Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

Boom—

Just then, an explosion erupted from the nearby forest.

Nagashima Tomohisa and the elite Iwagakure jonin beside him exchanged a glance, then simultaneously used the Body Flicker Technique to rush toward the source of the blast.

However, by the time they arrived, they found only the corpses of several Iwa ninja—some were low-ranking, others mid-level. One body had been completely mangled beyond recognition.

Clearly, that one had been hit by an explosive tag at close range.

As for the others...

Nagashima Tomohisa inspected them carefully. All of them had been taken out in one clean strike—vital points hit, leaving no time for resistance. The murder weapon? A short sword.

The situation was already obvious: the attacker was none other than Uchiha Haruki.

It was laughable. They had just been searching for him, only to realize Haruki had already slipped under their noses and killed several of their men.

Even more terrifying—this might only be the beginning.

As the two were contemplating this grim reality, a scream rang out from not far away.

Without hesitation, they rushed over and caught a glimpse of a shadow disappearing into the dense woods at the edge of their vision.

They didn't pursue blindly. Instead, they stopped at the scene.

Two Iwa ninja had survived, likely because the area had been heavily manned or Haruki hadn't had time to finish the job.

Nagashima Tomohisa glared at them and barked, "Who was it?!"

Though he already knew the answer, he wanted confirmation.

"Ghost Blade!" both survivors said in trembling unison.

Their voices quivered—they had clearly been scared out of their wits.

Hearing the confirmation, Nagashima's heart sank. This is bad.

They had originally planned to help Roshi. But now, it looked like they'd be lucky just to survive this.

Boom—

Another explosion sounded nearby, accompanied by more screams.

Another squad had been hit.

Nagashima's expression turned icy. He turned to the jonin beside him and said, "Hanaki, notify the other units to suspend operations. From this point on, all teams are to regroup. We can't let the enemy take us down one squad at a time."

"Yes, Captain!" Yamashita Hanaki responded seriously and immediately departed.

Meanwhile—

At the site of the explosion...

Uchiha Haruki pulled his short sword from the chest of an Iwa chunin and glanced back at the now-empty forest. What a pity.

Earlier, while disguised as an Iwa ninja, Haruki had noticed Nagashima Tomohisa and Roshi walking together. From that, he surmised that Nagashima was a commanding figure.

If he could take him out, it would plunge the Iwa forces into chaos.

So, he'd intentionally left an opening, hoping Nagashima would take the bait.

Had Nagashima chased him, Haruki would've gone all out and killed him instantly.

But unfortunately, the man had been too cautious.

Haruki felt a bit disappointed—but only slightly. Honestly, even with coordination, these Iwa shinobi posed no real threat to him.

If they didn't chase, so be it.

At worst, Haruki would just kill a few fewer people and let Yamanaka Kiku's squad shoulder more pressure.

Poor Kiku.

Stowing his sword, Haruki leapt to the treetops and scanned the battlefield. He locked onto another Iwa unit and darted off again.

In this way, even before Kiku's side launched their offensive, Haruki had already begun slaughtering Iwa squads one by one.

During the process, he also replenished his chakra—fully recovering from the earlier drain during his clash with Roshi.

Once Yamanaka Kiku and the others started their attack, Haruki reduced his activity.

Sometimes, he'd even use Mystic Palm Technique to refine his body with Yang Release chakra—basically slacking off a little.

It wasn't that he was dumping pressure on Kiku on purpose. Rather, his main focus had shifted to the battle between Roshi, Minato Namikaze, and Gamabunta.

That fight was the true decider.

As for the Iwa grunts...

It wasn't that Haruki looked down on them—well, maybe a little—it was just the truth: they didn't matter.

So he stopped the excessive killing.

Half an hour passed.

The outer battlefield blazed with chaos, and inside, the core battle was just as fierce.

After over twenty minutes of intense fighting, Roshi began to show signs of defeat.

The tailed beast chakra around him had noticeably weakened, and the aura of the Four-Tails had dimmed slightly.

It was clear: if things continued this way, he would inevitably lose.

Not just Haruki, but Minato and Gamabunta saw this too.

However, fate is always full of surprises.

Just as everyone thought Roshi was done for—and began preparing to block his escape—something unexpected happened.

Whether due to prolonged combat, or because his consciousness had been eroded by the beast's will, Roshi lost control.

The Four-Tails' seal was torn apart.

In other words—he went berserk.

ROAR—

A violent, beastly roar erupted.

Roshi's two tails instantly became four—and not just chakra forms, but full, physical manifestations.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh—

The four crimson tails lashed out, forming an impenetrable net that forced Minato back before he could attempt a sealing jutsu.

"This is bad..." Minato murmured as he returned to Gamabunta's side, eyes fixed on the rapidly transforming Roshi.

Gamabunta, now visibly wounded, looked uncharacteristically serious. "Yeah... it really is."

Swish—

A figure appeared beside Minato.

It was Uchiha Haruki.

He stared at the half-transformed Roshi and said, "Should we retreat? That thing's out of control now. Maybe we should let Iwagakure deal with it themselves."

Minato looked at Haruki in surprise.

He'd thought Haruki, being so young and powerful—plus a member of the Uchiha clan—would be hot-headed. He didn't expect him to be so rational, willing to suggest retreat at the first sign of danger.

But retreat wasn't an option—not for him.

It wasn't that Minato was trying to be a martyr. It was because the Four-Tails was now locked onto him.

If he left, the beast would take out its rage on those nearby.

And nearby...

Though Iwa had more troops, Konoha ninja were also present.

Minato couldn't let them die in vain.

So he had to stay.

But the others could leave.

With that decision made, he said, "I'll stay and hold him off. Take the others and get out of here."

Haruki, unsurprised, simply thought, As expected.

He gave a silent nod, then vanished with a Body Flicker.

Minato watched him go, still marveling at how decisively clean Haruki always was in his actions.

He didn't know whether to laugh or sigh.