"This is impossible!"
Obito shouted in outright refusal.
"Whether we cooperate or not is something we can discuss—but I will never agree to place Rin's safety in your hands!"
His scarlet Sharingan eyes burned as if they were about to spit flames. The only reason he had not already attacked was because of their failed rescue attempt earlier; with no assurance of saving Rin right now, he was barely managing to restrain his murderous impulse.
Even so,
Hearing Kyoichi's words,
he still could not accept Rin being held hostage.
"Uchiha brat, I'm not negotiating with you." Kyoichi's voice was calm, deliberate. "What I said earlier was notification, not consultation. Whether you're willing or not, it doesn't matter. If you don't want something unfortunate to happen to your comrade, then obediently strike this bargain with me. Otherwise… a pawn with no use has only one fate—disposal."
It was a threat, spoken smoothly, without even the faintest fear that these two boys might lash out in desperation.
After all—
Kakashi aside, Obito was the type who would overturn the whole world for Rin's sake. To an Uchiha consumed by love, even the entire world weighed less than the one they cherished. For their beloved, betraying their teacher, slaughtering their kin, even destroying the world itself—none of that was unthinkable.
As long as he held Rin in his grasp,
then he held Uchiha Obito in his grasp as well.
And with that leverage… came another chance to negotiate with Namikaze Minato.
"You…"
Obito ground his teeth, wishing nothing more than to leap forward and tear the flesh from Kyoichi's bones.
But he couldn't.
With Rin clutched in Kyoichi's grip, he dared not act rashly. One wrong move, one more failure—and if Kyoichi really harmed Rin… no, he couldn't even allow his mind to brush against that possibility. The very thought scorched his heart and burned his insides, leaving him in unbearable agony.
At that moment—
"We can't decide for our teacher."
Kakashi's voice cut coldly through the air.
"And besides, Obito and I are just ordinary shinobi of the village. We can't shoulder the crime of colluding with Iwa-nin. So… stop talking about cooperation."
"The son of White Fang, and a Uchiha brat—just 'ordinary shinobi'? Konoha… truly terrifying."
Kyoichi let out a soft chuckle, but his tone hardened again:
"Still, I understand what you mean. Cooperation is just a label, nothing more. I never expected to sign some written contract with you. From the beginning, all I wanted was to rescue my clansmen."
"Obito. We should resume the mission."
Kakashi's gaze shifted to his comrade.
"But Rin…"
"Rin is safe for now. What matters most is finishing our mission. Once we've done that—once the war with Iwa-nin ends—our teacher will be free to help. As bitter as it is to admit… Obito, just the two of us can't deal with this guy."
Kakashi made no attempt to hide the venom in his tone when speaking of Kyoichi.
Kyoichi, for his part, didn't care.
From the moment he chose force, he never expected to build a friendly relationship with Konoha's shinobi. As long as he achieved his goal, it didn't matter if Kakashi and Obito came to hate him. His destiny was not in Konoha anyway.
"…I understand."
Obito clenched his teeth.
Just as Kakashi said, they could not save Rin with their own power. If they wanted her to live, the only choice was to accept Kyoichi's coercion. In truth, Kakashi's willingness to compromise was almost a relief—if Kakashi had stood unyielding in refusal, that would have been far worse.
"Well then, since we're all agreed… let me tell you about the defenses around Kannabi Bridge."
And with that,
Kyoichi poured out every detail he knew of Kannabi Bridge's defenses like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.
After a fierce round of debate, the four reached a plan of action.
Then—
They set out immediately.
With Rin slung over his shoulder as a "captive," Kyoichi fled toward Kannabi Bridge, with Kakashi and Obito in pursuit. Since Enkō's patrol squad had been reduced to only Kyoichi as the sole survivor, and Iwa had not yet received news of that squad's near-total annihilation, their path to Kannabi Bridge was strangely unobstructed.
Until—
Less than three kilometers from Kannabi Bridge, they ran into a twelve-man Iwa strike force.
At their head was a special jōnin named Sumashi—a serious, supremely confident man.
"Sumashi! Save me!!"
The moment Kyoichi saw the force of Iwa-nin, his pupils contracted sharply. Then his expression blossomed with the joy of a man glimpsing salvation. He shouted desperately, "I'm being hunted by Konoha shinobi—hurry and save me!!"
"Koeda Kyoichi?"
Sumashi recognized him at once.
Though they weren't close, there were only so many jōnin stationed with the Iwa army in the Land of Grass. Even without personal acquaintance, it wasn't hard to remember some basic information. And with the Koeda Clan down to just four surviving jōnin, all of them had become "household names." Forgetting them was impossible.
What's more, his orders had been to reinforce Enkō's jōnin squad—of which Kyoichi was a member.
But now…
Only Kyoichi stood before him.
Enkō, Dani, and Magari were nowhere in sight.
"Enkō? Dani? Magari? Where are they? Why are you alone?"
Sumashi frowned, his voice sharp.
"They're dead. All dead. Magari was taken down by Konoha's Yellow Flash. Enkō and Dani died at the hands of the two Konoha shinobi chasing me. If you want the details, you can interrogate this captive Konoha ninja I caught. But right now—the priority is my pursuers!"
Kyoichi stopped a dozen meters short of Sumashi, still carrying Rin. He didn't move closer. Instead, he circled wide, shifting toward the rear of Sumashi's squad.
"Dead?"
Shock flashed across Sumashi's face.
This…
This wasn't at all what he'd expected.
Enkō, Dani, Magari—all dead? Then who exactly was he here to reinforce? Kyoichi, the so-called expendable pawn? Wait… if those three were dead, why was Kyoichi—the one who should've been the first to die—still alive?
There had to be more to this…
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