Uchiha Lan, Single-Mindedly Making Money

Meanwhile, deep in the southern forests of the Land of Rivers, far from the clamor of the main battlefield, the night was thick, and the mosquitoes buzzed louder than Hidden Sand's signals.

Several elite Hidden Sand harassment squads lay concealed amid twisted ancient branches and dense undergrowth, doing their best to play the part of air.

A Hidden Sand jonin was studying a crookedly drawn map, lowering his voice as he assigned their next ambush point:

"According to intelligence, an important Konoha medical supply convoy will pass through the mountain pass ahead before dawn. We..."

His voice abruptly stopped.

A wave of killing intent blanketed the area without warning.

There were no footsteps, no violent chakra fluctuations. Only a figure silently appeared on a tree trunk not far to their front side, even casually dusting off nonexistent dirt from his clothes.

It was a young man dressed in Konoha jonin attire. He still looked somewhat thin and youthful, yet his stance carried the calm indifference of a salted fish.

What truly made their hearts tremble were his eyes.

Scarlet as blood, with three black tomoe turning lazily within them, they held a hint of icy coldness beneath their sinister beauty.

"U-Uchiha Lan?!"

The Hidden Sand jonin's pupils shook, his voice cracking from sheer shock.

Absurd tales about Uchiha Lan, the rising talent from Konoha's legendary bloodline clan, instantly flooded his mind—the Sharingan! Swordsmanship! Unmatched Fire Release! And... a passive skill for capturing prisoners!

Thanks to Orochimaru's surprise assault that night, as well as Baiyun Zaojian's repeated encirclements of Hidden Sand's southern forces,

many Hidden Sand ninja knew that a powerful Uchiha ninja was active on the battlefield. Encountering him meant either dying on the spot or being brought down by genjutsu and taken prisoner.

Moreover, this guy seemed especially fond of capturing prisoners. He was a natural counter to puppet masters, constantly cutting into the back line. Puppet strings would inexplicably be severed, and he could even trace the lines back to find the puppet master.

It could be said that half the puppet masters in Hidden Sand's southern forces had been eliminated or captured by Uchiha Lan.

It had turned Hidden Sand puppet masters from experts at jungle warfare and guerrilla combat into fragile mages.

Thus, the name "Konoha Spark" had spread through half the Land of Rivers.

"The intelligence never said Uchiha Lan was here! Wasn't he supposed to be with Konoha's encirclement force?!"

A Hidden Sand chunin spoke with a tremor in his voice. Their squad specialized in harassment and assassination.

But facing Uchiha Lan head-on, with his Three-Tomoe Sharingan activated and the "Konoha Spark" aura attached, the situation had completely... fallen apart!

"Quick! Spread out! Don't look directly into his eyes!"

The Hidden Sand jonin truly deserved his reputation as a seasoned veteran. He immediately roared himself hoarse while his hands formed seals so quickly they blurred, attempting to use Wind Release to blow this plague god away.

However, Uchiha Lan clearly had no intention of following the usual routine.

His gaze remained calm and placid as he raised a hand and used the Uchiha Clan's signature ninjutsu.

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Claw Crimson!"

Without lengthy hand seals, several shuriken wrapped in blazing flames shot out at bizarre, crooked angles.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

The Hidden Sand jonin gave it everything he had. Violent currents erupted from his mouth, scattering those deadly flaming shuriken and even attempting to send Uchiha Lan flying.

However, the three tomoe in Uchiha Lan's scarlet Sharingan sped up slightly.

A faint burst of chakra flowed beneath his feet. With the smallest movement and the most precise angle, he slid half a step sideways and dropped down, narrowly avoiding the core impact of the wind pressure.

He dove straight underground.

"What, such a smooth Earth Release technique?"

(Actually, it was Uchiha Lan's weird ability—active skill: Diving!)

"Ah—!"

"NO!"

Screams instantly erupted behind the Hidden Sand jonin.

Uchiha Lan suddenly appeared from behind and unleashed a Gale One-Sword Slash, instantly rendering the three Hidden Sand chunin hiding in the rear incapable of fighting. They could only roll on the ground and howl in agony.

"Bastard!"

The Hidden Sand jonin's eyes nearly split open. But more than rage, he felt fear. He had no idea when Uchiha Lan had appeared.

He abruptly pulled a kunai from his ninja tool pouch, leaned forward, scooped out a large handful of shuriken and kunai with his left hand, and flung them out. Then a fierce gust of wind swept forward.

"Taste my self-created ninjutsu!"

"Wind Release: Shuriken Severing Technique!"

Facing the rain of ninja tools enhanced by the wind, Uchiha Lan did not even move his feet.

Sharingan!

The three tomoe spun rapidly, and the flight paths, speeds, and angles of every ninja tool became clear lines in his mind.

His body dodged with the smallest movements and the most unbelievable angles. He tilted his head slightly to evade a shuriken aimed straight at his face, then slid his shoulder aside, letting another kunai graze past the edge of his clothes.

His movements flowed as effortlessly as a stroll through a courtyard. Those deadly ninja tools could not even touch the corner of his clothes.

As he dodged, his free right hand had already completed a one-handed seal.

"Genjutsu: Gakō Technique!"

There was no light, no sound.

An invisible, icy spiritual force instantly spread out, precisely enveloping his opponent.

"Urgh... not good!"

Stunned by Uchiha Lan's bizarre moves, the Hidden Sand jonin unconsciously looked up—and then fell into a brief stupor. His eyes lost focus, and his movements completely stopped.

Although the genjutsu prowess of the Mangekyo Sharingan Uchiha Lan had evolved was inferior to Madara Uchiha's and Obito's, it was not something an ordinary jonin could resist.

And that was with Uchiha Lan deliberately holding back.

Yagura, the Fourth Mizukage, had plenty to say on that matter.

Yagura: I had an eight a.m. class!

The Hidden Sand jonin's willpower truly was not weak. That brief stupor lasted less than five seconds.

He fiercely bit his tongue. The intense pain and taste of blood were like ice water poured over his head, instantly washing away the icy sluggishness in his mind.

"Damn it! I finally broke free!"

He roared inwardly as his unfocused gaze abruptly sharpened, cold sweat instantly soaking his back.

His survival instincts drove him to retreat, defend, and counterattack at all costs!

However, what entered his refocused pupils was neither Uchiha Lan's afterimage as he dodged the ninja tools nor the hand signs he had formed.

It was a chakra-wrapped fist as large as a sandbag, appearing with perfect precision just inches before his abdomen!

"When did he...? The Body Flicker Technique?!"

The Hidden Sand jonin's thoughts had not even fully begun to move.

"Bang—!"

A dull, heart-chilling impact rang out.

The fist landed solidly on his upper abdomen, at an incredibly vicious position—the soft vital point directly beneath the xiphoid process.

"Urgh—!"

The Hidden Sand jonin felt an indescribable agony and suffocating pressure explode from his abdomen, surging up his spine straight to his head!

His eyes bulged, his mouth opened wide, yet he could not produce a single coherent sound. His body curled violently like a shrimp stripped of its bones.

Uchiha Lan stood where he was, watching the Hidden Sand jonin crash heavily several meters away like a broken sack. After rolling twice, he lay completely still.

The rapidly spinning three tomoe in his eyes slowly calmed, returning to a deep black.