(Since the specific ninjutsu available in the early Warring States period were unknown, the author named some himself.)
In the end, though, the three of them still had a fight. Who knew whether this was unique to the Uchiha or every clan was like this?
Drenched in sweat after fighting the other two, Uchiha Takashi returned to his place, utterly exhausted. He casually picked up a cup of water and drank it down.
That cup of water was nothing to scoff at. Every clan capable of maintaining a water supply was renowned throughout the shinobi world.
The most important resource in the Warring States period was water, followed by all sorts of other strategic weapons. But no matter which was most important, it was still water.
That was why any place near water would draw large-scale struggles between many clans. Only a clan as powerful as the Uchiha could settle peacefully beside the water and establish its territory.
Thus, the Uchiha Clan's headquarters, its clan grounds, had been built beside a broad river, controlling the upstream region.
Here, thanks had to be given to the wisdom of the Uchiha ancestors, who had actually realized that water resources were safest, free of harm, and most usable upstream.
Had they settled in the middle or lower reaches, a clan occupying the upstream area could easily cut off their water resources, leaving them without a water supply.
Once the water the human body needed most was gone, combat strength would plummet. Then it would become a vicious cycle: without combat strength, they could not seize water, and without water, they would lose their combat strength. There was no solution.
But what did other people and other clans have to do with him, Uchiha Takashi? He was an Uchiha. As long as their Uchiha Clan had water to drink, that was enough.
Why worry about all that? Wash up and go to sleep. A six-year-old kid needed proper sleep.
With that thought, Uchiha Takashi lay straight down on the floor without hesitation, not caring whether he had taken his clothes off. He was too tired. As for a bath, he could take one tomorrow.
But why did it sound like there was fighting outside as he drifted off?
Uchiha Takashi jolted awake, sprang to his feet, and raced outside.
The clan grounds were in chaos, cries of battle and slaughter shaking the sky.
What was going on? Why was everything so chaotic? Was this still their headquarters?
"There's another Uchiha brat here! Hurry up and die!" A very young-looking ninja spotted Uchiha Takashi and charged at him with his blade without hesitation.
Uchiha Takashi gritted his teeth. Though he could not make sense of the current situation, he could roughly guess that the clan grounds had definitely come under a surprise attack.
He just could not yet tell which clan had attacked them. Was it the Senju Clan or the Uzumaki Clan?
He had thought war was far away, but it had simply arrived right beside him, just like that.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" Facing the menacing enemy, Uchiha Takashi immediately formed hand seals, drew a deep breath, and spat a great mass of flame ahead.
The attacking ninja apparently had not expected such a little brat to spit out such a large mass of flame. Unable to dodge in time, he was burned.
"Damn brat! The Uchiha Clan is too terrifying. We absolutely can't let any Uchiha live!" After putting out the flames on his body, the man muttered through gritted teeth.
Yet the instant he finished speaking, a cold glint suddenly appeared in his field of vision.
Uchiha Takashi was thrusting a kunai toward his throat from an extreme angle.
No! When did he-? He instinctively tried to dodge, but Uchiha Takashi had already anticipated the path he would take. He had no time to react.
The sharp kunai easily pierced his soft throat, puncturing his windpipe. Blood immediately gushed out.
"Urgh..." He opened his mouth wide and clutched his wound tightly. A great mouthful of blood spurted from his mouth, and he was already drawing more breath in than he let out.
Seeing that the fellow could still move, Uchiha Takashi immediately rushed forward and stabbed him several more times with his kunai without hesitation.
This time, he was thoroughly dead, without any movement or breath left.
"Water Release: Water Bullet!" A voice suddenly rang out behind Uchiha Takashi.
Sensing the fierce attack coming from behind, Uchiha Takashi reacted on instinct, his hands forming seals at lightning speed. He spun around and spat out flames.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!" He spat out several blazing fireballs in succession, smashing them hard into the incoming water bullets.
As fire collided with water, a cloud of vapor rapidly rose. Uchiha Takashi panted heavily, struggling to make out the attacker.
The man was tall and slender, and did not look like a newcomer to the battlefield. Like the young ninja from before, he was probably a chunin.
"Lightning Release: False Darkness!" Just as the man continued approaching Uchiha Takashi, an angry roar rang out.
A shining bolt of lightning pierced swiftly through the darkness, striking with blinding speed straight toward the tall man whose face remained obscured.
"Wind Release: Revolving Cut!" The tall man reacted very quickly as well, swiftly forming hand seals to counter the lightning ambush.
A small whirlwind formed in front of him, drawing the incoming lightning into it and dispersing it.
"Takashi, are you okay?" Aka Uchiha slowly emerged from the darkness, watching the tall man in the distance with a wary expression.
Uchiha Takashi shook his head. "I'm fine, but this guy is strong. We have to be careful."
Aka Uchiha nodded, then tightened his grip on his kunai and took a fighting stance facing the tall man.
The tall man wasted no words either, throwing two shuriken at them without hesitation.
Although the shuriken were fast, the Uchiha Clan's taijutsu was no joke. Uchiha Takashi and Aka Uchiha both dodged with extremely quick reactions.
"Shuriken Control Technique!" But the man suddenly shouted, and the speeding shuriken actually turned in midair and flew back.
They shot toward the faces of the two boys in midair.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Technique!" Aka Uchiha immediately countered, knocking the airborne shuriken down with a fire dragon.
Uchiha Takashi did not react quite as quickly. Facing the surprise shuriken attack, he could only throw the kunai in his hand, then quickly spit out a mouthful of fire.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Claw Crimson!"
The flames quickly clung to the kunai slicing through the air as it smashed hard into the shuriken, using the fire's heat to knock it down completely.
Both boys landed safely. Once on the ground, they exchanged a glance and understood each other's intentions.
Aka Uchiha formed hand seals again. "Fire Style: Lingering Flame Lure!"
Tiny flames streamed continuously from his mouth, scattering and attaching themselves to the surroundings, constantly producing smoke to obscure vision.
"Trying to obscure my vision? It won't work. Water Release: Water Flow Wave!" Water poured continuously from the tall man's mouth, extinguishing the flames on the ground.
"Fire Style: Flame Needle!" In the darkness, a whistle suddenly cut through the air. The tall man hurriedly retreated several steps. A second later, a tiny needle formed from flame flashed past in front of him.
His gaze was involuntarily drawn along by the little needle of flame.
"Thunderclap!" The instant his gaze was drawn away, Aka Uchiha moved into his blind spot and attacked.
Uchiha Takashi had also reached his other side and drew a deep, forceful breath. "Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame!" One good trick could take you anywhere. Who cared if it was repetitive, as long as it worked?
Didn't Kakashi frequently use Lightning Blade when he fought, too?
Faced with their pincer attack, however, the man showed no panic at all. Their attacks had clearly already struck him, yet he acted as though he had not seen them, thrusting the kunai in his hand toward Aka Uchiha.
"Something's wrong!" Aka Uchiha immediately sensed something amiss and hurriedly tried to dodge.
Sure enough, the man flying toward him suddenly turned into a puff of smoke and became a log. It was a substitution.
"Aka, behind you!" Uchiha Takashi's voice came from a distance. Aka Uchiha hurriedly turned his head, only to see a cold glint stabbing toward his face.
"Aka-!" Uchiha Takashi watched the blade draw ever closer to his friend, but he could do nothing. He was too far away and simply did not have the ability to reach him. All he could do was stand there in helpless anxiety.
A wet puncture sounded as the blade tip entered flesh, but the one who fell was not Aka Uchiha. It was the tall man.
Uchiha Takashi and Aka Uchiha immediately looked behind the tall man. A blood-red light flickered faintly in the darkness.
At the sight of that red light, both boys relaxed at once. A red glow in the darkness-gee, what could that possibly be?
Sure enough, the newcomer was an Uchiha with his Sharingan activated. He also held a ninja blade covered in blood.
"What are you two standing around here for? Get moving! Go that way. Most of the clan has already evacuated." Seeing the two standing rooted foolishly to the spot, the Uchiha could only point them in a direction and remind them.
Neither boy wasted any words. They ran in the direction of the evacuation without hesitation. If they did not run now, what if they died here?