I could kill my Shadow Clone in an instant. I couldn't afford to underestimate the enemy.
Uchiha Rei furrowed his brow and strode out of the laboratory, heading straight for his cottage. His steps were steady, but killing intent roiled in his eyes. If he hadn't possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, he would probably have chosen to leave his own village immediately. But now, with the Mangekyō, he had the confidence to face any enemy.
"Whether it's Uchiha Obito or Uchiha Itachi, I won't back down."
But as he hurried toward his cottage,
a vague, low voice came from the shadows inside.
"He used the Mangekyō and only killed a clone... Pathetic. Anbu have already arrived. We're leaving."
The voice was distant and cold. A moment later, the enemies hiding in Uchiha Rei's cottage vanished like smoke, without a sound.
By the time Uchiha Rei arrived, a squad of Anbu under the Hokage's direct command had gathered outside the cottage. Several masked shinobi in black were carefully examining the traces around them. One turned and gave him a brief report:
"The intruders left traces, but they withdrew before we arrived."
Rei coldly surveyed the area. "There are no signs of a struggle. That means they didn't intend to leave any clues."
The Anbu leader nodded. "We'll continue investigating. Lord Hokage has already been informed."
"Mm." Uchiha Rei said nothing more and folded his arms.
"Looks like... I'm too late."
The Anbu soon departed, disappearing into the night. Uchiha Rei stood motionless, his gaze sinking into the dark depths. He knew that now the enemy had tested him, they wouldn't give up so easily. Staying here would only put him at a disadvantage.
"You can be a thief for a thousand days, but you can't guard against one for a thousand days," he murmured with a sigh.
Once the Anbu had left, he too turned away from the cottage that had been exposed. In a flash, he swept through Konoha's main street like the wind.
Then he vaulted over the high wall and landed in the woods outside the village.
He no longer used the main gate. What Kage Level shinobi ever used Konoha's main gate?
"In Konoha, there's the Hokage and Danzo, along with all those clans," he muttered. "But the place I'm going doesn't belong to any center of power."
In Konoha, two great clans had always played pivotal roles: the Hyuga Clan and the Uchiha Clan. Rei was related to both by blood, but he didn't want to rely on them or become a pawn.
"The place I'm going is somewhere everyone has forgotten."
Kurenai Yuhi often came to chat with him. The woman had once casually mentioned, "The Kurama Clan's ancestral grounds are still up in the mountains behind the village. Almost no one goes there anymore."
The Kurama Clan had once possessed a powerful Genjutsu bloodline, but it had gradually grown diluted, and descendants with the gift had become rare. The clan had declined from its former glory and was now regarded as a marginal clan in Konoha. Its ancestral grounds were where Uchiha Rei was headed.
Rei moved lightly through the dark forest and soon reached a forgotten mountain. It wasn't especially tall, but it was extremely remote. As he studied the area, he spotted signs of life.
"Hm? Someone still lives here?"
Before him stood a row of villas tucked between the valley and the trees.
"They live better than I do?" He chuckled. "The Kurama family's doing better than I expected."
He didn't barge in. Instead, he chose a secluded spot near the corner of the estate and settled in to watch. The high ground gave him a clear view of the surroundings.
"I'll stay here tonight."
He leaned against an old tree, closed his eyes, and regulated his breathing, letting the breeze stir the leaves as he waited for midnight.
The night deepened, the stars grew faint, and an owl occasionally swept past in the distance.
Deep inside the villa, warm lamplight spilled from the studio windows, separating the darkness outside from the world within.
The studio was filled with the faint scent of paint and rice paper. A girl sat before a huge canvas, lost in thought. Her smooth black hair fell over her shoulders, and a purple robe hung loosely around her, setting off her snow-white skin and cool, refined features.
"Could this really be the end of the Kurama Clan?" she whispered. The brush in her hand left a dark, distorted streak on the paper.
This was the third time she had asked Kurenai Yuhi to become a full-fledged shinobi—and the third time she had been turned down.
"Do I really... have no talent for being a shinobi?" Her voice grew more agitated, trembling faintly. She coughed and covered her mouth, a trace of red staining her lips.
The rejection letter lay quietly beside the easel, every word stabbing into her heart like a blade.
"How am I supposed to avenge my parents? How can I restore my clan..." Her voice dropped to a barely audible murmur, but a nearly twisted obsession burned in her eyes.
"...I heard some time ago that the Third Hokage personally arranged for Teacher Kurenai to kill my parents."
"If... I can't even become a shinobi... what's the point of living?"
Her voice spiraled out of control, her words becoming incoherent. She clutched the brush so tightly her knuckles turned white. Suddenly, she clutched her head in pain. A strange light glimmered in her eyes, and her body convulsed.
Then her figure twisted and warped in the studio. Her hair floated up, and Blood-colored Pupils replaced her clear eyes. Hornlike growths of bone sprouted from her forehead, and purple marks spread across her skin. In the next instant, she had become a grotesque monster with two horns.
The monster growled and lumbered out of the studio, crushing paints and brushes beneath its feet. Only instinct and hatred remained in its eyes.
It wandered through the estate beneath the cover of night, flickering like a nightmare. Its movements were aimless, but killing intent spread through the air.
Suddenly, it fixed its gaze on an Anbu Chunin hidden in the estate. Their eyes met, and the Anbu froze as if trapped in an endless nightmare. A groan escaped his throat, and he crumpled to the ground. There were no signs of a struggle, nor of any Ninjutsu.
The monster's Genjutsu was far stronger than that of Kurenai Yuhi, hailed as "Konoha's greatest Genjutsu master." If Uchiha Itachi were no longer alive, perhaps only Shisui could wield such power.
But Shisui was dead, and Itachi had disappeared into the darkness.
Meanwhile, at another corner of the estate, a shinobi sat quietly against a wall, as steady as a rock. Uchiha Rei was waiting to Sign-in at midnight.
Suddenly, he sensed a warped chakra approaching.
"Hmm?" He cracked open his eyes. A monster wreathed in eerie green flames lunged at him, its horns gleaming like metal as purple fire and poisonous mist poured from its mouth.
"A monster?"
He reacted swiftly, hurling a shuriken that struck the monster squarely in the forehead.
But the shuriken passed through without a sound, and the monster didn't budge.
"Fake? A Genjutsu?" Blood-red light flashed in his eyes as his Mangekyō Sharingan spun, crimson radiance slicing through the illusion.
"Hizujin."
His Mangekyō power quietly unfurled. In an instant, the monster seemed to be swept away by an invisible black tide, vanishing from sight. The illusory flames faded, revealing a girl lying on the ground.
Uchiha Rei slowly approached and looked down at her for a moment.
She was a frail figure with ink-black hair and disheveled clothes. Her face was pale, weakened by the backlash of the Genjutsu. Her chest rose and fell sharply, and cold sweat beaded on her brow. Her collar had fallen slightly open, and the skin beneath her collarbone was faintly flushed from the Genjutsu, like petals dusted with frost, lending her a touch of tragic beauty.
He recognized her—Kurama Yakumo, the last Clan Head of the Kurama Clan and his former classmate. She was a girl with a powerful talent for Genjutsu, a student of Genjutsu master Kurenai Yuhi, but her body held her back. Her chakra had been in turmoil for years, beyond her control—a talent and a curse intertwined.
A girl trapped in a birdcage, beautiful and lonely.
"Since I'm already here, I might as well help her."
"But first, I'll Sign-in."
[Ding!] [Sign-in location: Kurama Clan Compound!] [Sign-in successful!] [Sign-in reward: Kurama Clan Kekkei Genkai!]
He felt a familiar yet strange power flow into his body. His talent for Genjutsu and his ability to control it instantly soared.
"Kurama Genjutsu... paired with the Mangekyō, this'll be interesting."
Uchiha Rei gathered green chakra and quickly helped the girl up.
"Did you... save me?"
She opened her eyes and recognized the masked shinobi in Anbu garb. A bitter smile curved her lips. "But there's no point in me being alive... Just let me die."
Her voice was weak, yet softly resolute, like a withered leaf drifting on the winter wind.
Uchiha Rei crouched and gazed at her. "If I could help you break free of your shackles and become a shinobi, would you be interested?"
Yakumo froze. A light she had never felt before flickered in her eyes, like a crack appearing in a frozen lake. She replied softly, her voice trembling. "I-I would... But what would it cost? Do you want me to... betray Konoha?"
"The cost?" Uchiha Rei's voice was low, touched by an almost imperceptible smile. "There's no cost. Think of it as something I'm doing on a whim."
He reached out and gently steadied her by the shoulder. "Close your eyes. Don't resist."
Yakumo hesitated, then slowly nodded and closed her eyes.
Uchiha Rei stood up. Behind his mask, the Mangekyō Sharingan spun once more, drawing Yakumo's consciousness into an Illusionary Realm.
Before you continue