In a dimly lit underground chamber.
"The most threatening young prodigy in the ninja world? This kid does have some skills..."
After listening to White Zetsu's report on Uchiha Ryun's intelligence, Uchiha Madara couldn't help but laugh and praise.
Recently, due to the war, Ryun hadn't sent any clones to search for his Rinnegan, giving Madara time to focus on him again.
"How is the investigation into his background coming along?" Uchiha Madara asked calmly.
"Uchiha Ryun, his father Uchiha Mori passed away a few years ago. His mother, Uchiha Asuka, moved out of the Uchiha clan's territory for unknown reasons and now lives alone, running a flower shop..."
White Zetsu briefly recounted the information gathered recently.
"An orphan and a widowed mother? Their bond must be strong," Uchiha Madara murmured.
"What about his other relationships?"
After a moment of thought, White Zetsu replied:
"His teacher is Orochimaru. He seems to have a good relationship with the other two students of the Third Hokage. Before leaving for the Land of Rain battlefield, Uchiha Ryun was very close to a girl named Kushina Uzumaki. The two are suspected to be lovers."
"Uzumaki???" Hearing this surname, Uchiha Madara frowned.
"Where does this Kushina Uzumaki live?"
"The former Uzumaki clan territory, Hashirama Senju's estate."
"..."
Uchiha Madara fell silent, deep in thought.
"She must be the future Nine-Tails jinchūriki. After all, she (Mito Uzumaki) is getting old..."
"A foolish and hopeless couple (Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki), blindly believing love can change everything. In the end, nothing changed..."
"Temporary peace was only built on Hashirama's overwhelming power. After his death, who would still talk about peace with Konoha?"
"His son and daughter-in-law died in battle, his grandson died in battle. In the end, all that remains is a lonely old woman. Is this the result Hashirama desperately wanted? A short-sighted idealist..."
Uchiha Madara began muttering to himself. White Zetsu stood quietly nearby, accustomed to this behavior, and didn't respond.
After finishing his usual rant, Uchiha Madara returned to the previous topic: "What other intelligence did you gather?"
"Uchiha Ryun has a poor relationship with the Uchiha clan, but the exact reason is unknown. However, the Uchiha clan must have realized his potential and importance by now..."
White Zetsu reported the findings and shared his own thoughts.
"Anything else?"
"Nothing for now. This is all we've uncovered."
"You did well this time. Continue investigating Uchiha Ryun in depth, especially focusing on his close friends and family." Uchiha Madara rarely praised White Zetsu.
"Understood! Should we monitor Uchiha Ryun?" Aloe White Zetsu asked with a grin.
"No need. Monitoring his daily life is meaningless and might alert him. Just keep track of his general movements. Pay attention to him again when the war resumes..." Uchiha Madara replied cautiously.
"Understood!"
At a training ground in Ryūmon Town.
Electric blue light flickered around Ryun's body as he performed rapid teleportation under Orochimaru's watchful eyes.
Under his teacher's guidance, he was attempting to use the Lightning Release: Body Flicker Technique after stimulating his cells with electricity.
Moreover, he aimed to combine it with his own physical Body Flicker Technique to create a personalized nin-taijutsu Body Flicker!
Hanzō of the Salamander's Water Body Flicker was too fast. To defeat the "Demigod," Ryun needed to match or surpass his speed.
On the training ground, Ryun stopped after just a few teleportations.
"Can't hold on anymore?" Orochimaru asked with a serious expression.
"Yeah... My leg muscles are probably strained." Ryun used medical ninjutsu to heal himself.
"You're still too young. Your physical strength can't compare to an adult's. In a few more years, you should be able to ignore this strain and achieve even greater speed!" Orochimaru encouraged with a smile.
"How does my teleportation compare to Hanzō's Water Body Flicker?" Ryun asked casually.
"Significantly faster than a standard Body Flicker, but still slightly slower than his Water Body Flicker."
Orochimaru gave his assessment.
"Both physical Body Flicker and Lightning Release Body Flicker require strong physical stamina as a foundation. But right now, your body is your weakness. Surpassing him in speed isn't realistic at this stage..."
"Also, avoid overdoing this training. Hidden injuries would be disastrous. Even the Mystical Palm Technique isn't a cure-all."
Hearing Orochimaru's warning, Ryun nodded seriously.
Even a standard Body Flicker could strain the body, let alone one enhanced by lightning stimulation.
"Hanzō of the Salamander is too strong. If we can't restrict his speed, the initiative will always be his. Plus, his combat experience is immense. He rarely makes mistakes in battle..."
Ryun sighed at the Demigod's strength.
"Indeed... In fights against him, we're always the ones taking hits. You only managed to wound him thanks to the surprise factor of Chidori Stream and Black Dragon's speed..."
"Lightning Release is quite effective against him. It's just that Black Dragon is still a bit too slow. If only it were faster..."
Orochimaru also sighed.
Truthfully, he didn't think any Lightning Release technique could surpass Black Dragon, an A-rank jutsu.
As for the other four elements—Fire, Earth, Wind, and Water—their activation speeds couldn't compare to Lightning Release. They probably wouldn't even touch Hanzō.
"A faster Lightning Release..." Ryun murmured, gazing at the overcast sky.
Two Months Later
The war between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain continued. Meanwhile, at the border between the Land of Wind, Land of Fire, and Land of Rain, signs of another conflict emerged.
Sunagakure ninja attacked a Konoha military outpost, killing over a hundred Konoha shinobi and seizing a large amount of supplies.
The Konoha leadership was furious. The two great nations showed signs of escalating the war, with many Konoha ninja being deployed to the shared border.
At this time, it wasn't just the Land of Fire, Land of Wind, and Land of Rain at war. The Land of Lightning was also fighting the Land of Earth.
The Land of Earth was both ambitious and insatiable, expanding its military power recklessly while plundering land and resources from neighboring nations. This provoked intense dissatisfaction, including from the Land of Fire.
Thus, the Second Shinobi World War entered its most chaotic phase.
Every nation seemed to be fighting multiple enemies, leading to battles erupting everywhere in the ninja world.
Almost no country was spared, especially the small and medium-sized nations sandwiched between the great powers. As buffer zones, they suffered the most misfortune and despair.
The Land of Rain was the most representative example.
In the war between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain, the Land of Fire held no moral high ground.
But in the current ninja world, might made right!