The Uzushio Village was indeed a place of little remaining value.
On the day it was destroyed, anything of worth had already been looted by the perpetrators.
And in the nearly twenty years since then, occasional explorers had ventured in and taken whatever they thought might be valuable.
All that was left...
...were these stone monuments inscribed with fragmented and scattered records.
And with the passage of time came severe erosion, rendering some inscriptions blurry and difficult to decipher.
By the time night fell, it had taken the two of them combined effort to transcribe just six stone tablets.
With poor visibility at night and no immediate urgency, they decided to rest.
They found a relatively intact house on higher ground in the village to serve as a temporary shelter.
Gathering some dry wood, they lit a bonfire to illuminate the place.
Karin flipped through a scroll, reading the text with a furrowed brow. "These are all about the history of the Uzumaki Clan."
"Why would things from the Warring States period be recorded here?"
To the Uzumaki clan, these records were undoubtedly valuable.
But to Naruto, they fell far short of his expectations.
"We probably haven't found the right place," Naruto replied while reading. "Tomorrow we'll check if there's any shrine or similar location nearby."
Karin nodded, but didn't put the scroll down, trying to extract anything useful from between the lines.
Naruto poked at the fire, then suddenly paused in his movements. "Two powerful individuals are approaching."
"Coming to this place at this hour… they're likely after me."
Karin shrank back into the room a little. "Powerful? How powerful?"
"They feel like they're on Orochimaru's level," Naruto replied after a moment's thought.
Karin's pupils widened in shock. "Orochimaru?!"
He was one of the legendary Sannin, rated S-class, and strong enough to kill the Third Hokage—a formidable rogue ninja.
Though Naruto had defeated him, that didn't mean Orochimaru was weak—just that Naruto was even stronger.
And now such figures were becoming common?
Even in a desolate place like the Land of Whirlpools?
And not just one—two of them?
"We should run," Karin suggested after some thought.
Naruto shook his head, voice calm as he explained a fact. "There are too many who track by scent alone."
"If we run, they'll get excited—think we're easy prey."
"Only by giving them a painful lesson, drawing blood, taking lives…"
"Only then will they know not to mess with us."
Karin pursed her lips, worried. "But they're both on the level of Orochimaru."
"The tougher the opponent," Naruto said, standing up and looking down at her, "the better to test the sharpness of one's blade."
"Don't worry, I'm stronger than I was a few days ago."
"Be careful," she said.
"Do you have a way to hide?" Naruto asked.
"If not, just get far away. I'll come find you."
There were still other dangers on the island—bandits or rogue genin—but compared to the two men entering Uzushio Village, those were negligible.
"If it's just hiding, I can manage," Karin confirmed. "I've more or less mastered the Kagura Mind's Eye."
"I can protect myself."
She understood her role by Naruto's side.
In terms of talent, she was far behind Naruto. Not to mention catching up in a month—even in a lifetime, she might never reach his level.
So she didn't learn "Adamantine Sealing Chains" or other jutsu.
Instead, she focused on the "Kagura Mind's Eye" technique.
This was one of the Uzumaki clan's secret techniques.
By closing one's eyes and opening the mind's eye, one could sense all chakra within tens of kilometers.
With mastery, one could even sense emotions in the chakra and detect lies.
Of course, her goal in learning the jutsu wasn't its sensing power.
Rather, it could hide her chakra in dangerous situations, avoiding detection.
If she couldn't be a help to Naruto, the least she could do was not drag him down.
"Then hide," Naruto nodded. "Wait for me."
Karin hid herself, closed her eyes, and activated the technique.
In the ruins of Uzushio Village...
Two figures in black cloaks with red clouds walked along a dried riverbed.
"So this is the once-renowned Land of Whirlpools," Kisame looked around in wonder. "Hard to imagine what it looked like in its prime."
Itachi said nothing.
"I mean no offense," Kisame tilted his head toward him. "Just wondering…"
"Can the two of us really find the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
Itachi looked up at the moon. "Jinchuriki are highly sensitive. If he senses us, he'll come to us."
Kisame nodded thoughtfully. "He won't run?"
Itachi didn't reply.
He merely turned his head, looking left.
There, atop a half-collapsed pillar, stood a golden-haired youth in a white cloak.
The moon aligned perfectly behind him.
The scene looked like something out of a ukiyo-e painting.
"You were right, Itachi," Kisame narrowed his eyes and slowly raised his hands. "The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki really did come to us."
Naruto looked down at them. "So I was your target after all."
He didn't suppress his chakra—he released it fully.
The two men's expressions shifted slightly.
But under the pressure of his chakra, they neither flinched nor appeared much affected.
"This kid's presence!" Kisame grinned, eyes gleaming with interest. "I thought that bit was exaggerated."
"Scaring off three Iwa Anbu with just a glance…"
"Guess it really was true."
Itachi said nothing, eyes locked on Naruto.
"No wonder you dared come find me," Naruto said as he leapt down from the pillar. "To stand before me so unfazed—you must be quite capable."
Now closer, he saw more clearly.
The two wore the same black cloak with red clouds.
Both had ninja headbands, though with different village symbols.
The shark-faced one wore a "Kirigakure" forehead protector.
The shorter one with the Sharingan had a "Konoha" symbol.
Both headbands were scratched—defaced village insignias.
A mark of missing-nin.
So... were they part of some rogue ninja organization?
"You're Uchiha Itachi?" Naruto looked at the shorter man and spoke his name.
Itachi replied softly, "You know me?"
"All too well," Naruto rested a hand on his sword hilt. "Sasuke's always wanted to kill you."
At the mention of his brother, Itachi showed no reaction, his voice cold and flat. "He doesn't have the capacity to do it."
"Capacity?" Naruto echoed the word.
Itachi raised his hand. "Let's see your capacity, Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
Naruto smiled faintly. "Always talking about capacity…"
"You wear the headband of the village you betrayed."
"Doesn't sound very noble."
"…Is that so?" Itachi murmured.
As he finished speaking, his Sharingan began to spin.
Naruto's vision dimmed—the sky turned blood-red like crashing waves.
His body grew heavy.
Iron stakes drove into his limbs, immobilizing him.
This was…
Genjutsu?
It invaded silently.
"Nine-Tails," he called out internally.
The tailed beast's chakra surged through his body, disrupting his internal chakra balance.
A classic way to break genjutsu.
The stakes vanished, the heaviness gone.
When Naruto opened his eyes again, a massive fireball was rushing toward him.
Its heat distorted the air.
Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu.
Itachi had seized the split-second of distraction.
But Naruto didn't panic—he blinked forward in a flash.
His red blade swung—
Crimson light arced toward Itachi.
Despite looking sickly, Itachi's taijutsu was surprisingly competent.
With a kunai in hand, he clashed with Naruto, neither gaining the upper hand after several exchanges.
Kisame didn't join in.
For now, it seemed Itachi didn't need help.
Still…
Though he'd expected the blond kid to be strong…
Seeing him trade blows with Itachi was something else.
Back in Konoha—
That brat with Sharingan who was about Naruto's age couldn't even make Itachi get serious.
The difference was vast.
Naruto frowned.
The battle wasn't difficult.
Itachi didn't seem to have much intent to truly fight him.
Just as Naruto tested his strength, so did Itachi test his.
But…
The endless genjutsu was annoying.
They masked his senses, came silently, and blurred the line between illusion and reality.
Not fatal, but they robbed him of decisive moments.
"You're very strong, Nine-Tails Jinchuriki," Itachi finally spoke. "Three tomoe aren't enough to deal with you."
"I wonder… has Sasuke ever told you about the evolution of the Sharingan?"
Naruto was stunned.
Sharingan's evolution?
He locked eyes with Itachi.
The three tomoe spun, transforming into a new pattern resembling a sickle.
Tsukuyomi!
Chakra surged, dragging the golden-haired boy into a spiritual world.
Naruto's mind blanked.
The world lost its colors, turning to black and white like a photo negative.
His body was suddenly bound tightly to a rack.
In front of him—
Countless copies of Itachi, like a Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu, filled the space.
His voice echoed from every direction.
"This is the evolved Sharingan—the Mangekyō Sharingan."
"Let's see…"
"Can you endure seventy-two hours of pain?"
One clone stepped forward, raising its blade high and stabbing it toward Naruto—
(End of Chapter)