The next morning, the entire Fourth Division gathered at the training field.
Uchiha Ming reassigned the patrol sectors so that Renji, Yan, and Retsu's squads were grouped together, with a busy commercial street at the center.
Once the deployment was finalized, each captain called their team to their side and announced the mission: a cleansing operation.
The order was simple. Hunt down spies, silence suspicious elements, crack down on troublemakers. Crush them with iron fists, lock them up, or throw them out of the sector.
The district would be restored to clarity.
The operation began immediately. Three rapid-response units were also formed, led respectively by Renji, Retsu, and Yan.
Renji took command from the center. Huoluo swept through his assigned streets while Cha handled routine patrols.
The atmosphere quickly turned tense. Bullies and loafers who usually thrived in chaos scurried into other districts. A few fools without sense were caught outright and dragged away.
Renji listened to the reports with satisfaction. Good, the bait was working. He had spread word of a spy hiding in their territory, carrying important intelligence.
The spy was none other than Uchiha Xingye, a master of disguise and genjutsu. At the moment, he was posing as an ordinary villager, calmly answering patrol questions.
Renji judged the time ripe. The next step of the cleansing was to draw the enemy out. He gave Xingye a hidden hand signal. The performance was about to begin.
Xingye's eyes flickered coldly. He thought bitterly, So this is what it comes to. Using me as bait. Talking about the Will of Fire, sacrifice for the village.
I am Uchiha, not some puppet of their will. Once this farce is over, I am leaving this squad.
He sprinted into a narrow alley. Patrolmen spotted him instantly.
"Suspicious target! After him!"
They gave chase, shouting for reinforcements, setting off paper bombs along the way. By sheer coincidence, the blasts destroyed shops belonging to the Sarutobi, Mitokado, and Shimura families.
To every onlooker, this man was clearly the spy. Even the real infiltrators would think the same. And that was exactly what Renji wanted.
The pursuit drove Xingye into Yan's district. Almost every squad from the three captains funneled in behind him. The streets swarmed with Uchihas, ordinary villagers hurrying home under sharp questioning at every corner.
Just as Xingye seemed cornered, a voice called to him. "Quick, in here!"
It came from a tea shop. The owner, a young widow with a child, smiled faintly at him. Xingye hesitated. Her eyes narrowed.
"Do you still have a choice? Step inside, or you will never leave alive."
He gritted his teeth and followed. Tea fragrance filled the air. She led him to a large chest and gestured. He climbed inside.
A moment later, the bottom gave way and he dropped into a hidden chamber. Three masked figures awaited. A cold blade pressed against his neck, held by the widow's young son.
One of the men stepped forward. "Hand over the intel. Die quickly. If Konoha gets you, your end will be worse. You know this."
Xingye felt the blade nick his skin as the boy hissed, "Don't move. My hands are small. If you twitch, you die."
Suppressing his fury, Xingye forced a calm smile. "Do you think I carry the intel on me? The moment I was caught, I knew I was doomed. Tell me who you serve. I will tell you where it is. You let me go."
Another man sneered. "We are Iwa shinobi. Do not doubt it. To build a chamber like this without a sound, who else could it be? Now, where is the intel?"
Xingye answered after a pause. "In the third shop on the left of the commercial street. A liquor seller. Beneath one of his display jars. That is where it is. Now let me go."
The man laughed.
"Let you go? You think we are drunk? Better to send you on your way."
Xingye's lips curled.
"Then I will at least claim merit for this. Fire Style: Fire Dragon Jutsu!"
Flames roared upward through the trap entrance. Outside, patrols spotted the blaze and fired signal flares. The net tightened.
Renji surged forward with his response unit.
"Earth Style: Moving Core!" Chunks of ground heaved upward, lifting the shop into the air.
Yan appeared next, slamming his palm down.
"Earth Style: Earth Splitting Palm!" The raised structure cracked apart, split open to reveal the chamber.
Xingye burst out of the rubble, scrambling back toward his comrades. Retsu charged in with lightning crackling.
"Lightning Style: Earth Walk!" Dozens of Uchiha followed, thunder dancing across the wreckage.
The battle was swift. The widow attempted to strike a guard and was killed on the spot.
Inside the ruin they found three enemy operatives, two still alive, one dead. A child's body lay nearby, pierced clean through the heart.
"Take them all. This was a victory!" Retsu shouted triumphantly.
Xingye exhaled hard, shaken. Renji's scheme had nearly gotten him killed. That bastard. This was too dangerous. He had to get himself reassigned before long.
But before he could say anything, Renji grabbed him and laughed loudly. "Where do you think you're running now, Xingye? Caught at last!"
Xingye opened his mouth to protest, only to be struck unconscious by Yan.
The division marched back toward headquarters in a great procession, prisoners in tow.
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.
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The tale of the Uchiha does not end with these words. Beyond this point lies the Forbidden Archive, where the storm rages fiercer, and the shadows reveal truths not yet told. For those who dare to walk ahead of fate, the sealed scrolls await your hand.
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