Catching a Blade in His Mouth

The moonlight was fading, and the night breeze carried traces of fresh grass through the window.

Liumu lay with his arms beneath his head, but a cold smile suddenly curled his lips.

"Rustle, rustle..."

A faint, unusual sound came from the roof tiles overhead. Hearing it, Liumu sighed deeply, then sprang straight out of bed with a kip-up.

He casually glanced at the houses outside the window and vanished on the spot.

In the Konoha Village-Guarding Forest.

The once-quiet woods now echoed with the repeated sounds of clothing brushing past leaves.

Watching the village recede behind him, Liumu drew a sharp breath and stopped on a branch several meters above the ground. Then he looked back and waited for the figure to appear.

The trees swayed, casting a few withered shadows, and a deathly stillness seeped from the quiet depths.

Liumu called into the dense woods with a faint smile. "All right, come out. Stop dragging your feet."

Surveillance was a required skill for every ninja, whether gathering intelligence or carrying out missions, but this person's training clearly fell short. Even with Liumu's sensory abilities, he had long since noticed their presence.

"You're Liumu?"

As Liumu's voice rang out, a young figure in a Chunin uniform slowly emerged from behind a massive tree. A pair of blood-red eyes came into view, lending an eerie air to the night.

"The Sharingan!"

At the sight, Liumu glanced over, his brow furrowing slightly as he discovered that this person had already awakened three tomoe at such a young age.

Liumu probably understood how the Sharingan evolved better than the Uchiha themselves did by now. The person before him looked only a few years older, yet had not only evolved the Sharingan to three tomoe but had even become a Chunin of Konoha.

Without question, this was a genius.

But did Konoha lack geniuses? The grass on the grave of the last person called a genius was already several meters tall.

Liumu sneered. "You've been watching me all night. Don't tell me you still don't know who I am or what my name is?"

As he spoke, Liumu jumped down from the tree, casually picked up a few pebbles by his feet, and chuckled without another word.

"Now that you've seen my eyes, I assume you know why I've come looking for you."

The newcomer's expression was solemn, her silent face betraying no emotion.

"I know you're Lord Jiraiya's student. The elders have their reservations, but I won't let you off." After speaking, the young man slowly reached for the sword hilt at his waist and said in a low voice, "I am Uchiha Izumi. This fight isn't a duel, but blades have no eyes, and life and death are up to fate."

"Heh, life and death... are up to fate?" Liumu chuckled, bouncing the stones in his hand as he replied fearlessly, "Blades have no eyes, huh? In that case, make your move."

The instant Liumu accepted, Uchiha Izumi's pupils contracted. She swiftly pulled a kunai from behind her and hurled it at Liumu while rapidly forming hand seals.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

"Whoosh..."

"Damn, you're a ruthless one!" Watching the incoming kunai, Liumu was just about to sidestep when he realized that the suddenly rising fireball had already blocked his escape.

Combat experience of this level certainly befitted his Chunin rank.

But...

"Someone else might really have gone down to that."

Boom!

The enormous fireball burst with a violent explosion. Uchiha Izumi had thought this attack was certain to land, only to see Liumu walk out of the smoke completely unharmed, calmly brushing dust off himself.

As for the shuriken thrown at Liumu just now... it had inexplicably appeared in a clearing several meters away.

"How is this possible?!"

Uchiha Izumi's expression changed drastically. Seeing that her first strike had failed, she immediately drew the long sword from behind her and flashed toward Liumu. Leaping into the air, she gripped the hilt with both hands and slashed viciously down at his head.

Crack!

"I... this..."

A sharp crack rang out from the blade. Uchiha Izumi stared in shock as Liumu bit her sword in two in midair.

Why is this happening? Is he... is he even human?

Still airborne, Uchiha Izumi had already lost the ability to control her body. Looking at Liumu, who was now right before her, she actually showed a hint of apology.

"Sorry. Checkmate!"

Liumu grinned and slowly extended his fist between Uchiha Izumi's legs...

Squelch...

"Aaargh!"

A heart-wrenching scream immediately rang through the woods, startling a great flock of shadowy crows.

"Uh..." Looking at Uchiha Izumi kneeling on the ground, clutching her little buddy and sobbing nonstop, Liumu's forehead was now covered in cold sweat.

"I'm really sorry. It was instinct, an instinctive reaction. Um, is it too late to apologize?" Scratching his head and baring his teeth, Liumu hurriedly apologized.

It's... not broken, is it?

I wonder if it still works.

He's-oh, no, it should be she now-not an only child, right? I'd better not have ruined their ability to carry on the family line.

Staring at the hateful, gloating face beside her, Uchiha Izumi glared with bloodshot eyes and slowly stood with her legs pressed together, using the broken sword for support.

"I'm fine. Again." Uchiha Izumi's voice trembled, but she remained stubborn.

But seeing that she could barely stand, Liumu stepped forward, patted her shoulder, and advised, "Forget it. You can't beat me."

With that, Liumu made to leave.

Liumu had known full well that someone was watching him, yet had still dared to come outside the village because he wanted to settle the trouble directly. But Uchiha Izumi's temperament was entirely that of a stubborn child.

Getting tangled up with an opponent like this was a complete waste of time.

The Uchiha higher-ups did not want to offend Jiraiya, or rather, they did not want to fall out with the current Hokage over Liumu.

But as a child, Uchiha Izumi could use his age to openly challenge Liumu. From their opening exchange, Liumu had known that Uchiha Izumi's original intention was to teach him a lesson; otherwise, that final sword strike would not have been aimed straight at his face.

But it was also that action that had prompted Liumu to extend that wicked fist.

Liumu's footsteps rustled over the soft, dead leaves.

Just then, a voice filled with anger and a trace of resentment suddenly rang out behind him.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Uchiha Izumi's eyes were stretched wide with fury. Ever since he was little, his gifted talent had made him the focus of his parents' high hopes. When had he ever suffered such humiliation?

It would have been one thing to lose through inferior skill, but his opponent had actually caught him off guard and struck such a dirty blow!

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. No longer caring about anything else, he gathered almost all the chakra in his body and swiftly spat a blazing fireball at Liumu's back.

"Sigh..."

Hearing it, Liumu closed his eyes and gave a few cold chuckles.

This was a common bad habit among ninja. A sneak attack was a sneak attack, but calling out the move during one-wasn't that openly telling him that he was using ninjutsu?