Going Home

Sasuke Uchiha swung his sword at Uchiha Izuna. Though he held back most of his strength, he still couldn't stop the blade from falling.

His sword struck Uchiha Izuna, but instead of the sound of flesh being cut, there was a metallic clang.

Clang! Sparks flew!

Sasuke Uchiha's pupils contracted. He stared at the younger brother in front of him in disbelief. Was this really the same coward who used to hide and cry whenever he was bullied?

And just how had he trained his body to become completely impervious to blades?

"Itachi, did you even eat today? Was that swordsmanship taught to you by your teacher's wife? Tsk, so weak!" Uchiha Izuna's voice rang in Itachi's ears.

At that moment, both Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui were stunned. Only Uchiha Izuna was secretly pleased. Sure enough, hitting himself ten times counted!

"Ding! Warning, warning. The system has detected the host exploiting a loophole. After this battle ends, the system will revise the Indomitable Body settings and fix the loophole that counts self-inflicted attacks as valid."

Uchiha Izuna's face immediately fell. This damn system! You were the one who failed to notice the bug. What was wrong with me taking advantage of it?

Besides, you're depriving your host of his imagination.

System: "...After the bug is fixed, the host will receive compensation: one Uchiha Gunbai."

The system's words made Uchiha Izuna's eyes light up. The Gunbai was great! The Gunbai was fantastic!

However, Uchiha Itachi wasn't angered by the taunt. Instead, he withdrew his sword and moved back to create some distance. In the heat of battle, his intelligence soared to a frightening degree.

That last strike had only been a test, and now he had his answer: Uchiha Izuna's physical strength was incredible. He might even be impervious to blades.

He had faced situations like this before, but in the end, he would always be the one to win!

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" Uchiha Itachi formed the hand seals—Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger. Once he finished, he instinctively leaned back, taking a deep breath.

Then he exhaled, sending a massive fireball bursting from his mouth. In the pitch-black night, it shone like a lamp, illuminating all three of their faces.

Shisui looked worried, Itachi was focused, and Izuna was smirking.

The Great Fireball Technique surged toward Uchiha Izuna, stirring the air as it went.

Uchiha Izuna's long hair began to flutter in the hot wind!

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!" Uchiha Izuna leaped four meters into the air. As he soared, he rapidly formed the hand seals—Rat, Tiger, Dog, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger.

He formed the seals far faster than Uchiha Itachi. With a flick of his hand, he sent five fireballs rushing toward Uchiha Itachi and his Great Fireball Technique.

Uchiha Itachi's expression changed. Even the smallest of the five fireballs was as large as his own Great Fireball.

And with his Mangekyō Sharingan activated, he could see molten lava churning beneath the surface of the fireballs.

Uchiha Itachi's Great Fireball collided with the first of Uchiha Izuna's Phoenix Sage Fire Technique fireballs!

Boom!

The two fireballs collided violently and vanished into the air. Uchiha Itachi immediately stopped feeding chakra into his technique. The fireball was gone, so why keep breathing fire?

Uchiha Itachi stared grimly at the four enormous Phoenix Sage Fire Technique fireballs blocking his escape routes.

But the fireballs weren't going to wait for him. They hurtled straight toward him, and the path behind him.

Uchiha Itachi gritted his teeth. It seemed he had no choice but to use that technique!

His gaze turned resolute. Red chakra began to emanate from his body and spread outward, and a crimson Susanoo Ribcage formed around him.

"Susanoo!" Uchiha Itachi's left eye began to bleed!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The fireballs created by Uchiha Izuna's Phoenix Sage Fire Technique came crashing down. Uchiha Itachi activated Susanoo in an instant.

Gritting his teeth, Uchiha Itachi endured Uchiha Izuna's ninjutsu.

Though Susanoo had blocked Uchiha Izuna's attack, Itachi was drenched in cold sweat. A coppery sweetness rose in his throat.

He swallowed it down. When the dust finally settled, Uchiha Itachi slowly came into view, enclosed in a red skeletal frame.

It radiated a terrifying presence. Uchiha Itachi's eyes had transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan, and he stared intently at Uchiha Izuna.

Once he was sure Uchiha Izuna wouldn't attack again, he dismissed Susanoo and closed his left eye.

A searing pain and an ache washed over him, making his whole body tremble. But how could he hide that little movement from Uchiha Izuna?

Uchiha Izuna was a little exasperated. That guy really would suffer just to save face.

"Itachi, that's enough. You lost." Uchiha Shisui used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of Uchiha Itachi.

Uchiha Itachi wanted to object, but the fireball he had just faced was like a miniature sun, and he couldn't find the words. He glanced at his second younger brother with a complicated look.

As far as Uchiha Shisui was concerned, this had just been a spar between two Uchiha Clan prodigies. There was no need to use the Mangekyō Sharingan's offensive abilities.

Besides, Uchiha Shisui admitted that he was no match for Uchiha Izuna in either ninjutsu or taijutsu.

"Not fighting anymore?" Uchiha Izuna asked with a smile. He felt like he hadn't even warmed up yet.

Uchiha Shisui nodded. "You won this fight. Even if you and I went up against each other, I wouldn't be much better than Itachi in ninjutsu or taijutsu."

"You can say that you're the strongest Uchiha now." Uchiha Shisui looked at Uchiha Izuna with a complicated expression.

But Uchiha Izuna shook his head. "Being the strongest isn't important. What matters is getting some rest. Tomorrow, Shisui, you still have to report to Danzo."

He turned to leave, but suddenly stopped. In a voice loud enough for all three of them to hear, he said something.

Then, without waiting to see how Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi reacted, he headed home.

In his memories, only his mother, Mikoto Uchiha, never minded that he was a burden. Every day, she came up with new delicious dishes to cheer him up.

Oh, right, there was also his foolish little brother, Sasuke Uchiha. Uchiha Izuna had personally taught Sasuke most of his ninjutsu.

Since Uchiha Itachi was often away on Anbu missions, he barely had any time off—he could count the days on his fingers. He simply didn't have time to play ninja games with his younger brother.

On top of that, his double-agent mission weighed heavily on him.

So Uchiha Izuna, the family's freeloader, had taken on the responsibility of teaching his younger brother.

Just then, a mechanical voice sounded.

"Ding! Congratulations, host. You defeated Uchiha Itachi in a spar, crushed the arrogance in his heart, and left a lasting impression on him."

"Reward: Uchiha Gunbai ×1 and one set of Warring States Red Armor. Keep up the good work."