The Northern Land of Lightning

These were the winter months, and snow covered all of the Land of Lightning. In the northernmost regions, ice caps could be seen floating on the shore. Cutting through these ice caps came dozens of ships and transport vessels, all filled with soldiers. It was snowing lightly but the weather was calm, and the ships made their way to the coast. The shore was rocky, but there was a strip of land ideal for landing, and the ships sailed towards it.

The ship made a landing, and out of it marched thousands of soldiers. The equipment and supplies were carried off the ship and taken out, while other soldiers pitched tents and made a camp up on a nearby hill. The hill was very large and barren with rocks and brown-black soil. The hill was 500 meters inland, but you could still see the shore from the top. There were currently 5000 Roman soldiers on the beaches of the Land of Lightning, setting up camp on the barren hill. The Romans could not proceed with their invasion immediately after the landing, as the soldiers were tired from the long journey, so it was decided that the campaign would continue tomorrow. Today, they'll rest and draw up plans.

After about one hour, the Roman camp was fully set up and bustling with activity. A temporary palisade was also set up to give the camp a boundary and make sure that the horses, dogs, and some beasts of burden didn't run astray. This would seem too much for the commander of any other military force in the world or the shinobi continent, but this was a daily routine for a Roman soldier. They built this much or more anywhere they camped, and would tear everything down the next day in a matter of half an hour before moving on.

Several hours later

The Roman camp was all quiet now. All the soldiers slept soundly in their tents, while the ones selected for the night watch struggled to awake, working in shifts. Quintus Germanicus, the general leading this campaign, sat in his quite spacious tent which also consisted of a small but proper bed, as compared to his soldiers who used bedding and slept on the floor. The general was an old man, probably 59, and had a mild beard and small hair, a mix of white and grey. He wore casual clothes, for now, he had few wrinkles but a stern face that emitted authority and command. As for the name, the general had done nothing in Germany. It was now just the family surname after their ancestor Germanicus, who had received the title after several successful and decisive campaigns against the Germanic tribes.
The commander sat on a desk, studying a map of the Land of Lightning and surrounding nations under candlelight. The map mainly focused on the Land of Lightning and was very detailed. As Quintus studied the map, thoughts, and rough ideas began to form in his mind.

They were currently on the Northern coast of the Land of Lightning. It was not so cold here, but if they go inland the winter will get the better of them, so it's safer to travel along the coast. Not to mention the rough roads and mountain passes that will be inhabited by a populace hostile to them. There was also a medium-sized and two other smaller islands just across the coast here. But conquering them is fruitless, as they serve no strategic purpose to the campaign, have provisions to sustain their population barely, and will only buy Kumogakure more time to assemble a counter-attack against Rome. If they go along the coast, it will be a better path and they can also be provisioned by Roman ships coming from their provinces here, due to Rome's naval superiority, so it's the most viable option. The news might have reached the locals about the Roman invasion, so it is best to move at Lightning speed through the Lightning Country to catch Kumogakure by surprise

Quintus had also heard about Turtle Island, or Genbu, as it was called in the local language. He had heard from the officers here that there was a huge turtle on this continent, that was large enough to fit several hundreds of humans, other animals, and man-made structures on its back. The turtle was kept by Kumogakure and actively taken care of, and in return the turtle allowed Kumogakure to use its back as a training ground for the toughest of its shinobi. If the latest reports are right, Genbu is currently located off the southern coast of the Land of Lightning. If Quintus can capture this turtle, then it can be held hostage and used as a tool to end the war on favorable terms.

Thus Quintus swirled around his thoughts and ideas, attempting to form an excellent strategy that would win the war, earn him fame and glory, and his soldiers some plunder. The general was thus thinking when a soldier entered his tent, he saluted the general and spoke in a worried tone,

"Sir, there seems to be a large contingent of enemies just below the hill. They all have torches and seem to number roughly the same as us."

Quintus looked surprised and sat up straight on his chair, he thought for a while and answered,

"Wake up the men, tell them to put on their gear, and prepare to defend the position. I will join you outside in a minute."

The soldier saluted Quintus again and hurriedly went outside to spread the news. Quintus meanwhile, changed into his armor and prepared himself for the task at hand.

Below the hill where the Roman legion was camped was lit up by thousands of torches, that didn't seem to move. But the noises coming from down the hill told me these were people, hostile at the least. The Romans were now also awake, hurriedly putting on their gear and taking up their positions. They were all panic-struck in the heart, but their body didn't dare act as such after years of rigorous training. They simply did what was ordered with indifference and prepared to meet their foes.

Quintus came out of his tent, clad in armor, and made his way to the raised platform in the center of the camp. The different centurions were running about, addressing the soldiers under their command and issuing them orders. Quintus called the primus pilus, the best and most skilled centurion in the legion, who also led the best 120 troops in the legion; and tried to formulate a rough defensive strategy with him.

Quintus' eyes ran around the camp, searching for any possible advantage. It was already good that they were stationed on a hill, so the attackers were at a substantial disadvantage, having to climb up the hill before even engaging in combat. The palisade around the Roman camp was just about 9ft, but it was quite sturdy, and the attackers didn't seem to have any tools or siege weapons to break through the palisades, so they would probably concentrate their forces on the two entrances at the East and West each. The North and South parts of the hill were very steep and rocky, so Quintus didn't expect the enemy to come from that direction. If they did, they would have to face a rough climb and will be defenseless against Roman projectiles, so it is already safe if the enemy commander is a sane man. The enemy will concentrate its efforts on the entrances, and some might even try to climb the palisade with each other's help, so they must focus their attention on the Eastern and Western parts of the camp.

As Quintus thus thought out a defensive plan, he felt the Primus Pilus' hand on his shoulder.

"Sir, the enemy is advancing up the hill!"

Quintus snapped out and spoke to the centurion,

"Order all the Hastatii to defend the entrances, place the Princeps and Triarii at the flanks and around the palisade. The enemy soldiers may try to scale those pieces of rotting wood."

The Primus Pilus nodded and hurried towards his soldiers, shouting orders. Quintus himself looked down the hill, which was a little steep. The enemy was advancing up the hill, their torches in hand. As the enemy warriors crashed into the gates and palisade, it seemed like a wave of light had hit the dark, dim walls of night. The legionaries braced for impact, each centurion at the head of his century. As the enemy warriors got close enough, the legionaries took out their javelins and threw them at the enemy in three volleys, as every Roman soldier carries three javelins with him. These volleys were enough to deter the zealous enemy warriors, who slowed their charge and now advanced with caution, giving the Romans more time to prepare their nerves and minds for the combat. Some of the fresh recruits in the front row tried to get back behind the safety of their other comrades but were pushed back to the front by other legionaries who insulted them for their cowardice. As the enemy was just a few yards away from the Roman line, they put in front their shields and weapons and resumed their charge. The Roman soldiers held their shields tight to absorb the impact of the charge. The battle was happening in the night, and the mood was tense. Soldiers and warriors on both sides were bathed in sweat out of nervousness and not heat. No matter if a warrior is a newbie or a veteran, every soldier briefly doubts his decision to go to the battlefield just before entering combat.

The enemy warriors collided with the Roman line and started combat. The Roman soldiers fought defensively, trying to maintain their formation and hold back the enemy, while the latter were far more aggressive. The unit of archers at the back shot arrows into the dark with only as much force so that they might hit the rearguard of the enemy force. Some of the warriors tried to scale the palisade with makeshift ladders or with each other's support but were kept out by the Princeps and Triarii using spears.

Quintus, who was still on the raised platform and encouraging his soldiers to fight on, could now clearly see his foes. Most of them didn't carry shields, but a good portion of them were heavily armored and carried slightly curved, single-edged double-handed swords. Quintus could also see the leaders of the enemy forces who were at the back, judging by their extravagant armor, the iron masks they wore, and how it seemed they were also issuing orders to their subordinates. These must be the samurai warlords Quintus had heard and read about before the campaign. These were exceptionally trained warriors who were more than experts in single combat, while the Romans relied on discipline, willpower, and teamwork. Quintus had heard about the 'honor code' of these samurai, according to which these warriors were expected to fight till the last breath, and cowardice was punishable by death. In some extreme orthodox versions of this code, samurai were allowed and even encouraged to kill their comrades who ran away from battle. Overall, these warriors did not easily give up on the battlefield.

He also saw some lightly equipped troops among these exceptionally trained samurai. Quintus knew these lot, who were common among all the armies of the world. Peasants and common men were handed weapons and told to go and fight. These conscripts had poor morale and would begin to waver as soon as the bodies started piling up.

But Quintus still couldn't find those he was looking for, the famed 'shinobi' of this land. Quintus had heard about their inhumane abilities, being able to shoot out fire from their mouths, bend the earth to their will, and send out sharp winds that could cut through anything. Quintus was more interested than terrified in meeting them on the battlefield.

As he ran his eyes around the camp, looking for any ninjas, a kunai passed just by his face, inflicting a slight cut on his left cheek.