Projection magicians starting from the Uchiha clan

[If my guess is correct, perhaps I really can put on that disguise.] Iori thought happily. Although Susanoo smells good, I prefer that disguise a little more.

Chapter 65 The Application of Flying Thunder God and the Pain of War

next morning

Uchiha Iori awoke from his deep sleep. Last night, he and Medea had been busy all night in the Hall of Heroes, finally transforming the Flying Thunder God mark into his own form.

Unlike Tobirama's pattern and Minato's inscription, Iori's mark is the shape of his Mangekyou Sharingan eyes, a six-pointed star.

Medical ninjutsu is truly excellent for training the precision of chakra manipulation; in other words, if the ability to control it is insufficient, a technique meant to save lives can also kill.

While inscribing chakra marks, Iori distracted herself by looking around, trying to make the inscription of marks an instinct.

However, just as he was distracted by observing his surroundings, his finger unconsciously tilted, and the marking failed again.

Iori scratched his head, looking at the marks of defeat, and began to envy Minato.

[Minato is practically Kishimoto's favorite son! His ridiculously fast reaction speed and mental processing ability are practically cheat codes.]

[Multiple instances of instantaneous teleportation, instantly reacting to the surrounding situation upon arrival at each location—it's simply outrageous.]

[Could this guy really have a thousand-armed bloodline from his ancestors?]

Thinking about the various speculations made by netizens in the past, as well as the issue of Naruto's hair color, Iori speculated with some curiosity.

[Sigh, if it's just about real combat, then there's no problem.]

Iori comforted herself, saying that the progress was already very fast and she shouldn't push herself too hard.

[I can even combine it with Gate of Babylon to inscribe a mark on the projected Noble Phantasm.]

[Once the enemy has barely dodged the Noble Phantasm's attack and is letting out a sigh of relief, I'll suddenly use Flying Thunder God Technique to deliver a fatal blow.]

Iori couldn't help but laugh as she imagined the scene. Tobirama's wool had been completely plucked by him; he truly was a treasure trove of information in the Naruto world.

[However, the upper limit of the Flying Thunder God Technique still requires me to be able to instantly place a mark. Placing a mark on the opponent during battle is truly unsolvable. If Minato had even a little more destructive power, no one else would have stood a chance.]

[Now I can only practice more and work harder to improve my sealing technique, which should also help speed up the engraving process.] He silently made up his mind.

As Iori stepped outside, news of the peace talks with Sunagakure had already spread by morning. The surrounding ninjas were excitedly spreading the word, some celebrating while others felt a sense of relief.

Although the battle with the Land of Wind did not last long, too many comrades fell on the battlefield in the recent defeat.

After the evacuation, due to a lack of medicine and medical ninjas, many of the seriously wounded died.

The cramped camp was filled with the painful cries of the wounded. Sometimes, the ninjas had to end the lives of their own friends and family to give them relief.

In yesterday's battle, many Konoha ninjas went into battle with the determination to either succeed or die trying.

Suddenly, a cry was heard. Iori looked in the direction of the sound and found two ninjas in a corner of the camp, where some of the ninjas' remains were buried.

"Is the war really... going to end...? Tatsutoku... Matsuzaki... we... won... we... won!" A ninja knelt on the ground, weeping bitterly, his voice trembling.

An older ninja beside him gently patted his head. "Ryozo, they also hope that you will live well. Don't try to take the enemy down with you again."

"But...but...only I survived, only me...is this really okay? Is it really alright for me to survive?"

The kneeling ninja raised his head, his face still childlike, tears blurring his vision, making him look even younger than Iori.

Tears streamed down his face, his eyes were lifeless, and he muttered to himself, "Everyone is dead. It's all my fault. If I hadn't been so weak, they wouldn't have died trying to save me."

Iori listened silently to their conversation, slowly piecing together the truth of the matter.

-----------------

Ryozo was a ninja in the same class as Kashiwagi and joined a team of veteran Chunin after graduation.

The four members of the squad were like brothers, cooperating seamlessly in the war and saving each other many times, until that day came.

That day, Orochimaru was defeated by the Kazekage, and Tsunade lost her fighting ability due to hemophobia. The front-line command collapsed instantly, leaving only the order to retreat.

The squad worked together seamlessly to begin their retreat, which marked the beginning of Ryozo's suffering. Had they retreated separately, he might have been the only one to die.

In the chaotic battlefield, the orderly advance and retreat of the small team stood out, and they were thus surrounded and killed by the Sand Ninja.

In the chaos of battle, Ryozo fought with all his might to kill a Sand Ninja, but was also wounded in the right leg by the Sand Ninja's last attack.

Blood dripped from the wound, and Ryozo, his face pale, said to his teammates, "You guys go first, I can't move anymore."

He managed a weak smile and said to his teammates, "You must survive. I will cover your retreat."

However, his teammates did not agree, but instead smiled and helped him up.

They said earnestly, "Don't look down on us. We will never abandon our comrades. This is our ninja way."

Liang San was carried on his back, and the four of them continued on their way.

Looking at the tombstone before him, Ryozo felt an overwhelming sense of grief and guilt.

With teammates who were already weak and carrying a burden, their deaths were practically inevitable.

If he hadn't happened to run into a few fleeing Konoha Jonin, he would have died there quietly.

The next day, Ryozo woke up in the camp. The pain of having gone into battle with four men but only returning as the sole survivor was driving him crazy.

He fell into a strong self-destructive tendency due to the guilt of dragging his teammates down and surviving alone.

In yesterday's battle, he fought desperately, and he had already strapped explosive tags to his body. If Iori hadn't acted quickly, he probably would have perished together with the enemy.

-----------------

Iori listened to their conversation and slowly walked towards them.

Upon seeing Iori approach, the two immediately stood up and bowed respectfully to him.

Iori looked at Ryozo and said to him seriously, "Your teammates are dead. They risked everything to save you, not hoping you would go and die too."

"Live on, live well for them too. Your teammates have families too. If you die, what will happen to their families?"

After saying that, Iori turned and left without saying anything more.

Perhaps my plan was always driven by self-interest, and perhaps I was indeed the one who profited the most from it.

But my desire to end wars and usher in peace is not a false one; I made up my mind the moment they died when I was five years old.

Iori raised her head and looked at the sky, which was a clear blue without a single cloud.

I've had enough of this barbaric world. If the world doesn't suit my taste, I'll beat it until it obeys me.

Isn't this what power is all about?

I want to wipe out the ninja world and establish a peaceful world like our past life (China), so that at least, newborn children will not have to suffer the pain we endured.

Iori's eyes emitted a scarlet light, and the power of her kaleidoscope pupils increased even further.

Chapter 66 Chiyo, Ambassador of the Land of Wind

A few days later, Chiyo arrived at the new Konoha camp with the ambassador from the Land of Wind.

"We've come to submit the ceasefire agreement." Chiyo's voice was low and hoarse, her face filled with pain and helplessness.

She has now lost all her relatives and is forced to fawn over her mortal enemy.

Chiyo's heart was filled with sorrow and pain. Her husband had died young, her son and daughter-in-law had died at the hands of Hatake Sakumo, and her younger brother had been killed by Uchiha Iori.

Even his only grandson had gone missing before, and his whereabouts were unknown, with the worst fears.

But Sunagakure has no other choice now. The Kazekage has died in battle, the Jinchuriki has been captured, and the once powerful Sunagakure is now left with only her, a lonely old woman.

The Sand Village can't even find a ninja who can succeed the Kazekage; she is the only high-ranking advisor who is still alive.

Chiyo's hand holding the contract trembled slightly, and two voices were fighting each other in her mind.

One of them said, "Go ahead and wreak havoc. You have nothing left to lose. Unleash all the puppets and poison here, and you can at least kill those Chunin."

Another tried his best to stop him: "We no longer have the strength to fight. We must endure. For the sake of Sunagakure, we cannot fight anymore. I must live on until the new recruits grow up."

Having made the painful decision to live, Chiyo decided to proceed with the plan and handed the ceasefire agreement to Orochimaru.

Orochimaru refused to accept the ceasefire agreement, instead coldly stating, "Shouldn't it be a surrender document?"

He looked at Chiyo and questioned her sharply, his tone full of accusation and dissatisfaction.

Orochimaru also hoped to obtain a surrender document to wash away the stain on his reputation on the battlefield, even though everyone knew that the victory was mainly due to Uchiha Iori.

But as the highest-ranking commander on the front lines, he should rightfully share in the credit.

The crushing defeat in the war against the Land of Wind left an indelible stain on his record. That day's rout not only brought huge losses to the front lines, but also severely damaged his prestige there.

Although everyone understood that this defeat was not Orochimaru's fault, and no one could have predicted the participation of the Blood Dragon Eye and the exposure of Tsunade's hemophobia, the defeat itself was a mistake.

At a crucial moment when the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was about to step down, this stain greatly affected Orochimaru's chances of becoming Hokage.

Although Orochimaru is now beginning to hesitate about whether his dream or the position of Hokage is more important, the position of Hokage represents his teacher Hiruzen Sarutobi's recognition.

"Heh, we just want a ceasefire. The Sand Ninja will withdraw from the Land of Fire, and we will not admit defeat," Chiyo retorted stubbornly, playing the bad cop.

Orochimaru was so angry he laughed. At a time like this, the Sand Village still wanted to play dirty tricks. They really weren't afraid of death.

The Konoha Jonin who were listening in took a step forward, glaring angrily. In the previous war, countless comrades had died at the hands of the Sand Ninja. Now that Konoha had a great advantage, they still did not want to surrender.

Just then, the envoy of the Daimyo of the Land of Wind flicked his fan, interrupting Chiyo's words and playing the good cop.

"Alright, Chiyo, you have indeed lost. Thirty percent of the mission share from the Land of Wind will be paid to Konoha as war reparations. This war is now over."

It was as if Sunagakure had voluntarily backed down, handing over the victory that rightfully belonged to Konoha to them, which made Orochimaru unable to continue pressing forward.

The daimyo didn't care about the ninjas' victories or defeats; to them, ninjas were merely tools. The Ninja World War was mostly irrelevant to the daimyo.

It's just that the ninja villages are competing for resources and mission quotas; the daimyo doesn't care about these things.

However, the strength of the ninja village is also part of the strength of the daimyo.

Even if the Daimyo of the Land of Wind is dissatisfied with Sunagakure and intends to cut its funding, he cannot stand idly by and watch Sunagakure suffer a severe blow.

The power of ninjas is indispensable to a nation, and no matter how disappointed or distrustful a daimyo is, he cannot eliminate a ninja village.

Orochimaru frowned slightly, feeling deeply helpless; he couldn't directly refute the other party's words.

“I have no right to make the decision,” he said slowly. “I have already contacted the Third Hokage, and he will send someone to discuss this.”

Left with no other choice, Orochimaru could only stall for time and wait for the village's reply.

"I have already sent word to the daimyo and am awaiting his envoy. Before that, our princess of the Land of Fire, Lady Tsunade, will contact you."