Land of Fire, Konoha—
Night had fallen. Within the Uchiha clan compound, a lone figure stood atop a tall utility pole, gazing down at his clan's domain with a cold, emotionless expression.
"It's time. Time to end this cursed clan..." The words seemed to be spoken to himself, or perhaps to the empty air.
After speaking, the dark figure vanished instantly.
Shortly after he departed, ripples disturbed the air, and a man wearing a single-eyed mask emerged from the void.
"Then let it begin. White Zetsu, you take care of the small fry..."
Pale, humanoid figures slowly rose from the earth, their mouths splitting into grins filled with sharp teeth as they rasped, "Understood..."
Uchiha Nagi leaped swiftly across the rooftops, arriving at the clan head's residence in no time.
Uchiha Fugaku sat alone in the courtyard, quietly sipping sake under the moonlight—
Nagi landed softly, standing before Fugaku.
Fugaku didn't turn, his gaze fixed on the moon. "Uchiha Nagi. What brings you here?"
"Clan Head-sama, you should know why I'm here. Your son, the one you were so proud of, has already begun. He's slaughtering our clansmen right now."
Fugaku remained silent, merely pouring himself another cup of sake, and then another...
"I told you about this half a month ago. It seems you've decided to abandon the clan..." Nagi said, his tone laced with sarcasm.
As a transmigrator, Nagi had known this outcome years ago, ever since the Night of the Nine-Tails' attack. The giant Sharingan visible in the Kyuubi's eyes—that blame was impossible for the Uchiha to shake off.
First, they were forced to relocate the clan compound. Then, step by step, the Uchiha clan was pushed to the brink, until the clansmen could bear it no longer and prepared to revolt. Shisui's death became the final straw that broke the camel's back.
Uchiha Nagi was an orphan. His parents had died in a Shinobi World War, and he grew up alone. To avoid becoming cannon fodder on the battlefield, Nagi had desperately studied medical ninjutsu, becoming a highly skilled medical-nin.
Ultimately, he had achieved his goal of avoiding a meaningless death and survived.
But reality was harsh. Only Shisui and Itachi were true prodigies. Even Obito, before Rin's death, had been fairly unremarkable as a shinobi. Nagi, too, was just an ordinary member of the Uchiha clan.
After years of arduous training, his abilities had reached their limit, and his spiritual energy was exceptionally strong. Yet, he still couldn't break through the final barrier to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Nagi himself knew why. He hadn't witnessed the death of someone with whom he shared profound bonds; his spirit hadn't received the necessary shock to overcome that final hurdle.
And because of the Third Hokage and Danzo, everyone in Konoha avoided the Uchiha like the plague. Nagi, for his part, had no desire to suck up to others just to form the kind of bonds that might lead to such an awakening.
Reality was cruel. He wasn't a Child of Prophecy, nor did he possess some heaven-defying "golden finger". Uchiha Nagi could only rely on his own relentless, day-after-day training and study to become a Jonin.
How many Kakashis were there in all of Konoha?
As for Guy...
The current Guy was still a Genin...
Nagi, a man with the accumulated experience of two lifetimes totaling over fifty years, naturally wouldn't stoop to flattering others. Over time, he had only formed ordinary friendships with many of the "main characters."
In the end, he too was influenced, carrying the inherent pride of the Uchiha clan.
"Sigh..."
"In that case, may I make a request, Clan Head-sama?" Nagi had anticipated this. He knew that even when faced with Itachi's planned betrayal of the clan, Fugaku had clung to a final, desperate sliver of hope that it wasn't true…
There is no greater sorrow than a heart that has died. With Itachi already on his murderous rampage, Fugaku's heart had completely withered. A dead man cares for nothing, not even his own kin.
"Speak," Fugaku said, setting down his sake cup.
"I want to take the Uchiha clan's ninjutsu scrolls."
"You have a way to escape?"
"Yes..."
"Then go to my study and take them. They're on the second bookshelf. The clan's 'exclusive ninjutsu' are there as well. Take them all, as long as you can get out."
"Thank you, Clan Head-sama."
Fugaku nodded, poured himself another full cup, and drank it down. He had always admired this hardworking younger clansman...
Time was short. Nagi quickly went to Fugaku's study. He located the second bookshelf; it was entirely filled with tomes on ninjutsu. He took out a storage scroll and swiftly packed all the books into it.
"Hm? What's this?"
Nagi noticed a sword placed inside a box...
After quickly securing the items, he closed his eyes and focused his senses. To avoid running into Obito and Itachi, Nagi had deployed several shadow clones to stake out different locations beforehand.
There was a clone in each distinct spot, each disguised with the Transformation Jutsu. This way, if Obito or Itachi eliminated any of the clones, the transferred memories would instantly reveal their positions to Nagi.
"They're here. One in the east, one in the west," Nagi murmured, eyes still closed as he processed the information flooding in from his clones. "The two of them are moving from east and west, slaughtering the Uchiha Jonin. And there are White Zetsu surrounding the area, killing the old, the weak, and the children."
"In that case, I'll escape from the south."
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the Uchiha compound, a large contingent of masked individuals surrounded sigils drawn on the ground. A transparent barrier had materialized in the air.
It was Root.
Occasionally, an Uchiha Jonin managed to send out a distress signal, but all were intercepted by the barrier. Even if someone tried to escape, they would find it impossible to break through.
And even if they did manage to breach it, they would immediately face the deadly assault of Root shinobi. If the barrier-nin weren't eliminated, they could instantly restore the barrier.
"Watch carefully. Don't let a single one escape, or I'll hold you personally responsible," Danzo stared at the Uchiha compound, his face a mask of cold indifference.
"Hai, Danzo-sama."
Just then, a dark figure hidden among the trees let out a sarcastic laugh. It was one of Nagi's shadow clones. Stepping out from behind a large tree engraved with hidden sealing formulas and barrier inscriptions, the Nagi clone directly unfurled a storage scroll...
Swoosh—
PANG!
BOOM!
Colorful distress signals and various emergency flares erupted into the night sky. The last time such a sight had illuminated Konoha was during the Night of the Nine-Tails.
Instantly, the entire village of Konoha was thrown into an uproar. Emergency distress signals were originating from the Uchiha compound.
"What's going on? Someone's signaling for help!"