"You're still as ruthless as ever, Tobirama."
The moment he heard the voice, both Senju Tobirama and Uchiha Hirito turned to look. Izuna stood atop the lookout of the Uchiha encampment at Mountain Road, forming a hand seal with one hand. A faint smile played on his lips as he regarded Senju Tobirama.
"Aiming for a position the enemy thinks is impossible to reach—truly your style."
From his own recollection, Izuna realized that Tobirama likely hadn't mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique at this point in time. Yet the moves Tobirama had just displayed made it clear he had already acquired it, possibly keeping it hidden until the right moment to deploy it.
Tobirama clicked his tongue in annoyance. "To think you'd see through my plan..."
He had developed the Flying Thunder God Technique a few months prior but had yet to use it, saving it as a secret weapon to launch a surprise strike against the Uchiha clan.
The Mountain Road camp had stood as an impenetrable barrier for the Uchiha for centuries. This overconfidence led them to divert too many resources to the front lines, leaving their defenses at Mountain Road weak.
It was nearly impossible for regular ninja—Kage-level or otherwise—to bypass so many defenders on the front lines and infiltrate the Mountain Road camp unnoticed. However, Senju Tobirama, equipped with the Flying Thunder God Technique and being a highly perceptive ninja, could do just that.
He possessed an extraordinary ability to sense the battlefield, surpassing even Senju Hashirama. At his peak, he could gauge the exact number of enemy forces in a single breath. With this technique, he could strike at the heart of Uchiha's defenses, led by Hirito, and potentially capture the camp.
If successful, this attack would not only threaten the Uchiha's survival but significantly weaken their ability to contest the Senju clan's dominance.
But then, Izuna's sudden arrival caught him off guard.
Uchiha Hirito was equally startled. "Chief Izuna, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at the front line?"
"Uncle Hirito, please retreat and provide emergency treatment to the wounded," Izuna instructed, jumping down from the lookout.
Hirito, a contemporary of Uchiha Tajima, was addressed as 'uncle' out of respect. As he wiped the blood from his forehead, he hoisted up two Uchiha jōnin who were still breathing. "Be careful. That kid's skills are downright sinister."
While Uchiha Hirito was a formidable ninja, on par with Senju Tobirama, the power of the Flying Thunder God Technique was a game-changer that could easily allow Tobirama to strike beyond his level.
"Though things have changed, it doesn't matter," Tobirama muttered, regaining his composure. He pulled out a new Flying Thunder God kunai and added, "Once I capture you, I can use you as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the Uchiha."
Having fought against Izuna numerous times, Tobirama was confident that he could subdue him with the Flying Thunder God Technique.
"Oh? How bold of you to say that," Izuna shot back, his tone icy. The three magatama in his Sharingan spun rapidly, morphing into a new three-pronged shape resembling the character "人."
"A Sharingan I've never seen before?!" Tobirama exclaimed, momentarily taken aback.
Yet he remained calm. Forming a hand seal, he summoned a torrent of water, erupting from behind him in a wave over twenty meters high.
"Water Release: Water Rush Wave!"
Ninjas during the Warring States Period were far stronger than their later counterparts; nearly all Genin of this era were superior to the Chūnin of Naruto's generation.
Izuna responded with his own jutsu. "Fire Release: Great Fire Extinguishing Technique!"
He clasped his hands together, inhaling deeply before unleashing an inferno that matched the intensity of Tobirama's Water Release.
Boom!
As fire and water collided, the resulting explosion created a thick vapor cloud, sending tents and the corpses of fallen Uchiha warriors soaring through the air.
While the eyes of the fallen could potentially be salvaged, the era's imperfect transplantation methods left much to be desired, Izuna thought grimly. Such practices were dark but all too common during the Warring States.
Suddenly, Izuna sensed the presence of Senju Tobirama vanish from his sight.
In less than a second, Tobirama appeared about ten meters above Izuna, having used the Flying Thunder God Technique to navigate the battlefield. The earlier clash of high-level ninjutsu had sent the kunai that Tobirama had previously placed in the area flying into the air.
One of those kunai soared overhead, allowing Tobirama to capitalize on the situation and drop down onto Izuna.
"Got you!" Tobirama shouted.
But he didn't realize that, at that very moment, beneath Izuna's bangs, his left Mangekyō Sharingan was spinning rapidly, capturing the scene in vivid detail.
In the visual feed, Tobirama was seen vanishing with the Flying Thunder God Technique and reappearing above him, preparing to strike with a Water Release attack.
Just as expected, the vision withdrew, and Tobirama unleashed a barrage of water needles from his position above.
"Water Release: Heaven Crying!"
Izuna quickly reached for the scroll attached to his ninja pouch, pressing it open as countless kunai and shuriken burst forth, connected by nearly invisible threads.
In an instant, Izuna gripped a thin string tightly and flung it skyward.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Kunai and water needles clashed in mid-air, resulting in a dazzling display of sparks and spray as they dissipated into the atmosphere.
"Uchiha Shuriken Jutsu?" Tobirama's eyes narrowed in surprise. What astonished him even more was that Izuna had completely anticipated his attack trajectory.
How can this be?! Tobirama thought, having never encountered anyone able to perceive his Flying Thunder God Technique so accurately before.
(End of this chapter.)