A Deadly Counterattack at the Edge of the Forest of Death

Hiruzen Sarutobi was tempted.

After considering it for a while, he still shook his head and rejected the idea.

"No!"

"Jin Uchiha served under Kagami, and now he's close to Shisui. Shisui is our most important pair of eyes on the Uchiha."

"If he finds out you transferred Jin to Root, whatever trust he has in us will be gone."

"Keeping the Uchiha in check is the bigger picture, Danzo. You need to understand that."

"Don't touch Jin Uchiha. I won't say it again!"

Danzo's face turned thunderous.

Every proposal he made was shot down!

Hiruzen Sarutobi's damned indecisiveness sent flames of fury leaping through him.

He was just one worthless Uchiha. Danzo refused to believe he could ruin their grand plans for the clan.

"Hiruzen, you'll regret this someday!"

"Danzo, I'm the Hokage!"

After that tired old exchange, Danzo turned away, his face livid, and slammed the door behind him.

Regret ate him alive.

Back then, he had been just one step, one breath away from becoming Hokage.

Otherwise, he would have been the one sitting in that office!

Early the next morning.

Jin Uchiha yawned as he climbed out of bed, rinsed his mouth, washed his face, and headed straight for the Ichiraku Ramen Shop.

Only after filling his stomach did he begin strolling leisurely home.

This time, though, the moment he turned into a narrow alley, he sensed someone trailing him again.

What the hell now?

Yesterday it was Shisui. Who was it today?

The Third Hokage's ANBU, or Danzo's Root?

A moment later, he realized he was overthinking it.

A sideways glance brought three Uchiha clansmen into view.

All familiar faces, too.

Yu Uchiha, Ryo Uchiha, and Yoshio Uchiha.

Disgust welled up inside Jin Uchiha.

He was sick of them.

Of everyone in the Uchiha clan, these three were the only ones who picked fights with him every other day.

The actual higher-ups, geniuses, and even the elite members couldn't be bothered to make him their punching bag all day.

Only these three good-for-nothing mediocrities kept pestering him until his head hurt.

He had put up with it to stay alive.

But judging by their enthusiasm, the three had become addicted and had no intention of stopping.

At that thought, something flickered in his eyes.

Then, a moment later.

He turned up ahead and kept moving, cutting straight behind Hokage Rock before plunging into the old Woods beside Training Ground 23 and heading for the edge of the Forest of Death.

They were all ninja, and they traveled fast.

Half an hour later.

Jin Uchiha leaped down from the top of a large tree and gazed at the dense forest blotting out the sky before him, looking utterly at ease.

Just then.

Yoshio Uchiha and the other two landed as well, spreading out to surround Jin Uchiha.

"Jin Uchiha, you should've died long ago!"

"A worthless piece of trash like you doesn't deserve the Uchiha name. Why haven't you dropped dead already?"

"It's bad enough that you're still clinging to life, but you even dared to drag Shisui into this."

"You can't even master the Three Basic Jutsu, yet here you are, disgracing the Uchiha."

"This place has lovely scenery. It'll make a perfect grave for you."

Yoshio Uchiha's expression was cold enough to freeze.

Arrogance filled his eyes as he folded his arms across his chest, staring at Jin Uchiha with nothing but mockery and contempt.

What made Shisui such a genius, anyway?

As a proud Uchiha, hearing the clan praise Shisui day in and day out left him bitter and frustrated, with a deep-seated sense of helplessness.

He knew the truth perfectly well.

He envied Shisui and resented him, but he would never overcome the gulf between them.

So he would take another route.

If I can't deal with a genius like Shisui, surely I can handle a worthless fool like you?

He vented every bit of the venom buried in his heart on Jin Uchiha.

Simply put, he picked on the weak!

Inside the clan compound, the most he could do was beat him up.

But things were different now.

Where were they?

At the edge of the Forest of Death.

Far from the village, where no one could see them.

And Jin Uchiha seemed to be close to Shisui, too.

His malice ran wild, and murderous intent surged within him.

If Jin Uchiha died, Shisui would have to suffer for a while, wouldn't he?

The thought of using this to hurt Shisui made his body tremble with excitement.

"Attack together! Kill him!"

A vicious smile curled his lips as he whipped out a kunai and gripped it.

"Boss, this..." Ryo Uchiha looked utterly stunned and couldn't help speaking up. "Isn't that going too far? However annoying Jin is, he still has Uchiha blood."

Yu Uchiha also tried to stop him. "Yeah, boss. Let's just beat him up and leave it at that."

Clearly.

Those two still had some sense left and hastily tried to talk him down.

But Yoshio Uchiha's killing intent had already flared. How could a few words suppress it?

"Hmph. A pair of gutless cowards."

"I'm killing Jin Uchiha no matter what. Make your own choice."

"If word of this gets out, neither of you will get away with it!"

With that said.

Yoshio Uchiha stopped wasting time. His eyes instantly turned blood-red, revealing his two-tomoe Sharingan. In the blink of an eye, he unleashed the Uchiha Shuriken Jutsu, sending seven kunai raining toward Jin Uchiha and sealing off every escape route.

His hands never paused. He finished his hand seals in five seconds, and his cheeks swelled.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

Boom!

Blazing flames poured from his mouth, forming a massive fireball in midair that hurtled toward Jin Uchiha, trailing scorching tongues of fire.

Meanwhile.

Ryo Uchiha and Yu Uchiha couldn't help exchanging a glance.

Their eyes held nothing but fear and bewilderment.

This was murdering a fellow clansman!

But they had no choice.

Just as Yoshio Uchiha had said, if even a whisper of this got out, neither of them could escape responsibility.

There was no way out.

They absolutely could not let Jin Uchiha escape!

They exchanged another glance and nodded firmly, the light in their eyes turning cold and sharp.

In that instant.

Their eyes also turned blood-red, revealing their one-tomoe Sharingan. Their hands moved in a blur as they hurled shuriken and kunai with reckless abandon, cutting off Jin Uchiha's escape routes on both sides.

Jin Uchiha narrowed his eyes.

Watching the three bear down on him, he curled his lips into a mocking smile.

"From the looks of it, you think I'm easy prey."

"But there's something I can't quite figure out."

"Do those brains of yours ever work?"

"Do you think I came wandering around the Forest of Death because I had nothing better to do?"

"That I was worried you couldn't kill me, so I went out of my way to give you a chance?"

"How can you possibly be this stupid?"

Jin Uchiha spoke coldly.

His usual gentle, easygoing demeanor vanished. He became so cold that he seemed like a different person entirely.

That was right.

He had personally chosen this place as the burial ground for these three fellow clansmen.

Almost in an instant.

He activated his Sharingan as well. Three tomoe spun within his eyes, radiating nothing but chilling malice.

As his gaze swept over the three clansmen again, a cruel smile rose to his lips.

He had long since grown sick of these three idiots.

I just wanted to lie low and build up my strength. Why did you have to keep getting in my face?

If you're so determined to die, I'll send you on your way.

After all.

He was a softhearted man!