Naruto: Konoha's Traitor

The Situation is Stable

Uchiha Kyosuke and his squad of four were completely outmatched. Surrounded by seven Cloud-nin, they were steadily being pushed back and cornered.

One of the Kumo shinobi, a Special Jōnin, sneered.

"These four are Uchiha. When you kill them, be careful not to damage their eyes."

Just as despair began to sink in—just as they thought Chiba had abandoned them—his voice rang out from behind them, laced with condescension.

"You four are really pathetic. Chūnin level, and Uchiha at that… yet you only managed to take out three Genin and one Chūnin before getting yourselves into this mess. Disgraceful."

Relief flooded Uchiha Kyosuke and the others upon hearing Chiba's voice. But his harsh words stung nonetheless.

They gritted their teeth in silence. After all, they had been ambushed by a superior force: four Chūnin, two Genin, and a Special Jōnin. Surviving this long while only sustaining heavy injuries was, in itself, commendable.

From his vantage point on a tree branch, Chiba had already assessed the enemy's strength.

To him, they were nothing.

With a flicker of chakra, Chiba vanished. His Body Flicker Technique was executed so swiftly it startled even the Kumo-nin. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before two enemy Genin.

Before they could even react, two kunai were embedded in their throats. They collapsed, gurgling.

Enraged, the four remaining Chūnin charged at him.

"Breath of Lightning: Second Form – Inadama!"

Chiba's sword unleashed a lightning-fast five-hit combo, each strike forming a jagged arc of energy.

The Chūnin didn't even see the trajectory. In an instant, they lay on the ground, each with gaping wounds carved deep into their torsos. Blood soaked the soil as they twitched helplessly—on the verge of death.

While the enemy couldn't follow the movements, Uchiha Kyosuke and the others had witnessed everything.

Eyes wide in disbelief, they stared at Chiba.

So this was the true power of Breath of Lightning?

Kyosuke had once attempted to train in that style, but it consumed too much chakra and produced underwhelming results. He'd abandoned it early on.

But watching Chiba now shattered his preconceptions.

It was as though he'd never truly learned the style at all.

Chiba turned his gaze to the lone remaining Kumo-nin—the Special Jōnin.

Snapping out of his stupor, the man turned and fled without hesitation.

Chiba didn't give chase. He looked back at Kyosuke and the others.

"Now do you understand how useless you are? From now on, don't act smart. Follow my orders, and I won't make your lives too miserable. But step out of line, and you won't be able to crawl back."

Then he vanished again.

"Breath of Lightning: Fifth Form – Heat Lightning."

A searing arc of lightning erupted from Chiba's blade, cleaving through the trees and catching the fleeing Kumo-nin square in the back. The sizzling sound of flesh and fabric filled the air as the man dropped dead.

Chiba sheathed his blade and returned to lean against the tree.

"Did you understand what I said?" he asked coldly.

Kyosuke and the others trembled and quickly responded, "Understood!"

"Good. Then clean up. Remove their heads and pack them up—our sensory division will analyze them later."

Chiba watched from a distance, arms crossed, as they carried out his orders. When they were done, they returned to camp to submit the mission report.

---

In the Land of Hot Water, the situation gradually began to stabilize after Konoha sent reinforcements.

Under Orochimaru's command, Konoha ninjas systematically eliminated scattered Cloud strongholds. The cleanup went smoothly, in part because the Cloud-nin had expanded too quickly and overextended themselves.

Despite occasional ambushes, the momentum had shifted. In response, the Kumo forces began consolidating their positions, reducing their number of vulnerable outposts.

Elsewhere, the major villages were watching and waiting.

In the River Country and Grass Country, Sunagakure and Iwagakure clashed with Konoha but made little headway. It was a cold war of attrition. Meanwhile, Kirigakure's shinobi had stationed themselves in the Land of Waves, but avoided open confrontation.

Thus, the most volatile front remained the Land of Hot Water.

The Raikage wasn't willing to exhaust his elite units before the inevitable full-scale war. Konoha's reinforcements were composed of experienced shinobi, and Kumo didn't want to risk too much too soon. So their forces held position, engaging cautiously.

This period of relative calm allowed Konoha to breathe.

They even began rotating Genin to the frontlines for live-combat experience—under supervision, of course. There was no faster path to growth than the battlefield.

Three years passed.

During that time, two names stood out most in the Land of Hot Water theater:

Chiba and Minato Namikaze.

Minato had fully mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, and his mission success rate was flawless. His charisma and humble demeanor earned him the respect of every Konoha shinobi under his command.

Chiba, too, maintained a perfect record.

But unlike Minato, he had no followers—only subordinates.

Only Uchiha Kyosuke, Ryuhei, Keiichi, and Jinno remained at his side. To others, Chiba was cold, untouchable, and devoid of humanity.

Minato earned trust with his warmth.

Chiba inspired obedience through fear and power.

They never clashed again in battle. But Minato silently competed with Chiba through missions. Chiba didn't care—his concern lay elsewhere:

witness points.

By intercepting credit that might've gone to Minato, Chiba accumulated nearly 6,000 witness points. But with the situation now stabilized, new opportunities to gain them were dwindling.

Still, both Chiba and Minato were promoted to Jōnin.

Chiba made regular visits to Konoha, corresponding often with Uzumaki Kushina. Due to her status as a Jinchūriki, the village kept her off the battlefield, much to her frustration.

Meanwhile, a new star had risen in the village:

Kakashi Hatake.

Last year, at just five years old, Kakashi graduated from the Academy and soon entered real combat alongside his father, Sakumo Hatake, in the Grass Country. Now, just a year later, he had already attained Chūnin rank.

But Chiba knew what lay ahead.

If memory served, next year would bring the infamous tragedy—Sakumo Hatake's suicide. And in Chiba's eyes, such an event would no doubt generate a significant amount of witness points.

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