Makiya rolled his eyes. "You've remembered a joke I made three years ago until now..."
"Because it was so weird." The rapid healing of the wound was incredibly itchy, and Genma Shiranui couldn't help but squirm. Noticing Makiya's deathly glare, he quickly gestured that he wouldn't move again.
As the wound closed, Genma Shiranui's pale complexion gradually improved. Thinking he should thank Makiya for saving his life, he considered it and said, "My parents are still young. Maybe I should urge them to have a younger sister for me and name her Mai."
"I'm truly grateful... and also, remember to have your sister use a fan as a ninja tool."
"Eh? Why a fan?"
"The fan is the soul!"
"..."
Time passed amid their banter. The wounded regained their mobility, and Hizashi organized the team to regroup. They returned to the front-line headquarters without further incident.
The headquarters was extremely busy today. The think tank had received news that several scout teams had been ambushed and were dispatching search and rescue teams to provide support. Makiya and Shisui also participated in the rescue operations, but the results were not optimistic; they only found piles of corpses.
A shadow hung over everyone at the front line. Although no one mentioned the matter of a mole, everyone was well aware of it, silently waiting for the think tank's next decision.
The representatives of each clan at the front took the opportunity to gather their clansmen. Makiya and Shisui also received a summons from Patriarch Fugaku.
To demonstrate the Uchiha clan's firm stance on fighting for the village, Patriarch Fugaku had come to the front line personally at the start of the war. When Makiya and Shisui reached the vicinity of the main headquarters' tent, it was easy to find Fugaku's tent.
This area was where the high-ranking members of various clans resided, with each tent displaying a clan crest. The Uchiha clan's crest, resembling a ping-pong paddle, symbolized the clan's love for sports and was very prominent.
Fugaku was busy with something inside the tent, which was guarded by Uchiha clansmen. After Makiya and Shisui arrived, a clansman went inside to report. It took a while before they were finally allowed to enter.
"Patriarch-sama." x2
Makiya and Shisui bowed their heads in greeting.
Makiya's peripheral vision caught the scrolls scattered on the ground and the messy footprints. Combined with Fugaku's flushed face and heavy breathing, he immediately had a guess.
As for why Fugaku waited a while before letting them in, it was obvious—there was only one truth. The hot-blooded Patriarch had...
...just finished throwing a tantrum and smashing things in the tent!
Fugaku was truly furious this time, his heart bleeding. The Mist Ninjas' ambushes had been largely successful, causing massive losses to Konoha. Among all the clans, the Uchiha suffered the most deaths; it could even be said that ninety percent of the casualties were Uchiha.
When rows of corpses with their eyes gouged out were placed before him, he, as the Patriarch, felt extremely ashamed.
However, it wasn't all bad news. A new genius had emerged in the clan, awakening the Three-Tomoe Sharingan immediately and possessing massive chakra. These reports reached Fugaku's ears and made him very happy.
It even diluted the sorrow brought by the deaths of many clansmen.
'Makiya must have awakened his eyes because he witnessed his clansmen being killed. The deaths of the mediocre led to the rise of a genius; these clansmen died for a worthy cause!'
A smile was forced onto Fugaku's face as he invited the two to sit down, personally serving them hot tea without any hint of a patriarch's haughtiness.
After some opening pleasantries, Fugaku chatted casually with Shisui before shifting his gaze to Makiya. "Makiya, I have always been paying attention to you. Your parents were excellent ninjas, and you haven't disappointed me either."
'Did you really pay attention? How come I didn't know...'
Makiya inwardly curled his lips, but on the surface, he maintained the posture of a typical chunibyo youth who had suddenly risen to power but was pretending to be cool and aloof. "Patriarch-sama, I will inherit my parents' legacy and make the Uchiha name known to all!"
"Good." Fugaku nodded with satisfaction and looked at Shisui. "Shisui, both of you possess the Three-Tomoe Sharingan and are good friends. Usually, you should guide Makiya more on how to use the Sharingan."
"Yes, Patriarch-sama!"
"There is much to learn after awakening the eyes: the use of the Sharingan, Genjutsu, Fire Style Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu that complements the Sharingan. Makiya, from now on, you shouldn't carry out dangerous missions. Focus primarily on learning ninjutsu."
"Patriarch-sama, will the village agree to this?" Makiya was somewhat concerned. With Konoha fighting on two fronts, he had suddenly become one of the top-tier combatants. The higher-ups wouldn't easily let him remain idle.
"I will handle the village," Fugaku said with rare assertiveness. "The Uchiha have sacrificed so many clansmen this time, and crucial intel was completely leaked. The village owes us an explanation."
"Yes, I will do my best to learn and strive to share the family's burdens as soon as possible."
Fugaku's arrangement was exactly what Makiya wanted. Besides developing the Sharingan and learning high-powered ninjutsu, he had also learned many Kido from Soul Reaper Makiya's memories, as well as Navy Makiya's Taijutsu. All of these required significant time to practice and observe their performance in this world.
"I'm very glad you feel this way." Fugaku gave a subtle smile, the laugh lines on his face softening slightly. "Once you have fully mastered the Sharingan, I will personally vouch for you and recommend you to become a detachment leader in the Police Force!"
To the side, Shisui's eyelid twitched. The Patriarch's intention to win over Makiya was obvious. Having another powerful detachment leader in the Patriarch's faction would break the balance of power within the clan; it was hard to say whether this was a blessing or a curse.
Fugaku did not forget Shisui and painted a similar grand vision for him. The conversation continued in a harmonious atmosphere for an hour, after which the two left the tent carrying a pile of scrolls.
Time passed like flowing water, and a month vanished in the blink of an eye.
During this month, Makiya lived a secluded life. Aside from necessary patrol missions, he practiced his ninjutsu in the deserted open spaces around the base camp.
No one knew exactly what he was training. Even Shisui, his best friend, only knew that Makiya was pondering a strange hand-seal-less ninjutsu.
The progress of the war gradually accelerated, and no one was spared. Both Konoha and the Hidden Mist increased their stakes at the front lines, and the intensity of the battles soared.
The mole investigation, which had lasted a month, yielded no results. Only the Uchiha family demanded a strict inquiry. The Hyuga clan followed the wind, while other clans were content to watch from the sidelines. Naturally, the Konoha higher-ups did not take it seriously.
Battle intelligence from the front lines was intercepted by those with ulterior motives. After being distorted and speculated upon with added flair, Makiya, who had displayed great prowess during the ambush, was reduced to just an ordinary Uchiha fire style expert. His name lingered in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind for less than a minute before being forgotten.
Only a certain unnamed Danzo Shimura saw the most accurate intelligence and crossed out Makiya's portrait in his mind.
As the mole case ended without conclusion, Makiya became busy again, teaming up with Shisui and another clansman to carry out missions.
The Body Flicker Technique of both was exceptional, and randomly assigned teammates often became a burden, affecting the entire team's mobility. Naturally, the headquarters wouldn't sabotage their own strength; after changing several teammates in succession, they simply stopped assigning extra people to the team.
It wasn't that no one could keep up with Makiya and Shisui's speed, but rather that powerful ninjas generally already had fixed teammates, making it difficult to change them abruptly.
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In the woods, a small deer was grazing with its head down. Suddenly, its ears twitched, and it alertly raised its head.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
Two afterimages flashed past, and a size 32 footprint appeared on the deer's face.
Deer: ?
"Shisui, how much further?" Makiya's voice drifted back with the wind.
"Visually, it's about three kilometers away, right in the valley ahead."
Nature's treacherous terrain could no longer stop the footsteps of ninjas. Makiya and Shisui easily crested the mountain and discovered a Hidden Mist squad camping in the valley below.
"Same as usual?" Makiya turned his head, his tone relaxed.
"Alright."
Makiya leapt into the air, his hands blurring into afterimages. "Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!"
The massive-scale fire style instantly enclosed everyone, the flames turning into a wall of fire that blocked all escape routes.
The Mist squad was caught off guard. Looking up, they saw a fire dragon descending from the sky.
"Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique."
The hideous fire dragon broke free from Makiya's control and grew larger in the wind, its flaming fangs tearing through the air as it roared and dove toward the group of Mist ninjas.
The Mist ninjas were thrown into total chaos, finding it difficult to cast defensive ninjutsu in such haste. The immensely powerful Great Dragon Fire crashed beside them, as explosions and flames consumed everyone.
"It's those two Uchiha..."
"It's over... we're finished."
"I don't want to die..."
Six Mist ninjas were burned to a crisp on the spot. Before the three survivors could react, countless Shisui appeared within the flames, drawing short swords to attack simultaneously.
The Afterimage Body Flicker was already difficult to distinguish. The three soot-covered survivors parried frantically, their Taijutsu far below standard, and were cut down by Shisui as easily as children.
In less than half a minute, the Mist squad was wiped out!
Shisui considerately left a survivor, intending to use the Sharingan for interrogation. Makiya's eyes shifted as he sensed a wave of soul fluctuation from behind—likely a straggler from the Mist group.
The person crept to a certain distance behind him before suddenly rushing out of the bushes with a ninja tool in hand.
Makiya saw the headband clearly; it was indeed a Mist ninja, with a dead hare hanging from his waist.
The Mist ninja's eyes glittered with excitement. He recognized Makiya's face—in fact, lately, all the Mist ninjas at the front recognized it. The higher-ups had issued a kill order, offering a significant reward to any ninja who could kill Makiya.
Now that the distance was short, he thought that since the opponent was famous for Fire Style and used wide-range ninjutsu in every battle, he must be a specialist ninjutsu-type ninja who was definitely not good at Taijutsu.
The advantage in this battle is mine!
Makiya's lips curled. At such close range, there truly wasn't enough time to form hand seals, but...
"Hadō #1: Shō!"
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