Throne Of The Uchiha

Eliminating Traces

A wave of cool chakra surged from Fugaku's three-tomoe Sharingan, soothing and sharpening his vision. Amid the haze of blood and mist, a heart-wrenching cry tore through the battlefield.

"Chiyan!"

The voice, raw with grief, belonged to Kuroiwa. Though not blood-related, he and Chiyan had trained, bled, and survived together since their Academy days in Iwagakure. They'd assumed that outnumbered Konoha shinobi would be easy prey—but in the span of a heartbeat, Chiyan was dead.

Grief twisted into rage, but years of battlefield experience prevented Kuroiwa from losing complete control. He knew: if he fell into blind fury, the rest of his unit would follow him to the grave.

Suddenly, a flare hissed into the air—an Iwa Chūnin had sustained a deep gash across his ribs but managed to fire off the standard Iwagakure distress signal before collapsing.

The flare painted the clouds red. It was a desperate beacon—but one with weight. The scattered Iwa-nin, seeing it, roared and surged with renewed ferocity. They didn't need to win. They just needed to delay.

Fugaku's eyes narrowed. They had to retreat.

"Fall back," he commanded coolly. "Reinforcements are on the way. Hinata Ning, locate Inuzukamaru's last position."

"Understood."

But Kuroiwa stepped forward, madness in his eyes.

"Chiyan's death will not be in vain!" he bellowed. "Hold them off! Reinforcements are coming—and I'll drown them in Konoha blood!"

He activated Doton: Kōka Jutsu (Earth Release: Hardening Technique), encasing his arms and torso in reinforced stone armor. Then he charged at Hinata Ning in a full-body blitz, relying on brute force to overwhelm the Hyūga's defense.

Before the blow landed—

Fugaku vanished.

He reappeared between Kuroiwa and Ning. To Kuroiwa, however, the face he saw wasn't Uchiha Fugaku—it was Chiyan, alive, bloody, and grinning.

The Sharingan Genjutsu twisted Kuroiwa's perception. His chakra flared erratically, disrupting the Doton armor around his body. That was all the time Hinata Ning needed.

"Hakkeshō Kaiten!"

A sudden rotation of chakra deflected debris and staggered Kuroiwa.

Ning followed up immediately with precision.

"Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

His hands struck out like spears, sealing chakra tenketsu point after point. Kuroiwa's system began to seize—but with a surge of wild chakra, he partially broke free, though at the cost of tearing internal muscles and rupturing vessels. Blood spilled from the corners of his mouth.

But Fugaku was already moving.

Twin kunai gleamed under the rain. The Sharingan spun—predicting, dissecting. Each of Kuroiwa's movements slowed in Fugaku's eyes.

Clang!

Kuroiwa blocked one kunai, but not the second. Hinata Ning came from the flank, his chakra-coated palm striking two more vital tenketsu on Kuroiwa's exposed side.

Multiple wounds opened up across Kuroiwa's body, the blood vanishing into the muddy battlefield under the relentless rain.

Realizing he was losing, Kuroiwa tried to trade injuries—willing to take a blow just to land one—but Fugaku never gave him the chance. A final genjutsu made Kuroiwa hesitate for half a breath.

And that was all he needed.

A kunai pierced Kuroiwa's left side, plunging deep into the chest cavity.

Fugaku's mind registered the message:

> "Kill a Jōnin. Medium pupil power acquired."

Kuroiwa gurgled blood, his breath wet and shallow. The kunai had punctured a lung. Without immediate medical attention—a luxury the ninja world rarely offered—Kuroiwa was already dead.

Fugaku ended his suffering swiftly, a clean stab to the throat.

He blinked. The Sharingan's glow intensified slightly. He could feel it—his dōjutsu evolving. Perhaps the accumulated kills had finally crossed a threshold.

He wiped the blood from his blade.

"Prepare to retreat," Fugaku ordered. "Nozawa—scout. Alert us to any Iwa movements."

"Yes, sir," the Aburame replied, his insects already dispersing into the storm.

In a blur, Fugaku and Hinata Ning used Shunshin no Jutsu, appearing amidst several stunned Iwa-nin. The rain glistened on Fugaku's blade as his Sharingan caught their eyes.

Three Iwa Chūnin fell into genjutsu—brief but fatal. The kunai slid through their throats like paper.

> "Kill a Chūnin. Minor eye power acquired."

Then—

"Captain, movement ahead!" Nozawa's calm voice cut through the storm.

Fugaku turned. He couldn't see them yet, but the parasites had already sensed an incoming chakra signature—fast and approaching.

"Retreat," he repeated. "Hinata Ning, find Inuzukamaru's trail."

He turned to the last three injured Iwa-nin, now kneeling under the weight of their wounds.

One tried to speak, voice trembling: "If you stay… our reinforcements will arrive. You'll die."

Fugaku didn't reply.

They weren't trying to warn him. They were scared. Hoping he'd spare them.

Fugaku struck—fast and precise. Blood misted the air. All three fell.

> Three kill messages. More minor pupil power.

But it wasn't just about eliminating threats.

Fugaku didn't want to leave behind bodies that could be used to extract intel. Konoha's Yamanaka clan had memory-reading jutsu. Other villages might have equivalents.

He set explosive tags under several corpses and configured a chain detonation seal. It would both destroy the corpses and delay pursuit.

Then—Shunshin.

He moved through the mist, leaping tree to tree.

Behind him, a series of muffled explosions rang out.

He didn't know if the trap would catch anyone—but it bought time.

Eventually, his team came into view—eleven shinobi, bloodied and exhausted. Some sat cross-legged, some stood silently, weapons still drawn. At their feet, an Iwa Jōnin's body lay still.

Fugaku spoke:

"Destroy the brain. We can't afford intel leaks—not for three months, at least."

One of the medics nodded grimly.

Fugaku's left arm throbbed from a gash he'd taken earlier. Blood ran down to his fingertips. Around him, his shinobi were similarly wounded—but alive.

He looked into the rain.

They needed shelter, rest, and medical attention.

If they didn't move quickly, another Iwa squad might find them—and this time, they might not walk away.

---

Author Notes:

Sharingan genjutsu is used subtly and strategically, as shown in Fugaku's canon personality and Itachi's later usage.

Hyūga clan's Gentle Fist is consistent with the manga, especially chakra point sealing.

The Chūnin