A Smooth Victory

An Anbu Ninja fell from midair, crashed through several walls, and landed inside a partially destroyed house.

"Roar—"

The Nine-Tails' roar echoed across the night sky.

"Cough, cough... Damn it, what... what's going on...?"

The Anbu Ninja coughed up blood as he tried to push himself up, but he had multiple broken bones. His right leg and arm in particular were bent at utterly unnatural angles.

He knew his condition all too well. In fact, the moment the Nine-Tails struck him, his fate had been sealed.

"The others... They have to make it back alive. They can't die here..."

The Anbu Ninja removed his mask, revealing a young but weather-beaten face. With his only working hand, his left, he struggled to form Hand Seals, then gently touched the ground.

Chakra spread from his fingertips in every direction, scanning the area like radar.

But as the seconds ticked by, the man's expression grew increasingly grim.

"That's impossible! They—they can't have been taken out so quickly. They must still be alive... They have to be..."

"There's no point wasting your strength."

Izumi had appeared beside the man at some point. She looked down at him.

"My dōjutsu divided you into separate areas long ago. Unless I lift the restriction, you'll never find them."

"You!"

The man's eyes widened as he stared fixedly into Izumi's eyes.

"You traitors! The Third won't let you get away with this! Konoha won't let you get away with this!"

"Ha. Traitors? That's rich. The clan that founded the village became its traitor..."

Izumi gave him a faintly mocking smile.

She had known some of the Uchiha's history before, but she hadn't been very interested in it and had never looked into it deeply.

Only after the Uchiha Clan Massacre, when Uchiha Arashi saved her, did she finally take his advice and study her clan's history in earnest.

The more she studied and learned, the more she felt that there was no hope for this world.

In the past, she might have been interested in arguing with this man, but she had long since lost any desire to do so.

"Not finished yet?"

The air beside Izumi warped, and Uchiha Arashi stepped out of the vortex.

"Almost. He's pretty strong, so he put up a bit of a fight."

Izumi answered at once. She certainly wasn't going to admit that she'd been a little slow.

"What about the others? Are they taken care of?"

Izumi asked in return.

"Done. There were eleven of them. I took out four, six died in the genjutsu, and I left the weakest one for Ayatsuki. Given how much time has passed, she should be finishing up soon."

Uchiha Arashi said casually.

"You... you... Konoha won't let you get away with this! The Third won't let you get away with this!!!"

The man on the ground glared at the pair with bloodshot eyes. If he could, he would have bitten the two of them to death.

"Is that so? Then I hope your dream comes true. Izumi, kill him."

"Okay."

Uchiha Izumi nodded, casually drew her Kunai, walked over, and slit the man's throat.

His eyes remained wide open. He never closed them, even in death.

But the two in front of him had already turned their attention elsewhere.

"No matter how many times I see it, your dōjutsu still feels absurdly powerful. Yomotsu Hirasaka—the place said to guide the souls of the dead. Once someone's hit by that technique, they're as good as dead."

Yomotsu Hirasaka was a dōjutsu that combined genjutsu with Space-Time Ninjutsu.

Uchiha Izumi could pull an enemy's mind into a genjutsu space where she controlled all time and space. She could read the enemy's mind, choose their most terrifying and helpless memories, recreate them in that space, and then make them repeat over and over, trapping them in a cycle.

At first glance, the technique seemed similar to Izanami. But unlike Izanami, even someone who accepted their fate and sincerely repented couldn't escape the genjutsu.

They would only gradually wear down through one cycle after another, then go mad, and eventually die.

As for her other dōjutsu, Life Thread, it could create a lifeline through which Izumi could share her life force with an enemy or transfer injuries she had suffered.

"Even so, you're far more impressive."

Izumi rolled her eyes at him. That ability of his to gain power just by telling stories was far beyond her dōjutsu. Had she ever complained?

Even setting that aside, the two Mangekyo he possessed were no weaker than hers. If anything, they were stronger.

"Heh, they just excel in different areas. All right, let's get out of here."

Uchiha Arashi put a hand on Izumi's shoulder.

Izumi dispelled the genjutsu, and everything around them vanished, including the Nine-Tails, which had been roaring furiously in the distance.

They returned to the clearing in front of the cave.

All twelve Anbu Ninjas lay on the ground. Nearby, Ayatsuki was yanking a Kunai out of an Anbu's chest.

Her arm was bleeding. It looked like she'd gotten hurt by accident.

"They managed to fight back even while under the genjutsu. These Anbu are pretty capable."

Uchiha Arashi said with a sigh. "But Ayatsuki did even better. I'll give you two extra chicken legs at dinner."

"Thanks, Arashi!"

Ayatsuki said happily.

Rainwater mixed with blood and ran across the ground, but the girl showed no fear or discomfort. The children of the Ninja World really did grow up fast. And after everything that had happened recently, Ayatsuki had already grown into a capable ninja.

They quickly searched the bodies, took everything of value, and left the corpses where they were. Then Uchiha Arashi opened the Kamui Dimension and took Izumi and Ayatsuki away.

Three days later, the rain still hadn't let up. Several figures appeared on the battlefield.

"They're all dead, and they've been dead for more than three days... More than half have no external injuries. They probably died in a genjutsu."

A ninja wearing a patterned mask stood and spoke.

"The Uchiha's dōjutsu really is formidable. Collect the bodies and let's head back."

The leader spoke without so much as a change in expression or tone.

"Aren't we going to investigate further?"

Another ninja asked.

"No need. This much rain has destroyed every trace. We wouldn't find anything even if we kept searching. And don't forget Danzo's orders. He only told us to take the news back. We're not to do anything unnecessary."

The leader replied in a low voice.

"Yes!"

The other three immediately straightened up.

They set to work, and before long they had cleared the battlefield and gathered all the bodies. Then they returned to Konoha.

They didn't notice that as they collected the bodies, another pair of eyes was watching them from the shadows.