Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

One day later—

Morning.

On the low mountain.

As usual, Uchiha Haruki was immersed in training.

Suddenly, a figure raced toward him from the distance.

Although Haruki was focused on his training, his awareness of his surroundings never slackened.

The moment the figure entered his range, he stopped his training and deactivated his Shadow Clone Technique.

Immediately, the area returned to silence with only his real body remaining.

A moment later, the figure arrived—Haruki recognized him. He was a messenger Chūnin under the command of Omura Yuito.

Forcing himself to ignore the surrounding terrain that looked more like a battlefield than a training ground, Tajima Yosuke stepped up respectfully and said:

"Jōnin Haruki, Captain Omura has requested your immediate return."

"He wants me to return?"

Haruki frowned slightly. "Do you know what it's about?"

Tajima Yosuke shook his head, clearly unaware of the specifics.

Seeing this, Haruki thought to himself:

"Could it be the Iwa-nin are making a move?"

"But based on yesterday's intel, Iwa-nin haven't completed their deployments yet. They shouldn't be attacking this quickly..."

"So what's going on?"

Haruki's mind was filled with questions.

Just then, Tajima Yosuke spoke again.

"Jōnin Haruki?"

"Ah…"

Haruki snapped out of his thoughts, stopped speculating, and quickly packed up his gear before accompanying Tajima Yosuke back to Shuanghe Town.

He figured there was no point in guessing blindly. He might as well go and ask Captain Omura directly—save himself the mental strain.

Half an hour later

Inside Shuanghe Town

Haruki walked out of the command tent, his face full of doubt.

From Omura Yuito, he learned that the urgent summons wasn't because of any enemy movement.

Instead, it was due to a direct transfer order from the main base, instructing him to return immediately.

As for what he was to do after returning—the order didn't specify. It simply said to return as soon as possible.

This only deepened Haruki's confusion.

He couldn't help but feel an ominous sense creeping in, like he was being plotted against from the shadows.

Though it was just a gut feeling, something about it felt very real.

Still, no matter how he tried, he couldn't connect the dots between this strange order and anything that would explain it.

"Am I just being paranoid?"

Haruki chuckled to himself sarcastically.

Regardless, he knew one thing—he needed to stay alert from now on.

While there weren't many people in the shinobi world who could defeat him outright, that didn't mean he could let down his guard.

He had no interest in becoming another casualty of an ambush or conspiracy.

He also wanted to know—who was pulling the strings behind the scenes?

"...Hopefully it's not you."

He muttered quietly, as a shadowy, sinister face flashed through his mind.

Back at his quarters, Haruki swiftly packed up and departed Shuanghe Town, heading toward the main base.

Meanwhile — One Day Earlier

Main Base – Command Tent

Orochimaru had just finished his daily tasks.

Rubbing his temples from fatigue, he took a sip of water and returned to his tent.

But the moment he lifted the flap—his steps stopped cold.

His eyes gleamed dangerously for an instant.

Then, as if realizing something, he quickly resumed his calm demeanor.

Orochimaru stepped into the tent, lowered the flap behind him, and silently sat down at the table.

The tent was pitch black and completely silent.

"Hehehe~"

After a long pause, Orochimaru let out a bone-chilling chuckle and said:

"Since my old friend is already here, why not come out and say hello?"

Rustle—rustle—

As his voice faded, a soft crawling noise echoed through the darkness.

Not just "like" insects crawling—it was insects.

In one corner of the tent, tiny bugs smaller than sesame seeds began to crawl out from the shadows.

They gathered in a cluster and, with a surge of chakra, transformed into a black-cloaked figure.

Orochimaru smiled coldly and said the name directly:

"Ryoma."

Indeed, the man wasn't just anyone—he was Aburame Ryoma, one of Danzō's most trusted lieutenants.

And the bugs from before weren't ordinary insects—they were the Destruction Beetles of the Aburame clan.

Lifting his head slightly from beneath the cloak, Ryoma revealed a stern and lifeless expression.

He wasted no time on small talk.

"Orochimaru, the situation on the Iwa-nin front has stabilized. When are you planning to carry out Lord Danzō's order?"

"Order?"

Orochimaru's eyes flickered with a strange light.

Nearly three months ago, Danzō had secretly issued an order—demanding two Uchiha brats be transferred to the extremely dangerous Kirigakure front.

However, at the time, the Iwa-nin situation was still unstable, and both of those Uchiha had demonstrated remarkable combat performance. They were essential on their respective fronts.

For the sake of the larger war effort, Orochimaru had refused.

Danzō, seemingly aware of the situation, did not press him.

And so, the matter had been left alone—for nearly three months.

Orochimaru had practically forgotten about it.

Now, unexpectedly, Danzō had brought it up again.

This piqued Orochimaru's interest—what was so special about these two that made Danzō so insistent?

Still, Orochimaru at this point had not yet been one-shot by Uchiha Itachi, and his obsession with the Sharingan hadn't reached its peak.

So he was merely curious—nothing more.

He wasn't about to clash with Danzō over this.

After thinking for a moment, he replied:

"I'll arrange for them to head to the Kirigakure front as soon as possible. As for what happens after—"

Before he could finish, Ryoma cut him off coldly:

"You don't need to worry about what happens after."

"Hehehe~ All the better."

Orochimaru licked his lips and chuckled.

With the matter settled, Ryoma didn't linger. His body dispersed back into a swarm of insects and vanished into the darkness.

Orochimaru sat there for a moment longer, then stood and left the tent.

He didn't go back to his office—instead, he went straight to the archive room.

The Chūnin on guard respectfully greeted him, and Orochimaru acknowledged it with a nod before stepping inside.

Moments later, mission dossiers on Uchiha Haruki and Uchiha Shisui were laid out on the table.

Orochimaru read through them carefully, eyes flashing with interest from time to time.

Eventually, he reached the final document, which detailed Haruki's defense of the Oguni Village outpost, where he had single-handedly annihilated multiple Iwa-nin jōnin and secured the stronghold.

"Shunshin no Shisui… Demon Blade Haruki…"

Orochimaru muttered the two names.

After a long silence, he chuckled darkly again and murmured:

"Danzō… let's see if you can truly control these two prodigies."

A trace of excitement crept into his voice.