The Destroyed Village Haku
Where there are corpses, there may not be flames.
But where there are flames… Uchiha Yi will appear.
To ensure safety while maximizing efficiency, Uchiha Yi deployed multiple shadow clones across the Land of Water. Each clone carried a small ignition flame as a marker, allowing instant relocation through his space-linked Fire Release technique.
Once a clone located a place rich in death, it would signal the original body.
Because only the original could harvest soul points.
Shadow clones could not.
This method ensured that even if danger appeared, only a clone would disperse. The original would remain untouched.
"I have to admit… this trip to the Land of Water has been very profitable."
Uchiha Yi glanced at the floating system panel and couldn't suppress a faint smile.
In such a short time, he had gathered over a hundred points. It was a grim testament to how brutal the Bloody Mist era had become under the shadows manipulating Obito Uchiha.
Current soul reserves: 1,000+ points.
With this much "currency," he could evolve further.
But the direction of strengthening still required careful planning. Power without control was a liability.
Snow drifted silently over a remote village in the Land of Water.
This place was small, isolated and dead.
A clone had arrived earlier after hearing rumors. The village had been wiped out recently. No survivors. Only bodies pierced by ice spikes or frozen in place like grotesque sculptures.
Nearby settlements spoke of a wrathful shinobi punishment.
"A dense aura of death…"
Even the falling snow could not mask the stench of decay.
As he stepped into the village, corpses littered the ground villagers frozen mid-motion, terror forever etched onto their faces.
After confirming the harvest value, the clone immediately initiated recall.
"Summon."
Flames flickered in its palm.
Moments later, Uchiha Yi stepped out of the fire itself.
The system immediately activated.
On his vision panel, the soul counter surged upward rapidly.
In mere seconds, it increased by 137 points.
Total soul points: 1,342.
A satisfying harvest.
"Time to move on"
He suddenly stopped.
Someone was watching him.
There was still someone alive here?
"Who's there?"
"Come out."
This was the Land of Water essentially a hunting ground under Obito's influence. Carelessness meant death.
Silence.
No response.
Uchiha Yi narrowed his eyes and activated the Sharingan. Crimson tomoe spun as his perception sharpened drastically.
Scanning the ruins, he quickly found the anomaly.
"Found you."
He signaled a shadow clone to approach while his original body remained alert. If danger emerged, he would instantly retreat through fire displacement.
Less than a minute later, the clone dragged out a trembling child from behind a collapsed wall.
The child was filthy, wrapped in torn cloth. Yet beneath the grime was a delicate face so refined it was hard to distinguish gender.
"Are you… going to kill me too?"
The child's voice was hollow. No fear. Only resignation.
Uchiha Yi frowned slightly.
"What's your name?"
The boy lowered his head.
"My name is… Haku."
Ah.
So it was him.
Haku.
Uchiha Yi hadn't deliberately searched for canon characters since arriving in the Land of Water. But fate had a strange way of arranging encounters.
Haku's existence carried weight.
A child of the Ice Release bloodline.
A weapon forged by tragedy.
Uchiha Yi's feelings were complicated.
In his previous life, countless alternate stories twisted Haku's identity turning him into a girl, a romance interest, or worse.
Just remembering it made him uncomfortable.
What if saving Haku caused unnecessary emotional entanglement?
A chill ran down his spine.
No. Saving him was fine. Raising him personally was not.
"...Then I'll leave you to someone more suitable."
A name surfaced in his mind.
Nagato.
The future Pain.
If Haku were delivered to Amegakure, his Ice Release would be nurtured into a powerful weapon. And Uchiha Yi would gain a hidden chess piece within the Akatsuki's future web.
After all, if he was destined to remain in this world, then he needed to start shaping it.
Planning ahead cost nothing.
"I do need your strength," Uchiha Yi said calmly.
"But right now, you're too weak."
Haku's empty eyes flickered slightly.
"I'll take you somewhere. There… someone will teach you how to become strong."
Those words alone ignited a faint light within the boy.
"Okay."
He agreed instantly.
Being needed
That was enough.
"Can you use Ice Release?"
Uchiha Yi planned to transport him using his fire displacement. But crossing living flames was dangerous. Anyone without resistance would be burned alive.
Currently, his Fire Release spatial shift was only at a low level. The temperature was survivable for a brief moment but only with protection.
For someone with the Ice Release bloodline, it was manageable.
"Yes."
Haku raised a small hand. Frost condensed instantly, forming a delicate crystal of ice.
Uchiha Yi nodded in approval.
"Good. Now freeze yourself completely."
"It'll only take a few seconds."
"Yes."
Without hesitation, Haku activated his kekkei genkai.
Ice spread rapidly, encasing his body in a translucent cocoon.
Satisfied, Uchiha Yi grabbed the frozen figure.
Flames ignited around them.
Before stepping through, a familiar voice echoed within his mind.