Damage

The rain grew heavier, its patter against the ground clearly audible inside the cave.

The cave was quiet and warm. Outside, ninja from several nations had gathered in the Land of Rain for their own purposes, killing one another without mercy.

Day slipped away and night fell. The three in the cave barely stirred, eating a little dried food to restore their strength.

After several battles, the team worked together far more smoothly than when it had first formed. A few gestures were enough for them to coordinate simple moves.

Fugaku Uchiha's performance in those battles had greatly changed his two teammates' opinion of the Uchiha. They had simply met too many reckless, arrogant Uchiha before him.

To Fugaku Uchiha, pride and arrogance were two entirely different things.

The three took out their mission sheet again and compared its map with their current position. The cave was only ten kilometers from the rendezvous point Hatake Sakumo had given them.

If they set out at dawn, they would reach it before long.

Silence settled over the cave again as they rested and conserved their strength. Once they regrouped, chances to relax like this would be rare. If the fighting intensified, even a basic night's sleep would be a luxury.

Listening to the rain strike the ground outside, Fugaku drifted off to sleep.

In a valley near the Land of Rain's border with the Land of Fire, a base lay hidden. It was Konoha's foothold in the Land of Rain and the Vanguard Force's rendezvous point.

Konoha shinobi moved about the base. Some were support staff; others had finished their missions and arrived early.

At dawn, dark figures appeared one after another before the camp and entered the central tent to turn in their missions.

Fugaku Uchiha and his two teammates eventually reached the camp and entered the central tent.

Hatake Sakumo sat inside, waiting for the returning ninja.

"Fugaku Uchiha reporting with his team," Fugaku said as he entered. "Here is our mission scroll."

Hatake Sakumo took the scroll and handed it to a Konoha shinobi beside him. The seal on the scroll was undone, revealing the ten bodies stored inside.

Someone stepped forward to examine them.

"Sir, four Rain shinobi and six Stone shinobi. Three Jonin and seven Chunin."

"Not bad." Hatake Sakumo nodded. "To be this capable at thirteen, you live up to the Uchiha name. Go to logistics and collect your tent and supplies."

Fugaku Uchiha could hear the surprise beneath Hatake Sakumo's calm words. He seemed not to have expected another prodigy from the Uchiha, a clan that had gradually fallen into mediocrity since Madara Uchiha's departure.

Fugaku Uchiha knew his clan's revival began now.

Logistics was easy to find, marked by a conspicuous sign. The three were assigned tent thirteen, matching their team number. It seemed the tents were allocated by team number.

Each team received a set quantity of supplies, including kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, and other small tools.

Each person also received a bottle of Soldier Pills for use on missions.

The supplies were meant to last a month. They could collect more the next month.

Dark figures occasionally flashed through the camp as more teams arrived.

Fugaku Uchiha pulled back his tent flap and watched figures come forward to turn in their missions.

He was watching to see how many Uchiha had survived. The mission had set no requirements for the strength of their targets, but in a fight between ninja, anything could happen.

The Uchiha chosen for the Vanguard Force were all well-regarded elite members of the clan. At the very least, they knew how to set aside their arrogance.

Fugaku did not want a single clansman to die on this trial mission. To die during the initial rendezvous assignment would be meaningless.

"Fugaku! Just as I expected, that mission was no trouble for someone with your skills."

Fugaku Uchiha turned to find Uchiha Jin smiling at him.

"Looks like you finished yours long ago," Fugaku Uchiha said. "We're a step behind you. We just got here."

Uchiha Jin laughed. "We got lucky. Not long after entering the Land of Rain, we ran into a Sunagakure squad that had just come out of a fight. We picked up an easy win and were the first team to turn in our mission today."

Fugaku nodded. "Not bad. Sometimes luck is part of strength."

"Fugaku, you've been standing here a while. Waiting for someone?"

"I'm seeing how many of our clansmen complete the mission. Everyone selected for the Vanguard Force is an elite member of the clan. It would be a shame to lose any of them here."

Uchiha Jin nodded. "Now that you mention it, the clansmen who came this time are all good. It would be a shame for them to die during the rendezvous assignment. If an Uchiha has to die, it should be in a blaze of glory. We can't let the Shinobi World look down on us."

As the sky darkened, Uchiha Jin returned to Fugaku's tent with news he had just gathered.

Of the thirty teams, twenty-seven had returned. Those that had not made it back would be listed as missing until bodies or evidence of their deaths were found.

Two of the twenty-seven returning teams had failed their missions, and eight people had been killed in battle.

Of the ninety members of the Vanguard Force, only seventy-three had assembled. Every Uchiha was present; the clan had suffered no losses.

The Uchiha's one- to three-tomoe Sharingan gave them a considerable advantage against ninja of the same rank. Their keen perception and hard-to-anticipate genjutsu often caught enemies off guard.

In the morning, Fugaku's team was summoned to Hatake Sakumo's tent to receive a new mission.

"Looks like we'll be busy from now on," Sato said. "I wonder what kind of mission they'll give us."

"As the Vanguard Force, we'll mainly handle three kinds of work: assassination, reconnaissance, and sabotage," Fugaku Uchiha said. "We clear the way for the main force behind us.

"We assassinate key figures from other nations and important people in their ninja villages, gather intelligence on hostile forces, and destroy their vital bases and supply routes. Every success improves our chances in the decisive battle ahead.

"Small advantages add up until victory is certain. Come on. Let's get our first mission as members of the Vanguard Force."

Sato and Nozawa nodded and followed Fugaku Uchiha out of the tent toward Hatake Sakumo's.

"Sir, Fugaku Uchiha reporting."

Only Hatake Sakumo and a few staff members were inside.

Hatake Sakumo nodded. "Wait a moment. I'll explain once everyone is here."

Fugaku understood. This mission would not be carried out by a single three-person team. Several teams would be working together, though he did not yet know how their roles would be assigned.