flag and escorted by a squad of elite samurai, hurriedly left the Daimyo's residence, heading towards the direction where the Konoha army might arrive. At the same time, the Konoha allied forces, led by Tsunade and Sasuke Umino, swiftly cut into the heart of the Land of Wind like a sharp dagger.

The difficulties of marching through the desert were minimized thanks to their efficient organization and the ninjas' powerful physical abilities.

Just as the troops were taking a short break, a sentry at the front brought news that the negotiating representative from the Land of Wind was requesting an audience.

"Oh? They've sent someone to negotiate already?" Tsunade sat in the main seat of the makeshift tent, raising her handsome eyebrows and a playful smile on her face. "It seems my uncle, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, is scared. Let them come over; I want to see what price he can come up with!"

Soon, the negotiators from the Land of Wind were brought in. Leading them was an eloquent and eloquent old minister who immediately put on a humble smile, bowed deeply to Tsunade and Sasuke Umino, and then began to speak eloquently.

It was nothing more than emphasizing the traditional friendship between the two countries, recounting the suffering and innocence of the Land of Wind, expressing a willingness to take responsibility for the Sand Village's instigation of the war, and a willingness to compensate Konoha for its losses. All they asked was for Konoha to withdraw its troops and preserve the Land of Wind's state and the Daimyo's reputation. The conditions offered sounded quite tempting, including huge war reparations, opening of trading ports, and granting Konoha most-favored-nation status, etc.

After listening, Tsunade picked at her ear, looking nonchalant: "That's it? Are you trying to fob me off? Once I conquer the Daimyo's territory, I'll decide how much money is in your treasury. As for the trading ports? By then, Konoha will be in charge of the entire Land of Wind. Do you even need to open them up?"

The representative from the Kingdom of Wind turned pale and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, please calm down. We can discuss the terms again. As long as you name it, we will do our best to meet your needs! We only ask that you understand the hardships faced by the people of the Kingdom of Wind and spare them from the ravages of war..."

He then escalated the situation, offering further economic and political concessions.

Tsunade waved her hand impatiently: "Don't give me that. I'm not buying it. Either your daimyo surrenders unconditionally and I can guarantee his life and property, or we can 'have a good talk' after the castle falls!"

How could the representative of the Land of Wind dare to agree to such harsh conditions? He could only grit his teeth and continue to plead and try to negotiate.

Just then, a report came from outside the tent that Elder Xiaochun of the Turning Chamber had arrived.

Koharu Utatane walked into the tent, looking travel-worn. She had originally been ordered to go to Sunagakure for negotiations, but on the way, she received news that Tsunade and Sasuke Umino had led their troops straight to the Daimyo's residence. So she immediately changed her route and caught up with them.

As soon as she entered the tent, she overheard Tsunade's extremely forceful remarks and the weak and feeble explanation from the representative of the Land of Wind.

Koharu Utatane frowned immediately. She first nodded to Tsunade and Sasuke Umino, then looked at the representative of the Land of Wind, her tone relatively gentle but with an unquestionable authority: "We are aware of the conditions proposed by your envoy. Please go and rest for a while. We need to discuss this internally."

After dismissing the representative from the Land of Wind, Koharu Utatane immediately turned to Tsunade, her tone reproachful: "Tsunade! How could you be so forceful? Asking the Daimyo to surrender unconditionally? How dare you! The Hokage's intention is to end the war in the Land of Wind as soon as possible. The western front must be stabilized so that we can concentrate our forces on dealing with Iwagakure on the Takigakure front. Kumogakure's attitude is ambiguous, and there are signs that they are breaking the alliance. We must free up our hands as soon as possible and know when to stop. Getting a peace treaty is enough!"

Tsunade flew into a rage upon hearing this, slamming her hand on the table: "Old hag! You've only just arrived and you're already telling me what to do? Wasn't that generous ceasefire agreement with Sunagakure the work of you old fogies? And what happened? Sunagakure got too big for their britches and launched a sneak attack on us. Now Sasuke has wiped out their base, proving that your compromise and concessions were completely wrong. And now you want me to let the Daimyo of the Land of Wind go? No way! If we march on the Daimyo's residence, we'll get more than any treaty could ever offer!"

"You! You're talking nonsense! You don't understand politics at all!" Koharu Utatane was also furious. "Conquering a country's capital has too much of an impact. It will cause panic and hostility from the entire ninja world's aristocratic class. Konoha will become the target of everyone's hatred. Moreover, military victory is not the same as political victory. How much energy will it take us to govern a desert? Have you considered that?"

"Bullshit! I only know that the winner has the right to speak. You'll get nothing done if you keep hesitating like this!"

The two immediately started arguing fiercely, and the atmosphere inside the tent became extremely tense.

Just then, Sasuke Umino's calm voice broke in, clearly reaching their ears: "Elder Koharu, Tsunade, please calm down."

His voice seemed to possess a strange magic, causing the two people arguing to involuntarily stop and look at him.

Umino Sasuke first nodded slightly to Utatane Koharu: "Elder Koharu's concerns are reasonable. With Konoha fighting on two fronts, it is indeed necessary to end the western front as soon as possible and prioritize ensuring the safety of the Takigakure defense line."

Koharu Utatane's expression softened slightly, and she was about to nod when Sasuke Umino changed the subject: "However, as Tsunade said, we now have a huge advantage, and victory is within reach. It would be a real pity to give up now, and we would not be able to explain it to the soldiers who fought so hard."

He paused, then proposed a compromise: "The Kingdom of Wind has sent envoys here, ostensibly for negotiations, but in reality, it's a delaying tactic to buy them time to mobilize their troops back to reinforce Daming Prefecture. We don't need to immediately refuse negotiations; we can stall them. However, military operations cannot cease. We can accelerate our advance and strive to reach the city before their forces are fully withdrawn. Even if we fail to breach the city by then, the immense military pressure will be enough to secure far more favorable terms in subsequent negotiations. What do you think?"

Sasuke Umino spoke calmly and logically, taking into account Koharu Utatane's needs for a "political solution" and "rapid stabilization," while also satisfying Tsunade's desire for "military deterrence" and "maximizing interests." He also accurately exposed the Land of Wind's delaying tactics.

Koharu Utatane looked into Sasuke Umino's deep, calm eyes, and for some reason, a strange chill and fear arose in her heart. This young man in front of her was unfathomable in terms of strength, methods, and thoughts.

She suddenly realized how ridiculous her previous attempt to use the authority of higher-ups to suppress others was; the fact that the other party was willing to give her a way out was already a great favor.

Almost instinctively, she nodded in agreement: "Squad Leader Umino is very thoughtful. We'll do it your way! We must end the western front conflict in three days, at most three days!"

Tsunade watched in stunned silence. She hadn't expected that this stubborn old woman would be so easily persuaded by Sasuke Umino, and that her attitude would change so quickly.

She couldn't help but cast an admiring glance at Umino Sasuke, secretly giving him a thumbs up: You're really something, handsome young man!

(End of this chapter)