Chapter 138: The final battle
That was it. That single statement caused the bloodline resistance to kick into high gear as they made preparations for an all out decisive battle. All the noncombat members of the resistance were sent out of the land of water just in case they failed to win. Resources were being expended rapidly in hopes of pushing out even the smallest extra strength from those who would fight and my time got quite stressful as I had to repair the injuries caused by them pushing their bodies too far.-
I also of course made sure to keep my sensei up to date with the situation in what had to be the most direct game of telephone ever. Thanks to my main body being in Konoha still I could directly go to her office and pass on the information in person which made sure there was no misunderstandings about the contents. That part was VERY important as misinformation could lead to horrible complications as naturally some leaps in logic would be needed to fully understand a fragmented or short message. If these leaps went the wrong way it was very possible that it might kickstart a war or make one think that one was coming.-
Since my sensei could directly ask me for clarification on something though this issue was nullified. Anyways once she understood the situation my sensei created a few A rank missions to escort supplies to the resistance to help out. I wasn't all that surprised that Konoha was helping one side of this conflict at all as the hidden mist village had always been the most troublesome for us to deal with. The land of water was more or less a bunch of islands and that meant most of our fights with them in the only war we fought them in was on the ocean rather than land.-
While the land of fire didn't lack ships we most definitely didn't have the best or most abundant supply of war ready ships. The land of water being our neighbor certainly made us keep a wary eye on them as a result. As a result even an idiot could understand that supporting the VASTLY more peaceful bloodline resistance over the blood mist Mizukage faction for control over the village was well within our best interests. I also got an new order from my sensei that was a just in case type deal.-
"If the battle looks lost for the resistance I want you to step in to tip the scale back in their favor. If you can do so without revealing your true identity then do so but otherwise I'll be satisfied so long ad Yagura and his faction lose even if it means you must reveal our hand in the matter. They may lose some reputation in that case but it's a small price to pay." My sensei said seriously.
I nodded "If I just use water release jutsu's I should be able to play the part of a hidden resistance trump card. I doubt anyone there besides maybe Yagura could pose much risk to exposing my identity though. As for Yagura that aspect of the battle belongs to Terumi Mei and her people since she's the one who will take up the mantle of Mizukage and I shouldn't need to interfere as she is quite powerful and should be able to handle it." I say calmly.
She raised an eyebrow at that "Now that's high praise coming from you. Is it her dual kekkai genkai that make you see her so highly?" she asked curiously.
I nodded "For the most part yes. Boil release and magma release together make her an exceptionally troublesome foe to face for most as neither the ground or the air is safe while her physical abilities are easily elite jonin so she easily fits into the role of a powerful S rank ninja. Despite her quirks she is also a capable leader and strategist and thus worthy of respect to a degree." I said honestly.
My sensei took on a playful look "And if you had to fight her how well do you think she'd do?" she asked curiously.
"If I was serious or just playing around?" I asked for clarity.
"Tell me both." she said and I shrugged.
"If I played around with her she'd last a few minutes before dying and if I went all out from the start she'd die without even knowing how. I wouldn't even need to use a single jutsu." I said calmly.
She had an understanding look cross her face "So you are really on that level huh? I always knew you'd reach it eventually but I never thought it'd be so soon. I take it that snakes stunt gave you the last push you needed to reach there?" she asked and I nodded with an irritated expression at the mention of that incident.
"Normally I'd say that was worth celebrating but I know that revealing your strength like that would be a bad idea. For now I think it's best if you remain a hidden trump card of the village." she said and I agreed. With that done I rested at home with my main body while I remained busy in the camp without mentioning my new order to the resistance. -
I knew that with my show of power from before that if I said I would step in should the battle turn sour that many would assume that the battle had bad odds of working out to begin with and thus demoralize the resistances army. That was the last thing I wanted to do as I was well aware that morale is vital in battles like this, it was taught in the combat textbooks in Konoha after all. Still I subtly started showing my own preparations for the battle which tipped off the higher ups of the resistance of my change in stance.-
Don't underestimate the cleverness of the people at the top of the political ladder in this world, they were all vicious foxes that could make scarily accurate deductions with very little information. Not that they could be blamed after decades of underhanded tactics, sneaky plans and counterplans. Just knowing that if it came down to it I would step in was without a doubt a huge relief for the higher ups of the resistance. They weren't like the people from the Mizukage's factions that didn't care about if their comrades died or not, quite the opposite in fact.