Attack from the Void

Several figures appeared within the Uchiha compound, clad in tactical vests and carrying short blades, their faces obscured by patterned masks.

Root!

"Search the perimeter and report any intelligence immediately."

"Yes!"

The group dispersed.

However, two individuals remained standing in place.

"Follow me. This is your first mission, so watch how I handle it."

The ninja who appeared to be the captain spoke to the two of them.

"Yes."

The two nodded and obediently followed behind him.

"Our mission this time is to search for traces of survivors."

The three entered a small courtyard, and the team leader spoke.

"Captain, hasn't the Uchiha clan already been wiped out? Why do you think there are survivors?"

The ninja with a red circular mark on his mask asked.

"It is not what I think, but what Lord Danzo believes... Although the Uchiha clan is dead, our post-incident investigation revealed that the body count did not match. After preliminary screening, we discovered several anomalies. Look here."

He pointed to the bloodstains in the courtyard.

"What can you see?"

"Someone died here."

The other ninja said, crouching down to observe carefully. "This is where the body fell. Judging by the direction of the blood spray, he must have been facing the courtyard gate when he suffered a fatal attack, then collapsed face-down on the ground."

"Correct. What about over here?"

The captain pointed to the other side.

"This person was also attacked from the front, but he fell backward."

"Connect the footprints at the scene."

"The attacker entered through the main gate and walked all the way to here... Huh?"

"Did you find something?"

"He paused for a moment at the door of this room. The footprints overlap slightly. He must have pushed the door open to check the environment inside, but he didn't enter the room. In other words..."

"He thought there was someone in the room, but after opening the door, he discovered there was no one!"

"There are other footprints in the room!"

"They are from a child."

"But they suddenly disappeared!"

The two newcomers spoke back and forth, quickly reaching a conclusion.

"Someone survived!"

"Exactly. That is the point of suspicion, which is why Lord Danzo sent us to investigate... Who's there?!"

The captain nodded, just about to praise his subordinates, when a faint, almost imperceptible movement reached his ears. He instinctively drew his blade and turned, only to be met by an ever-expanding red pupil.

"You really shouldn't use the Mangekyo so casually; your body won't be able to handle it."

From the shadows, Uchiha Arashi and Uchiha Izumi stepped out together.

Uchiha Arashi covered his eye, his expression somewhat twisted.

Uchiha Izumi looked at him with a mix of heartache and reproach.

"I had to use Kotoamatsukami to twist their perception. We can't let them keep investigating; it will cause problems."

This was his fault; he had actually forgotten to erase his own tracks. Of course, Konoha would certainly verify the identities of the corpses, as these ninjas didn't need to be taught the principle of cutting weeds and eliminating the roots. However, being able to determine that the body count was incorrect and directly narrowing down the area of the tracks were two completely different concepts.

The Shadow Space was not an absolutely safe place. Since it had already adapted to the environment of the ninja world, it meant that those possessing similar powers could potentially find it.

For instance, Obito, or perhaps members of the Yamanaka Clan or Nara Clan.

Although he didn't know why the Third Hokage hadn't sent anyone yet and only Danzo had dispatched men, Danzo had capable people under his command.

Even if ordinary ninjas couldn't find the Shadow Space, as long as they locked onto the general location, Uchiha Arashi and the others would be at risk of exposure.

This was Arashi's oversight, and to plug this loophole now, he had to pay a price.

The three ninjas opposite them stood perfectly still; their wills had been invaded by Arashi, who had silently rewritten their minds to make them completely ignore the issues here.

"Go back and watch over them. Don't let everyone panic. Leave the rest to me... Don't worry, I will be careful."

"No! They can take care of themselves; I must go with you!"

Izumi refused flatly.

"You are the pillar for all of us right now; you absolutely cannot afford to get hurt."

After a moment of thought, she added one more sentence.

Uchiha Arashi stared at Izumi for a few moments, then nodded.

"Fine, then you shall follow me. We can ignore them for now and go check other areas."

Uchiha Arashi stepped forward, wiped away all traces belonging to himself and Shizuka, then released his control over the three Root ninjas and left silently with Izumi.

Once they had departed, the three men quickly regained their senses.

Sure enough, all their previous analyses and thoughts had vanished, and the clues they had observed were completely forgotten. The three looked around, confirmed everything was in order, and turned to head elsewhere.

Only this specific location posed a significant problem that could easily point toward the Shadow Space; the issues in other directions were minor, and Uchiha Arashi only needed to exert a little influence to handle them.

In truth, it would not be easy for Root to find the Shadow Space, as the vast majority of the so-called clues were merely ambiguous distractions.

If they were truly determined to investigate, they would certainly discover discrepancies, but the difficulty of tracing them further would be immense.

What Arashi needed to do now was sever the connection between these traces and the Shadow Space, ensuring that the people of Konoha would never even consider the existence of such a place.

Although even if they did discover it, finding the Shadow Space would require a great deal of effort, Uchiha Arashi did not want to leave behind any hidden dangers.

It was one thing not to have considered this layer before, but now that Konoha had already provided a warning, remaining indifferent would be irresponsible toward his own life.

After spending about half an hour in total, he finally extinguished every potential spark of crisis.

Arashi did not use the power of Kotoamatsukami again afterward; he only needed to utilize the abilities of the Shadow Space, making the overall process quite relaxed.

"Done. We can head back now."

"Let's go."

Izumi nodded and reached out to take Arashi's hand.

Arashi raised his hand to meet hers, while simultaneously using his other hand to trigger the power of the Shadow Space.

At that very moment, the air directly in front of him suddenly twisted.

The next second, a spiral mask emerged from the void, and a hand reached toward Arashi's right eye like a bolt of lightning.

"!"

Uchiha Arashi's eyes widened.

It was Obito!

Why was he here?

And why did it have to be at this exact moment?!

No, it's too late—

"Kotoamatsukami!"

Arashi frantically pushed his ocular power, trying to force the might of Kotoamatsukami to its absolute limit.

But Obito had appeared too suddenly and was moving too fast. As the palm drew closer and closer, the power of Kotoamatsukami failed to take effect in time. For the first time since his transmigration, Arashi felt a profound sense of crisis.

Just then.

"Yomotsu Hirasaka!"

Izumi's voice rang out abruptly, and the world around them shifted in an instant.