Tobirama's movements suddenly froze.
His whole body was as if an invisible hand had seized his throat, and an uncontrollable shock flashed through his eyes.
That technique... he had never fully demonstrated it in front of anyone. He had only tested even the rudimentary form of the marking a few times in front of a very small number of trusted confidants.
The vast majority of the clan members, including Hashirama, only knew that he was researching a "faster way to move," but they had no idea what it actually was.
But Izuna... how did he know?
And he was even using such a casual, almost teasing tone.
"You..."
Tobirama's voice tightened slightly, and for the first time, that kind of nervous expression appeared on his face.
Seeing Tobirama like this, Izuna felt pleased with himself. He did not answer. His Sharingan turned slightly, and the blade drew closer again.
"Secret."
He spoke softly, but the smile at the corner of his mouth carried an obvious sense of pressure.
"But since you haven't finished researching it yet, don't use a half-finished version in front of me. You'll be seen through."
As soon as he finished speaking, Izuna's attacks erupted once more.
This time, he even anticipated Tobirama's intention to use the marking for short-distance movement. His blade light precisely sealed off every possible point where Tobirama could appear.
Tobirama was forced to abandon the immature technique and fell back into the rhythm of being suppressed.
But a storm was already raging in his heart.
'This Izuna... where exactly did he learn about it?'
———
Elsewhere, in a secluded space far from the noise of the battlefield.
Observer Arisu held a cup of warm milk and leaned back in a void chair made of chakra.
Through a special monitoring screen, he was leisurely watching the fierce battle between Madara and Hashirama in the river valley below.
Everything was still following the original plot.
Madara rejecting peace, Hashirama's heavy mood, the two of them eventually fighting until both were badly wounded... these key points.
"Hmm, the pacing is fine. More or less. As long as it stays roughly the same as the original."
"As long as Izuna is seriously wounded by Tobirama at the predetermined time and dies afterward, the rest of the script can proceed smoothly."
Arisu blew on the heat rising from the surface of the milk.
As soon as he finished speaking...
Izuna's half-joking voice suddenly came through the monitoring barrier, "That technique that can teleport instantly... have you finished researching it?"
Pa!
Arisu's milk cup suddenly stopped in his hand, and a ripple spread across the surface.
Arisu sat upright in his chair, his originally relaxed brows instantly tightening.
"...Hmm?"
"Something's wrong. There's a problem."
Arisu put the cup aside and stared fixedly at the black-haired boy fighting Tobirama inside the barrier.
That sentence just now was definitely not something the Izuna from the original story would have said.
No matter how sharp the original Izuna was, there was no way he could know about the Flying Thunder God technique while Tobirama was still in the research stage.
At this point in time, even the marking for that technique had not been officially finalized. Even Hashirama only knew the vague concept.
But the Izuna now not only knew about it, he had even casually pointed it out directly.
Arisu's pupils narrowed slightly, and his mind began reorganizing all the abnormal details from just now at an astonishing speed.
The overly mature reasoning Izuna had shown when refusing peace talks, his almost prophetic suppression of Tobirama's moves on the battlefield, and that fatal sentence just now, "Have you finished researching it?"
None of them matched.
"This Izuna... something's wrong.", Arisu muttered to himself, and for the first time, genuine gravity entered his voice.
The next second, Arisu immediately had the system scan him.
The moment the result appeared, Arisu's entire face darkened.
"...Someone took over the account."
Arisu shook his head helplessly.
The one currently controlling this body was a transmigrator from the modern era.
"Ugh....."
Arisu rubbed his brow, his expression quickly changing from shock to deep helplessness and exhaustion.
"Another transmigrator..."
Arisu picked up the milk, only to find that he had completely lost the desire to drink it. He could only set the cup down heavily to the side.
"These transmigrators really... do nothing but make trouble for themselves."
Arisu leaned back against the chair and looked up at the void, his voice filled with resentment toward this lousy job.
"Can't you let me watch the original plot properly just once? Can't I have even one time? Do you really have to come mess things up?"
Arisu let out a deep sigh, but his eyes had already become sharp again.
Now that Izuna had been taken over, all the originally planned plot points had to be reevaluated.
Especially...
He had to find a way to deal with that transmigrator.
In the void, Arisu remained silent for a moment.
"Can't act rashly...", Arisu muttered, his eyes gradually calming.
Izuna's body was not something that could simply be dealt with at will.
In the original story, he was the key material for Madara to awaken the Eternal Mangekyo.
Those eyes carried Madara's deepest emotions and hatred, and were also one of the starting points of all the tragedies that followed.
If Izuna died now, Madara's state of mind would never reach the originally intended point. Rage, despair, and complete collapse over "losing his only family member" all required enough time and buildup.
Acting now would only make Madara's hatred purer and more extreme.
The deviation from the plot would only become greater than it already was.
But what if he left him alone?
This transmigrator had clearly already started meddling.
His attitude toward rejecting peace talks, his knowledge of Tobirama's technique, his almost prophetic suppression on the battlefield... he definitely had not come here to be a tool for the original story.
Arisu rubbed his brow, his expression even more helpless than before.
"What a hassle..."
Arisu leaned back against the chair and looked back and forth between Izuna and Madara.
He could neither let Izuna die now nor let him live too comfortably and ruin all the key points later.
He had to ensure that Izuna ultimately left his eyes to Madara, while also making sure that Madara's state of mind gradually reached its original position.
The balance in between... was even harder to grasp than he had imagined.
Arisu sighed softly, his voice thick with exhaustion. "These transmigrators... can't they stop taking over key characters all the time? Can't they go experience life as some random passerby?"
Though he said that, his eyes had already become sharp again.
Next, he had to think of a more reliable solution.
In the void, Arisu eventually gave up on the idea of intervening immediately.
"Let's leave it alone for now..."
Arisu muttered, his tone carrying a hint of helpless resignation.
"Anyway, dealing with him now could easily push Madara into turning against us completely. Let this transmigrator mess around for a while. Three years... that's enough time for him to put on a show."
"When the key point gets closer, it'll still be in time to find a way to pull him back onto the right track."
After saying that, Arisu casually waved his hand and closed his eyes.
———
Three years passed in the blink of an eye.
[Uchiha Clan Grounds]
The courtyards that had once seemed somewhat desolate after years of continuous warfare now faintly carried a different atmosphere.
On the training ground in the side courtyard, groups of boys and young men were practicing basic ninjutsu and taijutsu.
Standing at the very front of the training ground was Uchiha Izuna.
He was steadier than he had been three years ago. His black hair was unchanged, but his brows and eyes held less of a young man's recklessness and more of the sharpness that came after years of tempering.
"Again. If you successfully learn Chidori, I can teach you the more advanced Raikiri.", Izuna said.
Over these years, he had successfully obtained more ninjutsu through the system.
The clan members below all answered in unison, without the slightest slackening.
Over these three years, Izuna had devoted almost most of his energy to the clan.
He personally organized and simplified multiple cultivation methods for ninjutsu suited to clan members at different stages.
He broke down the basic Fire Release and taijutsu techniques that had originally only been accessible to elites into versions that ordinary people could gradually master as well.
He led people in reclaiming the barren fields on the outskirts of the clan grounds and improved the food reserves.
After the war, he organized the treatment of the wounded and the distribution of supplies, giving greater care to those Uchiha who had lost their families.
As a result, his reputation points steadily climbed on the system panel.
From just over three hundred at the beginning, they had now long since broken into four digits.
And growing alongside his reputation was his strength.
Over these three years, Izuna had exchanged for nearly every ninjutsu and secret technique that he could exchange for and that suited him.
He had honed the precision of his Sharingan and his chakra control to an almost demanding level.
On the battlefield, he had gradually gone from "the sharpest blade beside Madara" to "another blade capable of standing on its own."
Even...
During some private sparring matches, some of the elders had already vaguely noticed that...
Izuna's strength was showing signs of faintly surpassing Madara.
Of course, no one dared say this openly.
Madara was still the clan leader, the banner of the Uchiha.
But the way the clan members looked at Izuna had already gradually changed from the initial "the clan leader's younger brother" into something more complicated, and more respectful.
And all of this was seen by Arisu in the void.
He leaned against the back of his chair, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest, his expression somewhere between helplessness and interest.
"Three years... he really did manage to accomplish something.", Arisu said quietly.