The Nine-Tails' Rebellion

"Naoki, dodge! Hurry, dodge!"

A massive boulder plummeted from the sky, hurtling toward the young man.

Hearing his companion's warning, the boy leaped aside to evade the danger, but after tumbling across the ground, he struck the back of his head and lost consciousness.

"Good heavens..."

Uchiha Zongye ignored the chaotic surroundings and rushed forward to check on him.

"Let me!"

At that moment, a female ninja in a tactical vest hurried over, placing her hands, which glowed with a faint green light, over the blood-soaked back of Naoki's head.

As the Mystical Palm Technique took effect, the injury began to heal rapidly.

Uchiha Zongye let out a sigh of relief, finally finding a moment to observe the situation in the distance.

In the dark of night, the Nine-Tails stood with its ears erect, its nine tails thrashing violently in the air. Its entire body burned with a raging, orange-red chakra flame beneath the night sky.

This legendary embodiment of malice had actually appeared in the village; it had been so many years, yet this was the first time!

Uchiha Zongye murmured, "The Nine-Tails... that massive boulder from just a moment ago was likely a 'masterpiece' of that demon fox."

Standing beside Uchiha Zongye, Uchiha Zongxin asked curiously, "Brother, why would the Nine-Tails appear in the village?"

"Something terrible has happened..."

Before Uchiha Zongye could finish, Naoki, who was lying on the ground receiving emergency treatment, suddenly opened his eyes and shouted.

"No..."

Naoki's sudden movement startled the medical ninja treating him, but once she regained her composure, she asked softly, "How do you feel?"

Naoki supported his forehead and slowly sat up, a look of pain crossing his handsome face. After a long moment, he replied.

"Thank you, I'm fine, just a bit of a headache..."

"Fine?"

Seeing this, Uchiha Zongye frowned, but the medical ninja who had stood up spoke, "His injuries are no longer a major problem. The headache is likely from the impact; he'll be fine after resting for a while."

With the medical ninja having issued her diagnosis, Uchiha Zongye had nothing more to say.

"Thank you..."

Before Uchiha Zongye could finish, the female ninja waved her hand and jogged away into the night.

Glancing at the Nine-Tails in the distance, which had already begun battling the Konoha ninja, then at the villagers fleeing in all directions like ants in a disturbed nest, and finally at Naoki, who was leaning against a wall and clutching his head in pain, Uchiha Zongye said, "Naoki, we can't stay here any longer. There's no telling when the battle might spread to this area!"

"I know, I know," Naoki responded.

But his head was spinning, and he was physically unable to move.

"Help me up, I can't get up."

"Zongxin!"

"Yeah!"

The Uchiha Zongye brothers hoisted Naoki up and hurried toward the Military Police Force headquarters.

The sudden appearance of the Nine-Tails had caught everyone off guard, and the Military Police Force, responsible for the village's daily security, was in complete disarray.

Seeing the state of the headquarters, Uchiha Zongye signaled his brother, and the two carried Naoki to a secluded corner.

Leaving Naoki on a bench to rest and instructing his brother to keep a close watch, Uchiha Zongye headed toward the main building.

Watching his brother's figure disappear, Uchiha Zongxin sat down beside Naoki and asked, "Naoki, how are you? Does your head still hurt?"

"It's mostly recovered."

"Oh."

After a moment of silence, Naoki suddenly asked, "Zongxin, do you think ghosts exist in this world?"

Uchiha Zongxin, sitting nearby, curled his lip.

"Did you get hit so hard you went stupid?"

With a sigh, Naoki offered a bitter smile.

He truly hadn't expected to arrive in this world, and even less did he expect to run into such a major event the moment he arrived...

As the dizziness caused by the fusion of two souls gradually faded, Naoki stood up, silently sensing this world that was both familiar and strange.

Transmigrating into this world, he hadn't heard a "ding" from a system, nor had he received any starter rewards like a Mangekyou Sharingan; he had arrived completely empty-handed.

But it wouldn't be entirely accurate to say he had no leverage; at the very least, he understood the plot of this world, which could be considered one of his few "golden fingers"... but then again, what transmigrator didn't have a cheat like that?

Thinking of this, he sighed again, drawing a sidelong glance from Uchiha Zongxin.

"You've been sighing non-stop since just now. Is there something bothering you? Spit it out, let me have a laugh too."

Rolling his eyes and ignoring Uchiha Zongxin, he touched the mostly healed wound on the back of his head and fixed his gaze on the entrance of the Military Police Force building not far away.

Under the bright lights, Naoki saw a tall man walk out of the building. Soon, the chaotic scene at the headquarters vanished as many members of the Military Police Force began to assemble in the open space outside the gate.

Uchiha Zongxin jumped up and pointed at the tall man, saying, "Uchiha Fugaku has arrived."

"I'm not blind."

"He must be organizing everyone to resist the Nine-Tails. Let's go over there too."

With that, Uchiha Zongxin grabbed Naoki by the arm and pulled him away.

"Wait..."

Naoki pointed at an Anbu ninja who had suddenly appeared and shook his head.

"At a time like this, what is an Anbu ninja doing here? Could it be that the Third Hokage sent him?"

Naoki's question was also the question on Uchiha Fugaku's mind. Looking at the Anbu ninja before him, he frowned and asked, "Why are you here? What instructions does the Third Hokage have?"

The person who arrived was none other than Sarutobi Hiruzen's old subordinate, the Anbu ninja, Zo.

"The Third Hokage orders the Military Police Force to assemble immediately and protect the villagers as they evacuate to the rear!"

After speaking, Zo turned and left without a word of nonsense, leaving the group of Uchiha members to look at each other in confusion.

"What is this? We aren't going to suppress the Nine-Tails anymore?"

"If we aren't going, then we aren't going. Isn't it enough that we just do our own jobs?"

"..."

The clansmen behind him were noisy and restless, while Uchiha Fugaku's expression flickered uncertainly under the light.

At this critical juncture where the ninja village faced life or death, the Uchiha were being deliberately restricted to the rear. Was this just a simple tactical arrangement?

The clansmen behind him were discussing it heatedly.

Some were dissatisfied, some were helpless, and some secretly breathed a sigh of relief... After all, no one wanted to face a monster of the Nine-Tails' caliber head-on.

After a long while, Uchiha Fugaku spoke slowly.

"Execute the order. Each squad is to immediately organize the evacuation of the villagers and establish evacuation routes. There must be no mistakes."

Seeing the Military Police Force leaving in batches, Uchiha Zongxin said in surprise, "We're really not going?"

At this moment, Uchiha Zongye walked over and said, "Since the Third Hokage has given an order, isn't it normal for us to follow it?"

"Let's go."

He beckoned to Naoki and his younger brother, leading the two of them into the evacuation line.

The night was torn open by streaks of crimson firelight. In the distance, the roars of the Nine-Tails intertwined with the thunderous collapse of buildings. The ground trembled with dull thuds from time to time, and the air was thick with the scent of scorching heat and panic.