An Ambush to Lure and Kill Uchiha Lan

"Lord Maki, I don't think a puppet master like me is suitable for this..."

"Hey, I don't care what you think. I care what I think."

"Chahachiro, don't sell yourself short. Don't underestimate your potential. Believe that you can complete this mission perfectly!"

He was strong enough, and his hatred value could be maxed out too. If not him, then who? Who else could it be but him?!

Maki abruptly rose to his feet, swept his gaze over the crowd, and spoke decisively:

"Execute the 'Poison Fang' plan immediately! Everyone involved must perform flawlessly! In this battle, success is the only option—failure is unacceptable! Uchiha Lan's head must be brought back to Hidden Sand to honor our fallen heroes and wash away Hidden Sand's disgrace! Move out!"

"Yes, Lord Maki!"

The Hidden Sand ninja in the cave let out a unified low roar.

Only Chahachiro, standing in the corner, wore a gloomy expression.

"Fuck, what are you dogs barking for? It's not like you're the ones doing the hardest, most exhausting work. What the hell are you yelling for?!

Meanwhile, beneath the shade of a tree somewhere in the dense forests of the Land of Rivers, Uchiha Lan had just finished "shipping" another batch of "goods" and was now sitting on the ground, sleeping without a care for his image.

Uchiha Daosui counted the thick stack of fresh banknotes Daotian handed him, his eyes gleaming.

"Tsk, the Jonin this time were pretty good quality, and their intel was worth quite a bit too. Add in the bounty for their heads..."

Uchiha Daosui flicked the banknotes with satisfaction before carefully tucking them into the innermost compartment of his ninja tool pouch.

"Huh? Why is Captain Lan asleep?"

"Shh, Daotian, isn't that obvious? The captain has been working 9-9-7 for an entire week, making a killing... Uh, no, tracking down those Hidden Sand ninja. Otherwise, how would we have had the chance to get rich?"

Uchiha Tetsuka, who was sitting against a tree nearby, unconsciously rubbed a shuriken in his hand. His brow furrowed slightly as he unusually joined the conversation.

"Uh, but Daosui, what are we making so much money for? This month's mission pay, wartime allowances, and all this extra income... Our squad's account should have nearly ten million ryo by now, right?"

He sighed, looking somewhat lost.

"Honestly, rather than earning all this money, wouldn't it be better to train our ninjutsu more? Money can be earned again once it's gone, but if our ninjutsu isn't up to par, no amount of money can make up for it."

"Back when I practiced ninjutsu in the Security Department, I was happiest. There wasn't much money, but I was happy."

Uchiha Daosui said, "Tetsuka, if you think you have too much fucking money, we can help take some off your hands."

Uchiha Daotian said, "I can too. I'll trade you my ninjutsu scrolls for it!"

Uchiha Tetsuka said, "..."

Uchiha Tetsuka rolled his eyes speechlessly, turned his face away, and could not be bothered with the two money-grubbers.

He had wanted to discuss ideals and the ninja way with them, but they actually wanted his money!

To hell with that. Uchiha Tetsuka was no longer confused at all!

Just as this brief, peaceful moment of everyday bickering continued—

Whoosh!

Under the shade, Uchiha Lan, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly jolted awake and sat bolt upright without warning!

His eyes flew open. His scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan instinctively emerged as he warily scanned the shadows of the surrounding forest, his face holding a trace of sleepy confusion and... alarm?

"Captain, what's wrong?"

The three young Uchiha immediately went on alert and asked.

"Fuck, I suddenly feel a chill down my back. Could some rabble be plotting against me?!"

His brows knitted tightly as his Sharingan slowly turned, carefully sensing every movement in the surrounding area.

Daosui, Tetsuka, and Daotian immediately stopped joking and entered a state of alert, forming a triangular formation around Lan.

Daotian even formed hand seals with both hands, ready to use Earth Release ninjutsu at any moment.

"Captain? Is something there?"

Tetsuka asked in a deep voice, his hand already resting on the hilt of his blade.

"No... I haven't found a specific target."

Lan's Sharingan swept the area several times, but the forest remained tranquil. Only birdsong and the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard.

"But that feeling just now... was bad. It felt like being watched by a venomous snake, full of intense malice."

He rubbed his brow. The chill had come swiftly and vanished swiftly, but the lingering unease would not fade.

"Too bad we don't have a Hyuga Clan ninja assigned here. The Sharingan really is inferior to the Byakugan when it comes to reconnaissance."

"Captain, the Uchiha Clan is Konoha's number one clan. Those Byakugan can only see a little farther, that's all!"

Once they confirmed there was no danger, everyone began discussing how to spend the money.

A few days later, news from the Mount Kikyo battlefield gradually reached Konoha's southern camp in the Land of Rivers.

The news was like stones thrown into a still lake, stirring layer after layer of ripples.

The atmosphere in the camp became noticeably more solemn. The relaxed mood from before, when they rotated between clearing out Hidden Sand ninja and resting, was gone.

More wounded entered and exited the medical tents. Messenger ninja, their faces marked by exhaustion and the smell of gunpowder, hurried past. An invisible pressure and concern for the distant battlefield filled the air.

Uchiha Lan's squad was stationed in an open area at the edge of the camp.

Uchiha Lan sat cross-legged atop a boulder, carefully maintaining his kunai and shuriken. In truth, he was secretly training, controlling the contraction of his Mangekyo Sharingan's ocular power at will.

Daotian practiced Earth Release hand seals, while Tetsuka wiped his short blade over and over. Only Daosui held a small notebook, muttering calculations to himself, his expression alternating between excitement and conflict.

"Captain, over at Mount Kikyo... I heard the fighting has been brutal."

Tetsuka stopped wiping his blade and broke the silence, his voice low.

Though he loved battle, after half a month on the battlefield, he understood the cruelty of a massive battlefield's meat grinder.

Uchiha Lan nodded.

"Yeah, but Hidden Sand has stabilized their front ever since the forces led by Lord Orochimaru reached Mount Kikyo."

"Especially since Lord Orochimaru fought their future Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, alone. I heard he nearly won. On top of that, the Hidden Sand ninja haven't been attacking very fiercely, so Mount Kikyo is secure."

"And it's obvious that Hidden Sand needs time to recover as well."

"The main issue now is that Iwagakure has entered the war. The Land of Earth has dispatched over ten thousand ninja troops and already occupied half of the Land of Grass. I heard even the Third Tsuchikage's son has gone to the battlefield."

"The most hateful ones are those Hidden Grass ninja. The Land of Grass is clearly an ally of our Land of Fire, but the moment Iwagakure's ten-thousand-man army arrived, they surrendered. Now they've become Iwagakure's accomplices!"

"Hiss..." Daosui sucked in a breath.

That meant the Land of Fire and Konoha had to face two great nations and two great ninja villages at once. Oh, and one shameless minor ninja village as well.

Of course, that was not too much of a problem. They were only two great ninja villages, after all. It was not as though Konoha had never fought them before.

But the key question was whether the other ninja villages would join the war.

If Hidden Cloud Village and Hidden Mist Village also entered the conflict, who would they target first?

There was no need to guess. It would definitely be Konoha and the Land of Fire.

That was already an unspoken rule and political orthodoxy in the ninja world.

If that happened, history would repeat itself, just like the First Shinobi World War and the Second Shinobi World War.

Leaving aside whether Konoha could win, even if it won again like before, how great would the losses be? No one knew!

"Good thing things are still relatively peaceful over here. Otherwise, if we were sent to one of those battlefields where thousands of ninja are fighting in a melee..."

Even the usually steady Daotian stopped practicing, speaking with a slight frown.

"That's very likely."

Uchiha Lan's voice carried certainty.

"If I were Hidden Mist or Hidden Cloud, I definitely wouldn't let such a good opportunity pass. Especially Hidden Cloud, with their warlike, bandit-like nature. They may have already made a move in the Land of Fields."

"The Land of Fields' daimyo has always wanted to establish his own ninja village, to the point that Konoha has warned him repeatedly. So in this war, he'll definitely shift his allegiance toward Hidden Cloud, though Hidden Cloud isn't made up of good people either."

"The Land of Water, where Hidden Mist is located, is an island nation far from the mainland. It would be inconvenient for them to immediately dispatch a large army to attack."

"But small-scale probes and surprise attacks are inevitable. They can gather intelligence while buying time for the assembly and transport of their later forces."

Uchiha Lan's analysis was clear and concise, accurately laying bare the most likely direction of the current chaotic situation.

The moment he finished speaking, a young ninja wearing the Nara Clan's distinctive deer-patterned vest walked over, a trace of undisguised surprise still on his face.

The newcomer was Nara Shikaso, who was responsible for communication between the main camp and the perimeter guard units.

He had clearly heard Uchiha Lan's final analysis regarding Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist. Strong agreement and a trace of worry flashed through his eyes.

Uchiha Lan had noticed him long ago, but did not care. What, were they forbidden from discussing national affairs in this camp?

"Captain Uchiha Lan," Nara Shikaso composed himself and pushed up his glasses. His tone was unexpectedly respectful.

"Is something the matter?"

Uchiha Lan's expression did not change. He merely looked calmly at Nara Shikaso.

"Lord Baiyun Zaojian has asked you to come to the main camp command center. There is an important combat mission."

"Understood."

Uchiha Lan answered crisply, his eyes sweeping over his team members.

"Let's go. We've rested enough these past two days."

"There's no time to waste. We leave immediately."

Uchiha Lan took the lead and walked out of the tent.

The other three answered in unison, "Yes, Captain!"

Daosui and Daotian followed close behind, moving as swiftly as the wind. They still had to put on an act in front of outsiders—they could not let anyone know about their hidden goofy side.

Nara Shikaso watched the three figures quickly disappear at the edge of the camp, his brows tightly furrowed.

Uchiha Lan's precise prediction had left a deep impression on him, but the grim reality that followed weighed even more heavily on his heart.

If Hidden Cloud entered the war, it would mean the scale of the conflict would suddenly escalate. Konoha would face unprecedented pressure.

He did not dare waste any time. He immediately turned, becoming a blur as he hurried toward the other areas that needed to be notified.