The Suna brass didn't give the "Sandstorm" squad any time for a warmup. The shadow of the Third Great Ninja War was moving too fast for that. Almost as soon as we left the mission hall, our orders hit our internal mailboxes: patrol 50 kilometers of the northeastern border, scout for enemy signatures, and eliminate any reconnaissance units.
It was a cold, efficient command. No tactical briefings. Just a map and a mandate: Transmit intelligence in real-time.
Captain Iryō looked grim. I could tell he wasn't happy about babysitting three Genin in a potential war zone, but in this village, military orders are the supreme OS. You don't argue with the kernel.
"Listen up! Keep the pace and stay alert," Iryō barked as we hit the open dunes. "Shiori, you're our radar. Focus on your sensory range! Lucado, left flank! Sayo, right flank, deploy your puppets and expand our line of sight. Maintain radio silence!"
He shot forward like a gust of high-pressure air. Shiori looked terrified but locked in, her sensory chakra beginning to pulse. Lucado snorted, clearly annoyed that Iryō was already relying on my "tech," but he fell into position.
I didn't waste breath on a comeback. I just formed a quick seal.
Poof.
The Spider MK 2 appeared on my shoulder, its wooden legs clicking as it locked onto my chakra frequency. It slipped into a rock crevice and began its high-speed scouting loop, feeding me terrain data and heat signatures from 500 meters out.
The first few hours were a slog. The Gobi Desert is basically a wasteland of jagged rocks and shifting sand. Iryō was a pro, he knew how to avoid the "ambush-friendly" terrain before we even reached it. Shiori flagged a few sand wolf packs, and Lucado used his Earth Style to build us a temporary bridge across a ravine.
But I was the one who saved us from the "Blue Screen of Death."
The Spider MK 2 flagged a tripwire logic-gate, a hidden exploding tag buried under a thin layer of shale. Had we walked over it, the squad would have taken a massive hit before the mission even started. Iryō's eyes lingered on the little wooden bot for a long time after that. He was starting to see the "specs."
Then, we hit our first real encounter: a group of rogue ninjas trying to bypass the border. Probably mercenaries hired by a rival village to test our response time.
"Hostiles! Engage!" Iryō roared.
He moved first, his Wind Release: Vacuum Orb suppressing their leader with terrifying precision. Lucado followed up with Earth Spear, forcing the flankers to scramble.
Shiori, however, froze. She missed her kunai throw, and a rogue ninja saw the opening. He ghosted out from the shadow of a rock, his blade aimed straight for her "lower-tier" defense.
"Target identified," I muttered.
I didn't have to think. I'd run this simulation a thousand times. I jammed a hand into the sand.
Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu.
I didn't sink. I sent the "soften" command directly under the enemy's feet. He stumbled as the solid ground turned to mud. That split-second lag was all I needed. I ghosted into his blind spot, my palm glowing with high-frequency wind.
Wind Style: Gale Palm.
Crack!
The shockwave hit his ribs like a sledgehammer. He flew backward, his internal organs likely taking a critical error, and hit a rock hard. Neutralized.
Iryō looked over, his eyes showing genuine surprise. I hadn't just used a jutsu; I'd used a combination. My reaction time was better than most Chunin.
Later, while we were clearing the field, Lucado was clutching an arm cut from a stray kunai. It wasn't deep, but he was bleeding.
"Stay still," I said, squatting next to him. My hands began to glow with a soft green light.
Medical Ninjutsu: Healing Technique.
It wasn't a master-level patch, but I stopped the bleeding and accelerated the cellular repair. Lucado looked at me, his "clan-kid" ego finally crashing. "...Thanks," he muttered.
Iryō completely dropped his prejudice after that. He realized I was a "Monster Build" - scouting, combat, and medical support all in one eleven-year-old package.
Over the next few days, we became a firefighting team. We patrolled, we intercepted, and we escorted intelligence. Sayo was no longer just the "apprentice", I was the squad's utility knife.
I used Earth Flow Wall to cover our retreats. I used the Spider drones for 24/7 surveillance. I used my medical knowledge to keep the squad at 100% health.
I even used a micro-burst of Magnet Release to disrupt an enemy's kunai trajectory during a midnight skirmish. No one saw it, but the "anomaly" saved Lucado's life.
The crucible of war was finally doing what the Academy couldn't. It was taking my years of theory and forging them into a weapon. Captain Iryō started looking to me for tactical input. Shiori started looking at me with hero-worship. And even Lucado had to admit that the "Ghost of the Workshop" was the strongest one among them.
I was no longer just a genius in a room. I was a Ninja of the Sand. And the war was just beginning to realize who I was.