Chapter 2: The Mission

Early the next morning, Uchiha Kei did some simple training before heading to the rendezvous point.

In times of war, every ninja is a combat resource. Even major clans like the Uchiha and Hyūga had to fight to protect the village.

Of course, there were policies in place. For instance, the Hyūga clan mainly sent branch family members to battle.

With the protection of the Caged Bird seal, they didn't have to worry about their Byakugan being taken by others, especially after an incident where a main family member's eye was taken by a Mist ninja.

The Uchiha clan wasn't foolish either. While they did send out Sharingan users, these members were deployed to relatively "safe" areas.

Non-Sharingan users, however, fully obeyed the village's assignments, going wherever they were needed.

Kei fell into the latter category, primarily because he had never shown his Sharingan to anyone.

Without enough security, Kei preferred to lay low. Although war was dangerous, it was better than ending up on Konoha's "blacklist."

This approach had its pros and cons. The downside was the danger Kei faced, but the upside was having a "trusted by Konoha" Jōnin as his guide.

Like Obito, considered a "failure" among the Uchiha, who had Minato Namikaze as his Jōnin leader.

Kei and Obito were from the same generation, but Kei wasn't as lucky as Obito.

His Jōnin instructor wasn't famous, nor was he a member of the Ino-Shika-Chō trio.

His instructor was a loyal follower of the Hokage faction, named Fujihiro Kōhei.

And he wasn't even Kei's original instructor. Kei's first instructor had heroically sacrificed himself in a mission to protect his teammates.

Kei's teammates were all minor characters; no Might Guy, no Kurenai, no Asuma, or even Genma Shiranui.

His teammates were a civilian ninja named Imai Kenta, a skilled taijutsu practitioner with a sharp mind who had survived the war until now.

The other teammate was more interesting: Hyūga Aya, a branch family member of the Hyūga clan, as her name suggested.

She was very clever, even cunning, and Kei had learned to be wary of her intentions.

Kei and his teammates had a neutral relationship; they weren't close but held no grudges. Their grouping was a result of constant team rotations.

They had completed many missions together, which revealed their subtle machinations and hidden agendas.

During the war, ninjas suffered heavy casualties. Kei had lost several teammates, and it was the same for his current team.

In short, they were all old foxes, which was why they were still alive.

"Why so slow? Are all Uchiha like this?" Hyūga Aya frowned as she looked at Kei upon his arrival. "We have a mission."

"A mission?" Kei nodded calmly, then looked around curiously. "Where's Fujihiro Kōhei? Why is it just the three of us?"

Imai Kenta, who was sitting nearby, polishing his weapon, looked up and said, "The captain left half an hour ago with other Jōnin to the front lines. The Iwa-nin's attack is fierce, and we have a separate mission."

The Battle of Kikyo Pass was brutal, especially since Konoha had just dealt with Suna and had no time to rest.

With heavy losses on both sides, the Land of Earth seemed to be taking advantage of Konoha's weakened state.

But because of Iwa-nin's greed, which also led them to attack the Cloud, and the Third Raikage's sacrifice to allow his comrades to escape, Konoha was spared from a two-front war.

According to official explanations, Minato's team destroyed the Kannabi Bridge, cutting off enemy supplies.

However, Kei believed the dual-front assault also contributed to Iwa-nin's retreat. Facing Konoha in front and the Cloud behind would be too much for anyone.

"What is our mission?" Kei nodded. "And who is our leader?"

"It's you," Hyūga Aya replied seriously, though she seemed displeased. "Our task is to support Minato Namikaze's team, ensuring their mission's success."

During the war, ninja squads were highly militarized, and much more disciplined than in the manga.

However, Aya's words made Kei frown. Their mission seemed to use them as bait.

Minato's team's objective wasn't disclosed to them. They were only told to support his team. While Kenta and Aya knew it was a bait mission, they had no idea what Minato's team was actually doing.

But Kei knew. Their mission was to destroy Kannabi Bridge!

This meant they were essentially sacrificial pawns, meant to draw enemy fire!

Considering the original story, where Kakashi's team encountered few enemies, one might wonder why such a strategic location wasn't heavily guarded.

Even if Kakashi's team was meant to infiltrate, there should have been more than a handful of enemies.

Clearly, others were diverting attention, allowing Kakashi's team to infiltrate.

Realizing this, Kei frowned. This wasn't a good mission. He remembered that after Obito's death, numerous Iwa-nin appeared, indicating that those serving as diversions were essentially doomed.

Moreover, Kei recalled that Obito was taken by Madara after this mission, implying there was a Uchiha base nearby.

However, Kei knew he couldn't refuse this mission. Being a deserter was worse than dying in battle during the war, with consequences far graver.

"How many teams are assisting with this mission?" Kei asked after some thought. "How far do we need to go?"

"There are six teams," Hyūga Aya quickly replied. "As for how deep we go, it's unclear. Our job is to attract and hold off the enemy."

What a troublesome mission!

Kei cursed inwardly but quickly composed himself. With six teams, they had a chance.

Although it depended on luck, Kei believed his cautious nature could help him survive.

With his experience, Kei felt that with enough care, he had a fighting chance.

"Let's move out."

With that, Kei motioned and sprinted towards the village gate. A mission couldn't be delayed.

Kenta and Aya quickly followed. They didn't have much time and needed to move fast.

As they were about to leave the village, they saw Minato's team, also preparing to depart.

(Chapter end)