"Orochimaru!"
Jiraiya suddenly turned toward Orochimaru, his face filled with shock and anger.
"What did you just say? The risk is controllable? Do you have any idea where that is? It's the border buffer zone near the heart of the Land of Rain!"
"That old man Hanzou's recent area of activity is right there. Sunagakure's forces are being held back by 'cunning harassment'? What kind of harassment would make Sunagakure formally request reinforcements?"
"This is likely a bait, or it's simply the elites led by Hanzou himself clearing out border threats."
Tsunade also stood to the side with her arms crossed, looking at Orochimaru with a solemn expression.
"Jiraiya is right. The intelligence there is vague, and Root hasn't updated its detailed reports on that area recently. Sending this already exhausted Uchiha team... if they really run into Hanzou..."
"There are no 'ifs'."
Orochimaru's voice remained calm. He walked to the table and picked up a scroll stamped with a special seal, its edges even showing some scorch marks.
It was a secret letter transmitted through special channels.
"This is the direct instruction of Sensei Hiruzen, along with the 'risk assessment' provided by Elder Shimura."
He unfurled a corner of the scroll in front of Jiraiya, enough for the latter to see the key parts.
Jiraiya's pupils suddenly constricted. He saw the analysis regarding the possible appearance of Hanzou in that area, and he also saw the cold words: 'If necessary, local forces may be sacrificed to test Hanzou's strength and exhaust his energy.'
At the bottom were the familiar code-seal belonging to the Third Hokage and Danzo Shimura's unsettling Root seal.
"Sensei... and Danzo..."
Jiraiya's voice was dry.
He understood the situation now.
"War requires trade-offs, Jiraiya."
Orochimaru put away the scroll, his tone indifferent.
"The Uchiha are a fine blade, but now, we need to use it to strike the hardest stone to see the stone's reaction and see if the blade will chip."
"This is a strategic consideration. Their arrogance? That is irrelevant. Their lives? In this war, every person's life and death can be calculated."
Tsunade clenched her teeth, her fists cracking.
Although she didn't like the Uchiha Clan, she utterly despised this behavior by Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura, which was clearly intended to harm the Uchiha Clan.
But she also understood that when an order came from the Hokage and involved high-level strategy, they, as frontline commanders, had very little room for questioning—especially when Orochimaru had already decided to execute it.
"But..."
Jiraiya still wanted to say something, but looking at the torrential rain outside the tent, he seemed to already see the terrifying figure the Uchiha team was about to encounter.
That man known as the 'Demigod,' Hanzou.
"No 'buts'."
Orochimaru turned back to the map and lightly pinned the area Uchiha Yashiro and the others were heading to with a black Kunai.
"The mission has been assigned. What we can do now is wait for the results and... be prepared to receive any news that might be sent back, whether it be a victory or a tragedy."
Orochimaru also knew that the current Konoha was no longer as pure as it once was.
He didn't want Konoha to become like this either; he also wanted Konoha to improve.
But... what could be done about it?
...In the desolate hilly region bordering the Land of Rain and the Land of Wind, rain washed over the exposed rocks, making them dark and slippery.
Uchiha Yashiro arrived at the mission's designated coordinates with over thirty clansmen. However, as far as the eye could see, there were only rain-soaked rocks and low shrubs. There was no sign of Sunagakure forces, and there were very few traces of any recent large-scale combat.
"Something's wrong..."
Uchiha Yashiro's heart sank. His Sharingan instantly activated, the Three Tomoe spinning rapidly as he scanned the surroundings.
The air was thick with a faint, oppressive pressure—a mix of rust and a certain unique fishy scent.
"Alert! Prepare to evacuate!"
However, it was already too late.
A figure appeared without warning atop the highest boulder in front of them.
He was tall, wearing a respirator mask and carrying a massive sickle connected by a chain. Rain fell on his dark cloak but seemed to be pushed aside by an invisible aura.
Just by standing there, a suffocating pressure enveloped the entire area.
"Salamander... Hanzou!"
Uchiha Inaho, another Elite Jonin in the team, called out that despair-inducing name with a dry voice.
The Demigod of the Ninja World!
This title itself represented peerless power.
Yashiro's heart pounded wildly, but his duty as captain overrode his instinctive fear. He made a split-second decision.
"Inaho! Cover the rear with me! Everyone else, scatter and evacuate! Save as many as possible! Bring the intelligence back!"
He roared, having already drawn a Kunai, his Sharingan dead-locked on Hanzou.
He had to let the others retreat. If it were any other Kage-level expert, they might have a chance if they all attacked together, but the person before them was different.
Salamander Hanzou.
Ganging up on him was completely useless.
These ordinary Jonin and Chunin were simply sending themselves to their deaths.
Though the Uchiha were terrified, they were well-trained. Upon hearing the order, they immediately split into several groups and retreated in different directions.
As long as they could pull away, facing a single person—even if it was Hanzou—there was always a chance... but that hope was instantly shattered.
Thud!
A dull, massive sound boomed, accompanied by a shock that made the earth and mountains shake.
A colossal beast with eerie purple-black skin, fangs, sharp claws, and bulging poison glands appeared.
Hanzou's summoned beast, the Salamander Ibuse, seemed to crawl out of hell, crashing down onto the Uchiha's main retreat route. Its massive body almost blocked the valley's exit, and a poisonous mist began to spread from its skin.
Despair, like the cold rain, soaked into the heart of every Uchiha.
A demigod in front, a giant beast and poison pool behind—this was simply a carefully laid death trap!
Just as Uchiha Yashiro's eyes were nearly bursting with blood as he prepared to risk his life to use a forbidden jutsu to gain a slim chance of survival for his clansmen—
A sudden change occurred!
"Moo—!!!"
A deafening roar of a bull, seemingly from ancient times, tore through the rain.
Everyone felt the mountain wall beside them shake violently. Rocks crumbled, and a massive black shadow with muscles like mountains charged out with unstoppable momentum. In a violent posture like a comet hitting the earth, it slammed hard into the side of Salamander Ibuse.
Boom!!!!
The terrifying sound of the impact made the earth wail, and the air pressure sent nearby rocks and rain flying. That massive creature was none other than one of the Ten Shadows Technique Shikigami, 'Piercing Ox'.
Even the Salamander, known for its defense and poison, let out a cry of pain from this sudden and terrifyingly powerful impact. Its massive body was actually forced to stumble sideways, opening up part of the path.
At the same time, two figures appeared like ghosts at the front flank of the chaotic Uchiha team.
Both wore animal masks to hide their faces and were dressed in Konoha-style dark combat uniforms.
One of them raised a hand to reveal a special metal token, clearly engraved with the Uchiha Clan's flame fan pattern, but at the center of the fan's design, a lightning bolt insignia was embedded.
This was the secret token Uchiha Shao Yu had designed to contact the Hawk Faction within the clan after establishing his position in Kumogakure.
Uchiha Yashiro and Inaho's Sharingan instantly caught this pattern, and their hearts were shaken to the core.
Before coming here, Elder Setsuna had told them about this pattern and instructed them to listen to whoever held it. At the time, the two of them didn't know who the elder was talking about or what they were supposed to do. Moreover, the other party appearing at this time with such a clear goal... "If you want to live, follow us immediately! Don't hesitate!"
Renka lowered his voice and barked, his tone urgent and unquestionable.
Yashiro and Inaho exchanged a glance. In a flash, their survival instinct, their shock at the clan crest token, and the mysterious yet powerful help before them made them reach a decision.
At this moment, they could only trust the people in front of them; otherwise, they would die here.
"Everyone! Abandon the original evacuation direction! Follow them! Move!"
Yashiro gave the order decisively, his voice reaching every clansman's ears via Chakra.
Though the Uchiha team was dazed, their captain's order and the sudden path to survival made them react quickly. As if finding their pillar of support, they immediately followed the two masked men, rushing toward the gap opened by 'Piercing Ox'.
Advance chapter available on pãtrêon Got1808