Uchiha Kai's brows furrowed tightly.
Even he felt his scalp tingle at the sight of this overwhelming danger. Hiding his strength was meaningless now.
Four thousand enemy shinobi… Survival comes first.
His mind raced, then he spoke without hesitation.
"Since you've chosen to trust me, I won't waste words. Fire the signal flare!"
Kudo Shin froze. Sweat poured down his forehead as he stammered a protest.
"But if we fire it, we'll give away our position! HIdden Mist has four thousand shinobi out there—"
Nara Kazama hesitated briefly, then cut in, siding with Kai.
"We chose to trust him. That means executing his orders, not questioning them. On the battlefield, hesitation kills."
Kudo understood that truth. And yet…
The thought of alerting an army of four thousand chilled him to the bone. His courage faltered, leaving him silent.
Just as Kazama tried to persuade him further, Kai raised a hand, stopping him. He turned to Kudo and calmly explained:
"Here's why.
First, the enemy's numbers are too great. If we let HIdden Mist fully prepare, our situation will only worsen.
By firing the signal now, the frontline camp can be ready. They can pin down more of the HIdden Mist forces.
The more shinobi the main camp delays, the greater our chance of survival. If the camp collapses without inflicting heavy losses, then we'll be left to face all four thousand HIdden Mist shinobi ourselves.
After firing the flare, we immediately retreat—find a hidden place, and keep moving.
We'll fight guerrilla-style across the Land of Whirlpools. Never stay in one spot too long.
Avoid large enemy forces, strike down small squads. That's how we buy time.
I trust the village's intelligence network. They'll soon realize something is wrong here.
Our job is just to drag this out until reinforcements arrive. That's the only way through this crisis.
It's the best plan I can think of."
Kazama caught on immediately. Halfway through, he already knew Kai's plan was their best option.
Kudo Shin wasn't stupid either. After a moment's thought, he nodded sharply.
"I agree!"
"Good," Kai said, nodding. "Then we're united. But remember what Kazama said—when battle comes, I won't have time to explain.
So if you choose to trust me, then trust me completely.
Even a moment's hesitation, a single doubt, and all three of us will die."
Kudo nodded solemnly. This time, the lesson stuck. He gave his word—and even apologized for doubting earlier.
Kazama exhaled in relief.
Good. Even if we're just a throwaway squad with no real bonds… At least Kai knows how to lead. In just moments, he pulled our trust together. Our odds of survival just went up.
He glanced at Kai again, half amused, half bewildered.
Is this guy really a Uchiha? He's more like Nara…
And so, with their newly reorganized Team Seven, under the command of Uchiha Kai, they launched the signal flare.
Whoosh!
It soared into the night sky and burst in a brilliant light.
The three who had planned together vanished into the forest, slipping away to the left.
As for Ishikawa Itsuki?
Who's that again?
Oh well—seems they'd all "accidentally" forgotten him.
Ten minutes later.
More than fifty HIdden Mist shinobi, led by one of the infamous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the HIdden Mist—the wielder of the Blunt Blade, Kabutowari, Tutokusa no Eiro—surrounded the grove.
"Jounin-sama," a subordinate reported. "Our sensors confirm the flare was fired from here.
We found HIdden Mist's 27th squad in this area—all dead. Two stabbed with kunai, another showing torture marks.
This confirms Konoha has discovered our plans.
Five hundred meters west, there's a Konoha watchpoint."
Tutokusa's eyes gleamed with cold ferocity. He gave the order without hesitation.
"Go. Check that outpost."
"Yes, sir!"
The HIdden Mist squad stormed the post in moments.
And dragged out Ishikawa Itsuki, who had been fast asleep, tossing him onto the ground.
Who am I? Where am I? What's happening?
Dazed and groggy, Itsuki blinked awake—only to see fifty HIdden Mist shinobi staring him down. His face was drained of color.
"Y-you… I…"
He stammered, voice trembling so hard he couldn't form a full sentence.
In front of Kai and the others, he could strut arrogantly, knowing they wouldn't truly kill him.
But these HIdden Mist shinobi? They absolutely would.
Tutokusa sneered at the sight of such a pathetic "ninja." He despised cowards like this.
Without a word, he stepped forward and backhanded Itsuki hard across the face.
Blood sprayed from his mouth as two teeth flew free.
"Be smart. Tell me everything.
Who were your teammates? Where did they go?
Spill everything you know."
Itsuki froze, mind blank.
The savage gleam in Tutokusa's eyes—and the killing intent from every HIdden Mist shinobi around—snuffed out all the false bravado he'd ever had in Konoha.
In an instant, every ounce of pride shattered. He obediently confessed everything he knew.
If the HIdden Mist had been interested, he probably would've even told them how he wet the bed at three or peeked at widows bathing at five.
When he finished, Tutokusa gave a casual wave.
A HIdden Mist shinobi stepped forward, kunai in hand.
Itsuki's eyes widened in horror.
"W-wait! I told you everything! Why kill me?
Please, spare me! Don't kill me!"
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