The rout of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen greatly boosted the morale of the Konoha front lines, but the atmosphere on the Uchiha side was somewhat strange.
Konoha Position.
Uchiha Main Tent.
Uchiha Fugaku's face was as calm as still water, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the desk. Opposite him sat several elders of the Uchiha clan.
"Shisui's left eye; it is confirmed to be caused by Izanagi."
"According to Shisui's description, he encountered an extremely dangerous and mysterious Kirigakure ninja. The opponent not only possessed astonishing speed but could also frontally break his Genjutsu and Phantom Body Flicker Technique, forcing him to use Izanagi to escape."
Fugaku spoke in a deep voice: "The most critical point is that in Konoha's intelligence system, there has never been a record of this person!"
The atmosphere inside the tent was heavy.
Permanent blindness in one eye was by no means a small matter for the Uchiha clan, let alone the fact that the blinded person was the Uchiha clan's most dazzling genius rising star at this stage, Uchiha Shisui.
"What are the results of the investigation from the Yamanaka Clan?"
An elder asked.
Fugaku shook his head, his face darkening further.
"That Mist Jonin who stayed behind to cover the retreat, named Ōkawa Yōsuke, had his brain subjected to some kind of powerful destruction before or after death. It's basically impossible to extract anything."
"Of the other two Chunin, one died without a complete corpse. The other was handled personally by Inoichi, but the available intelligence was scanty. Regarding that mysterious Mist ninja, there was absolutely nothing."
"To think their counter-intelligence could reach this level; truly worthy of Kirigakure..."
Among the Five Great Ninja Villages, although Kirigakure was far overseas, their ruthless style of action and decisive nature once made the name of Kirigakure ninjas resound throughout the Ninja World.
Seeing that death was imminent, he directly destroyed his own brain tissue. Such a guy is worthy of the name of a Mist Jonin!
"Is there any movement from Kirigakure's side?"
"No movement. They are suppressing the news of the Swordsmen's rout."
"Do you think it's possible that someone from Sunagakure or Iwagakure disguised themselves as a Mist ninja? After all, a Kekkei Genkai like Swift Release has never appeared in Kirigakure."
"Swift Release Kekkei Genkai..."
Another elder pondered, "Indeed, apart from rumors related to Amegakure during the First War, the only village explicitly possessing this Kekkei Genkai in recent decades is Sunagakure."
"Could it be that Sunagakure specifically disguised themselves as Mist personnel?"
"Not necessarily."
Fugaku spoke slowly, the three-tomoe in his eyes rotating slowly.
"The Ninja World is vast. It is not without precedent for Kekkei Genkai families to live anonymously or for sudden mutations to awaken."
"Moreover, Kirigakure is far overseas. Back then, for development, the Second Mizukage made absorbing and cultivating Kekkei Genkai ninjas a major policy. Even during the Warring States Period, their Kaguya Clan was once a ninja clan of our Land of Fire."
"That Swift Release Kekkei Genkai might be a secret weapon they cultivated!"
The tent fell into silence again.
A mysterious enemy who could force Shisui of the Body Flicker to use Izanagi to escape, and about whom there was almost zero intelligence, was like a thorn stuck in the Uchiha clan and in the hearts of Konoha's higher-ups.
The appearance of this mysterious Mist ninja was just like the thick fog outside Kirigakure, making people unable to fathom it, yet feeling vaguely uneasy.
"In any case, we must find him and confirm his identity and abilities!" Fugaku's voice was decisive: "This person is powerful and his methods are strange. He even forced Shisui to use Izanagi. He must be listed as a highest-priority investigation target!"
"Increase intelligence gathering efforts, especially within Kirigakure, particularly the Kaguya, Yuki, and those families with special Kekkei Genkai or secret techniques. In addition, notify all units on the front lines: once a Mist ninja suspected of possessing extreme speed abilities is discovered, report it immediately and try to avoid engaging them alone."
"Yes!"
The elders took their orders and left.
Fugaku sat alone in the tent, the three-tomoe Sharingan in his eyes rotating.
He never expected that the pursuit, which was supposed to boost the Uchiha's prestige, would instead nearly cause the fall of the Uchiha clan's supreme genius.
Unspeakable pupil power permeated his eyes. The rapidly rotating three tomoe seemed to merge at a certain moment, turning into a strange pattern.
"Kekkei Genkai..."
...
Hōzuki Mangetsu adjusted his training schedule.
He began practicing shuriken throwing on the only path to the small building during the time when Karatachi Makoto usually returned from fishing.
This kid's technique was precise and tricky. Several shuriken cut through the air and nailed onto the wooden target in the distance, making thudding sounds.
But occasionally, one or two would deviate from the intended trajectory and fly towards the road. The angle wasn't fatal, but it was enough to make someone with slightly slow reactions scramble.
Karatachi Makoto walked over carrying a fish bucket and humming a tune. Seeing a shuriken flying obliquely towards him, he seemed to trip over a stone under his foot, his body staggering, gently dodging the shuriken sideways.
"Whoa, Dalang! Can you watch where you're aiming when practicing shuriken? You almost stabbed me!"
Karatachi Makoto shouted, still in shock. Hōzuki Mangetsu hurriedly apologized.
Karatachi Makoto muttered as he pulled out the shuriken, tossed it back to Mangetsu, and walked away carrying the bucket, still grumbling.
"With this accuracy, and you call yourself a great genius? The quality of the Ninja Academy is getting worse and worse..."
...
"Water Style: Water Gun Technique!"
Half a month later, Hōzuki Mangetsu chose to practice Water Style below the balcony where Karatachi Makoto perceived Chakra (actually took an afternoon nap) in the afternoon.
The compressed water bullet was quite powerful, hitting the reef in the distant sea and making a dull sound.
But whether intentional or a mistake, one water bullet deviated, shooting straight towards the second-floor balcony railing with a whistling sound!
On the balcony, Karatachi Makoto seemed to be woken up by the sea breeze blowing off his hat. He got up groggily to pick it up, bending down just in time.
"Bang!"
The water bullet flew past his scalp, shattering a crystal champion trophy in another corner of the balcony.
"Holy crap!"
Karatachi Makoto shivered from fright, completely awake, and leaned over the railing to look down.
He saw Hōzuki Mangetsu standing there with an apologetic face.
"I'm sorry, Captain Makoto, a Chakra control error!"
"Error? I think you kid wants to 'improve'! Do you know this flower pot is very expensive? I punish you to count the inventory in Warehouse No. 2 this afternoon!"
"...Yes."
Hōzuki Mangetsu accepted, but the suspicion in his heart grew deeper.
Was this luck or what?
But he really didn't feel any Chakra fluctuations from the other party...
After several fruitless probes, Hōzuki Mangetsu became even more confused.
He decided to be more direct.
One evening after dinner, he found Karatachi Makoto picking his teeth and watching the stars on the balcony.
"Captain Makoto, I've encountered some bottlenecks in my swordsmanship training recently. Seeing that you have an extraordinary bearing, Captain, you must have some insights into Taijutsu and adaptability. I wonder if you could give me some pointers?"
Karatachi Makoto paused his tooth-picking action, glanced sideways at Hōzuki Mangetsu, then sighed, stood up, and patted his shoulder.
"I don't mean to lecture you, but you child, why are you always thinking about fighting and killing?"
"A bottleneck in swordsmanship is mostly because the heart is not quiet enough. Look at this starry sky, vast and boundless; how insignificant are humans within it."
"When you feel lost, you should look up at the starry sky like this, feel the vastness of the universe, and broaden your state of mind. Many bottlenecks will naturally be solved."
He pointed to the sky, acting like a master.
"This is called 'Learning from Nature'. It is a more brilliant way of cultivation than mere sparring. Come, watch the stars with me and feel it."
"..."
Hōzuki Mangetsu looked up at the starry sky, then looked at the earnestly teaching Karatachi Makoto, feeling a sense of powerlessness welling up in his heart.
The rhetoric and challenging momentum he had prepared vanished without a trace at this moment.
This guy... could he really just be a pure silk-pants with explosive luck and a pile of fallacies?
But that's impossible!
Looking at Hōzuki Mangetsu's expression of doubting life and helplessness, Karatachi Makoto remained calm and breezy.
"Young man, the road is still long. Realize it slowly."