Who Says Uchiha Aren't Eloquent? I Convinced One!

Xuan Yu looked at Utakata and spoke in a casual, understated tone that left the other man dumbfounded: "Your teacher never intended to kill you; he was always working hard to help you lift the curse upon you."

Upon hearing this, the wariness on Utakata's face shifted into a mixture of shock and apprehension.

He forcibly suppressed the turbulent emotions rising within him and said to Xuan Yu, "What nonsense are you spouting? You don't know anything at all!"

The matter of his teacher was the one thing he was least willing to bring up.

Yet, during his time living alone in the forest, he would still inadvertently recall the days he spent with his teacher.

Even without Xuan Yu saying it, he had suspected that there might have been some misunderstanding regarding his teacher, but having finally left the Mist Village, he had no desire to return and investigate the truth.

Seeing the trace of pain on Utakata's face, Xuan Yu secretly felt that he had a chance.

Utakata was not an unreasonable person by nature, and besides, everything he had said was true.

Xuan Yu pressed his advantage, continuing, "Even if I didn't say it, you should have noticed some clues regarding your misunderstanding of your teacher. Why don't you try to recall carefully now? Are there not a great many suspicious points regarding your teacher's supposed persecution of you?"

"The truth is exactly as I said: he never once thought of harming you, and he was always looking for ways to help you break the curse. If you don't believe me, you can return to the Mist Village yourself to investigate. Of course, I have a faster method: I can take you to the island where you once lived to look into the situation."

As he listened to Xuan Yu, Utakata's expression grew increasingly unsightly.

Back then, he had felt that his teacher intended to kill him, and in a state of extreme fear and rage, the thing inside his body had spiraled out of control, killing everyone, including his teacher.

Although there were some suspicious aspects to that incident, Utakata still did not believe the truth was as Xuan Yu described.

He asked guardedly, "What is your purpose in coming to find me? And why are you telling me all this?"

This time, Xuan Yu decisively spouted nonsense with a straight face: "As I just said, your teacher was always dedicated to resolving the curse within you. He once sought out my teacher, but my teacher did not have a way to solve the problem at that time."

"Things are different now; my teacher has learned how to resolve the curse on you, so I have come to the Land of Water to help you, in accordance with the agreement our respective teachers made back then."

"However, after gathering intelligence in the Land of Water, I learned that some misunderstandings seemed to have occurred between you and your teacher, and that you had already left the country. I spent quite some effort searching before I finally found you here."

Hearing this, Utakata shook his head: "I cannot believe you, and I have never heard my teacher mention this. Furthermore, I do not believe I have any misunderstanding regarding him. Please, take your leave."

Xuan Yu knew that this matter would not be resolved easily or smoothly, but he still did not resort to force.

It would be very easy to verify whether his claims were true.

All it would take was for Utakata to return to the island where he and his teacher had lived and conduct a thorough investigation; everything would come to light.

Thinking of this, Xuan Yu continued, "Whether you believe my words or not, I will fulfill the agreement set by our teachers. Moreover, I can use space-time ninjutsu to send you back to that island silently. Once you are there, you will naturally know if I am telling the truth."

"Space-time ninjutsu?" A look of deep contemplation appeared in Utakata's eyes.

He dared not return to the island near the Mist Village by conventional means.

He was now a rogue ninja of the Mist Village and an enemy of the Land of Water.

But if he could infiltrate the area silently, he truly wanted to know the truth.

The only problem was that he still did not know the true motive of the mercenary before him.

As Utakata struggled internally, Xuan Yu twisted the knife: "Are you only capable of living a cowardly life in a reality of your own invention, lacking the courage to face the truth? Never mind that I have the space-time ninjutsu to take you there to uncover the facts."

"Based on the care and protection your teacher showed you, you have a responsibility to spare no cost to return and find the truth!"

Xuan Yu's words were resonant and forceful.

The wariness in Utakata's eyes gradually transformed into pain, guilt, and deep conflict.

However, he did not struggle for long before looking up again.

Xuan Yu was right; aside from what happened that night, his teacher had never done anything to wrong him.

Now that there was an opportunity to uncover the truth, he really should go back once.

Even if Xuan Yu were deceiving him, he was not entirely without the means to protect himself.

Although he still could not control the monster within him well, if he let that monster run completely wild, no one would be able to do anything to him.

As for the casualties and suffering caused during the monster's rampage, that would be none of his concern.

Unless absolutely necessary, he would never do such a thing.

Thinking of this, Utakata nodded slightly: "I can go back with you to see, but if you have deceived me, I will certainly not let this go!"

Xuan Yu said quite casually, "I have no need to deceive you. Let us depart."

As he spoke, his figure blurred and faded into a transparent vortex.

When he reappeared, he was already behind Utakata.

Before Utakata could express his surprise, Xuan Yu took him along and activated Kamui once more, heading for the island where Utakata and his teacher had lived.

Because he had never been to that place before, he and Utakata could only teleport to the vicinity.

Their luck was undoubtedly very good; they landed exactly on the edge of the island.

Revisiting the old place, Utakata did not rush toward the cabin and cave where he had once lived. Instead, he observed his surroundings with vigilance, finally letting his gaze fall upon Xuan Yu.

There was deep shock in his eyes; he had never encountered a space-time ninjutsu like Kamui before.

Xuan Yu said offhandedly, "No need to be surprised; this is merely one of my many abilities. If I did not possess such powerful means, I could not possibly help you lift the curse within you. Now, go and investigate the truth. My time is limited; I cannot linger here with you forever."

Utakata nodded silently this time, then took a deep breath and walked toward the place where he and his teacher had once resided.

Xuan Yu followed at Utakata's side, unhurried, looking around with an air of complete nonchalance.

This place was already very close to the Mist Village, but he had no intention of going there.

After a brief observation of his surroundings, Xuan Yu realized that choosing Utakata as his target had been a very wise decision.

He knew that the Three-Tails was wild, and he also knew that it hid within a massive lake.

But now, he could say with certainty that knowing this information was still not enough to find the Three-Tails.

This was because even around the small island where Utakata and his master lived, there were numerous lakes similar to the one where the Three-Tails resided.