Uchiha Yashiro's Collapse, Seisui's Sternness

"This damned brat..."

Uchiha Yashiro endured the searing pain, forcing himself to calm down.

As a Three Tomoe user, it had been a long time since he'd found himself in such a tight spot. Seisui's techniques and swordsmanship had both far exceeded his expectations.

"Uchiha Seisui's Genjutsu is strange, but a Three Tomoe can definitely break it—I just need time..."

"I can't let him keep controlling the pace. My injuries are bad. If I drag this out, I'll bleed out, and then it's all over..."

Uchiha Yashiro abruptly formed hand seals, spewing a massive cloud of gray smoke from his mouth. On top of the water mist and darkness, he layered another barrier to block vision.

"Fire Style: Dust Concealment Technique!"

Uchiha Yashiro viciously extracted his Chakra, continuing to exhale smoke until the entire training ground was blanketed.

When darkness had limited his vision, Uchiha Yashiro made a clever counter.

Under the shroud of smoke, Seisui, who had lost sight of him, was dragged back to the same starting line.

"Don't worry, this is the Dust Concealment Technique, not the Ash Burning Technique. This smoke can't be ignited."

Surveying the swirling mist around them, Tobirama Senju shook his head with a wry smile:

"I forgot about the Mist Technique. He's not the brainless type of Uchiha. But running into a sly brat like you, he's still in for bad luck..."

The particles forming the gray smoke met Seisui's mist, and the mist rapidly dissolved the smoke, turning everything into a hazy gray.

Seizing that brief window, Uchiha Yashiro pushed his Three Tomoe Sharingan to its limit, dense red veins crawling across the whites of his eyes, a gruesome sight.

"Kid, let's see what tricks you have left!"

His Dojutsu finally broke through the darkness before him. Uchiha Yashiro greedily savored the taste of light, but the gray mist that met his eyes made him freeze.

He had planned to use the smoke to buy time. Once the darkness was dispelled, the smoke would drift away with the wind and wouldn't hinder his Dojutsu advantage.

But...

The misty water vapor absorbed the Dust Concealment Technique, now looking heavier and more oppressive, its pressure no less than the darkness of the Genjutsu.

"Could it be... all my moves were within Uchiha Seisui's calculations?"

Uchiha Yashiro's mind reeled. Layer upon layer of scheming made his Three Tomoe Sharingan feel like a decoration—or worse, a burden that had dragged him into Seisui's rhythm.

This dissonance, overturning everything he'd known in his life, stirred an emotion he dared not face.

Fear!

In that moment of distraction, Seisui's blade, from an unknown position, struck true at his left shoulder!

The thick shoulder muscle was severed, and Muramasa rejoiced, drinking deeply of Uchiha Yashiro's blood.

Uchiha Yashiro spun and slashed wildly, but his katana caught nothing of Seisui. The heavy swing only cut through the air with a sharp whistle.

The training ground fell silent again.

Uchiha Yashiro forced himself to focus. He could hear the crisp chirping of a Lark in the distance, the rustle of wind through leaves, even the calls of a Vendor far away...

But not a single sound from Seisui.

A profound absurdity surged in Uchiha Yashiro's heart, as if he were trapped in a cage isolated from the world.

"No, impossible! I won't lose to a brat like you!"

Feeling the fear he could no longer suppress, Uchiha Yashiro couldn't bear his own cowardice. He maniacally spat out another torrent of gray smoke!

"Watch out, this time it's the Ash Burning Technique..."

Tobirama Senji spoke up the moment Uchiha Yashiro acted: "Excessive heat will vaporize the water vapor. Don't be too confident in the Mist Technique, brat!"

Seisui nodded: "Understood."

"Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"

The next moment, Uchiha Yashiro unleashed a fierce blaze, just as Tobirama Senju had predicted, forcibly evaporating the mist and detonating the entire training ground!

Massive flames devoured the earth, their lashing tongues attacking everything present without discrimination.

Finally.

After Uchiha Yashiro's all-out gamble, he succeeded in breaking the accursed mist. His Three Tomoe saw the light again!

"This time, I won't lose!"

Uchiha Yashiro's body was covered in burn marks. His eyes frantically swept for Seisui's figure, only to see a sight that nearly broke him.

Beside Seisui and Shisui, a flowing water wall solidly blocked all the flames. They bore no trace of injury, not even a hair out of place.

Seisui held Muramasa, looking at Uchiha Yashiro with pity in his eyes. He sighed: "Elder Yashiro, I'm disappointed in you. As an Uchiha, you've lost the wisdom of battle."

"Fear and anger won't bring you power. They're just the weak's escape from their own inner wailing..."

Uchiha Yashiro clutched his shoulder, the Tomoe in his eyes trembling.

He loathed this feeling. He was also utterly terrified of this kind of fight.

Seisui seemed to foresee everything. Every move he made was seen through in advance, every action under the enemy's control.

"I believe that a strong Uchiha uses the Sharingan as only one of his weapons. Even without the Sharingan, an Uchiha Clan shinobi should still be a powerhouse feared across the ninja world."

"However, since Senior Yashiro holds the Sharingan in such high regard, I'll fight you in the Uchiha way."

Tomoe slowly surfaced in Seisui's eyes, his fierce Dojutsu staring unflinchingly into Uchiha Yashiro's Sharingan as he barked sternly:

"Pick up your sword! Look at you, dazed and lost—how dare you call yourself an Uchiha!"

Uchiha Yashiro obediently raised his katana, staring blankly at Seisui's Sharingan, his mind in utter chaos.

What the hell?

Uchiha Seisui actually had a Sharingan...

This rebellious brat who criticized the Sharingan possessed such overwhelming Dojutsu!

Seisui's figure flickered, Muramasa in hand, red light gleaming in his eyes as the blade slashed mercilessly toward Uchiha Yashiro. He attacked while scolding:

"Swordsmanship must be combined with Dojutsu! Relying solely on the Sharingan makes you a slave to its power!"

Uchiha Yashiro's vision blurred. Seisui's Dojutsu plunged his already disoriented mind into a dizzying spiral.

Then Muramasa's edge tore through his flesh once more.

"Calm down! Use the Sharingan to copy my taijutsu and break my rhythm!"

Seisui guided Uchiha Yashiro like this, while Shisui watched intently from the side, his eyes brimming with admiration. He absorbed the lesson like a sponge, greedy for knowledge.

"What about your Genjutsu? You're losing the clash—use illusions to disrupt your enemy and create distance."

"Can you only use Genjutsu? Can't you form hand seals and cast ninjutsu? Try one-handed seals."

"Your swordsmanship is chaotic. Your reactions can't keep up with the Sharingan's dynamic vision—so slow down the pace of your blade exchanges."

Seisui instructed Uchiha Yashiro earnestly.

But every time Seisui offered a pointer, Muramasa carved a deep gash into Yashiro's body. It was a brutal tuition.

For some reason, Uchiha Yashiro recalled his childhood, when his Grandfather taught him to train...

"Yashiro, learn swordsmanship seriously from your Grandfather! One day, you'll become a great ninja! Your Grandfather's blade skills were once refined by Young Master Izuna himself..."

"Back then, I was just a Youth, too arrogant to know my limits, and I challenged Lord Izuna. I got beaten badly, but Lord Izuna taught me so much. Those precious lessons helped your Grandfather survive the Warring States Period!"

"The first rule: combine Dojutsu with swordsmanship..."

His Grandfather's teachings seemed to overlap with Seisui's voice, each point strikingly similar.

Uchiha Yashiro trembled all over, his body covered in bloody gashes. The image of Seisui before him began to shift—

It was as if Uchiha Izuna, enshrined in the ancestral hall of his clan's main house, had stepped forth.

But when he looked closer, Seisui also resembled Tobirama Senju, the man etched into every Uchiha's memory...

Uchiha Yashiro broke down.

His strength drained, he fell to his knees, staring blankly at Seisui and muttering, "Who... are you, really..."

Last-minute update!

Using the power outage as an excuse, I slipped straight out of the office and found an internet café by taxi, brimming with a sense of accomplishment!

But anyway, even though the ten o'clock chapter came early, it's still not on time.

Call it one chapter owed!

Hmm... when it's time to go paid, I'll start with at least ten chapters as a baseline! (Boldly speaking)

To keep myself from weaseling out later, only chapters beyond ten on the paid release count as repayment!

Also, I'm begging all you readers to keep following along!

Thump thump thump! ORZ!