The Great Lord Senju Tobirama Once Again Protected Konoha

The Masked Man looked at Kakashi, who was holding the Lightning Cutter, a hint of mockery in his voice.

"Ha, so it's the famous Kakashi Hatake."

Kakashi's Sharingan locked firmly onto the Masked Man, and from his words, he detected a tone of sarcasm.

"Who are you, daring to invade Konoha?"

The only response Kakashi got was the Masked Man's silent sneer.

The Masked Man's coldness enraged Kakashi, and he charged swiftly toward him.

Kakashi reached out with his left hand to grab his mask, wanting to see just who this mysterious figure was.

The Masked Man's body suddenly turned intangible, and Kakashi's Lightning Cutter sliced through the air again!

"How can this be..."

A flicker of surprise passed through Kakashi's eyes. Empty again?

How did this guy do it?

The blade in the Masked Man's hand cut through Kakashi's skin, and fresh blood slowly seeped through his jacket.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

Kakashi gasped for breath. Using the Lightning Cutter twice in a row had rapidly drained his chakra.

He stepped back a few paces, standing together with Eiji.

"I can't hit his body at all, Eiji. We need to come up with a thorough battle plan."

Eiji hesitated for a moment. "Actually, Captain Kakashi, it doesn't have to be that complicated..."

Kakashi ignored Eiji, his mind already forming several combat strategies.

"Listen to me."

"He's indeed a troublesome opponent. Not only does he have a strange jutsu that ignores attacks, but based on Ryoma's death, he can also use Wood Style like Tenzo."

"His chakra is a bit unstable. Looks like he just went through a fight, so this is also his weakest moment..."

Eiji tried to interrupt Kakashi. Look at me, look at me, please.

Couldn't the clever Senior Kakashi figure out that it was me who gave him that little stab?

Clearly, Kakashi hadn't thought of it. He was still trying to lay out tactics for Eiji.

"If we attack from front and back, he's bound to show an opening."

"Even if we can't defeat him, at least we can hold out until reinforcements arrive."

The Masked Man moved his arm. Under the effect of the Hashirama Cells, his wound began to slowly heal.

"Fire Style: Violent Wind Dance!"

The Masked Man formed hand seals rapidly, interrupting the two who wouldn't stop chattering.

Enough already, this is a fight!

The space in front of the Masked Man twisted wildly, generating a violent wind.

Then, from his mouth, he spat out a massive serpent of fire.

Driven by the gale, the fire serpent grew larger and larger, instantly engulfing Eiji and Kakashi.

"Water Style: Water Wall!"

Eiji clapped his hands together, and a huge water dragon tornado rose from the ground.

As the two collided, a thick mist billowed up.

"I will never let you hurt my comrades! Senior Kakashi, I'll protect you for sure!"

Kakashi's mouth twitched. Why did he suddenly get so fired up?

The Masked Man crooked his finger, and the ground churned like boiling asphalt. Countless vines, glowing with chakra, burst forth from the earth.

"Useless Kakashi, not only can't you protect your comrades, but now you're hiding behind a brat?!"

The Masked Man's words stabbed deep into Kakashi, forcing him to recall the painful memory of watching his two best friends die before his eyes.

"Wood Style: Hell's Chaos!"

Thorns grew rapidly, converging into towering trees covered in spikes.

They turned this place into a thorny wasteland no one could approach.

Eiji grabbed Kakashi and retreated frantically, escaping the range of the thorns.

"Senior Kakashi, what are you spacing out for?!"

Eiji's shout snapped Kakashi out of his daze. "I'm really sorry."

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

"Wood Style Ninjutsu. So you really are the killer."

"And that eye—what's the deal with it? Are you a rogue ninja from the Uchiha clan?"

Kakashi naturally noticed the Masked Man's Sharingan.

A member of the Uchiha clan—how could he wield a jutsu like Wood Style?

Who was this person?

"Senior Kakashi, why did that guy call you a waste so many times? Is there some history between you two?"

Kakashi shook his head lightly. "No, I don't know him."

The Masked Man's ears twitched. He heard footsteps drawing closer.

"That's enough for today."

"Uchiha Eiji, the genius ninja of the Uchiha clan, and the battle hero, Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake."

"Next time we meet, you won't be so lucky."

As he spoke, the Masked Man's Sharingan flickered with a spatial vortex, and his body slowly faded into it.

Even as he vanished, the Masked Man kept his eyes locked on Eiji, afraid he might pull out some other strange jutsu.

But Eiji did nothing.

He just raised his middle finger.

If you got scared shitless by Flying Thunder God, just say so. Why act all tough for no reason?

What was the difference between this and some elementary school kid saying, "Just wait, I'll get you someday"?

Maybe they could have caught the Masked Man today, but Eiji didn't want to kill the goose that laid golden eggs.

Eiji knew the Masked Man was interested in him, which meant he would definitely come to Konoha again.

And every time he came to Konoha, Eiji could defeat him and complete the mission of protecting the villagers.

That's right, Eiji was treating the Masked Man like an EXP farm.

Kakashi dispelled the lightning in his hand, looking thoughtful.

The intruder knew his and Eiji's names.

Was this strange Masked Man targeting the two of them?

And what the hell was that weird jutsu?

Then, where did he get the Wood Style Kekkei Genkai?

Had he teamed up with Orochimaru?

And finally, why the hell did he keep calling me a waste?

Kakashi felt a bunch of question marks pop up in his head.

He pushed down his doubts and looked at Eiji, who had fought alongside him.

"Eiji, are you hurt?"

"I'm fine."

Eiji wasn't just fine—he'd earned a lot of coins.

Code
[Even in times of peace, one must always remain vigilant]
[As the Second Hokage, you once again protected the villagers and the Jinchuriki]
[In this battle, your understanding of the Sharingan's dojutsu has grown clearer]
[Ninja World Scientist passive upgraded. When the host learns ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu, anything consistent with scientific theory will succeed.]

Eiji thought for a moment. Could he upgrade the Sharingan?

As everyone knew, the condition for awakening the Sharingan was intense emotional fluctuation.

But Eiji was an orphan, and all his friends were still alive. A strong emotional surge was clearly unrealistic.

Wait—a flash of white light crossed Eiji's mind.

So that's how it could work!

Listen up, system, even if it costs me my life, I will protect the village.

This is my Will of Fire!

Code
[Detected Lord Tobirama's blazing Will of Fire]
[Matches the theory of strong emotional fluctuation. Lord Tobirama's somehow-acquired Sharingan has been upgraded to Three Tomoe.]

As the system's voice ended, the tomoe in Eiji's eyes began to spin.

A moment later, the crimson Three Tomoe Sharingan in Eiji's eyes gleamed with a piercing red light.

"Hahahahaha!"

Feeling the power surging from his eyes, Eiji let out an Uchiha mad laugh.

His emotions rose with his skyrocketing dojutsu power, and he even felt a little overwhelmed.

"A Three Tomoe Sharingan—not bad at all."

Senior Kakashi watched Eiji from the side, a complicated expression crossing his face.

This guy had been fine just a moment ago—how had he suddenly turned into this?

But while Kakashi was pondering, Eiji had already calmed down.

"Let's go, Senior Kakashi. We need to report this to the Hokage as soon as possible."

Faced with Eiji's sudden composure, Kakashi was even more bewildered.

Are all you Uchiha descendants like this, going hot and cold?

Just like that guy—erratic and unhinged.

Hokage Building.

After receiving the news, Hiruzen got out of bed and hurried to his office.

Hearing that the intruder had been driven off, Hiruzen didn't show any sign of relief.

Two elite ninjas working together hadn't managed to capture the opponent—that alone proved how extremely dangerous he was.

"My apologies, Hokage. The intruder escaped."

Hiruzen didn't blame Eiji and Kakashi. Based on their description, even if he had gone himself, he might not have been able to catch the enemy.

"Go get some rest early. With this failed operation, he probably won't dare come back for a while."