Naruto: Uchiha Survivor Forced to Save the Shinobi World

To know that the security of the village was previously handled by the Uchiha clan's police force.

Now that the Uchiha clan has been exterminated, a large number of experienced, powerful dojutsu bloodline shinobi have died, which has had a significant short-term impact on the village.

With the loss of such a large group of elite forces, there is bound to be a shortage of manpower in the village.

And in the past two days, with the arrival of shinobi and important figures from several villages—Land of Demons, Hidden Sand Village, Hidden Mist Village, Hidden Rain Village, Hidden Grass Village, and Hidden Waterfall Village—over a hundred shinobi and key personnel, the strain on Hidden Leaf's security forces has inevitably worsened.

After all, who knows what hidden agendas these villages, officially here to participate in the Chūnin Exams, might actually have?

From any angle, the necessary surveillance and precautions must not be overlooked.

But all of this requires manpower!

So tonight, the ANBU headquarters, which should be heavily guarded, is likely severely undermanned.

This is a case of "darkness under the lamp"!

Boom.

Another firework exploded in the night sky.

The multicolored light reflected on Shinji's face, making his expression appear uncertain.

The subtle pain in his eyes reminded him that he must quickly obtain Uchiha Fugaku's pair of Mangekyō Sharingan.

Otherwise, as his own Mangekyō Sharingan starts to deteriorate, his chances of success will only decrease.

Retracting his gaze, Shinji's attention shifted to the Root shinobi who was still under the effects of the genjutsu.

The shinobi had witnessed his Susanoo Tomoshibi, leaving Shinji with no choice but to silence him.

Otherwise, it would be his own life at risk.

But how to do it required some thought.

Forcing himself to remain calm, he went over his plan before walking up to the Root shinobi and taking out several explosive tags from his shinobi pouch, which he then placed inside the shinobi's clothing.

Next, he used his Mangekyō Sharingan to implant a mental suggestion into the Root shinobi: "Go to the Hidden Sand encampment and detonate the explosive tags on your body!"

Finally, he added, "Detonate them in an empty area—do not harm any innocents!"

A flash of terror crossed the Root shinobi's eyes!

It was clear that his consciousness hadn't been completely wiped out, and he was still able to resist to some degree.

But with the sheer power of the Mangekyō Sharingan, even though Shinji was inexperienced, it was enough to suppress the shinobi's will for a short period.

Soon, the shinobi became completely vacant, obeying Shinji's command as he turned and walked toward the Hidden Sand encampment.

After watching the Root shinobi leave, Shinji glanced at the unconscious Shion on the ground, then turned without hesitation and made his way to the ANBU headquarters.

Before long, Shinji, who had memorized the village's layout by heart, smoothly infiltrated the vicinity of the ANBU headquarters.

Hiding in the shadows, he put on his fox mask and used the Transformation Jutsu to disguise himself as a regular ANBU shinobi.

The Transformation Jutsu—one of the most basic of the three core techniques—had already been mastered by the original Uchiha owner of this body before his death, so after a few private practice attempts, Shinji was able to use it with ease.

However, while Transformation Jutsu is easy to learn, it is difficult to master.

The greater the transformation, the higher the level of precision required in chakra control.

To minimize flaws, Shinji's transformation this time made only slight adjustments—raising his height slightly and donning the attire of an ANBU shinobi.

Even the mask on his face was an authentic one, reducing potential flaws to a minimum.

Boom!

Fireworks continued to explode in the night sky.

Shinji had no time to admire them; his gaze was fixed on the brightly lit ANBU headquarters, calculating his next steps.

Boom!

Suddenly, a massive explosion different from the fireworks echoed in the distance.

The explosion immediately alerted the ANBU inside the headquarters, and within moments, seven or eight figures emerged from the building, heading toward the explosion site.

Taking a deep breath, Shinji walked toward the ANBU headquarters.

As expected, the ANBU headquarters, which should have been a den of tigers and dragons, was significantly understaffed tonight, allowing him to walk in without raising suspicion while dressed as an ANBU shinobi.

On the first floor, he passed a hurried ANBU shinobi.

At that moment, he was so tense that he was ready to activate his Mangekyō Sharingan, but the shinobi, seemingly rushing off on a mission, didn't even pay attention to him.

Phew.

Shinji exhaled softly, then subtly began to observe the layout inside the ANBU headquarters.

The first floor seemed to consist only of reception rooms, changing rooms, and equipment storage areas.

The storage area, archives, and similar important places should be on the second floor or underground… he thought while carefully observing.

After circling the area, he failed to find an entrance to the underground, so he headed up to the second floor.

On the stairs, he encountered a dog-faced masked ANBU shinobi who was on his way down.

They passed each other.

Just when Shinji thought he was safe, the ANBU suddenly stopped and asked, "Stop, which unit are you from?"

Shinji's heart skipped a beat, his mind racing as he blurted out, "Danzo-sama sent me to check on the sealed Sharingan."

"The Sharingan was already taken by Danzo-sama…"

Halfway through his sentence, the dog-faced ANBU realized something was wrong and quickly formed hand signs, shouting,

"Water Release: Waterfall Jutsu!"

Whoosh!

In an instant, a massive column of water surged toward Shinji.

Even though Shinji had been on guard, he was still caught off guard by the dog-faced ANBU's decisive attack and was struck by the water column.

Seeing that his Water Release had hit, the dog-faced ANBU formed hand signs again:

"Water Release: Water Prison Jutsu!"

As the jutsu activated, the water column enveloping Shinji began to morph.

Total Concentration, Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirlpool!

Trapped within the water column, Shinji had a sudden idea. He activated Water Breathing and used the compatibility of Water Breathing with water to skillfully spin, narrowly escaping the water prison just before it closed.

Without pausing, he dashed toward a nearby window, pulling out a string of explosive tags from his shinobi pouch as he ran.

Seeing that Shinji had escaped his Water Prison Jutsu, the dog-faced ANBU's expression changed, and he quickly formed hand signs again:

"Water Release: Water Bullet Jutsu!"

Instantly, the water prison exploded, sending a barrage of water droplets like a rain of swords toward the fleeing Shinji.

At the same time, Shinji detonated the string of explosive tags he had just pulled out.

Boom!

A massive explosion echoed through the hallway of the ANBU headquarters.

Using the explosion and the resulting smoke as cover, Shinji, soaking wet, managed to break through a window and escape from the ANBU headquarters.

The moment he landed, he felt a sharp pain in his back.

Undoubtedly, the explosion of the tags hadn't completely blocked the Water Bullet Jutsu, and one or two water bullets had struck him.

But now was not the time to worry about that. He activated Water Breathing to temporarily stop the bleeding from his wound, then quickly dashed into the shadows.

The escape route had been meticulously planned beforehand, so although he was in a sorry state, he wasn't panicking.

Once he reached a blind spot in the village's view, he immediately dispelled the Transformation Jutsu and then threw the now-cracked fox mask toward a nearby small lake.

The lake water would eliminate any scent!

Splash!

Sasuke emerged from the lake.

The moment he plunged into the water, he realized that the reflection of Itachi he had seen on the lake's surface was just an illusion.

Suddenly, he noticed something floating on the lake's surface not far away—it was a broken fox mask.

It floated there, alone.

He swam over, picked up the mask, and returned to the shore, staring at the cracks in the mask: "You were abandoned too, weren't you…"

At that moment, he felt a connection between himself and the broken mask.

Swish.

Swish.

Swish.

With several swift movements, a group of ANBU shinobi appeared around Sasuke.

The dog-faced ANBU, observing the soaking-wet Sasuke holding the broken fox mask, said in a deep voice, "Uchiha Sasuke, you are under arrest!"