Just as the kunai in Xuandou's hand stabbed toward Fugaku-
Bang!
Purple chakra erupted like flames, forming a skeletal arm in the blink of an eye and shielding Fugaku entirely within it.
The kunai struck the translucent bone with a dull thud, unable to penetrate any farther.
"Wh-what is that...?"
"Look at Lord Fugaku's eyes!"
The crowd erupted.
Fugaku slowly opened his eyes.
The three tomoe were gone, replaced by a pair of eyes never before seen in the clan, intricate patterns etched into their pupils.
Elder Shingen slowly rose, his voice low.
"When the former clan head died in battle, Fugaku was at his side. Witnessing the clan head fall allowed his Sharingan to complete its final evolution."
He paused, sweeping his gaze across everyone present.
"These are the same eyes as those of the legendary Lord Madara Uchiha-the Mangekyō Sharingan!"
The crowd fell deathly silent.
Then a tremendous uproar broke out.
"The legendary eyes! Doesn't that mean Lord Fugaku is sure to win?"
"I told you Lord Fugaku would win!"
On the battlefield, Xuandou sighed softly.
Having seen the original story, he naturally knew Fugaku possessed the Mangekyō.
He only regretted not defeating Fugaku before he activated it.
The best method he could think of was to control Fugaku with genjutsu.
Unfortunately, Fugaku also possessed the Sharingan, so he could only be caught in a mild genjutsu at most.
If Xuandou simply threw a kunai, Fugaku would easily recognize the danger in his current state and evade it.
Only by taking Itachi's appearance to deceive Fugaku's subconscious into considering him harmless, and making him unable to bring himself to form hand seals, would there be a chance of success.
Unfortunately, at the very last moment, Fugaku had still managed to break free of the genjutsu and activate Susanoo.
Fugaku reacted extremely quickly. The moment the skeletal arm formed, it slammed down toward Xuandou.
The purple skeletal palm whipped up a fierce wind, about to smash into Xuandou.
Nearly everyone present held their breath.
Boom!
The deafening crash left their eardrums tingling.
As the dust cleared, a yellow skeletal arm had firmly blocked Fugaku's attack!
Surprise spread across everyone's faces.
Even Fugaku looked taken aback.
He had thought activating Susanoo would bring this duel to an end.
He had never expected Xuandou to have awakened the Mangekyō as well!
Fugaku looked up.
Unfamiliar patterns likewise marked Xuandou's eyes.
Xuandou gave him no time to think further.
The yellow arm turned with the momentum, trying to grab Fugaku's purple skeleton.
Fugaku reacted quickly as well, immediately retreating to evade the grab.
The next second, the two skeletal arms collided again.
The shock waves from their collision rippled across the ground.
Several weaker Uchiha clan members staggered backward, and some fell straight onto their backsides.
Both Susanoo remained in their first stage, nothing more than crude skeletons without armor or weapons.
It was purely brute force against brute force.
Fugaku's approach was straightforward: pressure, more pressure, and crushing his opponent with strength.
But gradually, he realized Xuandou did not seem to be meeting force with force.
His opponent seemed to be constantly looking for an opportunity to grab him.
Fugaku did not understand what Xuandou intended, but he had no intention of letting him succeed.
They exchanged several more rounds, with Fugaku maintaining the upper hand throughout.
He had trained longer than Xuandou and had more combat experience.
As long as the battle continued like this, his victory was inevitable.
But during a brief opening as they shifted positions-
Xuandou's yellow Susanoo instantly caught the purple arm before it could dodge.
"Yomotsu!"
As the words fell, Fugaku felt the surrounding space twist like rippling water.
The next second, he had been dragged into an unfamiliar world.
Before Naka Shrine, only the clan members remained, exchanging bewildered looks.
"What's going on?"
"Where are they? How did they disappear?"
"Where's Lord Fugaku?"
The three elders also rose, their expressions grave.
Elder Chie said quietly,
"This is probably Xuandou's Mangekyō ability... Space-Time Ninjutsu. He's taken Fugaku away."
Elsewhere, Fugaku steadied himself and immediately surveyed his surroundings.
There was no sunlight here, nor any wind.
Gray mist surrounded him, obscuring the distance and severely limiting his vision.
Solid ground lay beneath his feet, cold to the touch, as though he were standing on ancient stone slabs.
An indescribable, foul air permeated the space. It was neither rot nor smoke, but a smell of... something abandoned for a very, very long time.
Here, all five of his senses were severely suppressed.
He tried to sense chakra.
But it felt as though his limbs had sunk into mud, leaving him unable to exert himself.
"Is this... Space-Time Ninjutsu?"
Fugaku murmured to himself, scanning his surroundings.
Xuandou's figure had already vanished completely into the mist.
Immediately afterward, Fugaku felt a foul presence cling to him and begin eroding the chakra within his body.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Fugaku swiftly formed hand seals and spat out a fireball.
But before it traveled very far, the fireball visibly shrank and dimmed. Like a candle flame in the wind, it flickered a few times and went out.
The mist closed in again.
Fugaku knitted his brows tightly.
Both the power and range of his ninjutsu were affected by this space, greatly reduced.
He knew he had to find Xuandou and defeat him as quickly as possible.
The longer this dragged on, the more disadvantaged he would become.
After much hesitation, Fugaku finally decided to use his Mangekyō Sharingan.
His ability was to foresee the next five seconds!
He closed his eyes, then opened them again.
An image of five seconds into the future appeared in his mind.
Within his field of vision, the mist remained thick.
The ground was unchanged.
There was no sign of Xuandou.
The only change was that his condition had worsened under this space's erosion!
"What kind of bizarre ability is this!"
With his ocular technique proving ineffective, he continued trying ninjutsu.
If Fire Release would not work, he would try Earth Release.
He formed hand seals and slapped the ground.
The ground did not budge.
Meanwhile, Xuandou was hiding in the mist, quietly watching Fugaku.
Unlike Fugaku, whose senses were suppressed and whose body was being eroded-
As the master of this space, he was completely unaffected!
As long as he wished it, he could subject anyone who entered this space to its erosion, or leave them unaffected.
This was his ocular technique, "Yomotsu"!
Once he seized an opportunity to drag someone into Yomotsu Space, they would continuously suffer its erosion.
Unless he granted permission, their only option was to leave using another space-time ninjutsu.
If they could not escape, they would end up just like Fugaku now, full of power they could not use, worn down to death as the space eroded their chakra!
Fugaku's five senses were suppressed, and his chakra was draining away bit by bit.
He tried several more times in the mist.
Fire Release, shuriken, and even attempting to track Xuandou with his Sharingan.
Unfortunately, none of it worked.
The chakra within him dwindled further and further under the erosion.
More than ten minutes passed.
Fugaku stopped moving and stood still.
He raised his head and looked into the gray air above.
"...I concede."
Within the mist, Xuandou's figure slowly emerged.
He said nothing, merely walking to Fugaku's side and placing a hand on his shoulder.
Space twisted once more.
Before Naka Shrine.
Space seemed to tear open, and the two figures reappeared.
The surrounding Uchiha clan members looked curious as they saw the two emerge again.
Who had won?
Fugaku's face was somewhat pale.
He looked at Elder Chie.
"I lost."
An immediate uproar swept through the gathering.
Although they knew Xuandou was formidable, many had never expected him to defeat Fugaku.
Even after hearing Fugaku admit it himself, everyone still found it somewhat unreal.
But the truth was right before their eyes.
Among the crowd, Shisui stood quietly.
His gaze rested on Xuandou, then shifted to Fugaku, his eyes flickering, his thoughts unknown.
Mikoto stood a little farther away, her hands lightly folded before her, unable to hide the concern for her husband in her eyes.
Beside her, Itachi tilted his head up, his calm gaze moving from his father to Xuandou.
He said nothing.
But a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.
Elder Chie nodded gently, her expression gratified.
"In that case, my vote goes to Uchiha Xuantou."
Elder Zongyan could no longer contain himself. He strode forward, seized Xuandou's hand, and raised it high.
His voice rang out.
"I hereby declare that Uchiha Xuantou is the new clan head of our Uchiha Clan!"
The instant Elder Zongyan made the announcement, a system notification sounded in Xuandou's mind.
[Ding! Congratulations, host, on completing the mission! The clan panel is now officially unlocked.]
Xuandou, too, was filled with excitement at that moment.
Only now that he had become clan head had the Clan System fully opened up!
He immediately opened the system panel with a thought to examine the newly unlocked clan panel.