Chapter 132: Return to the Village

On the Frontline Battlefield, after both sides had been locked in a stalemate for a while.

The Konoha ninja thought the Sand Ninja's chakra was nearly depleted, so they decisively launched an attack.

Facing Konoha's assault, the Sand Ninja were repeatedly forced to retreat.

Even using Ninjutsu could not stop the Konoha ninja from advancing.

Seeing the Konoha ninja draw near, the Sand Ninja had no time to form hand seals for Ninjutsu and were forced into close combat.

In close combat they had no advantage; they had no way to use the Poison Ink developed by Lian Ye.

As time passed, the number of dead Sand Ninja kept increasing.

……

Commander Matsuda learned the news and could no longer sit still.

After dispatching Sand Ninja from the camp to provide support, he then found Qiandai.

"Has the Antidote not been developed yet?!"

This time, he lacked his previous composure, and anxiety showed on his face.

If they still cannot develop the Antidote, defeat is certain!

The lethality of Konoha's poison is far too high; the Sand Ninja have no means to resist.

Hearing Matsuda's urging, Qiandai, who was working on the Antidote, trembled slightly, unable to even hold the herbs steady.

"Wait a little longer… I will soon be able to develop the Antidote,"

Matsuda, hearing this, looked at the pale‑faced Qiandai, furrowed his brows and asked, "Exactly how much longer is needed?"

Qiandai pressed her lips together, a faint glimmer of tears flashing in her eyes.

She has already been doing her utmost to develop the Antidote.

She has not slept for a day and a night, constantly trying to analyze the specific components of the Poison Liquid, yet has no clue at all.

Since the components cannot be analyzed, she will start from the Antidote.

She has crafted dozens of Antidotes, none of which can neutralize the Toxin.

This puts enormous mental pressure on Qiandai, especially as the battlefield commander constantly urges her.

The safety of the Sand Ninja has been placed entirely in her hands.

Yet she still cannot develop the Antidote…

This physical and mental pressure nearly drove her to collapse.

Matsuda, seeing Qiandai's condition was off, raised his voice:

"I can wait here for you, but the frontline soldiers can no longer wait!"

If the Antidote cannot be produced in time, the Sand comrades on the front line face death at any moment.

A slight slip and these Sand Ninja would be completely annihilated!

As the battlefield commander, he will not allow this to happen.

He can only hope that Qiandai can develop the Antidote.

Hearing this, the herbs in Qiandai's hands fell to the ground.

She turned her head toward Matsuda, eyes reddened, voice trembling:

"Matsuda-sama, I cannot develop the Antidote…"

Matsuda's pupils suddenly contracted, and a horrified expression appeared on his face.

"What did you say?!"

He did not expect the PoisonMaster of the Sand Ninja Village to fail to develop an Antidote.

How could such a thing happen?

Matsuda naturally assumed that, since Konoha could counter the Sand Ninja's poison,

they could naturally counter Konoha's poison as well.

He never considered that Qiandai might fail to develop the Antidote.

After all, both being geniuses, their abilities should not differ much.

It was merely a matter of time.

But Qiandai's words just now shattered his illusion.

"Sorry, Matsuda-sama, I simply cannot develop the Antidote!" Qiandai clenched her fists in frustration, tears streaming down her cheeks onto the ground.

She truly worked hard to decipher the poison's components, yet made no progress and could not analyze the poison's specific makeup.

Let alone develop an Antidote…

Sometimes she wondered, the one who created this poison.

Was it really a human?

Matsuda stared blankly at the girl before him, his mind instantly crashing.

Being unable to develop an Antidote means they have no way to fight back against Konoha's poison.

The only option before them seemed to be surrender.

The crucial point is that the war has barely begun, less than a week!

If they surrender like this, how will Wind Shadow view himself?!

At that time, this battlefield commander would be certain to die.

Regardless, they cannot surrender; at the very least, they cannot surrender now!

Thinking this, Matsuda's expression turned serious as he looked at the girl, "No matter what method you use, you must develop the Antidote for me!"

After a moment of silence, his tone softened slightly, "If nothing else… even a medicine that lessens the Toxin would do."

He now no longer hopes to fully develop an Antidote.

Qiandai wiped away tears, "I understand, Matsuda‑sama!"

Matsuda patted the girl's shoulder and said softly, "The safety of your comrades now depends on you."

Saying that, he turned and left the camp.

……

Frontline Battlefield.

With the arrival of Sand Ninja reinforcements, Konoha Ninja no longer launched attacks.

Both sides began a prolonged war of attrition.

Although Lian Ye's poison is strong, it cannot directly change the Battlefield situation.

After the Sand Ninja proactively increased the distance between the sides, close‑quarters combat became impossible.

On the Battlefield, Shuriken and Poison Needles kept flying.

The explosion of the Explosive Talisman rang continuously.

Thus, Konoha and Sunagakure opened a long‑term war of attrition.

……

Three months passed.

During this period, both sides' support constantly rushed to the Battlefield.

In three months, the Sand Ninja still had not developed an Antidote.

In the end they could only choose to change their combat method.

Konoha Ninja were very angry about the Sand Ninja's Turtle Shrink Flow Tactic.

They wished they could kill the opponent outright.

But the proposal was vetoed by Nairan Benhe.

Currently Konoha has gained absolute advantage on the Southwest Battlefield, so there is no need to take that risk.

Given this situation, Konoha will eventually win.

War is like that; unless one's strength absolutely crushes, it's a battle of attrition.

Fire Country is surrounded by enemies on all sides, and lacks sufficient troops to launch a general offensive.

They can only adopt this steady method, slowly wearing down the Sand Ninja's combat power.

Especially after gaining advantage on the Southwest Battlefield, the Village's support mostly went to other battlefields.

Nairan Benhe needs to be even more prudent in decision‑making, otherwise a slight misstep could cause a disastrous risk.

He has no need to take risky action; he only needs to defeat the Sand Ninja at minimal cost.

The war will not end in the short term…

The Four Great Nations are determined to carve up Fire Country's resources and will not easily abandon the invasion.

Since the Sand Ninja adopted the Turtle Shrink Strategy, neither side has launched large‑scale battles.

Every day they release Ninjutsu at each other and throw Shuriken.

It is so leisurely it hardly feels like a Battlefield.

Lian Ye leaned against a tree, leafing through the Theoretical Book in his hand.

Taking advantage of this period without fighting, he can finally read and study.

"I don't even know how long the war will last?"

While Lian Ye was pondering how many years the war would last, Commander Nairan Benhe came before him and handed over a Scroll.

"Renya Jonin, Hokage‑sama orders your squad to return to the Village quickly."

Lian Ye opened the Scroll, and after reading its contents, couldn't help feeling puzzled.

"What does this old kid want us to go back for?"

ps: one last time slacking off, tomorrow I'll write properly.