Familiar Scapegoating Tactics

"Green Medicine... There aren't even any instructions. What a plain and unadorned name. Since this reward is tied to treatment, it's most likely some kind of medicine used for healing."

Ingetsu composed himself and walked toward the rear of the group, growing increasingly curious about the reward item.

The mission system had always been like this.

It issued missions very casually.

The rewards were fairly abstract as well.

Ingetsu glanced at the "Mission List" and focused on the "Main Quest."

Whether it was a Main Quest or a Side Quest, once issued, it could be stored in his consciousness in written form.

[Main Quest]: Night of the Clan Annihilation

[Options]:

1. Kill all remaining Uchiha.

2. Successfully escape Konoha.

[Reward]: (Plunder) Seize another person's Mangekyo, absorb its Pupil Power, and obtain that Mangekyo's ability.

They had already escaped Konoha.

Yet the mission had not been completed. Ingetsu had guessed correctly—the system had determined that they had not yet escaped successfully.

To complete this Main Quest...

Ingetsu estimated that the Uchiha Rogue Ninja squad might need to be completely safe, or perhaps they needed to wipe out the pursuing forces and get far away from the Land of Fire.

"Captain... Tamao's wounds have started bleeding heavily again..."

The young Uchiha looked anxious, sweat beading across his forehead as he kept looking back.

Tamao lay quietly on his back. His head, chest, and limbs were all wrapped in bandages soaked through with blood, making him look like a mummy drenched in blood.

Tamao had lost consciousness. His eyes were tightly shut, and his breathing was visibly weak.

The Uchiha all stopped, looking anxiously at Tamao as they recalled Danzo's oppressive high-level Wind Release ninjutsu. The lingering fear remained in their hearts.

Other than his back, there was not a patch of intact skin on Tamao's front, as though he had been hacked apart by countless blades.

Worry for her clansman and companion filled Uchiha Izumi's bright, watery eyes. She hated herself for not learning Medical Ninjutsu while she was in Konoha.

The Uchiha all understood.

No one would help them now. There was no way they would encounter a Medical Ninja on this journey.

Tamao would most likely die on the road.

Ingetsu frowned slightly, focused his mind, and reached into the air.

His action left the others baffled.

A moment later, everyone watched in astonishment as two items suddenly appeared in Ingetsu's hand, as if he had used some unfathomable Space Ninjutsu.

"Ingetsu really isn't simple at all!"

Uchiha Nanpu raised a hand and adjusted his black-rimmed glasses, muttering to himself inwardly.

The sight also brought surprise to Uchiha Mikoto's face, even though she was still under Yachihoko's control.

Ingetsu took a small black porcelain bottle and a Ration Pill wrapped in yellow paper from his Storage Space. He poured out one pill from each and stuffed them into Tamao's mouth.

The black porcelain bottle contained medicinal pills that could actively stimulate the Chakra within one's body.

He handed both medicines to the young Uchiha carrying Tamao and instructed, "Feed him one pill every hour."

The Uchiha took the bottles, and the others immediately breathed a sigh of relief, only for worry to soon return to their faces.

Ingetsu intended to replenish Tamao's Chakra and forcibly prolong his life.

This crude method had been widespread during the shinobi wars. If medical treatment was unavailable during battle, feeding Ration Pills to critically wounded soldiers to increase the Chakra in their bodies could keep them alive a little longer.

Everything came at a price.

At most, it would last one week.

If a critically wounded person did not receive Medical Ninjutsu treatment, the Chakra pathways pushed to their limits by the medicine would be completely destroyed.

The wounded person would die suddenly as well.

"He won't die for now. Keep moving. The pursuers are probably already on the road. If you don't want to die, run faster!"

Ingetsu remained calm as he turned and returned to the front of the group, continuing to lead them in their escape.

He had done everything he could. Whether Tamao survived would depend on fate.

"You rest. I'll carry him."

Uchiha Nanpu took the two medicines from the exhausted young Uchiha, then slung Tamao onto his own back.

A large patch of the young Uchiha's back had already been stained red with blood. He hurriedly said gratefully:

"Thank you, Captain Nanfeng."

Nanfeng reminded him, "Change out of those clothes and put them away. The blood will leave traces."

The Uchiha youth nodded, filled with gratitude.

This young man was one of Tamao's subordinates. He had thought Ingetsu would abandon their captain, since they were fleeing, but Ingetsu had not done so.

That put him much more at ease.

Captain Nanfeng, who had been at odds with Captain Tamao, had also let go of their past grievances.

None of these Uchiha knew where they were fleeing to, yet the atmosphere within the group was quietly undergoing a subtle change.

On the outskirts of the Uchiha Compound.

A flock of crows circled through the night sky, their hoarse cries unceasing, adding an even stranger aura of death to this ominous land.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura walked side by side toward the Uchiha Compound.

ANBU had been stationed at the entrances and exits of the streets.

The three wore gloomy expressions as they considered how to deal with the aftermath of tonight's events.

"Hiruzen, I believe we can say that the Uchiha clan was exterminated by that Uchiha Rogue Squad."

Utatane Koharu spoke slowly in a low voice.

As she spoke, her clouded old eyes held no emotion. In her heart, she believed this was exactly how things should be handled.

Mitokado Homura's eyes lit up.

He felt the plan was feasible.

Sarutobi Hiruzen only felt that this scapegoating tactic seemed strangely familiar. He merely looked at Utatane Koharu without voicing an opinion.

Unhurriedly, Utatane Koharu added:

"After the Uchiha clan was wiped out by the rogue Uchiha squad, Uchiha Itachi did everything he could to stop the massacre but failed. He is now Konoha's hero ninja. With Danzo dead, Konoha is desperately in need of capable people!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen questioned, "If Itachi refuses to become this hero, are we going to use Sasuke to keep him here?"

Utatane Koharu narrowed her eyes with a smile and slowly nodded.

Sarutobi Hiruzen flicked his sleeve and said coldly:

"With Itachi's personality, he will never agree to become Konoha's hero in such a manner. Even if we threaten him with Sasuke, it will be impossible."

The corners of Utatane Koharu's lips curled up. In front of Mitokado Homura, she leaned close to Sarutobi Hiruzen's ear and murmured a few words.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's brow gradually furrowed as he fell into thought. Faced with a difficult choice, he began to hesitate.

As dawn began to break, an elite six-man team from the Root Organization quietly left Konoha.

They were Danzo's trusted confidants.

Upon learning that Danzo had died at the hands of the Uchiha Rogue Squad, they had organized themselves to pursue revenge.

Yamanaka Fu and Aburame Torune led the group.

The Uchiha Compound.

Civilian corpses lay strewn across the streets, their blood pooling in the low ground.

Crows lined the walls, their pupils crimson as they silently watched the surroundings, waiting for something to arrive.

Until Itachi approached at a slow pace.

Caw— The flock of crows finally spread their wings and scattered in every direction, dropping many black feathers along the way.

After taking only a few steps, Itachi found his target.

He saw Sasuke sitting slumped against the wall of a wooden house with his head lowered, so he activated his Mangekyo:

"My foolish..."

Sasuke did not move, his eyes tightly shut.

"Hmm?"

Itachi frowned deeply and raised a hand to rub his eyes. At that moment, his vision was hazy, as though covered by a watery mist.

When his vision cleared, Itachi discovered in shock that Sasuke had fallen unconscious.