Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

At the same time—

High above in the sky, Uchiha Haruki noticed the Mist Ninja reinforcements rushing toward the battlefield. He squinted to confirm their identities—it was indeed the same group of Mist Ninja that had been fighting Konoha's forces earlier, including himself.

Now, fewer than seventy of them remained, racing toward the scene.

Beyond them, Haruki's keen eyes caught sight of five Konoha Jonin in pursuit, along with around a hundred surviving Konoha Chuunin and Genin.

Haruki didn't need to think long to realize what had happened. These ninja must have noticed the commotion from this area and rushed over to assist.

However, this wasn't the right time for an all-out clash.

Although his earlier battle with the Mist Ninja appeared intense, Haruki had primarily been on the defensive—dodging their attacks with only limited counterstrikes. As a result, the Mist Ninja had suffered minimal casualties.

If the two Mist squads reunited, their combined strength would rise sharply.

On the Konoha side, however, the reinforcements promised by Sano Nobuhisa had yet to arrive. The remaining Konoha shinobi—fewer than a hundred—stood no chance in a direct confrontation. Unless…

Haruki went all out.

But he had already taken considerable risks earlier to delay Aoi and his men, and to probe their strength and strategies. He had also sustained injuries.

Although those wounds weren't life-threatening, Haruki had no desire to continue fighting while injured.

After careful deliberation, he used the "Telepathic Communication Technique" to order the Konoha shinobi to retreat temporarily.

The Konoha Jonin receiving the command were puzzled but did not question Haruki's decision. They promptly led their forces away.

Haruki had designated a rendezvous point 1.5 kilometers south of the Black Stone outpost. That would become the new battleground for the final confrontation.

At that moment, the Mist Ninja remained unaware of the Konoha forces' quiet withdrawal. Aoi and the others were still busy discussing their next move.

The reason they hadn't noticed the retreat was simple—too little time had passed, and Haruki's presence overhead continued to command most of their attention.

In other words, Haruki was bluffing.

But such a tactic wouldn't fool them for long.

Sure enough, as Aoi activated his Byakugan again to conduct a routine scan of the surroundings, he noticed something odd—

Though their forces had regrouped, the Konoha shinobi they had been discussing were nowhere in sight.

In fact, there were no traces of them within a kilometer.

This immediately raised Aoi's suspicions.

He quickly ordered his troops to stay alert for a potential aerial assault from Haruki and simultaneously dispatched scouts toward the Black Stone outpost.

From above, Haruki saw a few Mist Chuunin breaking away from the main group and instantly knew the bluff was over.

Without wasting another moment, he flapped his wings and dived toward the Mist Ninja one final time.

This time, he didn't get too close. From a distance, he unleashed a powerful ninjutsu:

Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!

A violent storm howled toward the Mist formation, catching them off guard. They scrambled to defend against the incoming gale.

Chaos erupted.

The roaring wind made it nearly impossible to see, let alone defend effectively. Only a few Mist Jonin managed to rally about a dozen capable Chuunin to cast defensive jutsu and stabilize their formation.

Seeing an opportunity, Haruki altered his hand seals, descended slightly, and cast a technique that Mist Ninja were all too familiar with:

Water Style: Hidden Mist Jutsu!

In seconds, a thick, choking mist rose and blanketed the area for hundreds of meters.

Haruki used the chakra-laced fog to sense where the Mist Ninja were clustered.

Then, without hesitation, he launched consecutive Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu attacks.

Fiery orbs rained down like meteors, crashing into the Mist formation, causing injuries and disarray.

Enraged, the Mist Jonin and several Chuunin launched counterattacks.

Wind-style techniques were the best way to clear the fog.

However, their basic wind jutsu couldn't dispel Haruki's chakra-heavy mist.

After testing the situation, they decided to fight fire with fire.

They also cast Hidden Mist Jutsu, making the surrounding fog even denser and, more importantly, diluting Haruki's chakra.

Now, it was harder for him to track their movements through the mist.

Moreover, Mist Ninja, born and trained in such conditions, were naturally more perceptive within thick fog. Even if they hadn't mastered the Silent Killing Technique, they could still detect enemies more easily than most.

While Haruki's Sharingan was powerful, Aoi's Byakugan had better visibility in the chakra-laden mist. Under Aoi's command, the Mist forces began neutralizing Haruki's threat.

Soon, the effectiveness of Haruki's attacks plummeted, while the danger he faced increased dramatically.

Sure enough, a moment's carelessness saw him struck by two kunai laced with poison. If he hadn't reacted quickly, steel wires launched by Mist Chuunin might have bound him as well.

Realizing the tide had turned, Haruki decided to cease his assault and withdrew from the Mist formation, seeking a chance to regroup with the retreating Konoha forces.

Moments later—

Just as he neared his destination, Haruki spotted a lone Mist Chuunin lurking below.

Focusing his gaze, Haruki recognized him as one of the scouts Aoi had sent earlier to observe Konoha's movements.

"Heh. Looks like I've stumbled onto a bonus," Haruki muttered with a grin.

He dived silently.

At first, the Mist Chuunin noticed nothing.

But when Haruki was directly overhead, the man's instincts kicked in. He looked up—

—and saw Haruki.

His expression changed dramatically as he raised a kunai to throw—

But the moment their eyes met, Haruki activated his Genjutsu: Sharingan Hypnosis.

In an instant, the Mist Ninja froze in place. His pupils lost focus, and his consciousness was dragged into an illusion.

Haruki wasn't surprised.

Given his current strength, ambushing a lone Chuunin who didn't even notice him? The outcome was inevitable.

Swoosh—

Haruki landed in front of the immobilized enemy.

Forming hand seals, he cast Chakra Absorption Technique, gripped the ninja's throat, and began draining his chakra.

A few seconds later, Haruki let go. The lifeless body collapsed.

He felt the new chakra surging within him and nodded in satisfaction.

Without delay, he identified his route and used the Body Flicker Technique to catch up with the retreating Konoha forces.