Chapter 296: Orochimaru Awaits a Surprise, Yagura Under Fire

Minato had already vanished, and the two Uchiha Jōnin erupted in fierce battle intent, their Sharingan activating.

Two pairs of three-tomoe Sharingan glowed red in the dark night, dangerous and eerie.

"Konoha shinobi! Send the distress signal immediately!!"

Seeing the unmistakable Sharingan, the enemy at the port didn't need to guess their attackers' identity. They immediately moved to send out a distress signal.

Unfortunately, their comrades on the other side of the island couldn't come to their aid.

The battle had broken out too suddenly; the Kirigakure ninja guarding the port were completely unprepared, and the fight swiftly devolved into a one-sided slaughter.

Six Konoha Jōnin overwhelmed the Kirigakure forces, led by only two Special Jōnin. Takuya swung Samehada, striking an enemy and sending them flying, then looked at the scene of carnage. The Uchiha Jōnin continued their relentless pursuit, and Takuya shook his head.

"Takuya, are those two guys insane?"

Nawaki flicked his blade, shaking off the blood on it.

The battle had barely begun, and he already felt like he was completely unnecessary.

Yūhi Shinku shared the same sentiment.

"..."

Takuya didn't know what to say.

The two Uchiha Jōnin were already in a killing frenzy. Even Minato had unconsciously paused to watch their performance.

"The Uchiha are heavily influenced by their Sharingan during battle; it intensifies their emotions, and the power of the Sharingan makes them naturally more aggressive. It's part of why Uchiha shinobi are stronger than most at their rank."

Takuya, despite not being an Uchiha, had a Sharingan himself, which gave him enough insight to comment.

"They really are strong," Yūhi Shinku said, feeling somewhat defeated.

He could swear on anything that all he did was use one genjutsu, and then there was nothing left for him to do.

A few minutes later, the Uchiha Jōnin returned, covered in blood—weapons, armor, even their faces—all spattered with it. And to top it off, they looked thoroughly displeased, as if annoyed at how weak and few their enemies had been.

Well, let's hope you can maintain that level of enthusiasm. There's plenty more enemies waiting ahead.

On the other side of the island, the other Konoha forces had also quickly ended their battle. Even though the Kirigakure ninja tried to rely on their military fortifications, they could only delay the inevitable by a few minutes before being wiped out.

The entire Kirigakure contingent on the island was annihilated, leaving behind only corpses and wrecked facilities.

Takuya even destroyed the port that Kirigakure had constructed.

The group set out for the third island at full speed.

To save time, the toads of Mount Myōboku were put to use. Jiraiya didn't care if the seawater would harm their skin—right now, conserving chakra and stamina was the priority.

Even Nawaki summoned his own creature, using it as a makeshift ride.

Within just a few hours, they swept through seven of the islands under Kirigakure's control, leaving nothing but death and destruction in their wake.

In the shoreline camp, Nara Shikaku looked uneasy.

"Orochimaru-sama, there's still no word from Jiraiya-sama."

Compared to Shikaku, Orochimaru seemed calm.

"I understand. Wait. Maybe he'll surprise us," Orochimaru said.

According to their schedule, Jiraiya should've sent word back by now, regardless of the outcome.

But the appointed time had long passed, and that could only mean either something had gone wrong, or Jiraiya had changed the plan—maybe even the entire mission.

If it were anyone else, their commander would be furious.

But Orochimaru was no ordinary commander. Unlike the Hokage and others, he wasn't bound by convention.

Jiraiya's unauthorized deviation from the plan didn't bother him in the least. Even if Jiraiya missed the designated time, Orochimaru wouldn't care.

As long as the objective was achieved, everything else was secondary.

Orochimaru had always been the type to take risks, so he wasn't going to get mad over this. In fact, there was only one thing on his mind right now—he wondered what kind of surprise Jiraiya might deliver.

Had Jiraiya made the call, or had someone else pushed for this change?

Jiraiya? Orochimaru knew his old comrade well enough to find that unlikely.

Which made the outcome even more intriguing.

A pleasant surprise?

Their specially formed task force had failed to send any message back by the agreed time, and the frontline commander, Orochimaru, was waiting for a surprise?

A surprise? More like a shock.

If it were me, I'd have had a heart attack from all this suspense.

Shikaku shook his head. His nerves were too fragile for this. He preferred everything orderly, no unnecessary complications.

While Orochimaru waited peacefully for good news, Yagura was in turmoil.

On a massive ship bearing the Kirigakure symbol, Yagura's face was dark and twisted.

He never expected Konoha to launch a sneak attack, especially given that they didn't even control the sea. They had managed to slip past all of Kirigakure's naval patrols and infiltrate the rear, sweeping through several islands.

It was like a series of slaps across Yagura's face.

"Yagura, this is your grand strategy?"

"We've been drifting at sea, never engaging the enemy head-on, sending squads to sneak and spy—dispersing our forces."

"Now Konoha's troops are deep behind our lines!!"

Hōzuki Soen didn't care that Yagura was the commander and berated him openly.

In the command room, many were watching this play out with amusement, especially the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.

They had long wanted to engage the enemy directly, but Yagura had held them back, insisting on harassment tactics, wearing Konoha down, waiting for the right moment to strike decisively.

Due to Yagura's rank, they'd had no choice but to obey, bottling up their dissatisfaction.

But now, Yagura's plans had gone awry. Konoha had breached their rear, causing chaos, and Yagura could not escape responsibility.

And so, people were beginning to stir.

"Hōzuki Soen, are you questioning me?"

Yagura glared icily at him.

"What if I am?"

Soen folded his arms and sneered. "The Mizukage put you in charge of the frontlines, and this is what we get—running in circles, playing hide and seek with Orochimaru."

"My actions were meant to disorient Konoha, to drain their strength!"

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"A bonus chapter for 1700 since it's close enough to that number.

Next Bonus: 2100 Power Stones. ╰ (´꒳`) ╯

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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 345+ at patreon com/ Emik01. ಥ‿ಥ

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