Reconciliation Seal

After confirming with his Byakugan, Yuun collected the ninja tools Itachi had used to test him. Once all the tools were used up, Itachi would have no choice but to decide the outcome in close combat—and close combat happened to be Yuun's specialty.

"One more kunai, six shuriken, and about half a spool of wire." Yuun estimated Itachi's remaining equipment and continued moving slowly as he searched for him. He had just dismantled a trap Itachi had made from wire, smoke bombs, and several shuriken, pocketing the unused smoke bombs along the way.

"One kunai and six shuriken left, plus two meters of wire..." Itachi counted his equipment behind a house. In theory, he could wage guerrilla warfare throughout Konoha, but the inhabited areas would never be opened up for them to fool around in. The only places he could move freely were these few streets, which had long been abandoned due to their remote location. "His vision limit is between four and six hundred meters. He has a considerable amount of chakra, can use Rotation proficiently, and has no shallow mastery of Gentle Fist. Assuming he isn't hiding his strength, my chances in close combat should be around thirty percent."

Yuun was not the only one analyzing Itachi; Itachi was analyzing Yuun as well. Compared to Yuun, Itachi had one advantage: before the challenge, someone had already told him Yuun's approximate abilities and the physical statistics he had revealed so far. Itachi had only engaged Yuun in guerrilla combat to verify the intelligence. Yuun also knew a great deal about Itachi's abilities, but he knew the Itachi of more than a decade later—Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu, and Susanoo. As for the current Itachi, all he knew was that Itachi had always been unrivaled at throwing ninja tools.

Moreover, Itachi had picked the timing of his challenge carefully. It was already too late for Yuun to use the help of his clansmen to gather intelligence on Itachi. As a result, Itachi knew most of Yuun's information, while Yuun knew virtually nothing about Itachi.

Fortunately, the gap in strength could not be erased by that little bit of intelligence. In the early stages, the Byakugan bloodline was indeed overwhelming. Even though Itachi had mastered several ninjutsu and genjutsu before awakening his Sharingan, it made no difference. Gentle Fist and Rotation provided both offense and defense, not to mention the Byakugan's scouting support. Every member of the Hyuga Clan was an excellent combat squad on their own.

Itachi soon appeared within Yuun's field of vision. Over the mere few hundred meters between them, Yuun had checked Itachi's equipment over and over again. Once he confirmed there were no traps, Yuun faced Itachi.

He didn't prepare anything. Is he planning to fight me head-on? Yuun wondered in confusion.

"Can you give me a few kunai? Shuriken don't feel very convenient to use." Itachi held out his hand without the slightest hesitation.

Yuun neither agreed nor disagreed. He took out the four kunai that had originally belonged to Itachi and tossed them over.

Itachi caught the kunai, his little face flushing slightly. If he had any other choice, he would not have asked Yuun for ninja tools. If it were anyone else, he would never casually pick up tools someone had thrown aside. But Yuun was different. Ordinary traps would not work against the Byakugan, and Itachi clearly did not yet have the ability to set a trap that could fool it.

Itachi wrapped the four sections of wire around the rings at the ends of the kunai, then wound their other ends around the four protrusions on his left glove. He flicked them several times to test the force, then looked at Yuun and formed an Opposition Seal with a solemn expression.

"Extending your attack range to keep your distance? Come on!" Yuun assumed his stance. Although he knew Itachi wanted to use the length of the wires to avoid fully engaging in close combat, thinking such little tricks could break Gentle Fist was a colossal joke.

Itachi charged at Yuun, wielding the kunai bound by steel wire. Under his nimble control, the four kunai moved like venomous snakes, ready to cut him if he made even the slightest mistake. Fortunately, Gentle Fist was inherently a taijutsu style that demanded extreme precision. A few more kunai might have troubled Yuun, but four alone were not enough to threaten him.

Yuun easily dodged two kunai and slapped aside the other two. Before he could strike with his palm, Itachi's empty right hand suddenly formed seals like lightning. Someone else might have found it baffling, but Yuun knew Itachi could form hand seals one-handed.

"Rotation!" Without the slightest hesitation, Yuun released a massive amount of chakra from his entire body, spinning at high speed.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" Before Yuun's Rotation could fully take shape, Itachi's cheeks suddenly swelled, and a ball of fire exploded between them. With a booming bang, their bodies were blasted away in opposite directions.

The Incomplete Rotation blocked part of the attack, but its defensive power could never compare to the Complete Rotation. Blown away by the explosion's shockwave, Yuun was so dizzy that he could not even stand. His chest felt as though someone had struck it viciously with a fist, leaving him painfully short of breath. Fortunately, the Incomplete Rotation had blocked most of the flames. Only the hair on his forehead and parts of his clothes bore slight scorch marks.

Itachi was in far worse condition. Without Rotation to defend himself, part of his hair had been burned away. That tight-fitting suit of his, however, was somehow completely undamaged. Internal injuries were unavoidable, though. He swayed unsteadily, unable to get to his feet no matter how he tried. His pale face bore several burns, and the streak of crimson at the corner of his mouth was shocking to behold.

That was definitely not a normal Great Fireball Technique. Otherwise, such a violent explosion would not have occurred. Having recovered his senses, Yuun knelt on one knee and gulped in deep breaths. He was still secretly alarmed that Itachi had been willing to use a mutually destructive move just to break Rotation. Otherwise, the Complete Rotation could definitely have blocked a Genin-level Great Fireball Technique. In fact, Yuun would not even have needed to block it. With his reaction speed and agility, if he had been prepared, he could have dodged the instant Itachi unleashed the Great Fireball Technique.

By now, Yuun knew that Itachi must have learned every one of his physical statistics. His speed, strength, and attack speed—his opponent knew them all perfectly. Otherwise, Itachi could not have timed things so precisely and forced a mutual defeat. Fortunately, Yuun always kept something in reserve. Otherwise, he might not even have been able to use the Incomplete Rotation, and his injuries would likely have been worse than Itachi's. As it was, he only suffered dizziness, chest tightness, and a few minor burns.

Intelligence was simply too important in a ninja battle. In a direct confrontation, Yuun was confident he could defeat the current Itachi using only sixty or seventy percent of his strength, yet Itachi had nearly turned the tables on him.

"Itachi, you lost." Yuun was already mostly fine after regaining consciousness. Though still shaken, he also felt some admiration for Itachi. After all, Itachi was only five years old. In a few more years, defeating him would not be so easy.

"I lost." Itachi looked somewhat dejected. He was not yet the deeply calculating Akatsuki's Vermilion Bird of the future, only a little boy who still cared greatly about winning and losing. Just as Itachi was feeling down, a fair hand reached out before him.

"Let's be friends. You're very strong." Yuun extended his hand toward Itachi, who was still sitting on the ground. "Let's reconcile."

"..." Itachi hesitantly extended two fingers pressed together and placed them against Yuun's fingers. "All right..."