Chapter 5 : Hello there

BOOM!

"Enemy attack!!"

The explosion rocked the outpost, shaking the wooden walls and sending debris flying in all directions.

Chikara swiftly rose to his feet, his senses on high alert. His once tired body was now energized by adrenaline. He grabbed his scattered weapons from the floor and rushed out of his quarters.

Fire raged on all sides of the outpost, and scattered members of the Uchiha clan were regrouping to face the enemy. Chikara spotted Yōta close to his position, accompanied by three other Uchiha, surrounded by a team of ten ninjas in black armor.

Smoke rose into the night sky, making visibility difficult. Chikara hurried toward Yōta, who had already activated his Sharingan with three tomoe. Sneaking up behind one of the attackers, Chikara unsheathed his katana and struck down the enemy.

"Aaaargh!"

"Damn it! Watch out behiSQUIRCH!" Yōta, seeing the lack of attention from the enemy due to Chikara's surprise attack, seized the opportunity. He decapitated the leader of the small group.

"Katon - Gōryūka no jutsu."

From Yōta's mouth, several fiery dragon heads erupted and rushed at the enemy, scattering them. Seizing the opening, the three Uchiha dashed toward the nearest foes. Blades clashed, and from the very beginning, the Uchiha had the upper hand. Unfortunate opponents caught in their gaze fell into genjutsu and had their hearts pierced.

In a mere 30 seconds, the battle ended with the overwhelming victory of the Uchiha. But as the group of five Uchiha caught their breath, the sound of cries and jutsus continued echoing through the camp.

"Hurry, we need to join the others and exterminate the enemy!" Burning with rage, Yōta rushed toward the nearest sound, and driven by the same anger, the three Uchiha followed suit, leaving Chikara alone and fatigued.

"I can't just stand here doing nothing, I need to move!"

Chikara, his hands stained with blood, felt his body trembling from exhaustion, drained. Though the stress still lingered, time had dulled the effectiveness of adrenaline on his body. Glancing in the direction his comrades had gone, he gripped his katana and took one step at a time.

...

"Takaaki, we need to act quickly, all the Uchiha are at the front, fighting the others."

Takaaki and his team, taking advantage of the chaos at the outpost, had discreetly infiltrated Genzo's quarters and were overturning furniture in search of something.

"It should be here, find it!" Takaaki ordered urgently.

Tables were flipped, clan emblems torn from the walls, and documents shredded. Suddenly, a deep voice echoed from outside the quarters, "Well, what do we have here?"

All the members of the Hije clan turned toward the door, trying to catch a glimpse of the individual disturbing their search.

Genzo entered his quarters calmly, as if there were no issues. He walked leisurely into the midst of the opposing group, wearing a smile on his lips.

"Takaaki Hije, I wonder what you're looking for in my office," Genzo said calmly.

Surrounding Genzo from all sides, the Hije clan members remained on high alert, ready to react to any movement. Despite having the numerical advantage, Takaaki didn't display confidence in the face of this opponent. After all, the Uchiha in front of them was no ordinary person.

In the ninja world, those with nicknames were all exceptional, and before them stood the Uchiha ninja known as "Hiiro no yūgure" due to his unique Sharingan power.

With short black hair and black armor without shoulder pads, Genzo activated his Sharingan. Despite the ongoing explosions and fires outside, he remained calm and still.

As Takaaki searched for an opening, one of his clan members encircling Genzo stepped on a shard of porcelain from a broken vase on the floor.

CRACK.

In response, Takaaki and his allies threw shurikens and rushed toward Genzo. Drawing his katana at an almost superhuman speed, Genzo charged at the opponent opposite Takaaki. Parrying and evading shurikens with ease, he grabbed one of them with his free hand, infused it with his Katon chakra to ignite it, and sent it flying at one of his adversaries.

Anticipating the enemy ninja's movements with his eyes, the fiery shuriken accurately hit its target, taking their life without resistance.

"And one," Genzo murmured, shifting his gaze to the next target.

Appearing before Genzo to intercept him, Takaaki attempted a fatal sword strike and cleaved his sword, piercing his opponent's abdomen. As Genzo's body transformed into a log, his true body emerged behind one of his attackers and impaled him with his katana.

"And two."

Seeing panic in the Hije clan's eyes, Genzo seized the opportunity and, aiming at the center of the group, unleashed a devastating fire breath.

"Katon – Karyū Endan."

The flames formed into a dragon shape and rushed at the group.

"Haruki, Riku!"

Following Takaaki's orders, two members of his group stepped in front of the fire dragon and launched a water release technique to counter the flames.

"Suiton – Suijin Heki."

The flames collided with the water barrier, creating dense steam that obstructed the Hije members' vision.

"Gather together!" Takaaki urgently commanded.

As the steam slowly dissipated, revealing the scene again, Genzo had vanished. Hije clan members frantically searched for signs of his presence, but he seemed to have disappeared.

Suddenly, a swift and silent movement was heard behind them. Emerging from the shadows, Genzo broke one Hije member's neck and cast a genjutsu on those who met his gaze. Under Genzo's genjutsu, half of the Hije clan members were frozen in a nightmarish and deadly hypnosis.

Without wasting time, Takaaki ordered those who could still move to release the immobile members from the genjutsu. Without waiting for a response, he lunged at Genzo in a taijutsu battle.

While battling Genzo, Takaaki pondered ways to survive this confrontation. The fight was by no means fair; being one of the strongest men of the Uchiha clan, Genzo clearly had the power to kill them all effortlessly.

Trapped in these already ruined quarters, Takaaki couldn't find an escape. Trying to flee, distract Genzo with his men, or even surrender would only lead them to certain death. Against absolute strength, no strategy seemed to work.

...

While Takaaki and his team fought for their lives, on the other side of the outpost, at the outpost gate, another battle raged. With nearly fifty Uchiha against a hundred in the opposing camp, the battle was intense. The flames of combat illuminated the night sky, creating a chaotic and dangerous atmosphere. The Uchiha demonstrated impressive coordination, using their ninjutsu powers and Sharingan to counter their enemies' attacks.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, they managed to hold their defense and even counterattack.

Kunai flew, fire dragons and water waves occasionally appeared on the battlefield. As bodies fell one by one, two men stood at the back of the fight, patiently awaiting an opponent's appearance.

"Genzo still hasn't shown up?"

"No sign of him, but he shouldn't be far behind. The Uchiha will soon be exhausted, and Genzo will have no choice but to come and fight us."

Suddenly, toward Genzo's quarters, a thunderous noise followed by a cloud of smoke eclipsed all other sounds of battle.

Stopping in their tracks, both the Uchiha and their invaders turned their heads toward the explosion. As if time had frozen, the battle came to a halt, leaving only the wind whispering to the survivors of an impending disaster.

Among the Uchiha, they hoped to see Genzo emerge from the smoke, the only one capable of reversing this disastrous situation. On the other side, they hoped that the only true threat from this Uchiha group would be eliminated.

Uchiha were naturally stronger than most other ninja, but for the war effort, the true elites of the clan were not likely sent to outposts whose sole purpose was to control the territory's entrances and exits.

Elites needed battle to grow, to feel the hatred and suffering of losing comrades to maximize their potential.

As several seconds passed, the hearty laughter of a person could be heard emanating from the smoke. Without any difficulty in walking, Genzo, whose armor remained in perfect condition, advanced calmly, a burning rage hidden in his eyes.

"WELL DONE, WELL DONE!" With his katana in hand, Genzo drew closer and closer to the clan's adversaries.

"You forced me to use it!"

"Now you'll have to face the consequences!"

In the distance, whether Uchiha, Hije, or even mercenaries, everyone could feel Genzo's overwhelming rage. The tomoe of Genzo's Sharingan had already extended into an almost perfect circle. As part of the clan's elite, Genzo was about to reveal the true power of the Uchiha, the Mangekyō Sharingan.

As Genzo menacingly advanced toward his enemies, far away, among the two individuals who had been waiting, one of them removed his black coat, revealing a combat suit recognizable to all who lived through the dark periods of war.

Appearing before Genzo, this person, easily recognizable by all Uchiha elites, positioned himself between the two sides.

"Takeshi Senju!" Genzo muttered, his eyes filled with growing hatred.

"So, the Hije clan allied with the Senju clan to encircle us! Do they even know what fate awaits them for betraying us?" Genzo questioned, staring at the Hije clan members.

"DEATH!"

But Takeshi Senju didn't give Genzo time to continue intimidating the troops. He launched an earth release technique.

"Doton - Doryū Taiga."

A surge of mud erupted, carrying Genzo deeper into the outpost. While Takeshi followed him for a more isolated battle, the Uchiha, the Hije, and the mercenaries resumed the fight with heightened determination.

"Now, all that's left is to exterminate all the Uchiha in this outpost, and the Hije clan will finally flourish again."

...

In the distance, a young man holding a sword for support moved dangerously close, unaware of the battle between the two greatest powers in this confrontation.

This young man was none other than Chikara Uchiha. Although exhausted rather than injured, he was at the end of his strength. Suddenly, before Chikara, a silhouette shot forward at lightning speed, crashing into a building behind him. Gripped by fear at such speed, Chikara hesitated to turn and see who this silhouette was.

Summoning all his courage, he tightly gripped his katana and glanced over his shoulder to find that a wall had been completely destroyed. Emerging from the wreckage, a man bearing the emblem of his clan's worst enemy, the emblem of the Senju clan.

Emerging from the wreckage, Takeshi spat out a small amount of blood and, as if nothing had happened, calmly advanced toward where he had been propelled. But as he approached the only enemy he considered dangerous, he noticed Chikara, frozen in his path. At ten years old, Chikara, in the presence of the Senju enemy's bloodlust, found it hard even to breathe.

Facing an opponent who had experienced dozens, if not hundreds of battles, the aura he emanated was incomparable to anything a young child, who had never truly fought, could face.

As Chikara remained motionless, Takeshi continued to move forward until he reached the young Uchiha. Facing this child paralyzed with fear, he showed no signs of hesitation or mercy about what he was about to do.

Lifting him by the throat, Takeshi took out one of his kunai, and as the kunai was about to pierce Chikara's heart, Genzo appeared behind Takeshi, armed with his katana and his Mangekyō Sharingan still activated.

With a swift movement of his weapon, Genzo horizontally sliced through Takeshi's body but only hit air. Just steps away, Takeshi, still holding Chikara, reappeared, a mocking smile forming on his face.

Holding Chikara's body facing Genzo, he signaled to Genzo with his free hand to come and get him.

"So Genzo, what will you do?" Takeshi taunted.

"Will you let this child die?"

"Will you put his life in jeopardy?"

"Or will you let go and give up?!"

Genzo, in the face of Takeshi's declarations, did not falter at all; he remained unyielding. Chikara's face had long turned violet, and tears of fear flowed from his eyes incessantly.

Fear, true fear, the fear of death. But also shame, shame at his own weakness, and shame at the situation in which he was placing one of the most incredible warriors of his clan.

Deciding to fight, he would inevitably lose his life, while deciding to surrender was clearly not an option.

Suddenly, under Takeshi's disbelieving gaze, Genzo, who remained still as if pondering the possibilities before him, dropped his weapon and raised his hands in the air. A sign of surrender.

It wasn't just Takeshi who was shocked, but Chikara as well. How could an Uchiha, one of the strongest of his generation, capitulate to save an untalented child like him?

The answer was simple: he couldn't.

During this second of surprise, Genzo activated the power of his right eye. Suddenly, in the eyes of Takeshi and Chikara, everything became dark, as if they were enveloped in a veil that deprived them of their vision.

Reacting instinctively, Takeshi leaped backward while still holding Chikara and heard an explosion where they had previously stood.

Deprived of his sight, Takeshi could only follow his instincts to defend himself as best he could.

Suddenly, feeling danger to his left, Takeshi continued to dodge and directed Chikara toward the attack to shield himself.

However, as he avoided the attack, he felt intense heat from behind him.

"A feint?" he thought.

Then he felt the flames on his skin.

Engulfed in a torrent of fire, Takeshi released Chikara to launch an earth release technique.

"Doton - Doroheki."

A wall of earth formed in front of him, shielding him from the flames but leaving Chikara at the mercy of the fire.

Almost all Uchiha had a chakra naturally linked to the fire affinity, and under the mastery of a powerful Uchiha, these flames were extremely dangerous and deadly.

Deprived of his sight and protection, Chikara found himself engulfed in the midst of flames that burned him to death.

Letting out a piercing cry, filled with sadness and fear, Chikara felt his body consumed, his skin carbonized, his hair disintegrate into nothingness, and his bones crack. Thus, the ten-year-old ninja from the Uchiha clan, the one who wanted to prove to others that he was better than this, that he could help his clan, make his family and his only friend proud, died at the hands of his own clan.

...

At the same time, in the Uchiha clan's territory, in a house where only one person lived, an old woman woke up abruptly from her sleep and began to weep inexplicably. Without knowing the events that had occurred that night, the elderly grandmother felt an unbearable emptiness in her heart, as if the only thing that tied her to this world had departed.

...

As the events followed the course of their stories, in a cave near the Uchiha outpost, a young man appeared slumped on the ground.

In this oppressive silence, an echo emerged from the depths of the cave, like a soft whisper: "Hello there."