"Relax, sit."
Uchiha Setsuna spoke indifferently before pulling a shuriken from his ninja pouch and tossing it to Uchiha Renzou.
Renzou caught it smoothly and examined it. He didn't notice anything special about it—except that, compared to the kunai he used for blocking, the Grand Elder's shuriken was clearly high-end, well-crafted, and far more durable.
"Grand Elder, what is this for?" Renzou asked, puzzled.
"Who taught you shuriken techniques?" Uchiha Setsuna asked, half-closing his eyes.
Renzou's heart tensed. Just now, he had only made a simple move against Seichiro and hadn't even used the intricate wire manipulation techniques of the Uchiha-style Shurikenjutsu. Yet, the Grand Elder still noticed something off about his technique.
The problem was, Renzou didn't really know how to answer this question.
After all, this skill was something he had "borrowed" from Uchiha Setsuna himself. He couldn't exactly say, I've admired you for a long time, watched you throw for a year, and had a little epiphany.
Within the clan, he wasn't even close to the level of elites like Uchiha Shisui, let alone learning such advanced shuriken techniques firsthand.
After hesitating for a while, Renzou could only reply honestly, "Grand Elder, I'm just a genin. Aside from the clan's standard training courses, I have no other means to learn jutsu, so I just practice whatever doesn't cost money."
"Oh?"
A sharp glint flashed beneath Setsuna's half-closed eyes.
So, this kid is actually a buried genius?
No wonder that proud brat Shisui seemed to take an interest in him.
"I see," Setsuna mused for a moment before nodding. He then retrieved another shuriken from his pouch.
Holding it in one hand, he formed a single tiger seal with the other.
A miraculous scene unfolded.
The shuriken in the Grand Elder's palm became engulfed in flames, levitating in midair while spinning rapidly.
"Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson originate from the same technique. The hand seals don't change."
"The method is simple. Wrap your ninja tool in chakra, then form the tiger seal to alter its nature before throwing it."
His tone was calm and indifferent.
Renzou was momentarily stunned, his expression turning strange.
Was the Grand Elder… giving him guidance?
Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson was an advanced version of the Phoenix Fire Jutsu, a B-rank technique. Unlike the standard Phoenix Sage Fire, which released fireballs, this one involved wrapping a spinning shuriken in flames.
Not only did this enhance its sharpness, but the added momentum increased the jutsu's power.
"You, try it," Setsuna ordered, withdrawing his chakra.
The burning shuriken immediately fell to the ground, making a sizzling sound.
Renzou was slightly disappointed.
He had hoped to see the Grand Elder perform a display of invincible iron hands, catching the burning shuriken bare-handed.
It seemed that even someone of Setsuna's caliber was still made of flesh and blood.
Reluctantly, Renzou obeyed. He placed the shuriken before him, carefully forming the tiger seal.
He focused his chakra, trying to wrap it around the shuriken and alter its nature.
A small flame flickered around the weapon, causing it to twitch twice—before it flopped lifelessly onto the ground.
Renzou's face filled with embarrassment.
Meanwhile, Setsuna narrowed his eyes slightly, nodding imperceptibly before saying indifferently:
"That's it. This is the basic shape transformation of Fire Release. Remember this."
"Once you grasp this, you can expand it into multiple applications of Fire Release, such as—"
He tossed another shuriken, embedding it into a distant tree.
This time, however, the shuriken was tied with a steel wire.
Then, with seemingly little effort, he formed a sequence of four hand seals.
Renzou immediately recognized them—it was the hand seal sequence for Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique.
Snake → Dragon → Hare → Tiger!
A stream of fire raced along the steel wire.
"This is the Dragon Fire Technique. Practice this first. Once you've mastered it, move on to Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson. When you reach that level, come find me again."
Setsuna's tone remained calm. He then threw out another steel-wired shuriken.
This time, he only formed a single tiger seal.
A roaring dragon-like flame erupted instantly, skipping the entire sealing process.
Renzou's eyes widened in shock.
So, there really were Uchiha capable of doing this.
Using Fire Release with just a single seal? That was only a step behind Senju Hashirama, who could summon wood-style techniques with a mere clap of his hands!
"Once you master these, you will have full control over Fire Release's nature transformation. After that—"
Setsuna furrowed his brows slightly, glancing at Renzou's eyes before shaking his head coldly.
"Forget it. First, stay alive. We'll talk about the rest later."
In just two minutes, this veteran from the Warring States period had imparted both Fire Release's shape and nature transformation to Renzou.
He really dared to teach.
A normal shinobi wouldn't have been able to comprehend such a lesson.
But Renzou had already mastered Setsuna's godlike Uchiha-style Wire Manipulation Shurikenjutsu and had learned a proficient level of Phoenix Fire from Seichiro.
Connecting the dots from a higher vantage point—
Phoenix Sage Fire, Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson, and Dragon Fire were essentially specialized applications of Fire Release. Now that he understood the underlying principles…
Renzou suddenly realized, with some mild despair, that he actually got it.
[You have learned Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique (Beginner, C-rank).]
[You have learned Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson (Beginner, B-rank).]
Two glowing notifications flashed before his eyes. Renzou froze for a moment.
Then, with a look of resignation, he turned to glare at Setsuna.
Stop teaching! Stop teaching!
His brain was tingling. He felt like it was physically growing.
At this rate, he'd max out his skills before even stepping onto the battlefield.
How was this fair?!
Just then, Uchiha Seichiro returned from setting up perimeter traps, his expression grave.
"Grand Elder, there's a squad of Hot Water shinobi searching the area. I suggest we retreat for now."
However, when he saw Setsuna teaching Renzou ninjutsu, Seichiro's face froze. His eyes turned red.
He knew it!
So this was why Setsuna had chosen Renzou for this mission.
This greasy-faced brat was actually one of the hawk faction!
And worse, he had deceived Lord Shisui, making him believe he was a dove faction sympathizer!
Unforgivable!
"What did you say?" Setsuna frowned slightly, prompting Seichiro to repeat himself.
"A squad of Hot Water shinobi is patrolling nearby. They seem to have a specific objective."
He then advised, "According to the ninja code, we should avoid unnecessary conflicts outside our mission."
"Given the current turmoil in the Land of Hot Water, we should avoid direct confrontation."
Renzou furrowed his brows. He had heard about this last night from Obito.
It was an experience Minato had shared with his students: the Land of Hot Water was in chaos, and shinobi needed to be cautious of certain individuals.
One such group was the local shinobi—because, in times like these, their loyalty to their village was uncertain.
Not that Renzou was afraid.
If anything, he wanted to encounter strange shinobi.
But unlike before, he had no good excuse to persuade the team into taking a risk.
Yet, upon hearing this news, Setsuna's half-closed eyes snapped open. His three-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly.
He kicked over the campfire, drew his long sword, and gave a cold order:
"Prepare for battle."
"Seichiro, lead the way. We're dealing with those Hot Water shinobi first."
"Then, we march through the Land of Hot Water overnight!"