Confronting bounty hunters who were consumed by greed and driven into a frenzy, Yohei, Saori, and the two members of Minato's squad put their lives on the line. They used their bodies, kunai, and ninjutsu, fighting desperately just to delay the enemy for a few moments.
Meanwhile, Taiichi followed closely behind Minato, charging towards the Jonin.
Perhaps due to arrogance, or maybe because he was too occupied with Minato, the Jonin paid little attention to Taiichi until the boy was right on top of him.
That was exactly what Taiichi wanted.
As he closed the distance, he channeled a massive amount of Wind Release chakra into his tanto. The blade hummed with a clear, sharp sound as he delivered a flawless vertical slash.
Only then did the Jonin sense the imminent threat of death. His pupils contracted in terror. Ignoring Minato behind him, he forcibly twisted his body, trying to block the slash.
Shhhk.
The sound of blade cutting flesh and bone was distinct.
The Jonin's arm had only raised halfway before the wind-infused tanto sliced diagonally from his shoulder down through his torso, nearly cleaving him in two.
Blood and organs sprayed out.
A Jonin, instantly killed.
This lightning-fast kill shocked the other bounty hunters like a bucket of ice water. The Konoha ninjas, however, seized the fleeting opportunity to push back.
Minato, capitalizing on the opening created by Taiichi, teleported via Flying Raijin back to Sakumo's side. With the enemy Jonin distracted and stunned, Minato's kunai found its way into his heart.
The second Jonin besieging Sakumo was startled by Minato's sudden appearance. The two-on-one advantage had instantly become a one-on-two disadvantage. His confidence crumbled into panic, and his movements became hesitant.
"Careful! The blonde one can teleport! Watch out for ambush!" someone shouted, making the bounty hunters even more paranoid.
Taiichi didn't stop after killing the Jonin. He immediately turned to support Yohei and the others, who were in dire straits.
Although Yohei had awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan, he hadn't had enough time to adapt to it. He was barely holding his own against an enemy Jonin using his heightened perception, adding new wounds to his existing ones.
Surrounded by Chunin as well, if not for Saori, Sora Gekko, and Rin Nakamura desperately covering him, Yohei would have died multiple times over.
Taiichi's arrival was a shot of adrenaline.
Seeing the chaotic melee of over ten ninjas, Taiichi didn't hesitate. Relying on his superior Kenjutsu, he charged straight into the fray.
His tanto flicked, slashed, and stabbed, piercing the enemies' weak points from impossible angles.
Without stopping his stride, he left four dead enemies in his wake. Saori and the others were freed up, shifting from passive defense to active offense.
Seeing his teammates safe and gaining the upper hand, Taiichi moved to Yohei's battlefield.
The enemy Jonin felt a thousand curses run through his mind. He had just watched a kid slaughter a Jonin and then mow down Chunin like grass. Now, that god of death was coming for him.
A chill shot from his feet to his skull. Run! I must run! The urge was overwhelming.
Taiichi ignored the Jonin's internal monologue and charged in. Unlike Yohei, who could only tangle with the Jonin, Taiichi's attacks were lethal.
Every strike aimed for a vital spot, forcing the Jonin to devote more attention to defense. But he forgot that he was still fighting an Uchiha who wanted to eat him alive.
Yohei saw the Jonin distracted by Taiichi and knew his chance for revenge had come.
He saw an opening and threw himself forward.
"Die!"
Ignoring the kunai stabbing into his own shoulder, Yohei used a suicidal tactic to drive his own kunai into the enemy's abdomen.
Splurt. The kunai sank deep.
"Argh! You bastard!"
Pain spiked through the Jonin's nerves. Enraged, he kicked the Uchiha brat away.
But his roar was cut short. He looked down in disbelief to see a bloodied blade tip slowly withdrawing from his chest. A cold weakness engulfed him instantly.
Taiichi withdrew his blade and scanned the battlefield. Minato and Sakumo had finished off another Jonin and were now rushing to help Yamaguchi with the last two.
Seeing the situation stabilized there, Taiichi focused on cleaning up the remaining ninjas. With his help, Saori and the others quickly eliminated their opponents.
The surviving bounty hunters tried to flee, but it was too late. The freed-up Konoha team chased them down and killed them all, ignoring their pleas for mercy.
When the last enemy fell, everyone was exhausted. But there was no time to rest. They hastily treated wounds, collected the bodies of Makoto Inuzuka and Kuromaru, sealed the enemy Jonin corpses, and left the area.
On the road, no one spoke. Partly to save energy, but mostly due to Makoto's death.
A friend who was laughing with them moments ago was now a charred corpse. For Taiichi's squad, this was their first time experiencing such a loss, and it hit hard.
For Minato's squad, losing a teammate they lived and fought alongside was devastating.
The silence lasted until they found a hidden spot to rest.
Everyone quietly recovered their stamina, except Taiichi. He had no time to rest; he had to treat the entire team.
With his medical supplies running low, Taiichi approached Yohei, the most severely injured.
"Treat the others first! I can hold on!" Yohei struggled to push Taiichi away, his voice hoarse.
"Shut up and lie down!" Taiichi forced him to the ground. "I know better than you who needs treatment first."
He lifted Yohei's torn clothes. The abdominal wound that had stopped bleeding was oozing again. If he waited any longer, Yohei would go into hypovolemic shock. Troublesome guy.
This was clearly secondary trauma caused by Yohei's carelessness. And judging by his vacant expression, he still hadn't recovered from the shadow of Makoto's death.
Taiichi carefully cut away the blood-soaked gauze and used the Mystical Palm Technique to stop the bleeding and repair the tissue. His chakra was running low, and he had to be efficient.
After more than an hour, Taiichi had treated everyone's wounds enough that they wouldn't reopen during travel.
This highlighted the importance of an excellent medical ninja. He significantly increased the team's survivability and endurance. Without Taiichi's skills, the team might have been wiped out back in the Land of Moon.
After resting until Taiichi recovered some chakra, they moved out again. This time, they were meticulous about hiding their tracks to avoid further ambushes.
Fortunately, the rest of the journey was uneventful. They spent two days sneaking out of the Land of Hot Water and entering the Land of Fire. Only then did they relax. The trip back to Konoha was smooth.
However, in the Hokage's office, a fierce argument erupted over their delayed return.
"Danzo, still no news from Minato and Masasuke's squads?"
Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, thick smoke hiding his dark expression.
"None. Our spy in Cloud reports their ANBU returned with heavy losses. Sakumo and the extraction team escaped," Danzo lied with a straight face, as if he hadn't orchestrated the whole mess.
"I heard the Raikage received the message a day later than we expected. Can you explain that?"
Puff, puff. The smoking became more rapid.
Danzo looked at Hiruzen through the smoke, unsure if the Hokage was bluffing or had actual intel.
"The Root ninja delivering the message met with an accident, causing a one-day delay. I have already dealt with him."
"Danzo! Root ninja are Konoha ninja too! You can't just dispose of them at will!" Hiruzen roared.
"Root has its rules. Ninja who fail their mission do not deserve to live," Danzo retorted self-righteously.
Silence fell over the room.
"Sakumo, Minato, Masasuke, Taiichi... these are the pillars of Konoha's present and future. Have you considered the consequences if they all die?"
"Minato is Jiraiya's disciple. Taiichi is Tsunade's. Have you thought about how Jiraiya and Tsunade would react if they died?"
"The ninja world is becoming unstable again. War could break out in a year or two. Without these elite ninja, how will we fight?"
Hiruzen's barrage of questions left Danzo speechless. Truthfully, he regretted it a little. He only planned to use Cloud to remove Sakumo, a high-prestige rival faction member. He didn't expect the extraction team to get dragged in so deep.
It just proved how strong Sakumo was to survive long enough to rendezvous.
Worse, news from the black market indicated the Raikage leaked the intel. At least six Jonin squads had taken the bounty.
Hiruzen must know this too, hence his pessimism.
"Danzo, you better pray you really did nothing else. Otherwise—"
"Hiruzen!" Danzo cut him off. "Root is the foundation of Konoha. I would never dig the village's grave."
He denied it, even though he barely believed himself. The situation was indeed grave.
Knock, knock.
"Enter." Hiruzen didn't ask who it was; he was too distracted.
But when the door opened, both Hiruzen and Danzo stood up in shock.
Walking in were Sakumo Hatake, Minato Namikaze, and Masasuke Yamaguchi—the very ninja they were just discussing.
The office fell silent. The three Jonin were confused. They had heard voices inside, but now it was dead quiet, and the two leaders were staring at them strangely.
For Hiruzen and Danzo, it was awkward. They had been arguing about these men being dead, and here they were, alive.
Hiruzen scanned them. Minato and Yamaguchi looked tired but uninjured. Sakumo, however, looked like a walking corpse—pale, bloodless, clearly having suffered massive blood loss.
"Hokage-sama, the mission is complete. However... we lost a member of the extraction team," Sakumo broke the silence, his voice low.
"Oh? What happened?"
Hiruzen looked at Minato and Yamaguchi. Even Danzo leaned in. He really wanted to know how they escaped the Cloud ANBU and the swarm of "hyenas" while heavily injured.
After a detailed report, Hiruzen understood the full danger of the mission. It was a miracle they survived. Even a tiny bit of bad luck would have doomed them.
In hindsight, it was clear: not only was Danzo's message delayed, but the Raikage also deliberately delayed the recall order.
That they made it back was proof that Heaven stood with Konoha.
"Hokage-sama, there was a significant delay in the mission intel, which directly led to the death of Makoto Inuzuka. Is there an explanation for this?"
Sakumo looked Hiruzen in the eye, asking the hard question. If his comrade died due to lack of skill or overwhelming enemy force, he would accept it. But death due to faulty intel was unacceptable.
On the way back, he had discussed the mission scroll details with Minato and Yamaguchi. They were certain the intel was flawed.
As elite Jonin, they knew the value of intel. A simple time delay nearly wiped them out. If they let this slide, who would be the next victim of "faulty intel"?
Hiruzen was embarrassed. Danzo had already scapegoated a subordinate. He couldn't exactly throw Danzo under the bus too. Not only was he unwilling to dispose of his old friend over this, but he also needed Danzo for the dirty work.
But Danzo needed to be reined in. "Root ninja had an accident"—what a lazy excuse!
Hiruzen glared at Danzo but proceeded to cover for him.
"The messenger encountered an accident en route, delaying the warning to the Raikage by a day."
Hiruzen puffed his pipe. "The Raikage clearly wanted Sakumo dead, so he likely delayed his recall order by a day as well. It's our speculation, but these two delays combined led to your predicament."
Sakumo, Minato, and Yamaguchi exchanged glances. They remained silent. Hiruzen's glare at Danzo was subtle, but they were sharp. Combined with the flimsy explanation, they understood there was foul play.
However, as loyal Konoha ninja, they trusted the Hokage to handle it and didn't press further.
After the report, they left. Sakumo needed urgent medical attention.
As the door closed, Danzo's cold, suspicious voice rang out again.
"Hiruzen, we need to watch that Uchiha kid in Yamaguchi's squad. Awakening the three-tomoe Sharingan at eleven or twelve? That talent is too dangerous. In time, he could become another Madara Uchiha!"
"DANZO!" Hiruzen roared, his suppressed anger exploding. "Enough!"
"Do you think I don't know your little tricks? The Uchiha are part of the village, not pawns to be suppressed and sacrificed! Don't forget, there are Uchiha like Kagami!"
"Kagami was one man, and he's been dead for years! Where are the Uchiha who inherited his will? The evil Uchiha must be guarded against!" Danzo shouted back.
"Danzo. I am the Hokage!" Hiruzen's anger shifted to cold solemnity.
He stepped forward, his voice low but heavy. "From now on, every Root operation must be reported to me. Understood?"
Danzo froze. Disbelief, rage, and humiliation flashed in his single eye. He hadn't expected Hiruzen to use this chance to tighten the leash on Root.
He gripped his cane until his knuckles turned white. Finally, he squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth.
"Hiruzen... you will regret this."
He stormed out, slamming the door.
---
While the captains were reporting, Taiichi and the others were at the Konoha Hospital. Taiichi wasn't a patient; he was assisting the hospital staff in treating his teammates.
Yohei was the worst off, followed by Saori. The quiet girl fought like a demon when it mattered, taking several hits for Yohei, which left her second only to him in injuries.