First Attempt at Impure World Reincarnation

After leaving Konoha's gates, Uchiha Feng did not flee directly. He genuinely headed for the Valley of the End.

It was the place that had witnessed the extraordinary power of Hashirama Senju, the "God of Shinobi," and Madara Uchiha, the "Ghost of the Shinobi World."

It was considered a famous attraction in the Land of Fire, with people visiting year-round to "check in."

As a result, Feng occasionally encountered travelers from Konoha and elsewhere on his way to the Valley of the End.

And because the Valley of the End was not far outside Konoha Village, situated downstream along the Naka River beyond the Uchiha ancestral grounds at Naka Shrine—

Before long, Uchiha Feng was standing atop the enormous statue of Madara Uchiha, facing Hashirama Senju's statue across the river. The two statues formed the Seal of Confrontation.

Watching people come and go nearby, Feng took out a copy of The Will of Fire, sat cross-legged atop the statue, and pretended to read.

In reality, he was observing when the area would be empty, as well as studying the height of the waterfall beside the statues and where he could use it for support.

From morning until sometime around noon, there were still people near the Valley of the End, though far fewer than before.

However, there was not a single person around Feng on the statue.

So, without hesitation, he opened his backpack and threw all the barbecue ingredients inside into the waterfall before him, letting the river beneath carry them off to who knew where.

He had kept those things on him all this time. Washing them away could muddle his scent and, to some extent, slow Konoha's pursuit after they discovered he had fled.

Next, Feng took a long rope from his backpack, tied it to Madara's statue's hand forming the seal, and lowered himself directly beneath the waterfall.

After climbing down, he untied the rope as well, further muddying the situation and delaying the pursuit that could arrive at any moment.

Then, he took out a simple map of the Land of Fire and a set of clothes from the bottom of his backpack. After getting his bearings, he located the Tea Country south of the Land of Fire.

He then threw The Will of Fire, the clothes he was wearing, his Konoha genin forehead protector, and his now-empty backpack into the river.

As he tossed away the ninja forehead protector, Feng could not help grumbling inwardly, Are those people who slash their forehead protectors after defecting from their villages but still wear them morons? Are they afraid people won't recognize them or find them?

If one was going to defect, one should do as he did—throw away the ninja forehead protector and abandon one's ninja identity along with it.

After venting, Feng changed completely into the new clothes he had brought, carried the two storage scrolls containing all his possessions on his back, and finally covered himself from head to toe with a long robe with a concealing hood.

Once he was dressed again, he began racing toward the Tea Country.

That was the next destination in Uchiha Feng's plan.

Three days later, in a small town near the capital of the Tea Country, inside an inconspicuous little inn.

After traveling nonstop for two days and three nights without closing his eyes, Uchiha Feng lay on the bed. At last, he could relax, catch his breath, and rest in peace.

Thankfully, he was already a ninja. Otherwise, an ordinary person would have long since collapsed from traveling without rest for so long.

But all the hardship had been worth it. At the thought that he had finally escaped Konoha and no longer had to worry about suddenly dying, ending up on a Root experiment table, or beneath that beast Itachi's slaughtering blade—

Though exhausted to the point that he did not want to move, Feng felt a fresh surge of energy well up within him. Even the air of the Tea Country smelled sweeter than that of the Land of Fire.

However, the excitement in his heart ultimately could not overcome the exhaustion of his body and mind. Before long, he fell into a deep sleep.

While Feng slept soundly, the fact that he had not appeared in either the clan grounds or the village for two whole days finally drew the attention of many people.

As expected, Uchiha Feng's escape from Konoha would only intensify the conflicts and widen the rift between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha. The Uchiha Clan's days ahead would likely become even harder.

Feng had anticipated this from the moment he planned his escape from Konoha, but he had never cared. After all, with or without him, the Uchiha Clan was doomed to be exterminated. Why should he feel burdened by guilt?

In his heart, nothing mattered more than his own life.

Only after his own life was secure would he spare some thought for helping others.

At noon the next day, after sleeping wonderfully, Uchiha Feng ate lunch while asking the inn attendant about the security situation around the town. He did not ask about anything else unrelated.

The reason was naturally to avoid drawing attention. Asking about everything might uncover plenty of information, but it would also make people remember him more easily.

Asking about public safety, on the other hand, was something travelers, merchants, and even ordinary townsfolk cared about. It was completely unremarkable and would not attract extra attention.

For Feng, learning about the security situation around the town was meant to help him find an easy target—someone a genin like him could defeat.

He did not need many. As long as he found one target he could beat and capture, he could immediately soar through the Impure World Reincarnation he had copied with his cheat.

And such targets were far too plentiful in the shinobi world of early Year 52 of Konoha. Although the Third Shinobi World War had ended, the Five Great Nations had yet to sign an alliance treaty, and they remained hostile toward one another.

Uchiha Feng found one with barely any effort: an ordinary man who was neither a ninja nor a samurai, yet committed every kind of misdeed because his brother-in-law was the captain of the town guard.

Although Feng could easily take him down, he did not act after finding him during the day, wanting to remain inconspicuous and avoid attracting notice. Instead, he followed the man, memorizing his appearance and home address.

Only after the night had grown quiet did he silently sneak into the man's home.

Perhaps it was because the man had done evil in the town for so long without anyone daring to stop him.

Feng had expected that subduing his opponent would take some effort, but he walked straight in without encountering a single obstacle and reached the target's side.

The target was even drunk unconscious and had not closed his front door. He showed no reaction at all to Uchiha Feng standing beside his bed with the intent to harm him.

Feng was somewhat speechless, but he also breathed a sigh of relief. He had only become a ninja a few months ago. He had never been on a battlefield, never carried out a mission, and never fought any enemy.

His only combat experience came from the guidance Kentaro Uchiha and Kenjiro had given him during training.

Therefore, even when facing this ordinary man, Feng feared that his lack of combat experience might cause too much commotion and expose his whereabouts.

Fortunately, the man had brought it upon himself by getting drunk unconscious. That made things much easier for Feng.

Without wasting words, he first shut all the doors and windows in the house. Then, candle in hand, he began drawing the formation for the Reanimation Jutsu on the floor.

With Hiruzen Sarutobi's version of Impure World Reincarnation as a foundation, along with his research during this period, he quickly drew the formation correctly.

The next step was simple: place the man, who was still in a drunken stupor, at the center of the formation and gag him.

Feng took a deep breath, cut open his hand, and sprinkled his blood over the man.

Yes, rather than reanimating a helper first, he intended to try reanimating himself.

At present, he was unknown, and no one would care about him.

But once he became famous throughout the shinobi world in the future, people would certainly research ways to deal with him.

Some might investigate his past and suspect that someone had taken over his body.

So Feng felt it was better to confirm his situation now.

"Reanimation Jutsu! Rise!" With a low shout, he stared fixedly at the drunkard in the center of the formation.

One second, two seconds... one minute passed, and nothing happened.

Feng let out a long breath. For him, nothing happening was the best possible outcome.

If he had taken over the original Uchiha Feng's body after crossing over, then the original Uchiha Feng should have been reanimated at this moment.

Since nothing had happened, it meant that after crossing over, he had likely devoured the original owner's soul.

That way, even if someone noticed something strange in the future, he would not have to worry about exposing a flaw.

After putting this important concern to rest, Feng calmly took out the arm of Uchiha Mikio that he had dug up from Konoha Cemetery.

"Reanimation Jutsu!" He cast it again.

This time, the person in the formation immediately began to change. Some unknown substance started consuming him, making him howl in agony. Yet with his mouth gagged, all that came out were soft "Mmph, mmph" sounds.

A moment later, the Reanimation Jutsu was complete. Uchiha Mikio, who had died during the Third Shinobi World War, stood inside an upright coffin before Uchiha Feng.

Yet Feng did not immediately awaken the reanimated Uchiha Mikio. Instead, he canceled the summoning and made him disappear.

Although he had many things he needed the man to do, this place and this time were not suitable for awakening him.

At the very least, he needed to find somewhere they would not be disturbed.

In any case, Uchiha Mikio had now been successfully reanimated. As long as he was not sealed away or vanished after letting go of all his regrets, reanimated Uchiha Mikio was essentially Feng's summoned beast. Feng could summon and awaken him, or cancel the summoning, whenever he wished.

After casually cleaning up every trace left by the Reanimation Jutsu, Feng vanished into the night and quietly returned to the inn.