"That damn brat..."
Uchiha Yashiro endured the bone-deep pain and forced himself to calm down.
As a Three Tomoe user, he had not encountered such an embarrassing situation in a long time. Seisui's techniques and Kenjutsu had both far exceeded his expectations.
"Although Seisui Uchiha's Genjutsu is strange, the Three Tomoe can definitely break through it. I just need time..."
"I can't let him keep controlling the situation. My injuries are in bad shape. If this drags on, I'll probably lose too much blood, and then it'll all be over..."
Uchiha Yashiro swiftly formed hand seals and spat out a large volume of gray smoke, layering another vision-obscuring barrier over the water mist and darkness.
"Fire Release: Dust Concealment Technique!"
Uchiha Yashiro fiercely extracted Chakra and continued spewing smoke until the entire training ground was covered.
When the darkness restricted his vision, Uchiha Yashiro made a clever response.
Under the cover of smoke, Seisui, who had lost his sight, had been pulled back to the same starting line as him.
"Don't worry, this is the Dust Concealment Technique, not the Ash Burning Technique. This smoke can't be ignited."
Tobirama Senju surveyed the mist swirling around them and shook his head with a laugh.
"I'd forgotten about the Mist Technique. He isn't the brainless sort of Uchiha, but against a sly little 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.
Uchiha Yashiro seized that fleeting opportunity and pushed his Three Tomoe Sharingan with all his strength, until dense blood vessels crawled across the whites of his eyes, making him look terrifying.
"Brat, let's see what other tricks you have!"
His Dojutsu finally broke through the darkness before him. Uchiha Yashiro greedily relished the return of light, but the hazy gray mist that entered his sight left him stunned.
Uchiha Yashiro had intended to use the smoke to buy time. Once he broke through the darkness, the smoke drifting away with the wind would not obstruct the advantage of his Dojutsu.
But...
The foggy moisture absorbed the Dust Concealment Technique, making it appear even heavier. The oppression it brought was no less than the darkness of Genjutsu.
"Could it be that every move I made was within Seisui Uchiha's calculations?"
Uchiha Yashiro was shaken to the core. One layer of schemes atop another made his Three Tomoe Sharingan seem like a mere decoration. It had even become a burden, pulling him into Seisui's rhythm.
That contrast, which overturned everything he had believed his entire life, actually made Uchiha Yashiro feel an emotion he dared not face.
Fear!
In that instant of distraction, Seisui's blade slashed at his left shoulder from an unknown position, as if fulfilling a spoken promise!
The thick muscles of his shoulder were severed, and Muramasa eagerly drank deep of Uchiha Yashiro's blood.
Uchiha Yashiro spun and slashed fiercely, but the katana in his hand failed to catch Seisui. His powerful strike only cut through the air with a sharp howl.
The training ground fell silent again.
Uchiha Yashiro forced himself to focus. He could hear the clear chirping of larks in the distance, the rustling of leaves in the breeze, and even the cries of distant vendors...
But there was no sound from Seisui.
A tremendous sense of absurdity rose within Uchiha Yashiro, as though he had been placed inside a cage isolated from the world.
"No, that's absolutely impossible! I won't lose to a little brat like you!"
Feeling the fear in his heart that he could not suppress, Uchiha Yashiro could not bear his own cowardice and madly spewed out another massive amount of gray smoke!
"Watch out, this time it's the Ash Burning Technique..."
The moment Uchiha Yashiro moved, Tobirama Senju spoke up to warn him. "Excessive heat will evaporate the moisture. Don't be too confident in the Mist Technique, brat!"
Seisui nodded. "Understood."
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
In the next instant, Uchiha Yashiro unleashed violent flames. Just as Tobirama Senju had said, he forcibly evaporated the mist and ignited the entire training ground!
Flames filled the sky and devoured the earth, while surging tongues of fire attacked every substance present, friend and foe alike.
Finally.
After Uchiha Yashiro's all-out gamble, he successfully dispelled that damned mist, and his Three Tomoe eyes saw the light again!
"This time, I absolutely won't lose!"
Uchiha Yashiro was covered in burns. His eyes frantically swept the area for Seisui's trace, only for him to see a sight that nearly drove him to collapse.
Beside Seisui and Shisui, a flowing wall of water firmly blocked all the flames. Neither of them bore the slightest injury; even their hair was undisturbed.
Holding Muramasa, Seisui looked at Uchiha Yashiro with pity and sighed. "Senior Yashiro, I'm very disappointed in you. As an Uchiha, you've lost the wisdom to fight."
"Fear and anger will not give you strength. They are only the wails of weaklings running from their own hearts..."
Uchiha Yashiro clutched his shoulder, and even the Tomoe in his eyes began to tremble.
He truly hated this feeling, and he was equally terrified of this battle.
Seisui seemed able to foresee everything. His actions had all been seen through in advance, and every move he made was under his enemy's control.
"I believe a powerful Uchiha should regard the Sharingan as only one of his weapons. Even without the Sharingan, ninjas of the Uchiha Clan should still be experts who stand above the Shinobi World."
"However, since Senior Yashiro loves the Sharingan so much, I'll fight you in the Uchiha way."
Tomoe slowly appeared in Seisui's eyes. His formidable Dojutsu met Uchiha Yashiro's Sharingan without the slightest retreat as he sternly shouted:
"Pick up your sword! Look at how dazed you are. How could you possibly call yourself an Uchiha!"
Uchiha Yashiro obediently raised his katana. He stared blankly at Seisui's Sharingan, completely confused.
What was going on?
Seisui Uchiha actually had the Sharingan...
That rebellious brat who criticized the Sharingan possessed such powerful Dojutsu!
Seisui flickered forward with Muramasa in hand. Red light flashed in his eyes as his blade mercilessly slashed at Uchiha Yashiro, while he reprimanded him with every attack:
"Kenjutsu must be combined with Dojutsu! If you only know how to rely on the Sharingan, then you're a slave to your Dojutsu!"
Uchiha Yashiro's vision swam. Seisui's Dojutsu left his already confused mind dazed and spinning.
Then Muramasa's blade tore through his flesh once more.
"Calm down. Use the Sharingan to copy my Taijutsu and break down the rhythm of my attacks!"
Seisui instructed Uchiha Yashiro like this, while Shisui beside them watched the scene without blinking, his eyes filled with admiration. Like a sponge, he greedily absorbed the knowledge.
"Where is your eye technique? When you're at a disadvantage in a direct clash, use Genjutsu to interfere with your enemy and create distance."
"Can you only use eye techniques? Can't you form hand seals and use Ninjutsu? Try forming seals with one hand."
"Your Kenjutsu is completely disorderly. Your reactions can't keep up with the Sharingan's dynamic vision, so try slowing down the rhythm of your blade exchanges."
Seisui diligently guided Uchiha Yashiro.
But every time Seisui offered him a piece of advice, Muramasa would carve a deep gash into his body. This was painful tuition.
For some reason.
Uchiha Yashiro recalled the time when he was young, when his grandfather taught him how to train...
"Yashiro, study Kenjutsu seriously with Grandpa! One day, you'll definitely become an outstanding ninja! Grandpa's Kenjutsu was personally guided by Deputy Clan Head Izuna..."
"Back then, Grandpa was still a Youth. I didn't know my own limits and challenged Lord Izuna. Although I was beaten badly in the end, Lord Izuna taught me many things. Those precious experiences helped Grandpa survive the Warring States Period!"
"The first point is to combine Dojutsu with Kenjutsu..."
His grandfather's guidance seemed to overlap with Seisui's voice. Every point was extremely similar.
Uchiha Yashiro trembled all over, his body covered in bloody marks, while Seisui's appearance in his eyes began to change.
It was as though Uchiha Izuna, who received worship in the ancestral hall of his family estate, had stepped out.
But when he looked closely, Seisui also resembled Tobirama Senju, whom every Uchiha remembered...
Uchiha Yashiro broke down.
With no strength left in his body, he fell to his knees. Looking at Seisui in confusion, he muttered, "Who... are you?"
A last-minute update!
Using the power outage as an excuse, Xiao Fan slipped out of the company. I immediately took a taxi to an internet cafe, feeling incredibly accomplished!
But anyway, although the ten o'clock chapter was posted early, it still wasn't exactly on time.
So I still owe one update!
Well... when it goes premium, I'll make ten updates the minimum then! (Shameless boast.)
To stop myself from backing out later, only chapters beyond ten updates after it goes premium will count as repayment!
Also, dear readers, please keep following!
Bang bang bang! ORZ!
Before you continue