Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"

An Iwagakure jonin stepped forward, hands flying through hand seals as he performed the B-rank Earth Style jutsu.

In an instant, a thick earthen wall rose from the ground, blocking the path of a squad of Konoha shinobi.

But the very next second, it was met with a barrage—dozens of explosive tags and a powerful Water Style jutsu that surged like a high-pressure water cannon.

The wall held for only a few brief seconds before collapsing completely. Even the Iwa jonin behind it suffered serious injuries from the force of the blast.

But that didn't matter. His obstruction had bought enough time for the Iwa-nin behind him to close the distance and latch onto the Konoha team.

If they wanted to continue escaping, the Konoha ninja would now have to abandon some of their own.

And this was just one snapshot of the chaos sweeping the battlefield—every squad attempting to break through faced similar challenges.

Some had strong jonin who could protect more people. Others… were not so fortunate.

Take Uchiha Haruki's team, for example. Thanks to his exceptional strength among the jonin, his squad had one of the highest survival rates.

But that came with its own price—they were far more likely to draw Iwa's attention.

Especially after Haruki revealed his blood-red, three-tomoe Sharingan—an unmistakable signature of the Uchiha clan.

Sure enough, two Iwa jonin, each leading over twenty mid- and low-ranking Iwa-nin, flanked them from both front and rear.

"Captain?" someone in Haruki's squad called out nervously, realizing the danger.

But Haruki simply raised his hand—a silent signal to stay calm—and didn't slow down in the slightest, continuing his charge forward.

Seeing this, the rest of his squad clenched their jaws and followed, each mentally preparing for a desperate last stand.

But what happened next was completely unexpected.

There was no fierce struggle—only one-sided slaughter.

Haruki's eyes locked onto the Iwa jonin ahead. As soon as they were within range, his Sharingan spun and released a hypnosis genjutsu.

The opposing jonin clearly had experience fighting Uchiha. He sensed something was wrong and immediately averted his gaze to avoid eye contact.

Haruki didn't mind. His hand flipped, and from his tool pouch, he pulled out a handful of kunai, each tied with an explosive tag.

Clearly, he'd prepared them in advance.

Without hesitation, he flung the kunai all at once—not toward the jonin, but scattered across the enemy ranks like a fan of deadly flower petals.

Each kunai was aimed at the lower-tier Iwa-nin in the group.

"Watch out!" the Iwa jonin shouted upon seeing this.

But it was too late.

Aside from two kunai that were intercepted mid-air by alert Iwa chunin, the rest landed cleanly in the formation.

The enemy's swift reflexes prevented mass casualties—they jumped aside instinctively when they saw the projectiles coming.

Still, it was enough to throw their formation into chaos.

In the midst of the smoke and explosions, Haruki activated Body Flicker Technique, appearing instantly in the middle of the enemy ranks.

Then came his Level 5 swordsmanship, fused with the pinpoint insight of his Sharingan—his blade danced like a phantom, flitting between enemies faster than the eye could follow.

Wherever he moved, his short sword became a reaper's scythe, harvesting life after life.

The Iwa-nin couldn't keep up. One by one, they were pierced by blades from their blind spots—some were gravely wounded, others died outright.

In just a few seconds, nearly ten enemies had fallen, half of them killed in a single strike.

The jonin tried to stop him, of course—but Haruki's positioning and swift movements used the panicked Iwa-nin as living shields, always staying out of reach.

Finally, the Iwa jonin snapped.

"Everyone, get out of the way!!" he roared.

Swish, swish, swish—

The surrounding Iwa chunin and genin didn't argue. Instead, they scattered like fleeing animals, relieved to be free of the slaughter.

Clearly, none of them wanted to face Haruki head-on.

But battles aren't things you can escape just by running.

Haruki didn't hesitate—he chased after them immediately, blade flashing as he continued cutting down stragglers.

Of course, now that they were scattered, it wasn't as easy as before. Still, he managed to kill one more and injure two others before the jonin finally caught up.

Just as their weapons clashed—kunai against short sword—Haruki suddenly revealed a hidden trump card.

As they crossed blades and struggled in close combat, Haruki's left arm jerked up, hand forming a seal near his chest.

He began weaving signs—one-handed—at a measured but confident pace.

"Wha—?" the Iwa jonin exclaimed in shock.

A one-handed sign? In the middle of a clash?

He leapt back instinctively, trying to evade what he thought was a direct attack.

But Haruki wasn't aiming at him—he directed the resulting Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu toward the scattered enemy nin.

Dozens of small fireballs shot out, slamming into the surrounding Iwa-nin like cannonballs—blasting open a path through the battlefield.

"Go!!" Haruki roared.

That finally snapped the dazed Konoha shinobi out of their stupor. He led the charge forward, bursting through the broken Iwa line and pushing deeper into the battlefield.

But the Iwa-nin didn't give up.

The jonin who had been caught off guard earlier quickly regrouped his surviving forces and coordinated with reinforcements from behind, forming a pursuit team to chase after Haruki's squad.

Unfortunately for them—they were too late.

After breaking through, Haruki's team quickly linked up with other Konoha units, forming a larger, stronger force. The Iwa-nin no longer dared to attack recklessly.

A few minutes passed.

Suddenly, a strand of chakra invaded Haruki's mind, and a voice echoed in his ears.

"Jonin Haruki, proceed immediately to the 3 o'clock direction. Assist other combat groups in stopping the Five-Tails Jinchuriki from reaching the main force."

Haruki recognized the voice—Yamanaka Kazekaze.

A new mission.

He checked his own condition.

He still had over 18,000 chakra points. Though the wound on his left arm had reopened during combat, he'd already treated it earlier with Healing Jutsu, so it wouldn't be a problem for now.

Overall, his combat strength remained above 90%.

More than enough to help.

With that thought, Haruki responded silently in his mind, "Understood."

The chakra link faded—Kazekaze had cut off the telepathic connection.

"Yamanaka Mind Communication Technique… really comes in handy." Haruki muttered.

Without wasting another moment, he instructed the shinobi in his group to join nearby units, then used Body Flicker Technique and darted toward the 3 o'clock direction.

As for the exact location?

He didn't need Kazekaze to tell him.

He could already sense it—the ominous chakra of a tailed beast, radiating from a certain direction like a beacon of malice. Even without the sounds of battle or explosions, that wicked presence pointed the way.