Chapter 197 — The Bigger Picture, and Freedom
While Konoha was preparing to intensify its offensive against the Sand, Rasa returned to the Sand camp with the only five jōnin who had survived.
Fortunately, very few people in Sunagakure had known about the ambush mission to begin with. With a bit of concealment, no one could tell that their Kazekage had returned from defeat. Otherwise, the sheer scale of the losses would have shaken the entire front—and morale might have collapsed entirely.
But there were still those who knew.
After settling the five survivors, Rasa entered the command tent, where Chiyo and Ebizo were already waiting.
"Failed?" Ebizō asked cautiously.
Rasa dropped heavily into his seat, looking utterly drained. "Yes. Only five jōnin made it back." His tone turned bitter. "Konoha knew in advance. They had already set up an ambush. We walked straight into it."
Just a few words—but enough for Chiyo and Ebizō to picture the desperate battle that must have followed.
"What about Konoha's losses?" Chiyo pressed. "With your strength and Sand Gold techniques, they must have taken heavy damage too."
If both sides suffered equally, it wouldn't be a complete loss.
But Rasa's expression darkened even further.
"Negligible."
"…Impossible!" Both elders stared at him. "Did Jiraiya intercept you?"
That was the only explanation they could think of—only someone like Jiraiya could have tied down Rasa and prevented him from unleashing large-scale destruction.
But reality was even more absurd.
"It wasn't Jiraiya." Rasa's voice turned cold. "It was Matsushita Taichi —the medical ninja we targeted. He's the one who held me back."
Even saying it aloud sounded unbelievable.
He didn't stop there. He described everything in detail—the ambush, the battle, and especially his clash with Taichi .
When he finished, Chiyo and Ebizō fell silent.
"Nineteen Jōnin... more than a hundred elite Chūnin…" Ebizō murmured. Nineteen jōnin and over a hundred elite chūnin—those weren't losses you'd expect even in a full-scale battle, let alone a failed ambush.
As the so-called "Desert Fox," Ebizō immediately grasped the implications.
If the truth spread… the fragile stability within Sunagakure would shatter again.
Chiyo realized it too.
And that was something they absolutely could not allow.
If the Sand fell into internal chaos now, they wouldn't even need Konoha to defeat them—they would collapse on their own. Worse, even their tacit partner, Iwagakure, might turn on them and crush them as the weaker target.
Rasa opened his mouth. "This battle… was my—"
"My fault."
Ebizō cut him off sharply, taking full responsibility without hesitation.
"It was my intelligence failure. I didn't identify Konoha's hidden strength. Because of that, the Kazekage nearly fell into danger, and so many shinobi died. If not for the Kazekage risking himself at the end, none of them would have survived."
Rasa froze.
He understood instantly.
Ebizō was sacrificing himself—to preserve the Kazekage's reputation, to stabilize his position, to keep the village from descending into chaos.
Chiyo looked at her brother. "Are you certain?"
Ebizō smiled faintly, calm and resolute. "I've lived long enough. Consider this my final contribution to the village."
Rasa stood and bowed deeply—both gratitude and respect.
That same day, a carefully crafted report spread through the Sand camp:
The Kazekage had led a daring raid on Konoha, but due to intelligence failure and incomplete enemy assessment, the mission fell into an ambush. Heavy losses were sustained. However, in the critical moment, the Kazekage personally fought to ensure the safe return of the remaining forces.
The report avoided specifics. It shifted blame to intelligence failure while highlighting the Kazekage's valor.
The five survivors remained silent—they owed their lives to him. And the dead… no one could question them.
In the chaos of war, deaths were common. Few would ask how those shinobi had died.
Among the higher-ups, the truth was known. But soon after, Ebizō's formal confession reached the council, taking full responsibility.
At that point, even Rasa's political opponents had no ground to stand on. To press further would risk being labeled as destabilizing the village itself.
The matter was settled.
A formal decree followed:
Ebizō was stripped of all official positions and would remain on the frontlines to atone through service.
When Rasa, Chiyo, and Ebizō received the decision, all three quietly relaxed.
For Ebizō, this was already the best possible outcome.
Back on Konoha's side, however, the mood was entirely different.
After leaving the command tent, Taichi was in high spirits.
Life in the medical camp was safe and steady—but also dull. Without real combat, he could feel his growth slowing.
He opened the mission scroll Jiraiya had given him.
After reading through pages of instructions, he summed it up in two words:
Cause chaos.
There was no fixed objective.
Sabotage supply lines. Assassinate key figures. Infiltrate Sunagakure itself if possible.
As long as it hurt the enemy, anything was fair game.
Of course, that level of freedom came with responsibility. If he crossed certain lines, Konoha wouldn't cover for him.
This kind of mission was typically reserved for elite jōnin—trusted, capable, and disciplined.
The fact that Taichi had received one spoke volumes about Jiraiya's confidence in him.
He returned to the medical camp, still energized, and resumed treatment duties. Though casualties from the ambush weren't severe, injuries caused by Sand Gold were notoriously difficult to handle.
Even with his abilities, some guidance was still necessary.
But now—
He had something new.
Freedom.
And soon, the battlefield would feel very different.
Back in the command tent, Nara Shikaku watched Taichi leave with obvious excitement before finally speaking up.
"Giving him that kind of mission… are you sure that's okay?"
Jiraiya leaned back casually. "Are you worried about his strength, or his character?"
"His strength isn't the issue," Shikaku replied. "If he can hold off Rasa, then even I wouldn't want to face him head-on. But he's still young. His experience may not match his power. If something escalates too far, even the village might not be able to cover for him."
It wasn't an unreasonable concern. Young shinobi with overwhelming power but insufficient judgment could easily cause disasters—disasters no one could clean up.
Jiraiya laughed. "You're overthinking it. That kid might be young, but he's far more mature than he looks. Who knows—he might even surprise us."
Shikaku didn't argue further. He had fulfilled his duty as an advisor. In truth, he trusted Taichi as well.
Still… when Jiraiya said "surprise," Shikaku's eyelid twitched slightly.
Let's hope it's not the bad kind of surprise…
The next morning, Taichi made his preparations. He left behind two shadow clones in the medical camp, each carrying 20,000 chakra, ensuring treatment could continue uninterrupted. Then, without hesitation, he departed.
His plan was simple.
Konoha had declared it would intensify its offensive today—so he would assist by eliminating isolated Sand shinobi first, then gradually push deeper into enemy territory, sabotaging supply lines and reducing pressure on Konoha.
After traveling more than ten kilometers from camp, Taichi activated his chakra sensing. Everything within a two-kilometer radius unfolded clearly in his perception.
Still too close to Konoha.
He spotted several Konoha squads rushing forward—but no Sand shinobi yet.
He didn't hesitate. Increasing his speed, he headed straight for the front lines.
By the time he arrived near the Sand patrol zones, the battle had already erupted.
Konoha's vanguard had engaged Sand patrol units. The Sand clearly expected retaliation after yesterday's failed ambush—their patrol numbers had doubled, and their vigilance had increased significantly.
But even so, they were being overwhelmed.
Signal flares shot into the sky one after another—almost all of them from the Sand side.
They were struggling badly.
Taichi 's eyes narrowed slightly.
A plan formed instantly.
He wasn't going to interfere with the main battlefield—that would be stepping on other teams' achievements.
But reinforcements?
Those were fair game.
If they're confident enough to rush in… they should be ready to die.
He immediately moved toward a signal flare's location. From his perception, the Sand unit there was already on the brink of collapse—minutes at most before annihilation.
Taichi didn't stop. He passed the battlefield entirely and continued south.
Soon enough, a four-man Sand squad entered his sensing range.
Reinforcements.
A faint, cold smile appeared on his lips.
He adjusted his trajectory and rushed toward them.
Two kilometers closed in mere minutes.
As they approached, Taichi had already drawn his blade and concealed himself behind a tree just outside their visual range. Though hidden, his perception remained locked onto them.
50 meters.
20 meters.
10 meters.
2 meters.
In an instant—
His blade flashed.
A horizontal slash cut through the air just as a Sand shinobi stepped past the tree.
A head flew skyward.
Before the others could react, Taichi surged forward, his momentum carrying the blade straight into another shinobi's chest.
Only then did the remaining two snap out of their shock, drawing weapons and charging with angry shouts.
"Bold," Taichi murmured.
Golden flames ignited along his blade.
With a swift swing, a crescent-shaped arc of fire shot forward.
The incoming shinobi panicked—but it was too late.
His kunai shattered uselessly as the flaming slash tore through him, cutting clean through his body.
He died without understanding why his defense had failed.
Taichi didn't even spare him a second glance.
He had already moved.
The last shinobi, shaken to the core, barely managed a few desperate blocks before Taichi cut him down cleanly.
In mere seconds—
Four enemies, eliminated.
A perfect opening.
This Sand squad had come to reinforce others…
Only to be wiped out instead.
And this—
Was just one small corner of the battlefield.
Across dozens of kilometers, similar clashes were unfolding everywhere.
Kill or be killed.
That was the only rule.