After waking up for who knows how many times, Izumi once again found herself by the banks of the Naka River.
The setting sun dyed the sky crimson, wild geese skimmed across the twilight, and a flock of ducks played in the river, their cheerful quacks echoing in the air.
After being 'killed' countless times, the light in Izumi's eyes had gradually dulled.
Under the relentless assault of Genjutsu, she could no longer distinguish whether this was reality or illusion.
During the first Night of the Uchiha Massacre, she was slain by Itachi's Tsukuyomi within the Uchiha Clan's compound.
During the second Night of the Massacre, she tried seeking help from the Konoha Military Police Force, only to discover that they too had been attacked… she was ultimately killed by a masked man with tiger-striped patterns.
During the third Night of the Massacre, she attempted to appeal to the village for aid, but before she could even leave the Uchiha Clan's compound, she was ambushed and slaughtered by a group of masked Ninja.
And so, Uchiha Izumi was trapped in an endless cycle of the Night of the Massacre. No matter how she struggled, she could never escape the Uchiha Clan's compound, nor could she break free from this infinite loop of slaughter.
Thus, Izumi resolved to seek answers within the clan itself.
She rushed through every corner of the Uchiha Clan's compound, even visiting Fugaku's residence, only to witness, time and again, the nightmare of Itachi mercilessly butchering his own clansmen… sparing neither the elderly, the weak, nor women and children.
She also tried heading to the Konoha Military Police Force early, hoping to find more people to help. Yet no matter how quickly she moved, she could never arrive before the massacre began.
Sometimes, the tiger-striped masked man would slaughter the entire Military Police Force. Other times, Itachi would massacre the entire clan.
No one could escape… it was as though the shackles of fate had long been set in stone.
Even her own mother...
The only thing that puzzled Izumi was the mysterious figure wearing the white three-eyed fox mask. After appearing in her Genjutsu World the first time, he never showed up again.
Instead, Itachi and the mysterious man who slaughtered the Konoha Military Police Force appeared without fail in every cycle.
"That guy... who on earth is he...?" After experiencing the endless loop of the Night of the Massacre, Izumi finally realized that the key to this Genjutsu World likely lay with that mysterious man she had encountered the first time.
"What was his purpose in trapping me in this Genjutsu world? Will the Uchiha... truly be annihilated?" Unconsciously, the inevitability of the 'Uchiha Clan's Massacre' had already been implanted deep in Izumi's heart.
But what she couldn't understand was… why Itachi? How could it possibly be Itachi?!
Unable to find answers, Izumi steeled herself once more and solemnly made her way toward the Uchiha Clan's compound.
She was determined to uncover the truth behind the Night of the Massacre and find a way to break free from this Genjutsu World.
However, when she cautiously arrived at the Uchiha compound, she realized the sun had only just set.
"Oh, if it isn't Izumi! You're back." Hisana, holding her grandson Hiroki's hand, waved at her from a distance with a smile.
"Izumi-nee!" Little Hiroki bounded over excitedly and threw himself at her.
"Good evening, Granny Hisana, Hiroki-kun..." Izumi's voice trembled slightly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
After her father's death, she and her mother had moved into the Uchiha Clan's compound, and she had taken the Uchiha name.
Over the past three years, she had been warmly accepted by the Uchiha Clan, who valued blood ties and familial bonds. The clansmen treated her like one of their own.
Though her grades at the Ninja Academy hadn't been outstanding, and she had no plans to advance to Chunin, as a Genin who had awakened her Sharingan, she still received all the benefits and allowances granted to Uchiha Clan's members.
"Izumi, why are your eyes so red?" Hisana stepped forward and gently placed a hand on her shoulder: "Is the life of a Ninja not treating you well yet? Come over for dinner tonight. Granny will make something delicious to celebrate you becoming a shinobi!"
"Yay! Izumi-nee, come eat with us!" Hiroki cheered, circling around her happily.
"Thank you, Granny Hisana. It's just that..." Izumi wiped the corner of her eye, overwhelmed by the warmth of their kindness… However, she is terrified that this, too, might be another cycle of the endless Night of the Massacre.
On high alert, Izumi followed Hisana and Hiroki to their home.
She remained tense, her senses sharpened to their limits.
But from the moment Hisana prepared a lavish meal, to the time they finished dinner and played games with Hiroki, to when she bid farewell to Hisana and Hiroki… nothing happened.
As she made her way home, the streets of the Uchiha Clan's compound were dotted with warm lights. Neighbors chatted leisurely in the alleys, and the carefree laughter of children playing carried on the wind.
When she finally returned home, Izumi, who is nervous and bewildered, pushed open the door.
"Izumi, you're back." Her mother, Uchiha Hazuki, stepped out of the kitchen.
"Mom..." Seeing her mother alive, Izumi could no longer hold back her emotions. She threw herself into her mother's arms and burst into tears.
"You silly child." Hazuki simply assumed her daughter had encountered some hardship during her mission. Gently stroking Izumi's long hair, she softly comforted her.
…
"The Red Moon Scroll is really useful." Under the night sky, atop one of the rooftops in the Uchiha Clan's compound, Menma leaned lazily against the ridge, quietly observing Izumi in the distance.
The moonlight cast a cold glow over his white three-eyed fox mask, and the night breeze lifted the fur collar of his cloak.
The little Nine-Tails poked her head out from her fur collar, clutching an open bamboo scroll in her hands, turning it this way and that in confusion.
"Menma, there's nothing written on this scroll at all?" The little Nine-Tails frowned, flipping the bamboo strip over and over, but not a single character could be found.
"Because it's the Red Moon Scroll." Menma chuckled and reached out to take the bamboo scroll from the little Nine-Tails.
After the little Nine-Tails was revived in Menma's mental space, Menma had arranged an environment for her there, ensuring she had a comfortable place to live within his consciousness.
By chance, deep within his mental space, he had discovered the Red Moon Scroll.
After some experimentation, Menma realized that this wordless bamboo scroll, the Red Moon Scroll, was the essence of the Limited Tsukuyomi World, capable of being wielded as a tool to cast Genjutsu on par with Tsukuyomi.
Moreover, by holding the Red Moon Scroll, one could freely manipulate the illusions within, trapping victims in layers of Genjutsu.
Menma still hadn't uncovered the full extent of the scroll's power.
Additionally, the Red Moon Scroll granted resistance to Genjutsu, allowing Menma to nullify certain illusions and even resist the Sharingan's Genjutsu.
With the Red Moon Scroll bolstering his abilities, Menma had effectively patched up his weakness in Genjutsu, making future confrontations with Itachi much easier.
"You seem really interested in that girl, huh, Menma?" The little Nine-Tails tilted her head, curious about this Uchiha girl she had never seen before.
"I just want to see if she has any value for me to exploit." Truthfully, Menma had never encountered Izumi in the Limited Tsukuyomi World.
If that world was indeed an inverted reflection of reality, then Izumi's father likely hadn't died during the Nine-Tails Rampage. That meant she might never have awakened her Sharingan, never moved back to the Uchiha Clan's compound with her mother, and never met Itachi.
With the Night of the Massacre still years away, Menma had identified three Uchiha who might be useful in his schemes.
Izumi was merely one of them.
"Her Sharingan... is truly beautiful." Recalling Obito's words about her, Menma couldn't help but feel a flicker of anticipation for the potential of Izumi's Sharingan.