Childhood Friends Cannot Compete with the Unexpected
Pingyi first unrolled the map on the ground and called Miyue and the others over.
He pointed to a few areas near the border with Kumogakure and explained:
"Look, their encirclement is concentrated in these directions. That makes our objective clear.
We retreat toward the Village. Reinforcements should be on the way, and heading in this direction saves us time."
The main reason Pingyi chose this route was simple: their identities had not yet been exposed, and Kumogakure was wary of provoking Konoha directly. The blockade in this sector was looser.
Although this wasn't the direct border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning, two small neutral countries—buffer states—lay between them. Konoha and Kumogakure had both drawn their patrol lines across these nations, making them the effective warning zones.
Without knowing the enemy's exact identity, Kumogakure's ninja wouldn't dare to expand their search too recklessly. That gave Pingyi's team a sliver of safety.
For days they had avoided pushing through this route—waiting for the right moment. That moment was now.
Pingyi briefly considered continuing guerrilla tactics to confuse the enemy, but dismissed it. Kumogakure's forces had already tightened their net. If they delayed too much, the window for reinforcements to reach them would shrink. The risk was too high.
Decision made, Pingyi's squad moved quickly under cover of night.
Even then, Pingyi stuck to his cautious tactics. They couldn't shake their pursuers completely, but if they could just delay them, every second bought might be the difference between life and death.
---
Tap. Tap.
At that same time, deeper within the forests of the Land of Fire, not far from the Lightning border, Konoha's reinforcements raced through the trees.
Among them was our protagonist, Shirō's team.
Normally, they wouldn't have been deployed for a mission of this level. The Hokage had already dispatched five or six ANBU, along with over a dozen chūnin and genin, to support the operation. On top of that, both Miyue's and Xiao Guang's clans had privately sent reinforcements.
The Uchiha Clan, as expected, fielded the strongest lineup—two Elite Jōnin and Uchiha Tsuki, who had already awakened his Three-Tomoe Sharingan. Alongside them was Taiyi, who had also fully adapted to his Sharingan over the past year.
The Yoroi Clan, though weaker, still sent one Elite Jōnin and one regular Jōnin—proof of Xiao Guang's standing within her family.
Of course, these were clan shinobi, not Konoha's official forces. To balance things, the Hokage still deployed his own men—specifically the ANBU and village shinobi. Each ANBU member was at least jōnin-level, some possibly Elite Jōnin.
To Shirō's surprise, he even spotted a near-legendary figure among them: Teacher Chen, famed as one of Konoha's strongest taijutsu specialists. Though rarely mentioned in the history books—his Eight Gates information had never been fully revealed—Shirō vividly remembered his devastating Konoha Ryū techniques.
Knowing that Kumogakure's A–B combination (the future Fourth Raikage and Killer Bee) had been sighted in the region, Shirō had personally recommended that Might Dai also be deployed. If the Third Raikage himself appeared—and if Kumogakure used their long-range transfer techniques—Konoha would need every reliable powerhouse.
In terms of sheer one-on-one strength, Dai was Konoha's most stable trump card—excluding Kushina, of course. And thanks to a certain Noble Phantasm in Shirō's arsenal capable of restoring life force, he was confident in bringing Dai back even if the Eight Gates were unleashed.
By all logic, Shirō's own team should never have been required here. But due to unforeseen circumstances, most of Konoha's messenger puppets were already assigned to other fronts. Only Shirō's squad still had one available, so they were conscripted.
That, and their close ties with Miyue's squad, sealed the decision.
---
Still, their presence wasn't just an accident. Over the past year, his team had grown considerably.
Well—Taiyi had grown considerably.
Shirō himself had refined his weaknesses, but his real strength was still in accumulation, laying the foundations for greater power later. Taiyi, on the other hand, had completely mastered the Three-Tomoe Sharingan. His ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu were all jōnin-level. The only thing missing was the official title.
With a few more years, he would undoubtedly reach Elite Jōnin level.
The only question was: what path would Taiyi take?
If he stayed within Konoha's official ranks, he'd eventually earn promotions, even to Elite Jōnin. But if he chose instead to serve the Uchiha Police Force, his growth might stall. Elite Jōnin weren't just a rank—they came with influence and responsibilities. And because of the village's political distrust, the Uchiha were rarely granted those promotions.
Either way, Taiyi's path meant leaving their team.
If he left the official ranks, he'd stay in Konoha year-round, rarely taking outside missions. If promoted to Jōnin, he'd almost certainly be given a team of his own.
Which meant this mission… could very well be their last together.
---
Shirō glanced at Taiyi, who was currently traveling ahead, deep in discussion with an Uchiha Elite Jōnin. He couldn't help but sigh softly.
Although Taiyi had been cold toward him at first, after countless battles, their relationship had become the strongest of anyone in the squad. They fought with perfect understanding.
Ironically, though Taiyi had been Shikamaru's teammate for longer, it was with Shirō that he had developed the deepest bond. In battle, Shikamaru's strategist role often kept him in the background. The frontline was always Shirō and Taiyi—shoulder to shoulder.
Through shared survival, that bond had quietly surpassed even the bonds of childhood friends.
Perhaps that's what people mean when they say childhood companions cannot compete with the unexpected.
…
"Emmm." Shirō frowned. "Something about that sounded wrong."
He shook his head quickly, forcing his thoughts back to the mission.
If anyone had seen him shaking his head at nothing while sprinting through the forest, they might have thought he'd lost it.
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