I'll Remember You

The Kirigakure ninja left behind to ambush Konoha's surprise attack force were also a standard four-man combat squad.

One jonin leading three chunin or genin.

They had just breathed a sigh of relief, thinking there were no Konoha ninja here lying in wait to ambush them.

To their surprise, a figure suddenly leaped out, startling them badly.

"This guy!"

"So there really was an ambush? A Konoha ninja!"

"He looks like he's from the Uchiha Clan..."

The four Kirigakure ninja instantly entered combat mode, warily watching Uchiha Daiki as he revealed himself.

Uchiha Daiki opened his mouth. "I... sigh, forget it."

He shook his head, looking too lazy to explain.

Then, forming hand seals, he spat a fireball at the four enemies before him. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Seeing their opponent unleash a ninjutsu right from the start, the four prepared enemies sharpened their gazes.

Yet their movements were not the least bit sluggish as they hurriedly scattered in all directions.

"Fell for it."

Uchiha Daiki smiled faintly.

With a flick of his hand, he sent four kunai flying.

The distance between both sides was less than fifty meters.

At that range, for Uchiha Daiki, who possessed unerring kunai and shuriken throwing skills, it was practically easy mode.

Sure enough, the three weaker Kirigakure ninja were immediately struck down on the spot.

Uchiha Daiki did not bother finishing them off.

From where the kunai had hit, he already knew they would not survive.

The remaining Kirigakure Jonin, however, was more troublesome.

His figure flickered slightly, and he actually vanished.

The next second, a cold voice sounded above Uchiha Daiki's head. "Who do you think you're fighting?"

With a whoosh, the Short Sword in the man's hand came chopping down at Uchiha Daiki's head.

It was incredibly fast, and the force behind it was heavy and steady.

If that strike landed, Uchiha Daiki's head would undoubtedly split open into two halves.

"A jonin's speed really is fast!"

Uchiha Daiki's heart tightened, and cold sweat broke out all over him.

The battle just now had taken only a few brief instants.

Only now had Uchiha Tekka, Uchiha Inabi, and Uchiha Yashiro caught up.

They watched helplessly as Uchiha Daiki was attacked by the enemy, but it was already too late to support him.

Uchiha Daiki also knew that he had been careless.

He had successfully killed the jonin leading the previous squad because that opponent had been intimidated by the strength of three jonin among their four-man group, lost the will to fight, and fled.

On top of that, Uchiha Daiki had struck first and wounded him with a kunai. The blow to his morale had further sapped his fighting spirit, which was why Daiki had been able to take him down so easily.

But this one was clearly different. His fighting spirit was strong, and so was his strength.

"Am I going to die here?"

In that critical moment, Uchiha Daiki thought of Uchiha Shisui's Body Flicker Technique.

If he knew the Body Flicker Technique now, perhaps he could escape this disaster.

He tried hard to recall it.

Although he did not know the Body Flicker Technique, he had thoroughly memorized the method for using the Evasion Technique.

As a type of Body Flicker Technique, the Evasion Technique could not compare to the Body Flicker Technique in speed or distance, but it was still a useful skill for pursuit and travel.

Just as the method of using the Evasion Technique surfaced in Uchiha Daiki's mind, a system notification sounded in his head.

Ding! Through your earnest contemplation of the evolution of the Evasion Technique, you have comprehended the Advanced Body Flicker Technique!

The Advanced Body Flicker Technique allows you to react instantaneously (one-thousandth of a second) and move at high speed, achieving results faster than the eye can follow.

At the same time as the system notification sounded in his mind, a stream of information naturally arose within it.

Without even thinking, Uchiha Daiki instinctively used the newly comprehended Advanced Body Flicker Technique.

With a whoosh, he vanished from where he stood.

At that very instant, the enemy's Short Sword slashed down precisely where he had been standing.

That strike should have split its target in two, but now it merely cut through empty air.

That Kirigakure Jonin was completely stunned.

It took him a second to react.

He looked up at Uchiha Daiki, who had already appeared sixty or seventy meters away.

Then he swept his gaze over Uchiha Tekka, Uchiha Inabi, and the others who had rushed over as reinforcements, his expression turning grave.

"The Uchiha Clan of Konoha truly lives up to its reputation."

"Though you are not Body Flicker Shisui, you have still mastered such an exquisite Body Flicker Technique. It is truly admirable!"

His gaze returned to Uchiha Daiki as he praised him.

"Are you planning to surrender and become a prisoner, or are you going to beg for mercy?"

Uchiha Daiki asked with a smile.

Only now did he have the chance to examine his opponent's appearance and attire.

The man looked to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight, tall and powerfully built, nearly two meters in height.

He had short, shoulder-length grayish-white hair. Though he was a man, his features were rather feminine.

Moreover, his eyes somewhat resembled the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan.

Hearing Uchiha Daiki's words, the man paused briefly, then snorted and asked instead, "What is your name?"

"Uchiha Daiki."

"Enough nonsense. Die!"

After saying that, Uchiha Daiki leaped toward him.

He unleashed the Advanced Body Flicker Technique he had just comprehended and launched a storm-like barrage of attacks against his opponent.

At that speed, his opponent should have had virtually no time to react.

Yet when the kunai in Uchiha Daiki's hand sliced through his opponent's body, the sensation that came back felt strange.

He turned around and immediately understood.

His opponent's body had already turned into a humanoid form made of flowing water.

"A Water Clone?"

"He actually managed to do all that without my eyes catching it..."

Uchiha Daiki was inwardly astonished as he looked into the distance.

By then, his opponent was already standing on the shore.

"I'll remember you, Uchiha Daiki."

"The next time we meet will be your death."

After saying that with a smile, the man waved in their direction. Then he turned into a shark, plunged into the sea, and swiftly vanished.

"...A shark?"

Uchiha Daiki's thoughts stirred slightly.

In Naruto, the most famous person from Kirigakure who could transform into a shark was probably Kisame Hoshigaki.

But clearly, that man was not Kisame Hoshigaki.

"Could he be a clansman of Kisame Hoshigaki?"

Just as he was pondering this, Uchiha Tekka, Uchiha Inabi, and the third man caught up as well.

They came up behind Uchiha Daiki and looked out over the vast sea with regretful expressions.

"That guy was quite strong. He didn't look like an ordinary jonin."

Uchiha Tekka said.

He had originally meant to use that as an excuse for why the four of them had failed to keep their opponent behind.

But before he could finish speaking, Uchiha Daiki beside him had already formed hand seals and spat a massive fireball ten meters in diameter toward the ships docked by the shore.