Uchiha Yi, destined for an early death

In an instant, flames soared into the sky above the valley, and thick smoke billowed through the air.

"That brat!" How could Tsunade not realize what Uchiha Yi had just gone off to do?

He had probably used the Thunder God Sword to chop down trees. If the people back in Konoha found out, especially Hiruzen Sarutobi, they would probably curse him out.

Was the Thunder God Sword meant for chopping trees?

Then Tsunade let out an amused laugh. It wasn't as though he couldn't use the Thunder God Sword to chop trees. At the end of the day, it was just a weapon.

Since it had been given to Uchiha Yi, what he did with it was his own business.

"All right, you're up. If anyone runs in another direction, I'll step in." Tsunade signaled for Hyuga Rinka and Kushina Uzumaki to move.

The two immediately ran toward the valley entrance.

"Damn Uchiha brat!" Six ninja rushed out of the base. At the sight of the "tiny" Uchiha Yi displaying his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, their leader couldn't help sucking in a sharp breath.

An Uchiha with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan was uncommon. A child with one was unheard of.

Before this, he had never even imagined that someone could awaken the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at such a young age.

No. This boy is terrifying. He must not be allowed to live!

Even if their entire squad was wiped out, they had to eliminate this Uchiha brat. Otherwise, sooner or later, he would become a grave threat to their village.

The lead ninja lunged at Uchiha Yi, who swung the Sword of the Thunder God to block the enormous shuriken hurled at him.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Uchiha Yi and the enemy Jonin rapidly shifted positions, exchanging blows without pause.

The enormous kunai and the Sword of the Thunder God clashed with a relentless ringing. Shortly after their battle began, just as the other ninja prepared to surround Uchiha Yi, Kushina Uzumaki and Hyuga Rinka arrived. Seeing what was happening, they immediately joined in and engaged the remaining ninja.

While Uchiha Yi and the others fought, Tsunade slipped straight into the valley. Looking at the flames raging throughout it, she let out a quiet sigh. A great deal of evidence and many leads had been destroyed. It seemed they would have to capture the enemy to obtain more information.

Just as Tsunade was about to leave, her gaze landed in a certain direction. Her pupils abruptly contracted, and she hurried over to pick up a bottle. She opened it and took a cautious sniff, and her expression changed sharply.

Deadly poison! It looks like salamander venom, but this bottle is over a hundred times more potent than ordinary salamander venom.

In other words, used effectively, this single bottle of venom could kill hundreds or even thousands of people.

She had no idea how much salamander venom they had brought with them. It seemed this outpost belonged to the Land of Rain.

A cold glint flashed through Tsunade's eyes. She did love peace, but that didn't mean just any country could provoke Konoha.

Had it been one of the other great nations, Tsunade could have understood to some extent. But now even the Land of Rain was provoking Konoha. Did they think Konoha was that easy to push around?

Tsunade hesitated for a moment, then decisively put the bottle of salamander venom away. This was a good opportunity to study the venom of Hanzō's salamander. If she could develop an antidote, half of Hanzō's threat would be neutralized.

When Tsunade emerged from the valley, the battlefield had already split in two. Uchiha Yi was locked in a fierce fight with the Rain Ninja Jonin, while Kushina Uzumaki and Hyuga Rinka worked together against the other five Rain Ninja.

This came as a surprise to Tsunade. At first, she hadn't had much confidence in Kushina Uzumaki and Hyuga Rinka. After all, the two could hardly be called close in their everyday interactions, yet they worked remarkably well together.

Kushina Uzumaki in particular had already mastered the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique at such a young age and could even use it in combat. That pleased Tsunade.

Even Tsunade felt gratified to be teaching such a talented team.

Seeing that none of the three were in danger, Tsunade chose to watch from the sidelines, ready to intervene at any moment. For the three youngsters, this was a trial, but for Tsunade at her current level, everything was under control.

Still, that brat Uchiha Yi was improving remarkably fast. He could already fight a Jonin.

Even if this was only a Jonin from the Land of Rain, somewhat weaker than those of the Five Great Nations, he was still considerably stronger than an ordinary Chunin.

Uchiha Yi's performance was nothing like that of a seven-year-old child.

Given another year, Uchiha Yi could probably take the Jonin exam.

An eight-year-old Jonin—who would believe it?

Even her own grandfather probably hadn't been this strong at eight.

Could this brat really surpass Madara Uchiha?

Black Zetsu and White Zetsu were also watching the scene from a distance.

"Konoha seems to have some experts following them." White Zetsu relayed the information he had gathered to Black Zetsu. "At least three squads are trailing them two kilometers away. Their leader is Hatake Sakumo, who's been making quite a name for himself in Konoha lately.

"The White Zetsu Clones alone can't possibly beat them, unless Lord Madara steps in himself."

"Then lure the people from the other villages over here." Black Zetsu had no interest in concerning himself with Hatake Sakumo. He was merely an ordinary ninja, hardly worth Black Zetsu's attention.

At most, he would reach the strength of a Kage someday. Mother could deal with him with a single glance.

Never mind Mother—even Madara Uchiha thought nothing of the Five Kage. How could Black Zetsu possibly regard Hatake Sakumo highly?

Uchiha Yi, however, did draw Black Zetsu's attention. It wasn't because he had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at such a young age. For an ordinary Uchiha, awakening the Sharingan too early wasn't necessarily a good thing.

The Sharingan possessed Yin Release in its most extreme form. If that Yin Release grew too powerful for the body to keep up, it could easily cause bloodline disease.

For someone like Madara Uchiha, a reincarnation of Indra's chakra, awakening the Sharingan too early would probably cause Indra's chakra to shut his Sharingan down for him.

Someone like Uchiha Yi, who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at seven, seemed plainly destined for an early death. Yet the aura coming from him left Black Zetsu somewhat puzzled.

That aura seemed a little like Indra's chakra, but he couldn't be certain yet.

After all, before the Mangekyō Sharingan awakened, Indra's chakra was difficult to manifest, and outsiders could hardly distinguish it. Even Black Zetsu couldn't do so.