The kunai in his hand lightly sliced across the Mist Ninja's throat. Uchiha Sou looked calmly into the man's unwilling eyes.
Although this battle hadn't been especially deadly, it had still been extremely troublesome.
At the very least, it had given Uchiha Sou a clear idea of what he needed to do going forward: he really had to hone his taijutsu.
He knew that his C-rank taijutsu was a little weak, but he'd thought that, combined with his speed and Sharingan, it wouldn't be too bad.
The fight had just proven him wrong. Weak taijutsu was a serious problem.
He could see and keep up with his opponent's movements, but in an intense exchange, his strikes weren't accurate or properly executed.
Even when he could have taken out an enemy outright, he'd made a few awkward missteps and failed to land a killing blow.
That sort of problem was hard to notice when he was attacking by surprise or facing weaker enemies.
But when he fought enemies who were strong overall and attacking him from both sides, this weakness became glaringly obvious.
"Even if I can use the Sharingan to read their moves, I have to make up for my weak taijutsu!"
At the thought, Uchiha Sou felt a headache coming on. First genjutsu, now taijutsu—he almost wished he could grow a liver and spend all his time grinding skills.
After catching his breath, he took one last look at the two Mist Ninja lying dead with their eyes still open, then abruptly turned and headed toward the sounds of fighting in the distance.
After all, his body was only thirteen years old. He might not be an actual "chakra," but he certainly wasn't Naruto, with his "chakra reserves the size of a lake."
A fight like this had taken a fair bit out of him, but at least he'd dealt with both men.
One of the Mist Ninja had been killed by his own comrade, while the other had been distracted by Sou's shurikenjutsu and then had his throat slit.
But just as he set off, a notification suddenly appeared in his vision, making him pause in surprise.
[ Dōjutsu · Sharingan gained 20 experience ]
[ Taijutsu · Uchiha Style gained 100 experience ]
[ Ninjutsu · Body Flicker Technique gained 4 experience ]
[ Ninjutsu · Substitution Technique gained 4 experience ]
[ Ninjutsu · Substitution Technique (A): Level 1 (6/100) ]
[ Dōjutsu · Sharingan (A): Level 3 (224/300) ]
[ Taijutsu · Uchiha Style (C): Level 9 (201/900) ]
"Hm?"
His taijutsu had gained a full 100 points in one go. Not only that, but his Sharingan had improved by 20 points too!
"That much of an improvement?"
Uchiha Sou murmured. But when he considered how long the fight had lasted, it seemed understandable.
It had been a long time since he'd fought for that long. Until now, he'd always sent his enemies to the Pure Land in an instant.
And a prolonged fight had clearly given him more practice, which would naturally help him improve!
"If that's the case, then..."
Uchiha Sou's gaze wavered. With his danger awareness and survival instinct flaring, he suddenly felt conflicted.
But he quickly shook his head and put those thoughts aside.
He was still clear-headed. He had more important things to do right now.
Without the Byakugan to help, visibility in this dense fog was far too low.
Fortunately, Hyuga Tetsu was no pushover. He might have been lacking in other areas, but his defense was genuinely formidable.
He hadn't been able to defeat his opponents the way Uchiha Sou had under the Mist Ninja's assault, but his tortoise-like defense had kept him from suffering any serious injuries.
When Sou found him, he was especially disheveled and had picked up a few more wounds, but none of them were life-threatening.
After teaming up to defeat the two Mist Ninja, they quickly found the others and cleared out the remaining enemies.
"How is everyone?" Once they'd regrouped, Uchiha Sou glanced around and asked.
"We're all fine." The five exchanged glances, then Shiranui Genma spoke up.
It had to be said: aside from Hyuga Tetsu, the others were all worthy of becoming Konoha's future mainstays. They were already so capable at such a young age.
They all looked bruised and battered, and were panting hard, but they'd either beaten their enemies or held out until help arrived.
"Good. Tetsu, how are things on the other side?" Uchiha Sou nodded, then turned to the team's radar.
"Things don't look good. They're surrounded."
Hyuga Tetsu caught his breath before answering. Keeping his Byakugan active was a heavy strain on him.
"Is it that bad?" Uchiha Sou frowned.
"They're facing Kirigakure's Anbu." Hyuga Tetsu understood what Sou meant. As he spoke, he couldn't help glancing at his temporary team leader.
He suddenly wondered if he'd said something wrong. His team leader really was a monster!
They were around the same age, but his strength was so frightening it made Tetsu's blood run cold.
A lone jonin couldn't last more than a few exchanges against him.
And when he'd faced three Mist Ninja at once, he'd still calmly taken one out before finishing off the other two.
The team leader had been a bit of a menace, throwing the whole squad into trouble as soon as they'd met, but that didn't change how powerful he was.
"Anbu are formidable."
Uchiha Sou had no idea what Hyuga Tetsu was thinking. He considered the situation, then spoke at once.
"We'd better hurry. With all that noise, who knows if it'll draw more Mist Ninja here?"
"Yes, Captain!" At Uchiha Sou's order, they answered at once.
In an environment like this, speed was essential. They needed to resolve the current trouble quickly so they could deal with whatever came next.
The six of them each swallowed a Military Ration Pill to replenish their lost chakra, then immediately set off again.
Uchiha Sou had a Chakra Refining Technique that was almost A-rank for replenishing his chakra, but under the current circumstances, he obviously couldn't use it.
Still, he wasn't too concerned. His chakra was more than enough to handle the situation at hand.
Especially now that the fog had begun to thin. That was definitely good news for him!
Even so, he was wondering which Uchiha squad had come in. Were they here to carry out the same damned mission as him?
"Captain, it's just ahead!" Hyuga Tetsu said in a low voice as Uchiha Sou pondered. "Someone's there. They may have been killed."
"Damn it." Uchiha Sou cursed under his breath, then took a deep breath before saying quietly, "Get ready to fight!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, his eyes turned crimson once more, three Tomoe spinning in them.
When he could finally make out the figures fighting, he suddenly froze. Then his eyes narrowed slightly.
He wondered whether he should help that Anbu take the other guy out.
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