https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-723-Eternal-Mangekyo-A-Despairingly-Powerful-Presence-/12943599/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-725-The-White-Serpent-Sage-s-Opportunistic-Strike-/12943601/
Chapter 724: The Mist Village Reinforcements Join the Battle!
Chapter 724: The Mist Village Reinforcements Join the Battle!
The Central Allied Camp Headquarters!
The atmosphere was incredibly solemn at this moment.
After all, their recent offensive had failed.
Present in the tent were not only several key figures from the Hidden Leaf Village but also representatives from the Land of Fire and other ninja villages, totaling nearly a hundred people, which essentially constituted the entire upper echelon of the Central Allied Forces.
"Now, let's discuss our next strategy," Jiraiya, sitting at the head of the tent, spoke up.
Tsunade was on his left, and on his right was Nara Shikaku, who had recently lost his arm and now had it wrapped in thick bandages, yet he still attended this meeting.
"I believe we must intensify our offensive; otherwise, there's no way we can quickly destroy their defenses!" Chokushi Maru suggested.
As the representative of the Land of Fire's Daimyo, it was only natural for him to be present.
However, he was clever and had been 'supervising' from the rear, and no one blamed him for it, as they all knew he was a Quasi-Kage with considerable water release skills.
Or rather, a noble like him who didn't cause trouble was already considered the 'best' representative in the eyes of the ninjas.
Swift Victory!
This was the consensus among the nobles and Daimyos.
Each day that passed was like a slap in the face for them, not to mention the other losses they were enduring.
The scale of this battle was such that the consumption of resources was terrifying. After just over a month of fighting, many nobles were already struggling to keep up.
The war's consumption alone wasn't this exaggerated.
With the advent of airships, transporting supplies was no longer as costly as before, where for every ten portions of materials consumed, only one portion would reach the frontline.
Moreover, the Skyguard Tower hadn't been harassing their logistics either.
The real issue was that out of every hundred portions of materials, only a few would make it to the frontlines.
Indeed, the loss rate of supplies was even more exaggerated than when they didn't have airships and their transport forces were being harassed.
Why?
Of course, it was because of the nobles and bureaucrats.
This was a rare opportunity.
There hadn't been a war of this scale before, so they couldn't profit much.
This time, with such a golden opportunity, not taking advantage and recouping some of their investment would be a disservice to their efforts.
And the reasons for the losses were numerous.
Fire damage, wear and tear, theft by bandits, price fluctuations, and more.
Although the amount each individual profited was not significant, the collective greed of the group... it was simply disastrous.
With tens of thousands of ninjas and hundreds of thousands of troops involved in the war, coupled with this loss rate, it was no wonder the Daimyos and nobles were feeling the strain.
"No, you all saw the casualties today. We can't continue with the frontal assault; it's best to wear them down!" Nara Shikaku disagreed with Chokushi Maru's suggestion.
After all, it wasn't his life on the line.
The casualties from a frontal assault were something even the Leaf Village's strategist feared.
In the past month of fighting, the Leaf Village's casualties numbered only a few hundred, but in just one day, they had suffered losses equivalent to over a month.
If you included the casualties from the other ninja armies, the number rose to nearly two thousand!
This was roughly one-tenth of the entire ninja force.
And this was just in one day!
If this level of loss continued for a few more days, all the ninja villages would be severely weakened, and Yuchiha Dohei understood why Nara Shikaku had to speak up in rebuttal.
Even Jiraiya's expression turned grim, and he almost outright rejected the proposal.
"I know that slowly wearing down the Skyguard Tower is the best approach, but the logistics..." Chokushi Maru helplessly stated the facts.
Yes, even though he was a noble, he had to take responsibility for this fire suppression plan. If it failed, he would be held accountable, which was why he had stepped up this once.
If he weren't the plan's leader, you could bet he wouldn't have bothered.
Everyone in the tent fell silent.
They all understood the immense pressure of logistics for such a massive force.
They were even shocked by the contributions of the nobles and Daimyos.
Deploying ninja armies wasn't free! In addition to handling logistics, they also had to pay hiring fees.
For example, an elite Jonin cost a million Ryo per week, equivalent to the lowest-priced S-class mission.
Regular missions weren't as dangerous as the battlefield, which was why the prices were higher.
The total number of ninjas was around sixty thousand, with over five hundred being elite Jonin. Just the hiring fees for the elite Jonin for this period amounted to several billion Ryo, not to mention the even more numerous Chunin and Genin.
Altogether, the hiring fees from the start of the war until now had exceeded two hundred billion Ryo.
Fortunately, the Ashigaru, logistics, and other such forces don't require any wages; otherwise, the expenses would be even greater.
Even if the Daimyo and the nobles were rich, they would still struggle to bear such a drain on their resources.
Not to mention that the items provided were hardly of much use in the war.
"Can we get those adults to supervise..."
A Jonin from a small ninja village was about to suggest that the Daimyo and the nobles send people to oversee the operation, but he clammed up halfway through his sentence.
Because everyone involved in this process was profiting, and if someone were to dare to send supervisors, they would surely end up 'committing suicide with seventeen kunai in their back' in no time.
The bureaucrats and nobles in the ninja world were even bolder and more ruthless than the military in Dohei's previous life.
That's why the Jonin from the small ninja village chose to remain silent.
If he had finished his sentence, who knows, he might have 'committed suicide' by the next morning.
Not to mention him, even Jiraiya, the Fifth Hokage, wouldn't dare to say a word about this matter.
The water was too deep!
"Since we can't drag this out for long, we can only seek reinforcements!"
Jiraiya took a deep breath.
He also understood that the best tactic was a war of attrition.
With the support of the three great ninja villages, dozens of small ninja villages, and their backing, they could easily wear down the Skyguard Tower.
Unfortunately, the logistics situation was dire, so they had no choice but to seek help.
"As long as we agree to the Mist Village's conditions, they will blockade the Skyguard Tower from the sea!"
Chokushi Maru delivered some good news.
The Mist Village!
They had already publicly declared to the major ninja powers that due to the 'accident' involving the Land of Water's Daimyo and nobles, they were taking over the administration of the Land of Water.
If the other countries acknowledged this, they would take action against the Skyguard Tower.
If this news had come before the war, the Daimyos of the other countries would have undoubtedly joined forces to tear down the Hidden Mist Village.
But now, due to the war situation, they had to block this news, planning to deal with the Skyguard Tower first and then, with the advantage of victory, push back against the Mist Village.
However, with the current unfavorable situation, they had no choice but to consider the Mist Village's proposal.
Currently, the Skyguard Tower was surrounded on three sides, with only the southern sea route remaining open. Once that was completely blocked, it would be possible to take control quickly.
At that time, there would still be time to deal with the Mist Village.
Yes, the Daimyos had a well-calculated plan.
The prerequisite was to capture the Skyguard Tower.
If they couldn't take it, they wouldn't just be unable to take action against the Mist Village; they would have to appease and accept them instead.
It could be said that the Daimyos and nobles were backed into a corner, choosing the lesser of two evils.
Otherwise, agreeing to the Mist Village's conditions would be a pipe dream.
As for the consequences of refusal, everyone understood.
The Mist Village would undoubtedly 'join' the Skyguard Tower's side and become their enemy.
Dealing with the Skyguard Tower was already a challenging task, and if the Mist Village joined the other side, the allied forces might as well give up.
So, it was already predetermined that they would agree to the Mist Village's demands before the allied forces could quickly resolve the Skyguard Tower situation.
Although this didn't affect their hostility towards the Mist Village's control of the Land of Water, they had to show their stance on the surface.
At the very least, they had to maintain this facade until they turned against each other!
This way, the Land of Water could trade with the ninja world, obtain various resources, talents, and more, allowing them to develop rapidly.
As for blockading the Skyguard Tower?
Of course, they would do it!
The Mist Village would genuinely 'strictly blockade' the Skyguard Tower, sealing off the last remaining sea route and not allowing any ships to enter or exit.
However, they would only do this much, and anything else would be unrelated to the Mist Village.
On the Skyguard Tower's side, the price to pay was the 'surface-level' disruption of sea trade, while the secret dealings would continue.
With this price, the Land of Water would continue to drain resources from the ninja world.
For example, materials, resources, and more could be obtained through the Land of Water, and the same was true for the sale of goods.
In other words,
The Skyguard Tower could fight a bloody battle with the ninja world's allied forces while simultaneously trading with them and draining their resources.
Upon learning that the Mist Village's reinforcements were about to join, the previously low-spirited crowd regained their morale and offered suggestions one after another.
In general, they maintained a certain level of intensity in their attacks and then, after resting, launched another full-scale assault.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya seized the opportunity to convince another powerful ally to join the fight directly.
(End of Chapter)
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