Samehada's shadow

Two days passed in a flash.

Deep in the forest, three figures bounded along the tree trunks at blinding speed.

Guerrilla warfare worked much better here than it had in his previous life.

They were ninja, after all.

They moved faster, had tougher bodies, and could accomplish plenty on their own.

Their enemies were no slouches either, but unless they had a firm fix on your movements and a sensory ninja constantly tailing you, sending people specifically to hunt you down was a joke.

That was pretty much how things stood.

Jin Uchiha and the others had been darting around the Land of Whirlpools for days, and the Hidden Mist still couldn't catch them.

They occasionally ran into small squads, but even while holding back, they completely outclassed their opponents.

As for larger forces?

There was still Kazama Nara.

The Nara clan's scouting abilities couldn't compare with the Hyuga's Byakugan, but they weren't useless either.

Their clan's greatest strength was the Shadow Imitation Technique.

Shadows left no trace.

They were especially hard to guard against at night.

Throughout their journey, his clan's secret technique had let them determine the enemy's movements in advance.

It wasn't as convenient as the Byakugan, true, but it was better than stumbling around blind.

As for Jin Uchiha?

He hadn't revealed his Sharingan at all. Taijutsu and Fire Release alone had earned him command of the squad.

The reason was simple.

The three of them worked well together now because death was snapping at their heels, forcing them to join forces.

Once they reached somewhere safe, who knew what schemes each of them would have in mind?

Kazama Nara was less of a concern.

They each had leverage over the other. Unless an enormous prize was at stake, neither would turn on the other first.

Shin Kudo was another matter.

A civilian-born ninja, he had struggled on the brink of death countless times just to scrape together a single Earth Release technique.

And even that was only C-Rank!

Compared with great clans like the Uchiha and Nara, it was practically a joke.

Someone like him would be far too easy to buy off.

Toss him two or three C-Rank Ninjutsu techniques, and he would sell out every last one of your secrets.

Offer him a B-Rank technique, and he would drop to his knees and call you Dad.

Then why not kill him?

Neither of them had even considered it!

Not out of kindness, nor because of any emotional bond.

Kindness got you nowhere in the Shinobi World.

Either you were cannon fodder at the bottom, thoroughly duped by those above you, or you were as overwhelmingly powerful as Hashirama Senju. Failing that, you had to be a child of destiny like Naruto Uzumaki, or at the very least a privileged heir with powerful backing.

Anyone outside those categories couldn't afford it.

Was Kakashi Hatake kind?

In Hiruzen Sarutobi's hands, he was a weapon that lived in the shadows, killing whoever he was told to kill.

Right and wrong didn't matter at all.

And Minato Namikaze?

He had become the Fourth Hokage, true, but until the day he died, he had never managed to accomplish anything Hiruzen Sarutobi refused to approve.

He hadn't even gained complete control over the ANBU that answered directly to the Hokage!

If even men like them couldn't afford to talk about kindness, Jin Uchiha and Kazama Nara certainly couldn't.

As for bonds, that was even more ridiculous.

From the moment they met, they had been two sly old foxes keeping their tails hidden.

In just a few days, they had crossed wits openly and secretly countless times. A few days of cooperation were supposed to create a bond?

What a joke!

Unless a squad had been deliberately honed into an elite unit, there was no point expecting anything like that.

Keeping Shin Kudo alive was purely a matter of self-interest.

Both Kazama Nara and Jin Uchiha harbored secrets that couldn't bear the light of day.

Showing a little ability could be explained away by the war. As long as they didn't reveal their hidden trump cards, the village wouldn't set its sights on them.

At most, they would go from cannon fodder to ordinary ninja.

But if both civilian ninja died out here and the village sensed something was wrong, it might send the ANBU to investigate them thoroughly—even dig up everything they had done since childhood. Then they would be finished!

People weren't gods.

Even Jin Uchiha couldn't confidently claim that he had never slipped up once in this life, or that he could withstand a thorough investigation by the village.

Looking at it that way...

Keeping someone like Shin Kudo around was the better bargain.

"Stay sharp."

"There are two Hidden Mist squads ahead. Their chakra is nothing special. They're probably ordinary squads."

Kazama Nara spoke in a low voice.

After hearing him, Shin Kudo instinctively glanced toward Jin Uchiha.

It was obvious.

Through days of cooperation and repeated escapes from certain death, Jin Uchiha had already proved himself.

Seeing their reactions...

Jin Uchiha didn't hesitate.

"Same as always!"

"I'll work with Kazama. Shin, stay hidden and finish them off!"

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

He formed hand seals and sent seven balls of flame flying, splitting them into several paths toward the Hidden Mist ninja.

Kazama Nara wasted no words either.

"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"

A massive blast of Wind Release took shape, shredding dead branches and tearing up the ground as it merged with the Phoenix Sage Fire.

The wind fed the flames, and the flames rode the wind, sweeping outward.

Everything within a dozen or so meters of the Hidden Mist squads was devastated in an instant.

Several Hidden Mist genin died in that first blast without even having time to react.

Only the two chunin barely managed to withstand it.

"They're... Hidden Leaf ninja!" one Hidden Mist chunin spat through gritted teeth, his eyes filled with hatred.

His older brother had died at the hands of Hidden Leaf ninja.

Now he wanted revenge.

But before he could move, Shin Kudo crept up behind him and slit his throat with a kunai.

He died on the spot.

The remaining chunin tried to flee, but Jin Uchiha flicked another kunai at him, piercing his heart.

"Seal up their heads. We're leaving!"

Jin Uchiha's voice was calm.

Kazama Nara and Shin Kudo simply nodded and went about their tasks.

After several days, they knew this routine by heart.

But just then...

A burly, heavyset Hidden Mist ninja emerged from the forest, his expression grim and a massive sword that barely looked like a sword resting on his shoulder.

"The great sword Samehada—Fuguki Suikazan!" Kazama Nara cried out.

The blood drained from his face.

They had run into one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and one particularly renowned even among jonin. He didn't believe their little group could handle him.

Jin Uchiha's expression changed too.

If he unleashed his full strength, he was confident that even against this man, winning wouldn't be too difficult, though he might not be able to kill him.

But he couldn't!

His true strength absolutely could not be exposed here.

"Run!"

With that single word, he turned and bolted.

Kazama Nara had already been poised to flee. The instant Jin Uchiha spoke, he took off without another word.

This time, he truly gave it everything he had.

But while those two could escape, Shin Kudo fell far short.

He was paralyzed with fear, unable to muster even half his usual ability.

Fuguki Suikazan wore a cold sneer.

He didn't even bother using Samehada. He simply drove a fist down at Shin Kudo.

Indeed.

In the eyes of a jonin like him, these three Hidden Leaf genin were ants he could crush with chakra alone.

"Heh. Three brats."

"So many Hidden Mist ninja have died these past few days. Looks like you're the ones behind it."

"Now that you've stumbled into my hands, you'll pay with your lives!"