Joining a Military Headquarters Squad!

"Nothing good ever happens when I run into you!"

On the horizon, two tiny figures pushed little carts side by side, drawing lines with lime as they went.

One walked straight ahead in silence. The other shuffled crookedly along, complaining nonstop.

"Could you shut up?"

Kusama Shigeo had been nagging me the whole way. I was about to lose my mind. I really wanted to seal his mouth shut with wire!

"Are you thinking of sealing my mouth shut with wire?" he said with a cocky grin. "Well, let me tell you, we're teammates now. If I don't finish the mission, then you won't finish it either!"

"And besides, I'm a medical ninja. I can save your life on the battlefield, so you should show me some respect. Better yet, get down on your knees and call me Lord Shigeo, and I might consider forgiving your past crimes! I'm telling you, I—mmph, mmph, mmph—!!"

Several ropes were wrapped around his mouth, leaving only his nostrils free to breathe.

Two lengths of wire bound his hands and feet. I kicked Kusama Shigeo to the ground, and he rolled around, squirming helplessly and unable to turn himself over. It was a ridiculous sight.

Without saying a word, I grabbed his little cart, one in each hand, and kept moving.

Ah, the air was so much fresher.

Yet even after the sun had sunk below the horizon, leaving behind its last sliver of light, I'd only managed to cover a third of the ground.

A cold wind blew through my hair. I stared at the endless stretch of rocky terrain before me, completely frozen in place.

QAQ I don't wanna work anymore!!

"They said no ninjutsu... They're really making us suffer..."

I rubbed my hands together and hesitated for a long while before finally setting down the cart. When I went back to where I'd left Kusama Shigeo, I found that he'd run off, leaving behind nothing but a pile of wire and rope! There was even a doodle of a pig's head on the ground, along with four words—

"St!u!p!id! Akatsuki!"

"Damn it, you're lucky you ran fast!"

I stomped furiously, then fell quiet and let out a long sigh. I wavered between utter despair and renewed hope several times before sniffing and heading back to the road, where I took up the two carts again. Their handles were freezing cold.

I wasn't some great powerhouse, but I wasn't someone who gave up easily, either.

So what if I'm stupid?

The night wind was already cold, and after sunset it cut across my face like a knife. I wrapped Mother's scarf tighter around myself, breathed into my hands to warm them, and trudged onward one step at a time.

I didn't know how long it had been before the stars had shifted overhead. I looked up. A bright moon hung in the dark blue sky, illuminating wisps of cloud like thin mist. It was beautiful and vast.

Just like the moon I'd seen several years ago, when I'd awoken on the Uchiha Clan training grounds.

Back then, what had I been living for?

Mother, I suppose...

Now, though, there were so many people in my heart, including Itachi... Shisui... Obito... Kuixing...

My heart felt full, brimming with happiness.

I wanted to protect them, and I wanted to protect the village we all shared—Konoha.

That was the meaning of my life.

My chest suddenly warmed, and my body no longer felt cold. Strength flowed back into me.

Because I wasn't alone!

I looked ahead. The earth stretched endlessly, reddish brown beneath me, the horizon almost curved. It carried the starlight and moonlight like water, a sight too beautiful for words.

Excitement bubbled up inside me. I clenched my numb, frozen hands and strode forward.

My journey had only just begun. I couldn't stop here!

At dawn, a beam of orange-red light shone over the ramparts, through the entrance to the underground bunker, and into the room.

In the Northern War Zone, a sentry woke up as usual. He rolled up his bedding and leaped onto the ramparts, only to discover in amazement that the entire landscape had been neatly divided by white lime lines. The layout was orderly, without a single mistake as far as the eye could see!

Looking at the scene before him, he exclaimed sincerely,

"Truly impressive."

"You just wait."

At the 12th Military Division, I hadn't slept all night, while Kusama Shigeo was full of energy. The contrast between us couldn't have been clearer. Teacher Orochimaru had returned and was standing where he'd been yesterday, flipping through the files.

"You did a good job on the mission," he praised us, though his gaze fell only on me, his golden eyes glinting faintly.

"Next, get changed and prepare to join the squad."

"Get changed? Join the squad?" I froze. Beside me, Kusama Shigeo had already shouted excitedly, "We're joining an elite squad!"

A ninja suddenly appeared beside me, holding a large bundle of equipment. He handed it to me without warning. I hurriedly caught it and staggered back under its weight.

So heavy!

"The Chunin assigned to work with you was ambushed and died at the front line. Our squad can't be formed for the time being, so I can only place you in my unit until we receive orders from above." Orochimaru smiled, his tone utterly calm. I frowned, unsure what to feel.

War was like a roaring steamroller bearing down on everything. Each life was no more than a blade of grass beneath its wheels. Once crushed, it left no trace, dissolving into the earth with blood and tears.

"Akatsuki, Shigeo, you're different." Orochimaru walked over and warned us, "On the battlefield, you must be prepared to die, but you must also maintain a rational fear of death, because you cannot die."

I froze.

Right. Given my status now, my death would cause a lot of trouble.

"Also, we're at war. You must stay focused on every mission. I don't want anything to go wrong under my command." Orochimaru moved closer, his icy presence bearing down on me. "Especially you. You absolutely cannot let your guard down."

It felt like being watched by a snake.

"If you understand, gather at the West Training Ground in five minutes."

With that final sentence, Orochimaru vanished in an instant.

A small child stood in the changing room, brows furrowed.

Military Headquarters uniforms were designed for combat: arm guards, knee guards, leather gloves fitted with metal plates, a flexible brown chest plate, a fitted black undershirt and trousers, and shinobi sandals that wrapped around the calves for long-distance travel. Add a few medicines and soldier pills, and you had the standard gear for a battlefield ninja.

The clothes and shoes were a little too big. I pulled every buckle to its last hole, but one slipped and pinched my flesh. I cried out in pain and struggled for a long time before I could free myself.

I followed everyone else's example, putting on each piece of clothing and tying each one off until it finally fit. I still looked a little ridiculous, though.

With a sigh, I ignored the amused looks in the changing room, slung Murasame over my back, and hurried to the West Training Ground.

A squad had already assembled there.

It was a squad of more than a dozen people. Judging by their height, most were adults. There were both men and women, all wearing combat gear and carrying weapons. They stood solemnly beneath the sunlight on the training ground, like blades radiating waves of chill.

No wonder it was Orochimaru's unit. Even their presence was exactly the same.

I walked over step by step and stood beside Kusama Shigeo.

"Why did it take you so long to change? You're like a girl!" He shifted aside, putting some distance between us.

"What's it to you?"

"You—!!"

Looking at everything before me, I felt like I'd seen this scene before, as if I'd graduated from the Ninja Academy and entered the military school all over again.

But these people were nothing like the students at the Ninja Academy. And I was no longer a genius towering above everyone else.

Here, I was just a little nobody.

At least I knew that much.

"Uchiha Akatsuki and Kusama Shigeo. Your new teammates."

Orochimaru didn't even introduce us properly. He only gave our names before telling us to join the ranks.

At that moment, disappointment began to spread through my chest.

I'd wanted a four-person squad, like Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura: a strong, dependable teacher; companions who had each other's backs; a friendship that would grow stronger over time; bonds that couldn't be severed no matter how hard you tried... Not this, drifting among a group of weapons of war, completing missions for the sake of completing missions.

My hopes for the life of a ninja faded considerably at that moment.

Children who grew up in war always lost something.