Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

A few minutes later, Uchiha Izumi walked out of the courtyard gate with an empty basket and returned to her house next door.

Xia Zuo let out a burp and looked towards the shade of a tree in the corner of the yard.

He said with a hint of disgust, "You're the first guy to enter my yard without permission."

"Uchiha Itachi, you're such a rude guy."

Thirteen-year-old Itachi Uchiha emerged from the shadows, but when he stood in the sunlight, he continued to emanate a cold and deathly aura, as if he himself were the shadow.

Fourteen-year-old Xia Zuo sat under the shade of a tree, still looking at Uchiha Itachi at eye level, his eyes full of disgust, as if he were looking at a pile of garbage.

The lack of the expected fear response surprised Itachi Uchiha.

For some reason, he suddenly asked, "What should I do to save the Uchiha clan?"

Xia Zuo was stunned: "Huh? You're asking me?"

This bastard must have followed Uchiha Izumi to his house. This behavior is basically that of a pervert, a hundred times worse than any blond-haired, fiery-tempered kid!

If it weren't for the ninjas following this guy, Xia Zuo would have stood up and killed him right now.

Being followed is disgusting enough, but he actually showed up openly and asked me, even more inexplicably, how to save the Uchiha clan.

Xia Zuo looked at Uchiha Itachi and thought he was acting strangely, as if his brain had been filled with water.

Uchiha Itachi was preoccupied and did not notice the fleeting killing intent in Xia Zuo's eyes.

He was also an extreme caste supremacist who only focused on those in power and ignored those in power, showing no regard for Shazor's disgust and dissatisfaction.

Uchiha Itachi said to himself, "Izumi said you're the smartest person in Konoha, so I came to ask you. Maybe you really have the answer?"

Xia Zuo sneered, "What an impolite child! I hate you. Please leave my house."

He wouldn't answer any of Itachi Uchiha's questions. With his bizarre thought process, he could twist and misinterpret even the correct answer, and then blame it on the person who answered.

A flash of anger appeared in Itachi Uchiha's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

He lowered his head and apologized without any emotion: "I'm sorry, I was being presumptuous. I'll leave now."

Xia Zuo felt his hair stand on end, his heart filled with disgust and irritation.

This was Xia Zuo's first direct encounter with Uchiha Itachi, which greatly shocked him.

The clingy monster I learned about from Izumi, the Itachi I learned about from the anime, the genius I learned about from my classmates and teachers—all these images crumbled and disintegrated.

Finally, all the fragments of impressions came together and pieced together a bewildered and insane monster that could pose a deadly threat to itself and those it cared about at any moment.

Xia Zuo's killing intent grew stronger. He thought of Uchiha Itachi, who was only 13 years old and could suppress his emotions, which showed that he was as deep as an abyss.

Considering the horrific massacre he was about to commit, and his two-year-long harassment and pursuit of Uchiha Izumi, a thought formed in his mind.

This child must not be allowed to live!

After the Uchiha clan was massacred, they intercepted and killed him.

After making his decision, Xia Zuo closed his eyes and continued to study the transformation of the Grim Reaper and the various soul knowledge taught at the Shinigami Academy.

Although this knowledge deviated greatly from the rules of the ninja world, it still opened a door for Xia Zuo, allowing him to glimpse the mysteries of the human heart and soul.

As he absorbed more knowledge about death, Xia Zuo couldn't help but feel an itch to put it into practice.

That evening, instead of practicing Wood Release or Swift Release, Xia Zuo quietly went to a residential area.

To his surprise, the number of ANBU ninjas monitoring Naruto Uzumaki that night had increased to two squads, totaling six ANBU ninjas.

Moreover, these six ANBU ninjas exuded a deep and imposing aura, and the weakest of them was actually a Special Jonin, far surpassing the ANBU ninjas who had previously been in charge of surveillance.

Their concealment skills were more sophisticated. If Xia Zuo hadn't been particularly familiar with the environment and hadn't systematically checked suitable surveillance locations, he would have noticed them upon discovering them.

Clearly, this was the Third Hokage learning from the lessons of the Nine-Tails' night, taking precautions against the Uchiha clan targeting Jinchuriki, and using the Sharingan to hypnotize the Nine-Tails as a weapon.

Xia Zuo clicked his tongue, knowing that he wouldn't be able to directly contact Naruto today.

However, he didn't pay much attention to it. Today's purpose was to test the Grim Reaper's abilities. Physical inability to get close did not affect the approach of the soul.

Unless one of these six ANBU ninjas has mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique, no matter what Xia Zuo does, they will not be able to detect it.

Xia Zuo chose a residential building, went up to the top floor, and hid in the attic of a resident.

Xia Zuo lay down in the attic, closed his eyes, and focused intently on controlling the flow of chakra, slowly constructing a strange rune to add constraints to his soul.

The runes multiplied and gradually coalesced into a black Death Robe, which was worn by Xia Zuo's solidified soul, temporarily transforming his soul into a Death God.

There are currently two residential buildings separating Xia Zuo and Uzumaki Naruto, but the straight-line distance is only 80 meters, which is well within the range of the Death Spirit.

After Xia Zuo entered the state of the Grim Reaper, the walls and other objects became semi-transparent in his eyes, while the souls of the living appeared in his field of vision like scattered lamps.

The Grim Reaper's spirit spotted Naruto Uzumaki in the dense cluster of soul flames at a glance.

His soul flame was enormous, three to four times larger than that of an ordinary person; the ANBU Jonin and Special Jonin monitoring him were less than half his size.

Naruto's soul flame not only burned extremely brightly, but also shone with a golden hue like sunlight, radiating a warm and infectious aura.

The spirit of death took a step forward and came to the side of Naruto's soul flame.

Upon closer inspection, Xia Zuo discovered that several illusory soul flames surrounded Naruto's soul, with a suppressed orange soul flame enveloping it inside.

The orange flame of the soul was bound by dense chains of runes, yet it still extended eight illusory tentacles, reaching into the invisible void.

Nine-tailed Fox, Nine-Tailed Fox.

Xia Zuo nodded, controlling the spirit of death to extend his right hand and gently tap on Naruto Uzumaki's soul flame, projecting his consciousness into the soul.

According to the shared memories of the Grim Reaper Shaza, Shaza did not directly enter Naruto's mind, but instead entered his dream, where he guided the dream to cause tremors.

When the tremors of the dream coincided with his inner thoughts, Xia Zuo used the dream as a springboard to enter Naruto's mind.

This is the most standard mind-searching procedure that Death has summarized over thousands of years, posing the least danger to both parties.

The standard procedure avoids direct contact between minds, which not only prevents the target's soul from collapsing, but also prevents being killed by the hidden dangers in the other party's mind.

The mind is the most bizarre, magnificent, and indescribable entity. Even an ordinary person may harbor terrifying psychological monsters within their heart.

Before the standard procedures were summarized, countless living people and souls died in the investigations of Death, and countless Deaths fell into the hearts of mortals.