At the junction of three nations, where the Fire Rain River carved through tangled undergrowth, a small valley lay hidden near the Konoha front camp.
The air rang with the sharp sounds of a sparring match; two figures darting in and out, blows traded so quickly that only the glint of steel and the thud of impact marked their movements.
A short distance away, a brown-haired girl watched with her hands unconsciously tightening around her medical pouch. Nohara Rin's eyes followed every motion, her expression tense.
A warm voice broke the focus. "Looks like you've been keeping busy."
She turned to find Namikaze Minato standing beside her, yellow hair catching the light, the familiar green flak jacket fitting him like a second skin. His calm, sunny presence made her shoulders ease at once.
"Ah, teacher, you're here," Rin said with a relieved smile.
Minato nodded, eyes on the match. "Gen's taijutsu has come a long way. He can hold his own against Kakashi now."
"Mm," Rin agreed. "He's improving fast—another genius, like Kakashi."
As if sensing they were being watched, Kakashi and Uchiha Gen broke apart, both breathing steadily, and approached.
Lately, Gen had thrown himself into physical training, forcing himself to rely on raw movement rather than ninjutsu or genjutsu. It was the weak link in his arsenal, but even so, his Sharingan gave him an edge most chunin could only dream of.
"Teacher," Kakashi greeted.
"Minato-senpai," Gen said lightly—his own idea, but one Minato had agreed to.
Minato's tone turned brisk. "We've got a mission. Gather your gear, we leave immediately."
"What's the target?" Kakashi asked.
"The Hokage wants me to intercept a Kumogakure squad that's crossed into the Land of Fire."
Rin frowned. "Again?"
Minato sighed. "We're stretched thin on the Lightning front. Even with Lord Orochimaru's strategy, there are limits."
Konoha's information network was legendary, woven from the Interrogation Corps, Danzo's Root, and the Anbu. It had already uncovered Kumogakure's plan despite their caution.
"This invasion is split into two strike teams," Minato continued. "I'll engage the Dark team led by the Third Raikage's son. You'll move with the rapid-response force to block the Light team."
"Understood, teacher. Be careful," Rin said.
"You too," Minato replied with a small smile. "Don't be reckless." And in the next breath, he was gone—vanished in the instant of a kunai mark, the air only just catching up with the ripple of space-time ninjutsu.
"Let's move," Kakashi said.
The three sprinted back to camp, packed their gear, and joined the rapid-response force; seventy shinobi chosen for speed: chunin, special jonin, and jonin alike. The Ino–Shika–Cho trio led them through the forest, their formation flowing like shadow and wind.
They pushed hard, chewing through distance with unbroken rhythm, pausing only to gulp down soldier pills.
By the following night they'd crossed from the western to the northeastern border, laying traps where they knew the enemy would pass. Perception-nin kept watch while the barrier team masked their presence.
The warning came just before dawn. A soft twang of wire, then the forest erupted as shuriken and kunai laced with explosive tags rained down in a deadly cascade. Metal clashed, explosions cracked, and screams split the morning. The Kumogakure vanguard staggered under the sudden slaughter.
"Fall back!" their jonin leader barked, but Konoha's trap had teeth—shinobi burst from cover to press the retreat.
Amid the chaos, a Cloud-nin with a green ribbon tucked beneath his sleeve slipped away unnoticed. A spy on his own mission; not even Konoha's frontliners would risk revealing their own counterintelligence by stopping him.
"Kill them!"
Three Kumogakure elites broke through the melee, their blades flashing as they closed in on Team Seven. Kakashi and Gen met them head-on, steel ringing in the cramped space between trees.
Cloud-nin were renowned for swordplay and lightning-style, but here they found no easy prey—Kakashi's precision and Gen's uncanny reads from his Sharingan tilted the fight.
A subtle signal passed between the enemy.
One broke away, angling toward Rin. Gen's shuriken curved unexpectedly mid-flight, forcing the man to twist away—but not far enough to avoid Rin's waiting kunai. He slipped past her first throw, but the second left a thin scratch across his ribs. Poison bloomed instantly in his veins, and he collapsed without a sound.
The other two Cloud-nin had no time to react before Gen's eyes bled red and the two tomoe spun into focus. He hadn't shown his Sharingan until now, no crest on his clothes, no warning to his opponent.
The genjutsu was instant, paralyzing them in place. Kakashi and Gen struck in perfect timing.
Blood sprayed, and the two bodies fell almost together. Kakashi landed lightly on a branch, mouth quirking in a grimace. "You really don't have the Uchiha pride, do you?"
"I'm flexible," Gen replied blandly. "How about I take point this time?"
Kakashi snorted. "Fine. I'll follow, Rin keeps us standing."
Rin smiled faintly and raised her hand in agreement.
The battle wasn't over—but the rhythm had shifted. Team Seven moved forward as one.