Yūshin went out once to participate in a high-level meeting with Black Zetsu and White Zetsu, but not only gained nothing, he was actually startled by Black Zetsu's sudden appearance.
Thinking carefully, was this assembly really that important to Black Zetsu and White Zetsu? They just finally confirmed that Indra chakra was attached to Uchiha Madara, which meant they had suspected or basically confirmed this before. So Black Zetsu held a meeting just to act like a repeater?
You could only say that the current Yūshin didn't understand Black Zetsu's "waiting a thousand years for this moment" feelings.
Overall, the things Black Zetsu worried about weren't something the current Yūshin could interfere with. As for the future? He'd wait until he had sufficient strength.
The current Yūshin didn't feel he would die particularly early anymore. Having gained some self-protection ability, plus being deeply influenced by White Zetsu, he felt his lifespan would probably be longer than ordinary ninja.
As for exactly how much longer, that was hard to say—only time could provide the answer.
After returning to Kikyō Castle, Yūshin quietly spent several months. When spring passed, he suddenly realized his body was already sixteen years old.
This meant he had completely shed his identity as a young ninja and become a standard young adult ninja.
Theoretically, this age stage is when a ninja's strength grows most rapidly. However, considering Yūshin's background, he shouldn't harbor any naive expectations in this regard.
Only ninja born into prestigious clans have the opportunity for explosive strength growth.
Of course, there are also those with good foundations who, at this age, see their strength decline or stagnate. A certain "well-known but unnamed" Kakashi-sensei is exactly this type—quite a representative case.
No matter what, whether for individuals or forces, development opportunities in the current Shinobi World are extremely precious.
After summer arrived, some forces around the Land of the River Source finally reacted, beginning to send ninja squads to continuously infiltrate the Land of the River Source and battle The Fireflies organization.
There was no specific war justification—the Land of the River Source simply looked too stable, appearing overly conspicuous, so their production and survival order had to be disrupted.
Facing this situation, Yūshin adopted a combined offensive-defensive approach. On one hand, he had the more combat-capable Akimichi Clan lead squads to eliminate destructive elements infiltrating the borders. On the other hand, Yūshin took the initiative, assassinating several ninja clan leaders and key combatants.
Given that The Fireflies organization's average strength wasn't sufficient to stir up the Shinobi World, Yūshin was very restrained in his actions to avoid drawing too much attention.
By continuously assassinating enemy leaders, he could keep them trapped in internal chaos with no time for external invasion, thus preserving the Land of the River Source's general stability.
With chaos all around and the Land of the River Source also being invaded, the Reitō Castle forces weren't so conspicuous.
After the fighting continued for over a month, the intensity suddenly dropped to a level Yūshin's side could accept.
No choice—like cutting leeks, clan leaders died batch after batch. Who could endure that?
If the fighting brought any benefit, it was providing sufficient materials for Gorō Fūma's ongoing Cursed Grudge Fear transplant experiments.
Additionally, something rather retro became popular again among surrounding forces—surrounding ninja began wearing full armor again, especially back armor, which became essential. Even the waist protection behind them was reinforced and thickened.
You should know that because ninja extremely emphasized offensive attributes, armor development had always trended toward lighter, thinner protection with smaller coverage areas. This retro style completely went against the times.
No choice—too many people had been stabbed in the kidneys. Since it was impossible to defend against everything, they had to try anyway. At least it provided some psychological comfort.
You could say that as someone's strength grew, their destructiveness fully manifested... truly sinful.
Previously, when Yūshin conducted stealth assassinations, he had to be extremely careful not to be discovered, even using diversionary tactics.
But now?
So what if he was discovered? He'd just fight head-on and see who could out-tough whom.
For a time, Yūshin became famous in the surrounding region, though he received completely opposite evaluations—some thought him too cunning, a villainous-type ninja; others considered him very fierce, a tough-guy-type ninja.
The Fireflies organization's reputation also began spreading uncontrollably.
When the fighting intensity decreased to the point where the organization could handle everything without Yūshin, he had to go out again.
However, this mission wasn't related to himself, but to remedy the organization's current shortcomings—a public mission.
In this external conflict, The Fireflies organization's lack of capable sensory ninja was fully exposed. Initially, they were overwhelmed by enemy attacks from all directions, and the lack of intelligence-gathering ability put them at a disadvantage.
Fortunately, several ninja in the organization had strength far exceeding normal levels, allowing them to forcibly eliminate their disadvantage through an incredibly tough fighting style.
So Yūshin's idea of forming "Ino-Shika-Chō" had to be pushed forward. It wasn't much related to "Shika," nor purely about finding the two most suitable teammates for "Chō," but because "Ino" was an excellent sensory-type ninja.
The Yamanaka Clan was the type that could serve as radar on the battlefield.
Often, saying Yamanaka ninja could match Hyūga ninja wasn't excessive—both were excellent at parting the fog of war and gathering battlefield intelligence.
Yūshin would have liked to hire Hyūga ninja, but that was wishful thinking—impossible to hire.
The Yamanaka Clan was completely different. If Yūshin went alone, he'd definitely get a bad reception, but with the Akimichi Clan making connections, the situation would be entirely different.
...
At dusk, on a cliff far from Kikyō Castle, Yūshin and Shichimi Uchiha stood together, overlooking the brilliantly lit town below and feeling the rare tranquility carried by the night breeze.
The two had formed a team and swept through the few remaining enemies within the Land of the River Source once more. On their way back to Kikyō Castle, they temporarily stopped here.
At this moment, Yūshin not only didn't feel tired, but actually had a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment.
Not because he had protected the people here, but because being able to maintain such a peaceful, harmonious place amid the war-torn Shinobi World naturally brought satisfaction.
The clear night sky was like a mirror, with brilliant lights and distant starlight reflecting each other. If someone was pursuing and longing for harmony, this scene was the materialization of what they sought.
Shichimi Uchiha stood alone, her feet at the cliff's edge, silently watching the town made somewhat hazy by lights and starry night.
Yūshin walked forward several steps to her side. After listening to the night's tranquility together for a while, he spoke:
"Shouldn't we say something at a time like this?"
Shichimi shook her head, then after another moment of silence, said:
"For ninja like us, covered in blood, this omnipresent yet unreachable tranquility under the pristine galaxy and curtain-like night might be the most ideal burial ground."
Yūshin smiled, then ignored her.
In any case, don't try to guess what women are thinking.
I look very youthful, you look very girlish, but one has lived a second life and one has traveled through time—we can't really consider ourselves teenagers, right?
When Shichimi finally came back to her senses, she began discussing business: "Are you going out on that mission tomorrow?"
"Yes, I'll be working with Akimichi Ninsei... I'll leave things here to you."
"Alright."
...
Early the next morning, Yūshin met up with Akimichi Ninsei, preparing to seek the future partners who would be tightly bound to the Akimichi Clan.
Before departing, Yūshin specifically instructed Akimichi Ninsei to remove his marked forehead protector and change out of armor bearing clan emblems.
After all, when you're out in the world, hiding your identity is most important, especially for ninja like them who have fixed bases and territorial ranges.
Of course, going out on missions doesn't necessarily mean doing bad things, but what if certain situations required doing bad things?
You still had to be ready to do them.
In any case, neither had anything that could reveal their identities, and Yūshin specifically changed into the few remaining ninja tools he had once "borrowed" from the Sarutobi Clan.
This way, if they encountered situations requiring combat, Yūshin could afterward use the "it wasn't me, I didn't do it, don't make false accusations" triple denial. As for who actually did it, wouldn't there be marks and clues on the weapons?
After leaving Kikyō Castle, the two moved eastward.
Yūshin currently had a rough Shinobi World power map with regional divisions, and Akimichi Ninsei had also added some information to it.
Fortunately or unfortunately, both the Yamanaka Clan and Nara Clan's activity ranges were relatively close to the future Land of Fire's central region. Going a bit further east was the Enshi Clan's "vast" territorial range... Compared to other very fragmented forces, the Enshi Clan was indeed vast.
The Enshi Clan wasn't a ninja clan—this was the surname of the future Land of Fire's daimyo, so which ninja clan this force supported need not be mentioned.
"By the way... Akimichi Clan Leader, when do you think the Yamanaka and Nara supporters—their daimyo—will be destroyed?"
"Such small forces will be eliminated, that's certain. What remains is just a matter of timing."
Yūshin chatted with Akimichi Ninsei as they walked.
His opening statement left Akimichi Ninsei speechless:
"Yūshin-sama, can't you hope for something good?"
Those two daimyo are doing fine—why must they be destroyed? So you can absorb the Yamanaka Clan and Nara Clan after they're destroyed, right?
"Hope for something good? You mean when we reach our destination, those two daimyo forces will just happen to be destroyed? Clan Leader, you're truly wise—no wonder the Akimichi Clan has lasted so long..."
"But would such a coincidental situation really happen? Isn't that too idealistic?"
Akimichi Ninsei felt his scalp itch. Is that what I meant?
He simply shut up and stopped talking.
You could say silence is a form of wordless outcry.
These two moved very quickly because they were "traveling in straight lines"... Not long ago, when Yūshin led a team from the Land of Fire's central region to Kikyō Castle, they moved so carefully they were like street rats.
Look at their current movement method—if not exactly swaggering, at least it could be called open and honest, not afraid at all of other ninja causing trouble.
Indeed, having strength brings courage.
The first half of the journey was uneventful except for Yūshin's ill-intentioned cursing of certain two daimyo.
But when they were about to reach their destination, sounds of battle reached their ears.
Yūshin glanced at Akimichi Ninsei—see, not wearing forehead protectors and such was right, wasn't it? The outside world is too chaotic; excellent ninja must learn self-protection.
Maybe they could pick up some advantage, or at least bring back some experimental materials for Gorō Fūma... Thinking this, Yūshin and Akimichi Ninsei gradually approached that battlefield from the side.
Then he saw over ten ninja besieging a young ninja, with another companion already fallen nearby.
The young ninja had also taken down two or three enemies, but his injuries were already severe.
Yūshin showed a strange expression because the unlucky guy being besieged was an acquaintance.
Tobirama Senju, oh Tobirama Senju, you really are unlucky. Otherwise, why is it that every time I see you, you're covered in blood?
Yūshin decided to help Tobirama Senju—not because he particularly admired him, but because Tobirama Senju was his only connection to the Senju Clan. Considering the God of Shinobi's strength, Yūshin felt it necessary to maintain his relationship with Tobirama.
Moreover, although Tobirama Senju was being besieged quite miserably, as long as someone could provide support from the side, the battle situation would immediately change.
The situation was urgent. Yūshin quickly weighed the pros and cons and said to Akimichi Ninsei:
"The one being besieged is a quite important acquaintance. I must go help. You stay here and don't move. When I need you, I'll give a signal... The enemies are very strong and somewhat counter your fighting style."
With a quick glance, Yūshin found those enemies were very agile and skilled at speed combat, so he didn't have Akimichi Ninsei act immediately.
Akimichi Ninsei wasn't stubborn—he nodded to show he would follow Yūshin's orders.
Yūshin thought for a moment. He ultimately didn't want to fully expose his stealth abilities, so he decided to simply charge directly into the battlefield.
When he rushed toward the battlefield from the flank, the enemies quickly noticed him. He initially maintained a specific speed, but when he was about to approach an enemy, steam suddenly erupted from his body and he flew out like a cannonball.
Then he punched air.
The person before him had vanished.
Next, a short sword pierced through Yūshin's shoulder.
He turned his head slightly and saw with his peripheral vision that the enemy had appeared behind him.
Huh? Flying Thunder God?
But then he saw lightning on the opponent.
Lightning Release?
Tobirama Senju had marked Yūshin's chakra, so he had already sensed Yūshin appearing nearby. He just hadn't expected the other party to directly charge over to help him.
"Be careful, these enemies are all very fast."
In that instant, Yūshin suddenly remembered the warning Tobirama Senju had given when they parted last time.
"Swift as wind and thunder, fast as flowing water?"
Tobirama Senju immediately nodded. He used his long sword to deflect the kunai in his opponent's hand, then said:
"They're ninja from the Hagoromo Clan, skilled in Swift Release and Storm Release."
Yūshin: "..."
Why didn't you say so earlier? If you had, I wouldn't have come.
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