CHAPTER 135
Uchiha Shisui activated his Three-Tomoe Sharingan and immediately moved to Uchiha Feiquan's side. Lowering his voice, he spoke with a grave expression, "Father... that man is a Jinchuriki."
Uchiha Feiquan's own Three-Tomoe Sharingan was already active. He stared fixedly at the imposing figure standing at the head of the enemy formation, whose overwhelming Chakra pressure could be felt even from a distance. He gave a slight nod, his face becoming incomparably grim.
"A Jinchuriki... Has Iwagakure gone mad? They actually dared to deploy one of their strategic weapons to the front lines. Aren't they afraid of losing control?"
Across the battlefield, Roshi stood at the very front of the Iwagakure force with his arms folded across his chest. His gaze slowly swept across every Uchiha shinobi standing in disciplined formation before finally stopping on Uchiha Feiquan.
"As expected of the Uchiha Clan," Roshi said in a deep voice. "Your vigilance truly surpasses that of Konoha's other outposts. For the past month, I've been observing this place repeatedly, yet I never found a single opportunity to launch a successful surprise attack while your guard was down."
The moment those words were spoken, Uchiha Feiquan's pupils shrank.
Although his expression remained calm, a storm raged within his heart.
A whole month...
The enemy had secretly monitored their outpost for an entire month.
And not one member of the Uchiha Clan had discovered them.
To a clan famed for its Sharingan and keen perception, this was undoubtedly a tremendous blow.
However, he quickly forced himself to calm down.
From Roshi's words, he also extracted an important piece of information.
The enemy had intended to launch a surprise attack long ago but had never found the right opportunity.
Although the earlier barrage of Earth Release ninjutsu had come suddenly, because the camp had maintained maximum vigilance, everyone had reacted immediately.
At most, it had caused temporary confusion.
It had failed to inflict any meaningful casualties.
Thinking of this, Uchiha Feiquan unconsciously glanced at Shisui beside him.
A trace of relief quietly surfaced in his heart.
"If Shisui hadn't continued reminding me to remain vigilant..."
"If we had relaxed even a little..."
"There would probably already be casualties."
He secretly let out a sigh.
But that relief lasted only a brief moment.
Because the situation before them remained unimaginably dangerous.
The enemy possessed fifty elite Iwagakure shinobi.
Judging from their Chakra...
Even the weakest among them was at least Chunin level.
More troublesome still...
They had brought the Four-Tails Jinchuriki.
A shinobi capable of wielding Tailed Beast power.
A strategic weapon of this level appearing before a small frontline outpost was nothing short of overwhelming.
Even as an elite Uchiha Jonin, Feiquan had no confidence in defeating such an opponent.
Moreover...
His side only had thirty people.
Among them...
There were even three children.
His gaze unconsciously swept toward Might Guy, Ebisu, and Shiranui Genma.
In his mind...
The three of them were simply inexperienced youngsters.
Against an enemy force of this scale...
How much difference could they possibly make?
His eyes then shifted toward the remaining clan members.
Although every one of them was an elite of the Uchiha Clan...
Facing Iwagakure's current lineup...
Their chances of victory were extremely slim.
Just as Uchiha Feiquan's thoughts raced, weighing whether to fight or retreat, considering how to request reinforcements from nearby outposts...
Roshi suddenly took a slow step forward.
His gaze swept calmly across the entire Uchiha formation before stopping on a certain spot.
Then he spoke.
His voice was loud enough for everyone inside Outpost No. 8 to hear clearly.
"Uchiha Clan."
"Hand over three people."
"And I'll spare your lives."
The entire outpost instantly fell silent.
Uchiha Feiquan was momentarily stunned.
"Hand over people?"
His expression immediately darkened.
"You expect me to hand over members of the Uchiha Clan?"
"Impossible."
The surrounding Uchiha shinobi also exchanged puzzled glances.
Hand over three people?
What exactly did the enemy mean?
Among the crowd...
Might Guy, Ebisu, and Genma stood shoulder to shoulder.
The instant those words reached them...
All three felt their hearts skip a beat.
Ebisu's expression twitched.
He adjusted his sunglasses before muttering in a voice barely audible to the two beside him,
"Hand over... three people?"
"Don't tell me..."
"They mean us?"
Neither Guy nor Genma answered.
Almost the instant Ebisu finished speaking...
As though responding directly to his guess...
Roshi's voice rang out once more.
This time...
He named them without hesitation.
"Hand over Might Guy..."
"Ebisu..."
"And Shiranui Genma."
His gaze pierced straight through the crowd before locking precisely onto the three boys.
"As long as those three are handed over..."
"I'll show mercy today."
"The Uchiha Clan may withdraw safely."
"I'll pretend none of this ever happened."
"What?!"
"Those three?"
"Iwagakure's objective is actually those outsiders?"
The moment those words echoed across the battlefield...
The atmosphere inside Outpost No. 8 immediately became subtle.
The united determination shared by everyone only moments earlier seemed to have been disturbed by a massive stone crashing into still water.
Invisible ripples quietly spread through the crowd.
Many Uchiha shinobi...
Whether openly or secretly...
Turned their eyes toward Might Guy, Ebisu, and Genma.
Their expressions contained surprise.
Suspicion.
Scrutiny.
And even...
A faint trace of hesitation.
Ebisu forced out a smile that looked worse than crying.
"I..."
"I actually guessed right..."
Genma's expression also became unusually grim.
Almost instinctively...
He shifted a small step farther away from the nearby Uchiha shinobi.
Might Guy himself stood frozen.
He was genuinely stunned.
During the past month...
He had anticipated countless possibilities.
He had imagined every dangerous scenario he could think of.
A massive enemy ambush.
An elite assassination squad.
The outpost being completely surrounded.
None of those possibilities had frightened him.
He had even rehearsed with Ebisu and Genma countless times.
If they encountered an enemy they couldn't defeat...
How the three of them should coordinate.
Which escape route offered the highest chance of survival.
How to send an emergency distress signal in the shortest possible time.
Everything had been planned.
Yet...
No matter how much he had prepared...
He had never imagined the scene unfolding before his eyes.
The enemy had mobilized such an enormous force...
Yet their objective wasn't to destroy Outpost No. 8.
Nor was it to annihilate the Uchiha Clan's frontline strength.
Nor to seize strategic territory.
Their target...
Was him.
No...
It was the three of them.
Why?
On what basis?
After the brief shock passed...
Guy's mind immediately began racing.
Why would Iwagakure's Four-Tails Jinchuriki personally demand the three of them by name?
What was so special about them...
That Iwagakure would dispatch one of its greatest strategic weapons...
Along with fifty elite shinobi...
Simply to demand three Genin and Chunin by name?
None of it made sense.
It wasn't only Guy.
Everyone present shared the exact same confusion.
Why?
What made these three youngsters worthy of such an overwhelming force?
Roshi noticed the bewilderment spreading throughout the camp.
His expression remained completely indifferent.
He slowly took another step forward.
Then, in a calm voice...
He offered an explanation that shocked everyone, yet seemed perfectly reasonable.
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