New Strategy

Although he ordered a pursuit after the enemy retreated, Izuna had already issued secret orders before the battle began.

His shout of "Advance!" had merely been a bluff, making a show of fearlessness. In reality, they had begun to withdraw not long after the pursuit started.

That's right. It had all been to deceive Masashige Hagoromo and his men, making them misjudge the Uchiha's fighting strength.

"Damn it!"

Only after confirming there was no one nearby did Izuna put a hand over his right eye and curse under his breath.

"Vice Clan Leader!"

Sora Uchiha was startled by the sight and called out, "Someone! Get a medical ninja! A medical ninja!"

The Uchiha's few medical ninja hurried over and pressed their hands to Izuna's right eye, treating it with medical chakra.

But that only eased the pain. It did nothing to alleviate the damage to his eyesight caused by the Mangekyō Sharingan.

"All right, stop. There's no need to treat it."

Izuna stood up. "Back to the city."

"The Vice Clan Leader's first battle in command ended in a great victory. Our clan's triumph is just around the corner," said Ise Uchiha, one of Sora Uchiha's jōnin subordinates, trying to flatter him.

"Are you blind?"

Izuna replied coldly, "That was only meant to fool them."

Once the entire army had assembled, they quickly headed back to Stone City. Izuna's expression darkened. "We have to find a breakthrough as soon as possible. We can't keep this up for long."

Ise Uchiha looked awkward. Sora Uchiha gave the young man's shoulder a sharp smack. "You idiot. Your flattery just backfired, didn't it? Be smarter next time!"

Ise Uchiha gave a wry smile and shrugged. As they returned to their base in Stone City with the main force, he couldn't help asking, "The Vice Clan Leader's new Sharingan is..."

Sora Uchiha's expression was just as grave. "Yeah... According to the clan leader, it has extremely severe side effects. It seems there are many restrictions on using it."

Ise Uchiha sighed. "What a shame. If only he could use it without limit..."

The first battle after Izuna took on the role of Vice Clan Leader came to an end. For two days, the Five Allied Clans Army, led by the Hagoromo Clan, made no move.

In other words, Izuna had achieved his goal of intimidating them.

But the sheer size of the forces they had sent also put Izuna under tremendous pressure.

Damn it! At least let me transmigrate after Konoha was founded!

Of course, that was just a complaint. He still had to face the situation before him.

Thanks to the Sharingan of the Reconnaissance Unit, Ise Uchiha soon brought Izuna some intelligence.

Though Kōkawa Yokōichi was dead, the Onigawa Clan hadn't left the alliance. Instead, they had appointed Kenji Kōkawa, Kōkawa Yokōichi's younger brother, as their new clan leader and continued preparing for war against the Uchiha.

They had also figured out the Five Clans' combined strength.

Around 2,300 people had been committed to the war. That was the figure they had arrived at after their initial victory in the first battle.

As for Izuna's side, they had fewer than 500.

The room was bare, containing only a bed and a table.

Izuna sat at the table, quietly considering his strategy in the candlelight.

Calling up more fighters from the clan was all but impossible.

The Senju to the east could attack at any moment.

Although Izuna was confident that Hashirama Senju wouldn't make a move, Hashirama was only the Senju Clan's Vice Clan Leader at the moment.

The clan leader, Senju Takeuma, and his younger brother Tobirama Senju were no pushovers.

For now, he had to grow stronger himself.

With that in mind, Izuna opened the system's skill tree again.

A screen appeared:

[Player: Izuna Uchiha

Rank: Kage Level

Chakra Natures: Fire, Wind, Lightning

Kekkei Genkai: Mangekyō Sharingan

Skill Points: 72]

He was close to having enough Skill Points to exchange for an A-Rank Ninjutsu, but getting the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan was out of the question.

It cost 300 Skill Points. Even after the war with the Five Clans ended, he probably wouldn't have that many.

Help from afar couldn't solve an urgent problem. Izuna had to make a choice as soon as possible.

Then Izuna spotted a technique:

[Flying Thunder God Technique (B-Rank): Locked, 80 Skill Points] → [Flying Thunder God Technique Second Stage (A-Rank): Locked, ?? Skill Points] → [Flying Thunder God Third Stage (S-Rank): Locked, ?? Skill Points]

The original Flying Thunder God Technique—the one Tobirama Senju had used to ambush Mount Taihang—was B-Rank.

It used the formula on a specially made Kunai to enable instantaneous teleportation.

But it only allowed a single jump, making it somewhat limited.

The A-Rank Flying Thunder God Second Stage, on the other hand, allowed multiple consecutive teleports, covering a wider area with greater flexibility.

Minato Namikaze had modified Tobirama Senju's Flying Thunder God Technique and earned the title of "Yellow Flash."

The Flying Thunder God Third Stage could even create a barrier and teleport attacks within it.

With this technique, Minato Namikaze and Tobirama Senju had even teleported devastating attacks like a Tailed Beast Ball.

The original Flying Thunder God Technique was only B-Rank, but it was far more useful than ordinary A-Rank and even S-Rank Ninjutsu!

Seeing the Flying Thunder God Technique made Izuna think of Tobirama Senju.

That guy hadn't earned the nickname "Shinobi World's Fastest" yet, had he?

If Izuna learned the Flying Thunder God Technique too, wouldn't he have to compete with him for that title?

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck Izuna.

Wait. A technique just like Tobirama Senju's...

After thinking it over for a while, Izuna abruptly stood and spread a map across the table. The locations of the Five Allied Clans Army's camps had already been marked in red.

He'd always felt that the Five Clans joining forces against the Uchiha resembled the Warring States history of his previous life, when multiple states attacked Qin.

If so, how had Qin escaped its predicament and unified the land?

The answer was simple: sow discord!

An alliance was only strong because its members were united. Break them apart, and there was little left to fear.

"Someone, go get Commander Sora."

Izuna called out.

The guard at the door answered at once. "Yes, Vice Clan Leader."

A few minutes later, Sora Uchiha hurried over.

"Vice Clan Leader, you summoned me in the middle of the night. Is something the matter?"

Sora Uchiha entered Izuna's room and asked.

"Have a seat."

Izuna gestured.

Once the two of them were seated across from each other, Izuna said, "I called you here tonight because I want to learn a few things."

"Oh?"

Sora Uchiha furrowed his brows. "Go ahead."

"I know that the Hagoromo Clan and the Uchiha became enemies ten years ago, but do the other four clans have an old feud with us too?"

"No, they don't. That's why I was so surprised when Masashige Hagoromo brought the other four clans to our borders."

"In other words, the Fūma and the other three clans are only in this for the benefits."

Sora Uchiha nodded in agreement. "That's probably right. Their lands are all in the south of the western region. It's dry year-round, and they've coveted our Uchiha lands, which are rich and fertile, for a long time. It's probably been more than a day or two."

After pausing, Sora Uchiha continued, "The Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans are based in the north of the western region. Their lands aren't as rich as those of the Uchiha and the Senju, but they're still decent, so they haven't been in a hurry to get involved.

"Of course, more importantly, they fear the Uchiha's strength."