Once only a handful of people remained in the tent, Orochimaru slowly walked over to Sen. His slit pupils held a hint of complicated emotion.
"About the mission last time," he said in his hoarse voice, "it was a secret order issued directly by one of Konoha's higher-ups, bypassing me. I couldn't find out where it came from, either."
Sen nodded, then shook his head. "That's in the past. It doesn't matter. You said there were two things you wanted to tell me?"
A trace of admiration showed in Orochimaru's eyes. "To be precise, there are three."
"First, quite a few of the reinforcements who just arrived are Uchiha Clan shinobi. They specifically asked to see you."
Sen nodded. Orochimaru paused for a moment, then continued, "The second matter is that someone among the village's higher-ups wants you to 'hand over' the sword on your back to the village."
"Are you serious, Orochimaru?" Sen asked outright, wondering to himself, Could Pot Kage have demanded it again?
On the battlefield, spoils belonged to the individual who claimed them. That had been the rule since ancient times.
If the village wanted it, then by rights, it should pay for it.
But Orochimaru's tone made it clear that he expected Sen to "donate it" for free.
"I also thought it was unreasonable." Orochimaru seemed to have read his mind. "I've already refused on your behalf, saying that you urgently need the sword to fight the enemy. You don't need to worry."
When Sen made no objection, Orochimaru continued with the third matter:
"In this fight against Kirigakure, you may be one of their primary targets. From the intelligence we've gathered, Kirigakure's shinobi seem afraid of punishment from their village, so they've kept quiet about you taking Samehada.
"Sen, with your talent, there's no need for you to fall in a chaotic battle like this. How about staying in the rear and providing long-range ninjutsu support?"
At that, Sen's face showed his displeasure without the slightest attempt to hide it.
"What about everyone else? Aren't they people, too? They're all our comrades from Konoha! I'll never hide in the rear and let them face the danger for me!"
What a joke!
How am I supposed to farm traits like that?
His words rang out with conviction. The few Jonin who hadn't yet left the tent turned to look at him, admiration showing in their eyes.
They'd heard that the Uchiha had produced a genius who could kill a Mist Ninja Jonin single-handedly. They hadn't expected him to have such noble character, too.
They weren't ordinary Genin, and naturally knew far more than ordinary people.
"Good work, my disciple! Well said!" Seeing this, Jiraiya proudly walked over to Sen and gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder. "That's exactly how a disciple of Jiraiya should act!"
Sen rolled his eyes in annoyance, pushed Jiraiya's arm away, and said to Orochimaru, "If there's nothing else, I'll go check on my clanmates. Senior Orochimaru, remember to call on me when the fighting starts."
With that, he walked straight out of the tent.
When Sen stepped outside, he immediately spotted the Uchiha gathered in the distance.
Only the Uchiha would gather off by themselves, far from the other shinobi, with that innate air of arrogance.
And, of course, their looks were a cut above the rest.
He went over and looked them over. There were twelve in all, most of them sitting on the ground as they rested.
"Are you Uchiha Sen?" Before Sen could speak, an older shinobi stood up and scrutinized him. He snorted. "Now that you've seen us, you can leave. I thought the Great Elder had someone impressive in mind, but you're just a ten-year-old brat."
Hearing this and seeing the looks his clanmates were giving him, Sen shook his head. Sometimes, you had to admit the Uchiha Clan was really stupid. Even now, they were still turning on each other.
"Brat, I told you to get lost—"
The shinobi's words cut off abruptly!
A hand had clamped around his throat like an iron vise. Choking and fear made his eyes fly wide open.
"Let him go!" A middle-aged shinobi nearby immediately moved to intervene, only to see those slender fingers tighten their grip.
He instinctively tried to use an Illusion Technique, but met a pair of cold, scarlet eyes in which three Tomoe turned slowly.
"Three Tomoe! How is that possible?! He's only ten!"
"There are twelve of us here, and only three have awakened the Sharingan!"
"Chizuru, don't do it. We're in the middle of a war, and his talent is far too impressive. Even if the Clan Leader agreed, we still couldn't attack him!" another shinobi urged.
The two sides remained at a standoff for a moment. The shinobi named Uchiha Chizuru finally relented. "Sorry. We were in the wrong. Let him go."
Sen tossed the man aside as casually as if he were throwing away trash. After intimidating the others with his strength, he said coldly, "There are too many eyes and ears here. Follow me."
In a secluded spot, Sen stood with his back to them and spoke calmly. "I know most of you are on the Clan Leader's side. I can let what just happened pass as a misunderstanding."
When no one answered, Sen continued, "Sometimes, I really don't understand you. The enemy's at the gates, and instead of thinking about how to survive, you're still picking fights among yourselves?"
He turned around, his gaze sweeping over each of them like a blade. "Have you ever wondered why our Uchiha Clan, despite specializing in Fire Release, was sent to fight the Mist Ninja, who specialize in Water Release?"
His words landed like a boulder in a calm lake, sending ripples in every direction.
"That's right! Why us? This is a complete elemental disadvantage!"
"And Kirigakure is infamous for its cruelty. Most of us here are Chunin and Genin. How are we supposed to handle them?"
"Wait," someone objected. "When we were mobilized, didn't Lord Hokage say it was because our Sharingan could see through the thick mist, and Fire Release could disperse it?"
"How many of you here have awakened the Sharingan?" Sen shot back, cutting straight to the point. "Are we the only ones in Konoha who specialize in Fire Release? What about the Sarutobi Clan? How many of them came?"
At that, everyone fell completely silent.
More than ten minutes later, amid the oppressive silence, someone asked in a low voice, "Captain Chizuru, what... should we do?"
Uchiha Chizuru, the one they called captain, didn't answer. Instead, he looked toward the boy standing in the distance with his arms crossed. After a long while, he let out a sigh.
"We are indeed supporters of Lord Fugaku. But right now, at least here, we're willing to listen to you."
"How can we listen to a ten-year—"
"Smack!"
A loud slap cut off the objection.
The one who'd spoken was the very man Sen had just choked.
After slapping him, Uchiha Chizuru stepped forward and bowed to Sen.
"Sorry. I failed to keep my clanmates in line. Sen, you're someone the Great Elder values, so you must have a solution, right?"
Sen pondered for a moment. If he didn't need to establish his authority in the clan for later, he couldn't be bothered to care whether this bunch of idiots lived or died.
After a moment, with everyone looking at him expectantly, Sen said:
"Since you haven't joined up with the others, I assume you fight as a squad. That would make you, Uchiha Chizuru, the captain, right?" When the other man nodded, Sen continued:
"Then during the battle, follow behind our Team Seven. As it happens, I can set up a plan within a plan."
Before you continue