"Green medicine... there's no instructions. It's such a simple name. Since this reward is connected to healing, it's probably some kind of medicine for treatment."
Kuroki calmed his mind and moved to the back of the team, growing increasingly curious about the reward item.
The mission system was always like this.
Missions were issued haphazardly.
Rewards were often abstract.
Kuroki glanced at the "mission list" and focused on the "main mission."
Whether it was the main mission or a side mission, once issued, it would be stored in text form in his consciousness.
*[Main Mission]: Night of Clan Destruction*
*[Options]:*
1. Kill the other Uchiha.
2. Successfully escape Konoha Village.
**[Reward]: (Plunder) Seize someone else's Mangekyō Sharingan, absorb their ocular power, and gain that Mangekyō's abilities.
They had already escaped Konoha.
But the mission wasn't complete yet. Kuroki guessed correctly—the system hadn't judged their escape as successful yet.
To complete the main mission,
Kuroki estimated
they might need the rogue Uchiha squad to be completely safe or to kill all the pursuers and get far away from the Land of Fire.
"Captain... Tamao's wounds are starting to bleed heavily again..."
The young Uchiha looked anxious, sweat beading on his forehead as he kept glancing back.
Tamao lay motionless on his back, his head, chest, and limbs wrapped in blood-soaked bandages, like a mummy soaked in blood.
Tamao was unconscious, his eyes tightly shut, his breathing visibly weak.
The other Uchiha stopped walking, looking at Tamao with urgency, recalling the overwhelming power of Danzo's high-level wind jutsu, shuddering at the thought.
Aside from his back, Tamao's entire front was a mess of shredded skin, as if he'd been cut a thousand times.
Uchiha Izumi's wide eyes were filled with worry for her clanmate. She blamed herself for not learning medical ninjutsu while in Konoha.
The Uchiha knew deep down.
No one would help them now, and there was no chance they'd come across a medical-nin on their path.
Tamao was most likely going to die along the way.
Kuroki furrowed his brows, focusing his spirit, and reached into the void.
His action puzzled the others.
A moment later, the group stared in amazement as two items appeared in Kuroki's hand out of nowhere, as though he had performed some mysterious space-time ninjutsu.
"Kuroki sure is full of surprises!"
Uchiha Naruki adjusted his black-framed glasses and murmured to himself.
Even Uchiha Mikoto looked shocked, despite still being controlled by Kuroki.
Kuroki pulled out a small black porcelain bottle and a soldier pill wrapped in yellow paper, extracting one pill from each and pushing them into Tamao's mouth.
The black porcelain bottle contained a medical pill that could actively stimulate chakra within the body.
He handed the two items to the Uchiha youth carrying Tamao and instructed, "Give him one every hour."
The young Uchiha took the bottles, and the others immediately breathed a sigh of relief, though concern quickly followed.
Kuroki was trying to flood Tamao's body with chakra to forcibly keep him alive.
This rough method was common during the Great Ninja War—if there were no medical facilities, they would force-feed dying soldiers with soldier pills to boost their chakra, prolonging their lives.
But everything comes at a price.
At most, a week.
If the dying soldier didn't receive medical ninjutsu in time, the chakra pathways, overstimulated by the medication, would be irreparably damaged.
And the soldier would die.
"He won't die for now. Keep moving; the pursuers are probably already on their way. If you don't want to die, run faster!"
Kuroki's expression remained calm as he turned and moved to the front of the group, continuing to lead the escape.
He had done what he could. Whether Tamao survived or not was up to fate.
"Take a rest, I'll carry him."
Uchiha Naruki took the medicine and Tamao from the exhausted young Uchiha and carried him on his back.
The young Uchiha's back was stained red with blood, and he quickly expressed his gratitude:
"Thank you, Captain Naruki."
Naruki reminded him, "Change your clothes and store them. The blood will leave a trail."
The young Uchiha nodded, grateful.
This young man was one of Tamao's subordinates, and he had assumed Kuroki would abandon their captain, given they were on the run. But Kuroki didn't do that.
That reassured him.
Even Captain Naruki, who had once had conflicts with Tamao, had set aside their past differences.
The Uchiha didn't know where they were heading, but a subtle shift was happening within the group.
...
At the outskirts of the Uchiha clan's territory.
Crows circled in the night sky, their raspy calls adding an eerie sense of death to the already cursed land.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado walked side by side toward the Uchiha district.
ANBU operatives were stationed at the street entrances.
The three wore grim expressions, contemplating how to handle the aftermath of tonight's events.
"Hiruzen, I believe we can blame the Uchiha clan's massacre on that rogue Uchiha squad."
Koharu spoke softly.
Her dull, yellowed eyes lacked any trace of emotion, firmly believing this was the best course of action.
Homura's eyes lit up.
He thought the plan was feasible.
Hiruzen Sarutobi felt that this "passing the buck" maneuver seemed oddly familiar. He merely glanced at Koharu Utatane without expressing an opinion.
Koharu, maintaining a calm and composed demeanor, continued:
"After the Uchiha clan was wiped out by the renegade Uchiha team, Itachi Uchiha tried to stop the massacre but failed. He is now a hero of Konoha. Hiruzen, with Danzo dead, Konoha is in urgent need of capable people!"
Hiruzen questioned, "If Itachi refuses to be made into this hero, are we going to use Sasuke to make him stay?"
Koharu squinted and smiled, nodding slowly.
Hiruzen flicked his sleeve, his voice cold:
"Itachi's personality would never allow him to accept being Konoha's hero in this way. Even if we use Sasuke as leverage, it's impossible."
Koharu's lips curled slightly as she leaned in close to Hiruzen, whispering a few words into his ear, right in front of Homura Mitokado.
Hiruzen's brows gradually furrowed as he fell into deep thought, faced with a difficult decision. He hesitated, unable to make a swift choice.
...
As dawn broke, at the Root headquarters, a six-member elite squad from Root quietly left Konoha.
They were Danzo's loyal subordinates.
After learning that Danzo had been killed by the renegade Uchiha squad, they took matters into their own hands and set out on a mission of revenge.
Leading them were Yamanaka Fū and Aburame Torune.
...
At the Uchiha compound.
The bodies of civilians lay scattered across the streets, blood pooling in the low spots.
Crows perched on the walls, their scarlet eyes calmly observing the area, as if waiting for something to happen.
Until Itachi slowly approached.
Whoosh—the flock of crows suddenly spread their wings and flew away, scattering black feathers as they took off.
Itachi walked only a few more steps before finding his target.
He saw Sasuke sitting against the wooden wall of a house, his head hanging low. Itachi activated his Mangekyō Sharingan:
"My foolish little..."
Sasuke remained motionless, his eyes closed.
"Hm?"
Itachi frowned and rubbed his eyes. His vision blurred, as though mist was clouding it.
His sight cleared.
Itachi was startled to find that Sasuke was unconscious.
(End of chapter)