"Cough, cough, cough..."
Only after the turbulent river waters had calmed somewhat did Uchiha Ryun, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya struggle to climb onto the riverbank.
A massive wave had forcefully swept them to an unfamiliar stretch of the river. Now, there were no traces of other shinobi around, and they could no longer hear the roars of the Black Dragon.
Occasionally, a corpse or two could be seen floating past on the river's surface. Ryun, dragging his exhausted body, pulled up a comrade, only to find that the person had long since died, their mouth and nose filled with mud and sand, beyond any hope of saving.
Ryun helplessly returned to the other two and sat on the ground, using his Mystical Palm Technique to treat their poison and injuries.
"None of them survived?" Orochimaru casually asked.
"Yeah..." Ryun nodded slightly.
Orochimaru sighed and closed his eyes.
The ones who had come with him today were all elite Konoha shinobi. In this great battle, all of them had perished in the river.
Truthfully, he had already mentally prepared for this outcome. After all, interception battles were inherently perilous, especially when facing Hanzō of the Salamander himself.
The fact that the three of them had escaped alive was already fortunate. With just those Konoha elites, they wouldn't have been able to defeat the remaining Rain-nin.
If not for the Black Dragon's sudden rampage, continuing the fight would have only led to their defeat against Hanzō.
A colossal wave had forcibly balanced the strength between the two sides. Orochimaru felt they should be grateful to that terrifying black serpent.
Even if Hanzō and a handful of Rain-nin survived, they were in no condition to fight. In their current state, heading to Ryūmon Town would only mean death.
This battle was theirs to win!
After roughly healing the external injuries of the other two, Ryun lay on the ground without a care for appearances.
After resting for about half an hour to recover some stamina, the three finally helped each other stand up.
The two adults, still suffering from lingering poison, draped themselves over the boy's shoulders, shifting most of their weight onto him...
Ryun scowled at the shameless pair on either side of him.
"My body is numb and exhausted..." Orochimaru explained with a faint smile.
"The two of us protected you, so now it's your turn to carry us..." Jiraiya grinned cheekily.
"..."
With things put that way, Ryun had no choice but to bear it silently.
His chakra was nearly depleted, and he couldn't even summon a snake to serve as a mount right now.
"Should we return to camp or go somewhere else?"
"Straight to Ryūmon Town..."
When the three slowly arrived at Ryūmon Town, they found it exactly as Orochimaru had predicted—completely occupied by Konoha shinobi.
According to Tsunade, Hanzō had indeed come, but seeing the situation as hopeless and realizing that holding out would only lead to total annihilation, he had no choice but to retreat with the remaining Rain-nin, abandoning this strategic stronghold.
Konoha had won the most crucial decisive battle of the Fire-Rain War!
The primary credit for this victory went to Orochimaru, Ryun, and Jiraiya, who successfully completed the interception mission, as well as Tsunade, who shone brilliantly in the capture of Ryūmon Town.
Though the three hadn't managed to stop Hanzō, they had utterly destroyed the reinforcement troops apart from him. This outcome exceeded everyone's expectations and could even be considered the best possible result.
The reputation of the Sannin spread even further after this battle. At the same time, a twelve-year-old Three Tomoe Sharingan wielder's name began circulating through the ninja world via the Rain-nin's accounts.
Information about Uchiha Ryun was quickly being gathered by the Five Great Shinobi Villages, and his terrifying combat record was soon dug up by interested parties.
A twelve-year-old elite jōnin, who had awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan at a young age and tamed an immensely powerful Black Dragon as his summon, with combat prowess nearing the limits of a jōnin!
Such a prodigious genius made many wary, and his profile was swiftly added to the Bingo Books.
Moreover, substantial bounties were placed on his head by individuals in the Four Great Nations, with his price even rivaling that of the Sannin!
When news of Ryun's Three Tomoe Sharingan reached the Uchiha Clan's compound, the entire clan erupted in excitement.
Especially when the Uchiha Elder received detailed reports on Ryun's achievements, he stormed into the Hokage's office, demanding to know why Sarutobi Hiruzen had deliberately concealed Ryun's information from the Uchiha Clan.
Their clan had produced a Three Tomoe elite comparable to the Sannin, a hero who had contributed greatly to Konoha's victories, yet they were the last to know. The Uchiha higher-ups were furious!
But when the Uchiha Elder confronted the Third Hokage, Hiruzen countered with a question: "Your clan's Three Tomoe elite—your own people didn't even know about him. Why are you questioning me about this?"
The profiles of all Konoha jōnin were classified, and the Third Hokage had an obligation to keep them confidential.
"Then why wasn't his deployment to the battlefield reported to us? Why wasn't his promotion to jōnin announced to us? Does Konoha even respect the Uchiha Clan?"
In the Hokage's office, the Uchiha Elder was visibly livid.
"First of all, Konoha does not need to inform any clan before mobilizing their members."
"Moreover, very few Uchiha were sent to the Fire-Rain battlefield in the first place. Are you saying Konoha must seek your permission before sending even a single Uchiha genin to war?" Koharu Utatane coldly retorted.
"Hokage Advisor, don't twist my words. I said 'notification.' The Uchiha Clan has never forbidden Konoha from deploying troops!" the Uchiha Elder snapped back angrily.
"Then shouldn't you reflect on why your own clansman didn't bother informing the clan before heading to the battlefield? How dare you blame us for not telling you?" Koharu Utatane sneered.
"You—"
"Enough," Hiruzen tapped his pipe, cutting off the argument.
"I did ask Ryun about this. He said there was no need to inform the clan, and he specifically instructed that even his mother, Asuka, should not be told..."
"As for his promotion to jōnin, we kept it quiet for his safety. You know how dangerous it is for a twelve-year-old jōnin to become widely known. Other nations would target him..."
Hiruzen patiently explained, but his words did little to placate the Uchiha Elder.
"I don't care. All I know is that he is an Uchiha. Our clan has the right to know!"
With that, the Uchiha Elder stormed out.
A war hero was an invaluable political asset for the Uchiha Clan. Ryun represented an exceptional bargaining chip, especially with his ties to the Sannin, the leading candidates for future Hokage succession.
How much political leverage could he bring in the future? The Uchiha higher-ups didn't need to think hard to realize his significance.
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