He had been standing at the tent entrance, yet Madara couldn't make him out.
It was obvious how far his vision had degenerated.
"Brother, sit down and let's talk."
Izuna responded.
The two brothers sat facing each other after a year apart.
"Brother, your eyes..."
Madara waved his large hand, his face full of unconcern. "Don't worry. This level isn't enough to do anything to me, Uchiha Madara."
Izuna felt black lines dropping over his eyes. Good, my ass. At this rate, you're going to be blind soon.
"For this period, Brother, don't go onto the battlefield. I obtained Sage Arts from that family in the northeast seas, and I also got the Uzumaki clan's Sealing Jutsu. I can assist you in cultivating Sage Chakra. This can effectively alleviate the side effects of the Mangekyo."
Halfway through, Izuna paused, his tone involuntarily lowering a notch. "It's a pity. If I had arrived earlier, your eyes wouldn't have deteriorated to this extent, Brother."
"That's not your fault, Izuna."
Madara quickly said, "To be able to achieve this much... looking across the entire clan, there is no one more outstanding than you."
"Come to think of it, I suddenly feel it would be more appropriate for you to serve as Clan Head," Madara laughed with his arms crossed.
"Forget it. I'm not used to standing at the front and commanding everyone."
Izuna tossed the two scrolls he had obtained from Jugo's clan to Madara. "These are the cultivation methods and precautions for Sage Arts. I will assist you from the side to prevent the natural energy from going berserk."
In reality, given the current state of Madara's eyes, cultivating Sage Chakra was only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. It would only serve to delay the blindness.
To truly cure the root cause, he needed to change eyes.
Fortunately, the skills Izuna had already learned on his skill tree could be exchanged a second time.
For example, the Mangekyo Sharingan he had obtained right after transmigrating could be exchanged again to give Madara a new set for 150 Skill Points.
But those points were definitely not something he could scrape together in a short time.
In the interim, using Sage Arts to alleviate the issue was indeed a good method.
While Izuna was thinking, Madara had already opened the Sage Arts scroll and begun to study it.
As a top-tier genius of the Warring States period, Madara quickly spotted the clues within. He frowned. "There's a significant risk. One careless moment and you'll be swallowed by natural energy. What's even more terrifying is that this backlash happens unconsciously. You wouldn't even know how you died."
"That is why a second person is needed to assist from the side. Don't worry, Brother. When you cultivate, I'll be watching."
Madara nodded to show his thanks, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "Wait, so when you were cultivating, who assisted you? Just now you said you learned the Uzumaki clan's secret techniques—that's not something you can achieve just by copying with the Sharingan, right?"
Izuna sucked in a breath of cold air.
Damn it, can you not bring up the one thing I don't want to talk about?
"That... let's talk about it when we have time later."
Suddenly remembering the news from the Shirotani Pass front line earlier, Izuna had once used Uzumaki Mito as a prisoner exchange to lure Senju Yuma and Uzumaki Hiro'umi into leading their army out of camp for battle.
Could it be that prisoner, Uzumaki Mito?
Madara couldn't help but suspect this in his heart, but he immediately laughed internally and denied it. That... that's not very likely, is it?
BOOM!!!
Just then, a deafening explosion rang out from the distance outside.
Soon, Uchiha Enka rushed into the main camp and reported to Izuna and Madara, "Clan Head, Vice-Clan Head! The Senju have united with the Uzumaki and have begun to launch an attack!"
"Good timing! I'll go right now and..."
Madara immediately jumped up from his chair, indicating he wanted to exchange a few moves with them.
"Brother!"
Izuna spoke up to stop him, sweeping a glance over him. "Until your Sage Arts cultivation is complete, you cannot step onto the battlefield!"
Madara, who had just stood, gritted his teeth and finally sank back into his chair with an exhausted sigh. "I understand. I'll leave it to you, Izuna."
"Don't worry."
Izuna rose and brushed imaginary dust from his armor, then strode out of the main tent alongside Uchiha Enka.
"Vice-Clan Head, for this interception strategy, are we still defending?" Uchiha Enka walked beside Izuna, seeking instruction.
"Interception?" Izuna smiled at the question, his gaze sharpening. "No—we're attacking! Order everyone to prepare. We'll strike straight through their front. The clan has been defending for so long; they must be getting impatient by now."
The three hundred reinforcements from Shirotani Pass joining the Mount Congyun battle line didn't add much in terms of numbers. But the news of Izuna taking down Senju Yuma and single-handedly facing off against five hundred elite warriors from both clans had injected a powerful shot of morale into everyone's hearts.
When Izuna's order for a full-scale assault came down, spirits soared and the whole army erupted in cheers.
The camp gates swung open, and Izuna led the charge himself, rushing forward.
"Follow the Vice-Clan Head and strike!" Uchiha Enka led the battle cry, and everyone raised their hands high, shouting until the valley and forest rang with their voices.
Compared to Shirotani Pass, Mount Congyun was a landscape of interwoven mountains and forests—but after a full year of war and relentless ninjutsu bombardment, it had been stripped bare.
Soon, Izuna, riding at the vanguard, spotted a line of black dots stretching across the horizon.
A few minutes later, he made out their true form: an army of over a thousand Senju and Uzumaki forces, led by Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama.
Compared to the few hundred combatants at Shirotani Pass, the main battlefield truly displayed its grand and overwhelming scale.
"Uchiha Izuna!" Upon seeing Izuna at the front, Tobirama's heart tightened. His left hand formed a fist with the thumb raised, striking it against the center of his right palm.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bite Explosion!"
Right out of the gate, an S-rank water technique—and its power was no less than Senju Yuma's. It seemed the future Second Hokage, destined to be hailed as the "Water God," was gradually coming into his own.
"But things are different now."
Izuna's Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan flared to life, and tadpole-shaped Sage Mode markings appeared at the corners of his eyes.
"Sage Art: Blaze Release: Imperial Flame of Heaven's Mandate!"
Izuna's hand seals moved at lightning speed. Flames with the explosive force of lightning surged forth, colliding with the water dragon. After struggling for about five seconds, the water dragon evaporated into steam while the sea of fire continued its assault.
"What kind of Fire Release is that!?" Tobirama was shocked that his Water Release had been overwhelmed.
Hashirama quickly stepped forward, bit his thumb, and pressed it to the ground.
"Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon!"
Three gates bearing different demon faces rose from the earth. The first two were consumed and breached by the flames, but the third held the fire at bay.
"Vice-Clan Head, we're here to help!" Uchiha Enka and the others charged up at that moment.
"I'll handle Senju Hashirama. What you need to watch out for most is Tobirama's Flying Thunder God technique. If he marks you with the Flying Thunder God seal, you're in trouble." After this warning, a Rasengan formed in Izuna's hand, swelling to half the size of a basketball court before he slammed it into the final Rashomon gate.
"Sage Art: Super Great Ball Rasengan!"
The last defense shattered, and the Uchiha forces surged through, clashing with the Senju.
"You've really gotten stronger, Izuna!" Hashirama exclaimed in admiration, greeting him as if meeting an old friend. "Now that I think about it, this seems to be the first time you and I have fought head-on."
"That's true. But certain people don't seem to enjoy frontal combat." The moment the words left Izuna's mouth, his body shot upward.
At almost the same instant, a pair of hands emerged from beneath the soil where Izuna had just stood. Tobirama burst out, clicking his tongue. "Failed, did I?"
-----
Read up to 20 advanced chapters on my P@treon.
[email protected]/fanfictionsimp