Supplies

"Make it quick," Fugaku said. "The explosion will draw more enemies soon."

Twelve figures rushed to surround the four Stone shinobi, a barrage of concealed weapons closing in from every side.

"Break through," Qing Modo said, taking in the situation. "Send a distress signal. If even one of us survives, that's enough."

A fierce wind burst from Qing Modo's mouth and swept diagonally through the air, scattering most of the weapons.

On the other side, an earth wall rose and blocked the rest.

The four fled at full speed, retreating toward Yamada Shinji and his two teammates. They had clearly picked that route because all three were Chunin and could not stop four Stone shinobi.

Pick on the weak. The same rule applied when breaking out; a moment's delay could mean all four of them died.

"Let them through!" Fugaku shouted.

It was four against three, and the enemy had two Jonin. Trying to stop them would accomplish nothing. The three might lose two people in the first exchange.

Several more kunai appeared in Fugaku's hand, and he hurled them forward.

Sensing movement behind him, one of the Stone Jonin turned. Dark streaks cut through the air as his short sword flashed around him, leaving no opening.

A skilled swordsman. Professionally trained, Fugaku thought.

To the side, Inuzuka Maru and his dog formed two spinning whirlwinds in midair. They tore through the rain and swept past the Stone shinobi again and again, forcing them to stop.

Body Flicker Technique!

Fugaku shot past the Konoha shinobi, his kunai aimed straight at Qing Modo's chest. The two clashed, while Hyuga Ning and Inuzuka Maru joined forces against the other Stone Jonin.

The remaining nine fought the two Stone Chunin together.

Qing Modo surveyed the fight. The tide had turned, and staying would only get him killed. He launched two rapid attacks, drove Fugaku back, and immediately retreated into the distance.

Fugaku pursued him. Qing Modo knew too much; if he relayed what he knew about them to the Stone shinobi, they would be in serious danger.

Two kunai flew from Fugaku's hands, followed by a stream of sparks from his mouth.

Qing Modo had no choice but to stop. His hands flashed through signs, and an earth wall rose from the ground.

Wind and earth attributes, Fugaku realized. Most shinobi developed only one chakra attribute at first. As they grew stronger and deepened their understanding of chakra, they could try to develop a second.

Those born with unusual constitutions and two or even three attributes were exceptions.

Fugaku had been born with only the fire attribute, in keeping with Uchiha tradition. He had not yet had the chance to develop a second.

With Qing Modo forced to stop, the fight became one-on-one.

Qing Modo glanced around and smiled. "You're alone now. Either of us could win. If I bring back a Uchiha corpse, it'll make up for my earlier mistake."

Fugaku regarded him calmly. The more he said, the more intelligence he might reveal. This enemy was not worth wasting words on.

The Sharingan spun rapidly in his eyes. He cast a genjutsu and thrust his kunai forward.

Blood sprayed from Qing Modo's shoulder. Fugaku attacked again, his hands moving like blurs, every strike aimed to kill. Under the Sharingan's scrutiny, Qing Modo's movements were perfectly clear.

Fugaku slipped the kunai in his left hand through a gap in Qing Modo's attack and slashed across his left ribs.

Their exchanges came fast, but Fugaku remained in control. He blocked a slash at his throat, then drove his kunai into Qing Modo's chest near the shoulder blade.

Qing Modo clutched his wound. When he looked at Fugaku again, his earlier ease was gone, replaced by grimness and a hint of despair. He knew he might die here today.

The Uchiha's Sharingan is even more troublesome than the stories say. I won't be able to get this intelligence back to Stone headquarters, Qing Modo thought. The wound near his shoulder blade had rendered his left arm useless. Only his right remained.

"Can I know your name?" Qing Modo asked. "Before I die, let me know who killed me."

Fugaku's gaze stayed calm. He had no intention of answering. Villains died because they talked too much, and he would not give Qing Modo a chance to stall.

His kunai struck again and again, opening cuts across Qing Modo's body. Wounded repeatedly, Qing Modo could barely keep up. A dark blur pierced his chest and ended his life.

Sensing the information enter his mind, Fugaku looked down at the corpse and gave Qing Modo the answer he had wanted. "Fugaku Uchiha. Many more shinobi will die by my hand. You won't be lonely."

He stuck an Explosive Tag to the body and turned away.

At the pile of rocks, the other Stone shinobi had already been dealt with.

"Take care of the bodies," Fugaku said. "Then we'll return to the Forward Camp for supplies."

Team 009 worked swiftly, placing Explosive Tags on each Stone shinobi's corpse and linking them into a trap.

Not every shinobi had seen war or gained experience. These Explosive Tags would teach them how brutal a battlefield could be.

The Forward Camp was still bustling. With the intelligence networks of the Wind, Rain, and Earth countries, there was no way they did not know its exact location.

But the camp held too many Konoha shinobi to attack without assembling a large force. And with Konoha's intelligence network, secretly gathering that many troops was wishful thinking.

Every country had done a good job planting spies. Even Konoha's large-scale operations could not be hidden from the other three.

If any side pulled too many troops from its rear, it would leave itself exposed and end up worse off than before.

To Fugaku, the Forward Camp was merely one of Konoha's bases in plain sight, meant to cover operations carried out in secret.

At the very least, Fugaku Uchiha did not believe every Konoha shinobi sent on missions in the Land of Rain operated out of the Forward Camp.

Even a rabbit kept several escape holes, let alone Konoha, which had long held the advantage in the war.

The twelve entered the camp and went to logistics to collect supplies for their missions. Satomaru and Aburame Nozawa went to their tent to rest.

Fugaku went straight to Uchiha En's tent. It had been some time since he last sent a message through En's Summoning Beast. He was sure his father would have sent another letter by now.

En's tent was shut and empty. It seemed he had not returned from his mission, or had already left on another. Fugaku hoped nothing had happened to him.

Uchiha En was one of the few Uchiha elites Fugaku knew well. He was perceptive and powerful, and possessed a generosity of spirit rare in the clan.

Fugaku turned toward Uchiha Jin's tent. Jin was not as sharp-eyed as En, but he was one of the few friends Fugaku could talk to easily.

"Fugaku!" Jin called before he even entered the tent. "I figured you'd be back soon. Here for supplies?"

Fugaku nodded. "Is En still not back? I wanted to ask whether my father sent word."

Jin considered it. "It should be about time. How many days are you resting?"

"Two," Fugaku said. "We leave in two days to continue the mission."

Jin grew serious. "Then the timing should work. If nothing goes wrong, he should return to camp for supplies in the next day or two."