From Now On, You’re in Command!

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The Land of Rain—one of the most chaotic countries in the ninja world, possibly even the most chaotic of all.

"This weather is awful."

Upon reaching the border of the Land of Rain, it wasn't just Shikamaru Ei and Haruno Sakura who felt irritated; even Ronglin found it unpleasant. A drizzle persisted endlessly, occasionally intensifying into heavier rain. The sky remained perpetually gray, never revealing a glimpse of blue or the warmth of sunlight.

Living in such a wretched place, how could anyone not be poor?

There was nothing to sustain life here—no crops to rely on, no means of survival. Living in this land felt like an existence worse than death.

Ronglin was grateful to have been born in Konoha rather than the Land of Rain. Even though he wasn't particularly well-liked there, at least it was better than living here like a soulless husk.

"You'll get used to it after a few days. The rain here seems endless. There are very few days in a year when it doesn't rain."

Sakumo leapt onto a large tree, his blade flashing as he carved out a hollow in the trunk—just big enough for him to sit and rest. Seeing this, Ronglin and the others froze. Did this mean they had to create their own resting spots too?

Due to constant heavy rains, the Land of Rain was filled with foul-smelling mud pits everywhere. Finding a suitable place to rest was difficult, making tree hollows a decent option.

But one had to pray that lightning wouldn't strike the tree you were resting in during a thunderstorm.

"Mm." The three exchanged glances, nodded, and began working on their own hollows.

Sakumo's weapon was a broken blade, which was also why he was often referred to by that name. As for Ronglin and the others, they had to make do with kunai to carve out hollows in the tree trunks that were large enough for them to rest in.

Fortunately, the three had a natural advantage over Sakumo: their height.

For the first time, Ronglin felt that having the body of a child wasn't so bad. A small hollow was sufficient for him to sit and rest in, unlike Sakumo, who needed to find a much larger tree.

Thankfully, while this world lacked many things, trees were abundant. It wasn't hard to find ones thick enough for their needs.

Hollows in trees provided shelter from the incessant rain as well as protection from venomous insects and snakes on the ground.

I hate the rain!!!

The entire night was spent inside the tree hollows. The next morning, the first reaction of Ronglin and the others upon leaving their makeshift shelters was unanimous: Thank goodness it isn't raining right now. At least they could catch a brief respite.

"The morning dry spell gives us some preparation time."

Sakumo gathered the three together and spoke seriously. "Once we enter the territory of the Land of Rain, I only have a few words for you. Unless absolutely necessary, avoid contact with the people here—they're extremely xenophobic. Additionally, the shinobi of the Land of Rain excel in various forms of assassination."

The briefing had begun. Ronglin and the others listened intently to Sakumo's words.

"Our mission target is constantly on the move, so we need to track their whereabouts. A few days ago, they were less than ten miles away, but by now, they've likely moved. For this mission, unless absolutely necessary, I won't intervene."

"Huh?!" Haruno Sakura was startled and quickly protested, "But, Master Sakumo, if you don't intervene, how can we handle these people? They outnumber us greatly, and they have powerful special jonin and jonin among them..."

As she spoke, Sakura glanced at Ronglin. His previous use of the Sharingan to kill a chunin had left a deep impression on her, so she instinctively doubted whether their team could stand against the special jonin and jonin.

Elite chunin were already their upper limit, and Ronglin was the main force. She and Shikamaru Ei could only handle regular genin at best—facing even a chunin would be a struggle.

"So you need to use this." Sakumo cut her off abruptly, tapping his temple. Sakura's face flushed red with embarrassment.

"Don't underestimate your own strength or that of your teammates."

Sakumo gave the two a fleeting glance before addressing Ronglin. "Uchiha Ronglin, as the leader of this squad, it's up to you to analyze the enemy's intelligence and devise a targeted plan. Remember this—unless absolutely necessary, I won't intervene."

"Understood."

Ronglin nodded in acknowledgment and turned to the others. "First, we need to locate our mission target before we can gather intelligence and formulate a strategy. Uncle Sakumo, can you provide us with some information?"

Ronglin wasn't foolish enough to spout empty platitudes or declare that he'd handle all the strong enemies himself—that kind of talk was only for fools.

If they couldn't even locate the enemy or gather intelligence, then no amount of talk would matter.

"Good luck." Sakumo tossed a scroll to Ronglin and disappeared without another word.

"I'm starting to miss Lady Tsunade."

Haruno Sakura pouted, clearly losing the admiration she once had for Sakumo.

Breaking the simple seal on the scroll, Ronglin picked it up and began reading. This mission was now entirely in his hands. As for the other two, his greatest hope was that they wouldn't cause trouble—like getting captured by the enemy or getting injured in battle, which would only hinder him.

"This way." Soon, the scroll burst into flames, turning to ash. Ronglin took the lead, heading in a specific direction, with the "troublemaker duo" following closely behind.

Not far away, Sakumo quietly trailed the three from a distance—not too close, but always within range. He meant what he said: unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn't intervene.

He believed that under such rigorous training, the members of Tsunade's team would grow faster. Unfortunately, Sakumo overestimated Haruno Sakura and Shikamaru Ei, and underestimated Uchiha Ronglin!

What a hassle. When Ronglin and the others finally arrived at the location indicated in the intelligence, they discovered that the enemy had already moved!

This forced Ronglin to gather whatever useful information he could on-site and begin tracking their trail. At times like this, he wished he had a pack of ninja hounds like Kakashi. The rain washed away too many traces, making tracking significantly harder.

Kakashi's ninja hounds came to mind, but alas, Ronglin didn't have any. With a sigh, he pressed on, relying on his Byakugan to observe distant targets unnoticed and expand their search radius.

"The rain washes away too much—especially footprints. How are we supposed to track them?"

When it came to tracking, both Shikamaru Ei and Haruno Sakura were completely lost. Ronglin could only rely on himself and the tracking techniques Lady Tsunade had taught him.

The only silver lining was that a large group like this, even when relocating, would still leave behind plenty of clues.