Erasing the Traces

A cool sensation surged from the Sharingan, soothing Fugaku's eyes.

"Red Rock!" Black Rock roared in grief.

Red Rock and Black Rock were not brothers by blood, but they had grown up together and studied Ninjutsu side by side. They had thought they could take down the Konoha shinobi easily. Instead, Red Rock had died in the blink of an eye.

Grief and rage nearly overwhelmed Black Rock, but his years as a Ninja left him with a shred of reason. If he lost that too, his entire squad might be wiped out.

A Signal Flare suddenly shot into the sky and burst overhead. A Stone Chunin had bought the time to call for help at the cost of a slash across his ribs.

When the other Chunin saw the distress signal, their despair turned to desperation. If they could hold out long enough, they might survive.

Fugaku knew they could not drag this out. Stone reinforcements would arrive soon.

"Fall back," Fugaku said. "Their reinforcements will be here soon. Hyuga Ning, locate Inuzuka Maru."

"You think you can leave? Red Rock won't die for nothing!" Black Rock said, his voice ragged. "Hold them here! Reinforcements will arrive soon. I'll make them pay for Red Rock with their lives!"

Black Rock had begun fighting with everything he had. He used the Hardening Technique on his body and attacked wildly at close range, starting to overpower Hyuga Ning.

Body Flicker Technique!

Fugaku appeared in front of Black Rock. The man's emotions were in turmoil. Genjutsu flared in Fugaku's Sharingan, and the figure Black Rock saw before him was not Fugaku Uchiha, but Red Rock, alive again.

The Chakra inside Black Rock fell into disorder, and he could no longer maintain the Hardening Technique on his skin. As the Genjutsu disrupted his senses, Hyuga Ning lunged forward and took the stance of the Eight Trigrams Palm.

Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!

His hands struck acupoints across Black Rock's body in rapid succession, cutting off the flow of Chakra within him. Black Rock came to his senses the moment Ning's blows landed. Chakra erupted inside him, and he barely broke free of the Gentle Fist assault.

He wiped blood from the corner of his mouth. Even though Ning had not completed all sixty-four strikes, Black Rock's internal organs had been injured.

Fugaku attacked with two Kunai, stabbing repeatedly at Black Rock's vital points. His Sharingan spun rapidly, letting him see every move Black Rock made.

Clang! Clang!

Sparks flew as the Kunai collided. Ning attacked swiftly from the other side, Chakra surging through his hands as his Gentle Fist Acupoint Strike went straight for Black Rock's acupoints.

Already wounded, Black Rock struggled against Fugaku and Ning together. In the blink of an eye, several more cuts appeared on his body.

Blood soaked his Ninja uniform and dripped from it with the rain, vanishing into the water at his feet.

Black Rock could not withstand their combined attacks. He could only fight with all his strength, trying to trade wounds for time. He believed that once the Stone reinforcements arrived, these Konoha shinobi would not stand a chance.

But Fugaku would give him no time. Every minute they lingered here was dangerous. Genjutsu flared in his Sharingan, and Black Rock's vision blurred for an instant. Fugaku seized the opening and drove a Kunai into his left ribs, grievously wounding him.

Black Rock spat a mouthful of blood. His breathing grew labored, each breath bubbling with blood. Fugaku knew the Kunai had pierced his lung. The Five Great Nations had not yet begun to place much importance on Medical Ninjutsu. Black Rock was as good as dead.

Fugaku swept his Kunai across once more, ending Black Rock's suffering and adding another measure of hatred to the world.

A message appeared in his mind.

Killed a Jonin. Gained a moderate amount of Pupil Power.

Fugaku could clearly feel that his Sharingan had grown stronger. He had absorbed Pupil Power several times, but this was the first time he had felt such a distinct change. Perhaps the gains from before had finally accumulated enough to make a difference.

"Prepare to withdraw," Fugaku said. "Aburame Nozawa, keep watch on the area. Let us know the moment any Stone shinobi appear."

"Yes."

With the Kikaichū keeping watch, the Stone reinforcements would at least be unable to catch them by surprise.

Body Flicker Technique!

Fugaku and Ning vanished at the same time and appeared among the remaining Stone Chunin. One after another, they met Fugaku's Sharingan and briefly fell into a Genjutsu.

His Kunai struck in quick succession, killing three Stone Chunin.

Three messages appeared in Fugaku's mind, one after another.

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

"Captain, someone's approaching in the distance," Aburame Nozawa said suddenly.

Fugaku glanced in the direction Nozawa indicated. He could not see anyone yet, but Ninja moved fast. If the Kikaichū had detected them, they could not be far away.

He looked at the three wounded Stone shinobi who remained. "Withdraw. Hyuga Ning, lead the team to Inuzuka Maru."

"Stay close to me." Figures blurred away, leaving only the three wounded Stone shinobi and Fugaku Uchiha behind.

One of the wounded Stone shinobi stared at Fugaku, who had not moved, and swallowed. "Why aren't you leaving? Our reinforcements will be here any moment. Stay, and you'll die."

Fugaku looked at the three of them. They were not concerned for him. They were terrified he would kill them on his way out.

His figure blurred several times, and blood sprayed through the rain.

Three more messages appeared in his mind.

Fugaku had stayed not only to finish off the last three Stone shinobi, but also to erase the clues their battle had left behind.

Konoha's Intelligence Department could examine the memories of the dead and use Memory Search on the living. Fugaku did not know whether other Ninja Villages had the same ability.

His squad still had more battles with Stone shinobi ahead. He did not want to reveal their full capabilities so early and give the enemy a chance to prepare for them.

He rigged the bodies with a chain of Explosive Traps. The blasts would destroy the evidence and slow any pursuit.

Body Flicker Technique!

After several leaps, he vanished into the Rain Curtain.

No sooner had Fugaku disappeared than several figures arrived in quick succession.

A chain of explosions sounded behind him. He did not know whether any of the Stone reinforcements had been caught in the traps. He sped up again. Ahead, eleven figures came into view, battered and bloodied. Some sat cross-legged, while others stood quietly, waiting for him.

Fugaku glanced at the dead Stone Jonin on the ground. "Destroy the brain tissue. Then we leave."

They could not afford to reveal too much about the squad for at least three months. If the Stone shinobi learned how to counter them, things would become even more dangerous.

The wound on Fugaku's left arm was still bleeding. Waves of pain made him frown now and then.

He swept his gaze over the others. They were not much better off. None of their wounds were fatal, but all of them were bloodied.

They had to find somewhere to stop and treat their wounds as soon as possible. If they ran into another enemy like this, they would be easy prey.

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(End of chapter)