A Gift

The Kannabi Bridge mission had changed beyond recognition. What had started as a straightforward stealth mission to destroy the bridge had turned into a mission that was practically out in the open.

The danger had gone from "nine chances in ten of dying" to a situation that was now "almost certain death." A transmigrator ending up on this mission had to be said to be a truly devastating change.

It wasn't just this mission. Uchiha Kei had turned the entire Iwa Ninja front line upside down!

In the original history, Konoha had performed terribly on the Iwa Ninja battlefield. They had just come down from Kikyo Pass and had no chance to rest before being sent straight to the Land of Grass to fight the Iwa Ninja.

Anyone would have struggled to bear those circumstances. If they hadn't been thinking of the homes behind them, those Ninja would have been at their breaking point long ago.

Konoha probably hadn't had much choice—but Uchiha Kei thought the real reason was that they wanted to secure more benefits. That was why they had decided to launch a raid on Kannabi Bridge.

The plan was to cut off the Iwa Ninja's supplies and force them to the negotiating table, bringing the fighting to an end.

But things were different now. The mission's original goal hadn't changed, but by a stroke of luck, Uchiha Kei had joined forces with the rescued prisoners and thrown the Iwa Ninja's rear into chaos.

Now it was the Iwa Ninja who were losing morale and suffering setbacks on the front lines, forced to keep retreating.

Naturally, this had begun to raise Konoha's spirits. Nearly every Ninja on the front line knew there was a team operating behind enemy lines.

And it wasn't only the front-line Ninja. Konoha High Command had received the reports as well. Information on Uchiha Kei in particular had been laid out on the table.

The news that Uchiha Kei had awakened his Sharingan had reached Konoha High Command through Namikaze Minato's report to Jiraiya. It probably wouldn't be long before the Uchiha Clan learned about him, too.

But even if they found out, the Uchiha Clan couldn't pull Uchiha Kei back, no matter how much they wanted to.

He was already deep behind enemy lines, carrying out the most secret and important mission. Konoha wouldn't make any concessions.

In Konoha High Command's eyes, Uchiha Kei—who had awakened with Three Tomoe—was probably just like Uchiha Obito, who had awakened with Double Tomoe. The best outcome would be for them both to remain in the Land of Grass forever.

Uchiha Kei didn't know about any of this, but that didn't mean he couldn't guess. And because he could guess, he was able to keep doing what needed to be done.

They were racing against time. The consequences of losing weren't worth thinking about.

While Namikaze Minato escorted the wounded and those unable to fight away, Uchiha Kei helped Imai Kenta clean up the battlefield.

Every country had Sensor Ninja. They needed to delay being discovered for as long as possible. But to Imai Kenta's surprise, Uchiha Kei picked up a sword and strapped it behind his back.

"You know Sword Techniques?" Imai Kenta asked curiously as he dug a hole to bury the bodies.

"No." Uchiha Kei shook his head. The bodies on the ground gave him a headache.

They didn't even dare light a fire here, let alone use Fire Style to dispose of the bodies. Neither Uchiha Kei nor Imai Kenta knew Earth Style, so they had to resort to the most primitive method: digging a hole and burying them.

"Then why are you carrying a sword?" Imai Kenta shook his head, then suddenly grew wary. "Wait..."

"Relax. Your Sword Techniques are so powerful and so difficult to learn that my Sharingan can't just copy them." Uchiha Kei rolled his eyes. "Besides, do you think I need to know any Sword Techniques?"

Imai Kenta thought it over, then nodded. Uchiha Kei really didn't need to learn Sword Techniques.

Uchiha Kei had a terrifying Body Flicker Technique. He was incredibly fast, and, most importantly, he had the Sharingan.

With his speed and visual perception keeping pace with it, all he had to do was slash an enemy in a vital spot. That would pretty much take care of them.

So Uchiha Kei really didn't need to know any Sword Techniques. He only needed to know how to swing a sword.

The Sharingan really was a wonderful thing. Everyone wanted to have that ability.

It seemed useful at every stage, even if its evolution involved driving people mad until they ended up as lunatics.

Still, plenty of people wanted to be powerful lunatics. The Sharingan was formidable at every stage, from the beginning to the end.

Uchiha Kei glanced at Imai Kenta. When he saw that Imai Kenta had nothing more to say, he kept quiet, too.

How could Uchiha Kei possibly have resisted secretly copying his Sword Techniques?

Just as he'd said, he didn't need all sorts of extra tricks. But having a backup plan would still put his mind at ease.

Uchiha Kei waited quietly while Imai Kenta buried all the bodies. Strictly speaking, he was still recovering, so he couldn't do dirty, strenuous work.

Besides, strictly speaking, Uchiha Kei was still Imai Kenta's Captain. Namikaze Minato was there, but he wasn't a member of Uchiha Kei's squad.

There was a difference between a Temporary Captain and the originally assigned Captain. As long as Namikaze Minato wasn't around, Uchiha Kei was Imai Kenta's Captain.

Imai Kenta didn't object. This kind of work was nothing to him, and he wanted Uchiha Kei to make a full recovery. That would make him safer, too.

After they had dealt with all the bodies, Uchiha Kei set off with Imai Kenta.

Uchiha Kei had a Kunai belonging to Namikaze Minato, so they didn't have to worry about him losing track of them. Besides, who knew if they'd be ambushed if they stayed where they were?

As it turned out, their judgment was right. They hadn't gone far before Imai Kenta sensed a large number of Iwa Ninja heading toward the place where they had been hiding.

They had to hurry. About ten minutes later, Namikaze Minato suddenly appeared beside them.

"It looks like the Iwa Ninja found us." Namikaze Minato surveyed the surroundings and immediately understood what had happened.

"More or less. If we don't leave now, we might get surrounded." Uchiha Kei nodded. "Are Kakashi and the others all right?"

As a member of the original temporary squad and its Captain, Uchiha Kei knew he should show some concern for his teammates, especially in front of Namikaze Minato.

"They're doing all right. The Hyuga Chunin should be fine, but Kakashi needs to be sent back to Konoha." Namikaze Minato sighed, then quickly smiled. "I also ran into my teacher, Jiraiya. He said he'd help us."

"Help us?" Uchiha Kei paused, then nodded. That was great news.

With the front line slowing down the Iwa Ninja on their way back, Uchiha Kei and the others would have more time. It wouldn't be much, but they would have at least several hours!

"Oh, and Kakashi has something to give you." As he spoke, Namikaze Minato took a scroll from his pocket. "Here. He said it was a gift for you."

"A gift?" Uchiha Kei took the scroll and slowly unrolled it.