Most Konoha ninja who believe in the Will of Fire place great value on bonds with their comrades.
That's exactly why Uchiha Yuan used it as an excuse—he was confident that as long as he presented this reason, Yuhi Kurenai wouldn't refuse.
And sure enough, that's exactly what happened. The only downside was that Yamanaka Kagetsu and Hyuga Asana unexpectedly came along too.
Uchiha Yuan had joined the main forces heading to the battlefield partly in hopes of gaining more attribute points, but also out of a genuine desire to learn about Guy's current situation.
In the original story, Guy's father, Might Duy, opened the Gate of Death of the Eight Gates while Guy was still a genin.
According to the timeline from the original, Guy and the others returned to the village and participated in the chunin exams a year after graduating, becoming chunin.
After this massive conflict in the Land of Bears, both Konoha and the Mist would find it difficult to launch another large-scale war in the short term.
Thus, Uchiha Yuan suspected that Might Duy likely opened the Gate of Death during this war and kicked the Seven Ninja Swordsmen into oblivion.
Uchiha Yuan didn't know exactly which of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had killed his parents.
So he regarded all seven as his enemies. Now, with a chance to witness the death of one of them, Uchiha Yuan naturally wouldn't let it slip by.
Soon, Uchiha Yuan's team followed the main force led by Yuhi Kurenai into the battlefield.
Once they arrived, Kurenai immediately assigned tasks, directing the ninja in the unit to spread out and search for the missing genin.
Originally, Shibi Aburame intended to accompany Yuhi Kurenai in rescuing the genin.
But since Uchiha Yuan's team had also joined, as their teacher, Shibi naturally had to stick with them.
Thus, Uchiha Yuan's four-person team began scouting ahead.
"Yuan, who are you looking for?" asked Yamanaka Kagetsu curiously on the road.
"It's probably Might Guy! Yuan only calls one person from our year a friend, and that's Guy," Hyuga Asana answered before Uchiha Yuan could speak.
"That's right. It's Guy. I don't care about anyone else—only him…"
"Don't worry, Yuan! We'll definitely help you find Might Guy," Yamanaka Kagetsu promised.
Uchiha Yuan nodded without saying more.
Walking ahead, Shibi Aburame overheard the conversation. He didn't show it on his face, but inwardly, he was quite surprised.
In Shibi's impression, Uchiha Yuan had only cared about Hyuga Asana at first. Later, after spending more time with Yamanaka Kagetsu, he occasionally showed concern for her as a teammate.
But his relationship with Might Guy shouldn't have been this close. He hadn't expected Yuan to be willing to risk his life for a friend he wasn't even that familiar with.
This caused Shibi's opinion of Uchiha Yuan to rise a few notches.
"By the way, Yuan, your 11th birthday is coming up in a few days, isn't it?" Shibi suddenly asked.
"Yeah, three days from now. Why? Are you planning to give me a gift, Teacher Shibi?" Uchiha Yuan smiled.
"Is there something you want?"
"Something I want... let me think! Got it. I'd like a powerful Wind Release ninjutsu."
"Alright. On your birthday, I'll give you a B-rank Wind Release," Shibi readily agreed.
Uchiha Yuan was just about to thank him when Hyuga Asana suddenly warned, "Teacher Shibi, approximately 500 meters to the right-front, there's a battle happening."
"Let's go check it out." With that, Shibi quickened his pace, and Uchiha Yuan's team quickly followed.
When they arrived, they saw several Konoha genin surrounded by Mist ninja.
Shibi slapped the jar on his back, releasing a massive swarm of kikaichū insects that surged toward the Mist ninja.
Within minutes, the Mist ninja were devoured by the bugs.
"Are there more Konoha shinobi nearby?" Shibi asked the genin.
"Yes. There are still seven or eight teams ahead being chased by the Mist," one genin pointed southeast.
"Your mission is over. You can withdraw from the battlefield. There are no Mist ninja ahead, so return to camp while you can." With that, Shibi turned to leave.
Uchiha Yuan's team followed immediately.
Shibi then rescued three more groups of genin.
Uchiha Yuan's group even managed to save one team themselves.
Unknowingly, Uchiha Yuan's team had reached deep into the battlefield.
"We can't go any deeper. Any further and we'll be near the battle's center. Lord Orochimaru is fighting the Fourth Mizukage there, and many of the Mist's elite are present," Shibi warned.
Uchiha Yuan understood. At this point, pressing forward might mean running into the Mist's elite forces.
To gamble his and his teammates' lives on a hunch would be too foolish.
Just as he was about to suggest retreating, Hyuga Asana's voice came from behind: "What's that?"
Before her voice had even faded, a figure completely enveloped in green chakra rushed past at an incredible speed.
From the moment Hyuga Asana spotted the figure to the moment it streaked past them took less than three seconds.
Uchiha Yuan activated his Sharingan—but even with its dynamic vision, all he saw was an afterimage.
"W-Was that the Body Flicker Technique just now?" Yamanaka Kagetsu asked, bewildered.
"No. That figure was just running. The speed was simply unbelievable—running fast enough to rival... no, even surpass most Body Flicker users," Shibi said with a serious tone.
"Teacher Shibi, what should we do?" asked Hyuga Asana.
Shibi didn't answer immediately. Instead, he turned to Uchiha Yuan. "Yuan, did your Sharingan catch who it was? Was it one of ours?"
"I only saw an afterimage, but…"
"But what?"
"The afterimage… it kind of looked like Might Duy."
Shibi was momentarily stunned, then said, "If it was Might Duy—the one who's always training in taijutsu—then it's certainly possible.
Yuan, Asana, Kagetsu, it's too dangerous ahead. The three of you should retreat. I'll go take a look."
"Teacher Shibi, I'm going too. If Might Duy charged in, then Guy must be there too."
Uchiha Yuan spoke with firm determination. Shibi remained silent for a moment, then nodded. He knew that even if he refused, Uchiha Yuan would still go.
"Alright then, we'll go together. Asana, Kagetsu, you two stay behind. Return the way we came."
"But—"
"That's an order. Even if I run into one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, I can retreat unharmed. Yuan can flicker away too. You two don't have any real survival techniques—don't follow us."
(To Be Continued...)