The boundary between illusion and reality

Izuna carried Setsuna by the back of his collar, leaving him bouncing with every step as they withdrew from the Hagoromo Clan Territory.

"Let go! I can walk!"

Izuna ignored him.

The retreating group moved swiftly along the valley trail. Setsuna turned his head to look back at the Hagoromo Clan Territory.

The thatched roofs and wooden watchtowers stood quietly in the morning light, wisps of cooking smoke rising above them. It looked no different from any ordinary morning.

It was too quiet.

There were no explosions, no battle cries, none of the flames that flared up during a fight.

The territory remained unchanged, cooking smoke drifting upward and torches burning atop the watchtowers.

"Izuna," Setsuna called.

Izuna kept walking, but turned his head to glance at him.

Setsuna asked, "What exactly is the Hagoromo Clan's kekkei genkai?"

Izuna fell silent for a moment. Wind funneled in from both sides of the valley, whipping his long black hair.

"Intangibility," Izuna said.

"The Hagoromo Clan's Heavenly Eye isn't genjutsu. It's an ability that renders their own existence intangible within physical space. What you see is there, but your blade can't hit it. You think you're standing on solid ground, but your next step could land on nothing."

Setsuna's pupils contracted slightly.

"The barrier is another application," Izuna continued. "Five elders activate their Heavenly Eyes simultaneously and form a Pentagram Formation within the clan territory. This technique distorts the space of the entire territory-the real territory is rendered intangible and hidden, while intruders enter a fabricated, intangible world."

"The terrain, buildings, and roads in that intangible world are exactly the same as those in the real territory. But space is no longer fixed there. Roads change, rooms move, and when you turn around, your companions have already vanished into different spaces."

"It's a living, shifting maze. The ground beneath every step is uncertain, and every door could hide a trap. Some things are intangible, others solid, and the two keep switching. Enemies don't know whether what they're seeing is real or an illusion until the Explosive Tags detonate beneath their feet."

Was this a spatial technique that distorted physical space to create a separate, sealed-off alternate dimension?

A name exploded into Setsuna's mind.

Obito Uchiha-Kamui.

Obito's Mangekyō ability transferred him or other objects from real space into an alternate dimension. In combat, he rendered himself intangible, allowing physical attacks to pass through his body without harming him.

Didn't these different paths lead to the same result?

He had fought Obito countless times in the arena.

That S-Rank Character's most infuriating mechanic was intangibility-you painstakingly built up an ultimate, but the instant you hit the button to unleash it, he activated intangibility. Your skill passed straight through his body, dealing zero damage. Then he emerged from his intangible state and immediately hit you with a full Wood Release combo.

A thought flashed like lightning, illuminating all the hazy fragments in Setsuna's mind.

Why did Obito's ability, Kamui, manifest as a spatial power rather than genjutsu?

Because of the exchange of bloodlines between the Uchiha and Hagoromo during the Warring States era.

It wasn't purely a Sharingan ability. It was the Hagoromo Clan's intangibility bloodline, expressed through the Sharingan.

Izuna's voice interrupted Setsuna's thoughts.

"The Fuma have gone inside."

Setsuna raised his head and looked toward the territory, still eerily quiet.

Trapping them wasn't enough. The intangibility barrier was an enormous maze, and paired with genjutsu, it could keep intruders from ever finding a way out.

But that was only a war of attrition.

The problem with a war of attrition was time.

Maintaining the barrier consumed the five elders' chakra. If even one of them ran out of strength, the barrier would develop a gap.

If just one enemy escaped and took word of the Hagoromo Clan Territory's vulnerability back, the Fuma Clan would descend in full force like hyenas scenting blood.

When that happened, the Senju and Blood Horse would surely join in too. That would be the true catastrophe for the Hagoromo!

Even Uchiha support wouldn't be enough to save them.

But what if they added the Uchiha's power to the intangibility barrier?

Setsuna's eyes lit up.

"Izuna," he called.

"Hm?"

"Let's go back."

Izuna faltered for a step, looking down at the child dangling from his hand.

"You're insane. Even I have no choice but to retreat against twenty Fuma jonin."

"That's because you're only counting your own fighting strength." Setsuna's childish voice carried matter-of-fact confidence. "You haven't counted the five Hagoromo elders' formation. We have an absolute strategic advantage."

Izuna raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Intangibility can distort space, right?" Setsuna said quickly. "What would happen if Fire Release passed through that distorted space?"

Izuna froze.

"Once the intangible space distorts the Fire Release, the flames' path will change. The outer flames will be compressed by intangibility, forming a hollow, high-pressure zone in the center. When that structure collapses..."

"What would a Great Fireball become?" Setsuna's lips curved upward. "Ten times the size and power. It wouldn't be a Great Fireball anymore. It would be Blast Wave Wild Dance."

Blast Wave Wild Dance-Obito Uchiha's technique!

It used distorted space to increase the flames' range and offensive power, twisting them into a spiral that spun wildly through space like an enraged giant serpent.

Wasn't that the perfect example of combining Uchiha Fire Release with spatial intangibility?

Izuna was silent for a long time.

No one had ever thought that way. Fire Release was Fire Release, and intangibility was intangibility. They were two completely different systems.

The Uchiha had studied Fire Release for centuries, and the Hagoromo had studied intangibility for centuries, yet no one had ever thought of combining the two powers.

"There's more," Setsuna continued. "We can layer genjutsu over the intangibility barrier, making the territory look as though it still contains the elderly, women, children, and plenty of food. Then we deliberately let a few Fuma ninja escape so they can spread word that the territory is vulnerable."

Izuna's gaze changed.

"The Senju will get word... the Hagoromo rear is undefended, and their territory is nothing but an empty shell. They'll split their forces and attack from behind."

A hint of malice crept into Setsuna's voice.

"Then this territory will become one enormous trap."

The Fuma would come, the Blood Horse would come, and the Senju would come too. They would think they were exploiting a weakness, when in reality, they were walking straight into a meat grinder.

Izuna stared at him for a long time, considering, then reached out and pinched Setsuna's cheeks hard.

His face, still rounded with baby fat, was squeezed out of shape, his mouth squashed into a little triangle.

"Are you really an Uchiha, or are you the second Senju brother's son? How do you come up with so many underhanded tricks?"

Setsuna heard a notification sound in his ears: "Rebellion Points +10."

With his cheeks still pinched, he mumbled, "Let go... it's strategy..."

Izuna released him and turned around, addressing the lead Hagoromo ninja in the retreating group in a low voice. "Keep moving at full speed. Don't stop."

He took a bamboo token engraved with the Uchiha Gunbai emblem from inside his clothes and pressed it into a messenger's hand.

"Find Tsukiya Uchiha-he's stationed at the Third Settlement upstream on the Naka River. Have him bring three jonin skilled in Fire Release immediately, along with two Hagoromo reinforcements, and meet me on the ridge southwest of the Hagoromo Clan Territory. Hurry!"

The messenger took the token and vanished into the treetops in a flash.

Izuna casually tossed Setsuna onto the Hagoromo Clan's donkey cart.

"Wait, you're not taking me?" Setsuna protested, jumping off the cart. "This is my strategy! You're throwing me aside now that you've got what you wanted!"

Izuna had already vanished into the forest.

Damn you, Izuna!

Setsuna gritted his teeth.