He would never forget that face.
During the Third Shinobi World War, he had been assigned to the battlefield against Kumogakure. His squad once encountered the then little-known AB Combination.
It was like ants facing an elephant—utterly powerless.
One of them, a strange man in sunglasses who rapped while fighting, wielded seven blades with terrifying skill, cutting down his teammates like they were nothing. Just as he himself was about to be killed, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had appeared in time and saved him. Otherwise, he would have died at the hands of that rapping monster.
Later, when the AB Combination gained renown across the shinobi world for killing many of Konoha's strongest, he learned their names: A, now the Fourth Raikage, and his younger brother, Killer B, the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki.
And now…
The Fourth Raikage is leading the force personally!
From the captive's memories, it was clear—Killer B had remained behind at Kumogakure's gates to see the troops off, while the Raikage himself marched with his men.
The Yamanaka shinobi snapped out of the jutsu and ended the technique.
Seeing his solemn expression, the surviving jōnin from the Fourth Squad hurried forward.
"How is it? Who's leading the enemy?"
The Yamanaka shinobi stood quickly. "No time to explain! We must report to Lord Yashiro at once!"
Without another word, he rushed out of the tent. The Konoha jōnin and the others followed close behind.
---
Inside Uchiha Yashiro's tent, the group burst in.
Yashiro, already half expecting bad news, feigned ignorance.
"What's going on?" he asked calmly.
The Yamanaka shinobi bowed slightly, his voice tight with urgency.
"This is bad, Lord Yashiro—the Kumogakure forces are advancing!"
"Don't panic," Yashiro replied, keeping his composure. "How many of them?"
The Yamanaka's next words wiped the calm from his face.
"About a hundred shinobi… led by the Fourth Raikage himself."
"What?!" Yashiro shot to his feet, stunned.
This changed everything.
If it truly was the Fourth Raikage in command, then all of his earlier plans—fighting while retreating, drawing out the Cloud shinobi until reinforcements arrived—were impossible. Against A, they wouldn't last even fifteen minutes. And Fugaku, despite leaving early, was still an hour away at best.
If they tried to hold the line, the outpost would be annihilated. That was not the clan head's intention.
Yashiro clenched his fists. There was only one option left: an immediate retreat.
The Raikage could only be faced by Fugaku himself. With the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, Fugaku's power was unquestionable. Yashiro firmly believed that just as Uchiha Madara once dominated an age with that same power, Fugaku could defeat even the Fourth Raikage.
"Notify everyone! Emergency assembly! Abandon the camp—we retreat at once!"
His shout carried through the camp.
Uchiha shinobi who had been relaxed before now rushed into action. Most had already been roused by the earlier explosion. Tents lit up one by one as ninja dressed, grabbed supplies, and gathered.
In the open space, Yashiro stood at the front, flanked by the Yamanaka shinobi and the surviving Konoha jōnin.
He addressed the crowd.
"The Fourth Squad captured a scout. Through the Yamanaka clan's mind technique, we confirmed it—the enemy force numbers about one hundred, personally led by the Fourth Raikage. The Fourth Squad has already been wiped out, and the explosion we heard earlier was their signal to us.
We will abandon the camp and retreat. Hokage-sama is on his way to rendezvous with us—we'll regroup with him first!"
No one argued. Against the Raikage, retreat was the only sane choice. They packed only rations for a day, burning what they couldn't carry. Soon, black smoke rose from the valley as the camp was dismantled.
Just as they prepared to depart, three figures landed at the valley entrance.
"It's the Fourth Squad returning!" someone shouted.
Yashiro looked over. Three survivors had indeed returned. His eyes flickered with mixed feelings—so the Raikage had let them slip away. Including the messenger who had returned earlier, only one member of the squad had fallen. Too few.
Suppressing his regret, Yashiro asked them directly about their situation.
One of the survivors, grief heavy in his voice, explained:
"The captain stayed behind to cover us… We came back to report—it was Hidden Cloud shinobi!"
"We already know," Yashiro cut him off. "You'll retreat with us. Move!"
With his command, the entire force vanished into the night, scattering like shadows.
Moments later, a towering figure appeared at the valley's mouth. The Fourth Raikage looked down at the smoldering remains of the camp, his men crowding behind him.
"Hmph. These rats run fast."
His disdain echoed through the valley.
---