The spy sent by the Senju Clan was escorted to the rear for interrogation. Under the Uchiha's genjutsu, she answered every question truthfully.
She revealed everything without exception: the Senju Clan's recent movements, the transport teams' locations, and their defensive fortifications.
Normally, members of the Senju Clan absolutely could not allow themselves to fall into the Uchiha Clan's hands, because the Uchiha Clan's genjutsu was renowned throughout the Shinobi World.
As such, almost every clan hostile to the Uchiha Clan had an unwritten rule: once they were at a disadvantage and about to be captured, they had to kill themselves to keep intelligence out of enemy hands.
Clearly, the Senju woman before them had not done that. She had actually thought of taking her enemies down with her rather than killing herself. It seemed she had still underestimated the Uchiha Clan's genjutsu far too much.
"Aka Uchiha, you were the one who found her, so you can escort her back to headquarters," the Uchiha Clan's highest-ranking commander at the position said, patting Aka Uchiha on the shoulder.
"You and your teammates will be responsible for bringing this prisoner back to the clan. The clan grounds happen to be short on manpower."
Aka Uchiha nodded and accepted the assignment, then called Homura Uchiha and Uchiha Takashi over to escort the prisoner with him.
They tied the prisoner to a tricycle cart, along with the damaged spoils seized at the front, then pulled the cart toward headquarters.
On the way, the Senju prisoner woke up. Upon discovering that the ones escorting him were only three brats, she immediately began thinking about escaping.
However, when she tried to exert herself, she discovered that all the chakra in her body had been sealed. Her hands and feet were also bound tight, leaving her no way to resist.
Uchiha Takashi, walking beside her, merely glanced sideways at her before continuing on his way.
"Hey, brat, my hands really hurt. Could you loosen these a little and give me a break?" the Senju woman said to Uchiha Takashi, seemingly unwilling to give up.
Uchiha Takashi said nothing and kept walking. The Senju woman continued, "Hey, hey, my chakra's already sealed, and you've still tied me up this tightly. Don't you know how to treat a lady?"
None of the three paid her any attention. Although the Senju woman was indeed very attractive, sorry, but the Uchiha Clan was also full of good-looking people. They were unlikely to turn into suckers for a pretty face.
Seeing that her beauty trap had failed, the Senju woman gritted her teeth and tried to say something else.
Homura Uchiha shot her a vicious look. "Shut up, Senju. You're just a prisoner now. Stop making a racket, or I'll tear your mouth off!"
The Senju woman shrank back, but then put on a tough front again. "Then come over here! Go on, tear my mouth off! Kill me if you've got the guts! If you don't, I'll look down on you!"
The corner of Homura Uchiha's eye twitched, and veins seemed to bulge on his forehead. Seeing this, Uchiha Takashi immediately said, "Homura, don't fall for her provocation. This Senju woman is trying to get herself killed.
"We absolutely can't let her get her way. She seems to know a lot. Maybe she holds some standing in the Senju Clan. Let the elders interrogate her again when we get back. They might get more out of her."
Hearing Uchiha Takashi's words, the Senju woman felt a little desperate. Great, provoking them did not work either.
Aka Uchiha suddenly turned around and said, "If you want us to let you go, that's possible too. Tell us, what's your position in the Senju Clan?"
The Senju woman immediately shook her head. "No way. I'll never tell you."
Aka Uchiha gave a meaningful look. Receiving the signal, Uchiha Takashi said nothing, pulled a kunai from inside his clothes, and drove it into the Senju woman's thigh.
"Aah-!" The intense pain made the Senju woman scream, beads of cold sweat covering her forehead. Aka Uchiha continued questioning her. "Talk, or else..."
Uchiha Takashi twisted the kunai embedded in her thigh twice. Agonizing pain assaulted the Senju woman's brain again, and this time, she finally broke.
"I'll talk! I'm... the daughter of an elder of the Senju Clan... I came here to gather intelligence on you."
Aka Uchiha nodded thoughtfully, while Uchiha Takashi pulled out the kunai. Seeing this, the Senju woman immediately said, "I told you. Can you let me go now?"
Uchiha Takashi rolled his eyes. "Are you stupid? He said he'd let you go. It's not like the two of us said we'd let you go. Since you're an elder's daughter, you must have some value.
"You definitely know some other things too. It doesn't matter if you don't talk. The clan has plenty of ways to find out."
Hearing Uchiha Takashi's words, the Senju woman widened her eyes. "You actually lied to me?"
Uchiha Takashi said indifferently, "It's your fault for being stupid. We're enemies, and you actually believed what your enemy said. Still, telling us this was pretty much the same as telling us nothing. Our elders would've gotten it out of you sooner or later anyway."
The Senju woman's face instantly flushed red, and she was positively fuming. Seeing the enemy like this left Homura Uchiha feeling thoroughly satisfied.
Just then, hurried footsteps suddenly came from behind them, instantly putting all three on alert.
"Who's there?" Uchiha Takashi asked warily, looking behind them.
Several people dressed in Uchiha Clan clothing came running from behind. Upon seeing them, they hurriedly shouted, "Run! Take her and get out of here!"
Before Uchiha Takashi and the others could figure out what was happening, they saw a large group of people dressed in Senju Clan clothing following those Uchiha clansmen!
The Senju Clan had attacked! Seeing the large enemy force charging toward them, all three instantly went pale.
One of the Uchiha clansmen who ran up saw the three of them and the Senju woman. He first looked at Uchiha Takashi and his two companions, then at the Senju woman tied to the tricycle cart.
He instantly pieced a few things together, and his gaze turned resolute.
"You three, go! Get this prisoner back to headquarters right away! We'll hold the enemy off! This prisoner definitely isn't anyone ordinary. Hurry and take her back!"
Homura Uchiha shook his head. "No! What about you? You'll die! I'm staying to help you too."
The Uchiha who had run over shook their heads. "A brat like you? Forget it. Don't stay and drag us down. Hurry back. We'll hold this place!"
With that, the Uchiha clansman resolutely turned and charged toward the mass of approaching Senju.
Uchiha Takashi tugged at Homura Uchiha, who was still standing there in a daze. "What are you waiting for? Move!"
Only then did Homura Uchiha come to his senses. He took one last look at the few isolated Uchiha, then he and Uchiha Takashi hoisted the Senju woman off the cart and ran toward headquarters.
The Senju woman tied to the cart had been quite happy to see her clansmen coming to rescue her, laughing arrogantly. "Haha! You evil Uchiha are dead!"
However, once she was hoisted up and carried away, she could no longer laugh. "Wait, can't you just let me go? As long as you let me go, won't you be able to escape?"
Uchiha Takashi answered without thinking. "No. You're an elder's daughter. Even if we die, we absolutely can't let the Senju Clan take you back so easily."
The Senju woman felt like crying, but had no tears. She really should have kept her mouth shut. Why had she not held out? If she had endured the kunai stabbing her thigh earlier, wouldn't none of this be happening now?
But having a kunai stabbed into her thigh had hurt far too much. It really was more than a person could bear. This brat looked so young. Where had he learned such a torturous method of interrogation?
Not long after the three began running, footsteps sounded behind them again. They did not need to think to know that the Senju Clan had caught up.
Seeing that they were almost within headquarters' security perimeter, the three involuntarily quickened their pace.
"What about the clansmen who were holding them off?" Homura Uchiha glanced back twice, a trace of sadness entering his voice. "Have they all..."
Uchiha Takashi gritted his teeth and said nothing, because if he spoke now, his strength would give out. At this point, sheer determination was keeping him going.
He had barely rested after intense combat before being sent to escort the prisoner. Now he had to run this hard while carrying someone, making him even more exhausted. How could he have the energy to talk?
But no matter how fast they ran, the footsteps behind them kept drawing closer. Aka Uchiha gritted his teeth and said quietly to the other two, "I'll hold them off. Headquarters is just ahead.
"You should be able to run into a patrol. Hurry and go!"
"No! You have to come with us. The three of us die together or live together!" Homura Uchiha refused without thinking.
Aka Uchiha's brows furrowed tightly. "At this rate, none of us will survive! We're finished if they catch up!"
Even after Aka Uchiha went that far, Homura Uchiha still refused to budge, insisting on staying with him no matter what.
While the two were at an impasse, several shuriken and fireballs suddenly flew over from the distance, intercepting the Senju pursuing them.
"It's a patrol!" At the sight, the three accelerated again and rushed toward the distance.
Sure enough, it was a five-man squad, one of whom was even a Mitsudomoe elite. They saw the three rushing toward them, then glanced at the dozen or so Senju pursuing them.
Although they could not figure out what had happened, since it was the Senju, there was nothing more to say.
Without another word, the five-man squad charged at the Senju Clan with their swords, while also firing a signal to summon all nearby patrols for immediate support.
Since the last attack on headquarters, patrols around it had been strengthened by more than just one level. If there was one patrol here, then there were bound to be three others operating nearby.
The pursuing Senju clansmen gritted their teeth at the Uchiha clansmen blocking their path, then looked at Uchiha Takashi and the others running farther and farther away.
Knowing that rescuing her was no longer possible, and that if they kept pursuing, they would be wiped out once the other Uchiha patrols surrounded them, he had no choice but to order a retreat.
Since the Uchiha patrol only had five people, they did not try to stop the dozen or so enemies from withdrawing, because they knew they could not stop them.
Thus, after exchanging a couple of looks, the two sides went their separate ways.