Under the moonlight, deliberately magnified several times over, the waterfalls of the Valley of the End looked like a galaxy of white fireworks cascading down from the heavens.
Uchiha Itachi sat on the wrist of Hashirama Senju’s statue, staring intently down at the two people facing each other beneath the waterfall.
Even though he knew perfectly well that this was a genjutsu space and that Shisui couldn’t inflict any actual physical harm on Tōru, he was still so nervous that he paid no attention whatsoever to the entire table of Sanshoku Dango beside him.
Itachi wasn’t sure how many times Shisui would “kill” Tōru here in order to leave a deep impression on him, or how severely he would injure him.
As for the possibility of Tōru winning, Itachi hadn’t even considered it.
After all, standing opposite Tōru was the man his father himself had acknowledged as the strongest Uchiha.
There couldn’t possibly be more than a handful of people in all of Konoha capable of defeating Shisui.
[Hopefully, he won’t leave Tōru with any psychological trauma.] The instant that thought entered his mind, Shisui below made his move.
Uchiha Shisui first turned around and gave Itachi a reassuring gesture.
Then he lightly pointed at the statue of Uchiha Madara.
Two red numbers immediately appeared in the statue’s eyes: 9 and 9.
But one second later, the “9” in its left eye became an “8.” Then a “7.” Then a “6.” Tōru understood immediately.
It was a large countdown timer, just like the tomato-shaped kitchen timer he used when steaming eggs.
“To let you understand how much the environment can affect a shinobi, every ninety-nine seconds I’ll randomly change the terrain or weather here.
“Some environments may be more favorable to you, while others will be the exact opposite.
In those places, you’ll need several times more chakra just to use Water Release.
“That’s how battles between ordinary shinobi work too.
Very few people can maintain the advantage at all times.
“Many Jōnin-level ninjutsu, when used in an unsuitable environment, might only display the effectiveness of a Chūnin-level technique.” Shisui chuckled as he explained.
“During our battle, all the rules inside this genjutsu space will be exactly the same as those outside.
“So pay close attention to these subtle differences.” Tōru remained silent for a moment before saying two words.
“Thank you.” He could tell that although Shisui claimed this was merely a sparring match, he was actually teaching Tōru how to fight shinobi.
And judging from what Itachi had said earlier, using this technique might also damage Shisui’s eyes.
“Haha.
I knew you were a clever kid.” Shisui slowly drew the ninja sword from his back.
The blade made a faint, rough scraping sound as it left its sheath, deliberately drawing Tōru’s attention elsewhere.
“But, Tōru, you were the one who told me not to hold back before, so…” Shisui’s smile widened.
“I can only respect your wishes!” The instant his voice fell, a sharp kunai was already flying toward Tōru’s face.
There had been no warning whatsoever.
It came as suddenly as a thunderclap on a clear day.
[He didn’t even form the Opposition Seal…] Itachi was startled by the sudden beginning of the battle.
Tōru’s expression, however, remained as cold and composed as ever.
He seemed to have been prepared for the ambush.
He merely tilted his body and leaned back slightly, allowing the kunai to graze past him.
It struck the forest behind him with a dull thunk.
[He can see the trajectory of a kunai even like this?] Shisui noticed that Tōru hadn’t used the Sharingan at all.
He couldn’t help marveling at Tōru’s reaction speed.
But this was merely bait.
The moment Tōru slightly turned his gaze back, Shisui’s baby-faced figure had already appeared beside him without a sound.
“Careful.” The words sounded concerned.
His attack was anything but.
The ninja sword in his hand reflected the cold brilliance of the moon.
The glare stung Tōru’s eyes for an instant before the blade swept toward his neck with a sharp whistle.
It was lethal and merciless.
Clang!
Tōru immediately raised his Water Blade and knocked Shisui’s sword aside.
At the same time, he kicked toward Shisui’s knee.
Given their difference in height, it was currently the easiest place for Tōru to reach.
“Very sharp, Tōru.” Shisui smiled, but killing intent lurked beneath that smile.
He immediately retreated one step, causing Tōru’s kick to miss.
Taking advantage of the movement, he flicked a kunai toward Tōru’s foot.
Tōru narrowly avoided it by a hair’s breadth.
But because he was landing on one foot after putting too much force into the kick, his body lost balance slightly.
Shisui immediately seized the opportunity.
Faced with danger, Tōru became even calmer.
He increased the amount of chakra flowing into the Water Blade and used the recoil generated when it struck the water beneath his feet to launch himself high into the air.
He narrowly avoided Shisui’s slash as the latter swept his blade toward Tōru’s waist.
“Very good.” Shisui didn’t hesitate to praise him.
But then his tone changed.
“But how are you going to dodge in midair?” His hands crossed before his chest like phantoms.
More than twenty shuriken flew toward the helpless Tōru.
Their trajectories resembled the petals of a cluster of red spider lilies—beautiful and enchanting, yet seemingly foretelling inevitable death, merely waiting for blood to stain them.
Tōru remained completely calm in midair.
His pitch-black eyes rapidly scanned the approaching killing intent.
He immediately found a way to break through.
He found an extremely tricky angle and lightly struck one of the shuriken with his Water Blade.
Unexpectedly, that single deflection triggered a chain reaction.
The shuriken collided with one another, throwing all of them off course and sending them scattering in every direction.
In less than ten seconds of combat, Tōru had already escaped death three times.
Shinobi really were better at killing than demons.
“Uchiha Style: Shurikenjutsu?” Shisui murmured.
It sounded more like he was talking to himself.
[But he really didn’t use the Sharingan.
How did he see the trajectories of more than twenty shuriken so clearly?] The question in his mind didn’t affect his movements.
Shisui suddenly pulled both hands.
The shuriken that had just been deflected came flying back as though being pulled by invisible strings.
They were even faster than before.
Their target was Tōru, who was about to land.
If he were struck by that many shuriken, no matter how strong his body was, he would inevitably suffer serious injuries.
More importantly, the threads would temporarily restrict Tōru’s movements, leaving him struggling to defend himself against Shisui’s subsequent attacks.
“Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel.” Just before Tōru landed, his descending body suddenly stopped.
He curled his body and performed a quick rotation in midair, simultaneously sweeping his blade in a perfect circle.
This time, Tōru used Water Wheel purely as a physical sword technique.
But the force was still enough to sever all the wires Shisui had attached to the shuriken.
He then flicked one of the falling shuriken upward with his foot.
Another series of clinks and collisions rang out.
The shuriken were given a third life.
Only this time, their target was Shisui.
[Extremely precise control.] Watching from above, Itachi hadn’t expected Tōru—who usually just sat beside them and watched during training—to be this familiar with Uchiha Style: Shurikenjutsu.
He was no worse at it than Itachi himself had been when he first awakened his Two-Tomoe Sharingan.
Shisui had reached the same conclusion.
Moreover, he once again confirmed his suspicion that Tōru could match the dynamic vision of a Two-Tomoe Sharingan using nothing but his naked eyes.
[I suppose that’s only natural for the Uchiha’s only child with deep-blue eyes.] Shuriken were naturally no threat to Uchiha Shisui.
He easily avoided them.
But Tōru pursued closely behind the little projectiles, meeting Shisui once again in close-quarters taijutsu.
The blades in their hands repeatedly clashed.
Both were aiming for the other’s throat.
As the battle continued, their speed increased.
Every attack became more lethal.
In less than a minute, they had exchanged more than a hundred blows.
Eventually, even Uchiha Itachi had to activate his Sharingan to follow them.
Yet the result remained the same.
Neither could injure the other.
Both possessed sufficient visual acuity to predict where the opponent would attack and make the decision to counter or evade before the strike arrived.
[An ordinary Jōnin wouldn’t be Tōru’s match in taijutsu alone.] Itachi reached this conclusion.
[But Shisui is capable of far more than this…] Boom!
An explosive impact rang out.
The soles of their feet collided violently, and the two were sent staggering backward before coming to a stop.
Itachi noticed the difference.
Shisui had been pushed farther back.
His shoulders were rising and falling more heavily than Tōru’s.
The hand gripping his sword repeatedly relaxed and tightened, as though he were trying to relieve the numbness in his arm.
Clearly, even for Shisui, such an intense taijutsu exchange was a rare experience.
The difference in physical endurance meant that if he continued fighting this way, he would gradually fall behind.
[Tōru’s physical abilities have improved considerably since last time.] “Your battle instincts are truly excellent, Tōru.” Shisui nodded appreciatively.
“A competent shinobi will do everything possible to avoid a direct clash before determining their opponent’s strength.
“That’s why they’ll constantly try to divide your attention.
“Using ranged ninja tools is merely the simplest method.
“If a shinobi doesn’t want to attract attention and intends to eliminate an opponent in secret, they’ll use simple and efficient taijutsu, just as we did earlier.
“So, Tōru, if you encounter a masked shinobi carrying a ninja sword like me, you should understand that they’re likely ANBU assigned to eliminate targets in secret.
“Every one of them is extremely capable.
“If they ever attack you inside the village, don’t fight them head-on.
“Just make enough noise to attract the attention of the people around you.
“Understand?” “…” Tōru tilted his head.
“But aren’t you ANBU?” Shisui had spoken as though ANBU would inevitably do something to him.
Could this seemingly peaceful village really contain so many dangers?
“Just as the village and the Uchiha have disagreements, the ANBU aren’t completely united either.
“Some ANBU will act against anything they consider suspicious.
“They don’t need evidence.
“Suspicion alone is enough.” Shisui added, “Of course, if you hide your strength properly, as Itachi suggested before, they won’t bother you.
“After all, you’re just a harmless child.” As he said this, he casually shook his ninja sword.
The blade, which had been covered in chips and cracks, immediately restored itself to its original condition.
It looked brand new.
After all, inside this genjutsu space, he was essentially omnipotent.
Repairing a weapon shouldn’t count as cheating, right?
“I understand.” Tōru thought for a moment before nodding seriously.
After what had happened with Naruto Uzumaki, he already knew that Konoha’s Hokage was an irresponsible old man who couldn’t even properly take care of an orphan’s food.
It seemed only natural that disputes like this would exist beneath him as well.
“All right.
Since the warm-up is over…” Shisui stretched his shoulders and took a deep breath of the air in the Valley of the End.
The scenery around them changed once again.
They arrived above the sea near the Land of Water.
The statue of Uchiha Madara came along with them.
The counter in its eyes began counting down again.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Itachi sat speechlessly atop the head of his ancestor, looking down at the scene below.
“Tōru, next, I’m going to let you experience what kind of battle you might face if you encounter a shinobi in the wilderness.” Tōru froze for a moment.
Because Shisui’s voice wasn’t coming only from the figure standing opposite him.
It was also coming from behind him.
[When…?] A fierce gust of wind suddenly struck his back.
“Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel!” Tōru had no time to think.
His body instinctively performed a complete rotation in place.
A serrated ring of water burst from his blade.
It spun at tremendous speed, slicing as it expanded outward— The Shisui behind him turned into a cloud of smoke the instant the attack struck.
This time, they were in the middle of the ocean, where Water Breathing was exceptionally efficient.
Tōru had no intention of conserving chakra.
[Shadow Clone?] Tōru abruptly turned toward the Shisui who had originally been standing in front of him.
The ring-shaped Water Wheel rolled toward him like a gigantic wheel.
Yet Shisui showed no intention of dodging.
Something strange happened.
Just moments earlier, under the Transparent World, Shisui’s internal organs had been clearly visible.
Now, however, he suddenly transformed into an extremely faint chakra phantom.
The water wheel that seemed capable of tearing apart everything in its path passed straight through Shisui as though he were nothing more than smoke.
The phantom immediately disappeared.
[Ordinary Clone Technique?] Tōru was confused.
He hadn’t seen Shisui form any hand seals.
So why had the real body suddenly become a clone?
At the exact moment the clone disappeared, a sound like the rapid beating of insect wings came from above.
Tōru looked up.
Uchiha Shisui had somehow already leaped into midair and completed his hand seals.
His cheeks were flushed as he inhaled deeply.
Bright orange-red flames were already gathering between his teeth.
“Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!” BOOM!
A tremendous explosion erupted.
A massive fireball more than five meters wide engulfed the area where Tōru stood.
Seeing this, Uchiha Itachi unconsciously clenched his fists.
Although the Fireball Jutsu was more useful for obstructing vision than outright killing, taking the full heat and explosive force of a fireball at such close range would leave Tōru seriously injured at the very least.
Hissing steam rose into the air.
Shisui flipped backward and landed nearby, wearing an expression that seemed to say what a shame.
“Wind Release: Gale Palm!” A blast of wind erupted from his palm.
It seemed he wanted to clear away the steam and determine whether Tōru was still alive.
But at that moment, a shadow suddenly appeared beneath his feet.
A small hand grabbed his ankle.
Then it yanked him directly into the sea.
It was Tōru.
During the Fireball Jutsu’s attack, he had released the chakra supporting his footing and used the opportunity to hide beneath the surface of the sea.
“Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirlpool!” The instant Shisui was dragged underwater, two water vortices intertwined around him like enormous serpents.
The ambushed Shisui spun helplessly inside them like a fish swept away by an ocean current.
But in the next instant, that figure—which had seemed completely real only moments before—disappeared once again.
For the first time, Tōru’s normally expressionless face showed obvious doubt.
He frowned suspiciously.
Tōru surfaced.
Shisui was smiling slyly at him from a short distance away.
“The Land of Water is an excellent battlefield for you.
“But for me…” He smiled.
“This is also where I earned that title—and where I truly awakened the power of these eyes.” He opened his Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
With one hand, he formed a seal.
Suddenly, more than a dozen figures identical to him appeared behind him.
“Next…” He drew his ninja sword again and held it across his chest.
His left hand gently stroked the tip of the blade.
A sweet, seemingly harmless smile appeared on his face.
“Uchiha Style: Shisui of the Body Flicker.” “Please, show me what you’ve got.”
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