Chapter Ten (Patreon)

Even injured and exhausted Jing and Fugaku made better time than the convoy had. They did not move far, however. Fugaku’s stomach wound had stopped bleeding thanks to the Greater Blessing, but a wrong move (or even sustained movement) had the potential to set it off again. Jing was barely better off. Her eyes were roughly transplanted, creating a permanent burn and itch, to say nothing of the chakra drain from being unable to turn off the Byakugan. The pair of survivors moved only a few kilometers away before setting up their shelter.

The night was tense. They had only two watches, both filled with anxiety. Every shifting leaf was a Hidden Grass scouting party. Every rustling branch was another Jonin ready to end them both. Not even their perfect eyes could stop the paranoia, for if Byakugan or Sharingan could truly see everything the ambush would never have happened.

Morning came slowly, a faint blush rising through the trees. Fugaku’s wound was closed, his chakra nearly recovered. Jing was fully recovered, save for the scabbed over cuts. A hint of medical ninjutsu healed those well enough.

With dawn in the air and no foes in sight, Fugaku decided on their next moves. The convoy was both too valuable to ignore and too large for them to protect. The bodies of the fallen were even more valuable, both for bounties and intelligence. Fugaku would begin the process of sorting the battlefield, prioritizing the enemy Jonin for collection in body seals. Jing would watch over him, her Byakugan ensuring none came close without detection. If they did, her Storm Call had already proved its effectiveness. Before they started, Jing was to summon a messenger crane to contact the headquarters for reinforcements. Jing decided to summon Jade Plum as well as the messenger. While she nor Fugaku were weak at Taijutsu, neither could compete with a specialist Jonin, especially if they managed to close the gap with a rapid Body Flicker.

It took ten hours for their reinforcements to arrive. Ten hours of an active, inhaled Byakugan watching every centimeter of the nearest 1.2 kilometers. Ten hours of a ten year old boy with crimson eyes sorting through the corpses of his enemies and comrades, some his own age or younger.

The reinforcements arrived suddenly and moving at great speed. If not for the hitai-ate on their foreheads Jing would have called lightning upon them, damn the consequences of attacking a dozen Jonin by herself. Instead she made herself visible, signaling the Jonin-commander whose eyes glowed like Fugaku’s.

“Report,” the Jonin-commander ordered.

“We were escorting a large convoy under the leadership of Jonin Sarutobi Aiko. My team—Genin Uchiha Fugaku, Genin Hyuga Haruko, and myself, Genin Hua Jing—were deployed as forward scouts,” Jing reported. “We noticed an enemy ambush early yesterday afternoon, composed of twenty-two ninjas including three Jonin. Due to my squad’s sensory abilities, we were ordered to attack the enemy from a range under the command of a Special Jonin and two Chunin. The rest of the convoy guard would arrive afterwards, allowing us to outnumber the ambushers.”

“The counter-ambush went according to plan,” Jing continued. “Unfortunately, the ambushers were not the only enemy. A much larger force was hiding out of our sensory range. They overwhelmed the convoy guards and joined the assault against us. We fought. We lost. Genin Haruko—“ Jing’s voice cracked, tears misting her eyes. “Was stabbed, cutting her axillary artery. She told me to take her eyes. I obeyed.”

“With the Byakugan I could see every tenketsu within three hundred meters. I still can. I used Storm Call again—“

“What is Storm Call?” the Jonin-commander demanded.

“A jutsu I use. It allows me to call lightning down from the sky.”

The Jonin-commander stared at her for a moment, eyes narrowed. He nodded for her to continue.

“Since I was able to see their tenketsu and veins, I was able to use smaller bolts of lightning. Much smaller. Despite possessing only a tenth of my Chakra, I was able to call enough lightning bolts to kill the remainder of the Hidden Grass forces. Genin Uchiha Fugaku and I then retreated and recovered. We returned today after sending a message to headquarters, to prioritize securing our dead and the enemy Jonin corpses.”

“I will confirm your story with Genin Uchiha,” the Jonin-commander said. “Wait here.”

*

The two Genin sat on a tree bough, feet dangling two dozen meters from the ground. They watched with eyes white and crimson as bodies were identified, picked up, and sealed. They watched as a small body with a dried crimson top was taken away.

“I know how,” Fugaku said, his voice quiet and sharp as the wind.

Jing turned, white bulging eyes misty with tears. “How?”

“To get revenge.” Fugaku’s eyes burned. Three black tomoe on a field of crimson. The tomoe spun and spun. They blurred together, a three-pronged shuriken with black dots between the blades. “I know how to break the Hidden Grass.”

“Tell me,” Jing said. “Tell me how I can help.”

*

Shimura-sama did not look impressed as Jing and Fugaku issued their reports. His face blank and his chakra tightly controlled, the commander of the northwestern front received the news of Kusagakure’s betrayal with the quiet stoicism few could display for a stubbed toe.

His advisors, however, were significantly less measured. Jing could see the feelings as their chakra, suddenly agitated, rose to the surface.

“We must retaliate immediately!” an advisor demanded, his hand falling on the table like a battle axe. “If Kusagakure can betray us, you can be sure Takigakure and Yumagakure are considering it as well.”

“Sabato-sama,” Fugaku spoke up. “I have a proposal that can do just that. If I may, Shimura-sama?”

He looked at Fugaku, eyes narrowed. After a moment he nodded.

“Thank you, Shimura-sama,” Fugaku said. “My proposal is, in essence, simple. A three-nin team consisting of myself, Genin Hua Jing, and Jonin Hatake Sakumo will infiltrate Kusagakure. I will use a localized Genjutsu to obscure our faces and chakra signatures, giving us the appearance of refugees. We will secure a room at an inn near the village’s center. From there, Genin Hua will be able to sense much of the village. She will use Storm Call on Kusagakure’s shinobi, sending nearly invisible bolts of lightning to lethal tenketsu points. When Kusagakure’s Jonin are dead, Jonin Hatake will launch an attack on the village’s southern gate, allowing our forces entry.”

Shimura Danzo looked at Fugaku, eyes bearing true interest for the first time. “Bold,” he decided. “Good, but too bold. Jonin Hatake will not be joining you. Jonin Senju Tokuro will. He is an Earth Release expert. You will secure lodgings on the ground floor of an inn. Jonin Senju will break through the floor and dig a hideout for you underground, sealing the tunnel behind you. You will remain there until every shinobi in Kusagakure is dead or you have been discovered.”

He looked at them both. His eyes were a stormy sea—sharp, dark, and intense. “Do you understand your mission, Chunin Uchiha, Chunin Hua?”

“Hai!”