Nicknames

Tsukuyomi Space had been stabbing him for who knew how long. Uchiha Gin's nerves had stopped responding to pain. Numbly, he watched the Uchiha Itachis slash at him again and again.

"It's like they're mincing meat."

Unable to break free, Uchiha Gin even found amusement in his misery, teasing the Uchiha Itachis. "Didn't you eat? Put some strength into it, will you?"

"Don't just chop the front. If you can't keep going, flip me over and chop the other side. Keep it even front and back—don't play favorites."

As they listened to Uchiha Gin's endless chatter, the hardworking Uchiha Itachis seemed to wind up like clockwork, each of them speeding up by twice as much.

Double Speed x2

"Hey, hey, hey, don't stab my chrysanthemum! I'm still pure! Twenty-four years old, a student!"

Having been stabbed into delirium, Uchiha Gin had begun spouting nonsense.

After an unknown amount of time, the Uchiha Itachis all paused at once. Uchiha Gin, who had been enjoying the Tsukuyomi blade massage with his eyes closed, felt his hands being released. He dropped to one knee, struggled to pry open his eyelids, and saw the white crescent moon overhead. Tears immediately streamed down his face. It hadn't been easy.

"Damn it, I finally made it through," Uchiha Gin said bitterly.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

Senju Itama, who was once again tied to the pillar, stared strangely at Uchiha Gin kneeling on the ground.

After tying him up, this guy had walked two steps before suddenly dropping to his knees. Senju Itama had been wondering what new stunt he was pulling.

Then, the next second, he started bawling his eyes out while shouting something about "making it through." What a strange guy.

"Nothing. I just happened to think of something sad."

Knowing Tsukuyomi's nature, Uchiha Gin did not waste time. He stood, wiped away his tears, and turned around.

"What are you sad about? I'm the one who should be sad, you—"

Senju Itama had been complaining when he saw Uchiha Gin turn around and said in surprise,

"Why did you activate your Sharingan out of nowhere? Are you trying to hypnotize and interrogate me? You truly are an Evil Uchiha. But—"

Startled by those words, Uchiha Gin only then noticed that his vision had improved. He could see clearly even in the darkness.

The Chakra within his body was no longer as sluggish as before, and it slowly flowed toward his eyes. The sensation was as refreshing as taking a bite of an ice pop in the height of summer.

"But what?"

Delighted, Uchiha Gin did not take offense at Senju Itama's rude remark. "What the hell can you interrogate with a Single Tomoe? Use Genjutsu: Hypnosis?"

He cracked Senju Itama, who wore a disdainful expression, on the head and raised a large bump.

"Watch me use physical hypnosis!"

Uchiha Gin did not hold grudges overnight after being looked down on.

"Ahhh!!!" Senju Itama howled in pain after being struck, tears filling his large watery eyes.

After dealing with Senju Itama, Uchiha Gin looked around and found everything as usual. He inspected the pillar as well, but found no traces left by anyone.

Unable to figure it out, he returned to the tent first. Taking out a small mirror he carried with him, he examined his eyes. Sure enough, he had truly awakened the Sharingan, though it was only a Single Tomoe.

"I took a Tsukuyomi head-on and only awakened a Single Tomoe. Was this body's talent really that absurdly bad?"

After suffering for so long only to awaken a Single Tomoe, Uchiha Gin felt deeply aggrieved for himself. Yet he did not stop to consider just who the last person was to awaken a Single Tomoe in rage after taking a Tsukuyomi.

"Backyard Daily Random Skill Refresh: Genjutsu: Tsukuyomi. Obtained Tsukuyomi Fragment ×1."

The system's voice, absent for a day, sounded in his mind.

It was actually this skill—the seemingly useless rule-based skill Uchiha Gin had obtained from the Purple Orb last time.

So the system had considered the enclosed clearing behind his tent to be his backyard, which was why it had refreshed a Tsukuyomi for him. Recalling the skill's description:

Backyard Daily Random Skill Refresh: Every day, a random skill refreshes in the host's backyard. The skill manifests through an NPC's use and cannot be controlled by the host, but it cannot kill the host. After the skill ends, there is a certain chance of dropping the skill or its fragments. Gather enough fragments to learn the skill.

"It can't kill me, but it can torture me!"

Uchiha Gin grumbled inwardly. Still, he seemed to suffer no injuries after the skill ended. Back then, Kakashi had been bedridden for who knew how long after taking a Tsukuyomi. This time, Uchiha Gin could count it as a blessing in disguise.

"Tsk, tsk. Does this make me insanely lucky? My first refresh actually gave me a Mangekyo skill."

He then tried tapping on "Tsukuyomi Fragment."

Tsukuyomi Fragment (1/40). Gather 40 fragments to synthesize Genjutsu: Tsukuyomi. Learnable with Mangekyō Sharingan.

"Forty pieces???? Damn it, what a scam!" Seeing the glaring (1/40) after the fragment count, Uchiha Gin felt exhausted. "I still have to take thirty-nine more Tsukuyomis? I'm not paying anymore. Give me my money back!"

That meant he would have to encounter Uchiha Itachi at least thirty-nine more times to collect enough skill fragments.

Thinking that, the utterly exhausted Uchiha Gin fell asleep the moment his head hit the ground.

The next day

At the first hint of dawn, Uchiha Dairou, who had been on night watch, had spent half the night concealed not far from camp.

Yawning as he headed back toward camp, he was suddenly intercepted halfway there. Seeing who it was, Uchiha Dairou's honest face showed a puzzled expression. "Uchiha Gin, what is it? The night watch is over. There's no need to change shifts."

The newcomer was Uchiha Gin, who had not slept well all night. After being tortured by Tsukuyomi for seventy-two hours, every time he closed his eyes that night, he saw a group of Itachis hacking at him, with quite a few of them holding blades and stabbing at his lower half.

Though the system had repaired his physical injuries, mental trauma was not so easily healed.

After dozing lightly for a while, Uchiha Gin, sporting panda eyes like Gaara's, had waited early in the morning along Uchiha Dairou's usual route. There was no other reason—today, he wanted to open a treasure chest.

"Brother Da Lang, I heard Seal Fire Captain say that your Fire Release has reached a miraculous level. B-rank Fire Release is effortless for you, and you have even begun studying A-rank ninjutsu. I deeply admire you."

The usual routine: start with a round of flattery.

Clearly, Uchiha Ryoichi and Uchiha Feihe had not told Uchiha Dairou about the challenges he had issued around them.

Upon hearing Uchiha Gin's words of admiration, Uchiha Dairou's first reaction was to scratch his head embarrassedly. Then he said honestly,

"Not at all, not at all. I merely use everyone else's rest time to practice Fire Release. It's nothing worth mentioning, nothing worth mentioning."

"I was once guided by the Clan Leader in the insights of Fire Release. Meeting Brother Da Lang is like a high mountain meeting flowing water. I was delayed by the mission before, but fortunately, the mission is now complete. I have finally let go of the obsession in my heart. Now I have only one final wish: to spar with the clan's genius ninja, 'Fire Starter Dairou.' Not for any other reason, only to witness Brother Da Lang's miraculous ninjutsu."

"Fire Starter Dairou" was Uchiha Dairou's nickname within the clan. As an aside, Uchiha Ryoichi was called "Eerie Sword Ryoichi," while Uchiha Feihe was called "Dual Blades Feihe."

"But we'll be assembling soon. How about we exchange pointers during tonight's rest?"

Although Uchiha Dairou was floating on air from Uchiha Gin's praise, he had always put missions first and did not get carried away. They still had to travel today; he could not waste stamina and Chakra just for a spar.

"It won't matter. We'll just—"

Rolling his Dead Fish Eyes, Uchiha Gin was about to use the same spiel he had used on Uchiha Feihe when a voice suddenly sounded behind him. "What are you two dawdling over? We're leaving soon."

At some unknown point, Uchiha FengHuo had appeared behind them like a ghost. Frowning, he spoke to them.

Uchiha Gin and Uchiha Dairou immediately broke out in cold sweat. Neither had noticed when Uchiha FengHuo had appeared beside them, so they could only nod repeatedly in agreement.

On the way back, Uchiha Gin followed behind them and thought regretfully, Looks like I can only find Uchiha Dairou tonight. But Uchiha FengHuo's stealth technique is truly incredible. I didn't sense even the slightest Chakra fluctuation before he appeared behind us.

Only then did he remember that Uchiha FengHuo also had a title, one renowned not only within the clan but throughout the entire Warring States Period.

Divine Stealth FengHuo.

A man who had cultivated stealth to its peak. While carrying out an assassination mission, he had once infiltrated a mid-sized clan, bypassed the guards of over a hundred people, and assassinated his target. The discovery did not come until the following day.