"His identity was something I needed to figure out how to deal with."
Deep in the forests of the Land of Grass, Uchiha Hikari followed Haori from a distance, but her mind was elsewhere.
She truly hated the shinobi system of this world, and she hated the Uchiha Clan that had once treated her as less than human.
But Haori had been through much the same as she had, and he had rescued her.
On top of that, he had made her feel a warmth she hadn't felt in a long time, leaving her conflicted.
Everything he had said to her, and all the little things he did in their daily life, showed that Haori genuinely cared about her and truly considered her a friend.
Though Haori seemed to treat everyone about the same.
"And why are you an Uchiha, anyway?"
Haori's identity as an Uchiha still bothered Hikari, even if he had invited her to help burn the clan to the ground.
Until she saw what was really going on, she would remain cautious.
Still, she had more or less come to regard Haori as half a friend.
Naturally, she had insisted on coming along because she didn't want anything to happen to this "half-friend" of hers.
Back when she had been a weapon of the Uchiha, she had experienced the most brutal battles. She knew all too well how terrifying the battlefield could be.
But she had also noticed that her insistence on coming along seemed to have caused Haori a fair amount of trouble.
He said it wasn't a big deal, but she wasn't stupid.
"I should look for a chance to find someone from the Uchiha Clan. Then I can borrow their identity."
She had no idea that Haori had independently arrived at much the same idea.
And as she thought about it, her gaze grew dangerous.
"If nothing else, I can just find someone suitable and take them out. That'll work too!"
She was from the Warring States Period, after all, and she had been on the battlefield and awakened her Mangekyo Sharingan. It was only natural for her to have a few extreme ideas.
But as she pondered, she suddenly sensed fighting up ahead.
Her brow furrowed slightly, and she immediately sped toward Haori.
Just as she was about to reach him, she realized that fog had begun to gather all around her.
Amid the mist at the other end, the clang of metal and the roar of ninjutsu rang out without pause. Haori dodged while looking for an opening to counterattack.
He was only one man, and blowing up a Shadow Clone earlier had left him feeling awful.
"Uchiha Itachi really is a freak. How can he stand something as painful as blowing up a Shadow Clone?"
Haori wasn't fond of Uchiha Itachi, but that didn't mean he couldn't imitate some of his tactics.
Still, he had underestimated just how much blowing up a Shadow Clone would affect him.
And there was no denying that Mist shinobi were true to form.
They didn't seem to care much at all when one of their comrades died. If anything, they might have preferred it that way.
Zabuza was the ruthless man who had killed all his classmates, while Kisame, though he hadn't completely turned dark yet, was still a cruel man by nature.
Otherwise, he couldn't have killed the only person who had truly cared about him with a single stroke, even if the act left him utterly broken inside.
The Hozuki Clan shinobi's death had left them with no negative feelings whatsoever. If anything, it had made them even more violent.
Having a teammate killed right in front of them, after they had already been toyed with, was something they couldn't accept!
They had also learned from their mistake. Against an opponent like Haori, they fell into a tacit rhythm: one attacked while the other supported him with ninjutsu.
But neither of them had reached the strength they would have in the original story, and they had just been battered by the explosion.
So even with their ferocious attacks, they had no advantage. Haori was recovering bit by bit and beginning to take control.
"Die!"
While Haori dodged Kisame's Water Release, Zabuza immediately attacked from behind.
Though Haori was feeling the strain, he still saw through the attack at once and blocked it with the Ninja Sword taken from the Hozuki Clan shinobi.
At almost the same moment, he drew a Kunai with his left hand and thrust it toward Zabuza's heart!
Zabuza had kept his head lowered to avoid Haori's eyes as much as possible, which made his reactions a fraction slower.
But as soon as he saw Haori move, he dodged. Haori flung the Kunai at him.
"Ninja Art: Kunai Rain!"
The instant he threw it, Haori formed a Hand Seal with one hand. In a flash, the Kunai split into dozens of copies and shot straight toward Zabuza.
Haori had learned Thousand Needles Rain from Shiranui Genma, but the technique wasn't limited to needles.
"Water Style: Water Wall!"
Kisame had been looking for an opening from the sidelines. At the sight of the sudden swarm of Kunai, he reacted with incredible speed.
The thick wall of water blocked every last Kunai. As the wall vanished, Zabuza, concealed behind it, finished forming his Hand Seals.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
Seeing the Water Dragon rushing toward him, Haori didn't lose his composure. He formed his Hand Seals without hesitation.
Boom—
He spat out a huge fireball, and the two techniques collided fiercely the next moment!
The deafening roar filled the air as steam billowed outward. Haori suddenly swung his Ninja Sword hard to the side.
Clang—
Another sharp ring sounded as his Ninja Sword blocked Kisame's surprise attack!
Kisame leaped backward when his attack failed, then joined Zabuza.
"To be honest, I'm a little disappointed."
Haori made no move to pursue them. He knew his own condition, and he was also deeply puzzled.
Why were Kisame and Zabuza here? They hadn't appeared together in the original story.
The Mist Anbu in the original story had all died, so he couldn't shake the feeling that the script had gone wrong.
He would have to watch things for a while longer. Besides, he needed some time to recover.
"Because you two can't even entertain me."
Damn Uchiha!
Kisame and Zabuza nearly lost their composure at Haori's words. They both cursed him furiously in their hearts.
But they knew the truth: the two of them were truly helpless against this young Uchiha!
The powerlessness they felt left them close to despair. Were all Uchiha monsters?
They could only keep those thoughts to themselves. They remained on guard, ready to attack at any moment.
"Looks like our fight isn't over yet."
Haori shrugged, unconcerned, and raised his Ninja Sword with a grim smile.
"I hope you can at least make me feel some pressure this time!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Haori's chakra began to surge wildly. But at that very moment, a tremendous roar suddenly rang out!
The powerful shock wave nearly knocked Haori off his feet. At the same time, the mist surrounding them began to dissipate.
Most importantly, Haori stared in astonishment as a ring of black flames appeared at his feet!
The flames didn't burst into action, but seemed to be protecting him. The moment he saw them, Haori was stunned.
And in that instant, he became even more convinced that the script had gone wrong, because those flames—
"Is this... Amaterasu?"
Thanks to the big shot White Shirt for the donation. Thank you, thank you!
Damn, I forgot to schedule this. I'm on my knees begging forgiveness QAQ
A newbie humbly begs you to keep reading. Your current reads will determine a book's future, so letting chapters pile up can easily kill it.
Thanks, everyone! Onz