Chapter 30: Uchiha Itachi's Test
"Thank you, Senior," Qianye said, nodding.
"Don't call me Senior anymore," the Anbu Ninja said, taking off his mask to reveal the face-covering forehead protector he wore. His tone became much gentler. "Since we'll be comrades from now on, you can just call me Yamato. This is the codename Hokage-sama gave me."
Speaking of which, he looked at Mirror Flower Water Moon at Qianye's waist. "This sword of yours is good, but it's a bit too flashy. As an Anbu, confidentiality is paramount. I suggest you use the standard Ninja sword provided to Anbu from now on."
"I understand, Senior," Qianye nodded. He thought to himself, "Is this the Wood Release Ninja, Yamato, from later on?"
"How many times have I told you not to call me Senior?" Yamato chuckled, letting out a helpless sigh. He patted Qianye's shoulder, turned, and left. "Alright, you can change your clothes here. I'll introduce you to the other members later."
A moment later, Qianye changed into his uniform, chose a smiling mask, and put Mirror Flower Water Moon into his System Warehouse.
When he came out wearing the mask, a group of Anbu Ninja, including Kakashi, Yamato, and Uchiha Itachi, were already gathered outside, waiting.
Because Qianye had fought Kakashi before, his initial entry into Anbu wasn't met with the same difficulties that Uchiha Itachi faced in the original story.
"Qianye, how is it? Are you adapting well?" Kakashi came over, taking off his dog-shaped mask.
"Thanks to you, everything is going smoothly," Qianye, wearing his mask, seemed like a different person, acting extremely humble in front of Kakashi.
"Is that so? That's good..." Kakashi tilted his head and looked at the tree trunk not far away, where Uchiha Itachi, wearing a kitsune mask, was squatting. "Itachi, come here for a moment."
"Yes, Captain Kakashi," Uchiha Itachi used the Body Flicker Technique and appeared in front of the two, taking off his mask.
"This is Uchiha Itachi. As former classmates, I'm sure you two already know each other, so I won't introduce him further," Kakashi said. "Qianye, regarding the top-secret mission assigned by Hokage-sama, only the two of you are aware of it. I won't interfere too much. You two should discuss it thoroughly yourselves."
"From now on, you just need to report to Anbu on time. Under normal circumstances, I won't assign you any additional missions."
"Yes, Captain Kakashi," Qianye replied respectfully.
"Follow me," Uchiha Itachi looked at Qianye expressionlessly, put his mask back on, and with a flash of his body, vanished from the spot.
Qianye used the Body Flicker Technique and followed closely behind.
Before long, the two arrived at a high point on a building in Konoha.
From there, they could clearly overlook the entire Ninja School.
"I never thought you'd get involved," Uchiha Itachi said, looking at Sasuke, who was listening attentively in the classroom. He said in a deep voice, "Is it because of Izumi?"
Qianye leaned against a nearby pillar, his arms crossed. "Aren't you the same? As the young master of the Uchiha Clan, the eldest son of the clan head, you actually became a spy sent by the Konoha higher-ups into the Uchiha. It's truly ironic. Is it because of Sasuke?"
"I didn't expect you to know even that," Uchiha Itachi turned around, his dark eyes staring coldly at Qianye. "Qianye, you're indeed not as simple as you appear."
"The feeling is mutual..." Qianye took off his mask, his expression calm.
"Before we discuss the main matter, there's something I want to confirm," Uchiha Itachi closed his eyes slightly, and when he opened them again, they had become Three Tomoe Sharingan.
Their eyes met, and Genjutsu: Sharingan was activated.
Qianye suddenly froze, his pupils instantly becoming hollow, but the next second, the corners of his mouth curved slightly upwards, and his entire body transformed into cherry blossom petals, drifting around Uchiha Itachi, gradually enveloping him.
The Three Tomoe in Uchiha Itachi's eyes spun rapidly, and he used Demonic Illusion: Mirror Heaven and Earth Change, the technique from the original story that reflected Kurenai Yuhi's Genjutsu.
But strangely, although the Genjutsu was broken, it wasn't reflected back onto Qianye. The latter stood in place the entire time, watching him with a faint smile.
"That was close! As expected of the Sharingan, I almost got my Genjutsu reflected back by you. Luckily, you're only Three Tomoe right now. If you had activated the Mangekyo, I would have been in trouble."
Qianye looked as if he had narrowly escaped danger, but despite his words, his tone was exceptionally relaxed, as if he didn't even put the Mangekyo in his eyes.
He then added, "So... have you confirmed what you wanted to confirm?"
"More or less," Uchiha Itachi looked deeply at Qianye once more.
He then thought of the mysterious person who had taken Shisui's right eye, and his apprehension towards Qianye grew.
Turning around, he put his mask back on and said seriously, "Regarding your promotion to Jonin and joining Anbu, I will disclose it to the Uchiha elders. Because of Izumi, they will then offer you an olive branch, with the condition of marrying Izumi to you."
"As long as you continue to walk Izumi home as usual during this time, someone will approach you."
"At that time, you will be able to infiltrate the Uchiha's inner circle."
"That simple?" Qianye suddenly felt a sense of unreality. This Uchiha Clan, were they too easy to fool?
"Yes, that simple," Uchiha Itachi said, and with a flash of his body, he vanished from Qianye's sight.
"He's truly a guy with off-the-charts intelligence. He's probably already suspecting me regarding the theft of Shisui's right eye."
"But why is his emotional intelligence so low? A person like this, who was tricked into clan annihilation by the Konoha F4, not even sparing the civilians who didn't know about the coup, is truly a pathetic guy."
Qianye muttered to himself, and with a flash of his body, he vanished from the spot.
Not long after he left, a giant green pitcher plant emerged from the building wall, then slowly opened, revealing a strange half-black, half-white body. It was the combined form of Black Zetsu and White Zetsu.
"Who is that guy? He can actually ignore the Sharingan's Genjutsu. He's pretty good," White Zetsu asked.
"Itachi didn't use the Mangekyo Sharingan. If they really fought, the outcome would be unknown, but the Chakra that kid released the moment he unleashed that Genjutsu shouldn't be underestimated. It seems Konoha has produced another genius," Black Zetsu replied, his voice very hoarse, like rustling leaves, extremely unpleasant.
"So what do we do? Should we go inform Obito now, no, inform Madara..." White Zetsu continued to ask.
"There's no need. Just tell Madara later. A Genjutsu Ninja without a Sharingan won't affect our plan at all. Our most important task right now is to find the person who stole Shisui's right eye."
After speaking, Black Zetsu controlled the pitcher plant, re-merging with the wall and disappearing as if it had never been there.
As the saying goes, 'the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it.' Not long after Black and White Zetsu left, Qianye emerged from the top of the wall and murmured, "It seems this guy also inadvertently saw my Mirror Flower Water Moon somewhere, otherwise, with his Chakra concealing abilities, I really wouldn't have been able to detect him."
PS: First update, thanks to [A Sabre-toothed Shark] for the 100 Qidian coins.
Thanks to [Book Friend **1601] and [Book Friend **9763] for the 500 Qidian coins.