Hundreds of shinobi stood in formation. Konoha on one side. Suna on the other.
I stood in the third line of Konoha's formation.
Bandages still wrapped my shoulder and ribs beneath my flak jacket. Frankly I didn't need them anymore, but damn did they look cool with my uniform. Raido thought so too it seems. He kept his on too.
Around me shinobi checked weapons and adjusted gear. Some whispered quietly to teammates. Others just stared across the battlefield.
Genma stood a few rows ahead speaking with another jonin. Toboki and Goro were positioned slightly to my left.
Raido stood beside me. "Feels strange," he muttered.
"What does?"
"Standing still before a battle."
I understood what he meant.
Ahead of us Jiraiya stood at the front of Konoha's forces. Like he was just watching a sunrise.
Across the battlefield the Suna army stretched across the desert. Rows of shinobi wearing tan flak jackets.
.
At the very front stood a man in white robes with a deep red sash. Even from this distance I could see the gourd of sand floating beside him.
Raido exhaled slowly.
"That him?"
I nodded slightly.
"Yeah."
The future Kazekage.
Rasa.
Jiraiya stepped forward. Rasa did the same. The two leaders stood several dozen meters apart.
Then Rasa's voice carried across the desert. "You've come far into the Land of Wind, Konoha."
Jiraiya scratched the side of his cheek lazily. "Hey now." "This is practically the border."
Rasa's golden sand shifted around him slowly. "You've been killing our patrols."
Jiraiya shrugged. "War's messy."
Silence followed.
Then Rasa raised a hand. Golden sand rose behind him like a wave. "Then let's end this mess."
Jiraiya smiled slightly. "Glad we agree."
Both hands dropped. And the battlefield exploded.
"MOVE!"
Hundreds of shinobi launched forward at the same time. The desert erupted into chaos. Fire jutsu roared across the battlefield. Wind blades tore through the air.
I ran with the main Konoha line, weaving through the charging mass of shinobi. A Suna ninja lunged toward me with a kunai. I activated my Sharingan instantly.
His strike was sloppy. Probably low chunin. I stepped inside the attack and drove my elbow into his throat.
Then my tanto flashed. Blood sprayed across the sand. No time to stop.
Another Suna shinobi rushed me from the right. Wind chakra gathered around his blade.
"Wind Style"
I kicked sand into his eyes before he could finish.
He staggered back. My tanto cut across his stomach.
Genma clashed with a Suna jonin nearby. Toboki and Goro were already fighting two opponents together.
Raido blocked a sword strike beside me and drove his knee into the attacker's chest.
"LEFT!"
I turned just in time to see another Suna shinobi launching a fire jutsu.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower!"
Flames scattered toward us. I jumped through the attack. Heat burned past my shoulder. The shinobi barely had time to react before I landed in front of him.
My fist smashed into his jaw. Then my blade pierced his chest.
The battle surged around us like a storm. Suna shinobi began noticing something.
One of them shouted.
"Uchiha!"
That word traveled fast across the battlefield. Another chunin rushed me. Then another.
The first attacked with twin blades. I stepped back as he slashed twice in quick succession. Fast. But predictable. My Sharingan tracked every movement. I ducked under his third swing and drove my shoulder into his chest.
The impact knocked him off balance. My tanto plunged into his throat.
The second attacker lunged with a spear. I twisted sideways and grabbed the shaft. A quick pull dragged him forward. My knee slammed into his face. He collapsed.
Raido stared at me briefly while blocking another attack. "…Remind me not to piss you off."
Across the battlefield a Suna jonin noticed the bodies forming around me.
His eyes narrowed.
"Chunin!"
He pointed toward me.
"Take him down!"
Three more shinobi began pushing through the chaos toward my position.
Meanwhile
Far from the main battlefield. Jiraiya and Rasa collided.
Golden sand shot forward like a spear. Jiraiya jumped sideways as the sand tore through the ground where he stood.
Rasa raised both hands. The sand behind him surged upward like a living wall.
"Gold Dust!" The wave of heavy sand crashed toward Jiraiya.
Jiraiya slammed his hand onto the ground. "Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!"
The desert floor liquefied instantly. Rasa's golden sand sank into the swamp-like terrain.
Jiraiya grinned. "Let's see how you fight without your favorite toy."
Rasa's expression didn't change. The gold dust suddenly exploded upward from the swamp.
Floating above the battlefield again. Jiraiya blinked. "…Well that's annoying."
Rasa stepped forward calmly. "You're not the first shinobi to try that." Golden sand gathered above him again. Then shot toward Jiraiya like dozens of razor-sharp spears. Jiraiya leapt forward instead of back.
The sand spears tore through the ground behind him. Jiraiya formed hand signs mid-air.
"Fire Style: Flame Bullet!"
A massive stream of fire blasted toward Rasa. The Kazekage candidate raised a hand. Golden sand formed a shield in front of him. The flames exploded against it. Steam and heat filled the air.
Through the smoke Rasa's sand shot forward again. Jiraiya twisted away as a spear of gold tore through his sleeve. He landed on the sand and grinned.
Back on the battlefield
Three Suna chunin closed in around me. One with a sword. One with wind jutsu. One forming hand signs for earth techniques. They moved well together.
The sword user attacked first. I parried his strike and stepped back. The wind user launched blades of air toward my legs. The earth user slammed his hands into the ground.
Stone spikes shot upward beneath me. My Sharingan caught it. I twisted in mid-air. The spikes barely missed my feet. I landed behind the wind user.
And stabbed right where his heart was.
The other two attacked immediately. But across the battlefield The jonin who noticed me earlier watched carefully.
His eyes narrowed.
"That Uchiha is a problem."
He stepped forward. Drawing his blade.
"Move aside."
.
The jonin moved through the battlefield, Suna shinobi stepped aside as he advanced. His flak jacket was darker than the others. His headband scratched across the metal where a previous fight had dented it.
His eyes were locked on me.
"Uchiha."
Raido saw him coming and cursed. "That's a jonin."
"I noticed." I said
The remaining chunin attacking me lunged again.
I stepped forward before he could finish his strike. My blade cut across his throat. The body dropped into the sand.
The jonin stopped a few meters away.
Around us the battle raged fire jutsu exploding, wind techniques tearing across the battlefield, shinobi shouting commands..
"You've killed enough."
His hand moved to the hilt of his sword. "You'll die here."
Raido stepped forward beside me.
"I got"
"No."
Raido looked at me.
"…You sure?"
The jonin's eyes shifted between us. "You can both die if you prefer."
I shook my head. "Stay with the line."
Raido hesitated. Then nodded once.
"Don't be stupid."
He moved back into the battle. Now it was just the two of us.
The jonin drew his sword. "I am Suna jonin Hataro."
Not that the name mattered.
He stepped forward. "Show me what an Uchiha can do." Then he vanished. Much faster than the chunin.
My Sharingan caught the motion barely in time. His blade came down toward my neck. I raised my tanto and blocked. The impact slammed through my arm.
He twisted his wrist immediately. The blade slid down toward my ribs. I jumped back just before it cut through my side.
Hataro didn't stop. He lunged again. Three rapid strikes.
My Sharingan tracked the attacks but my body barely kept up.I blocked the first. Dodged the second. The third grazed my shoulder.
"Your eyes see well." "But your body is slower."
I ducked under the attack and slashed toward his stomach. He stepped back easily. Distance opened between us again. He adjusted his grip on the sword.
"You rely too heavily on those eyes."
Wind chakra began forming along the edge of his blade. "Let's see how they handle this."
He swung once. A blade of wind tore through the air toward me. I jumped sideways.
The attack sliced a trench through the sand where I stood. Before I landed He was already moving again.
.
Wind chakra exploded outward in three directions. I raised my arms as the blasts slammed into me. The force knocked me backward across the sand.
Pain shot through my ribs. Hataro walked forward calmly.
"You're skilled." "But you're still a child."
He raised his blade again. "Die quietly."
Across the battlefield
Jiraiya wiped sand from his cheek. Another golden spear shot toward him. He ducked under it. The spear continued past him and exploded into the desert behind.
"Man," Jiraiya muttered. "You really like throwing that stuff around."
Rasa stood calmly several meters away. Golden dust floated around him like a living storm. The golden particles suddenly compressed.
Then launched toward Jiraiya in dozens of tiny projectiles.
Jiraiya slammed his hands together. "Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
A thick wall of earth erupted in front of him. The golden projectiles slammed into it with explosive force. Chunks of stone blasted apart.
Jiraiya jumped backward as the wall shattered.
Rasa raised his hand again. Gold dust swirled upward. Then formed a massive wave above him.
"Gold Dust Burial."
The wave collapsed toward Jiraiya. Jiraiya bit his thumb. Blood formed along the seal. "Summoning Jutsu!"
Smoke exploded across the battlefield. A massive toad appeared beneath him.
Gamaken. The armored toad blinked slowly.
"Oh Jiraiya."
"Hey buddy." Jiraiya pointed forward.
"Mind helping me with the walking gold mine over there?" Gamaken sighed.
"I will try."
The wave of gold slammed down toward them. Gamaken leapt sideways with surprising speed for his size. The sand crashed into the ground, crushing the desert beneath it.
Jiraiya grinned. "Alright." He cracked his knuckles. "Round two."
Back on the battlefield
Hataro lunged again. His blade cut toward my neck. I blocked. He twisted the blade. Wind chakra exploded from the edge.
The blast threw me backward. I rolled across the sand and barely regained my footing. He didn't give me time to breathe. Another wind slash tore toward my chest. I ducked.
The attack sliced through a Konoha shinobi fighting behind me. Blood sprayed across the sand. War didn't care about clean fights.
Hataro noticed my glance. "Distracted."
He charged again. His blade came down in a powerful vertical strike. I stepped forward instead of back. My shoulder slammed into his chest. The sudden move disrupted his balance.
My blade cut across his ribs. Blood appeared. He jumped back immediately.
His eyes narrowed. He wiped the blood with his thumb." Wind chakra gathered around his blade again.
But this time
More of it.
The air around the sword began swirling violently.
"Wind Style: Severing Gale."
He swung. A massive crescent of wind tore across the battlefield. I barely jumped in time. The attack ripped through the sand behind me, carving a deep trench.
My landing was rough. Pain exploded through my ribs. He stepped forward again. "This ends now."
He vanished. The next moment His sword appeared in front of my face. Too fast. Even for my Sharingan.
At the last second I twisted. The sword tore through my shoulder instead. Pain exploded through my arm. But I was already moving. My blade plunged forward.
Straight into his stomach. Hataro's eyes widened. Blood spilled across the sand. We stood there for a moment.
Both impaled.
Then he coughed.
"…Good… strike…"
His grip loosened. I ripped my blade free and stepped back. Hataro collapsed onto the sand.
across the battlefield
Another Suna jonin had been watching. Then another. They saw the bodies around me. The fallen jonin. One of them spoke quietly. "That Uchiha killed Hataro."
The other's eyes hardened.
"…He cannot be allowed to survive this battle."
They began moving toward me.
At the same time. Several Konoha jonin noticed as well. One of them muttered:
"…They're targeting the kid."
And suddenly