Chapter 13: Roar, Deadly Battle! A Sacrifice!
Rumble!
Like a giant's foot crashing down from the heavens, the ground roared beneath it!
Uchiha Ci's eyes snapped open amidst his slumber—and the first thing he saw was the colossal form of the Two-Tails, Matatabi, wreaking havoc through an unfamiliar camp.
Screams.
Angry shouts.
The whistling of kunai slicing past his ears.
Explosive tags of distant traps detonating with deafening blasts — and above it all, the terrifying roar of a monstrous beast!
A dense, swirling sphere of blue-black chakra gathered in its maw.
Then—
BOOM!
A Tailed Beast Bomb launched straight toward him!
Faced with such overwhelming destruction, Uchiha Ci's heart pounded like a war drum.
His mind went blank.
His pupils dilated as a primal, ancient fear of colossal beasts surged up from the depths of his soul!
But in the next moment—
[Talent: Combat Instinct (S) — Activated.]
His vision went black for an instant—
and his body moved on its own.
"Kumo's attacking! Everyone, wake the hell up!!"
Elder Uchiha Setsuna's furious roar thundered beside his ears, followed by the whistling storm of debris hurled up by explosions.
The faint jingling of warning bells followed.
Ci shook his head, sending a shower of dust off his hair. He blinked rapidly, forcing his groggy mind awake— only to find his body wedged awkwardly between a collapsed wall and a shattered roof beam.
Ahead of him—
Elder Uchiha Setsuna was already facing off against three Cloud shinobi, their breathing heavy, battle-ready.
Beside them—
Uchiha Seiichiro gripped a kunai, trembling from head to toe.
Even his hands, his legs, his teeth—and his Sharingan—all quivered uncontrollably.
"W-why… why me?! Why does a chūnin have to face enemies like this?!"
His voice cracked, laced with tears and despair.
---
"Hah! Finally found you, Uchiha rats!"
Among the three Cloud ninja, the elder one—Rami'i—let out a cold sneer as he weaved several hand seals:
Tiger – Snake – Tiger – Snake – Tiger!
A surge of lightning burst from his hand—
Lightning Release: Scattering Strike Flow!
A technique akin to the Chidori, forming a sphere of crackling lightning chakra in the hand.
Unlike Chidori, it didn't stimulate the user's body—it radiated electricity outward, an area-of-effect killing jutsu.
The blue light illuminated Setsuna's grim face.
Each of the three enemies was formidable—
but especially the one in the center: the one-eyed man wearing a black hood, Tsuchidai.
He was one of the Third Raikage's trusted aides, wielder of the terrifying Lava Release kekkei genkai— a fighter whose power was nearly Kage-level, no weaker than Setsuna himself.
With Rami'i supporting and Moro'i, the special jōnin, blocking escape routes, this formation was clearly designed for one purpose—
to kill Uchiha Setsuna here and now!
Realizing this, Setsuna's eyes narrowed. His mind was made up.
He turned sharply toward his two subordinates and barked:
"Ci! Seiichiro! Move!"
"You two complete the mission—I'll hold them off!"
Rami'i's eyes darkened at that. He turned to Moro'i and ordered coldly:
"Go slaughter those two. Uchiha Setsuna likely has the key intel—we can't let any message reach Konoha."
Moro'i frowned slightly. "Rami'i-senpai, if I leave, no one will be able to seal his retreat."
"That's why you must make it quick," Rami'i hissed. "Kill them, then immediately return to set the barrier."
Murderous intent blazed in his eyes.
"Uchiha Setsuna must die today! Otherwise, with his ocular powers, he could stall the Two-Tails at Hell Valley—our entire operation would collapse!"
Moro'i exhaled deeply and nodded.
Then he sprinted forward, circling past Setsuna, straight toward Uchiha Ci and Seiichiro!
Setsuna's muscles tensed, ready to intercept—
but the moment he moved, the other two blocked his path.
Tsuchidai smirked coldly.
"Old man, maybe I can't beat you one-on-one. But with two of us here, we can cancel each other's genjutsu and keep you busy long enough."
Setsuna's jaw clenched, but his eyes stayed icy calm.
"Is that so? Brats these days sure love to talk big."
---
Crack, crack!
Uchiha Ci flipped his kunai in hand, shattering a wooden beam and crawling out of the debris.
He quickly pieced the situation together in his mind—
First, Kumo's entire operation was premeditated.
Their plan was to unleash the Two-Tails at Hell Valley, annihilating the Uchiha's stationed troops and freeing the Blood Pool Clan.
That meant Uchiha Setsuna, whose Sharingan could restrain tailed beasts, was their primary assassination target.
And now— these three jōnin were the kill team sent for him. Judging from the way they fought, it would take all three to bring him down.
But one of them—Moro'i—had broken off, coming straight for him and Seiichiro.
A danger— and an opportunity.
Uchiha Ci grinned, brushing the dust off his shoulders, stepping forward with purpose.
In the original timeline, it should have been Shisui here— he would've escaped, while the coward Seiichiro's death became the catalyst for his awakening.
But if he—Uchiha Ci—was going to die here, he refused to die worse than history remembered!
At the very least— he'd make sure the intel got through.
Because even Heaven's Company had standards.
A "descended protagonist" couldn't underperform compared to the original story.
Facing the oncoming Moro'i, Ci narrowed his eyes, stepping into stance.
He tilted his head toward Seiichiro and said firmly,
"Seiichiro-senpai, you retreat. I'll hold him off."
"What?!" Seiichiro nearly screamed.
"Are you insane?! That man's a special jōnin! I've read his file—he specializes in kenjutsu and sealing techniques! You don't stand a chance!"
Ci shook his head and gave him a calm glance.
"Senpai, if no one holds the line, we'll both die—and the intel dies with us."
"Besides, if you die here, they'll take your Sharingan. The clan's kekkei genkai will fall into enemy hands."
"So compared to that, I'm the better choice to stay."
"Y-you…" Seiichiro's face twisted in shock and disbelief.
He couldn't comprehend why someone could speak of life and death so casually—
why someone would willingly throw their life away… for him.
The enemy was a jōnin!
His vision blurred with tears.
He clenched his fists and nodded hard—
but in the next instant, his face went pale as snow.
"B-but Ci, I don't know how to contact the Neko Clan!"
Ci nearly spat blood.
"…That—that's a problem."
He hesitated for only a second before pulling a scroll from his pouch and shoving it into Seiichiro's hands.
"Take this. It's a one-time Neko Clan summoning contract. Use it to ask for directions."
Seiichiro stared down at the scroll, stunned.
A Neko Clan summoning contract—something countless shinobi would kill for.
On the battlefield, it could literally mean the difference between life and death.
And yet Ci had just handed it over—without hesitation.
It was as if he were… entrusting his last will.
Before Seiichiro could even thank him, Ci's face suddenly changed—
he shoved Seiichiro backward with all his strength!
A translucent wall erupted between them—
a barrier jutsu!
Moro'i's palms struck the ground—
the death-match barrier snapped shut, enclosing Ci and Moro'i inside!
Only the one who survived could leave!
If not for that shove, both would have been trapped.
Seiichiro froze, his world going silent.
Through the transparent barrier,
he saw Ci mouthing one silent words—
"Go!"
Seiichiro's pupils contracted.
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
In that instant—every grudge between them vanished.
All that remained was the image of a radiant, heroic Uchiha Ci— a man whose entire being glowed with golden light.
He clenched his fists and sprinted away, tears flying behind him.
"Uchiha Ci! Wait for me!"
"I'll bring help—I swear it!!"