The higher-ups of the major ninja villages were no fools.
The Uchiha Clan was a prestigious ninja clan with a thousand-year legacy, and the Sharingan was the strongest Kekkei Genkai in the Shinobi World after the disappearance of Wood Release.
Countless people coveted a Three-Tomoe Sharingan, after all, Kakashi Hatake was known as the 'Copy Ninja' and 'Konoha Technician' for replicating thousands of ninja techniques with just one Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
Moreover, copying ninja techniques was merely the ability of a Two-Tomoe Sharingan.
The Three-Tomoe Sharingan was known as the Genjutsu Eye.
Outsiders could never unleash the true power of the Sharingan.
Those Uchiha who could fully utilize the Three-Tomoe Sharingan were all elite jonins, invincible in one-on-one combat.
The Uchiha Clan undoubtedly had at least a dozen such formidable individuals.
With so many strong warriors, along with other Uchiha who had awakened One-Tomoe and Two-Tomoe Sharingan, and a large number of ordinary clan members who had not awakened the Sharingan, it was impossible for Uchiha Itachi, even with the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan, to annihilate the entire clan overnight.
Even if it were possible, it couldn't have been done without any commotion.
Yet, the Uchiha Clan was wiped out overnight, and the perpetrator, Uchiha Itachi, successfully escaped from the Leaf Village.
The situation was far more complex than it appeared.
Undoubtedly, the higher-ups of the Leaf Village were involved.
The ability and methods to erase the first prestigious ninja clan overnight, along with the ruthless and cold disregard for consequences, had intimidated the major ninja villages.
Regarding this incident, the major ninja villages only sent spies to infiltrate the Leaf Village to gather intelligence, and after failing, they did not pursue the matter further.
The Third Great Ninja War had caused heavy losses to all major ninja villages, and they had not yet recovered.
Even the Cloud Hidden Village did not take advantage of the situation this time.
They were all maintaining the existing balance, preparing for the next Great Ninja War.
Izayoi was unaware of these details but could guess a bit.
Having read the original story, he knew that the next few years would be peaceful.
This was the best opportunity for growth.
...
Uchiha Sasuke, who had been hit by the Mangekyō Sharingan Genjutsu, was unconscious for a full week before waking up.
When he appeared in the classroom, he had undergone a tremendous change.
The previous Uchiha Sasuke, when surrounded by girls, would only feel a headache but would never say hurtful words or resort to violence.
This attitude, however, only made the girls more persistent.
But now, the girls who were delighted to see Uchiha Sasuke did not dare to approach him.
Because the current Uchiha Sasuke, his gaze and aura were too intimidating, his peers dared not get close or even meet his eyes.
Only Izayoi could see that the current Uchiha Sasuke was fragile yet stubborn.
Battered and bruised, he was in desperate need of love and healing.
But his personality made him unwilling to accept anyone's pity.
Only Uzumaki Naruto, who had reincarnated for a thousand years and shared a similar fate in this life, could break into Uchiha Sasuke's heart and earn his recognition.
After school in the afternoon, Izayoi finally witnessed the scene he had been eagerly anticipating.
After the Taijutsu Duel ended, the students, as usual, formed small groups, some lingering at school, others leaving, and some not joining any group, heading home alone.
The former Uchiha Sasuke was the latter.
However, today, Uchiha Sasuke did not return home alone. Instead, he approached Izayoi and uttered the same words Izayoi had once said to him: "Izayoi, want to have a fight?"
Hearing this, Izayoi, who had specifically come to the ninja school in person today and hadn't gone home with Hinata, waiting for this very moment, couldn't help but smile inwardly.
But on the surface, he pretended to be taken aback. Looking at Uchiha Sasuke, who might not have fully recovered yet and whose eyes carried a hint of gloom, he couldn't resist teasing: "Back then, you weren't interested in my challenge. What's changed now?"
"Cut the crap. You're not scared, are you?"
Uchiha Sasuke didn't answer but instead provoked.
In the past, he only wanted to train with Uchiha Itachi and naturally didn't want to waste time on others. Now that his clan had been annihilated, the meaning of his life was to kill Uchiha Itachi and then revive the Uchiha Clan.
To kill Uchiha Itachi, he needed to gain immense power.
To revive the Uchiha Clan, he first needed to make people remember the strength and glory of the Uchiha Clan, and not lose to anyone else.
Thus, Izayoi became Uchiha Sasuke's target.
By defeating Izayoi, he could prove that he was stronger than all his peers.
Izayoi, of course, had no idea about Uchiha Sasuke's thoughts.
Seeing the other party using provocation to mask his pride, Izayoi decided to play along and nodded with a smile: "Sure, let's have a fight."
"Good, let's head to the training ground," Uchiha Sasuke said with a fighting spirit.
"No need for the training ground. Let's go somewhere else."
Izayoi shook his head and smiled: "I'll take you to a place."
After saying this, Izayoi headed towards the direction of the abandoned training field.
Uchiha Sasuke followed closely behind.
It had been a week since the Uchiha Clan's annihilation. Uchiha Obito, who would only visit the Leaf Village on Rin Nohara's death anniversary, probably wouldn't be wandering around the village anymore.
Izayoi had also made a point to visit the cemetery on Rin's death anniversary, marking it in his mind to avoid the wilderness on that day every year.
So, a few days ago, Izayoi had resumed his training in the wilderness.
Soon, the two arrived at the training field where Izayoi and Hinata usually practiced.
The ground and trees there were covered with marks from strikes and ninja techniques.
Seeing these marks, Uchiha Sasuke's pupils slightly contracted, and his heart stirred with waves of emotion.
If these marks were all left by Izayoi, then didn't that mean this guy had also mastered the Five Elements Release Technique, just like him?
If he remembered correctly, Izayoi was an orphan.
He had his father to teach him, but Izayoi had learned everything on his own.
Uchiha Sasuke suddenly realized why this guy had always been a step ahead of him.
It wasn't luck, but because Izayoi had worked harder than him.
Thinking of this, Uchiha Sasuke's fighting spirit grew even stronger.
Only by fighting such an opponent could he become stronger.
Only by defeating such an opponent could he prove his own strength.
"How do you want to fight?"
Looking at Uchiha Sasuke across from him, Izayoi asked: "A Taijutsu Duel, or an Unrestricted Duel?"
The so-called Unrestricted Duel meant no holds barred.
The Three Body Technique, Invisibility Technique, Body Flicker Technique, tools, and even the Five Elements Release Technique, which are not taught at the ninja academy, could all be freely used.
An Unrestricted Duel was also an extremely dangerous confrontation.
The ninja academy also had Unrestricted Duels, but that was a subject reserved for the sixth grade.
Moreover, during an Unrestricted Duel, aside from the referee teacher, there must also be a Medical Ninja present.
After all, in such battles, accidents were highly likely to occur.
With just a moment of carelessness, a student could even face life-threatening danger.
If Umino Iruka were here and heard Izayoi's words, he would undoubtedly be shocked and immediately intervene to stop and reprimand him.
However, Uchiha Sasuke didn't hesitate in the slightest and declared, "Unrestricted Duel!"
(End of Chapter)