The scene was utterly tragic—governance's subordinates had all fallen.
Things weren't much better on Uchiha Rai's side. Only two men, each with a single Sharingan active, remained to provide support from the sidelines.
"Whew~"
Looking at Uchiha Chiri, the only one left standing,
Uchiha Rai let out a breath, his expression relaxing.
Susanoo dissipated.
He looked at Uchiha Chiri before him.
Then said bluntly:
"I've won, Chiri-san. Without a Mangekyō, you can't possibly fight back against me."
Uchiha Chiri said nothing. She stood up and assumed a fighting stance.
He sighed. "Still not giving up? Then die!"
His right eye opened, and tears of blood streamed down.
[Eye Technique: Takemikazuchi!]
Crack!
The thunderous, annihilating lightning resounded across heaven and earth, striking Uchiha Chiri in an instant!
In that moment,
scene after scene flashed through Uchiha Chiri's mind.
It was spring.
In a sea of flowers,
a handsome little boy,
his smile as bright as the sun,
said to her:
"It smells so good. Spring is here."
The excited boy dashed through the flowers.
He spread his arms wide.
Then said eagerly:
"Oh, right! I can make a bouquet and give it to Chiri as a present!"
The beautiful girl looked at the boy tenderly.
A bouquet was held out before her.
"Here, Chiri."
"This gift is for you."
Taking the flowers, the girl smiled from ear to ear.
"Thank you. They really do feel full of spring."
Memory after memory churned through her mind.
The summer festival, the fireworks, flower viewing, New Year's...
They were precious memories she had shared with the boy.
The aura of destruction swept in.
Everything was tinged with gray.
Buzz, buzz, buzz!
It was the sound of chakra surging wildly, stirring up waves of air.
"Hm? You're still alive?"
Uchiha Rai was a little surprised. He stared at her.
Suddenly,
malice bore down on him.
The overflowing malice stung his skin!
The beautiful girl appeared abruptly on the battlefield.
Blue chakra-light illuminated her lovely face. She was so beautiful, yet now she looked like an evil spirit, sending chills down his spine.
"Those eyes! A Mangekyō? When did you—?" Uchiha Rai saw the intricate pattern appear in the girl's eyes,
and went pale with shock!
The girl's red eyes made him feel the terror of death.
All they revealed was death!
The girl's anguished cry rang out:
"If Genmei-kun can't smile at me anymore, how would that be any different from being dead?!"
Genmei! Genmei! Genmei! My Genmei-kun!
I'll bring you back, no matter what!
Tears of blood streamed from her eyes.
[Eye Technique: Yomotsu]
"Death! Sweep away the enemy before me with a thousand crashing waves, and seize his life!"
Yellow water of death surged up before Uchiha Chiri, crossing an impossible distance.
The dreadful water rose in a vortex, transforming into a devouring dragon-serpent that rushed toward Uchiha Rai.
The girl leapt into the air.
She glanced at the one-eyed Uchiha who had already fled into the distance.
Damn Izanagi! It was swallowing the fate of her clansmen!
Her left eye trembled.
[Eye Technique: Izanami-no-Mikoto]
Butterflies glowing with blue starlight emerged from the yellow water of death.
One became two, two became three, and in the blink of an eye, there were countless more.
A dense mass of Hell Butterflies spread their wings, as dreamlike as an illusion!
They swept toward everything before them, blotting out the sky!
"Haah... haah... haah!"
Uchiha Naka snapped awake, gasping for breath.
He pushed himself upright, looking bewildered.
"Wasn't I dead?"
"Yo~ Naka."
"How does it feel to come back from the Pure Land?"
Uchiha Genmei's teasing voice reached him.
Uchiha Naka stared at him, dumbfounded. "You revived me?"
"Yep. My eye technique is pretty good, huh?"
Uchiha Genmei looked around at the people who had all widened their eyes, too stunned to speak.
He raised an eyebrow.
"Why is everyone so quiet?"
At the teasing remark, Uchiha Yuta jolted and came back to his senses.
"Lord Genmei! You actually revived someone! You brought him back from the dead—that's a miracle!"
His astonished words roused the Uchiha present.
"Gods and Buddhas, what did I just witness?!"
"A miracle! An absolute miracle! Long live Lord Genmei!"
Uchiha Genmei looked at the stunned people around him and thought, It's settled!
He had won them over completely. Who wouldn't want to follow someone who could overcome death?
He glanced at Uchiha Naka, who was still dumbfounded.
Then he gestured for Uchiha Yuta to explain the situation to him.
Before long,
after the people present had explained everything, Uchiha Naka understood what had happened. He went over to Uchiha Genmei
and knelt on one knee.
"Lord Genmei, I'm sorry!"
"What are you talking about? You only came to fight me to the death because that old geezer Setsuna ordered you to. That's all in the past. Follow me from now on."
Uchiha Naka looked at the hand Uchiha Genmei held out and clasped it firmly.
Half an hour later,
the group set off again after finishing their preparations.
They walked out of the ravaged valley.
"Damn Izanagi!" Uchiha Chiri said as she watched Uchiha Rai flee.
She put away her Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Forget it. Genmei-kun is more important!"
She left the two clansmen who were still lost in the cycle of reincarnation in the care of the Ninja Cat she summoned, and had it help gather the bodies of her subordinates as well.
Then she continued sprinting ahead.
The indistinct figures in the distance cast a shadow over Chiri's heart.
It was the large force that had attacked Genmei-kun!
No! No! Absolutely not!
Her heart cried out again and again as she sank deeper into despair.
The two sides drew closer and closer.
The face of the man leading the group came into focus.
"Genmei-kun!"
The girl cried out in delight.
She rushed straight toward him.
He spotted her too.
He opened his arms and caught the girl as she dashed into his embrace.
After a bout of tearful sobbing,
Uchiha Genmei stroked the girl's head.
"It's all right now. We're going home."
"Mm." Chiri answered him through barely audible sobs.
The sun set, and the scene was infinitely beautiful.
A few days later,
in Uchiha Clan Compound, Konoha.
He sent the two one-eyed men who had come back to their senses to the hospital to recuperate.
He dismissed the troops and told them to report back to the people behind the scenes.
The false information said he had forced his way out and escaped.
After seeing Uchiha Chiri home to rest,
Uchiha Genmei returned to his own house.
He flopped onto the bed and began taking stock of what he had gained on this trip.
Naka, who had defeated a Kage Level powerhouse, and eleven Uchiha elite jōnin.
His Aura stat had risen to 126,
a fine increase that brought him another step closer to the divine realm at 5,000!
He had also gained a powerful noble retainer, Gabimaru Oyashiro, and a fief worth fifty thousand koku. He didn't need to support a whole army of shinobi—just himself and Gabimaru.
It was more than enough.
One Mangekyō wielder in the Uchiha clan.
Along with Yuta, and the two who had used Izanagi and become one-eyed, yet still had the strength of jōnin.
Fourteen jōnin in all. His core forces were beginning to take shape.
His history classes in his previous life had taught him how important a clan's power was.
Aside from Liu Bang and Zhu Yuanzhang,
those who rose to power and ruled over others had all relied on their clans at the start.
Boss Cao's faction had lost the fruits of its labor to Sima as soon as its clan's influence weakened.
He had to take control of the Uchiha and make the clan stronger.
For a better life!
Amid his tangled thoughts, Genmei slowly drifted off to sleep.
In the dead of night,
elsewhere,
at Root Base.
Before you continue