"It's over."
With Kazama Sōsuke's body collapsing beside the river, the battle—one that should've been fierce and devastating—quietly ended in the final sliver of night before dawn.
Rain continued to pour over the muddy, scorched banks. The air stank of charred flesh and smoldering puppet wood.
Uchiha Fugaku sat by the corpse, letting Nishikawa Tetsu dress his wounds in silence.
The antidote worked quickly; the numbing sensation was already fading. But the pain in his shoulder still made his brows knit tightly.
"The wound's not deep, but the toxin corroded some nerve endings," Tetsu muttered as he wrapped the bandages with clinical efficiency. "You'll need three days' rest once we're back."
He tossed the empty syringe into the medical waste pouch. "But, Captain, that oil-spitting tactic of yours—yeah, it worked like a charm, but you realize if the fire had backlashed, your lungs would be ash?"
"I had it under control," Fugaku answered coolly, though his gaze drifted slightly. He hadn't. Not really.
He'd simply gambled that Tetsu's oil formula truly only burned outward.
"Captain."
Minato and Hyūga Kō approached from the river's edge.
Minato was soaked, his golden hair plastered to his forehead, but his grin was boyishly energetic. "All remaining enemy forces neutralized. The few survivors were subdued by Hyūga-senpai."
Kō nodded. His Byakugan had been deactivated, eyes now the pale blank of rest.
He glanced at Fugaku with a complex expression—half approval, half something harder to place.
"Your command was excellent," Kō said. Calm, but for a Hyūga, the words were rare and not easily earned.
"It was everyone's effort."
Fugaku rose slowly. He wavered slightly, but his spine was still perfectly straight.
He turned to Tetsu. "Search the bodies. Especially that scroll."
He pointed at the massive one strapped to Kazama's burned corpse.
Tetsu's eyes lit up. As a science-oriented ninja, he'd been eyeing Sunagakure's puppet tech since the mission began.
He knelt beside the body, carefully unfastening the still-warm scroll. Though scorched on the surface, the sealing matrix within remained intact.
"This is gold," Tetsu murmured. "Kazama was Chiyo's disciple. This scroll probably contains blueprints, poison formulas… it could be priceless for Konoha."
He stripped Kazama clean—vest, headband, even singed puppet scraps.
Watching him loot like a locust swarm, the surrounding Chūnin couldn't help but twitch.
"Was this kid raised in a scrapyard?"
"Shh. Without his explosives and poison, we'd all be corpses."
No one looked down on Tetsu anymore. A few even started helping him collect enemy gear.
"All set. Withdraw."
Fugaku's voice cut through the mist.
The squad, wounded but victorious, vanished into the morning fog of the Land of Rain.
Konoha's Forward Command
"The supply line has been destroyed. Enemy convoy annihilated. Elite Jōnin Kazama Sōsuke confirmed KIA."
Jiraiya slammed the desk, grinning for the first time in days.
"Beautiful! Damn good work!"
He looked up at the assembled members of Squad Five and their reinforcements.
"This mission was a long shot from the start—and yet you not only pulled it off, you turned the tide of the eastern front. This is what it means to carry Konoha's will."
His eyes locked on Fugaku.
"You, especially. Not only did you command with precision—you took out Chiyo's prized disciple. I'll file for a special commendation when we return."
"Thank you, Jiraiya-sama," Fugaku said quietly. "It was thanks to accurate intel… and the team's cohesion."
He paused, then added, "Especially Nishikawa Tetsu's tactics."
Jiraiya turned toward the boy in the corner—who was busy calculating how much bounty reward this would earn.
'This kid would get along way too well with Orochimaru.'
"I heard you took out their recon with a few sticks and poison flasks?"
"It's called science, Jiraiya-sama." Tetsu corrected.
Jiraiya burst out laughing. "Science, huh? Whatever works!"
"Hanzo's probably screaming at an empty warehouse right now!"
The news spread fast—throughout the frontlines and all the way back to the Hidden Leaf.
Inside the Uchiha Compound
Several elders studied the report with unreadable expressions.
"So Fugaku… actually did it," one muttered. "And he collaborated with a Hyūga branch member. Even got close to a civilian genin."
"Hmph. The heir of our clan, mingling with outsiders? Unbecoming."
But among the younger Uchiha—
"Still, he killed an elite Jōnin from Suna! That's huge!"
No matter the politics, Fugaku's reputation had just taken a massive leap.
Back at the Rain Camp – Improvised Shower Zone
It was really just a few barrels of rainwater behind the tents.
The three of them stripped off their mud-soaked gear, washing off the blood and soot from battle.
"Shhhh—!" Minato winced as water hit the scrapes on his back.
"Hold still," Tetsu ordered, slapping ointment on the raw skin. "Did you slide through half the battlefield?"
"I had to dodge a puppet, okay?" Minato hissed through his teeth.
Nearby, Fugaku silently washed the blood out of his hair.
His body bore many scars, but the one on his left shoulder—the wound he took to bait Kazama—was especially brutal.
Tetsu walked over, examining it.
"Y'know, if this leaves a scar, what'll you tell your fiancée?" he teased. "She might not be a fan."
Fugaku didn't even blink.
"A shallow woman isn't worthy to be my wife."
"Heh. Very noble."
Minato suddenly hurled a bucket of water. "Then what about that tiny cut on your butt from the shuriken?"
Fugaku's eyes snapped open, face red. He snatched up a towel and whipped it at Minato.
"Namikaze! You wanna die?!"
"Ahahaha! Mercy! I surrender!"
Their laughter echoed through the mist.
For a moment, they forgot war.
Later That Night – Tetsu's Tent.
Tetsu sat alone, surrounded by scrolls, tools, and broken puppet parts.
"Joint designs… chakra poison composition…"
His eyes gleamed with mad-scientist energy.
"If I re-engineer this gear… I might finally crack Scientific Ninja Tools Version 2.0."
Just then, the tent flap lifted.
Minato peeked in, grinning.
"Tetsu, get out here! Jiraiya-sensei says we're having grilled meat tonight. Victory feast!"
"…Grilled meat?"
Tetsu closed the scroll and slipped into a clean shirt.
"I'm coming."