Iwa Frontline Camp – Land of Fire Border
The hidden sentry posts that once shifted along the border had long since been reforged into a permanent camp. It wasn't about spotting intruders anymore. Now it was about stopping them dead in their tracks.
Uchiha Jinzō walked into the command tent alone. Minato and Kushina were still back on defense duty; his job was to hand over his assignment and get a replacement put on Team 7's line.
Inside, the tent was crowded with jōnin hunched over a model map. Some demanded an offensive push, others insisted on holding their ground.
"If we stay on defense, we'll get worn down—push Iwa back while we can!""And throw half our men into their traps? You want to feed them a victory?"
The debate was heated enough that fists looked imminent.
At the head of the table stood Jiraiya, his armor scuffed with burns, gouges, and dried blood. He looked up the second Jinzō entered.
The others spared the Uchiha a glance and kept bickering. Jiraiya motioned him over.
"Sensei," Jinzō murmured low, side-eyeing the almost-brawling jōnin. "Why the transfer? Why am I being sent to the Suna front?"
Jiraiya sighed, remembering the Hokage's order. "Sunagakure's been using complex poisons. The village wants you to develop ninjutsu that can build resistance."
"Shouldn't this be Tsunade's job?" Jinzō frowned. He wasn't bad at inventing jutsu, but poison? That was medical work. Tsunade was the greatest medic-nin alive, even if the council had rejected her medical corps idea.
"You're the backup," Jiraiya explained. "Tsunade's already been ordered to the Suna front. You'll just… support. If you don't want to go, I can help you refuse." His eyes softened. Jiraiya didn't like sending the boy away — especially with whispers about Jinzō being tied to the so-called Son of Darkness. Guidance was already fragile in wartime.
But Jinzō just rubbed his chin, smirking faintly. "Jiraiya-sensei, if I crack this poison problem… can I trade it for access to the Book of Seals?"
That earned a pause. The Book of Seals was tightly guarded; even Jōnin rarely glimpsed its contents. Jiraiya's brow furrowed. "I can apply for you, but final say is with the Hokage."
"Figures," Jinzō muttered. Sarutobi had already robbed him once. His basic internal arts had become a village-wide ninjutsu, yet all Hiruzen had given him in return was a signature and a smile. Others might surrender their techniques for free; Jinzō wasn't that kind of fool. He'd play the long game — but he never forgot a slight. One day, he'd repay the debt.
For now, though, he had his sights set on the Book of Seals. The chance was too valuable to pass.
"…Alright," Jinzō said. "I'll go."
Leaving the tent, he squinted up at the harsh sunlight. The camp looked pitiful — half empty, littered with the seriously wounded, barely more than the old sentry posts had held.
On his way to pack, a battered figure limped into view.
"Hyūga Hizashi."
"Uchiha Jinzō."
Hizashi's voice was flat, but his body was broken: one eye bandaged, an arm in a sling, neck wrapped in gauze, the other hand braced on a cane.
"You…" Jinzō started.
"It's not easy to survive, is it?" Hizashi finished for him, knuckles whitening on the cane. His Byakugan veins bulged faintly under the skin, his calm mask barely hiding fury.
Jinzō tried to redirect. "Your eyes holding up?"
"They'll recover in a few days," Hizashi muttered, touching the bandages. His tone was tight — as if saying it aloud might make it true. But the clenched fist on his cane betrayed him.
Jinzō let it go after a few pleasantries. The Hyūga always carried their grudges like chains.
He reached his tent, packed the essentials into a single backpack, and sealed it away in Ryūchi Cave with a reverse-summon for Xiaobai to guard.
With that, he slipped out of the camp, the illusory barrier making the tents vanish from sight the moment he turned his back.
From afar came the sounds of battle — roaring detonations, streaks of jutsu light slashing across the sky. The Iwa forces had been hammering at Konoha's defenses nonstop, only to be ground down again and again.
"Sunagakure can't be any worse than this," Jinzō muttered. He knew it was a lie.
Still, after half a year in the war, he was no longer green. In strength he was already jōnin level; experience would catch up soon enough. He wasn't about to die in some rookie mistake.
With a final glance at the battlefield, Jinzō leapt into the trees and vanished into the forest, racing toward his new front.