Rain still fell, and thin mist wound through the forest.
Uchiha Itachi moved like a ghost between the densely interwoven tree trunks without pausing.
His destination was Kumogakure.
His purpose was to find his younger brother, Sasuke.
He had no intention of clashing with the Konoha squad again.
Even less did he want to keep tangling with that mentally unstable Uchiha girl.
But the lunatic behind him clearly had no intention of letting him go.
A faint whistle through the rainy mist had already given him his answer.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique-!"
Scorching flames tore through the drizzle, blasting toward him from behind and igniting several old, dead branches.
Itachi sidestepped the attack and landed on a branch, looking up to see that unfamiliar yet dangerous figure.
She possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
He would have to take her seriously.
Qingxue Uchiha's eyes were bloodred, her Sharingan already spinning. A smile hung on her lips, dangerous yet determined.
"You attacked Yemu, didn't you?"
Her voice was cold, yet carried a soft, stubborn insistence.
"If that's how you're going to be, then prepare to die!!"
Before Itachi could answer, several shuriken shot toward him. She darted out from among the branches as well, moving in for the kill.
Itachi did not fight back. He only dodged, occasionally flicking an attack aside with his fingers.
"I don't want to fight you."
Itachi spoke calmly.
But Qingxue acted as though she had heard nothing. Only one goal remained in her eyes-to get even for Yemu.
She had no idea that Yemu had never been mistreated by Uchiha Itachi.
Susanoo-
As her Sharingan spun, the spectral outline of red bones quietly emerged.
Qingxue summoned the first stage of Susanoo, swinging its enormous energy arm in fury and smashing it down at Itachi!
**"You laid