A Week Later

A week later.

Still in Konoha's back mountains.

"Snake—Ram—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger!"

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

A boy's voice suddenly rang out from the dense forest.

In an instant.

The forest's silence was shattered...

A moment later.

A towering blaze shot into the sky, destroying all the lush green trees nearby!

"Snap."

As Yun Xi leaped down from midair, the branches scorched by the Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique he had unleashed snapped apart...

And fell to the ground.

They hit the ground with a series of thuds...

"Looks like I've completely mastered the Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique..."

Looking at the scene before him, a faint smile spread across Yun Xi's face.

A week earlier.

At Yun Xi's request, Uchiha Itachi had eventually agreed to help him.

He had not only taught Yun Xi most of his Fire Release Ninjutsu.

He had also taught him some practical Taijutsu techniques and how to throw shuriken!

And throughout that week, he had often brought Uchiha Sasuke along to train Yun Xi!

Yun Xi's talent had completely won Uchiha Itachi over!

In that short week.

Thanks to the tenfold chakra training speed buff, Yun Xi had raised the amount of chakra in his body to the level of an average Chunin.

And, on top of that, after eating the Flame-Flame Fruit, Yun Xi had developed a unique talent for fire-based ninjutsu.

He could not only master all kinds of Fire Release Ninjutsu with ease.

He could also greatly increase the power of the techniques he used!

Take the Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique Yun Xi had just unleashed, for example.

It was only a C-rank Fire Release Ninjutsu.

But in both power and range,

It could even rival some B-rank Fire Release Ninjutsu!

"Yun Xi, you're here early today."

Just as Yun Xi was about to continue training, Uchiha Itachi suddenly appeared behind him.

But unlike usual,

Itachi hadn't brought Sasuke with him today.

"Where's Sasuke?"

After picking up the shuriken he had left on the ground, Yun Xi noticed Sasuke wasn't following behind Itachi and looked a little surprised.

"I didn't bring Sasuke today."

After answering casually, Itachi went straight to the spot where Yun Xi had used his ninjutsu.

Looking at the scorched earth before him, Itachi was a little taken aback.

To be precise,

Yun Xi managed to surprise him in a different way every day...

When he had first agreed to teach Yun Xi how to train, Itachi hadn't really thought much of him.

Talent was one thing.

But turning potential into real strength took more than talent.

More than anything, it took time and hard work...

At first, Itachi had assumed that, despite Yun Xi's exceptional talent,

There was no way he could master the Fire Release Ninjutsu he'd been taught in just a week.

Let alone develop any real combat ability.

But Yun Xi's performance after that...

Had proved Itachi wrong.

On the first day of special training,

Yun Xi hadn't changed much from before. He was still getting used to the techniques.

But Itachi could sense a strange, unfamiliar energy inside him.

And...

That power even filled Itachi with dread!

What shocked Itachi even more was how Yun Xi performed after that!

After the first day of training,

Yun Xi's performance had only surprised Itachi a little.

After all, everyone in the Ninja World had their own secrets.

A few unusual things weren't anything to worry about...,

But...

On the second day, Yun Xi made Itachi question everything he knew!

Itachi clearly remembered that when he first met Yun Xi, the amount of chakra in his body had been about the same as a Genin's.

And even compared to other Genin, he'd been decidedly average.

But when they met again the next day,

Itachi noticed that the chakra inside Yun Xi had changed dramatically.

Not only had the amount of chakra increased significantly,

But Yun Xi's physical fitness had also changed beyond recognition!

After that, Yun Xi improved by leaps and bounds every day...

Right up to today...

Although Yun Xi's overall combat strength still fell short of an average Konoha Jonin's,

Itachi realized that Yun Xi had as much chakra as an average Jonin!

In just one week,

Yun Xi had gone from Genin level straight to elite Chunin!

"Haha, I didn't let you down, did I?"

Yun Xi had grown used to the look on Itachi's face by now.

After teasing him, Yun Xi's expression gradually turned serious. He looked at Itachi and said, "I can take care of myself now. If you need help with anything, just ask."

"No, it's nothing. I just hope you'll help Sasuke if he ever gets into trouble..."

Clearly, Itachi hadn't expected Yun Xi to say something like that.

After hesitating for a while, he still turned down Yun Xi's offer...

"We're friends, aren't we?"

An ordinary person would have nodded and agreed if Itachi said that.

But Yun Xi was different!

He was a transmigrator.

And he knew full well that, within the next week, plans for the Uchiha Clan Downfall would begin to unfold...

Itachi was also about to make the most important decision of his life!

At a time like this, Yun Xi still intended to help him!

In the Uchiha Clan Massacre, Uchiha Sasuke wasn't the one who suffered the most.

It was Uchiha Itachi...

Itachi had been given a mission by Danzo: wipe out the Uchiha Clan in exchange for peace and stability in Konoha.

To be precise, Itachi had acted of his own accord to preserve Konoha's stability.

He had killed the entire Uchiha Clan single-handedly.

Although Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi had always insisted on resolving the conflict between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha through negotiation,

Events had unfolded too suddenly. By the time the Third Hokage learned what had happened, Uchiha Itachi had already killed the entire Uchiha Clan...

And by the time the Third Hokage reacted, Itachi had already left Konoha.

Later, in order to keep watch on the mysterious rogue ninja organization known as Akatsuki, Itachi chose to betray Konoha and join them...

Although Uchiha Itachi had been a very well-written character in the original Naruto story,

During the week Yun Xi had spent with him...

The two of them had formed a genuine friendship!

Yun Xi didn't want Itachi to join Akatsuki!

He didn't want Itachi to meet the same tragic end as in the original story!

And he didn't want the only friend he had in this world to suffer a tragic fate!