Life slipped away in silence, leaving behind the thick stench of blood. In the quiet room, blood seeped through the bed frame, forming droplets that fell to the floor.
In the streetside apartment, all eleven targets had been eliminated by Ye Zi within fifteen minutes, their lives extinguished in their sleep. White Zetsu had dutifully collected all eleven pairs of eyes.
With the apartment cleared, Ye Zi turned his attention to the residential area.
First, he had eradicated the apartment's targets; now, he would move to those in the housing district.
While the Uchiha clan had a fair number of shinobi with three-tomoe Sharingan, adding the condition of being solitary greatly limited the pool of targets. Even so, Ye Zi had managed to identify over thirty suitable individuals.
Under the veil of this deep, quiet night, Uchiha clan members fell one by one to Ye Zi's blade, their deaths unnoticed by anyone.
Ordinarily, even while sleeping, shinobi maintained a certain level of alertness. As Jōnin, they should have been able to sense someone approaching, even in a state of rest.
However, being in the heart of their village and within the confines of their compound gave them a false sense of absolute safety. They never anticipated that someone could infiltrate their midst and target them so effectively.
Overhead, the clouds clustered densely, showing faint signs of dispersing. The air remained still, leaving it unclear whether rain might soon fall.
As a sliver of moonlight pierced through a gap in the clouds, it cast its light onto the ground below.
"Twenty-first…"
"Twenty-second…"
"Twenty-third…"
"Twenty-fourth…"
"Twenty-fifth…"
…
"Thirty-first…"
"Thirty-second…"
With each silent count in his mind, another Uchiha's life ended.
After about an hour, Ye Zi was nearly done. Only one more pair of three-tomoe Sharingan was needed to complete the mission.
"Shizhu Uchiha … What a strange name. Location: 212 Kan Street, near the compound's edge. Once I get these eyes, I can leave immediately."
Ye Zi stood in a room, most of his body hidden near the window, only a small part visible to provide him a clear view of the outside. His cold gaze focused in the direction of Shizhu Uchiha's home.
At that moment, the clouds parted further, and moonlight poured down, illuminating a wide avenue outside the building.
Ye Zi's attention was drawn to the silvery glow reflected on the street. Coincidentally, a child was walking under the moonlight, head slightly bowed, mumbling something to himself as he came from the far side of the street.
"Is that…?" Ye Zi's icy gaze landed on the child. He recognized him.
Judging by his height and appearance, the boy looked to be about thirteen or fourteen, noticeably changed from a year ago.
If Ye Zi's memory was correct, this was the boy he had noticed during his fight with Kushina in Konoha's eastern district. Back then, the boy had been standing at the edge of the battlefield, observing. Ye Zi had taken a moment to glance at him and seen his three-tomoe Sharingan.
At that time, the boy had been shorter and much younger-looking, appearing to be no older than nine or ten. In the year since, his growth was evident in both stature and demeanor.
The boy had a pair of Sharingan and was within reach. There was no need to go out of his way to target Shizhu Uchiha. Ye Zi decided to kill this boy and take his eyes instead, saving himself the effort of traveling further.
Drawing the blade Chijin from his back, Ye Zi prepared to eliminate the boy. In his eyes, even a child who awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan was nothing more than a target. One to be dealt with in a single strike.
The child was Itachi Uchiha, returning from training, unaware that a dangerous predator had fixed its sights on him. Meanwhile, the ill-named Shizhu Uchiha remained fast asleep, oblivious to the fact that Itachi's presence was sparing him from disaster.
Walking along the street, Itachi muttered to himself, "I lost to Shisui eleven times today… The only thing I managed was a slight advantage with shuriken. How can I avoid losing so badly next time?"
Earlier during training, Itachi had been thoroughly beaten by Shisui, as usual. After parting ways, he hadn't gone home immediately but instead found a quiet spot to continue practicing until now.
For most kids his age, staying out this late would likely have caused concern at home. But Itachi was different. He had no need to worry about scoldings for being late.
As he walked home, he replayed his mistakes during the day's sparring session, determined to avoid even the smallest missteps in the future. His unwavering self-discipline, combined with his natural talent and three-tomoe Sharingan, had led him to become an Anbu squad captain at just eleven years old, earning the respect of his peers.
Even when not on missions, Itachi never allowed himself to slack off. He often sparred with Shisui to hone his skills and refine his combat experience. On days when Shisui wasn't available, he trained alone, devoting every spare moment to improvement.
This relentless drive meant he often had to turn down his younger brother's requests to play, much to his own guilt.
With his head slightly bowed, Itachi focused on reviewing his mistakes. The silver moonlight cast a long shadow behind him, stretching across the ground.
At this moment, Itachi remained unaware of the blade poised above him, ready to take his life.
Then, out of nowhere, a cool breeze swept through, ruffling his hair slightly.
"The wind's picking up," Itachi muttered, a faint smile gracing his lips.
The weather had been peculiar since evening. The sky had been overcast with thick clouds, threatening rain, yet there hadn't been a hint of wind. From dusk until now, the clouds had remained, and the air had stayed still and stagnant.
Now, the sudden, chilly breeze broke the monotony, pulling Itachi from his thoughts.
After a day without wind, such an abrupt shift naturally caught his attention.
And it was this breeze that saved Itachi's life.
As the cool wind brushed against him, Itachi instinctively raised his head slightly. At that precise moment, he noticed something out of place.
Beside his long shadow on the ground, another shadow had silently appeared.
The timing couldn't have been more coincidental.
Itachi's pupils contracted sharply. Without a moment to think, his hands flew through hand seals. A faint sense of danger pricked at his back like needles.
A slight whoosh in the air was followed by the rapid approach of a blade aimed directly at his vital points.
It was Ye Zi's sneak attack, his blade slicing through the air with lethal precision.
Shhk!
In an instant, Itachi's body was cleaved in two.
There was no scream. The body split neatly into two halves, and Ye Zi frowned slightly.
This kid… His hand seal speed was astonishingly fast.
Poof!
With a puff of white smoke, the bisected body transformed into a broken log.
In response, Ye Zi's body instantly became wreathed in crackling lightning. During the attack, he hadn't activated his Lightning Release armor as its telltale noise and glow would have made it unsuitable for stealth. Instead, he relied on the enhanced speed from his Sage Mode. Taking down a child should have been an effortless task, yet he had missed.
In truth, had it not been for the sudden breeze that drew Itachi's attention, even with his exceptional hand seal speed, he would have undoubtedly fallen to Ye Zi's blade in that moment.
Fate, it seemed, had a peculiar sense of timing.
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Currently on Chapter 528 - Nagato's Departure for Konoha