"He got away. Damn it—this is on me. I never thought his Gold Dust clone would be that deceptive."
Orochimaru's voice carried no emotion, as cold and hoarse as ever, tinged with that uniquely magnetic rasp.
Using Takamagahara's spatial power to probe into the ninja world, Uchiha Ran searched for Rasa's presence—but found nothing. Only then did he realize the truth: he wasn't perfect. His lack of sensory techniques had cost him the chance to capture Rasa this time.
At present, there was still much he needed to improve.
On one hand, the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
On the other, a Sage Body—and, most urgently of all, sensory abilities.
As these thoughts settled in his mind, the Mangekyō ability in Ran's left eye—"Hōgyoku"—quietly began to circulate.
"Orochimaru-sensei," Ran said, "let's hurry and support the others."
Once Orochimaru and Ran joined the main battlefield, Sunagakure's forces collapsed like a landslide.
Back at the Konoha encampment, Orochimaru—acting as overall commander—led the assessment of gains and losses from the battle.
Konoha had suffered heavy casualties, yes—but compared to the results achieved, the losses were still within acceptable limits.
After the final tally:
Konoha casualties:
68 genin killed
14 chūnin killed
1 jōnin killed
325 injured, most of whom would recover full combat capability within days under medical support
Sunagakure casualties:
Nearly 400 ninja killed
4 jōnin confirmed dead
Countless injured
In addition, Uchiha Ran had killed the One-Tail Jinchūriki Bunpuku, and together with Tsunade, captured Yura and her elite team.
It could be said that Konoha, with only 2,000 troops against Sunagakure's 5,000, had achieved a decisive victory despite overwhelming numerical disadvantage.
"Colleagues," Orochimaru addressed the gathered jōnin, "although we've achieved notable results, this is far from a complete success. Our situation remains extremely dangerous."
He was satisfied with the operation, but Konoha's manpower shortage meant they were still fighting defensively. This battle was far from over.
"I know the pressure you're all under," he continued calmly. "I've already contacted the village. Reinforcements will arrive soon. Until then, I ask everyone to push just a bit harder and stabilize the front lines."
The room fell silent—faces turning solemn.
"Reinforcements… from the village?"
Frankly, most of the jōnin present didn't believe it. Given Konoha's current state, hoping for reinforcements felt less realistic than hoping Tsunade was Hashirama reincarnated and could suppress all of Sunagakure with Wood Release.
Seeing the lack of confidence, Orochimaru revealed a major piece of news.
Uchiha Ran's Sharingan had evolved into the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan.
Though still far from the mythical level spoken of in legends, it already qualified him as Kage-class combat power.
Orochimaru had his reasons for making this public. Rasa already knew Ran had awakened the Mangekyō—there was no point hiding it from Konoha's jōnin.
"Is it true? The Mangekyō Sharingan?!"
The strongest reactions didn't come from the other jōnin—but from the members of the Uchiha Special Operations Team, especially Uncle Tahi and Liuha.
"That's incredible, Ran!" Tahi exclaimed. "Since Madara left Konoha, the Mangekyō Sharingan has never appeared again—and you awakened it at your age!"
He was ecstatic… then suddenly paused, realization hitting him.
"Ran… what happened? What could've caused you to awaken the Mangekyō?"
His voice trembled slightly. As a senior Uchiha, he knew all too well what it took to awaken those eyes.
Ran looked at the eight members of the Uchiha team, all wearing worried expressions. Warmth stirred in his chest.
"It's fine," he said gently, shaking his head. "Really."
"That's enough."
Tsunade cut in sharply.
"You don't need to say anything more. All you need to know is this: Uchiha Ran has awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, he's Orochimaru's disciple, and he's someone I—Tsunade—personally value highly. That's all. Don't ask unnecessary questions, especially not in a setting like this."
She was honestly speechless.
Did the Uchiha lack common sense—or were they simply too confident?
"As for the rest," Orochimaru interjected smoothly, "we'll move on. Crippling Sunagakure has put us in a very advantageous position. Everyone, carry out the deployment according to my plan."
With that, he forcibly ended the discussion about the Mangekyō and concluded the meeting.
After the meeting, Liuha and Tahi pulled Ran aside to privately ask about the Mangekyō's awakening.
The first Mangekyō in decades—every Uchiha was curious. Not about what ability it held, but how it had been obtained.
And that was the problem.
Everyone present had three-tomoe Sharingan. They all knew the price of awakening the Mangekyō. That was why Tahi's voice shook as he asked—afraid of reopening wounds.
"Alright, that's enough of the Uchiha private meeting," Tsunade said flatly. "And stop asking Ran about the Mangekyō. You all know the side effects."
She stepped forward, grabbed Ran by the wrist in full view of everyone, and pulled him away.
"He's my responsibility now. I'm taking him with me."
She left behind a group of stunned Uchiha standing awkwardly in the wind. A few considered following—then remembered Tsunade's temperament and froze in place.
"…Sigh."
Watching Tsunade leave with Ran, Tahi let out a long breath.
Something felt off.
This didn't look like a teacher worrying about a student.
Only Uchiha Liuha seemed to realize what was really going on.
"…Are they a couple?" she murmured. "But Lady Tsunade is more than twenty years older than Ran…"
A woman three years older brings fortune, she thought absently.
Then what does twenty years older bring?
…An empire?
Liuha was genuinely shocked by the relationship.
"Hey—wait a second!" her inner voice screamed.
"Ran, isn't this getting eaten by an old cow? She's twenty years older than you!"
Her thoughts spiraled.
And for reasons she couldn't explain, a sour ache spread through her chest.
I was here first… so why did Ran and Lady Tsunade progress this fast?
"It has to be Tsunade," Liuha decided bitterly.
"That old woman definitely seduced him."
She silently slapped the label 'corrupting young Uchiha' onto Tsunade in her heart.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Tahi stood quietly, staring at the figures of Tsunade and Ran disappearing into the distance.
"Uncle Tahi?" Liuha asked. "What's wrong?"
He blinked, realization dawning far too late.
"…Do you think there's something going on between those two?"
Liuha didn't answer.
She only gave him a deeply meaningful look.