When Fucheng heard the black-haired girl recognize him, he had a rough idea what was going on. But they were still in the middle of a fight, so he didn't dare dwell on it.
He quickly formed Hand Seals and threw five Kunai.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Claw Crimson!"
The Kunai shot forward, trailing several lengths of wire.
Centered on Uchiha Fucheng, five blazing fire serpents spread out, each wrapped around a length of wire.
The Kunai throw and the Fire Release explosion.
The puppeteer used her puppets to perfectly block two of the flames.
But the other Sand Ninja Chunin was burned on his right arm by Phoenix Sage Claw Crimson.
The wires had been coated with an accelerant, making the flames difficult to extinguish.
The Sand Ninja proved remarkably decisive. He traded an arm for his life, cutting it off with a single slash—a testament to his wealth of battlefield experience.
The last ninja Fucheng had seen act with such decisiveness was the Raikage who had lost an arm in his memories.
The wounded Chunin ducked away.
But the two Genin behind him were far too slow.
The Kunai changed direction in midair and struck both Sand Ninja in the chest.
The Fire Release that followed raced along the wires and set their entire bodies ablaze.
Before they could call for help, the explosive wave of fire blasted the two Genin into mangled chunks.
One of the eyes blown off even landed on a Konoha Genin.
Urgh—
The gruesome sight made the inexperienced Konoha Genin look ready to throw up.
Fortunately, Uchiha Hezi, who knew the clan head's second son well, was standing nearby.
She promptly pulled the other Genin back.
The fight had already become too intense for rookies like them, who could do little more than retch.
Uchiha Hezi planned to lead the other two away from the battlefield first.
That way, Lord Fucheng, with his superior strength, could fight the enemy without holding back.
Behind the puppeteer stood another Sand Ninja Genin.
Uchiha Fucheng glanced at the poised Mikoto and said in a completely flat voice, "Take care of that last Genin. I'm going after the Chunin who's running."
With that, Uchiha Fucheng opened his eyes wide and met the puppeteer's wary gaze.
Then he turned and raced after the fleeing Chunin without looking back.
"Huh? Me?!" Mikoto was stunned.
"Why did he leave?"
Mikoto had only just breathed a sigh of relief after being hunted down when she ran into Fugaku's younger brother.
And then—nothing!
He'd left her to deal with the puppeteer and gone off on his own.
The rather nervous Misaka Mikoto nearly cried out.
I don't think I can beat the puppeteer. These puppets don't conduct electricity, and she isn't afraid of Lightning Release.
Mikoto gripped her short sword tightly and watched the puppeteer before her with caution.
She hadn't expected the puppeteer to suddenly go berserk and throw herself at her own puppet.
The mechanisms in the chests of both puppets instantly fired thousands of needles. After a terrifying series of rapid pops, the puppeteer was covered in a ghastly green from head to toe.
"What?!" Mikoto nearly questioned her own sanity.
Mikoto immediately slipped behind the Cat-Head Earth Wall. She was afraid of being hit by the poison needles flying everywhere.
Only then did she realize what had happened.
When Uchiha Fucheng left, the puppeteer had already been hit with Sharingan Genjutsu—"enough to kill her"!
Under the Genjutsu's control, the puppeteer died with her eyes wide open.
She probably never figured out how she'd ended up dying at the hands of her own puppets.
The remaining Genin from the Land of Wind seemed scared out of his wits. He turned and ran.
Mikoto wasn't about to let him escape. She immediately activated Lightning Release and chased after him.
Mikoto's Taijutsu, enhanced with Lightning Release chakra, was far beyond a Chunin's.
The panicked Sand Ninja hadn't gone far before Mikoto drove an electrified, razor-sharp Kunai into the center of his back!
To make sure he wasn't faking his death, Mikoto gave him several fierce shocks with the strongest current she could manage.
Only when he stopped moving completely did she approach, panting, and carefully pull out the Kunai.
"Are you that poor? Why are you so attached to a single Kunai?" Uchiha Fucheng's voice suddenly came from nearby.
"On a battlefield, it's hard to tell whether an intact corpse is still alive or capable of fighting back. You'd better stop collecting Kunai like this."
"Huh?!" Mikoto turned around in a panic.
Seeing that it was Uchiha Fucheng, she relaxed.
"I didn't hear you coming. I thought you were an enemy." She put away the Kunai, a little embarrassed, and looked at Fucheng's right hand.
It held a dirt-covered head.
Mikoto understood. "So that's the other Chunin. He probably died even faster than the puppeteer."
"Lord Fucheng is incredible!"
Mikoto was amazed. Lord Fucheng killed the puppeteer too. That Sand Ninja puppeteer was nearly a Special Jōnin, yet she couldn't withstand a single glance from his Sharingan!
Mikoto looked at Uchiha Fucheng with admiration.
Although Mikoto was also a branch member of the Uchiha family, the only Three-Tomoe Sharingan user she had ever met was Uchiha Fugaku, the heir apparent.
She had only seen an elite of Uchiha Fucheng's caliber, a Three-Tomoe jōnin, at the Konoha Military Police Force.
"Lord Fucheng, my name is Mikoto. Thank you so much for saving me."
Mikoto smiled gently and bowed to Uchiha Fucheng with impeccable formality.
"My mother is also a member of the Uchiha Clan. I saw you at the outpost before. I know you're Lord Fugaku's younger brother."
Her words, "My name is Mikoto," stirred up a storm in Uchiha Fucheng's heart.
Who?
You're Mikoto?!
Fucheng searched his memories. There did seem to be a distant relative in the Uchiha family by that name.
Mikoto's mother was from the Uchiha Clan, while her father was the heir to the Earl of the noble Misaka family in the Land of Fire.
After her father died, she and her mother had moved back to the Uchiha Clan.
An elder had even prepared detailed profiles of the clan's young women.
They had been meant to help him and his older brother, Uchiha Fugaku, choose. Both he and Fugaku had read the detailed profiles of the eligible girls in the family.
Misaka Mikoto (Uchiha Mikoto)
Age: 14
Abilities: Fire Release, Lightning Release, swordsmanship; currently a Chunin.
As the heir to the Uchiha clan head's line, Fucheng would probably become engaged and marry at an early age.
He and Fugaku couldn't exactly pick anyone they wanted, but at the very least, the beautiful, eligible girls of their own clan would be introduced to the clan head's family first.
Fucheng mused, Could this Mikoto be Sasuke's mom?
Right now, Fucheng had only one thought.
Uchiha Mikoto, Sasuke's mom, was actually surnamed Misaka before she got married? And her name was Misaka Mikoto?!
[Follower marked. Current following value: 75%]
The notification in his mind nearly made Uchiha Fucheng lose control of his expression.
He thought he understood now: the grand prize from his reincarnation login, which he hadn't been able to use before, was meant to be used on someone else!
That strange, lightning-shaped orb of light wasn't a reward for him to use himself.
It had to be used on a qualified follower like Mikoto.
Fucheng thought, 75%—that isn't very high.
He had just saved her, after all. Otherwise, Misaka Mikoto's following value toward him might have been even lower.
If I make Weasel and Sasuke's mom my followers, would that count as stealing Fugaku's girl?
A rather unconventional idea churned in Fucheng's mind.
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