(This article takes the establishment of Konoha Village as the first year of Hokage.)
(This is fan fiction with many personal interpretations. Again, it features two male leads; if you can't accept that, please run away. In case of any discrepancies with the original work, your interpretation shall prevail. I hope all plot-driven and manga-reading enthusiasts will be lenient.)
The main text begins.
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Hokage, 36th year, Land of Rain.
The leaden-gray clouds, like a thick, waterlogged cotton cloth, hang over this land year-round, and even the wind carries an indelible damp chill.
The fine rain didn't just fall, it pelted down like countless cold needles, piercing the fabric of the Ninja suit, seeping into the skin, and mingling with the smell of mud and blood, drilling into the lungs.
Occasionally, thunder rumbled from the depths of the clouds, making one's chest tighten. Then, a pale bolt of lightning cleaved the sky, illuminating the horrific scene in the forest in an instant: a broken Kunai lay stuck in the mud, a headband stuck to a tree stump with blood, and a corpse curled up in the bushes, its fingers still tightly clutching the Kunai.
The next second, darkness swallowed everything again, leaving only the sound of rain hitting the leaves, like someone crying silently in the dark.
...
"The terrain here is worse than the intelligence reports."
Masato crouched in the mud, the tip of his longsword pressed against the ground, mud splattering onto his wrist guard.
He frowned, his gaze sweeping over the tree trunks charred black by the war. The charred lines were inlaid with traces of Chakra of other attributes, clearly indicating that a fierce battle had taken place not long ago.
Uchiha Tatsuki stood beside him, the Uchiha clan crest on the back of his dark blue Ninja uniform darkened by the rain.
Her left eye narrowed slightly, and the scarlet Sharingan gleamed faintly in the rain. The three tomoe slowly rotated, taking in all the movements within a hundred meters.
"It's not just the terrain." Her voice was soft, yet it clearly drowned out the sound of the rain. "The footprints on the ground are very fresh, and the Rain Ninja's patrol frequency is three times higher than we anticipated, as if they are looking for someone."
Her hand unconsciously stroked her lower abdomen; only she and the two people in front of her knew that a faint life was beating along with her Chakra.
Long suddenly raised his hand and pressed down on their shoulders, placing his fingertip to his lips in a "shush" gesture.
He gripped Kunai's hand, the veins of which bulged slightly, his gaze fixed on the bushes ahead: "There's movement. According to the Chakra fluctuations, it's five Chunin."
The three of them ducked almost simultaneously, hiding behind an ancient tree that required two people to encircle. Fresh knife marks were still visible on the bark, the blades smooth, indicating that it had been cut recently.
Tatsuki's Sharingan stared intently at the bushes, watching five figures dressed in grey rain ninja uniforms slowly emerge, their ninja tool bags bulging at their waists, and long swords dripping water from their hands.
"Quickly finish this, leave no trace," she whispered.
No sooner had he finished speaking than Ryu darted out like a shadow. Kunai aimed straight for the back of the leftmost Rain Ninja, while Masato followed closely behind, his long sword flashing coldly as he precisely deflected the weapon of the second Rain Ninja.
Tatsuki formed hand seals so fast they were just afterimages. " Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Technique!" Three fireballs exploded in the rain. Although they were shrunken and smaller, they blocked the view of the remaining three Rain Ninja.
Within ten seconds, five Rain Ninjas lay dead in the mud. Ryu crouched down, examining one of the Ninja tool bags, his face darkening: "It's the front-line base's markings. We need to speed things up."
Masato looked at Tatsuki, his eyes filled with worry: "We can't wait any longer. We must get through this forest as soon as possible. Your body..."
"I'm fine."
Tatsuki interrupted him, raising her hand to wipe the rain from her face. "Hang in there a little longer. Once we finish this last task, we'll go home!"
The three continued on their way, taking even lighter steps.
The rain seemed to be getting heavier, and the visibility was blurred by the moisture, even the trees in the distance turned into gray shadows.
Just then, a violent explosion suddenly came from ahead, and flames broke through the rain curtain, illuminating half of the sky. This was followed by the crisp sound of ninja tools colliding and Ninja's screams.
"They're one of us!" Long's eyes lit up.
When they rushed over, the battle was at its most intense. A group of Konoha Ninja were surrounded by Amegakure ninja, with several Medical Ninja protected behind them. Tatsuki recognized the leader, Jonin, as Ling, who had been sent to the front-line base not long ago.
Ling's left arm was injured, and blood was flowing down the bandage, but she still held onto Kunai tightly to resist.
"Ling! What are you doing here?"
Masato slashed a Rain Ninja across the back with his sword, kicked the man aside, and created an opening for the medical Ninjas.
When Ling saw them, a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes, but then her expression darkened again.
"We received a special mission to send some classified documents back to Konoha, but the news leaked on the way, and we were ambushed. Now we are the only ones left."
As he spoke, he pointed to several Ninjas behind him who were carrying scrolls, "The documents are on them; they must not fall into the hands of the Rain Ninjas."
Tatsuki's Sharingan quickly swept around, finding that the number of Rain Ninjas was at least twice theirs, and they were constantly being reinforced.
"Tighten the formation, prepare to break through!" she shouted, her hands rapidly forming hand seals, her Chakra surging in her dantian, " Fire Release - Phoenix Fire Technique!"
" Earth Release: Mountain and Soil Technique!"
Ryu immediately cooperated, and the soil on both sides quickly rose up, forming two earthen walls that blocked the Rain Ninja's retreat and forced them to face Tatsuki's flames directly.
Masato seized the opportunity to rush forward, his long sword flashing so fast it was impenetrable, each strike capable of taking the life of a Rain Ninja.
"Hurry up!" Tatsuki pushed Ling and the medical Ninjas forward, while he stayed behind to cover their retreat.
But after rushing out for only a few dozen meters, even more Rain Ninjas suddenly emerged from the woods ahead. Their black figures were densely packed, like insects crawling out of the mud, clearly indicating that a trap had been set up long ago.
Tatsuki's face turned pale instantly. She had already exhausted most of her Chakra by continuously releasing Ninjutsu, not to mention the child in her womb that she needed to take care of.
Masato and Takashi exchanged a glance, both seeing a resolute determination in each other's eyes.
"Take them with you."
Masato suddenly said, gripping his long sword tightly, he turned to face the pursuing Rain Ninja, "Ryu and I will hold them off."
"No!" Tatsuki grabbed his wrist. "The two of you can't possibly stop so many people!"
"We can't stop you, but we can buy you time."
Takashi smiled, his face smeared with mud and blood, but his smile was calm. " Tatsuki, even if you don't think about yourself, you have to think about the child in your womb. You still have the mission of escorting classified documents. You have to go."
Masato looked at her, his eyes so tender they could melt your heart: "Just hang in there a little longer. If we can get back this time, we'll get married right away, okay?"
As he spoke, he gently pushed her hand away, "Go quickly."
Tatsuki bit her lip, tears mingling with the rain as they streamed down her face. She knew they were right, but how could she abandon them?
Just then, a Kunai from the Rain Ninja flew towards her. Masato reacted quickly, pushing her away while using his arm to block it. The Kunai tore through his skin, and blood instantly seeped out.
Several Jonin quickly followed, trying to break through the two's defenses, but the two fought relentlessly, exchanging injuries for injuries, which made them all hesitant to be the first to step forward.
"Go!" Masato roared, his voice filled with unwavering determination.
Tatsuki closed her eyes, turned around, and rushed forward with Ling and the medical Ninjas.
She could hear Masato and Takashi's screams behind her, and the sound of Ninjutsu colliding and exploding, but she dared not turn around. She knew that if she turned around, she would no longer have the courage to escape, and their sacrifice would be in vain.
They fled to the ruins of a village, where they temporarily stopped.
The houses here had long been destroyed by the war, leaving only ruins. Rainwater leaked from the holes in the roofs, dripping into the puddles on the ground and creating ripples. The medical Ninjas immediately treated the wounded, while Ling held a map, his face grave.
"The road home is blocked. The Rain Ninja has set up checkpoints at every intersection."
Ling said, "Our Chakra is almost wiped out, and we have many wounded. If we fight to the death, we will be completely wiped out."
Tatsuki looked around at the people, some with broken arms, some coughing up blood, and others hugging their shoulders, their eyes filled with fear.
She took a deep breath, walked to the center of the ruins, and said in a low but firm voice, "Someone has to step forward as bait to distract Yu Ren and let the others evacuate with the documents."
"Fellow countrymen, we all know that this mission is extremely dangerous, but we must do it."
For Konoha, for our comrades, for those we must protect.
She paused, her gaze sweeping over everyone: "I, Uchiha... " Tatsuki is willing to lead a group as bait to draw the defense forces' attention. Who wants to join me?
"I'll do it!" A young Ninja immediately stood up. His right leg was injured, but he still stood straight, leaning on a wooden stick. "I have no family, it doesn't matter if I die."
"Me too!" said another medical Ninja, handing his medical kit to his companion. "My Ninjutsu is related to stealth; it might be of some help."
Soon, five people volunteered to join the decoy team.
Tatsuki looked at them, her heart filled with emotion. She walked up to Ryo and handed her a cloth bag embroidered with the Uchiha family crest: "This contains a letter I wrote to my family. If I am unable to return, please give it to the Uchiha Clan."
She paused, then added, "Also, take good care of the injured Ninjas."
Ling took the bag and nodded emphatically: "I will."
Similar scenes unfolded throughout the camp, with the decoy teams checking their ninja tools and medicines and bidding a final farewell to their comrades.
Tatsuki touched her lower abdomen and whispered, "I'm sorry, baby, Mommy may not be able to watch you grow up."
"Let's go!" she commanded, and the five figures quickly disappeared into the rain.
They deliberately chose an eye-catching route, which quickly attracted the attention of the Rain Ninja.
"Two hundred meters southeast, Rain Ninja Camp!" Tatsuki shouted, forming hand seals, " Earth Release: Ground Crack!" Suddenly, a crack appeared in the ground, and Ninja, the patrolling officer at the camp, immediately sounded the alarm.
" Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!" A Ninja unleashed Ninjutsu, and a gale-force wind mixed with rain, turning the Rain Ninja camp into chaos. Tatsuki seized the opportunity to follow up with " Lightning Release: Ground Walk!", and electricity spread along the rain, temporarily subduing several Rain Ninjas, preventing them from advancing easily.
Rain Ninja quickly realized what was happening and began a fierce counterattack.
The members of the decoy team were all prepared to die, and their fighting style was fearless. In addition, the sounds coming from the forest made the other side unsure of how many people were on their side, and for a time they were actually tied up.
"It's almost time, let's split up!"
Tatsuki called out, knowing that Ling and the others should already be far away.
The other four immediately fled in different directions, while Tatsuki ran in the opposite direction, deliberately drawing the most firepower, with five Jonin closely following behind her.
Her chakra was almost empty, her steps were getting slower and slower, and her abdomen was starting to ache slightly.
"We can't get caught..."
She gritted her teeth and ran with all her might, using the cover of the trees to outmaneuver Yu Ren.
The Rain Ninjas behind him were getting closer and closer. Tatsuki could hear their footsteps and feel their Chakra fluctuations.
She knew the mission wasn't over yet and she couldn't be easily captured, otherwise all her previous efforts would be in vain. She touched her stomach and said, "I'm sorry." Tears streamed down her cheeks.
She suddenly stopped and turned around. The scarlet Sharingan lit up in the rain. The three magatama began to slowly rotate and merge, forming a strange pattern— the Mangekyo Sharingan!
"It's a madman from Uchiha! Get out of the way!" a Rain Ninja, Jonin, exclaimed.
But it was too late. Blood tears streamed down Tatsuki's face as Chakra surged forth, and black flames suddenly ignited on the five Rain Ninja. The flames of Amaterasu would not be easily extinguished.
The screams of the Rain Ninja rose and fell, as the black flames burned them to ashes.
But Tatsuki couldn't hold on any longer. Her Chakra was instantly drained, and everything went black before her eyes. She almost collapsed.
"There's one last thing..."
She gritted her teeth, used her last bit of strength, and activated Mangekyo's other ability. A flash of white light, and her figure disappeared from the spot.
When Tatsuki awoke again, she found herself lying in a damp cave. The rain continued to fall outside, but the cave was quiet inside. She touched her lower abdomen; it was still flat, but she could feel a faint heartbeat.
"Child…" She smiled, but tears streamed down her face again.
But the next second, her expression suddenly changed. Footsteps and intermittent voices came from outside the cave again, getting closer and closer.
Her Chakra was exhausted, and her Mangekyo was also unusable. There was nowhere to hide in the cave, only cold stone walls and puddles on the ground.
The rain is still falling. This war waged in the rain is far from over.