Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

After a brief conversation with Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Haruki returned to the group.

Another ten minutes passed before the team had fully assembled.

Haruki scanned the crowd—seventy people in total. A standard-sized ninja battalion, with one overall commander and one deputy.

The force was divided into four squads, each containing seventeen members, led by a squad captain. Each squad further broke down into four combat teams.

Haruki and Uchiha Shisui served as the captains of the first and second squads, respectively, each commanding four teams—sixteen men in total.

Of course, not all the squad captains were full-fledged jōnin. The captains of the third and fourth squads were only tokubetsu jōnin (special jōnin).

Likewise, within each squad, two of the four team leaders were also just tokubetsu jōnin.

So, including the commander and vice-commander (both jōnin level), the seventy-person unit had four jōnin and ten tokubetsu jōnin, with the remaining fifty-six being chūnin.

From this alone, it was clear that Konoha's upper-tier combat power was beginning to thin out.

Under normal circumstances, an elite team like this would have all squad captains at jōnin level, and team leaders at least tokubetsu jōnin.

But in reality, only half met that standard.

Even so, by ordinary standards, this composition was still highly impressive.

After all, in a seventy-man unit, having fourteen jōnin and tokubetsu jōnin combined—and no genin—was unheard of in typical deployments.

But it was precisely this kind of elite configuration that gave this team its "reinforcement" designation. Sending in a bunch of genin would be like sending fodder to the front lines.

While Haruki was lost in thought, the commander finished explaining the mission and assigned each squad their marching position and responsibilities.

Haruki's first squad, being the strongest, would take the lead. Uchiha Shisui's second squad would bring up the rear. The third and fourth squads, with slightly weaker capabilities, would stay in the center.

Haruki had no objections to this setup.

Rather than passively accepting orders, he preferred to take the initiative—leading the front suited him just fine.

With everything prepared, the unit set off.

At Haruki's command, his four teams adopted a 1-2-1 diamond formation and began scouting ahead.

Their immediate objective was to return to the Land of Fire. From there, they would travel along its northern border and ultimately cross half the country to reach the southeastern coastline.

Of the journey, the segment within the Land of Fire would be relatively safe. The sections before and after that were more dangerous.

If Danzō were planning something, the best chances to act would be outside the Land of Fire—or just before they reached the battlefield.

Of course, there was also the possibility that Danzō would wait until they were fully engaged on the Kirigakure front before making a move.

In short, there were many possibilities, and Haruki had to stay vigilant.

Two days passed in a flash.

Haruki and his team traveled light, marching more than ten hours each day. Today, they finally left the Land of Rain and entered the Land of Fire.

Haruki had been wary of an ambush along the way—but to his surprise, everything had gone smoothly. Not a single issue cropped up.

Yet that very calmness made Haruki uneasy, like the still air before a storm.

Then again, remembering his own strength, he relaxed slightly.

As the saying goes, brute force can overcome finesse.

With his current power, as long as he didn't make a careless mistake, he didn't need to fear Danzō's underhanded schemes.

"All right, we'll stop here for today."

Seeing that it was almost time, Haruki gave the order for the squad to halt.

Soon, the remaining three squads arrived as well.

No one built a fire or cooked. Instead, they each pulled out military ration pills, swallowed them to replenish chakra and stamina, and began to rest.

Haruki, however, did not rest immediately. With a few quick leaps, he settled on a branch of a tall tree and sat cross-legged.

He checked his chakra reserves—still plentiful—then began practicing Soul Reflection Technique (Eikō no Jutsu).

While Mystic Palm Technique (Shōsen Jutsu) could be used even while on the move, Soul Reflection required a full stop.

Why?

Because the process of activating the technique stimulated his Sharingan, forcing him to adapt to the pressure and temporarily blurring his vision.

So, it could only be practiced while stationary.

Time ticked by.

Eventually, night fell.

Haruki finally ended his training and rested.

This had been his routine for the past two days—training his body with Mystic Palm during the day while on the march, and pushing his Sharingan's evolution with Soul Reflection at night.

Not a single moment was wasted.

The only downside was that he couldn't use Shadow Clone Technique to train other skills during the mission, which meant he had nearly 40,000 points of chakra going unused each day.

The thought pained Haruki deeply.

Fortunately, this wouldn't last long. Once they reached the Kirigakure battlefield, he could resume his usual training regimen.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning.

At dawn, the team washed up casually, downed a few more ration pills, and resumed the journey.

According to the plan, they needed four more days to cross half of the Land of Fire and arrive at their destination on the fifth day.

That destination: the southeastern coastline.

Originally, Haruki thought the journey through the Land of Fire would be relatively secure.

But less than half a day in, he sensed something strange.

"Stop!"

Haruki suddenly raised his right arm, signaling everyone to halt.

He immediately activated his Sharingan and scanned the area.

But saw nothing.

The dozen or so Konoha ninja behind him also grew alert and began checking the surroundings—still, they found nothing.

A moment later, a tokubetsu jōnin from the Hyūga clan stepped forward and asked, "Captain, is something wrong?"

"Something is watching us," Haruki replied crisply.

Indeed, just a moment ago, he had the distinct feeling of being observed. Yet even with the Sharingan active, he couldn't detect anything.

Turning to the Hyūga tokubetsu jōnin, Haruki said, "Feika, use your Byakugan to scan the surroundings. Look for enemies or anything out of the ordinary."

Without a word, Hyūga Feika focused her chakra and activated the Byakugan, carefully scanning the area.

After a while, she withdrew her gaze and shook her head at Haruki. "Captain, I've scanned everything. No one's out there."

"What about other things?" Haruki pressed.

"Just some regular flora and fauna. Nothing unusual."

Feika shook her head again.

Even so, Haruki didn't believe it had been his imagination. Whatever it was, the enemy was simply hiding too well.