The Minato Squad Stands Up for What's Right

Some of the lightly wounded, after receiving treatment, were sent away again under orders from their superiors, bound for the front lines.

As soon as the rain stopped, new patients arrived. Uchiha Kin treated an Uchiha whose eyes had been injured. One eyeball had ruptured, and the other eye was nothing but a bloody, gaping hole—an especially gruesome sight.

Uchiha Kin replaced them with a pair of eyes from a Grass Ninja.

When the man woke up, his new eyes felt strange. He tried desperately to "activate" them, but nothing happened. His mouth went dry as he stammered, "I..."

"You're awake? Good. Get some rest." Seeing that the man had regained consciousness, Uchiha Kin nodded.

But the Uchiha wasn't grateful. "Stop right there, you bastard! What did you do to me?"

Uchiha Kin ignored him and headed out.

"I'm busy. I don't have time for your pointless questions. And this is a Konoha field hospital, so please stay calm and keep your voice down." Once outside, he told the other two Uchiha, "The operation is over. You can take him with you."

With that, Uchiha Kin nodded and left...

He didn't get along with these people—not these few, no, most of the "Uchiha" who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

The Uchiha Clan had a rule: only Uchiha who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan were entered in the Clan Registry and recognized as family members, with names and standing in the clan, eligible to attend its ceremonies and clan meetings.

People like Uchiha Kin, who bore the Uchiha name but hadn't awakened the Sharingan, weren't considered "clan members," even if they had Uchiha blood and were already renowned ninja.

His status was no different from that of the civilian Uchiha who ran small businesses or worked for a living. He was simply someone with the Uchiha name, with no real connection to the clan.

What made it worse was that this Uchiha had become an outstanding Medical Ninja through a secret technique he'd developed himself. His abilities even surpassed Princess Tsunade's, and he had especially distinguished himself in this war. That made the "clan members" dislike him all the more.

Uchiha Kin's record was far too "rebellious." Uchiha Clan ninja were supposed to be famous for the Sharingan, not Medical Ninjutsu...

As a result, they had a terrible relationship. Uchiha Kin was often met with cold stares and mockery.

But Uchiha Kin had no time to argue with them about their attitude.

He simply returned their cold stares.

After he left, the two Uchiha went into the tent. The man who had just undergone surgery only then learned what had happened.

It turned out that during a raid the previous night, he'd been attacked and had his eyes gouged out. He hadn't woken up until just now, after the operation was complete.

"So that means my eyes are just those of an ordinary person now?" He couldn't accept the truth, and his emotions crumbled. "Bastard! I'm an Uchiha! How can I use ordinary people's eyes? Bastard..."

He got off the operating table and set out to confront Uchiha Kin. After leaving the tent and asking where to find him, he rushed over.

Uchiha Kin was in the middle of an operation when the man barged in and demanded, "Uchiha Kin, you bastard! How could you give me ordinary people's eyes? You've desecrated the Sharingan!"

"Then whose eyes did you want me to take for you?" Uchiha Kin turned to look at the three men. He glanced at the other two and pointed at them with the scalpel in his hand. "His? Or his?"

"You!"

Uchiha Kin's voice turned cold. "Get out." He looked away from the three of them. "Don't disturb me while I'm operating."

The patient's chest was wide open. A newly transplanted lung inside rose and fell with each breath. Fine strands, like grass roots, extended from Uchiha Kin's hands and settled over the wound, stitching the man's chest closed.

The three left the tent. A moment later, the Uchiha finally reacted. "That Uchiha failure actually dared to tell me to get out."

"He was operating, Yun Jian. No matter what, he saved you. Without him, you'd be dead."

"With eyes like these, I'd be better off dead..."

His two companions were speechless.

This "Yun Jian" had a pathological fixation on the honor of the Uchiha Clan. Many of the clan members who'd awakened their eyes were much the same. The two of them had some of that in them, too, just not as strongly... But still...

It seemed wrong to target Uchiha Kin like this. One of them said, "Yun Jian, it isn't Kin's fault that you can't awaken the Sharingan.

"There are plenty of civilians and ninja in the clan who haven't awakened their eyes. Why do you have to target Kin?"

He honestly didn't understand. Kin worked so hard; he just didn't have a talent for the Sharingan. But his Medical Ninjutsu was genuinely excellent, and he wasn't inferior in combat, either. In fact, he was even stronger than the likes of them, with their Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

His secret technique for controlling kunai, shuriken, and wire had taken the Uchiha style to a whole new level, reaching an almost unbelievable degree of skill.

Uchiha Kin was strong.

Yun Jian stuck out his chin. "Even if he hasn't awakened his eyes, he should train hard until he does, instead of messing around with Medical Ninjutsu. Uchiha are supposed to dance on the battlefield, not embroider at an operating table."

"Hey, you bastard!" A fist suddenly appeared and slammed into the back of Yun Jian's head, knocking him off balance.

The fist belonged to a boy wearing goggles. His face was full of indignation, and every spike of his hair seemed to bristle with anger. "I don't like that bastard either. But he saved your life. You're going too far."

It was Obito.

He threw two more punches, knocked Yun Jian to the ground, then climbed on top of him and started pummeling him.

The other two hurried to pull him off.

"Obito!" Nohara Rin ran over from a distance and tried to hold Obito back, while discreetly kicking Yun Jian twice. That'll teach you to run your mouth. Kin-senpai is such a good person. He saved you, and you still have the nerve to insult him.

Kakashi arrived a little later and stood between the two Uchiha, keeping them from going to Yun Jian's aid. "Obito's got a bit of a bad temper, so don't take it personally. He's just joking around with Yun Jian—

"Just like Yun Jian was joking around with Kin earlier, right?" Kakashi couldn't stand Yun Jian's behavior, either.

Although he disliked some of Uchiha Kin's behavior, he still admitted that Kin was a very, very good person, a reliable comrade, and a doctor who saved lives. Most of the ninja on this battlefield owed him their gratitude.

He was a hero of the Hidden Leaf, standing on the medical front. Other ninja might earn medals for how many enemies they killed; Uchiha Kin earned his for how many Hidden Leaf Jonin, Chunin, and Genin he saved.

Uchiha Kin didn't deserve to be treated like this!