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Because of Jiraiya's recommendation, and even more so because of Minato's own outstanding qualities, he had become the Third Hokage's confirmed choice for the next Hokage.
So, the members of Minato's bodyguard squad were undoubtedly powerful and reliable ninjas.
The bodyguard squad consisted of three people, all Jōnin without exception.
First, there was Haori. If you were to summarize his characteristics as a ninja, the first point wasn't his youth. His strength as a Jōnin was undoubtedly recognized, and his age was no longer something that would make people look at him differently.
What was Haori's first and most prominent characteristic? It was his "Lightning Release" and the high offensive power that came with it. According to the publicly available information, after a certain amount of time had passed, he could charge up a big move. When necessary, he could unleash it. Based on the current information, that move had extremely powerful single-target attack power. Once it hit an enemy, there was probably no one who could withstand it.
His second characteristic was sealing jutsu, specifically offensive sealing jutsu. In fact, it was just one sealing jutsu – the revised version of the Four Symbols Seal. Haori often used this jutsu as a big move in both offense and defense. Its advantage was that it was very difficult to counter. Its disadvantage was that it used a lot of chakra, and because its range was so large, it was easy to cause friendly fire. These two points limited its usage range.
Because of Kushina's teaching, Haori was also proficient in other types of sealing jutsu. But because many of them require preparation beforehand, they were not very applicable in a battlefield environment.
As for the other two members of the bodyguard squad, Haori knew them well and had worked with them on missions.
Besides Haori, the second bodyguard ninja's name was Shizune Yūgao. He was a bug controller from the Yūgao clan, a poker-faced ninja with extremely strong comprehensive strength. Objectively speaking, he was more useful than Haori most of the time. He was a rare all-rounder ninja, capable of reconnaissance, attack, and defense, and he did them all very well.
The Yūgao clan's bug control jutsu's role in attack and defense doesn't need to be explained. In addition, Shizune Yūgao could use the Parasite Bug for long-range reconnaissance and tracking. In certain special situations, this ability was more adaptable than the Byakugan of the Hyūga clan. At the same time, he could use different bugs for medical purposes, including healing, detoxification, and rapid wound healing.
Shizune Yūgao could attack, but he could also be a great support. Because of his comprehensive abilities and his exceptionally calm personality, during the Third Shinobi World War, he was one of the few ninjas who could often carry out missions alone, and his mission success rate was extremely high. To put it simply, he was one of the few ninjas who hadn't been surpassed by his son in the next generation.
The last member was Chōji Akimichi.
The Akimichi clan used the Expansion Jutsu, a special taijutsu that was also both offensive and defensive.
Unlike Shizune Yūgao, who had a lone wolf personality, Chōji Akimichi belonged to the fixed elite squad, "Ino–Shika–Chō," because of his clan and the need for cooperation. But in order to serve as a bodyguard, this squad was temporarily disbanded.
These two were both mature ninjas in their mid-twenties. Plus, Haori, who had the mind of an adult in the body of a teenager, they could basically form a mature fighting system.
In terms of squad composition, there was something more important than strength. Haori was Kushina's disciple, and he already had a close relationship with Minato. And Chōji Akimichi and Shizune Yūgao both came from the small and medium-sized ninja clans that were closely united with the Third Hokage. There was no problem with trust.
Plus, there was Minato Namikaze himself. The composition of this four-man squad could basically guarantee that they could operate smoothly on any battlefield. They could handle all kinds of missions and escape from major crises unscathed.
The new squad was several times stronger than the young ninjas that Minato had led before.
As for the surviving members of Minato's squad from the last battle, Jōnin, Kakashi Hatake, was ultimately sent to ANBU by Minato.
Given Kakashi's current state, he wasn't really suitable for active duty on the front lines. A 12-year-old ANBU ninja. This record would probably take a long time to be broken by a certain Uchiha… Perhaps Kakashi's purpose in life was to create young records one after another?
After the new Minato squad was formed, they quickly returned to the battlefield after a brief period of familiarization.
In the peace treaty signed with the Hidden Mist, Konoha didn't gain as much as it had with Sunagakure before. After all, the two situations were different.
But now, Konoha wanted nothing more than peace.
Over this period of time, the forces that had originally belonged to Orochimaru were gradually being transferred to Jiraiya's front line. From then on, all of Konoha's combat pressure was concentrated here.
After all, the Land of Fire doesn't border the Land of Water. After a later plan, only a small number of reconnaissance forces would remain here.
At this time, Konoha's enemies were only the half-crippled Iwagakure and the stubborn Kumogakure. Konoha's strategy was naturally to prioritize dealing with Iwagakure, which was at a disadvantage in all aspects.
Ninjas don't rely on supplies as much as ordinary people do in battle, but it's just a matter of whether they'll die in seven days or ten days.
More importantly, given the ninja casualty rate, they rely heavily on medical supplies. Without medical support, there is no guarantee of combat power.
So, after their supply lines were cut off, Iwagakure's large-scale supplies were no longer sustainable. Relying on small-scale supplies wouldn't be enough to maintain Iwagakure's stranded forces in the Land of Grass.
But now that the Kannabi Bridge Battle was over, they still didn't seem to want to withdraw from the Land of Grass.
For the Iwagakure ninjas, being defeated in this way was probably a very frustrating thing.
But this persistence was meaningless. Without supplies, there was no combat power. If Konoha just launched a small attack on Iwagakure's front line, they would realize how unwise it was to "know that something is impossible but do it anyway." Even the stubborn old man, Ōnoki, wouldn't do something that would waste thousands of ninjas.
What Konoha needed to do now was to charge at this front line.
"We're going to launch a surprise attack on the Iwagakure front line soon. And it's going to be an open, frontal attack. After all, we're not hiding our movements this time."
"In terms of numbers, we're only a medium-sized force compared to the enemy on the other side. But this attack, compared to the results of the attack, the most important thing is to show Iwagakure our determination to attack."
"Iwagakure must be cleared out of the Land of Grass."
"Next, our squad will be the first to take action."
Minato crouched down and spoke to Haori and the other three in front of him.
From his appearance, he seemed to have moved on from what had happened before. But even if he hadn't, he wouldn't be affected by it on the battlefield.
The Konoha ninjas carrying out this frontal attack mission numbered only about 800. Their strategy was to attack, engage, then retreat.
Then, they would repeat this cycle until Iwagakure couldn't take it anymore.
So, this operation was ongoing. And it was more of a continuous harassment than a continuous attack. Under this strategy, the Iwagakure forces, lacking medicine, food, and clothing, would ultimately have no choice but to retreat.
The Konoha ninjas' movements were not hidden. This was a true frontal attack. The other side already had Iwagakure ninjas moving about.
A counterattack was coming soon.
In terms of the specific division of responsibilities within Minato's squad, Shizune Yūgao's primary mission was reconnaissance and perimeter security. Chōji Akimichi was in charge of active defense. And Minato and Haori… were in charge of offense.
If you compared the Yellow Flash's deterrent power in each village, Iwagakure would definitely be the first. Besides, it was Minato's squad that had just destroyed their supply lines.
So, when Minato appeared on the battlefield at the forefront, it was clear that the Iwagakure ninjas on the other side were in a panic.
Then, Minato led Konoha's attacking forces to launch an attack.
Haori followed closely behind Minato.
"Is that Konoha's Yellow Flash?" Someone among the Iwagakure ninjas wondered.
"It's Konoha's Yellow Flash!" When Minato began scattering Flying Thunder God Kunai all over the ground and began to carry out his stealthy assassination activities, the other side finally confirmed his identity.
"Wait… that Lightning Release kid next to him seems faster than the Yellow Flash?"
"How is it possible for a ninja to be faster than the Yellow Flash!"
"I think they're about the same speed…"
"Actually, the Yellow Flash is still faster. If you look closely."
An Iwagakure captain-level ninja looked gloomy. He didn't say anything as he listened to all the nonsensical talk.
Well, he was the captain. He knew that reporting the situation was the most important thing right now. So… he turned and ran.
"Damn it, you idiots! The White Fang is with the Yellow Flash. Are you here for a picnic? Get out of here and stop talking nonsense! No matter who's faster, they're both much faster than you. Are you going to stand there and talk yourselves to death?"
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