Engagement

A thunderous roar erupted from outside the stronghold!

It was followed by a second, then a third!

"Enemy attack!"

"It's the Explosion Release unit, led by Explosion Release: Hunting! They're six kilometers out!"

"One elite jonin, one jonin, and six chunin!"

Hyuga Shuichi, one of the three chunin, activated his Byakugan and spoke.

Uchiha Jun stood up abruptly and rushed to the entrance of the stronghold.

Outside, flames soared into the sky, and the sound of explosions rang out one after another.

"It's Iwagakure's Explosion Release unit! They've tracked us down!"

Akimichi Dodo shouted.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Uchiha Jun.

"Jun, I have a new mission for you."

A sudden, ominous premonition welled up in Uchiha Jun's heart.

"You and Yamazaki Kengo's group are to take Gekko Kazuichi and retreat from here."

"What about you?"

Uchiha Jun asked instinctively.

Orochimaru licked the corner of his mouth, his golden snake-like pupils flickering with an eerie light amidst the firelight.

"I need to deliver the intelligence to the extraction team; this information is more important than your lives."

"You only need to hold out until the extraction team arrives."

With that, Orochimaru picked up the intelligence scroll from the table, his figure flickering as he vanished from the spot.

Uchiha Jun stood rooted to the spot, stunned.

He looked in the direction where Orochimaru had disappeared, then at the explosions drawing closer outside, and finally at Yamazaki Kengo and the others in the stronghold, as well as Gekko Kazuichi, who lay on the bed unable to move.

"This is... treating us like cannon fodder? Screw you!"

Akimichi Dodo clenched his fists, his face turning livid.

The other chunin also looked grim, but said nothing.

As the only jonin present, Yamazaki Kengo wore a heavy expression, yet he did not object, clearly having steeled himself for the reality.

Everyone present was well aware of the ninja creed: mission first.

Uchiha Jun took a deep breath, a flicker of coldness crossing his eyes.

However, Uchiha Jun did not despair.

Because he still had his trump card.

[Sasuke Uchiha (Shippuden)], an elite jonin-level combatant with the Three-Tomoe Sharingan!

If it truly came to a desperate situation, he would just go rogue.

After all, the ninja world was vast; where could he, Uchiha Jun, not go?

As for the [Mission] requirements of his golden finger.

It didn't specify that the missions had to be from Konoha, did it?

At worst, he could defect to Kumogakure or Iwagakure to take on missions.

Given the Raikage's "thirst" for bloodline limits, if he, an Uchiha with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan, defected there, wouldn't he be set up with a harem of wives and concubines?

At this thought, the world suddenly felt much wider.

Uchiha Jun turned to look at the flames outside, silently calculating the number of enemies.

"An elite jonin leading the team, at least five chunin... a head-on fight is definitely unwise, but if we retreat, Gekko Kazuichi is heavily injured and can't move fast..."

"But fortunately, we still have a special jonin here."

"I'll observe the situation first. If it's truly impossible, I'll just bolt. A twelve-year-old with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan—if that gets exposed, I don't even want to imagine how crazy that old dog Shimura Danzo would go!"

Uchiha Jun made his judgment.

Unless he revealed his [Sasuke Uchiha (Shippuden)] trump card, a direct confrontation was suicide.

But the cost of revealing that card was too high.

That shady bastard Orochimaru might be lurking in some corner watching, and Shimura Danzo, who coveted the Sharingan, was no pushover either.

A twelve-year-old with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan—once exposed, what awaited him would not be some "genius cultivation program," but an S-rank mission, followed by a failed mission and a cenotaph in the Memorial Stone.

"Uchiha Jun, take Gekko Kazuichi and retreat first."

Yamazaki Kengo's voice came from behind, interrupting Uchiha Jun's thoughts.

The special jonin had already braced himself against the wall to stand; although his right leg was still trembling, his left hand, gripping his blade, was as steady as iron.

"Dodo, Shuichi, cover their retreat. I'll hold the rear."

"Captain!" Akimichi Dodo's expression shifted. "Your injuries—"

"That is an order."

Yamazaki Kengo cut him off, his tone as flat as if he were commenting on the weather.

Uchiha Jun watched Yamazaki Kengo's back and suddenly realized the truth: this man was truly prepared to die here.

"Senior Yamazaki."

Uchiha Jun spoke up.

Yamazaki Kengo turned his head.

"I'll stay and hold the rear with you."

Yamazaki Kengo frowned. "What are you saying? You're just a gen—"

"I am Lord Orochimaru's student."

Uchiha Jun interrupted him, his face wearing the perfect amount of youthful stubbornness.

"Before we arrived, I set up some explosive tag traps along the way. I know how to trigger them, and I've already mapped out the route for a fighting retreat."

The statement was half-truth, half-lie.

He had indeed set up the explosive tag traps on his way in, but they were only meant to buy time.

There was only one real reason: he could not just run away like this.

He had figured it out—this mission was likely a 'test' from Sarutobi Hiruzen's faction, and the outcome would determine Uchiha Jun's future treatment in Konoha.

The prerequisite was that he had to prove his worth!

Yamazaki Kengo stared at Uchiha Jun for two seconds, then nodded.

"Don't die."

He waved at Akimichi Dodo and Hyuga Shuichi. "What are you standing there for? Execute the order and take Kazuichi out of here!"

The two men gritted their teeth, hoisted Gekko Kazuichi up, and retreated through the back door of the outpost.

Only Uchiha Jun and Yamazaki Kengo remained in the outpost.

The sound of explosions outside grew closer.

Uchiha Jun took a deep breath and pushed the sensory abilities of [Senju Tobirama (Youth)] to their limit.

The positions of the enemies appeared in his mind like a star chart.

Six chunin were advancing from the front, with two more chunin flanking on each side.

And directly behind them, two powerful chakra signatures were approaching at a leisurely pace.

One of the chakra signatures was violent and scorching, as if it were about to detonate at any moment.

It was clearly Explosion Release: Hunting.

The other chakra signature was steady and heavy, possessing the texture of rock—it was another Iwagakure jonin.

"They're here."

Uchiha Jun whispered.

No sooner had he spoken than the earthen wall at the front of the outpost exploded!

Debris filled the sky, carried by a scorching heatwave that poured toward them like a torrential rain.

The shockwave from the explosion overturned the maps and packs on the table, and the entire outpost trembled.

Yamazaki Kengo formed hand seals and stomped on the ground. "Earth Style: Earth Wall!"

A thick wall of earth rose from the ground, barely blocking the debris and the heatwave. However, the lingering force of the shockwave still pushed them back several steps.

Through the cracks in the earthen wall, Uchiha Jun saw the scene outside.

Six ninjas wearing Iwagakure flak jackets spread out in a fan formation, kunai and explosive tags in hand, closing in on the outpost.

Behind them, a thin man with sunken cheeks and a spiky hairstyle—looking as if he were suffering from chronic fatigue—walked over the rubble. A cruel smile hung on his lips, and as he clenched his fists, the air crackled with sharp, popping sounds.

Explosion Release: Hunting.