Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!

"Retreat."

Chiyo uttered the word through clenched teeth, her eyes fierce and full of hatred as they locked onto Kawakaze. The man who had managed to kill Hanzō was truly extraordinary.

Just thinking about the losses they had suffered made Chiyo's heart bleed. The Chikamatsu Collection of Ten Puppets were irreplaceable—puppets she could no longer replicate herself. After gathering four of them, the ox-head puppet had to be left behind.

"You can come and go as you please?" Kawakaze's voice rang out. "You think this is your home?"

As the Suna ninja pulled a signal flare from his cloak and launched it into the sky, Kawakaze immediately recognized the signal for retreat.

"Kenjutsu: Requiem of Death."

This was the same move Kawakaze had once used to cleave through a Tailed Beast Ball. Accompanied by the crackling sound of thunder and lightning, Kawakaze charged toward the Suna ninja and Chiyo.

"Lady Chiyo, you go first."

A Suna ninja stepped forward, pushing Chiyo back. Determination shone in his eyes—he was ready to sacrifice himself so Chiyo could escape.

"Retreat!" Chiyo commanded one last time, her voice sharp.

She covered for the remaining night raid troops, who were now scattered and retreating into the Land of Wind. Without looking back, Chiyo vanished into the darkness.

"Shield of Shukaku."

One of the Suna ninja, already pale from exertion, took a Military Rations Pill and formed a series of hand seals. A massive wall of sand rose before him, crowned by a fearsome carving of Shukaku's head.

This ninja possessed the ability to control sand and had modeled the defensive Ninjutsu after Shukaku.

When Kawakaze's sword struck the Shukaku Shield, it met immediate resistance. The further Kawakaze slashed downward, the greater the resistance became.

The Suna ninja behind the shield trembled, his chakra rapidly depleting. Despite the aid of the Military Rations Pill, his reserves could never compare to someone like Gaara, whose chakra volume was immense. Without the pill, it was doubtful he could have used this technique at all.

Finally, as the shield absorbed the last of the attack's power, Kawakaze's sword became stuck in its center.

"Not a bad move," Kawakaze muttered, preparing to pull his sword free and finish off the Sand ninja.

But then he noticed something—the Shukaku Shield was slowly crumbling away. Behind it, the Suna ninja stood still, no longer breathing.

He had given his life to protect Chiyo.

The Sand ninja's night attack had completely failed.

"First, carry the wounded back to camp and take any surviving Sand ninja for interrogation," Tsunade's commanding voice echoed closer and closer as she organized the post-battle efforts.

"This is the elite Suna Jōnin, Arashi?"

Together with Tsunade, Hayato Yamanaka had also arrived. The Yamanaka Clan's secret techniques for extracting information were second to none. When Hayato saw the dead Suna ninja, his gaze froze, as though he'd been struck by lightning.

"What's so strange about it?" Tsunade asked casually. To her, it was nothing special—just an elite Jōnin, far inferior to Hanzō of the Salamander.

"Well, Tsunade-sama, let me put it this way," Hayato replied, choosing his words carefully. "This Arashi is proficient in sand control and has incredibly strong defenses. It's said that he could withstand a Tailed Beast Ball head-on."

Tsunade's earlier dismissal left Hayato startled. He had long since gathered intelligence on Arashi, but seeing him dead in front of him was something he never expected.

After finishing his explanation, Hayato looked at Kawakaze with newfound respect. Hearing about Kawakaze defeating Hanzō of the Salamander had felt distant, but witnessing the death of Arashi firsthand made the man's strength undeniable.

"His defensive power is not bad," Kawakaze remarked as he sheathed his sword. The marks on his face faded, and his golden pupils returned to their normal color.

"Tailed Beast Ball? It's just so-so."

"I'm relieved that you're okay," Tsunade said, shrugging. "There are a lot of people who've been poisoned. I'll go take care of things."

To her, the Tailed Beast Ball wasn't all that impressive—after all, Kawakaze's sword had sliced through it.

With that, Tsunade turned and left, leaving Kawakaze and Hayato in an awkward silence, glaring at each other.

"Lord Kawakaze, I'll be going now," Hayato finally said, breaking the tense atmosphere. He followed the Konoha ninja escorting the captured Sand prisoners back to the camp.

Kawakaze's thoughts had already drifted elsewhere. He wondered how things were going with his brother.

Meanwhile, when the Suna ninja attacked the Konoha camp, Sakumo had led a team to infiltrate the Suna defensive line. Unlike Kawakaze, Sakumo's group was larger, but his mission was more straightforward: burn supplies and create chaos.

Caution still ruled his actions, as he wasn't aware that Chiyo had taken a group of elite soldiers with her.

"Two hundred meters ahead, three hidden sentries," reported a member of the Hyūga Clan beside Sakumo, his Byakugan scanning the area.

"Get rid of them." Sakumo waves his hand, and three ninjas with swords behind him quietly leave.

After a while, the three of them return and gesture to indicate that the task has been dealt with.

When Sakumo's team finally infiltrates the camp within the defense line, they are dumbfounded by the sight of sand houses scattered all over the ground. He couldn't tell which was which, so he grabbed someone for questioning.

"Stay put, I'll be right back."

Sakumo left a mark of the Flying Thunder God Technique and used the Body Flicker Technique to disappear, moving incredibly fast.

When he returned, he was already carrying a stunned Suna ninja, who appeared to be a Chūnin. Sakumo avoided selecting someone with strong abilities, as that would have caused too much noise. A Chūnin knew more than a Genin, making him the perfect choice.

After Sakumo's subordinate—proficient in torture—interrogated the captive and learned the location of the supplies, the life of the Chūnin from Sunagakure came to an end.

"Burn all the supplies and act according to the situation."

The team scattered and split into groups.

The supplies of the Suna ninja were not all piled together. When the first ray of fire shot into the sky—

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

—the entire Suna ninja camp came alive. However, by then, the supplies were already burning, and it was a foregone conclusion.

When the troops regrouped, Sakumo noticed that two teams were missing. Unsurprisingly, they had been discovered. The sounds of fighting could already be heard in the distance.

"You guys go ahead; I'll go back and save them."

Without hesitation, Sakumo chose to return and rescue his comrades.

The remaining team members looked at each other, and after a brief deliberation, they followed Sakumo. With such a leader, what else was there to say?

When Sakumo arrived at one of the battlefields, he found five Konoha ninjas still standing, with two of them desperately resisting. Unfortunately, the difference in numbers was too great, and they wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

"Damn it," Sakumo cursed under his breath, drawing his short sword and using the Body Flicker Technique to reach his comrades.

The short sword glowed with a white light, like the call of death. Everyone he passed through fell with a single strike—swift, precise, and without error.

After entering the battle circle, Sakumo grabbed the arms of two Konoha ninjas. The next second, he broke away from the chaos and brought them to safety.

Although Sakumo's mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique had improved, carrying two people limited his range, and they ended up not far from the camp—at the same hiding spot as before.

"Wait here, I'll be right back."

Sakumo pulled a Military Rations Pill from his ninja gear bag and ate it to restore the large amount of chakra he had expended.

On the other side, the situation was worse. The Konoha ninjas who had returned to assist were now caught in the battle. Surprisingly, the discovered Konoha ninja was still alive, holding on against all odds.

Sakumo's head throbbed as he observed the chaotic fight in front of him. There was no clean solution; he had no choice but to take risks.

Drawing his short sword once more, Sakumo re-entered the battle.

Fortunately, Chiyo had taken a large number of elite troops elsewhere; otherwise, the Konoha ninjas wouldn't have lasted this long.

"Retreat while fighting! Don't get attached to the battle!"

Sakumo deflected an attack meant for a Konoha ninja, then took advantage of the opening to slice a Suna ninja's neck.

"Dream on if you think you can run!"

A young Suna ninja couple looked grim as they manipulated their puppets, their ten fingers controlling the deadly mechanisms, aiming their attacks at the Konoha ninjas.