Chapter 317 Burning Heaven (1)

The rising sun leaps up from the horizon, breaking through the star-studded darkness. The plants with slightly yellow leaves are perked up and stretch their bodies hard to absorb energy. The fruits hanging on the branches are the result of their hard work for a season.

Arita Nananosuke pushed open the wooden door and walked out of the room, feeling the freshness and slightly pungent coldness in the air. He knew that autumn was coming in an ostentatious form.

In the rice fields in the distance, farmers who got up early were harvesting crops while chatting about family matters. On the winding country roads, several sensible children were walking with their prepared breakfasts. Everything was so beautiful and real.

This is the easternmost border of the Frost Kingdom. The population is sparse but the people are simple. There is not much arable land but life is peaceful. For thousands of years, people have reclaimed the mountains through the hard work of generation after generation and made a living on the hard land.

Arita Nananosuke was 48 years old at the time and belonged to the Konohagakure garrison, and had been in the Frost Country for five years. Their base was built on a small hill, overlooking the nearby Lightning Country. On the first and fifteenth day of every month, a logistics transport team would deliver supplies, and the living supplies were sufficient, at least twice as good as those farmers working in the fields.

"Good morning Captain."

Arita Nananosuke nodded slightly to end the greeting, picked up the telescope hanging on his chest and carefully checked whether there was anything unusual in the set traps. This was one of his daily tasks, and he never stopped regardless of rain or shine.

"Are the people of the Land of Lightning still honest?"

A young Konoha ninja squatted on the ground with a bowl in his hand, eating his meal. Hearing this, he replied, "Honestly, they didn't even come close to our side last night as a reconnaissance team. Captain, don't worry. Now that the Hokage is in charge of the village, what else can they do except be cowards? In my opinion, this exercise is purely a trick by the Raikage who is bored. We should just do what we should do. There is no need to pay attention to them."

The young Konoha ninja picked up a small piece of pork and swallowed it, then smiled with satisfaction and said, "The logistics department actually sent us fresh pork. In the past, they always used frozen meat to fool us. When Jiro comes, I will praise him. But by the way, Captain, if you don't hurry to the cafeteria, the pork will be gone."

Arita Nananosuke frowned and said, "Go get me some food. I won't feel at ease without you watching over me."

The young Konoha ninja left with a grumble, and a bowl of rice was brought back a moment later, with two large slices of fat on top: "I know you like to eat fatty food, eat it while it's hot."

Arita Nananosuke put down the telescope, took the aluminum lunch box, swallowed the greasy fat in one gulp, quickly took a few big mouthfuls of rice, and picked up the telescope to look around again.

The young ninja curled his lips and said, "I think we should just apply to the higher-ups to send a sensory ninja, so that you don't have to look around with a telescope every day."

Arita Nananosuke swallowed the food in his mouth and whispered, "What do you know? The sensory ninjas are the treasures of the village, so why would they send them here to starve?"

After a while, when the captain had finished his meal, the young Konoha ninja took out an exquisite flat-mouthed kettle from the ninja bag on his waist and handed it over with a smile. Arita Nananosuke opened it and smelled it without saying much, and took small sips of the strong liquor.

"Captain, please tell me your story. It's too boring to just sit here and watch."

Arita Nananosuke exhaled and said, "I knew you couldn't drink the wine for free. You're usually stingy like a miser, but today you suddenly became generous. It turns out you want to hear a story."

"Hey hey hey."

The young Konoha ninja was perhaps uncomfortable squatting, so he simply sat down on the frosted ground, his eyes full of interest.

"You are too young, and the village won the Third Ninja World War easily. You don't know much about the cruelty of war. Let me tell you..."

On this quiet and peaceful morning, the small outpost on the hill echoed with the calm voice of an old soldier, and a series of bloody stories followed.

"In the 26th year of Konoha, I was surrounded by the Rock Ninja in the Land of Fields..."

"In Konoha's 28th year, I had the honor of following the Third Hokage on a secret mission..."

It was almost noon when Aritani Nananosuke stopped speaking. He held the telescope with a bad look on his face. The young Konoha ninja was listening with great interest. He looked up in confusion and his heart suddenly tightened.

"gather!"

A sharp bamboo whistle sounded on the hill, and the team members who were busy with their own work hurried over. Arita Nananosuke ordered without turning his head: "Enemy traces have been found at the nine o'clock direction. Sound the alarm to warn them that they have crossed the border."

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

The alarm sounded shrilly, like the howling of the wind. Many farmers who were working stopped their work in confusion and their eyes were all focused on the hill.

The young Konoha ninja looked up, but found no trace of the enemy, only a thin mist hanging in the air.

Arita Nananosuke took off the telescope and threw it to him. Only then did the young Konoha ninja see through it that five ninjas were standing on another hill, which was already the territory of the Frost Country.

"Do we need to go over and drive them away?" asked the young Konoha ninja.

Arita Nananosuke thought for a moment, shook his head and said, "Keep calm, the enemy's motives are unclear, we just need to report the situation truthfully."

"But..."

"Listen to me!" Arita Nananosuke said without question, "The enemy outnumbers us, and there is no benefit in a conflict. Those barbarians in the valley have always been domineering. This time they held a military exercise for no reason, and it is possible that they are looking for an opportunity to stir up trouble. However, it is a good thing that they crossed the line. It would be strange if they continued the exercise peacefully."

Seeing the four subordinates looking puzzled, Tian Qizhi explained, "The squadron leader said during his inspection a few days ago that stability should be the priority at this stage, which means that something major is going to happen in the village recently. Although I don't know what it is, the fact that the village is so urgent that it has to withdraw troops from the border garrison to defend, shows its seriousness."

"You guys go set up more traps and use the remaining ninja tools and detonating tags."

Someone hesitated and said, "Using the stockpiled ninja tools and detonating tags during a non-war period will be a big hassle once the higher-ups investigate. We should just patrol more and not use those supplies."

Arita Nananosuke said meaningfully: "You can apply for more ninja tools, but I only have one life. I am the person in charge of the base. If there is any investigation from above, I will be the one to write the report."

"Yes!"

The three men left, and the young Konoha ninja swallowed his saliva. Arita Nananosuke walked up to him and slapped him on the back of the head and said unhappily, "Give me the telescope."

"Oh"

Reluctantly handing it over, the young Konoha ninja said, "Captain, the ninja world is peaceful right now. It's impossible for a real fight to break out, right?"

"Who knows!" Arita Nananosuke looked at the enemy in the distance and said, "There was no news before every Ninja World War, especially the last time. At that time, the Hokage was on a mission in Kikyo Castle, and the Sand Ninja army arrived at the city that day and directly besieged the city and started fighting without even the slightest sign. It's better to be careful. I have lived for decades and I don't want to die in confusion."

The young Konoha ninja shrank his neck and said, "I hope the ninja world will be peaceful. My mission will be up in one month."

The midday sun was a bit scorching. Arita Nananosuke stared at the enemy with a frown on his face. The young ninja asked, "Captain, why don't you go back to the village to rest? According to the regulations, you shouldn't have been stationed here a long time ago."

Arita Nananosuke said calmly, "My family is all dead and I have nothing to do when I go back. It would be good to see more scenery before I retire."

As he said that, he put down the telescope, and with a rare smile on his face, he said, "You have a handsome face, and you look like a rookie who has never suffered any hardship. Tell me the truth, are you afraid of a fight?"

“Scared to death”

Such a thought flashed through the young man's mind, and he straightened his back and said proudly, "What's there to be afraid of? It's just right that those barbarians are here. I can successfully be promoted to an elite Chunin by killing a few of them, and then my subsidy can be greatly increased."

Arita Nanashi shook his head and glanced at Ding Zhen and said, "You are a cowardly young man who has suffered too few offenses. When the village is handed over to you in the future, it will lack a bit of iron-blooded toughness."

"If the enemy comes roaring at you now, run without looking back. The farther you run, the better. Don't die in a daze."

The young ninja pursed his lips and said: "Captain, you look down on me. After all, I am a Chunin of the village. Even if the enemy attacks, it will not be a problem to kill a few of them."

Arita Nananosuke glared at him and said, "Be smart, boy. War is not a joke. The enemy will not come one-on-one. By then, our base may be besieged by hundreds of people. We will all die in a few minutes. I know you are fast and good at earth escape techniques. If it comes to that, I will order you to escape and at least inform the squadron."

"Don't we have ninja pigeons?" said the young Konoha ninja with his neck stiff.

"That thing is a sitting duck. The enemy has been keeping an eye on it for a long time. There is absolutely no chance that the message will be delivered."

The young Konoha ninja thought about it and felt panic inexplicably: "Don't scare me. With the Hokage here, the Kumo Ninjas will definitely not dare to provoke a dispute. One hundred percent!"

Arita Nananosuke didn't want to say more, and instead said, "You seem to be in great need of money. How come the whole family is counting on you to help them get by?"

"My father is bedridden and needs a large sum of money for his treatment every day."

"Don't worry about the money. I've saved a lot over the past few decades. When you get back, you can go to the village bank to withdraw the money. It will be considered as a loan from me."

The young Konoha ninja curled his lips and said, "Forget it. The captain has been wearing the same shirt for several years without changing it. He must be a pauper."

Then, he added with a smile: "He is an ugly, old, poor guy."

Arita Nananosuke laughed and scolded: "Get lost, I am a multi-millionaire, enough for you to be jealous."

Facing the tense enemy situation, the experienced Arita Nananosuke rarely joked. For him, he had lived enough life. He had enjoyed everything he should have enjoyed when he was young, and of course he had suffered all the pain he should have suffered. Although a ninja could die at any time, he still hoped that the timid boy behind him who was still on the front line could survive, at least to survive the coming autumn.

But things in the world will not change according to personal will, at least not because of the will of small people. The huge amount of money saved by Arita Nananosuke was not withdrawn in the end, and became one of the many bad debts of the bank. The young Konoha ninja also failed to return to the village he had been thinking about day and night, and failed to see his relatives who were worried about him.

On October 8th, the 48th year of Konoha, thousands of Cloud Ninjas gathered at the border brazenly crossed the border. In less than ten minutes, the nerve endings of the Konoha Village, which was at the forefront, were overwhelmed and five Konoha Ninjas were killed on the spot.

The ninja world was shaken, and a sky-burning disaster swept across.