"Damn it! Weak, but so troublesome!" Seeing its ultimate move miss, the Eight-Tails grew even more irritated and swung another punch.
Izuna easily dodged it, retreating over a hundred meters. He held his hands out levelly and shouted, "This battle ends here, Eight-Tails. Next time, I will capture you."
If Izuna were to truly unleash the full power of his Mangekyo Sharingan, it was uncertain whether he could defeat the Eight-Tails. But his goal wasn't victory; it was "control," and his only path was through ocular power. Now that he had confirmed his Mangekyo's power was insufficient, there was no reason to continue the fight.
"Did I say you could leave!?" the Eight-Tails bellowed. Did this human think he could come and go as he pleased?
"A fight might be debatable, but if I want to leave, you absolutely cannot stop me." Izuna formed a cross-shaped seal with his hands and instantly created five shadow clones. All six of them scattered in different directions, some even using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
If this were the Eight-Tails of the future that had spent much time around humans, it would have undoubtedly cursed, "Shit." As it was now, Izuna could completely usurp Senju Tobirama's title of "The Ninja World's Fastest." With the combination of Shadow Clones and the Flying Thunder God Technique, a lumbering Tailed Beast like the Eight-Tails had no hope of catching him.
Glancing at the mark on its stomach, the Eight-Tails' eyes narrowed. It plunged its fingers into its own flesh, tearing away the layer of skin. But it didn't know that a Flying Thunder God formula couldn't be destroyed by such simple means. Only one who wielded the power of the Six Paths could completely erase it.
***
Upon re-entering the borders of the Land of Fire, Izuna could no longer hold on. He collapsed against the trunk of a large tree. He had been mentally prepared before the fight, but the amount of Chakra and ocular power consumed in his battle with the Eight-Tails had far exceeded his expectations.
Capturing a Tailed Beast would have to be put on the back burner for now. He needed to address the more pressing issue at hand. With that thought, Izuna took a scroll from his tool pouch. Leaning against the tree to rest and recover his Chakra, he began to study the Sage Art of the Jugo clan.
Meanwhile, less than two hundred miles away from Izuna, in another dense forest, a great battle was raging. The Uchiha, allied with four other clans, were attacking the Sarutobi and Shimura clans.
***
"Vice-Clan Head, have you finished reviewing today's documents? If not, you can give me the ones you've completed."
That evening, in Izuna's mansion within the Uchiha clan compound, Uchiha Takahiko knelt outside Izuna's room. He was in charge of battlefield logistics, serving as the chief quartermaster.
Ever since Madara had led the army to attack the Sarutobi and Shimura clans with their four northwestern allies, the myriad of clan affairs, both large and small, had fallen onto Izuna's shoulders as the Vice-Clan Head. Documents that required his approval were usually delivered to his residence by the heads of various departments, who would then send someone to retrieve them later. Uchiha Takahiko, responsible for logistics, was one of the most frequent visitors. He would arrive with a pile of documents for Izuna's review almost every other day.
Previously, Izuna would leave the approved scrolls by his door for the department personnel to collect. But today, when Uchiha Takahiko arrived, he found the doorway empty. That was why he was calling into the room.
Little did Uchiha Takahiko or any of the clansmen remaining in the compound know that the one reviewing documents here lately had been one of Izuna's shadow clones. Izuna had only planned a short trip to obtain the Sage Art training method and hadn't intended to fight anyone, so leaving a single shadow clone had seemed sufficient.
He never expected to run into the Eight-Tails on his way back.
When the original body's Chakra is depleted or severely injured, a shadow clone will uncontrollably disappear. The clone that had been stationed in the clan compound had vanished that morning when Izuna exhausted his Chakra fighting the Eight-Tails.
After calling out several more times with no response, a sense of confusion washed over Uchiha Takahiko. "Vice-Clan Head, forgive my intrusion," he said, before sliding open the paper door.
The room that met his eyes was empty. All that was left was a writing brush with dried ink on the tatami mat and a half-reviewed document on the low desk.
"Vice... Vice-Clan Head?" Uchiha Takahiko was stunned. His mind raced.
He strode to the entrance of the mansion and asked the two maids on duty, "You two, did the Vice-Clan Head go out today?"
The maids looked at each other and shook their heads. "No. We've been here all day and haven't seen him leave."
*The maids at the gate didn't see him... Could it be... the Vice-Clan Head was secretly abducted?*
The thought had barely formed before Uchiha Takahiko dismissed it. This was the very heart of the Uchiha compound. No ninja had ever managed to infiltrate this deep. Besides, with Izuna's power, was there any ninja in the world who could capture him so silently?
That left only one answer—he had left on his own.
As for the reason, Uchiha Takahiko didn't know. Since Izuna hadn't informed his subordinates, it meant he didn't want anyone to know. Although the Vice-Clan Head leaving the compound without authorization was a serious matter, after much consideration, Uchiha Takahiko decided to cover for him for the time being. If he didn't return in two days, he would report it to the elders.
***
Miles away, Izuna was speeding back to the clan compound. When a shadow clone disappears, its memories return to the original body. Through his clone's memories, he now knew the situation on the battlefield.
Madara's first campaign as leader was going overwhelmingly well, but the Sarutobi and Shimura clans were no pushovers. He believed it would be some time before a decisive victor emerged.
***
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
"Chidori!"
On the battlefield, Madara first cleared away the majority of enemies before him with Great Fire Annihilation, then followed up with Chidori to strike down any who remained standing. The war had raged for over half a month, a stark contrast to the strategy of avoidance Izuna had employed on the northwestern front.
After securing the allegiance of the four northwestern clans, Madara's style of warfare could only be described as "ferocious." He launched an attack on the Sarutobi and Shimura clans almost every three days, and each time, he led the charge himself.
This fighting style, so different from Izuna's, showed the four northwestern clans, who had suffered greatly under Izuna, the difference between the two brothers.
*If possible, I'd rather have Uchiha Izuna leading this war,* thought Watanabe Ryokai, the new head of the Watanabe clan. He quickly dodged a Wind Release from a Shimura ninja and countered with his own Water Release.
Uchiha Madara's ferocity certainly boosted battlefield morale, but as a leader, he preferred the strategist Uchiha Izuna as the supreme commander. Such men always sought to achieve the greatest results with the smallest sacrifices. Having just gone through one major war, the Watanabe and the other three clans were finding Uchiha Madara's relentless assaults difficult to bear. But they had only just become vassals of the Uchiha. It was far too soon to be voicing opinions to their new lords, lest their future become very difficult.
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"
"Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"
Suddenly, from ahead of Madara, a Wind and Fire Release jutsu merged, forming a giant fire tornado with power approaching that of an S-rank technique. His Three-Tomoe Sharingan gave him ample warning, and he had already pulled the Uchiha Flame Fan from his back, holding it defensively before him.
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