Chapter 38: It's All Hiruzen Sarutobi's Fault, That Old Beast
"Report: Six Kirigakure ninjas spotted on the eastern coast. The leader is Kirigakure jōnin Ao. Lord Shisui has already gone to intercept them."
Urgent knocking on the door abruptly shattered the intimate atmosphere in the room.
Uchiha Sanpō's palm was still resting on Uzumaki Huiyi's smooth back.
The two had just finished an intense "pulling radishes" session; sweat hadn't yet dried.
The game was suddenly interrupted. A flash of scarlet passed through Uchiha Sanpō's eyes as his Three Tomoe Sharingan manifested on its own—clearly he was extremely annoyed.
He forcibly suppressed his anger and said: "Assemble the Divine Demon Battalion. We're going to surround them!"
Feeling Uzumaki Huiyi's body tremble slightly in his arms, he lowered his head and kissed her smooth forehead.
"I'll go with them for a bit and come back later. Rest early."
Uzumaki Huiyi knew persuasion was useless and simply nodded lightly: "Be careful."
She then slipped under the covers. Today's twelve eye transplant surgeries had nearly exhausted her chakra and energy.
Uchiha Sanpō quietly got dressed, closing the door with deliberately gentle force. The moment he turned around, the tenderness on his face vanished completely, replaced by the cold, stern demeanor of a battlefield commander.
Outside the courtyard, the thirty-five Divine Demon Battalion members were already lined up in perfect order.
Under the moonlight, the Uchiha fan crests on their backs gleamed; every single one had activated their Sharingan. The crimson reflections made them look like a group of death gods in the night.
"Target: the Kirigakure ninjas on the eastern coast. Move out!"
At Uchiha Sanpō's command, over thirty figures vanished into the darkness like ghosts.
This afternoon, Kirigakure had sent over fifty elite Kirigakure Anbu to escort the Three-Tails jinchūriki Nohara Rin, planning to cause trouble in Nansha City.
Now that over fifty elite Anbu and the tailed beast had gone missing, Kirigakure's higher-ups were naturally panicking—so they sent Ao to gather intelligence.
Thinking of Kirigakure jōnin Ao possessing a Byakugan from the Hyūga main family, Uchiha Sanpō felt like collecting it for research.
Meanwhile, in the dense forest on the eastern coast, six Kirigakure ninjas were rapidly moving.
Two Kirigakure ninjas suddenly clutched their heads and fell to the ground, faces twisted in terror as if seeing the most horrifying nightmare.
"They're under genjutsu!"
"Byakugan."
Kirigakure jōnin Ao activated his Byakugan to scan the surroundings.
Kirigakure jōnin Ao: Byakugan · Open
In the distance, two shadow clones were hidden in the bushes. On a tree above, one person had green chakra flowing around his eyes—this special chakra belonged to Konoha's "Shunshin no Shisui."
Seeing Uchiha Shisui, Kirigakure jōnin Ao broke into a cold sweat: "We have to abandon the mission. The opponent is Konoha's Shunshin no Shisui—we're no match for him. Retreat!"
Hearing this, the remaining three Kirigakure ninjas hoisted the two genjutsu victims onto their backs and fled using Body Flicker Technique.
On the treetop, Uchiha Shisui deactivated his Sharingan and murmured: "This should keep them quiet for a while."
But the matter was far from over. Uchiha Sanpō waved his hand and shouted: "Capture them—don't let any escape!"
At the order, Divine Demon Battalion members began throwing kunai and shuriken to force the six Kirigakure ninjas to stop. The sound of slicing air rang out! Dozens of kunai and shuriken came from all directions, tracing deadly arcs through the sky.
Kirigakure jōnin Ao had just leaped into mid-air when he formed seals with both hands: "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
A wall over ten meters tall surged from the ground, blocking part of the kunai and shuriken.
But the Divine Demon Battalion members were all Uchiha elites—their thrown kunai and shuriken collided mid-air, constantly changing attack angles.
As a result, many kunai and shuriken bypassed the water wall and struck the hiding Kirigakure ninjas behind it.
Two screams rang out—two Kirigakure ninjas had their feet pierced by kunai and shuriken.
Kirigakure jōnin Ao gritted his teeth and ordered: "The enemy outnumbers us. Abandon the wounded—anyone who can escape, do it."
His heart was bleeding. These were comrades who had followed him for years!
With that, he abandoned his teammates and fled…
Uchiha Sanpō's figure appeared like a ghost on the treetop beside Shisui, a cold smile curling his lips: "Want to escape? Not a chance!"
Uchiha Shisui frowned: "The war has lasted so long—enough people have already died. They no longer pose a threat. Why continue meaningless fighting?"
"Bang~"
Uchiha Sanpō delivered a heavy punch to Uchiha Shisui's stomach; Shisui doubled over in pain.
"Slap~"
Then a heavy slap landed on his right cheek.
These sudden two attacks left Uchiha Shisui dazed; he fell straight from the tree.
Uchiha Sanpō looked down at him from above and cursed: "You fought Kirigakure with 3,000 people and lost over 2,000. Bear City and White Bird City were plundered by Kirigakure—tens of thousands of Fire Country civilians died… On what grounds do you call this meaningless fighting?"
After cursing, he still felt unsatisfied.
He jumped down from the treetop, grabbed Uchiha Shisui by the collar, and said: "Or in your eyes, these people's lives mean nothing? No matter how many ants like them die, it won't stir even a ripple in your heart?"
"I… I… never… thought that way…?"
Uchiha Shisui's right cheek stung badly; the pain made it hard to speak clearly.
And every word from Uchiha Sanpō felt like a knife stabbing his heart.
He remembered the comrades who died on the battlefield, the civilians slaughtered by Kirigakure ninjas… He had never belittled any life—that was exactly why he longed for peace even more.
Uchiha Shisui struggled to speak: "I… never…"
"Shut up! Your naivety will get even more people killed!" Uchiha Sanpō abruptly released him.
He turned and ordered the Divine Demon Battalion: "Pursue! Don't let a single one escape!"
Watching the Uchiha elites scatter in pursuit, Shisui closed his eyes in pain.
His ideals clashed violently with the clan's hatred in this moment—the tearing sensation nearly suffocated him.
"Sigh… it's all that old beast Hiruzen Sarutobi's fault—sending young children like you to the battlefield. You're only 9 years old; it's normal you can't distinguish right from wrong yet. Shisui, you need to understand: excessive tolerance is indulgence of evil; kindness without principles is foolishness."
Hearing this, Uchiha Shisui fell into deep thought.
"If we don't punish Kirigakure's ninjas, it only encourages them to plunder again. Then even more will die. So we must severely punish these invaders, make them feel pain, make them know looting is wrong—this is how we stop the war and save more lives…"
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