The higher-ups of the major ninja villages were not fools.
The Uchiha clan had been a prestigious ninja clan for millennia, and their Sharingan, especially after the loss of Wood Release, was considered the strongest kekkei genkai in the ninja world.
Many desired to possess even a single Tomoe Sharingan. After all, Kakashi Hatake, with his single Tomoe Sharingan, was known as the "Copy Ninja," having copied over a thousand ninjutsu, and the "Konoha Technician."
Copying jutsu was only a two-Tomoe Sharingan ability, though. The three-Tomoe Sharingan was known as the "Genjutsu Eye."
Outsiders could never truly unlock the full potential of the Sharingan. Only Uchihas could fully wield its power, and those who possessed the three-Tomoe Sharingan were among the strongest elite jonin.
There were numerous strong Uchiha, and even more who had awakened the one or two-Tomoe Sharingan, along with a significant number of ordinary clan members who hadn't unlocked the Sharingan at all. It would be nearly impossible to wipe out all of them in a single night, even if Uchiha Itachi possessed the legendary Mangekyo Sharingan.
Even if Itachi could achieve such a feat, there would undoubtedly be some form of disturbance.
But the Uchiha clan was wiped out in a single night, and the murderer, Uchiha Itachi, successfully escaped from Konoha.
There were far too many questions surrounding this incident.
Undoubtedly, the higher-ups of Konoha had a hand in this.
The power and ruthlessness involved in eradicating the strongest ninja clan in a single night had clearly sent a shockwave across all the other ninja villages.
Rather than going on the offensive, the major villages sent spies to infiltrate Konoha, hoping to gather more information. After their failure, they refrained from further involvement.
During the Third Great Ninja War, all the major villages suffered heavy losses, and none had fully recovered.
Even Kumogakure, despite its enmity with Konoha, did not take advantage of the situation.
They were all waiting, maintaining the current balance, preparing for the next great war in the ninja world.
As for Izayoi, he was unaware of these intricacies, but he could guess at least some of it.
From what he knew of the original story, the coming years would be relatively peaceful.
This peace would provide him with the perfect opportunity to grow.
…
After being trapped in a genjutsu by the Mangekyo Sharingan, Sasuke Uchiha remained unconscious for an entire week before finally waking up.
When he showed up in class, he had undergone a dramatic transformation.
The previous Sasuke would have been overwhelmed by the attention of the girls, although he never responded harshly. Now, those same girls, when they saw him, avoided getting too close.
The look in his eyes, and the aura around him, were simply too intimidating. No one dared to approach him or make eye contact.
Only Izayoi could see it clearly: Sasuke had become more fragile and stubborn.
He was scarred, and more than ever, in need of warmth and healing.
But his pride wouldn't allow him to accept anyone's sympathy.
Only someone like Naruto, whose destiny paralleled Sasuke's, could ever break through Sasuke's defenses and earn his trust.
In the afternoon, after school, Izayoi finally witnessed the scene he had been waiting for.
After the taijutsu class ended, as usual, the students gathered into small groups, either staying on school grounds, leaving together, or heading home alone.
The previous Sasuke would have chosen the last option.
However, today Sasuke walked up to Izayoi and said the same thing Izayoi had once said to him: "Izayoi, do you want to fight me?"
Hearing this, Izayoi, who had come to school today without being with Hinata, couldn't help but smile inwardly.
But he feigned surprise, looking at Sasuke's dark, somewhat dangerous gaze, and teased, "Back then, you weren't interested in my challenge. What changed?"
"Stop talking. You're not scared, are you?" Sasuke challenged.
Sasuke didn't respond, but his words were clearly meant to provoke.
Before, Sasuke only cared about training with Itachi. He never wanted to waste time fighting anyone else.
Now, with his clan wiped out, Sasuke's reason for living was clear: to kill Itachi and restore the Uchiha clan.
To defeat Itachi, he needed power.
To restore the clan, he needed to prove the strength and honor of the Uchiha.
And to do that, defeating Izayoi became his goal.
As for Izayoi, he had no idea what Sasuke was thinking.
Seeing Sasuke's attempt at provoking him, Izayoi smiled and nodded. "Alright, let's fight."
"Good, then let's head to the training field," Sasuke said, his battle intent clear.
"We don't need the training field. Let's go somewhere else," Izayoi said, shaking his head with a smile. "I'll take you to a better place."
Without another word, Izayoi led Sasuke to an abandoned training ground.
Sasuke followed closely behind.
The Uchiha clan had been gone for a week now, and aside from the memorial for Rin, Uchiha Obito was unlikely to be seen around Konoha anytime soon.
Izayoi had taken care to remember the date of Rin's passing, making sure to avoid the area every year at this time.
So, a few days ago, Izayoi had resumed his training in the wild.
It didn't take long for them to reach the training ground where Izayoi and Hinata usually practiced.
The ground and trees were marked with traces of combat and ninjutsu.
Upon seeing these marks, Sasuke's eyes widened in shock. His heart was stirred.
If these marks were all left by Izayoi, then it meant this guy had also mastered the Five Nature Release techniques.
Sasuke realized that, unlike himself, who had a father to teach him, Izayoi had learned all of this on his own.
This realization caused Sasuke to understand why Izayoi had the upper hand.
It wasn't luck. Izayoi had worked much harder than he had.
With this understanding, Sasuke's battle intent only grew stronger.
Fighting someone like Izayoi would help him grow stronger.
Defeating such an opponent would prove his strength.
"So, how do you want to fight?" Izayoi asked, gazing at Sasuke. "Taijutsu, or a no-rule battle?"
A no-rule battle meant anything goes.
Substitution jutsu, invisibility techniques, body flicker, tools, and even techniques like the Five Nature Release, which weren't taught at the ninja academy, could all be used freely.
No-rule battles were extremely dangerous. The ninja academy only taught this in the sixth year.
And during these battles, besides the referee, a medical ninja had to be present.
Otherwise, there was a real risk of life-threatening injury.
If Iruka were there, hearing Izayoi's words, he would have been horrified and immediately tried to stop them.
But Sasuke didn't hesitate. "A no-rule battle."
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