This Is the Konoha You Left Behind

The more complex a genjutsu was, the harder it was to make it work.

If he wanted this Cloud Ninja to see a meteor falling from the sky the next second, with his unattainable blonde female ninja crush descending from above with a ninja blade and splitting a meteor several kilometers wide in two, he would immediately realize something was wrong and question everything he had seen.

His crush had a child every year, and her eldest was already attending the Ninja Academy. How could she possibly come save him?

No matter how much genjutsu chakra it consumed, that kind of genjutsu was extremely difficult to pull off.

But making this Cloud Ninja believe in the images he had already seen was a simple genjutsu that was very difficult to break.

After the enemy saw Image A, that image was real. Then another genjutsu made him continue believing that what he saw was Image A.

In a short period of time, it was difficult for the enemy to realize he had fallen under a genjutsu.

Pfft!

The Cloud Ninja was still wondering why Konoha's Uchiha ninja kept using Body Flicker in stuttering bursts when a kunai struck his throat.

The kunai sliced through his windpipe and artery. Blood sprayed upward from his mouth and poured downward into his lungs.

Kawadera Uchiha withdrew the hand that had thrown the kunai.

He had thrown the kunai during a gap in the Frame-Skipping Illusion Body Flicker, and the Cloud Ninja had not reacted at all.

He was extremely satisfied with the Illusion Body Flicker he had created.

In the original story, Shisui Uchiha's Phantom Body Flicker Technique was even more effective. He used the Sharingan to create multiple phantoms that could attack enemies, hit hard, and would not vanish even after being attacked.

Unfortunately, Shisui had not been born yet, so he could only work on improving his own Illusion Body Flicker.

Kawadera Uchiha continued avoiding the fighting and charged toward Ken Senju at the very front of Konoha's right wing.

A Cloud Ninja had just finished his fight and killed the Konoha ninja before him when he caught sight of a Konoha Uchiha sprinting several dozen meters away from the corner of his eye.

By reflex, he threw his ninja blade to the side.

The blade was chipped all over. Let this sword that had followed him for over a year complete one final mission...

Yet the ninja blade passed straight through the Konoha ninja's figure!

Looking again, that Konoha ninja seemed to have an afterimage?

Kawadera Uchiha was greatly surprised. The moment the Cloud Ninja glanced at him from the side, his Sharingan had already cast a genjutsu.

The Frame-Skipping Illusion Body Flicker did not skip for long—less than half a second. Across two frames, he moved more than ten centimeters.

From the Cloud Ninja's perspective, there were two Konoha ninjas with one chest pressed against the other's back, and he had struck the one in the rear.

The ninja blade brushed past Kawadera Uchiha's shoulder, slicing open the shoulder fabric of his vest.

Kawadera Uchiha thought, This one's a bit tough.

His [Genjutsu] was 8.0. This Cloud Ninja's [Genjutsu] had to be around 8 as well.

After observing Itachi Uchiha's several appearances in the original story, Kawadera Uchiha had discovered that the first step to looking cool was choosing one's opponents.

Only draw your blade against the weak. That was the first rule of looking cool.

Pick a powerful opponent, and you could work yourself to death, get beaten senseless, and still not necessarily win. There was nothing stylish about that.

Faced with this Cloud Ninja, who had strong resistance to genjutsu, Kawadera Uchiha hurriedly fled farther away.

After all, this was a battlefield. Konoha ninja were everywhere around him.

When he looked back, the Cloud Ninja had chased him for over ten meters before, sure enough, getting tangled up by a Konoha ninja.

Tangling up in the literal sense. That Konoha ninja had jumped too high, and the Cloud Ninja drew a short blade and slashed open the Konoha ninja's abdomen.

His intestines burst out and wrapped around the Cloud Ninja.

Before dying, the Konoha ninja actually grabbed his own intestines by reflex, tightening them around the Cloud Ninja's neck.

Kawadera Uchiha hurriedly turned away. He could handle the rest, but those steaming intestines were a little nauseating.

Along the way, Kawadera Uchiha never lingered in battle. Whenever he encountered Cloud Ninja, he used the Frame-Skipping Illusion Body Flicker to continue on his way. At last, he reached the very front of the battle line, near the right fist of the pincer assault.

From afar, Kawadera Uchiha saw someone clad in red armor surrounded and attacked by at least two Cloud Ninja battalions!

Ken Senju? Was he trying to get himself killed?

In a situation like this, Tobirama Senju absolutely had to see it.

Kawadera Uchiha opened his Sea of Consciousness and silently watched everything.

Through Kawadera Uchiha, Tobirama Senju also saw the state of the battlefield.

Ken Senju was alone and deeply surrounded. With his formidable taijutsu and enormous chakra reserves, he had held back two or three Cloud Ninja battalions by himself.

Four Senju Clan jonin were clearing out Cloud Ninja on the perimeter and pushing the battle line forward.

Behind them, more than twenty Senju Clan ninja were charging toward the left, right, and rear, expanding their gains.

After only a few brief seconds of watching, four or five Senju Clan ninja had already died in battle.

The Senju Clan strictly upheld the Will of Fire, burning themselves up and offering their lives. They shielded the other Konoha ninja behind them and opened a path for Konoha's forces.

Only behind the Senju Clan ninja came the other ninja.

Among them, the Aburame Clan, Inuzuka Clan, Kurama Clan, and civilian ninja were the most proactive, fearlessly protecting the Senju Clan's left wing.

The pressure on the right wing was lighter. Ninja from the Sarutobi Clan, Ino-Shika-Cho Clans, Shimura Clan, and others continued charging toward the outer right flank.

As a result, Konoha's forces formed an arcing battle line stretching from right to left, squeezing the Cloud Ninja's room to maneuver.

Just as Kawadera Uchiha was about to move forward, a Senju ninja called out to stop him.

"Which squad are you from? Why are you darting between squads?"

Kawadera Uchiha recognized him. He was Seigetsu Senju's older brother, Seiei Senju.

"Jonin Seiei! I came from headquarters to deliver a battlefield report scroll!"

After tossing the scroll to Seiei Senju, Seiei first flicked his hand, shaking the blood from his palm.

Some of the blood had dried into blackish-red patches, stuck to his hand.

Seiei Senju opened the scroll, gave it a quick scan, then waved his hand. "Please inform headquarters that we have received the order. We will slow down immediately!"

Seiei Senju turned with a frown. He also felt that his father's advance had been too fast.

Before turning away, Kawadera Uchiha roughly swept his gaze over the area and silently counted the corpses on the ground.

"1, 2, 3... 13.

Lord Second Hokage, the Will of Fire has been perfectly inherited by the Senju Clan. On this battlefield, thirteen Senju Clan ninja have been sacrificed."

Within the Sea of Consciousness, Tobirama Senju said:

"I am very gratified. The vast majority of ninja are not people like you, who never rise early without profit.

Sacrificing oneself for friends, devoting oneself to comrades, burning oneself for the village—this is the Will of Fire. Only this can help the village survive war after war and hardship after hardship.

Especially the Senju Clan. Even after my death, they have not forgotten their original convictions. As an example to others, they stand in the most dangerous places in every battle."

Kawadera Uchiha laughed heartily within the Sea of Consciousness, laughing like a villain.

"Lord Second Hokage! There is a paradox here!

The purer someone's Will of Fire, the faster they die.

The weaker someone's Will of Fire, the slower they die.

In the end, Konoha will be left with a group of people who shout about the Will of Fire while every single one of them is terrified of death.

Once people like Ken Senju are dead, the village will be full of ninja like me.

Lord Second Hokage, sacrifice is certainly important, but encouraging sacrifice will absolutely lead to bad money driving out good.

The louder someone shouts about the Will of Fire, the less Will of Fire they possess.

The stronger Konoha's Will of Fire is now, the weaker Konoha will become in the future...

This is the Konoha you left behind."

"Impossible! That is sophistry!" Tobirama Senju said.

"Wars during the Warring States Era were so brutal that even six-year-old children had to take the battlefield. As long as they are ninja of Konoha, they will cherish Konoha and be willing to sacrifice themselves for it.

Generation after generation of Konoha ninja upholding the Will of Fire will eventually make Konoha prosperous and powerful!"

"Lord Second Hokage, let us make a wager. The Senju Clan sent more than forty ninja this time. I believe that at least twenty Senju ninja will die in this battle."

"Impossible! I personally trained Ken's taijutsu. He has the strength to protect the juniors behind him!"

Kawadera Uchiha neither agreed nor disagreed. He continued back toward headquarters, saying only, "Lord Second Hokage, I want the Body Flicker Technique as my reward for the A-rank mission."