You Wouldn't Want That Either (Please Follow)

[ Dōjutsu: Sharingan gained 3 experience ]

[ Ninjutsu: Body Flicker Technique gained 4 experience ]

[ Taijutsu: Uchiha Style gained 2 experience ]

[ Dōjutsu: Sharingan (A): Level 3 (205/300) ]

[ Ninjutsu: Body Flicker Technique (A): Level 3 (54/300) ]

[ Taijutsu: Uchiha Style (C): Level 9 (102/900) ]

Watching the data flash across his eyes, Uchiha Sou felt both satisfied and a little regretful.

Naturally, he was satisfied that the two abilities that had reached A rank could continue to improve, and that their progress was still fairly quick for now.

What frustrated him, though, was that his lower-ranked techniques were so far behind. He simply didn't have time to keep training them!

"If there were no war, I could take my time training at home. One afternoon of practice would definitely get me much further than this."

After so many years of using and mastering his system, Uchiha Sou had long since figured out how it worked.

Progress could be roughly divided into three stages: training alone, sparring, and actual combat.

For low-ranked techniques, it was naturally best to train alone first and build up some proficiency, then increase their strength through sparring, and finally refine them in actual combat.

The problem was that most of his techniques were still low-ranked. Their main selling point was their promising future.

But on the battlefield, that future became a future of getting beaten up.

His C-rank Taijutsu wasn't unusable, but its lack of proficiency was a real problem. The only good news was that he had the Sharingan to support him.

With an A-rank Sharingan paired with C-rank Taijutsu, he could at least manage B-rank results, right?

Even so, that probably wouldn't be enough—not for the current war, and certainly not for the Uchiha Clan's future massacre.

But for him, the most urgent thing was still improving his Sharingan!

"Captain, we've finished cleaning up." Just as Uchiha Sou was deep in thought, Shiranui Genma ran over. "We're ready to go."

"Okay. Bring the wounded and let's move." Uchiha Sou came back to himself and nodded.

This battle had been harrowing, but they'd come through without disaster. After using Fire Style to block the Mist Ninja's view, he'd launched a surprise attack on one of the Kirigakure Jonin.

In his estimation, the explosive speed of his A-rank Body Flicker Technique had already surpassed that of the future traitor known as Body Flicker Shisui.

Of course, his Body Flicker Technique was all about practicality. In an instant, he'd broken through the encirclement and reached the Jonin, then quickly taken him out.

The rest of the battle had been much simpler. Anko Squad was in poor shape, and Hyuga Tetsu had practically no fighting strength left.

But the ferocious Anko and Morino Ibiki, who had still been holding back, were able to help.

They kept the other Chunin and Genin occupied, allowing Uchiha Sou's squad to gang up on the last Mist Ninja Jonin.

No matter how skilled the Jonin was, facing three opponents who all held the rank of Chunin had to be difficult.

And none of the three were pushovers. Uchiha Sou in particular was far more than just a Chunin in name and title.

After a fierce struggle, the Kirigakure Jonin fell to them without even getting the chance to use Hidden Mist Jutsu.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique."

Uchiha Sou released a burst of Fire Style over the corpses. Watching them catch fire, he left without looking back.

Their situation was far from good. Who knew whether the signal flare might attract other Kirigakure forces in the area?

The right thing to do was get out of there as quickly as possible.

The group silently headed in another direction. It wasn't until nightfall, when they found a cave, that they finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Sou," Anko said quietly in the dim cave, her wounds freshly bandaged. "Without you, things might have ended terribly for us."

"Don't say that. Have a little confidence in yourselves." Uchiha Sou smiled and shook his head. "Even without us, you could have broken through."

He wasn't just being modest. He knew the original story, and Anko and the others would be fine.

At least Anko and Ibiki would be fine. As for Hyuga Tetsu, it was hard to say.

Uchiha Sou could barely remember him from the story. That meant either he'd disappeared from the narrative after returning to his clan, or he'd already died in the war.

Anko didn't believe him, though. Only after going through what they'd just experienced could someone understand how desperate they'd been.

It was no exaggeration to say they'd already been prepared to die.

"Either way, we still have to thank you."

Anko shook her head. Whether she'd finally relaxed or had simply gotten carried away, she went on to say:

"I'll tell my teacher. I'll make sure he gives you a proper reward!"

"..."

The cave fell silent in an instant. Shiranui Genma gave her a look that said, You're repaying kindness with betrayal.

Even Morino Ibiki shook his head. He quickly said, "Anko, you shouldn't say things like that."

"Why not?" Anko asked, clearly unaware of the implications.

"That's for later. It's too soon to talk about it now."

Uchiha Sou smiled and shook his head. He wasn't surprised that Anko had said something so shocking. Besides, it was actually good for him. He continued:

"By the way, were you also sent here to cause trouble for Kirigakure?"

"Sou, about that—"

"That's right. Looks like you're here for the same thing!"

As soon as Morino Ibiki heard the question, he sensed something was wrong. Almost instinctively, he tried to stop the conversation.

But before he could finish, Anko cut him off. His expression turned grim.

According to the mission rules, they weren't even supposed to meet, because meeting would mean learning about each other's intelligence.

Now they'd met because of the unusual circumstances. The plan should have been to part on good terms after the rescue and see each other again once the war was over.

Why was Uchiha Sou asking about their mission so openly? What was he trying to do? Wasn't he forcing everyone to break the rules together?

Worst of all, Anko, one of Lord Orochimaru's students, had actually answered him. Ibiki couldn't say he was surprised, but it was still a disaster.

"Huh?" Just as Morino Ibiki was at his wits' end, Anko seemed to realize what she'd done. "Sou, you—"

"It looks like we have the same mission."

Uchiha Sou didn't give Anko a chance to speak. He stood up with a smile.

"According to battlefield protocol, your situation is on the verge of being classified as a failed mission, and neither of our teams has upheld the confidentiality rules.

"So, to reduce the risk of exposure and ensure the mission can be carried out, I propose that you join our squad."

Uchiha Sou paused, then turned to look at Anko, Ibiki, and Genma, all of whom were staring at him in shock. His smile grew even brighter.

"I assume you won't refuse, right?

"After all, you wouldn't want Lord Orochimaru to find out that your mission had failed, would you?"