"Itachi, I leave Sasuke to you from now on."
A full moon hung high in the sky, completely cloudless, and its cold radiance bathed Konoha Village.
Bathed in this moonlight, a clan-wide massacre was taking place.
In the Uchiha clan's compound at the village's outermost edge, the members of the Uchiha Clan, regardless of women, children, old, and young, all died tragically under blades at this moment.
Corpses were strewn everywhere with unclosed eyes, and thick and long bloody scents exuded from everywhere within the entire clan territory.
Inside the residence of the Minister of the Uchiha Guard Squad, Uchiha Fugaku and his wife, Mikoto, knelt inside the house, looking at their eldest son—who was filled with fierce eyes yet had his eyes filled with tears—before them. The married couple closed their eyes and silently waited for their son's slaughter.
Accompanied by a faint sobbing sound, the two only felt a pain in their bodies, and then completely lost consciousness.
When Uchiha Fugaku opened his eyes once more, he discovered that his entire body had become in a transparent state.
"This is..."
"A soul state?"
Uchiha Fugaku looked at his own body, which had grown illusory, and then surveyed his surroundings.
His son Itachi had already left the room, and the corpses of himself and his wife were lying on the ground, with blood flowing freely.
His youngest son Sasuke was lying at the doorway, though without any injuries on his body, and his chest still rose and fell normally; however, his face was pale and his brows were furrowed, presumably from having a nightmare.
After all, he was still a child, and had witnessed such a tragic event happen in his home with his own eyes...
"I am..."
An equally illusory and transparent figure emerged from his wife's body, identical in appearance to his wife, naturally her soul.
Mikoto slowly opened her eyes. Confusion flashed through her gaze for a single instant, but she immediately understood, observing the current appearance of herself and her husband, and already had the answer in her heart.
"We... really died. I wonder what the world after death is like?"
"To think the Uchiha Clan would perish at my hands..."
Just as Fugaku and his wife immersed themselves in post-mortem emotions, a strange and deep and resonant male voice rang out.
"The world after death is not as good as the living imagine."
The sudden voice immediately interrupted the couple's reflections. Rich ninja proficiency made Fugaku turn around instantly, looking in the direction of the voice while shielding his wife behind him.
Fugaku had not noticed the presence of anyone else in the room beforehand.
He sternly demanded: "Who are you? Why are you here?"
Coming into view was a man wearing pitch-black clothes, tall in stature, with a katana tucked into his waist, looking like a noble samurai.
Yet what left the deepest impression was the man's appearance.
His face was regular and handsome, and his narrow and long phoenix eyes possessed quite a bit of majesty. His eyebrows were thick and long, yet unlike the heavy ones of Guy from the same village, they instead rose upward like burning flames. His short, dark-red hair was the same, giving off a strange feeling that was both solemn and vibrant.
Amidst the darkness, those eyes burst forth with astonishing bright light.
"Fugaku-san, do not be agitated... though agitation seems useless anyway, seeing as you are already dead," the man said. "My name is Shikashuin Kenma, a shinigami from another world, and right now I want to make a deal with you Uchiha Clan."
"A shinigami? From another world?"
The couple revealed looks of doubt one after another.
Since he was a shinigami, he ought to come to escort lost souls like them, but what did coming from another world mean?
Could it be that shinigami were also divided by territory, just like ninjas who demarcated spheres of influence, with different shinigami stationed in various places?
Fugaku relaxed his vigilance slightly, yet still asked with a frown: "What deal?"
Shikashuin Kenma stepped forward and spoke: "I can let you live another life in another world, a world called Soul Society. In exchange, your Uchiha Clan will sign a contract with me and pledge wholehearted allegiance to me!"
As he spoke, his gaze swept across the couple's chests; there were no chains, which he supposed was the difference of a different world.
"Live... another life!"
Although Uchiha Fugaku was tempted by the lure of living another life, he did not lose his reason to agree immediately; rather, he asked in a deeply calm voice: "Since we are already dead, how can we live another life? Will you resurrect us? If we go to the Soul Society spoken of by Lord Shinigami, will we still be able to travel back and forth to the ninja world in the future?"
Uchiha Mikoto's line of sight landed on Sasuke at the doorway, her gaze filled with guilt and care.
Kenma extended two fingers.
"First, you will go to Soul Society in a soul state. Even so, it is no different from normal living people; if your aptitude is excellent, you can even eat normally, and having children is also feasible."
"Second, I have already mastered the coordinates of the ninja world. In the future, if you wish to travel back and forth, as long as you obtain my consent and open up a Senkaimon, you will be able to come and go freely."
Uchiha Fugaku's eyes flickered, already moved, but he asked once more: "What if we do not agree to this deal?"
"This realm also has its own Pure Land, but unlike the world where I reside, souls exist in a state where their consciousness is frozen. If you do not follow me, you can only go to the ninja world's Pure Land, and the ultimate end will be to lose your will until your soul undergoes sinking and annihilation."
After Kenma finished explaining, he waited a moment to let Fugaku and his wife digest the information, then offered his choice.
"Choose whether to follow me to live in another world, or have your soul return to this realm and ultimately sink and perish."
This concerned thousands of people of the Uchiha Clan, and a single misstep would cause the entire clan to lose its future once again.
At this moment, Uchiha Fugaku only felt the heavy pressure pressing down on his shoulders, making him unable to breathe.
Faced with such a heavy choice, his indecisive nature acted up once more, making it difficult to make any decision for the moment.
"Lord Shinigami, this is of the utmost importance. Would you allow us to discuss this with our clansmen?"
"Very well, but time is pressing; you had better hurry up and take action."
Kenma nodded slightly, then continued: "I have set up kido that guides lost souls and a guide at your Guard Squad building. I imagine your compatriots will arrive there very quickly."
Fugaku and Mikoto exchanged a glance, then walked toward the outside of the house.
Passing by Sasuke, the two paused slightly, then continued their pace without stopping.
Matters had their priorities, and their son's body was unharmed; they could not waste time now.
As soon as they stepped out the door, they saw that the sky outside was covered by a nearly transparent thin film, enveloping the entire clan territory. Mystical runes were pasted on the surface of the film, crisscrossing like chains.
"What is this again?"
A wave of astonishment surged in the hearts of the two; previously, they had not seen this thing in the sky.
Then they looked toward the house in unison; without needing to ask, they could guess that this was undoubtedly the means of this mysterious shinigami.
Watching the retreating backs of Uchiha Fugaku and his wife, Shikashuin Kenma's brows relaxed.
"With the temperament of the Uchiha Clan, dying with such grievances, I imagine they will ultimately agree..."
"However, considering the worship-the-strong nature of this bunch of mental patients, I still need to let them witness my strength first."
Shikashuin Kenma knew the personalities of this group of Uchiha people all too well.
Having already read the manga and countless fanfiction novels in his past life, he understood this Uchiha clan extremely thoroughly.
That's right, Shikashuin Kenma was not a person of the ninja world, nor a native of Soul Society, but a soul coming from a world called Earth.
Through Great Luck Iai, Kenma's soul traversed into Soul Society and was later picked up by an old man.
Because he was encountered at an abandoned millstone workshop, he was given the name [Kenma].
Through half a year of study, he learned the language of Soul Society, depended on the old man for survival, and lived together.
Because he could feel hunger, he applied to Shino Academy; however, because the school's teacher wrote the name wrong during registration, entering it into Seireitei's internal records, it became his present name [Kenma].
As soon as he enrolled, Kenma displayed extraordinary talent, coupled with hard work, and was praised by the academy's teachers and students as an elite student.
After graduation, because of his stable personality and handsome appearance, he was favored by the previous head of the great noble Shikokuin family and taken in as a matrilocal son-in-law to assist and restrain the overly lively current head of the family.
Although they were not yet formally married at present, the two were already engaged, and the matter was set in stone; thus Kenma took the surname, being called [Shikashuin Kenma].
The Zanpakuto at his waist was what allowed Shikashuin Kenma to traverse once more, coming from Soul Society to the ninja world.
His spiritual might had reached the fourth tier, attaining lieutenant-level, and he could also hear the name of his Zanpakuto and thereby perform Shikai.
One of his preliminary released abilities was sufficient to let him travel back and forth between two different worlds.
Having made up his mind, he broke the spatial barrier between the two worlds. The first world he arrived at was this war-torn Naruto World.
After familiarizing himself with the environment of the ninja world for a period of time, he launched his actions.
This was precisely the eve of the Uchiha clan massacre.
After Fugaku and his wife left, Shikashuin Kenma's gaze landed on Sasuke, who was having a nightmare.
"There is no rush... Just a few decades from now, you will also be mine."
After stepping out of their home, the couple immediately split up to act, running into various streets to call upon the souls of their clansmen to gather on the main street.
Meanwhile, the lost souls of the Uchihas also realized what situation they were in at this moment, and while still immersed in anger and unwillingness, they heard the shouts of Fugaku and Mikoto coming from outside.
"Uchiha Fugaku, what is the meaning of this! How dare your son Itachi treat us like this!"
"Minister, look at the good son you raised; you must give us an explanation!"
"My daughter was only three months old! She was cruelly killed by Itachi just like that, wuwuwu!"
"And my son, he was only five years old! What wrong could such a small child have done! Why kill him!"
Amidst crying and scolding, the crowd walked out of their homes and onto the street, cornering Fugaku and Mikoto and surrounding them tightly.
The tearful accusations of the clansmen made it almost unbearable for Fugaku.
The man who had shaken the ninja world with the name of [Fierce Eyes] on the battlefield found himself, this time, not knowing what face he had to confront his clansmen's weeping and anger.
The one who committed the crime was his own son, and all the blame ought to be borne by himself as a father.
"But not now!"
A roar almost drowned out the weeping and shouting of the clansmen.
Within the clan, Uchiha Fugaku still held considerable prestige, and the voices on the street gradually quieted down somewhat.
Bang!
Fugaku led Mikoto, and the couple knelt on the ground facing the surrounding clansmen, heavily kowtowing a resounding bow.
His lowered face was already covered in tears.
"I bear full responsibility for Itachi's matter. After tonight is over, even if you were to cut me into a thousand pieces, it would not be enough!"
"Yet there are important matters tonight, concerning the future of my Uchiha Clan. I beg you all to grant us a grace period of one night—no, just one hour! Once an hour has passed, dispose of me however you please!"
Fugaku's words carried sobbing, his voice hoarse.
Beside him, Mikoto also shouted loudly, "Me too! Please listen to Fugaku and me finish explaining this matter!"
Amidst the sobbing of the crowd, a voice came, "But we are all already dead, how can there still be a future!"
"There is!" Fugaku roared loudly, "Just a moment ago, I met Lord Shinigami, and he gave us of the Uchiha Clan a chance to live another life!"
The married couple hurriedly recounted what had just happened.
A wave of astonishment and skepticism rang out within the crowd.
"This kind of thing... how is that possible!"
"Whether that Lord Shinigami is truly worthy of our trust remains unclear, doesn't it?"
"Not to mention swearing allegiance? We are the proud Uchiha; even if it's a shinigami..."
Just as everyone fell back into a hubbub, a monstrous pressure swept in from thin air, bearing down upon everyone.
The street instantly plunged into a dead silence, and all sounds abruptly ceased.
Thud, thud, thud...
The old, the weak, the women, and the children were the first who could not hold on, pressed flat to the ground by this pressure, unable to move.
The able-bodied men and Genin of each household followed, and last were those elite clansmen who had opened the Sharingan.
In the blink of an eye, across the entire street, not a single person remained standing.
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