After successfully escorting the convoy to the Land of Fire's capital, the journey remained uneventful. Upon meeting the Uchiha clan's Second Elder, Uchiha Yu discreetly handed over a sealed mission scroll.
With the escort mission concluded, the team was expected to return to Konohagakure. However, Uchiha Yang stepped forward, his expression resolute.
"We're not going back yet," he declared. "The current Shinobi world is turbulent—too quiet before the storm. What we need is real experience, harsh battles to forge ourselves, and to raise the Uchiha name across the elemental nations."
He gestured to a map spread across a scroll. "We'll split into two teams. Fuyue's squad, accompanied by Master Liao, will head toward the outskirts of the Land of Water. Mist-nin patrols are heavy, but that's the point—we need to test our limits. If another Great War erupts, the village elders will likely assign Uchiha to face Kirigakure. Better to prepare now."
He pointed westward. "The rest of us, under my lead and my uncle's guidance, will head to the Wind Country front. It's chaos there—clashes with Amegakure, rogue Mist-nin, and Suna forces make it perfect for sharpening our blades. Besides, we're not exactly known for being... quiet types."
The plan was to regroup in six months, back in Konoha, just in time for the clan's internal restructuring and political strategy phase.
Fugaku nodded. "I agree. Last mission, our team coordination was lacking. This training is necessary. Not just for power—but unity. The next war may test more than just our chakra."
Uchiha Rei immediately offered to send a coded report to the clan.
As Rei departed, Uchiha Yan glanced at Yang. "How do you know war's coming?"
Yang gave a small smile. "There's no absolute sign. But if no war comes to us, we'll provoke a few small conflicts of our own. Wars have started for less—a misplaced border patrol, or two women gathering herbs in the wrong territory."
"You're making that up," Rei muttered.
"Not at all," Yang smirked. "Back in the old days, the Chu and Wu Kingdoms went to war after a mulberry-picking quarrel turned into a brawl, then a village skirmish, and finally national conflict. This world's no different."
"So we just keep fighting?" Rei asked.
"We do our part. Because soon, other nations will want war more than we do."
"Tch. You're always playing mysterious. You still haven't explained your Light Release. I've trained with you for months and can't sense the chakra change at all."
Yang laughed bitterly. "I've told you a hundred times. If your elemental shape control is still this rough, forget combining three elements. Light Release isn't just power—it's precision. It's a whole other path."
After resting, the two teams departed: one eastward, one west.
---
Several weeks later – Wind Country border
"That's a squad of Amegakure shinobi ahead. Up for a warm-up?" Uchiha Kuzan asked, cracking his knuckles.
"I've already killed too many this month. If we keep this up, we'll draw serious attention," Yan replied.
Yang shrugged. "They already know something's wrong. Ninjas have been vanishing for weeks in our region. Might as well use decoys to bait their scouts and eliminate them."
"You're the tactician. I'm just swinging a blade," Kirito muttered.
"Good. Let's push toward Grass Country after this." Yang gave the signal.
The four approached stealthily. Then, a blaze lit the dusk.
"Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu!"
"Fūton: Daitoppa!"
Their combined technique erupted—"Katon: Gōka Ryūdan!"—a fiery dragon engulfing the enemy line.
"Light Release: Light Chain Step!"
Yang vanished in a golden blur, chakra flashing at his feet. He reappeared mid-air, Rasengan charged in his left hand, smashing through a fleeing shinobi.
Elsewhere—
"Genjutsu: Sharingan Binding!" Uchiha Xingyao's eyes spun crimson, freezing enemies in their tracks.
Uchiha Kuzan, blade alight with chakra, unleashed Flame-Wind Slash, his signature kenjutsu that merged fire and wind chakra into an arcing cleave.
The skirmish was over in minutes—one-sided, merciless.
Though the battles felt like drills, reports quickly circulated through the Land of Wind and Amegakure:
Konoha's Golden Shura
Flame Hero of the Uchiha
Windblade Swordsman
Starry-Eyed Illusionist
While across the sea, in the Land of Water, a second wave of names rose:
Fierce-Eye Fugaku
Ice Apparition
Flashblade Shinobi
Flame Edge of Konoha
Two Uchiha strike teams—one west, one east—began carving their legend into the Shinobi world.
Yang didn't linger in Grass Country. Instead, he and his squad advanced into the Land of Rivers, then the outskirts of the Land of the Dragon. No survivors were left—man, woman, or shinobi.
"I don't kill for sport," Yang said to Yan one night, firelight flickering over his solemn face. "But if a single whisper leads Konoha to me before we're ready... our future ends before it starts."
He stared into the flames.
"This isn't about revenge anymore. It's about ascendance. Uchiha will rise. And no one—not even the other Great Clans—will stand in our way."