Enemies Across the Sea

"What should we do now?" Daichi looked at Gaku, bewildered.

Gaku glanced at Shintaro, who turned and said, "Let's conduct a thorough search of the Land of Forst first. I'm concerned they might be hiding in a secluded spot."

Hizashi then said, "Don't worry, no matter how hidden the place is, it can't escape the sight of the Byakugan."

Shintaro nodded, seeing Hizashi's confident gaze, "Alright, then it's up to you."

They searched through the forests in the southern part of the Land of Forst. After searching all night, they confirmed that the Kumogakure ninjas were not hiding there.

"Further north, there are hills and flat plains. The Kumogakure ninjas wouldn't hide there, would they?" Gaku was slightly confused.

Having frequently traveled abroad for missions, he was quite familiar with the terrain of the Land of Forst.

"Maybe... the enemy's speed isn't as fast as we expected." Hizashi guessed.

Shintaro thought for a moment and said, "Whatever the case, the remaining areas need to be carefully inspected."

Hizashi didn't object and rubbed his eyes silently. Using the Byakugan all night was quite exhausting.

Shintaro noticed Hizashi's predicament and thoughtfully said, "Take a rest first, I can also sense ninjutsu, let me handle it from here."

Hizashi agreed.

Shintaro then used his Six Eyes to investigate.

Although he couldn't see objects ten kilometers away as clearly as in front of him like the Byakugan, he could still clearly detect disturbances within several hundred meters.

Moreover, the terrain in the northern part of the Land of Forst had wide-open views, not requiring overly meticulous inspection.

The group busied themselves, and after several searches, they confirmed there was indeed no trace of Kumogakure ninja invasions in the Land of Forst.

"It seems the direction of the Kumogakure ninja attack is not here." Gaku sighed in relief.

Shintaro nodded slightly and said, "But there's still the coastline we haven't checked."

By morning, they stood on a hilltop, able to see the deep blue color in the north from afar.

Everyone felt that the Kumogakure ninja would not attack the Land of Forst.

The reason was simple: time was the most precious thing on the battlefield.

The Kumogakure ninja forces set out at the latest the day Konoha attacked the camp at night. It had been three days since then, and they would have arrived long ago if they intended to attack.

"The sea! I've never seen it in my life!" Daichi looked into the distance, excited.

Isamu adopted an elder's demeanor and said, "You have a long life ahead of you; there will be many opportunities in the future."

Takuto leaned his head with one hand, covered his mouth with the other, and yawned, "It would be so nice to sleep on the beach with the sea breeze."

Gaku shook his head helplessly but didn't stop their banter. He knew his team had gone through an intense night of searching and needed to relax.

Hizashi obediently said, "I'll accompany you to search the last beach and then leave."

Shintaro nodded in greeting and said, "Thank you all for your hard work."

Initially, he thought they would definitely face enemies in the Land of Forst this time.

After all, by invading the Land of Forst, Kumogakure could attack the defense line on the border between the Land of Forst and the Land of Fire and penetrate directly into the heartland of the Land of Fire. When Kumogakure retreated, they could surround Konoha's northeastern defense headquarters with Kumogakure's main forces and join forces. Logically, it was the perfect choice.

However, the current situation seemed to indicate otherwise.

Kumogakure might have other considerations.

So Shintaro began to ponder if invading another place had advantages surpassing those of invading the Land of Forst.

He still couldn't figure it out.

Attacking the southeastern part of the Land of Rivers or directly attacking the Land of Fire's coastline, although it seemed to avoid the two Konoha forces stationed in the northeast, it also put themselves in danger.

The Northeastern forces led by Orochimaru didn't guard the defense line, but it didn't mean there was no one guarding it.

Another of Konoha's Sannin, Jiraiya, was stationed in the east and southeast of the Land of Fire, responsible for guarding against Kirigakure.

The western part of the Land of Fire was guarded by Tsunade, the only medical ninja among the Sannin, responsible for countering Sunagakure, which excelled in using poisons.

If the Kumogakure ninjas attacked in that direction, they would definitely be intercepted by the forces led by Jiraiya.

Moreover, that direction was far from Kumogakure's main forces. Instead, the Kumogakure ninja force would become a single unit, easily surrounded and suppressed by Konoha.

However, no matter what, Shintaro had completed his mission.

As for the specific movements of the Kumogakure ninja forces, it was better left to other investigative teams to find out.

Perhaps other teams had already encountered the Kumogakure ninja forces, Shintaro thought, as he and the investigative team headed to the beach.

The group arrived at the beach in the Land of Forst.

The morning sunlight softly illuminated the sea's surface, and the moist, cool sea breeze blew against their faces. Daichi opened his arms to welcome the sea breeze. Except for his not-so-handsome appearance and monkey-like yell, the scene was quite picturesque.

Isamu relaxed and looked at Daichi's back with a gentle expression, "This kid..."

Takuto shivered slightly, "Sure, it's still no good. The weather's a bit cold, so I won't be able to sleep soundly..."

Gaku stepped out and said, "Since the mission is complete, I allow you to relax a bit."

"Long live the captain!"

"Yeah!"

Daichi and Takuto cheered, and Isamu completely relaxed, enjoying the sea breeze like Daichi.

Hizashi's personality clearly didn't match the current relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.

Hizashi said to Shintaro, "Now that we've confirmed no trace of Kumogakure ninja invasions on the beach, I'll head back."

Gaku advised, "No need to rush."

Shintaro was silent for a moment, then said in a very serious tone, "Hizashi, use your Byakugan to look across the sea."

The sudden words made everyone's relaxed mood feel like falling into an icy cave.

Hizashi immediately formed a seal and activated his Byakugan. Veins bulged around his eyes as he stared straight out to sea.

His expression suddenly changed, "Across the sea... there are enemies!"

In the sea five kilometers from the beach in the northern part of the Land of Forst, a large fleet of dozens of transport ships was sailing on the sea.

On the deck of the leading transport ship, a dark-skinned Kumogakure ninja wearing a half-sleeved white vest approached the bow. He held onto the railing and shouted to the sea below, "Bee-sama! We're almost there. You can land in ten minutes!"

In front of the fleet, a huge monster appeared from the sea.

The upper body of the monster looked like a bull, with two horns on its head, but the lower body had eight giant octopus tentacles, splashing out of the water from time to time.

"The sun is up, but we haven't arrived yet, Bakayaro konoyaro!"

"If Aniki finds out, there will be punishment, yoyo!"

The giant monster gradually transformed into the form of a young man, or rather, merged into the young man's body.

This monster was Hachibi, the Bijuu of Kumogakure, and the young man was Killer Bee, Hachibi's Jinchuuriki.

Killer Bee rapped with a strange accent. His dark skin showed beneath his half-sleeved white vest, revealing an iron tattoo on his right arm. "Gyuki, it's all your fault for wanting to play in the sea, causing us to be delayed by a whole day, Bakayaro konoyaro!"

In his spiritual world, Hachibi's voice was heard, "It's not easy going to the sea... Wait, Bee, there's an enemy on the beach."

Killer Bee looked into the distance and spotted several tiny black dots.

"When we meet the enemy, we unite. My killing intent is my courage. How positive it is."

"I'm great, yeahhh!!!"

He made a six-plus-one gesture, looking somewhat drunk. After that, he left his fleet and headed towards the beach.