Three tomoe

"Boom!"

Heitaro hid at home with his son Yahei in his arms. The thunderous noise of ninja fighting ten li away seemed ready to tear the thatched roof off their house.

Several months earlier, ninja from neighboring Kumogakure had seized this village on the border between the Land of the Moon and the Land of Lightning, establishing a base nearby.

After a few peaceful months, the flames of war had reached this little border village again.

A single stray Ninjutsu could destroy this fragile family completely.

Life was worth nothing in the face of war.

The aftermath of the ninja battle had probably already destroyed every last stalk of wheat in his fields.

Heitaro looked at the trembling child in his arms. Even if they were lucky enough to survive this time, without food, they would starve sooner or later.

That was how his wife had died in the previous war. Later, he had heard that Konoha ninja had infiltrated Kumogakure and sparked an uprising, forcing Kumogakure to pull its forces back.

Konoha's ninja had pressed their advantage and fought their way here, and the fallout of the war had left nothing to harvest in the fields.

Now, less than five years later, the Konoha ninja had come again. They were only ten li away.

"Everyone inside, get the hell out!"

The flimsy wooden door was kicked open, and Yahei instinctively burrowed deeper into his father's arms.

A Kumogakure ninja barged into their home, his face wounded and his clothes stained with blood that had yet to dry.

He began brazenly ransacking the place while father and son cowered silently in a corner.

But when the ninja pried up the floorboards and found a small sack of coarse grain, Heitaro could no longer hold back.

That was the only food the family had left.

"No, you can't, Lord Ninja. Please."

Heitaro let go of his son and dropped to his knees before the ninja with a thud, begging him for mercy.

"Hmph. Get over here!"

Ignoring Heitaro's pleas, the Kumogakure ninja stepped forward and grabbed young Yahei.

"D-Dad."

"Lord Ninja, we're law-abiding people."

Watching the ninja lift his son, Heitaro crawled to his feet and repeatedly kowtowed, terrified that the ninja would draw a kunai and take his son's life.

"Tch. Paupers!"

The Kumogakure ninja roughly searched Yahei, even reaching beneath his clothes and pressing down hard. Once he confirmed that the boy had nothing but a tattered hemp shirt, he casually tossed him aside.

The ninja left, taking the family's only remaining food with him.

The sounds of fighting outside the village gradually faded. The once-arrogant Kumogakure ninja fled toward the Land of Lightning in disgrace.

"All survivors in the village, come out! Anyone found hiding will be killed on sight!"

Heitaro hurried to the village entrance with his son, and the other villagers arrived one after another.

A squad of Konoha ninja stood at the entrance. Among them, a black-haired boy wearing a red jade pendant around his neck stood out.

"Yan, why don't you try screening them?"

After taking an enemy base, checking whether enemy ninja had hidden among the civilians was a necessary procedure.

By assigning this task to Orochimaru's disciple, the lead Konoha Jonin clearly intended to develop Yan's skills as a ninja.

Yan accepted the assignment and had the civilians line up for inspection.

"Don't let them get too close."

The Jonin corrected Yan's small mistake. Yan nodded, stepped back a few paces, and activated his Sharingan, scanning the people who approached.

Heitaro and Yahei waited in line, with Yahei holding his father's hand behind him.

In his little head, those Ninjutsu that made such loud noises were gone, and he had survived. He could not help feeling a little happy.

The fear in his heart slowly faded, and curiosity made him sneak a look at the older boy checking everyone up ahead.

The scarlet in the boy's eyes frightened Yahei a little, and he lowered his head to fiddle with his fingers.

"My name is Heitaro..."

"Next."

Yan's voice made Heitaro feel as though he had been granted a pardon. He hurried aside and called his son over for inspection.

Their food had been stolen, but at least they were alive. If necessary, he could borrow some money from the Nobles at high interest. If he was lucky and next year brought a good harvest, they would not have to die.

Hearing his father call, Yahei ran toward Yan with little steps.

The sunlight seemed a little strong today. Yahei felt his back growing hot.

"Watch out!"

When Yahei came within ten paces of him, Yan's Sharingan spotted an already-burning Explosive Tag beneath the boy's tattered hemp shirt.

His body reacted instinctively, kicking Yahei away. Heitaro watched his son fly backward, and before the boy could hit the ground...

"Bang!"

The Explosive Tag detonated behind the child, splashing blood onto Heitaro's and Yan's faces.

Yan froze. That boy had only been about two years younger than him, and just like that, he had become a mangled mass of flesh and blood.

At the same time, explosions rang out one after another throughout the line. Seeing their friends and family blown apart, the civilians immediately panicked.

"Don't move!"

The other Konoha ninja reacted, shouting angrily to maintain order.

Terror filled the civilians' faces as they crouched on the ground in fear.

Kumogakure had used the civilians as bombs. Fortunately, none of the ninja had been killed or injured.

But the civilians could not think that far ahead. All they had seen was a Konoha ninja kick Heitaro's child away, followed by a series of explosions.

"Ah! Why? Why would you do this?!"

Heitaro roared and charged at Yan. All he had seen was his son being kicked away by Yan, then blown into unrecognizable flesh and blood.

"Hey, don't move!"

The other Konoha ninja drew their weapons and shouted at the charging Heitaro, but blinded by rage, he was determined to kill the ninja he had once feared.

"Squelch."

"Wait..."

Heitaro's furious roar brought Yan back to his senses. Before he could tell his comrades to stop, several kunai thrown by the startled ninja pierced Heitaro's head.

"Yan, are you all right?"

Heitaro's body slowly collapsed, blood seeping from his head. The lead jonin glanced at the civilian who had died so needlessly, sighed softly, and continued speaking to Yan.

"Yan, you made a mistake. Next time, you should have them strip before checking them."

A... mistake.

Was it just a mistake...?

Yan nodded blankly. "I'll be more careful."

The Jonin could hardly say anything more, so he had someone take over the inspections from Yan.

Once the inspections were finished, they would establish a base nearby. What happened to the villagers was none of their concern.

Kumogakure certainly would not have left them any supplies, so the Jonin did not send anyone to search for them either.

The Shinobi War was not fought for land or free trade. It was fought merely to claim a greater share of mission assignments.

Yan slowly sat down beside a wooden post at the village entrance. The remains of Heitaro and his son had been carelessly tossed aside. Perhaps the villagers would dig a shallow grave and bury them later.

Heitaro's furious roar. The bewilderment on the child's face as he was kicked away.

"Hah... hah..."

Yan's breathing grew heavier. His eyes slowly closed, and when he opened them again, three tomoe had appeared in their scarlet depths.

"Captain, I'm going after them. No backup needed."

Leaving those words with the captain, Yan sprinted toward the Land of Lightning.

Before the captain could voice his objections, Yan had vanished from sight.

Left with no other choice, the captain could only send someone to notify headquarters first.

"Heh heh heh."

Hidden in the shadows, a strange figure whose body was divided into black and white halves watched the scene with keen interest.