Worn Down

"After them," Fugaku Uchiha said. "They're on their last legs. They won't hold out much longer. Nozawa, send out your Kikaichū to scout for traps."

He flicked two Shuriken into the throats of the two badly wounded Stone shinobi. A line of text appeared in his mind.

Killed one Chunin. Gained a small amount of Pupil Power.

"Hm?"

Fugaku stopped. Only one line had appeared, which meant the other Stone shinobi was still alive. The man had played dead so convincingly that even the Sharingan had failed to spot anything amiss.

He hurled a Kunai with an Explosive Tag attached. A thunderous blast shook the cave, and flames swallowed both Stone shinobi. Another line of text appeared in his mind. This Ninja was a Jonin, and his death had given Fugaku a moderate amount of Pupil Power.

The three left the cave. The other four Stone shinobi were nowhere in sight.

Fugaku looked at Nozawa. "Can you track them?"

Nozawa nodded. "Some Kikaichū landed on them. They won't get away. The others can follow their scent without relying on sight."

Fugaku nodded. Male and female Kikaichū could locate each other by scent. That was no secret to him; most Ninja who regularly worked with the Aburame Clan knew it.

A few Kikaichū led the way through the dark, rainy night. The three moved quietly, picking their way through rugged terrain where the rocks would hide their tracks and help lull their targets into a false sense of security.

Not far ahead, Daben was fleeing at full speed with three other Stone shinobi.

All four were covered in blood. They had already survived one fierce battle, only to run into Konoha shinobi again.

"Captain Daben," one Stone shinobi panted, "we can't keep running. There are four of us. Let's turn back and fight those three Konoha shinobi. We might win."

"Keep running. Don't stop," Daben said grimly. "If they were ordinary Konoha shinobi, we wouldn't need to run. Four against three could go either way.

"But one of them is an Uchiha with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan. The Sharingan is known for Genjutsu and its power of observation. He can see clearly even in the dark. At this hour, that gives him too much of an advantage. They'd pick us off one by one."

"Captain Daben, they haven't followed us. Maybe the traps we set along the way worked."

Daben glanced back. Darkness stretched behind them, with no sign of the Konoha shinobi. But he did not let down his guard. In a fight between Ninja, the slightest wishful thought could cost him his life.

"Whether they worked or not, keep moving. They might want us to think they've given up the chase. Go on ahead. I'll set a simple trap," Daben said.

Behind them, Fugaku and the others silently picked up speed. They were drawing closer to the Stone shinobi. The crude traps left along the route could not escape the Sharingan; Fugaku spotted every telltale sign and steered the team around them.

A faint light crept into the sky. They had been pursuing the Stone shinobi all night and had their targets in sight, but they had yet to attack.

All four were wounded. After a night of running, they were at their limit.

Up ahead, Daben looked back again. He still saw no Konoha shinobi, but his unease remained. Even so, they had to stop and rest. If they kept running, all four would collapse without the strength to put up a fight.

Fugaku and the others stopped behind a rock some distance back and watched their every move.

"Let's go. It looks like they're spent," Fugaku said. "We'll sneak up and catch them by surprise."

Sato and Nozawa nodded. Despite the night-long pursuit, all three were still alert and full of energy. Wearing their enemies down was one reason they had waited to attack.

The four Stone shinobi had let their guard fall. As elite fighters, they would never normally have relaxed so much, but they barely had the strength left to stay alert.

Now they were lambs waiting for the slaughter.

Several Kunai appeared in Fugaku's hand. He hurled them at Daben, the Stone shinobi captain, while the three Konoha shinobi lunged at the other three like dark streaks.

The instant the Kunai appeared, Daben understood that it was over. The three Konoha shinobi had never abandoned the chase. They had waited for his team to exhaust itself before striking.

The Kunai collided in midair, changing direction again and again. Uchiha throwing techniques were renowned throughout the Shinobi World.

Daben drew a Kunai and wrung the last of his strength from his body. He barely deflected two of the incoming blades. The rest pierced his side and legs, and blood poured from the wounds.

The other three fell in the first exchange. Fugaku pierced one through the throat, Sato drove his long blade into another's heart, and Kikaichū drained the last one's Chakra. Barely alive, he had his throat cut by Nozawa.

Killed one Chunin. Gained a small amount of Pupil Power.

Fugaku walked over to Daben. The Stone Jonin had one breath left. In his eyes, Fugaku saw a willingness to die—and a trace of relief.

It seemed the man had grown sick of killing. He had simply been born in the wrong era. Perhaps if he had been born a few decades later, the Shinobi World would have known peace and prosperity. For now, there was only war and chaos.

"Nozawa, find a clean cave," Fugaku said. "We won't keep looking for the Aburame Clan members. We'll rest for a day, then head straight to the rendezvous point."

During the pursuit, all three had been full of energy. Now that the enemy was wiped out, Fugaku felt waves of exhaustion as his tension ebbed. On the battlefield, those who rushed ahead recklessly were always the first to die.

"All right."

Nozawa held out both hands. Countless Kikaichū flew from his body and scattered in every direction.

The three cleaned up the battlefield. When the Kikaichū sent word back, they headed for the cave they had found. They moved with great care, erasing their tracks wherever they could. With the rain washing away the rest, no one would be able to follow them.

The cave was reasonably clean. Jagged rocks filled it, but it was remarkably dry—a stark contrast to the rainy weather outside.

They built a fire. After spending all night in the rain, they badly needed its warmth to drive the chill from their bodies.

On the battlefield, anything that might weaken them could prove fatal. Fugaku would not let his team be dragged down by preventable ailments like aches or colds.

The three sat around the fire. Gentle warmth flowed from the flames, driving the damp and cold from their bodies.