Shisui and Itachi had ended up crossing paths after all.
Uchiha Yuan watched the two figures darting back and forth, a complicated look on his face.
He hadn't seen Uchiha Itachi for several days, not since he'd run into him after he'd returned from the battlefield.
He hadn't expected to see him with Uchiha Shisui today.
The two were sparring.
Their Taijutsu, quick thinking, and tactical calculations all drew quiet admiration from Uchiha Yuan.
They really are both geniuses.
Uchiha Yuan didn't go over and interrupt them. After watching quietly for a while, he turned and slipped away.
Seeing Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui together gave Uchiha Yuan the feeling that the shackles of fate were gradually tightening around his neck.
Not long after Uchiha Yuan left, the two figures fighting in the clearing abruptly broke apart and landed.
Uchiha Shisui turned to look in the direction Uchiha Yuan had left. He'd sensed him approaching the clearing.
Then he turned back and saw that Uchiha Itachi was also watching the direction Uchiha Yuan had gone.
"Itachi, do you know the clan member who was just here?"
Uchiha Itachi nodded lightly. "Yes. I've run into him a few times before. He's Izumi's older brother, Uchiha Yuan."
Uchiha Shisui said, "Yuan may not have much talent for ninjutsu, but he's shown a strong aptitude for Taijutsu. He's an impressive guy."
Uchiha Itachi asked, "Is Yuan strong?"
"Very. He defeated more than a dozen people in my year, including Shimura Ken, all by himself."
Itachi said in surprise, "Yuan seems to be a year below you, Shisui."
Shisui smiled. "That's right. Our clan member is a genius in his own right."
Itachi said, "I think we could bring Yuan in and work together to ease the conflict between the clan and the village."
Itachi was precocious, and had realized at an early age that there was a conflict between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha.
Uchiha Yuan's comments about the war that day had resolved a question that had long troubled him. They'd also made him realize that Yuan was different from the other clan members, with insight beyond that of an ordinary person.
Shisui's expression turned regretful. "I've spoken with him, but like the other clan members, he takes a very hard line toward the village."
Hearing this, Uchiha Itachi furrowed his brow slightly and gazed in the direction Uchiha Yuan had left. Yuan, can't you see that there's a conflict between the clan and the village? Or is your outlook just as narrow?
As time passed, news of the war reached the village in ever greater quantities. The fighting seemed to grow more intense, and wounded shinobi kept arriving from the front.
The war had also changed. It was no longer a case of several Shinobi Villages attacking Konoha. Now, they were fighting one another.
The first clashes broke out between Iwagakure and Kumogakure, who had long been enemies. Then, seeing that the fighting against the Land of Fire had reached a stalemate, the Land of Water shifted its focus to the Land of Wind. Kirigakure and Sunagakure went to war.
As the Five Great Shinobi Villages became embroiled in all-out conflict, the smaller countries nearby were drawn in as well.
For a time, the entire Ninja World was engulfed in war.
The Third Shinobi World War had entered its most intense phase.
After school, Uchiha Yuan parted ways with Hatake Harukaze at an intersection.
He didn't return to the clan compound. Instead, he sprinted along a secluded path straight toward the outskirts of the village.
His destination was the Death Forest.
When he reached the edge of the village, Uchiha Yuan abruptly stopped.
He saw a solitary figure.
It was Kakashi.
The place was a cemetery for the village's shinobi. Kakashi stood before a gravestone.
A delicate yellow flower had been placed in front of it. The picture on the stone showed a girl with a gentle, sweet smile.
Uchiha Yuan didn't go over to greet him. He knew Kakashi didn't want to be disturbed right now.
But as Uchiha Yuan passed the cemetery, his keen senses detected an unfamiliar gaze fixed on him.
At that moment, it didn't take much thought to guess that the person behind that gaze was Uchiha Obito.
Fortunately, the gaze lingered on him only briefly before moving away. Uchiha Yuan silently breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Uchiha Obito didn't suspect him.
Still, to avoid drawing Uchiha Obito's attention, Uchiha Yuan had to take a detour. He kept his sensory abilities active the whole time.
If Obito was here, Zetsu might well be nearby too.
A short while later.
In the Death Forest, where towering trees blocked out the light and the surroundings were dark and gloomy, Uchiha Yuan hurried onward. At last, he stopped in a valley.
His sharp gaze swept the area twice. Then Uchiha Yuan clapped his hands, and four Shadow Clones shot off in different directions.
The four Shadow Clones took up positions around him and swiftly formed hand seals in unison, raising a barrier.
Uchiha Yuan then slapped one palm against the ground. Chakra surged out, quickly forming a summoning array on the earth. A hazy figure appeared from within it.
It was Hatake Sakumo.
Uchiha Yuan formed a seal with one hand. A Shadow Clone appeared beside him and stood motionless. Hatake Sakumo's hazy figure then slipped inside it.
The next moment, the Shadow Clone's eyes changed, and Hatake Sakumo's voice came from its mouth.
"I can't believe you were right. The Third Hokage would rather become Acting Hokage himself than let Orochimaru become Fifth Hokage.
"I can't believe they'd even abandon their own student for the sake of power. But with Orochimaru's pride, he probably won't accept being treated like this. He may cause trouble for the village in the future."
A mocking smile appeared on Uchiha Yuan's face. "Teacher, that's why they're the source of trouble for the village."
Hatake Sakumo fell silent for a moment, then sighed softly.
He lowered his head and examined the Shadow Clone he'd possessed. "This Shadow Clone has sixty percent of the Chakra I had when I was alive. Yuan, you're improving faster and faster."
"I owe it all to your guidance, Teacher."
Then their eyes met, and their fierce auras erupted, clashing violently.
The next moment, both figures vanished.
A thunderous boom rang out. A powerful shockwave burst through the air as the two struck each other hard with their palms, which were as sharp as blades.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The two figures moved like gusts of wind, flashing back and forth as sharp waves of force surged in every direction.
Every time they passed one another, they unleashed brutally fierce Blade Techniques.
After a while.
The surging gusts of force began to subside.
The ground was covered in crisscrossing, chaotic slash marks. At the center of them, Uchiha Yuan and Hatake Sakumo stood facing each other without moving.
Uchiha Yuan's right hand rested against Hatake Sakumo's neck, while his raised left forearm blocked the hand Hatake Sakumo had thrust at him.
"There's nothing more I can teach you about Blade Technique," Hatake Sakumo said, lowering his hand.
Uchiha Yuan took a few deep breaths. "No. Every time I spar with you, Teacher, I find something I need to improve."
Hatake Sakumo smiled faintly. Then his expression abruptly turned blank and lifeless.
He released the possession.
A moment later, the Shadow Clone also ran out of Chakra and dispersed on its own.
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