Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

Boom—!

A massive explosion shattered the silence.

Inside Kogamura, Uchiha Haruki's eyes snapped open. Grabbing the short sword beside his pillow, he leapt to his feet and instantly stepped outside.

In a single bound, he landed on the rooftop.

This was the tallest structure in Kogamura—during the day, standing here gave a clear view of the area outside the village.

But right now, it was the dead of night.

Still, that posed no problem for Haruki.

With a single thought, his pupils suddenly turned blood-red. Three tomoe spun within—his Sharingan had been activated.

Under the moonlight, Haruki looked toward the direction of the explosion and could faintly make out several Iwa-nin rapidly approaching.

He swept his gaze across other directions—more Iwa-nin were closing in.

"They've finally arrived."

Haruki whispered to himself, then glanced down at the Konoha ninja within the village, all awakened by the blast.

Thanks to earlier preparations, no one panicked. As if they had rehearsed it, the ninja quickly grouped into teams and rushed to their assigned positions.

At this moment, Haruki's support unit still had not revealed themselves.

Now, it was just a matter of waiting for the Iwa-nin to initiate their attack.

Seconds later, another explosion echoed—like a signal flare igniting the battlefield.

Immediately, the air filled with overlapping sounds—detonating tags exploding, ninja tools clashing, and screams of injured shinobi. The cacophony was chilling.

But neither Konoha nor Iwa shinobi flinched. They were already used to the bloodshed. No one backed down.

Though the Kogamura Outpost had fewer than 200 defenders, they faced off against twice their number without being overwhelmed.

Watching this unfold, the Iwa Jonin in charge furrowed his brows in surprise, though he wasn't too concerned. A stalemate like this couldn't last long.

After all, numbers always told in war. The side with fewer people would eventually slip. One small mistake could trigger a chain reaction, and Konoha's defensive line might collapse instantly.

And when that happened, they could sweep through unopposed.

"I just hope not too many manage to escape in the end."

That thought crossed the mind of Kurokawa Ichiro, the Iwa Jonin commander, as he prepared to issue post-battle arrangements.

But just then, an Iwa Special Jonin came rushing over in a panic and reported:

"Captain, something's not right."

Hearing this, a sense of dread hit Kurokawa Ichiro. He asked quickly, "What is it?"

With a grim face, the Special Jonin replied, "I just sensed another group of enemies hidden inside Kogamura."

"What?"

Kurokawa's heart skipped a beat. "How many?"

"About a hundred."

The Special Jonin answered.

"That's not too bad."

Kurokawa calculated quickly. Even with the additional hundred, Konoha's forces were still fewer than his own. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.

As for individual strength?

Yes, Iwagakure was generally considered the weakest among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, but after more than two years of war, natural selection had weeded out the weak. Their forces weren't so far behind anymore.

Besides, he had brought along elite troops.

So, Kurokawa wasn't overly concerned.

Still, to be cautious, he was just about to order his subordinates to ease their offensive a little—observe the situation first.

But before his command could be given, Haruki acted—he ordered his support team to join the battle.

The reason Haruki hadn't let them enter the fight immediately was simple: he was worried the Iwa-nin might retreat if they realized things weren't going their way.

It's not the thief you catch that's dangerous—but the one who keeps thinking about your treasure.

Since Iwa dared to come, Haruki intended to keep them here.

If they escaped, they'd continue lurking as a threat—and that made Haruki uneasy.

Whether they sent more forces later didn't matter. As for the current batch of Iwa-nin? None of them would be spared.

Now was the perfect moment—the Iwa-nin had already entangled themselves with the Konoha defenders. Retreating would not be easy.

So Haruki gave the decisive order—the support troops attacked.

As he had anticipated, the sudden emergence of reinforcements caught the Iwa-nin completely off guard. The pressure on the original Konoha forces was instantly relieved.

In fact, Konoha even began pressing the Iwa-nin back.

But such momentum wouldn't last—unless...

Haruki jumped down from the rooftop and, with several rapid flickers, appeared on the battlefield.

He locked onto an Iwa Jonin and, in an instant, materialized behind him. His blade stabbed out, slicing deep into the man's left arm—bone visible beneath the wound.

"Ugh—!"

A muffled groan escaped the wounded Iwa Jonin.

With a desperate swing, he knocked away an attacking Konoha Jonin and leapt back several paces to create distance.

Only then did he finally have time to look at the person who had ambushed him.

If not for his sharp instincts allowing him to twist away at the last moment, he might already be dead. That sword strike had clearly aimed to kill.

However, the moment he laid eyes on his attacker, his pupils contracted. He sensed danger and immediately tried to shut his eyes.

Too late.

In the instant their gazes met, Haruki raised his hand and cast Genjutsu: Sharingan, instantly dragging the Iwa Jonin's consciousness into an illusionary realm.

Whirrr—Whirrr—Whirrr!

Three shuriken spun through the air, fired by Haruki.

They crossed nearly ten meters in a flash—striking precisely at the enemy's throat, heart, and lower abdomen—three vital points.

The injuries were devastating. Though the Iwa Jonin managed to break free from the illusion, he could only let out incoherent gurgles.

Haruki's movements had seemed simple—but every step was calculated. The angle of his strike, his positioning—everything was part of a lethal formula.

Even if the first attack failed to kill, he'd planned to draw the enemy into a genjutsu while they searched for him—then deliver a fatal blow.

And everything went exactly according to plan.

The Jonin had evaded the initial ambush but, not recognizing Haruki's identity, carelessly scanned the field—and was instantly caught.

One use of Genjutsu: Sharingan was all it took.

Of course, the success also owed much to the fact that this Iwa Jonin wasn't especially well-rounded, and to the fact that Haruki had perfected his Genjutsu: Sharingan to mastery.

Most Uchiha Jonin couldn't use such a technique so swiftly. If they'd hesitated even slightly, the enemy's earlier reactions suggested he might have dodged the fatal strike.

It was just bad luck—for him to encounter Uchiha Haruki.

All of this took only seconds.

Witnessing Haruki's instant kill, the surrounding Konoha ninja were greatly inspired. Their attacks became fiercer.

In contrast, Iwa's morale plummeted—they couldn't even bring out seventy percent of their true strength.

This was Haruki's strategy.

They were outnumbered. Even if Konoha had the advantage for now, it wouldn't last—unless he could take out their high-ranking shinobi.

Then use that to boost morale and intimidate the enemy.

With one side's confidence rising and the other's collapsing, Konoha could maintain the upper hand.