"It's you?!" x2
The figure and Seimei's shadow clone instinctively uttered the same question at the same time.
As for why Seimei's shadow clone was stunned? Well, that was because of the person in front of it.
Seimei knew her.
She was Uchiha Reina.
But what the heck was this twelve-year-old Uchiha girl doing here inside his hidden training space in the middle of the forest?
"What are you doing here?" x2
Reina and Seimei's shadow clone threw a similar question simultaneously once more.
After they spoke, a brief silence fell between them.
Seimei's shadow clone was trying to figure out how she discovered and crossed the barrier. After all, even if she found it by chance, a little girl like her shouldn't be able to crack his Fuinjutsu seals, right?
No way! No way!
That fineness. The exquisite technique and almost traceless precision used by the other party to crack multiple seals Seimei had placed to erect the barrier…
There was no way a girl who hadn't even entered her teens could do that.
He was able to become a Fuinjutsu Grandmaster this fast because of the existence of his system—his ultimate cheat.
And now you were telling him that the girl in front of him, who couldn't possibly have any system, had better mastery over Fuinjutsu than many veterans who had spent decades exploring this ninja art?
What kind of absurd learning ability and talent was this?
Sharingan might be broken—the ultimate cheat tool that the normal ninjas of this world could have humanly maximized their learning speed—but it wasn't that broken.
[The normal ninjas:Bah! If having Sharingan is normal, then what are we? Trash?]
Seimei had Sharingan, too. He knew how it worked.
Did she bring a Fuinjutsu Grandmaster from her clan to crack this barrier? Seimei's shadow clone thought inwardly.
But there was no need to worry about those details anymore.
His secret training spot in the forest had already been busted.
At that moment, Reina, who was watching the 'Seimei' in front of her silently, slowly nodded, as if she had figured out something big.
"I see. So, it's your training ground, huh? And the barrier seal, too," said Reina calmly. "Nice setup you have here. You wouldn't mind if I joined you here, would you?"
Reina smiled after asking the question. Her onyx black eyes twinkled in mischief as she glanced at Seimei's shadow clone.
Seimei's shadow clone ignored her mischievous look.
If he reacted the way she wanted, she would tease him to no end.
At times like those, he felt she was less like a little, pre-teen girl and more like a mature "Ara Ara~" big sister in her early to mid-twenties.
That thought was so absurd that even he questioned whether he was being affected by some stray Genjutsu.
But he knew that was just him being paranoid.
Seimei's shadow clone stared at her blankly for a second too long, trying to convey just how exasperated it was.
Then, he slowly shook his head and said, "You can. You have already discovered it. Just don't go around spreading the whereabouts of this training ground."
"It took a lot of effort to find this place and set the training props up."
Reina's smile deepened. "Really? You aren't going to forbid me from coming here?"
"..."
Seimei's shadow clone went silent for a moment before asking, "If I say 'no,' would you stop coming here?"
Reina grinned. "Of course not. I will still come here."
Seimei's shadow clone had an urge to facepalm, and it held back.
Instead, it was curious about something else. "Tell me, Reina. How did you find this place?"
Hearing this, Reina sheathed her ninja short sword and tilted her little head slightly, which Seimei's shadow clone found cute.
Reina nodded and said, "Sure, I will. But only if you come with your real body."
Seimei's shadow clone chuckled and replied, "Okay."
Then it looked in another direction in the training ground. "But only if you come out with your real body, too."
They both knew that they were talking to each other's shadow clone.
Reina's shadow clone smirked, "Very well."
Puff!
With that, her shadow clone vanished with a puff of smoke.
The real Reina came out of the hiding spot and calmly walked toward Seimei's shadow clone.
Puff!
Seeing this, Seimei's shadow clone also smiled and dismissed itself in a puff of white smoke. By now, all the memories of the shadow clone had already been transferred to the real Seimei standing outside the barrier.
Reina simply waited for him to come in.
After a few seconds, Reina saw the barrier ripple like the water of a lake once again.
And in the blink of an eye, the real Seimei crossed the barrier and walked straight to her.
Reina scanned him from head to toe and said with a smile, "Well, well, long time no see, Seimei."
Seimei raised an eyebrow.
Miss, we just met two days ago. Don't tell me you are trying to divert the topic.
Seimei thought inwardly and looked at Reina suspiciously.
He nodded briefly and got straight to the point.
"That's good and all, but you didn't tell me how you ended up finding this place. I thought I had chosen a rather secluded spot, and my concealment work was top-notch, too."
Reina didn't answer immediately.
Her thoughts drifted back to the night two days ago. She traveled through the forest and almost crashed face-first into the barrier.
If she had, it would have been rather embarrassing.
Imagine ramming your nose unknowingly into an invisible barrier and suffering from an unjustified case of nosebleed.
Fortunately, her instincts warned her in time.
Although there was no one to witness if she had really crashed, her pride as a 600-year-old powerhouse would have still stung.
Damn it…
It turned out that the culprit behind this barrier setup was him—Seimei.
Always doing something sneaky.
Sinister little brat.
No wonder he was the son of Senju Tobirama. Like father, like son.
However, she still couldn't quite remember his existence in her first life before regression.
Still, considering the memories of her early life before the regression were somewhat jumbled, she didn't dwell on it.
If the memories of her early life became clear, then it was fine. But she wasn't too fixated on that. After all, the key troubles regarding the Otsutsuki clan started after the Year 64 of the Konoha calendar.
With that, she shook her random thoughts away and responded to Seimei, "I found it by accident. It was two days ago when I was just strolling through the forest after midnight for fun."
Chotto matte (hold on a second), young lady. What do you mean by strolling through the forest after midnight?
Even I don't wander around so far from the main streets of Konoha, deep in the night.
What if a spy decides to set up a trap and deal with you when you are so far away from the main patrolling area of the Konoha ninjas?
Well, then again, to take Reina out successfully, the spy has to be at least a Kage-level ninja.
But would a Kage-level ninja act as a mere spy?
No way. Unless the Black Zetsu, that filial child, somehow duped them, similar to how it duped Uchiha Madara, Uchiha Obito, and everyone else in the original anime.
Seimei's thoughts raced.
But then another thought hit his mind.
Seimei asked, "I didn't know that the Uchiha clan had someone so skilled in Fuinjutsu. Which elder is it? Their proficiency in Fuinjutsu has to be near the peak of the Grandmaster level to do such a traceless and clean job."
Reina looked at him with a confused look. "Do you think I will tell you about the secrets of my clan elders?"
Ah! So, probing failed, huh? Seimei smiled sheepishly.
"Right, forget I asked about it."
Seimei was about to wave the topic off when Reina suddenly dropped the bomb.
Reina put her hands on her waist and said, "But Seimei, why do you think I need the help of someone else to crack a Fuinjutsu barrier like this one? Of course, I did that myself."
"What?" Seimei asked in shock.
Reina smirked, twirling her hair with her right index finger. "Why do you look surprised?"
Seimei interjected, "Damn, Reina. That's grandmaster-level stuff."
Reina walked forward and arrived in front of Seimei. She put an arm around his shoulder and said, "That's what I am saying, my boy. I am a Fuinjutsu Grandmaster."
What, "my boy", you brat? My total mental age is nearing the 40s—old enough for you to call me "Daddy."
Seimei grumbled inwardly, not knowing the fact that the mental age of the "brat" in front of him was enough to make Seimei call her great-great-great-great-.....great-granny.
"But you never used Fuinjutsu seals in front of us all these years," asked Seimei, still a bit bewildered. But he knew that Reina, however mischievous she was, would never lie.
Reina cocked her head at him. Her nose was almost touching his.
Her lips curled in a smile as she said, "Well, you did all the tasks related to Fuinjutsu with such enthusiasm that I never had to do anything myself."
Hehe, you little cutie. You are still six hundred years too young to catch up to me when it comes to Fuinjutsu. A Fuinjutsu Grandmaster? I have long walked past this realm. It's just that the power of my young body is limiting me from using more advanced Fuinjutsu.
Reina thought inwardly.
Meanwhile, hearing Reina's reply, Seimei almost doubted his Fuinjutsu talent. Almost.
But after all, he still had his system.
Sooner or later, he would surpass her, no matter how high her Fuinjutsu talent was compared to his own.
After all, his system gifted him with something that almost no one had—the potential for unlimited growth.
Not enough talent? It doesn't matter.
He would keep grinding, and sooner or later, he would surpass every genius.
He just needed to work diligently and had the time to grow.
His talent would never limit his growth.
So, he threw his worries out of some imaginary window.
He looked at Reina's onyx-black eyes and asked calmly, "I see. Never mind. Are you up for a quick match?"
Reina smiled. This was good. The boy in front of him didn't get discouraged by her display of overwhelming Fuinjutsu proficiency.
Instead, his eyes ignited with determination. It was as if he were saying that he would surpass her one day. Indeed. To survive the upcoming disaster, she needed people with such conviction and strong will.
"Sure, bring it on."
Reina accepted the challenge, just like she always did.
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