"Why can't we send a rescue team? Aren't they our comrades from Konoha?"
Hyūga Hizashi roared at Uchiha Fugaku, who stood rigid, his face set in a perpetual scowl as if the entire world owed him money.
"Hizashi, we have to prioritize the bigger picture. The Land of Hot Water is completely occupied by Kumogakure — tightly secured, fortified. If we send more people in now, we'd just be offering lambs to the slaughter."
"If you knew it was suicide, then why did you approve this plan in the first place? And why did you insist on sending Rokuro?!"
The infiltration mission into the Land of Hot Water — the factory sabotage plan — had been crafted by both of them, but the decision to assign Rokuro had come from Uchiha Fugaku.
Hizashi had objected at the time, but Fugaku was the primary commander, and he was merely the deputy.
Fugaku even sent his own son as well, into the same mission. On that point, Hizashi had no counterargument.
In the end, Hizashi could only dispatch Hyūga Taiki, the strongest Hyūga under him aside from himself. Not only was Taiki responsible for commanding the infiltration squad — his most crucial duty was ensuring Rokuro's safety.
That was why Taiki had remained at Rokuro's side the entire time. Even with all those precautions, none of them expected Kumogakure's tactical deception to be this sophisticated.
From the very beginning, both factories had been traps. Their surprise attacks had achieved nothing, and their support teams had also returned empty-handed.
As fragmented reports slowly trickled back, the two commanders finally realized they'd been played.
"Fugaku, are you just going to sit there and watch Rokuro and the others die? Don't forget — your own son is with them! You're really going to let them die?!"
Fugaku's expression wavered — but only for a moment. In the end, he gritted his teeth and rejected the rescue plan.
"Right now, our forces are evenly matched with Kumogakure. Reckless action will only increase our casualties. As the frontline commander, I must prioritize the overall war effort. That's final."
Hizashi's face darkened.
"Then what about the village? Where's our reinforcements? With our current numbers, winning this war is almost impossible!"
Fugaku shook his head.
"Our intel should've reached the village days ago. The fact that we've received no response means Konoha cannot spare reinforcements. We're on our own."
Their argument ended in a bitter split. After returning to his quarters, Hizashi immediately summoned ten Hyūga shinobi and explained the situation.
The Hyūga were furious.
"Outrageous. Has Uchiha Fugaku lost his mind? He won't even save his own son?!"
"He's neither crazy nor stupid — just a coward. Always has been. Everyone knows Fugaku has the cold face of a tyrant but the spine of a scared turtle. He always bows to the Hokage faction. Still, I didn't think his bottom line was this low — to abandon even his own child. With someone like that as clan head, the Uchiha really are cursed."
Hizashi cut off the complaints.
"That doesn't matter now. Taiki and Rokuro are trapped in the Land of Hot Water, but I believe in their strength. They're alive. Fugaku is too timid to act, but the Hyūga are not. I order all of you to infiltrate the Land of Hot Water and execute a rescue operation for the infiltration squad. Remember — no matter the cost, bring Rokuro back alive."
The ten Hyūga shinobi straightened, their expressions firm.
"Clan head, you can rely on us. Rokuro is a great benefactor to the Hyūga. Even if we die, we will bring him home!"
"I've wanted to repay that debt for a long time. This is finally our chance. Don't worry, clan head — I'll bring Rokuro back in one piece!"
Though they numbered only ten, they were the elite of the former branch family — each with over two hundred completed missions. After their Caged Bird seals had been lifted and their secret techniques unlocked, all ten had reached jōnin level.
Ten Hyūga jōnin working together — Hizashi was certain they could rescue Rokuro.
The moment the order was given, the squad departed under the cover of night.
Uchiha Fugaku learned of it soon enough. He originally intended to storm over and reprimand Hizashi, but after some thought, he swallowed it down.
Deep inside, he wanted to save his son too — he just couldn't openly abuse military authority.
So he chose to "overlook" the entire matter.
But the ANBU stationed at the camp — the Hokage's eyes — wasted no time. They reported the intel straight back to the village.
Soon after, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō learned of it.
Danzō let out a cold laugh.
"I knew this would happen. Hyūga Hizashi is abusing his authority, ignoring the greater good. He's nothing like Hyūga Hiashi!"
He shouted dramatically in the high-level council meeting. Present were the heads of the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans, along with the Inuzuka, Aburame, and others.
These people were all seasoned veterans — they knew perfectly well that this was not a big deal.
If their own sons were trapped behind enemy lines, they would send rescue squads too.
All that talk of "complete the mission at all costs" was propaganda fed to naïve genin.
Among the high-ranking clans, nobody truly believed it.
If self-sacrifice were truly expected from everyone, then the first person Konoha should send to the front was Sarutobi Hiruzen, the so-called "Strongest Hokage," the village's top combat power.
Yet here they were: the Fourth Raikage was personally stationed at the front, and Hiruzen hadn't taken a single step toward the battlefield.
And in the Third Shinobi War? Sarutobi and his advisors didn't appear on the frontlines either — not even when Konoha was fighting multiple nations at once and desperately needed his strength.
As Danzō continued ranting, Nara Shikaku finally cut him off.
"Hokage-sama, what about reinforcements? According to our intel, Kumogakure has deployed nearly six thousand troops — double our number. If they break through our defenses, the war will reach our borders. Our losses will be catastrophic."
Hiruzen's expression darkened. After a long silence, he spoke.
"Iwagakure has been far too quiet lately. We cannot ignore the risk. Until we're sure Iwa won't intervene, we can't send a large reinforcement force. For now, everything rests on Fugaku and Hizashi."
Shikaku opened his mouth, wanting to bring up the two thousand shinobi still stationed in the village — shinobi who could be deployed simply by halting mission assignments.
But one look at Hiruzen's gloomy expression, and he swallowed the words.
The Ino–Shika–Chō clans always acted in unison; since Shikaku held his tongue, the other two heads stayed silent as well.
Seeing the strongest faction fall quiet, the remaining clans followed suit.
The meeting ended with nothing accomplished — aside from listening to Danzō's endless provocations.
No one said it out loud, but internally, every clan head felt the same sour dissatisfaction.
END OF CHAPTER
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