The Hidden Stone ninjas who had been hiding revealed themselves one after another.
Since they'd been discovered, there was no choice but to fight to the death.
"Shun, look—this trick really works. Just a random shout and they all showed themselves."
"You—"
A blade flashed.
The Hidden Stone ninja who was about to retort had his head cut off.
"I say something and you just believe it? Haven't you learned anything about psychological warfare?"
"Takato, you're too despicable."
The ninja called Shun spoke up.
"Hey, Shun, be careful. This is what Kamito-sama taught us—never believe anything the enemy says in battle. Are you trying to provoke—"
"Watch out, someone's sneaking an attack!"
Uchiha Shun suddenly charged toward a Hidden Stone ninja.
Uchiha Takato stared in shock.
An enemy a hundred meters away trying to sneak attack me? Shun, that excuse is ridiculous.
This was just one scene in the pitch-black night.
Tōno Kōjirō, with Jinin at his side, weaved left and right through the battlefield.
Clang!
With a single slash, he forced back a Uchiha attacking from the left.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!"
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"
A spear of earth collided with a beam of lightning.
Dust exploded into the air, and when it settled, Tōno Kōjirō and Jinin had vanished.
Two Uchiha regrouped.
"Where did they go?"
"No idea. Let's sweep the area with ninjutsu first—what if they're hiding? That Hidden Stone leader's Camouflage Technique is incredible. If he hadn't tried to save that bald guy, we wouldn't have noticed him at all."
"True. I'll use Fire Release, you use Wind Release."
"Got it."
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu!"
"Wind Release!"
A dragon-shaped inferno, wrapped in spiraling winds, surged through the area, igniting nearby trees and blanketing the land in flames.
Five minutes later…
"Looks like no one's here."
"Let's put out the fire, then. If this whole forest burns down, we'll be in big trouble."
"Agreed."
The two Uchiha landed, preparing to use Water Release to extinguish the flames.
The ground suddenly transformed into two massive earthen hands.
"Ah—!"
In an instant, their bones were crushed.
They lay helplessly on the ground.
"Damn it… we got careless…"
Jinin rushed forward and finished them off with two swift strikes.
Afterward, he collapsed onto the ground, exhausted.
"Don't rest yet. We're not out of the danger zone. Get up and retreat immediately—and take their Sharingan. Those are priceless. With these two pairs, even if we were wiped out tonight, it wouldn't be a loss."
"Yes."
Jinin hurried to extract the two pairs of Sharingan.
The two of them quickly retreated toward the Hidden Stone base.
"I've got to hand it to you. How did you come up with enduring the flames just to take out those two Uchiha?"
"I didn't come up with anything. I just gambled. If we ran openly, there's no way the two of us would escape. With them harassing us, we'd eventually be surrounded."
Tōno Kōjirō applied medicine to his wounds.
Five minutes of burning flames—even with Earth Release chakra covering his body, it was still unbearable.
"So I decided to hide here. If they left right away, we could escape. If they got careless, I could kill them instantly. I didn't expect them to be so cautious—they even used ninjutsu to sweep the area. Luckily it didn't last long, and we endured it. Otherwise… things wouldn't have turned out like this."
Thinking back on it now, Tōno Kōjirō still felt a lingering fear.
If their ninjutsu had lasted just a little longer…
If they hadn't gotten careless…
But battles between ninjas are decided in an instant. There's no such thing as "what if."
(Some exceptions exist… like Kabuto, who fulfills dreams.)
"Still, Jinin, you're not bad. You actually endured five minutes of flames. Your strength has improved—I'm impressed."
Thud.
Jinin collapsed.
Tōno Kōjirō immediately stopped.
"Jinin! Jinin!"
He checked his breathing.
"So this was your limit… Jinin. I will take you home."
Tōno Kōjirō carried Jinin's body on his back and headed back.
Under the faint moonlight, it became clear—
Jinin's back had been burned into a charred mass of blackened flesh.
It was hard to imagine how he endured those five minutes.
...
On the Hidden Leaf side,
Uchiha Kamito stood before the two Uchiha corpses.
Behind him, the other Uchiha who had completed their missions gathered silently.
Seeing the scene, they said nothing, just stood quietly behind him.
"Look at this. So having three-tomoe Sharingan makes you so great, huh? Born into the Uchiha clan and you think you're invincible?"
Uchiha Kamito began angrily berating them.
"Every single one of you slacks off during training, yet can't wait to get onto the battlefield. You awaken a Sharingan and start acting arrogant, reach three tomoe and think you're above heaven and earth. Look at them—this is your future. Dead, nothing but corpses. And your precious Sharingan? Just slightly prettier trophies in someone else's collection. Go on, be arrogant—why aren't you arrogant now? Speak!"
His scolding left them speechless.
Only the blood-red three-tomoe Sharingan in their eyes revealed their inner turmoil.
"Take our their bodies back and lay them to rest. Tomorrow—anyone who doesn't kill five Hidden Stone ninjas can go to hell themselves and apologize to them."
"Yes."
"And tomorrow, if you see a Hidden Stone ninja with Sharingan eyes—kill him at all costs."
"Yes, Captain Kamito."
On the Uchiha side, it was two for fourteen.
Two enemies escaped.
They won… but it felt like a loss.
On the Hidden Stone side,
Tōno Kōjirō carried Jinin's body back to the base and collapsed onto the ground.
"Notify Kitsuchi-sama. I have important intelligence."
The guard quickly escorted Tōno Kōjirō to Kitsuchi's command room.
Jinin's body was respectfully placed in the morgue.
"Kitsuchi-sama… the enemy from the Hidden Leaf… it's the Uchiha clan."
"Alright, alright. Get some rest first. Don't think too much. We'll talk tomorrow."
"No, Kitsuchi-sama. The fifteen people who went with me are all gone. I'm the only one who came back. And one more died burned alongside me… If I don't say it, I can't bear it."
"I understand. I understand, Kōjirō. Don't worry. They're all heroes of the Hidden Stone. The village will remember them forever."
"Kitsuchi-sama… there's also this."
Tōno Kōjirō took out the two pairs of Sharingan.
"This… Sharingan? And three-tomoe at that. Kōjirō—you've done a great deed."
"Really? Kitsuchi-sama… I beg you, take care of their families."
"No problem. You know me—I always keep my word."
"That's good…"
After saying that, Tōno Kōjirō lost consciousness.
Kitsuchi quickly called for medical ninjas.
"This is a hero of the Hidden Stone. He's made tremendous contributions—take good care of him."
Sixteen went, one returned.
The Hidden Stone seemed to be the victor.
Sometimes, the line between victory and defeat in war is strangely blurred.