Naruto: IHCS Ch. 132

Fugaku looked at the two young boys before him. He hesitated for a second, then said to Nanami, "Be careful."

"Don't worry!"

Nanami and Minato quickly entered the room, and their figures vanished from sight.

Shiratori watched their backs, a trace of doubt flashing in his eyes.

He and Nagato had already checked the houses one by one, and inside there was nothing but dust and cobwebs.

It was obvious that the owners had fled.

"Come with me," Fugaku said to the two boys in front of him.

Nagato glanced at Shiratori, who nodded.

They followed behind Fugaku.

When Shiratori stepped on the harder floorboards, the change in footing made him lower his head.

The border of the Land of Grass was made up of vast grasslands, only shifting into shrubs and forests deeper inland.

From the moment they entered the Land of Grass, the ground beneath his feet had been soft, with damp grass roots that often soaked his shoes.

But from the time they stepped into this deserted little village, the ground had turned firm, the grass had grown shorter, and the roots no longer held wet dew.

This meant that there was something underground.

Shiratori glanced at the house where Nanami and Minato had entered. The two of them still hadn't come out.

He and Nagato had already checked every house in this place.

If there weren't secret passages or hidden rooms, Nanami and Minato couldn't possibly have stayed inside for so long.

Fugaku led Shiratori and Nagato to hide behind the last house. He scanned the surroundings, his brows furrowing tightly.

The terrain on the border of the Land of Grass was far too unsuitable for hiding, open skies and land as far as the eye could see, with hardly any cover.

Anyone appearing here would be spotted from afar at a glance.

Thinking of Nanami and Minato, a deep worry flickered in Fugaku's black eyes.

His gaze quickly fell upon Shiratori and Nagato.

"I don't know your true purpose in coming to the Land of Grass, but you'd best return to the Land of Rain now. Otherwise, Iwa will not go easy on you just because you're young."

Fugaku crouched down, staring at Shiratori and Nagato as he spoke.

When he finished, he fixed his eyes firmly on the two boys' reactions. To his disappointment, they showed no reaction at all, as if they hadn't even heard his warning.

"Since we've already come to the Land of Grass, we will not leave. At the very least, until the war in the Land of Grass ends, until the common people no longer suffer, we will stay here."

Shiratori looked straight into Fugaku's eyes and spoke each word firmly.

"Do you even know what you're saying?"

Fugaku frowned, fixing him with a cold stare.

Without waiting for Shiratori to answer, he struck at his confidence:

"Naive! Do you think courage alone can stop a war? Do you think your strength alone can save everyone? Stop dreaming! You should be staying safely in the Land of Rain until the war subsides, not playing heroes here!"

Shiratori took a step forward, glaring at him:

"If I hadn't played the hero here, you'd already be dead."

Fugaku drew in a deep breath and turned his gaze away. He looked up at the blue sky. The process might change, but the outcome would not. To entrust this kind of mission to these children, wasn't that just sending them to their deaths?

A flicker of irony crossed Fugaku's eyes.

His peripheral vision swept over the two boys beside him.

There was no need to drag two innocent children to die with them.

"It's buried!"

A familiar voice rang out by Fugaku's ear.

He turned his head and saw that Nanami and Minato had already appeared behind him.

Fugaku's heart tightened.

Nanami said sharply, "Fugaku, what were you just thinking? You were so absent-minded! You didn't even notice us appear behind you! If we were the enemy, you'd already be dead!"

Minato glanced at Fugaku and eased the tension:

"Let's leave quickly! This place is about to blow! We'll use the smoke from the explosion to retreat!"

Fugaku nodded.

Nanami reached a hand toward Shiratori, but he dodged aside.

"I can walk on my own! Don't worry!"

He touched the ring on his finger, calming Rika, who was growing restless.

There was indeed little time left, so Nanami didn't try to forcefully carry him, but instead warned:

"Stay close to us no matter what!"

Shiratori nodded.

Suddenly, a violent burst of fire shot up from deep beneath the house. The roar of the explosion made their eardrums ache. The air was compressed sharply, and a powerful shockwave erupted outward from the basement like a sphere expanding madly.

The ground trembled as though an earthquake had struck.

The house where they were hiding shook violently, showering them with dust and splinters.

The ground cracked apart as if it were a fragile eggshell, great fissures racing outward in every direction.

Flames, smoke, splinters, dust... Everything on the surface was hurled high into the air.

Under the cover of the rolling smoke, Nanami, Minato, and Fugaku sprang into action, with Shiratori and Nagato following closely behind.

Shiratori glanced back at the origin of the blast. It had already become a wasteland.

At the moment of the explosion, he had seen countless shards of metal blasted skyward, scattering like shrapnel in all directions, littering the ground.

He crashed into Minato's back.

Minato and the others had stopped.

All three stood shielding him and Nagato behind them, their expressions grave as they looked into the dust and smoke, where countless dark figures were emerging.

The killing intent in the air was so thick it seemed to take form.

The aftershock from the simultaneous detonation of a hundred explosive tags had not yet fully subsided.

The scorching stench of gunpowder lingered in the air.

The towering blaze and thick smoke were gradually dissipating.

The explosion had torn a hideous scar across the grassland.

Through the haze that blocked his vision, Shiratori's sight slowly cleared.

When the dust settled, people appeared.

Countless silhouettes, silent and overwhelming, emerged and surrounded them, sealing every escape.

Minato's heart instantly sank to freezing point.

He looked around at the Iwa ninjas. They stood before them like immovable rock, eyes brimming with fury and hatred.

Their gaze locked unerringly onto Minato and his two companions.

An unrestrained, pure killing intent surged toward them like a violent wave.

Fugaku's expression darkened slightly.

The hands of the Iwa ninjas rested upon their weapons, poised to strike.

A suffocating pressure, like a massive boulder, weighed heavily upon the chests of the three.

If it were only Minato and his two comrades, perhaps they wouldn't feel such pressure.

This was the fate of ninjas, death could come at any time.

Before stepping onto the battlefield, everyone had already prepared themselves for sacrifice. But behind them were two innocent boys. They were neither Konoha ninjas nor Iwa ninjas. They were innocents dragged into the war.

At the forefront of nearly a hundred Iwa ninjas stood an abnormally tall and burly jonin.

A ferocious scar cut across his face, and his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. His rough, hoarse voice rang out, "Exchanging a frontline weapons depot for a pair of Sharingan... that's not a loss."

The Iwa jonin's gaze locked onto Fugaku's black eyes.

Fugaku stared back at him calmly. Even in death, he would never allow the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan to fall into the enemy's hands.

For the Sharingan to be taken by outsiders, this would be the Uchiha clan's greatest shame. On his face flickered the pride and resolve of the Uchiha.

Minato's grip on his kunai was so tight his knuckles turned white, his expression composed.

No!

He couldn't die.

He must not die.

He hadn't yet returned to see Kushina.

Nor could Nanami and Fugaku die.

Minato's mind began calculating at an unprecedented speed.

Calculating distance, calculating angles, calculating every minuscule gap...

They had to survive.

He had to protect his comrades.

This one unshakable conviction filled Minato's heart.

The Iwa ninjas stared at them coldly, flashes of vengeful satisfaction occasionally flickering in their eyes.

At last, they could avenge their comrades who had fallen beneath Konoha's blades.

Shiratori suddenly felt his sleeve tugged.

Turning his head, he saw the pale-faced Nagato.

"Let's run away," Nagato whispered in his ear.

This war had nothing to do with them in the first place. There was no reason for them to leave their lives here.

But Shiratori instead held onto Nagato's chilled hand in return.

"Trust me!"

"Nagato!"

He looked into Nagato's eyes. "I will protect you!"

[Affection detected: Nagato +1000 points]
[Curse Growth - Love: 52.5%]

"I will protect you too."

Nagato's expression hardened.

His gaze stabbed straight at the Iwa ninjas enclosing them. This was the first time he truly felt the pressure of the battlefield, it made breathing difficult.

But... As long as there is someone in your heart you'd be willing to give your life to protect, no matter how powerful the enemy before you is, you will not feel fear.

Shiratori had stood in front of him and protected him so many times, this time, he wanted to stand in front of him and protect him.

"What about those two brats behind them?"

His and Nagato's presence had not escaped the sharp eyes of the ninjas.

"I don't know, never seen them before..."

"They don't look like Konoha ninjas..."

"Where did they come from?"

"Don't bother figuring it out."

"Kill them outright. Anyone who can hide among Konoha ninjas isn't a good sort."

"Kill them all."

The whispers of the Iwa ninjas drifted into Minato and the others' ears.

Nanami gritted her teeth. "Damn it! Those bastards!"

"You Konoha ninjas have no right to say that!" the Iwa jonin sneered when he heard her voice, his eyes sparking with hatred. "You've killed your share of children on the battlefield too!"

"Are you saying Iwa has been sending children to the front lines all this time?"

Nanami spat back angrily. "At least we wouldn't send kids who haven't even graduated from the Ninja Academy into battle."

"No need to waste words with them."

"Move in!"

The Iwa jonin took a deep breath and drew the long blade at his side.

Shiratori slipped out from between Fugaku and Minato. He was so fast and sudden that neither Minato nor Fugaku reacted in time.

Neither of them had expected him to move forward at a moment like this.

Nagato, about to mirror his movement and stand by his side, was immediately stopped by Minato and Fugaku.

"Hey! Don't be reckless! Do you know what time it is? Go hide back where you belong!"

Nanami's nerves were taut, she hadn't thought this black-haired boy so bold, she had assumed he was obedient, but now it turned out he was nothing but a reckless child.

She pressed a hand on his shoulder, trying to push him back behind them.

Given the current situation, the Iwa ninjas might very well use him as a bargaining chip.

The Iwa ninjas looked at this eager child leaping toward death without even furrowing their brows.

[Killing Intent detected]
[Multiple sources: +3,000 points each]
[Total accumulated: 18,000 points]
[Curse Growth - Killing Intent: 8.4%]