Izumo Camp

At the first light of dawn, a fully prepared unit assembled outside the gates of Konoha.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke, a man in his early thirties, inherited his father's steady temperament and was currently whispering with his subordinates at the front of the formation to discuss their marching route.

Nearly a hundred ninja were divided into small squads, checking their gear and bidding each other farewell; the air was thick with tension and solemnity.

Naoki stood at the edge of the formation with Uchiha Zongye and his brother, his tactical backpack slung over his shoulders.

"Why are you here?" Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Yashiro walked over. "Let me introduce you—this is my eldest son, Itachi."

A boy of about five or six years old stood quietly beside Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Yashiro.

The boy wore a dark, high-collared shirt, his short black hair falling smoothly over his forehead. His features were delicate, almost feminine, but most striking were his pitch-black eyes, which were as calm as still water. He lacked the liveliness and curiosity of other children his age, possessing instead a depth and composure that felt entirely out of place for a child.

Even amidst the noisy crowd preparing to head to the battlefield, he remained absolutely silent, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.

This was Uchiha Itachi.

A complex surge of emotions rose in Naoki's heart.

In truth, he had a poor impression of Itachi; otherwise, he wouldn't have said those things in front of Uchiha Fugaku, knowing full well that flattering Itachi would only inflate the boy's growing pride...

"Itachi, this is Naoki. This time, as we head to..."

Uchiha Fugaku began introducing the people to his eldest son one by one.

Naoki responded absentmindedly while glancing toward the city gate.

Among the crowd moving in and out, he caught sight of a familiar figure...

"My apologies, I'll be back in a moment."

With that, Naoki hurried away.

Itachi asked, "Where did Brother Naoki go?"

Uchiha Zongxin chuckled, pointing toward Sakurai Hideko in the distance.

Sakurai Hideko stood under a tree outside the gate; a gentle breeze blew, causing her hair and the leaves to sway.

Approaching her, Naoki stopped and looked at her in silence.

He had intended to say goodbye to her last night, but when he went to the Medical Department building, he hadn't seen her, and she hadn't sought him out afterward. In truth, he was a little angry... well, being angry wasn't justified; after all, the Medical Department had a heavy workload, and she had no free time. Furthermore, although their relationship had been warming up, Sakurai Hideko was the type of person who only moved when poked, so there was no need to be angry at all.

The two looked at each other in silence for a long time, both waiting for the other to speak first, but neither initiated, until Uchiha Zongxin in the distance waved to signal that the unit was about to depart...

Despite Naoki's eloquence on other matters, having lived two lives, he had never experienced many relationships. Coupled with Uchiha Zongxin's earlier teasing, he realized he had indeed been acting a bit like a sycophant lately...

As the young man's pettiness flared up, he simply turned and walked away.

Sakurai Hideko didn't understand what was happening at all. Seeing Naoki about to leave, she stepped forward, wanting to say something, but her timid nature in matters of the heart kept the words from leaving her lips.

Watching Naoki walk back with a dark expression, Uchiha Zongxin teased, "What's wrong? Is parting with your lover that difficult?"

Uchiha Zongye, having realized the situation, slapped his brother on the back of the head.

"Keep your mouth shut."

Coming to his senses, Uchiha Zongxin wore an expression of disbelief. "Did something actually happen?"

Uchiha Zongye glanced sideways at his brother and said, "What do you think!"

"It's all your fault, you jinx!"

"No way, Big Brother, you can't blame me for that; I was just joking..." Thinking it over, Uchiha Zongxin raised an eyebrow at his brother. "Weren't you the same as me that day? You just didn't say anything out loud."

"That's not the same!" Uchiha Zongye retorted. "For someone like you, it should be a prison sentence. I was just an accessory; a few days in the Police Force would have been enough..."

Uchiha Setsuna and Itachi stood quietly to the side, looking back and forth between Naoki and the distant Sakurai Hideko, saying nothing, yet seemingly understanding everything.

"Naoki, keep yourself safe!" Uchiha Yashiro shouted, waving at Naoki as he followed the unit away.

The sorrow of parting is deepest in the cool of the evening; the haggard soul is beyond pity. I invite the wine to drown my sorrows, three cups to reach intoxication; seeking fragrance in a dream, the fifth watch is cold. The hairpin phoenix tilts, she sheds tears; the tu-mi flowers wither, and I have no fate. The small tower is lonely, the heart reflects the moon; it is hard to be like the hook, and hard to be whole.

Standing outside the tent and looking at the night sky, this poem suddenly rose in Naoki's mind.

The very day he left Konoha, he regretted it. Sakurai Hideko was just that kind of person, yet he had known it and still thrown a tantrum. Now, if he returned one day to find her holding a child and saying she was already married, he wouldn't even have a place to cry.

He sighed and stopped thinking about it; in any case, it was impossible to run back now...

Putting these romantic troubles behind him, Naoki walked toward a large tent deep within the camp.

Because the camp was built adjacent to Mount Izumo, it was known as the Izumo Camp.

Izumo Camp was an important stronghold for Konoha on the Southern Border Battlefield and a strategic location; it not only stored a large amount of supplies but also served as the rear base for the entire Southern Border Battlefield.

Naoki's group had arrived here two weeks ago and had not participated in any battles recently, but tonight would be different...

Arriving inside the tent, many people had already gathered: Uchiha Zongye and his brother, Itachi, Uchiha Setsuna, the supreme commander of the Southern Border Battlefield, Hyuga Akira of the Hyuga clan's main house, several other Konoha jonin, and a younger member of Hyuga Akira's family...

After greeting them, Naoki asked proactively.

"Is there a situation?"

Hyuga Akira smiled and beckoned to Naoki.

"How is it? Have you been adapting well to the camp lately?"

"It's fine, but staying here like this isn't really a solution..."

"You don't need to worry," Hyuga Akira waved his hand, "there's a mission right now!"

Beside Hyuga Akira, a young man from the Main Branch wearing ink-colored goggles that obscured his eyes chimed in.

"Not only is there one, but it is also very important."

Having stayed here for two weeks, Naoki had come to know the other party.

Hyuga Hiroshi, a genius youth of the Main Branch, and also rumored to be the illegitimate son of Hyuga Hiashi...

"Oh? If that's the case, I'm quite curious." Naoki looked toward Hyuga Akira.

"Since you have all arrived, I won't beat around the bush."

"It's like this: according to intelligence, Kirigakure has a batch of supplies arriving from the Land of Water, currently being transported by waterway toward the front lines.

I have already obtained their specific route, and since my resources are currently stretched thin, you are the only ones I can dispatch. I want you to..."

Hyuga Akira looked at Naoki and the other four Uchiha, then continued: "Attack this transport team."

"As long as you succeed, those Kirigakure scumbags will begin to retreat before long due to a lack of weapons and food.

By then, we will launch a counterattack, and in a few months, we might be able to accept a peace offering from Kirigakure."