"Do you want to know the future of the Uchiha? Do you want to no longer be confused?"
"Yes" or "No"
In the 48th year of Konoha, border conflicts between nations were continuous.
Following the outbreak of the Nine-Tails incident, with the death of the Yellow Flash who once intimidated the ninja world and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Konoha, which had been on the verge of calming down, was once again in turmoil.
In the winter of the 48th year, the Third Hokage held down the fort in Konoha, raising the banner once again to stabilize the morale of the troops. Konoha sent out all of its elite, even frequently dispatching the Uchiha Clan, who were at the center of the vortex, to the Eastern Front to engage with the Mist ninjas.
In the winter of the 49th year, sensing Konoha's resistance, the other villages were no longer able to continue the fight, and the aftermath of the Third Shinobi World War gradually subsided.
"Squad Captain, Squad Captain, Shisui, wake up, Shisui!"
The worried voice of a clansman sounded by his ear. Lying under a tree, Uchiha Shisui slowly opened his eyes. His gaze was blank as he quietly stared at the dense leaves above without any movement.
"Shisui, what's wrong with you? Damn it, clean up the traces; we need to retreat immediately!"
What... happened to me?
A large hand waved in front of his face, and Uchiha Shisui finally responded, regaining control of his body.
In his sight was his cousin, Uchiha Kai, looking anxious.
He shook his head, feeling his mind light and airy, as if he had just woken from a dream, but he couldn't remember anything.
"What happened?"
"You don't remember?" Uchiha Kai asked in surprise, quickly explaining, "Just now, you defeated two Mist ninjas and then suddenly collapsed, which gave me quite a scare."
"However, after checking, I found that your body wasn't injured. Maybe you're just too exhausted lately. I'll take you back to the camp to rest."
"Mist ninja..."
Uchiha Shisui came to his senses, recalling the current situation.
After the Nine-Tails incident, the Uchiha clan's situation became even more difficult. To restore their reputation, the Clan Head complied with the Hokage's call and sent clansmen to the Eastern Front.
As the strongest member of the Uchiha Clan on the surface, he was naturally duty-bound to fight bravely. Although the war was nearing its end, the actions of both sides had become increasingly frequent. After two months of intense combat, he suddenly fainted.
"Where are the others?"
After understanding the situation, Uchiha Shisui wasn't concerned about his own condition; he had more important matters to address.
"I sent them to keep watch. Since Mist ninjas managed to infiltrate here, there could be more enemies nearby."
"The enemy may have already bypassed our defenses. Gather the squad immediately; we need to check the Rear Camp!"
The Rear Camp included the logistics and medical units, making it the most critical camp aside from the Front Line command post.
"Mitokado Shogo is guarding the Rear Camp with his team. The most urgent matter is still your condition, Shisui." Uchiha Kai seemed worried. Fainting during a battle was something that had never happened to Uchiha Shisui before.
"It's fine, my body is not in any serious condition. Regroup the team!" Shisui shook his head. He knew his own body well and was not at the point of being overexerted.
"Understood, Squad Captain!"
With that order, Uchiha Kai reluctantly signaled, and soon the other three members appeared from the surroundings. They wore Konoha shinobi uniforms, but they did not bear the Uchiha clan emblem.
Shisui looked at the four with a serious expression, "From this moment, proceed at full speed to the Rear Camp!"
"Yes, Squad Captain!"
Without any further words, Shisui took the lead, weaving through the dense forest.
As they traveled, a voice kept echoing in his mind, unclear but persistent, leaving him slightly distracted.
"Don't panic, reinforcements will arrive soon. Everyone, gather together. All ninjas who can still move, join the battle!"
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Fifteen minutes later, the roars coming from near the Rear Camp jolted Shisui awake.
His pupils shifted, the Three Tomoe spinning slowly as his scarlet eyes looked towards the direction of the Rear Camp.
The area was already shrouded in mist, with flashes of fire and explosions intertwining sporadically.
"We're late—they really managed to infiltrate! Where are Mitokado's men?" Uchiha Kai's expression changed; this was trouble.
"Prepare for battle!"
With his back to the others, Shisui raised his right hand and decisively swung it down.
Without any hesitation, the four of them used Body Flicker to dash into the mist towards the Rear Camp, while Shisui, after a quick glance, flickered towards another direction.
Swish, swish, swish...
As soon as the four entered the dense mist, dozens of shuriken flew at them from all directions.
"Hmph, a cheap trick!"
Uchiha Kai sneered, his eyes transforming as his Three Tomoe Sharingan slowly rotated.
With a wave of his hand, several shuriken flew out, following a strange curve through the air to collide with the incoming shuriken from the enemy.
Sparks flew in all directions as the clashing of metal rang out.
Dozens of shuriken veered off course, brushing past the four.
"What!"
"Damn it, they're from the Uchiha Clan! Stop them—they must not reach the camp to provide support!"
"Only four of them? How boring." Uchiha Kai grinned, a fierce smile spreading across his face. Lightning crackled around the tachi in his hand as his scarlet eyes scanned the enemies.
"Don't underestimate us!"
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet."
Boom!
"Water Style: Torrent Water Blade."
At the Rear Camp, dozens of Torrent Water Blades shot toward the tents from all directions.
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!"
A ninja raised several earth walls, managing to block some of the water blades.
But many water blades still pierced through the camp, leaving trails of blood and carnage.
At this moment, besides a few medical ninjas, the Rear Camp was filled mostly with wounded who had retreated from the Front Line, almost entirely powerless against the sudden assault.
"Squad Captain, we've been surrounded and can't contact Squad Captain Mitokado."
In the center, a blood-covered ninja emerged from the thick mist, his expression filled with grief as he reported to Utatane Kaori, the Squad Captain of the Rear Camp's medical team.
"Damn it, how did they manage to break through here? This wasn't how it was supposed to go!"
Her face was pale as she struggled to direct the remaining capable ninjas to raise earth walls to fend off wave after wave of attacks.
When the attack began, she had tried to organize a breakout by blowing away the mist in an attempt to contact the frontline troops.
But now, it seemed they had failed.
"Water Style: Great Waterfall Jutsu!"
With a thunderous crash, the earth wall crumbled, and dozens of Mist ninjas, riding on a giant wave, charged downwards!
Among them, two wielded Water Fang Blades, rushing towards Utatane Kaori.
"It's over..."
Despair filled Utatane Kaori's heart. Unlike Tsunade, she was more of a medical ninja than a combatant.
Just then, a pair of scarlet eyes slowly opened within the thick mist. With just a glance, the two attackers aiming for Utatane Kaori convulsed and collapsed, unable to move.
Swish~
A silver light flashed, and a figure darted through the thick mist. Screams echoed one after another, those eyes like the symbol of a Shinigami. Wherever he went, Mist ninjas fell one by one, completely unable to resist!
"It's Body Flicker Shisui! How is he here? Run—"
The terrified voice abruptly stopped, and with the last caster defeated, the mist quickly dispersed.
The people at the Rear Camp regained their vision, their faces filled with shock and complex expressions as they looked at the scene before them—corpses strewn across the ground and, standing amidst the blood, Uchiha Shisui.
Shisui's expression remained calm. He had cleared out three of the five Mist squads assigned to intercept reinforcements, and all eight squads that were attacking the Rear Camp had already been defeated by him.
After confirming the number of enemies, Shisui finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Yasuwa, hang in there, Yasuwa! We promised we would return to the village together—Keiko is still waiting for you! Hold on!"
A desperate cry rang out, drawing everyone's attention. It was a ninja named Yasuwa, his body wrapped in old bandages. He had been struck in the abdomen by a water blade, and blood now covered his midsection.
The person holding Yasuwa was also covered in wounds.
"Sorry, it looks like I won't make it back. Please take care of Keiko..."
Yasuwa gasped, his breath faint, and before he could finish his sentence, he stopped breathing.
Shisui's face showed sorrow as he looked around. Half of the wounded in the camp were already gone, and those remaining were crying out in pain.
Utatane Kaori rushed up to Shisui, her expression furious as she shouted, "Uchiha Shisui, how could you let the Mist ninjas break through the defenses and reach the Rear Camp? Why did your reinforcements arrive so late?"
"If it wasn't for your negligence, how could so many have died?"
"What?"
Shisui froze, momentarily at a loss for words.
"That's right, it's all the Uchiha's fault! If it weren't for you—"
Her words sparked a wave of anger. The faces of the people in the camp shifted from grief to hatred, their cold stares fixed on Shisui as he stood in the blood-soaked ground.
"Are you kidding me? Yasuwa—Yasuwa had promised me that we'd return together! It's all your fault, all because of you Uchiha!"
The painful howls shattered the calm in the scene, curses and hatred hurled toward Shisui.
"Shut up! You ungrateful fools! If it weren't for the Squad Captain arriving, you would have been dead long ago!"
A fierce shout rang out as Uchiha Kai and the other three rushed in from the forest; they had taken care of the remaining two Mist squads.
Uchiha Kai wasn't as easy to talk to as Shisui. His Three Tomoe spun slowly as he scanned the crowd, and the area fell silent. Some people averted their gazes, while others wore hateful expressions but remained silent.
"It's your responsibility to stop them; if it weren't for your negligence, we wouldn't have been attacked!"
Utatane Kaori huffed coldly, pointing fingers once more.
"That's right; it was your responsibility!"
"Damn Uchiha, it's all your fault!"
The crowd found their justification; it was indeed the Uchiha's duty, so why should they be grateful?
"You!"
Uchiha Kai's veins bulged, crimson chakra almost spilling out of his body.
"Sorry!"
At that moment, Shisui grabbed Kai, his expression pained as he slowly bowed to the crowd.
"Shisui!"
"Brother Kai, let's leave first."
Turning his back, Shisui ignored the accusations and gave a gentle smile to the four before swiftly leaving.
Uchiha Kai shot a fierce glare at Utatane Kaori. As his Three Tomoe spun, the unsuspecting Utatane Kaori suddenly froze in fear, her body uncontrollably moving backward.
"Hmph~"
Uchiha Kai snorted coldly, turned, and left, taking with him the two Mist ninjas controlled by Shisui.
Back at the camp tent, Shisui found the Eastern Front commander, Nara Suzaku, to report on today's events.
Nara Suzaku wore a pained expression, and after listening to the report, his gaze turned complex. After a moment, he said, "Thanks to you today, I will convene a Jonin meeting tomorrow to investigate the attack.
However, I received a letter from Hokage-sama today informing us that the war with the Land of Water has ended. Those two Mist ninjas may need to be taken for hostage exchange."
"I understand. Tomorrow, I will have Kai hand them over to you." Shisui smiled, feeling relieved that the war was finally over; it was good news.
"Thank you for your hard work, Jonin Shisui. You should go back and rest well."
"Yes."
Back in the tent, after blocking out outsiders, Shisui's smile faded as he quietly lay on the bed, his eyes filled with confusion.
"Why is this happening?"
"Do you want to know the future of the Uchiha? Do you want to stop feeling lost?"
"Yes" or "No."