Eastern Border of the Land of Fire.
Just a few kilometers from the coastline stood a small Coastal Village.
Konoha's forward command post was stationed there.
Yin Jie stood quietly at the eastern edge of the village, gazing far out across the vast sea.
Beneath his feet was a rough mound hastily raised with Earth Release, its coarse soil damp and salty from the sea wind.
A wind carrying a faint briny scent swept in, setting his robes flapping.
Strands of hair stirred across his forehead. His deep, dark eyes remained calm as still water, fixed on the distant horizon.
There, several tiny black dots slowly emerged where sea met sky, their outlines gradually taking shape in the hazy mist.
At almost the same moment, two figures appeared beside Yin Jie with the Body Flicker Technique.
The head of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Fugaku!
The head of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Jinwa!
"Looks like the Hidden Mist Village is launching an all-out assault!"
Hyuga Jinwa's voice was grave.
He hardly needed to focus. Even with a cursory glance, his Byakugan picked out several chakra signatures far stronger than those of ordinary jonin.
"But I haven't spotted the jinchuriki mentioned in the intelligence."
With a jinchuriki's sheer volume of chakra, whether it was the Three-Tails or the Six-Tails, either one appearing on the battlefield would be impossible for his Byakugan to miss.
"Hmph! Then we fight! The Uchiha have never feared battle!" Uchiha Fugaku said coldly, his fighting spirit surging.
Since he had arrived at the border with some of his clansmen, the Hidden Mist Village had sent only one squad after another to harass Konoha's defenses. The two sides had yet to clash on any real scale.
"Yin Jie, what do you say?" Uchiha Fugaku asked, turning to him.
As