(This concludes the side story for now; no more side stories will be added until the main storyline is complete.)
The peaceful days were ultimately just a brief interlude in the Warring States period; war was the dominant theme of this era.
That fascinating and fantastical time-travel journey is long over; now the focus should be on the war situation on the front lines.
After repelling the attack of the Sarutobi Clan on the southwestern border and annihilating the main force of the Sarutobi Clan beneath the border town Yukimichi Uchiha...
Uchiha Takashi quickly issued new orders, commanding Yukimichi Uchiha to lead 500 elite Uchiha transferred from the capital westward to the southwestern border town to attack the Sarutobi Clan's border in the Land of Gold.
The blade was aimed directly at the capital of the Land of Gold Sarutobi Clan. Yukimichi Uchiha's order was: take advantage of the Sarutobi Clan's current defeat and weakened strength, and strike directly at their capital in one fell swoop.
Our principle is to scavenge for resources. We'll go through a couple of rounds; if we can win, we'll fight; if not, we'll retreat. We won't lose anything, since it's a transition from defense to offense, a self-defense counterattack.
While Yukimichi Uchiha led his troops to attack, the Sarutobi Clan didn't even have time to react; they were completely bewildered.
That can't be right. If I remember correctly, I attacked you first. I was the one on the offensive, so how come you're the ones beating us up?
However, Yukimichi Uchiha didn't answer their questions and directly led 500 Uchiha clan members in a fierce attack.
Beyond the Sarutobi Clan's border, Yukimichi Uchiha 'Yukimichi Uchiha army was throwing gunpowder recklessly, and his chosen fighting style was incredibly aggressive.
Not content with his own men throwing gunpowder, he himself also had to Fire Style: Ashen Earth Returns to the Abyss!
The Sarutobi Clan, guarding the border, were clearly unaware of this thing's ability to absorb Chakra. Seeing Yukimichi Uchiha unleash Ninjutsu, they naturally had to use Water Release to block it.
As a result, all the Chakra thrown out was absorbed by the fireball, causing a violent explosion that blew the city wall away, resulting in heavy casualties among the Sarutobi Clan's defenders.
Taking advantage of the Yukimichi Uchiha led his army in a rapid advance, directly penetrating the Sarutobi Clan's defensive line. He and his men moved through the Sarutobi Clan's defenses as if they were nothing, cutting down anyone in their path, leaving the front lines in complete chaos.
Meanwhile, Sarutobi's morale was already low after being constantly harassed by Uchiha gunpowder at the city walls. After experiencing Yukimichi Uchiha's massive Ninjutsu explosion, their morale plummeted to rock bottom.
Before the people had even recovered from the violent explosion, still dazed and confused, they turned around to see a group of ferocious-looking Uchiha with their Sharingan, killing anyone in sight.
Upon witnessing this scene, the morale of the Sarutobi Clan collapsed on the spot. Countless Sarutobi Clan were so frightened that they dropped their weapons and ran away, not daring to resist at all, only wishing that their parents had given them two more legs.
Before long, the flag of the Land of Uchiha was raised atop the ruins of the frontier.
The Sarutobi Clan's front lines were captured so easily by Yukimichi Uchiha Yukimichi Uchiha, and his army suffered almost no losses.
If I had to name a few, it would be some gunpowder and Chakra; the personnel losses were negligible.
News of the defeat at the front and the fall of the border quickly reached the capital of the Sarutobi Clan through the fleeing garrison.
Upon learning this news, the Sarutobi Clan's government and public were instantly shaken.
The Sarutobi Clan head received this news during court proceedings when a ninja dressed as a samurai rushed in, shouting loudly as he entered.
"Clan leader, something terrible has happened! Urgent report from the border! The Uchiha Clan has led a large army to invade the border and has now breached the gates! They are advancing straight into our southeastern heartland!"
Upon hearing this, both civil and military officials turned their heads, their eyes wide with shock. The samurai ninja who had brought the message glanced at the military officers and trembled with fear.
The military officers on his side glared angrily, their faces contorted with rage, as if they wanted to devour him alive.
The samurai and ninja were almost in tears. "Uh... um, I... I'm not Uchiha, please don't look at me like that!"
At this moment, the head of the Sarutobi Clan waved his hand. "Enough, you warriors, tone it down. Don't show off in front of your own people. If you have the guts, go find the Uchiha."
Upon hearing this, the leader of the Sarutobi Clan snorted coldly and turned his head to the side.
However, this is understandable; anyone would react with shock upon hearing such news, especially these warlords whose minds are filled with fighting.
You mean we went out to attack other people's borders but failed, our main force was wiped out, and we even got pushed back and had our borders taken?
Oh, there's no such Uchiha in the world! There's no such battle report!
The leading general turned around and said, "How is the front line now? How many troops are left? What are the specific details? How many Uchiha have been lost in their border incursion? Report back immediately!"
The ninja, seeing the general's furious expression, swallowed nervously, then weighed his options in his mind: what if he told him the truth directly?
The Uchiha suffered very few losses; in fact, they simply fled for their lives after the Uchiha broke through their lines. If that's the case, he can't care about others, but he, the messenger, would definitely be killed on the spot by the general in front of him.
Soldiers who retreat from the front lines will most likely be judged as deserters, and the laws of the Land of Gold stipulate that deserters will be executed without mercy.
For his own life and the safety of the soldiers on the front lines, this ninja samurai chose to report false military intelligence.
"The situation at the front is extremely critical. We fought a fierce battle with the Uchiha at the border for 300 rounds. The 400 soldiers defending the border city killed more than 50 Uchiha at the cost of more than 100 casualties."
However, the Uchiha, with their numerical advantage and reckless fighting style, launched a fierce attack on us. The soldiers on the front lines were simply unable to resist and were forced to retreat.
However Uchiha, the Uchiha's losses were also considerable; at least a hundred of their troops were killed or wounded in this battle.
The ninjas spoke these words without batting an eye, as if they had truly fought the Uchiha Uchiha 800 rounds, injuring or killing over 100 of them.
In fact, according to the statistics from Yukimichi Uchiha, the Uchiha only suffered five serious injuries and a dozen or so minor injuries in this battle.
The Sarutobi Clan Sarutobi Clan far more than just 100 casualties; the number must be at least double that.
After the morale of the Sarutobi Clan's border garrison collapsed, Yukimichi Uchiha led a large army in pursuit for a considerable period of time.
The Uchiha was inherently fast, and the Sarutobi, focused only on escaping, didn't put up any resistance. They were relentlessly chased and hacked down, and very few managed to escape.
In the end, after a final count, the original 400-strong garrison was reduced to just over 100 men, and all of them were wounded.