The Battle of Kikyo City

The next day, Uchiha Aoba, who had spent the night resting at the camp, was jolted awake by a commotion.

After returning the day before, he had eaten a simple dinner, washed up, changed clothes, and gone to the tent assigned to him by the logistics team. He had barely lain down before falling asleep.

Now that he was awake, he thought Sunagakure had launched a sneak attack. He hurriedly got dressed, grabbed his weapon, and rushed out of the tent.

But things weren't as he had imagined.

As soon as he stepped outside, he saw Uchiha Tayama, the Uchiha Clan's leader, approaching with the clan members.

Across the entire camp, a heavy, murderous tension hung in the air.

The ninjas hurrying back and forth all looked extremely grim.

"Senior Tayama, has Sunagakure made another move?" Uchiha Aoba asked.

Uchiha Tayama shook his head, then nodded as he explained, "Sunagakure hasn't made another move. Lord Orochimaru has given us orders. There'll be a major battle soon, so you need to be ready."

"Can you tell me more?" Uchiha Aoba asked.

Uchiha Tayama studied him intently. After a moment, his expression softened. "Yesterday, we followed Lord Jiraiya to reinforce the battlefield and drove back Sunagakure's attack."

"Last night, Lord Orochimaru summoned me and all the other jōnin in camp. He decided that today we'd split into two groups and launch a surprise attack on Sunagakure. One group, led by Lord Jiraiya, will feint against Sunagakure's frontline position and draw their attention."

"The other group, led by Lord Orochimaru, will take the main force and attack Kikyo City, which is held by Sunagakure."

"This is bound to be a battle that decides the course of the war."

"So get back in formation. Our Uchiha Clan will be part of the main assault."

After hearing this, Uchiha Aoba's eyes lit up. He tightened his grip on the long sword at his side and joined the ranks.

Uchiha Tayama said nothing more. He led everyone to join up with the main force.

A short while later, they reached their destination.

A spacious clearing was packed with more than two thousand ninjas.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya stood at the very front, on a two-meter-high command platform.

"That should be enough."

Orochimaru's hoarse voice rang out.

"Then let's proceed according to plan."

As Jiraiya spoke, he raised his right hand. The gathered crowd immediately split off a group of around four or five hundred people.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya exchanged a glance, then nodded to each other.

Decades of shared history meant they didn't need to say much to understand what the other was trying to convey.

The next second, Jiraiya moved first. He vanished with the Body Flicker Technique and headed for Sunagakure's frontline camp.

The ninjas accompanying him immediately followed suit.

In a flash, the figures disappeared into the dense forest.

Seeing this, Orochimaru said no more. His dark golden, snake-like pupils gleamed as he calmly uttered two words: "Move out!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The sounds of the Body Flicker Technique rang out one after another.

In the blink of an eye, the clearing was empty.

On the way to Kikyo City, Uchiha Tayama drew alongside Aoba and spoke in a low voice. "Kid, don't rush ahead. Today's situation is nothing like yesterday's."

"You're one of the young members of the clan we're focusing on training. You're taking part in this war mainly so you can see what the battlefield is like and learn how cruel the Shinobi World can be. We're not really sending you out to kill anyone. Staying alive is what matters."

At this, Aoba raised an eyebrow. "Senior, that's not how I see it."

"Since I'm on the battlefield, if I don't kill any enemies, outsiders will think the young generation of the Uchiha Clan are a bunch of cowards who can only hide behind their seniors."

Uchiha Tayama's mouth twitched. "Is that what I meant?"

"Huh? Isn't it?" Aoba asked with a grin.

Uchiha Tayama snorted. "Whatever you think I meant, just be careful from here on. Don't let all that praise about being a 'genius' blind you."

"Genius, genius. Only those who survive a war truly deserve to be called geniuses."

"Understood, senior," Aoba replied helplessly.

"Don't worry. I'm not some fool who gets carried away by his own enthusiasm. I'll look after myself."

"See that you do. Don't make me collect your corpse," Uchiha Tayama said by way of final warning, then fell silent.

They continued on for an unknown length of time.

At a command, everyone stopped at once and hid in the dense forest.

Behind a large tree, Orochimaru listened to a report from a ninja of the Hyuga Clan.

"We're two kilometers from Kikyo City. Its defenses are tight. Lord Orochimaru, based on the chakra signatures I can see with the Byakugan, there are about a thousand Sunagakure ninjas inside the city."

"One of them has an unusually large amount of chakra. The feeling I get is that they're a Jinchūriki."

The faces of the jōnin guarding Orochimaru changed dramatically.

A Jinchūriki? Sunagakure had placed one in Kikyo City. It seemed they had anticipated that Konoha would target the city.

"The plan remains unchanged."

Unlike the others, who had grown somewhat flustered, Orochimaru's expression only grew slightly more grave.

After all, everyone in the Shinobi World knew that the One-Tail Jinchūriki was a kindly old monk with no real fighting ability. The only troublesome part was his Tailed Beast Transformation.

But if they moved fast enough, the One-Tail Jinchūriki wouldn't have a chance to transform.

Besides, Orochimaru couldn't retreat now. If he did, he'd be abandoning Jiraiya.

Just then, a ninja from the sensory unit came running over.

"Lord Orochimaru, we've received the attack signal agreed upon with Lord Jiraiya."

"Move out!"

"Yes, sir!"

Meanwhile, atop Kikyo City,

a Sunagakure Genin on patrol let out a bored yawn.

His squad leader noticed and shot him an irritated glare. "Stay alert and pay attention."

"Sorry, Captain. We've been patrolling for ages, and nothing's happened. It's hard to stay motivated," the Sunagakure Chunin explained apologetically.

The captain wanted to scold him, but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't bring himself to say them.

After all, this kind of laxness wasn't limited to his squad. The other squads were the same.

Besides, no one could stay alert every single moment.

"By the way, are the Konoha ninjas really going to attack Kikyo City?"

The Sunagakure Genin saw that the captain wasn't going to give him a hard time. Relieved, he asked quietly, "Lady Chiyo stationed so many troops in the city and even brought the Jinchūriki here. Could it be that..."

"Idiot!"

The captain slapped the Genin, then turned and snapped, "What the hell do you know? Kikyo City is the gateway to our Land of Wind. If we don't strengthen its defenses and Konoha takes it, do you know what that would mean?"