Chapter 52: Never Seen Such an Excellent Commander

Yamanaka Chujiu returned Shisui's smile, then said softly, "Everyone has done well. Take a moment to rest, then we will continue forward."

"Remember, you must continue to strictly follow orders. No unauthorized actions."

"Yes! Lord Yamanaka Chujiu!"

The Konoha Ninja gathered around Yamanaka Chujiu, their eyes filled with trust and awe.

The previously unconvinced Illusion Squad leader, Yuuhi Manzao, now took the initiative to step forward.

His attitude was respectful and cautious as he asked softly, "Lord Yamanaka Chujiu, was it you before as well?"

Yamanaka Chujiu looked at the Konoha Ninja before him and nodded gently, saying, "It was me."

Except for the three Uchiha, the others were veterans of the North Front who had experienced consecutive defeats and had also witnessed Yamanaka Chujiu's miraculous command.

Hearing Yamanaka Chujiu's admission, they let out excited, low growls: "That's amazing!"

The sound of the growling was soft, but their emotions were near-manic.

Being a ninja is a profession of licking blood off a blade, especially during wartime, where one could be killed at any moment.

There is no ninja who does not like a commander who can lead them to win battles.

And a commander like Yamanaka Chujiu, who could not only lead them to victory but also keep their lives intact—what difference was there between him and a savior deity?

The fanaticism and mania of the Konoha Ninja were only natural!

Only the three Uchiha, having just been transferred from the East Front, did not know the specific situation; the intelligence reports they had heard were nothing but retreat, retreat, and more retreat.

They had assumed the North Front was faring terribly and was on the verge of defeat.

Even Shisui Uchiha, who knew Yamanaka Chujiu best, was completely bewildered at this moment, failing to understand why everyone else was so excited.

Yamanaka Chujiu gave Shisui a look, signaling him not to ask.

Then he said softly to everyone, "I will need everyone's hard work for what comes next. As long as we successfully infiltrate, we can destroy the Cloud Hidden supply center by noon today, and this war will be won."

"I will do my utmost to complete the mission and bring everyone home."

His voice was not loud, yet it carried an unquestionable confidence that gave every Konoha Ninja a sense of certainty.

Fifteen minutes later, the Konoha assault force set out once more.

Yamanaka Chujiu still walked at the very front, his Mind Severing Realm perception spread out, making the map in his mind even more precise and clear.

The Konoha Ninja held senbon in their mouths again; they were silent, morale high, yet their emotions were exceptionally stable, acting according to orders without the slightest deviation.

Thirty-one Konoha Ninja moved through the Cloud Hidden defensive lines; the dense hidden sentries, patrols, and traps seemed not to exist, and the team never exposed the slightest trace.

As a streak of cyan-white appeared on the eastern horizon, the Konoha Ninja crossed the defensive lines of the Cloud Hidden Army.

Under Yamanaka Chujiu's command, they spat out the senbon from their mouths, quickened their pace, and rushed toward the north with the speed of a lightning bolt.

The Uchiha Squad took on the task of guarding the rear.

Even after the gag order was lifted, the three Uchiha did not speak.

It was not until the assault force bypassed several supply transport convoys, only to precisely raid a convoy transporting Explosive Tags at 10:15, seizing enough to blow up a fortress, that they reacted.

Uchiha Yashiro could no longer hold back and whispered in admiration, "This, this is simply a miracle!"

Uchiha Tekka also let out a long sigh of relief: "Captain Yashiro, I think so too."

Not to mention Shisui Uchiha; his faith had become even more devout, and he did not even know what words could express his excitement.

In fact, within Yamanaka Chujiu's Mind Severing Realm, he had already sensed many sources of faith directed at him.

But the gap between their worldviews was too great; the faith connection could not condense into form, nor could he draw in this massive amount of Faith Power.

Yamanaka Chujiu understood that this was the strongest ability of the Mind Severing Realm.

If he were to connect to faith indiscriminately, when a massive tide of faith carrying all sorts of chaotic thoughts surged into his mind like a tsunami, could he, Yamanaka Chujiu, truly preserve his own soul?

No!

Throughout history and across the world, how many illustrious gods of faith have become unrecognizable to themselves under the impact of the tide of believers' faith?

Not to mention those barbaric Western gods, even the famous Guanyin Bodhisattva was changed by the prayers of believers, shifting from the standard male form to a female deity, eventually becoming the Giver-of-Children Guanyin.

Given Yamanaka Chujiu's appearance, there was no guarantee that some pervert wouldn't worship him and harbor unspeakable, twisted intentions.

As time went on, Yamanaka Chujiu might well change his gender and become a living Bodhisattva.

Just thinking about it was terrifying!

One must know that a god's image change originates first from the soul and divinity; if forcibly twisted into such a shape by Faith Power, the god's own heart would surely have changed a step earlier.

Fortunately, there was the Mind Severing Realm as a firewall!

Yamanaka Chujiu felt secretly relieved, quickly focused his attention, and traveled with his whole heart.

One hour, two hours, three hours...

Finally, in the perception of the Mind Severing Realm, dense red dots appeared in the north; the Cloud Hidden Army's logistics center had arrived.

Yamanaka Chujiu stopped his steps and issued the order: "We have arrived. Begin concealment and rest now; we launch the assault in one hour!"

Hearing the order conveyed by the Communication Snake, all the Konoha Ninja did not hesitate and immediately set up a temporary camp.

A mixed reconnaissance squad moved out to scout, while another reconnaissance squad set up a perimeter guard on the spot.

The other Konoha Ninja took out food and water, filled their stomachs as quickly as possible, and then fell asleep.

They had to seize the time to recover their physical strength, spirit, and chakra as much as possible to launch the final assault in their strongest state.

But Yamanaka Chujiu did not sleep; the knowledge from his past life told him that a commander in war bears the lives of all his comrades and has no right to rest until victory is in hand.

The leader of the mixed reconnaissance squad responsible for the perimeter, Inuzuka Ryo, heard the long, steady breathing of his companions and saw Yamanaka Chujiu standing on a treetop, watching the Cloud Hidden supply center thousands of meters away, and was filled with deep emotion.

He said to his subordinates: "I have been fighting for ten full years since the Second Shinobi World War began. I have seen Lord Hatake Sakumo, Lord Orochimaru, Lord Jiraiya, and Lord Minato Namikaze, but I have never seen a commander like Lord Yamanaka Chujiu."

His team member Aburame Yi nodded silently, while Hyuga Masayoshi asked in disbelief: "Captain, are you saying Lord Yamanaka Chujiu is more formidable than all those lords?"

Inuzuka Ryo shook his head, then nodded: "In terms of ninja strength, Lord Yamanaka Chujiu is certainly not as good as those lords."

"Lord Hatake Sakumo is sharp beyond compare, Lord Jiraiya is like a great mountain, Lord Orochimaru is eerie and terrifying, and Lord Minato Namikaze is peerless in the world; Lord Yamanaka Chujiu is far inferior to them."

"But when it comes to battlefield command, Lord Chujiu crushes all of them."