Densetsu's Theme
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"In times of peace, fight to preserve it. In times where peace is threatened, fight to restore it." —Densetsu
December 5
Male
Densetsu (伝説), or Densetsu Uchiha (うちは伝説, Uchiha Densetsu), is a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf. A talented prodigy since even early childhood, Densetsu's astounding visual prowess and natural power are well known throughout the shinobi world, leading to him being known as The Boy With Deadly Eyes in his youth. With a complicated early childhood which saw him get separated from his family and clan, and a late childhood fraught with the terrors of life in the ANBU division and shattered with the pain of loss, conflicts of morality and cruel violence, Densetsu's path had been laid out for him very early on indeed. Having being forced to flee Konoha several hours prior to the Uchiha Extermination, Densetsu proceeded to live as a masked vigilante known as The Human Torch (人灯, Nintō) while also being ironically branded as an S-rated criminal, gaining fame and recognition before returning to Konoha and receiving his rightful pardon five years later as a veteran hero, eventually becoming Konoha's Head of Diplomatic Affairs after an illustrious career as arguably one of the greatest shinobi ever produced by Konohagakure—and a stunning example of strength of heart. While blessed with immense power which was the stuff of dreams, armed with the experience of a thousand battles, as well as feared by his enemies and revered by his allies for his devilish speed, Densetsu's main weapon and most renowned trait is a powerful, well polished and cunning intellect which constantly and consistently gives him a crucial edge over any opponent he faces, in the numerous different fields he wages his battles against evil.
Background
Densetsu was born on the evening of a sunny Friday in December, the second son of Fumio and Suzume Uchiha, and younger brother of Kazuo Uchiha. The first six years of Densetsu's life were relatively uneventful, living a happy and peaceful life with his family while he was joyously unaware of the building tensions between his father and some of the members of the Uchiha clan who happened to hold great influence in the clan. Being an open and highly vocal critic of the Uchiha and their ramblings of a Coup d'Etat, Densetsu's father held grudges against cruel and sadistic men who sought to not only exile the man, but cruelly hurt him in the process. Enemies who seeked to blow his ideas and oppositions grossly out of context, while also trying to sway the entire clan's opinion on him negatively. The nature of these enmities weren't beyond murderous intent, and his enemies weren't the pacifistic sort. Fumio was aware of this and discussed the possibilities of his impending dilemmas with the then Third Hokage in secret, and the fragility of the political situation between Konoha and the Uchiha at that time meant that Hiruzen was unable to intervene; as it could be misinterpreted as a sign that the Hokage was attempting to dictate Clan affairs.
Thus, Hiruzen agreed to allow Fumio and his family to flee soon enough; although both were sure that the Uchiha concerned would catch wind of this sooner rather than later. True enough, the enemies of Fumio found him out, and threatened Fumio at his home. They told him to hand over his youngest son, Densetsu to them as part of a deal. If Fumio ever blurted any of the secrets of the Clan out while he was away, Densetsu would die. Understandably, Fumio was enraged and more so was Kazuo, Densetsu's brother. However more Uchiha members arrived and eventually put Densetsu's mother, Suzume, at sword point, threatening to kill her if Kazuo and Fumio didn't step down. They were forced to agree on the deal. Before departing, Fumio and the rest advised Densetsu and told him to stay strong, as his family would always be waiting for him. The tearful child was in shock that he was being abandoned, but Kazuo approached him and told him that they were brothers, and the day would come soon where Kazuo came back for him. Fumio would go on and secretly meet with the Hokage personally before leaving, asking for him to watch over Densetsu and keep him away from the Uchiha, and begging Hiruzen to protect Densetsu at all costs while swearing allegiance to Konoha no matter where he ended up. Hiruzen agreed wholeheartedly and comforted the man, and thus he would dedicatedly watch over Densetsu from that day onwards.
The frightened child would manage to flee from his 'captors' that evening, though this culminated in a pursuit. However, the man his pursuers ran into was Hiruzen himself, who calmly intervened in what seemed to be 'circumstance'. Despite the very obvious threats issued by these men, Hiruzen stood firmly; stating that the boy had a right to choose. Putting on an act, he deliberately asked the men why they were chasing the child, and where his family was—a trap which they couldn't burrow their way out of. As the clan was unaware of the exact extremes this group had gone to to plague Fumio and his family, they couldn't risk Hiruzen carrying the matter to the other leaders of their clan. Thus they relented, deciding that an alibi for Densetsu's handover to an Orphanage would be easier to concoct compared to an explanation as to why they held the child's mother had knifepoint would be. That very night, Hiruzen brought Densetsu to the Konoha Orphanage in a bid to keep him safe from those certain extremist clansmen, where Densetsu would live on for the next seven months, where Hiruzen made sure no harm ever came to the boy. Densetsu would forever be grateful to this kind old man, whom effectively became his role model of sorts. This would ensure a familial relationship began between Densetsu and Hiruzen, which lasted until Hiruzen's very last days.
However, Densetsu's father still had allies among the Uchiha who dared to defy the increasingly militant and frustrated Uchiha, an old man and family friend known as Gendo Uchiha; who decided to also watch over the young Densetsu. While Densetsu's father had approached Hiruzen directly to ensure his son's safety, the conversations he and Gendo had partook in had convinced the wise Uchiha that Fumio's views were perfectly logical. For his own agendas, Gendo began watching over Densetsu from the inside, avidly dissuading the Uchiha's interest in the young boy by making use of his position as a clan elder. Gendo would take steps to befriend Densetsu, who slowly began to trust him after identifying him as an ally of his father, after a rather long process. The old man frequented the orphanage often, bringing Densetsu's favourite food and telling him tales of his father's exploits. Gendo's pacifism leaked into Densetsu's hurt soul, continuing Fumio's teachings and neutralising Densetsu's own seething hatred for the Uchiha. But through Gendo and the passage of time, Densetsu began to learn more of his clan's wrongdoings and eventually, their mindsets as well.
Two years passed, and the Uchiha had been convinced that Fumio would hold his tongue; wherever he was. The young Densetsu began to grow, as the watchful eyes of the Uchiha soon shifted away from him. An unneeded member of the clan, he was left where he was; in the Orphanage. Despite being wronged by only a select few Uchiha, the child would still harbour a certain grudge towards his clan as a whole, forever wondering why the rest never stepped in when a shinobi as decorated as his father was pushed around by some of them. However this grudge would eventually evolve from blind hatred into mere apathy, thanks greatly in part to Gendo's efforts. Densetsu stayed away from the Uchiha District at all costs, and generally kept to himself. With the passage of time and the watchful guidance of both Gendo and Hiruzen together with the supportive orphanage staf who had grown to love the young boy like a son; Densetsu enrolled into the ninja academy as a student.
Even in the Academy, tensions did exist between Densetsu and a few of the Uchiha students, who had been fed vicious lies about him by their parents—but Densetsu approached them with the same, paranoid delicacy which he approached their adult clansmen. He avoided them, and tried to keep to himself. However, in the first few days as a student Densetsu would meet the enigmatic Hiroki Nara, a loud mouthed prodigy of the Nara who was every bit as audacious as he was intelligent—though Hiroki was a previous acquaintance. The two boys struck up a friendship strengthened by time shared in detention, long hours relaxing with each other and deep conversations (as deep as extra intelligent children could go thought wise). Hiroki and Densetsu generally performed excellently in physical evaluations, and though their laziness led to both almost always failing written tests, their stunning potential was obvious—alongside another top student, Hitomi Sarutobi, the grandniece of Hiruzen himself. A dynamic rivalry quickly formed between the free spirited Hiroki, the witty Densetsu and the brilliant Hitomi; as each sought to outdo the other in a positive competition which bode well for the Academy. The presence of Hiroki as well as his general popularity with the other students compensated for the dark vibes the Uchiha gave off, as Densetsu managed to cope with his Uchiha issue increasingly efficiently.
Some time after his eighth birthday, Densetsu graduated from the ninja academy. Earning enough money after various shinobi missions, he rented a room in a house opposite the Hokage Monument where he made friends with his landlord—who would come to love the boy like a son. Initiated into Team Ayato under the tutelage of Ayato Shinohara together with Hiroki Nara and Hitomi Sarutobi, Densetsu would cement his reputation as Konoha's most skilled genin throughout this period of time. Ayato quickly realised that Densetsu held tremendous raw potential—seeing with his own eyes that the young boy was far more incredible than even the word of mouth made him to be. As an experienced shinobi himself and a talented teacher who had been tasked to bring out the very best out of the pride of Konoha's Academy, Ayato quickly began moulding his Team into extremely skilled fighters. Unlike most Jōnin instructors who tried to thoroughly grant their Genin well rounded abilities, Ayato focused on first solidifying their strong points to at least mid Chūnin level; and as such Densetsu's obvious strong point was quickly identified to be Ninjutsu. While he had learnt the Uchiha Clan's rite of passage from Gendo some time back, Densetsu had still not tapped in to his innate affinity towards the Fire Release (which Ayato had determined utilising chakra paper), or any other significant technique with the exception of the Shadow Clone Technique—but very quickly Densetsu began to show his true prowess in the field. He polished the Fireball Technique to absolute perfection in the space of one week under his sensei's tutelage, shocking his peers and even his seniors when his Fireball managed to cancel out Ayato's Flame Bullet. A truly stunning achievement for a Genin.
Team Ayato enjoyed a superb success rate for every mission in the process of their tenure as Genin. As the skill of its members was at such a level, Team Ayato was frequently called to perform B-ranked missions as well, further giving even more room for Densetsu, Hiroki and Hitomi to flourish and hone their formidable prowess. As they learned to cooperate and enhance each others' strengths, their relationships slowly grew with their abilities. Densetsu and Hitomi had started off as rivals as the latter was always rated second best behind Densetsu in terms of combat ability, but this heated rivalry would soon develop into a mutual, pent up love. Densetsu's friendship with Hiroki became more reminiscent of a strong brotherly, while also looking up to Ayato as a father-like figure.
Team Ayato took Densetsu's mind off the loneliness he felt, as well as his paranoia towards the Uchiha District and Clan, and his love for his teammates made him feel invincible. The fact that his team was constantly supporting him every step of the way ensured that Densetsu's progress accelerated tremendously: some Jōnin even considered him to be already beyond Chūnin level. Densetsu began showing talent in the Earth Release as well, becoming one of the few Genin of his age who were able to wield two elemental transformations. Coupled with his increasingly infamous demonstrations of mind boggling speed, the activation of his Sharingan would further add fuel to Densetsu's already huge repertoire, as he shone brightly even in a team of supremely talented individuals. Densetsu was able to achieve the activation of his Sharingan after getting thrust head first in a life threatening situation; an escort mission gone terribly wrong. His sheer will to protect his comrades after they were split from Ayato enabled Densetsu to utilise his newly obtained power to completely turn the tide of the battle and defeat three assassins with the help of his team.
As two more years passed, Densetsu's own maturity grew as well. The young boy's wisdom began to catch up to his surging intellect, and thus Gendo slowly began opening up to him about the true state of the Uchiha Clan. Gendo revealed that the Uchiha had lost their place in Konoha many years ago, when the Fox had attacked, stating that only 'fire and brimstone' was awaiting the accursed Clan. Gendo further divulged the details of what his father had fought for—a second chance for the Clan. Fumio had always sought to mend relations between Konoha and the Clan, as he had always realised that a violent flashpoint was brewing. Eventhough Fumio had been removed from the equation, Densetsu learned that aside from Gendo, there were still young Uchiha who had been inspired by his struggle, and were now working with Konoha for a peaceful solution. Gendo wanted Densetsu to partake in this silent effort as well, despite Densetsu's dislike for his clan. However, Densetsu immediately agreed to his request, much to Gendo's shock. Densetsu believed that, if he could achieve this peace by the right means, another repeat of his childhood, or something even worse-could be prevented. Though Gendo was taken aback by the innocent honesty of a child, he revealed to Densetsu what exactly would be necessary to first gain the platform necessary for the village to hear his voice. Admission into the ANBU Black Ops. The Chūnin Exams were a famous recruitment ground, and as such, Gendo urged Densetsu to try his best there, and showcase his immense talent.
As public sentiment turned against the Uchiha, Densetsu began feeling a certain pity for his clan, being part of him, after all. Densetsu continued training in the forest, developing new techniques with the help of a young toad of Myōboku, and sharpening his skills as the Chunin Exams approached.
Chunin Exams
Two days prior to the exams, Densetsu ran into Akuhei Iwao who had pushed over his landlord and threatened her. Losing his temper, Densetsu attacked the Kiri genin and punched Iwao into a wall. Iwao retaliated by attempting to strangle Densetsu, whose speed enabled him to backhand Iwao and push him to the ground, initiating a vicious brawl. As the two were separated by nearby Jonin, Iwao vowed to kill him slowly in the Chunin Exams. Two days later, the exams began, at one of the various sealed off forests of Konoha—at a newly built facility. The first round ended up being an intense challenge in concentration—a written test which was extremely easy, but taking place in a room actually filled numerous hazards (this fact being unknown to the participants); the participants also had to stay in their seats while doing their paper, being forced to ensure that they had finished their papers before entering the fourth and final room. The students who had been thanking their lucky stars for such blessed papers were attacked by the various traps set in the room, as ceilings panels collapsed and traps were set off as the chaos ensued; as even various projectiles were launched at the participants by their proctors. Though also taken aback, Densetsu, Hiroki and Hitomi managed to band together and overcome the numerous occasional unfair hurdles, using the vague rules to their advantage as they took turns to finish their papers, two members guarding the one member who still hasn't finished. All three passed this first exam with near flawless marks. Team Ayato were therefore listed on the target list of almost every Genin squad in the exams—being rated as the most dangerous competing team. The Forest of Death would be the next challenge.
As such, Densetsu, Hitomi and Hiroki were forced to fend off wave and wave of repeated attacks from groups that were ironically teaming up on them. While initially keeping defensive, Team Ayato's long range ninjutsu proficiency enabled them to plan guerrilla style attacks on their fellow contestants, annihilating their assailants quickly with superior tactical knowhow, as well. Having gained another scroll after these relentless ambushes, Team Ayato's were pursued by two teams from Kirigakure relentlessly, being forced to evade these teams coordinated attacks while also making it through the chaos ahead, as the situation in the Forest became increasingly vicious and brutal; with contestants even losing their lives. After a trying few days in the Forest of Death, Densetsu was separated from Team Ayato after an ambush. The Uchiha freely showcased his incredible ninjutsu prowess and explosive pace; taking on the two teams of Kirigakure shinobi alone and defeating them with his Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, Earth Release: Ensnaring Soil, Body Replacement Explosive Tagging and Clone Shuriken Combo after being separated from his team. Rejoining his team which now contained the injured Hiroki, Team Ayato finished their round with one more day to spare. News emerged that 6 shinobi had been killed in the forest, 3 alone by Akuhei Iwao. After that round, came the one on one duels—four rounds, followed by semi finals and the grand finale, thanks to the incredible amount of participants that year.
In his first duel, by utilising the Fire Release: Blazing Explosive Kunai Maelstrom Densetsu established the record for quickest knockout in the history of the exams—34 seconds. The next few rounds proved Densetsu's huge skill, as he took down opponent after opponent with minimal strain; showcasing pure demonstrations of speed, intellect and ninjutsu prowess. While Hiroki's challenge ended with an aggravated injury in the second round, Densetsu and Hitomi progressed steadily throughout the harrowing rounds. On the other side, Iwao was also making short work of his opponents, almost killing two of his opponents in the process. The semi-finals arrived and Hitomi was drawn against Akuhei Iwao, in what would be the third and final semi final matchup. The first matchup ended with a double disqualification, while the second proved to be Densetsu's fight. As Densetsu's and a Sunagakure Genin's semi final bout ended in a smooth win for Densetsu, he tried his level best to convince Hitomi to back away from taking on the brutish Goliath, but she refused viciously to surrender, stating that it wasn't the way of the Sarutobi to back down when the odds turned. As the matchup came, Iwao managed to surpass Hitomi's superior speed and athleticism with sheer ninjutsu prowess, managing to pin her to the ground. As he moved in to brutally finish her off, Hiroki intervened with his Nara Techniques, restraining Iwao and forcing the referee to disqualify Hitomi, ending the round. Enraged that someone interrupted his moment of domination, Iwao picked up a kunai and flung it towards Hiroki at high velocity; but before Ayato or the injured Hiroki could react, Densetsu met the projectile with a flame rower variant of his Great Fireball Technique, melting the projectile while earning the third and final tomoe of his Sharingan; the two boys eying each other with burning rage. Uchiha and Iwao, they would fight the next round, the finals of the Chūnin Exams.
Anticipation of the mouth watering duel between Densetsu and Iwao grew and eventually they were announced publicly against each other in the final match—the only two Genin who could use two nature transformations.
Iwao started aggressively, flinging Shuriken in rapid succession at Densetsu whose speed enabled him to avoid them directly assault Iwao. Iwao and Densetsu engaged in intense taijutsu as Densetsu's quick attacks enabled him to get past Iwao's more lumbering defence. Eventually Iwao the stronger of the two, threw Densetsu across the arena, breaking the young Uchiha's left middle and index fingers. Densetsu began working with ninjutsu, masterfully manipulating his fire techniques to push Iwao back. The latter began using water based ninjutsu to counter, falling into Densetsu's trap. With the area wet, Densetsu ripped the wiring system of the lighting on a nearby wall and tossed it onto the wet ground, to electrocute the area, zapping Iwao in the process. Iwao's savage injuries shockingly did not faze him, and he began his own salvo of earth techniques to launch heavy molten earth projectiles towards Densetsu. As the two battled it out, Densetsu preyed on Iwao's lack of speed; counter attacking with the help of his Sharingan and finally launching a blindspot attack, strapping an explosive tag on Iwao's heel after distracting him with shadow clones. Failing to realise it was a fake tag, Iwao panicked and attempted to remove it. The error cost him, and Densetsu managed to trap him. While trying to escape from the earth tendrils, Iwao's pants and underpants were torn off, leaving him naked. Humiliated and out of options, Iwao cursed Densetsu again, promising to carve his Sharingan out. Densetsu ended the match with a thunderous knockout kick to Iwao's temple. Both were promoted to Chunin, but Iwao disappeared completely after leaving the hospital and nobody ever heard of him again for the next five years.
The ANBU Year
After his performance in the Chunin Exam, the Hokage put in a direct recommendation for Densetsu's initiation into the ANBU Black Ops together with Hiroki. Having now been inducted into the elite task force of soldiers who carried out the most important missions for Konoha, Densetsu officially reported for duty and carried out the first phase of Gendo's plan. He still kept in contact with Gendo, and even though he didn't receive his first assignment for a full week, Densetsu already had access to a plethora of information. Though plenty, it was still limited in terms of trustworthiness. But whispers were what Densetsu was able to supply Gendo, who also possessed his own formidable array of spies. Gendo advised Densetsu to be particularly wary of a splinter group of the ANBU, who operated under private jurisdiction. Their leader was a man whom Densetsu would soon know very well.
The infamous Danzō Shimura, or as Gendo liked to call him; the Extremist of the Leaf.
Gendo and Shimura had fought together in two wars, and literally grown up together. While Shimura had moved up the ranks and bought his power through position, Gendo maintained his own considerable intelligence dealings by inspiring loyalty through his various good deeds. Gendo felt that before Densetsu entered the turbulent world of the Black Ops, he would have to know off the Master of Shadows himself. And he told the young ANBU Uchiha everything he needed to know at that moment. He revealed to him how Danzo's personal experiences and valuation of selfless sacrifice had put him at severe odds with the Uchiha Clan. This distaste towards the Uchiha blossomed into full out hatred as the years progressed and the whispers of civil war grew louder. Before leaving, Densetsu's father had shared his theory with Gendo. He believed that if the Uchiha grew dangerous enough to threaten the Leaf's stability, Danzo would very possibly act before Hiruzen. An extremist by nature, he counterbalanced Hiruzen's extreme love for peace. Danzo would quench any uprising with lethal force if he felt that the Leaf would benefit from his brutality. And they agreed that it was a perfectly sound choice, violent as it may be.
Danzo was suspecte in having participated in several war crimes, all of which had been buried, his position leading to speculation that these disappearances of evidence were not random. Gendo revealed that by Densetsu's inclusion to the fray, they had more voices that could advocate for the clan's safety while also ensuring they bought themselves time to mend the Clan's increasingly confrontational tendencies. Gendo hoped to add Densetsu to the other two ANBU Uchiha to mount a combined voice that would drown out Danzo's potentially dangerous whispering and convincing. This was the true, unadulterated reason why Gendo had hoped Densetsu would join in the cause. Again, though noting that Gendo's motives were slightly less selfless than they had been when he first explained it to him, Densetsu reaffirmed that he would do his part to end the brewing conflict.
On his first mission to investigate a disturbance at the border, Densetsu's squad was ambushed by a group of Iwagakure ninja. After a vicious battle, Densetsu accidentally plunged his kunai into the group's leader, killing him. As he watched the other Iwa nin get slaughtered, he felt insurmountable guilt and sorrow at his first kill. Densetsu quickly made a wall around his soul to somewhat justify his murderous sprees, on the basis if duty to his village, and saving a thousand lives with every evil being he slayed. This worked for him and eventually, the dark nature of ANBU became natural to him. As Densetsu began to cave in to the dark nature of his work, he began shutting out the people who loved him the most; as his fear of loss gradually prevented him from interacting with his friends and well wishers as openly as he did before. As the months passed, Gendo, his landlord, Hiruzen and even Hitomi were shut out of Densetsu's life, as only Hiroki remained, his fellow comrade in arms in the ANBU division. Both the boys were exposed to the terrifying evils that the ANBU fought in order to keep Konoha safe, but Densetsu was the one who became increasingly shaken by the powerful and twisted forces they encountered; each evil being further strengthening his belief that he had to protect Konoha by undertaking the most vile solutions. Hiroki understood the importance of their actions as well, but refused to get as passionately involved in the ANBU crusade as Densetsu did, as the boys' different childhood experiences caused them both to be affected by the Black Ops missions differently. The killing which initially made the young Uchiha break into cold sweat accompanied by palpitations gradually became a borderline religiously validated cause.
Seeing the increasingly drastic personality changes of Densetsu along with Hiroki's first hand accounts, Ayato stepped in to his former student's life again; concerned by the way Densetsu was rapidly becoming an island. Noting that Densetsu's experiences and insecurities contributed greatly to his fluctuating emotions and stances on keeping Konoha safe, Ayato bluntly told the boy that the ANBU division was not meant for him—that he simply lacked the maturity to be a part of something so emotionally and mentally traumatic; even if he possessed the skill and ability to easily make the cut. Convinced by his actions and the dangerous adversaries he had already seen working against Konoha, Densetsu refused to heed his mentor's words, stating that the ANBU division needed him to be an enforcer, no matter the personal cost. Densetsu went further, monologuing on how he was protecting everyone he loved from people who sought to take them away from him at a moment's notice, which was especially important since he could never protect his family when the Uchiha clan tore them away from him. Ayato chastised Densetsu's one mindedness, rightly admonishing him for not knowing himself, moreover for living in denial under a false sense of heroism by making himself seem like a tragic hero. This sat badly with Densetsu who burst out against his former mentor, leading to Ayato walking away from his student; imparting parting, sad advice. That he'd never be happy in the division, and that it would probably take great losses to make Densetsu see the truth.
Densetsu carried out his missions after this with cruel and disturbingly cool efficiency, training harder and becoming stronger. He notched up an incredible tally of kills, and his opponents were never left breathing when he attacked. Hiroki frequently admonished his brutality, but Densetsu's obsession to "protecting his home" made his best friend's lamentations fall to deaf, ignorant ears. In his next few missions, Densetsu's skill would increase even further, to a point where he was given nicknames such as the Lightning Shinobi and the Spirit of the Mist. Displaying supreme skill with his eyes which were feared internationally, Densetsu became a great weapon in Konoha's arsenal; with great espionage skill and intellect aside from his immense ninjutsu prowess. Unknowingly, Densetsu attracted the attention of Danzō, who wanted him to join Root—or at very least collect his eyes. He would also get to know and be known among many other famed ANBU—Itachi and Shisui Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake and Yamato included. The ANBU considered themselves as brothers and sisters in arms and blood, as such bonds of great camaraderie were formed between these individuals. Densetsu's Curse of Hatred was unleashed on enemies of Konoha, a cruel twisting and combining with his Will of Fire, which was horrifyingly displayed on those who worked against the Leaf. Densetsu's violence began to even make his teammates cringe as they began reporting that he was "chuckling behind his mask and counting his slain foes gleefully". However Densetsu's flawless records made up for these facts, and he was deemed as too important an asset on the field to lose.
Densetsu's blade slew all those who worked against Konoha, or were suspected to. Not even women were spared from his chilling, blinded sense of duty.
At last, Densetsu discovered the other edge of the double edged sword he abided by; the pain the world could inflict on even the strongest. In an ill-fated mission, Densetsu's entire squad were ambushed and captured except for him and Hiroki, who had been forced to make a tactical retreat. Following from a distance, Densetsu watched from behind cover as his squad members were decapitated one by one. In shock, Densetsu and Hiroki had no time to react as they realised that they'd walked into a trap. Surrounded by numerous Jōnin level opponents, the duo nevertheless held their own, fighting back ferociously before the sheer numbers of the enemy overwhelmed the duo. In the chaos, Hiroki leaped in front of Densetsu and was decapitated after intercepting a blade meant for the Uchiha, and his head rolled behind Densetsu, making the Uchiha trip over and fall; facing the headless torso of his old friend, while Hiroki's blood cruelly splashed onto his face. Letting out a pure scream of agony after witnessing his friend die, Densetsu awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan and attacked his enemies brutally, murdering them all very violently except for one (who leaped away after his arm caught fire) with the Amaterasu and rage fuelled strikes. This would be Densetsu's final mission with a team, as he worked alone from then onwards.
At Hiroki's funeral, the still shocked and blank Densetsu could do nothing but gaze at the black casket in front of him in the somber military funeral, as his friend's parents silently hung their heads beside their son's coffin. As the clouds parted, the Uchiha was confronted by his Hitomi, with whom he hadn't talked to for at least 5 months. Densetsu's eyes remained fixed on the ground as the bandages which lay draped over his face and body spoke volumes to the girl about the vicious fight that had taken the life of her comrade and friend. She quietly asked the broken Uchiha how Hiroki died, but was met with silence as Densetsu trembled. Upon her repeating the question, he turned away; as she screamed that she'd always loved him, and that she couldn't bear the thought of losing him the way Hiroki had been killed, before storming away. Ayato watched the exchange from afar, choosing to approach Densetsu when Hitomi had disappeared from the graveyard. He walked up to his shattered student, who collapsed out of his crutches into the arms of his mentor, screaming again and again that it was his fault. All Ayato could do was tell him that the time was coming when he'd have to make the choice, as he let his student scream his pain out in his arms.
Three weeks later, Ayato was killed in the line of duty, while on an S ranked mission to the Land of the Moon. Densetsu could do nothing else but sharpen his blade and prepare for another mission as the words of his mentor echoed in his ears. Another funeral, the same faces, the same pain; the distance between himself and Hitomi ever apparent.
Hiroki's and then Ayato's deaths had impacted Densetsu very badly on a severe level, and the trauma stil had not healed. His friends long pleas even on the an hour before his death for Densetsu to see the evil in his own actions had finally reached the Uchiha's denial strengthened, twisted mind. In a severely negative way. Slowly, the real Densetsu that had been dormant after being suppressed by this violent alter ego began to stir, opening the young man's eyes to the true world he had thrust himself in when he agreed to join the Black Ops. Gone were the chuckles that followed when he carved his ways into foes, and gone were the brutal dismemberments. Densetsu was no longer a God of Death, and the never ending stream of tears that flowed from the crevices of his monkey painted mask proved it. He didn't like what he was doing any longer, but he felt he had to do it. He did not know how to break away from it.
Densetsu's doubts and internal turmoil eventually allowed him to finally realise, that the ANBU Black Ops did not exclusively deal with high risk operations and measures to protect the village: they were also faced with terrible decisions which eroded their morality to unimaginable extremes. Forced to sell their soul for the village. Forced. Densetsu was thrust into this situation head on in one of his final missions for the ANBU Black Ops. In a laboratory at the very outskirts of the Land of Fire, scientists had imbued a powerful Kinjutsu into three young children, effectively manufacturing child soldiers who could destroy entire armies and villages. Belonging to an anti governmental underground faction, they were tied to a group that had violently launched guerrilla style attacks against the Land of Fire's Daimyo over the past years; and a weapon like this could be easily used to cripple key defences and positions. A Kinjutsu developed to produce vast, horrific destruction onto entire villages, the situation demanded the urgent hand of the ANBU to prevent a potentially huge catastrophe. Breaking into the facility, they mercilessly slaughtered the scientists as Densetsu handled the guards.
However, they had to deal with the children, locked in containment across the lab. It was dangerous, as at any sign of danger, they could activate the Kinjutsu and wipe the entire team off. Approaching the containment room, Densetsu volunteered to handle the situation himself; as something inside him told him to do so. He was greeted by the sight of two children in beds, with IV's and heart monitors strapped to them, oxygen masks sustaining their laboured breathing—and a single child backed to a corner, arms raised in a fighting stance. While the ANBU waited outside prepared to strike, Densetsu put down his blade, approaching the child and promising not to hurt him. His teammates watched him with surprise, as this was a first from the cool, merciless machine they had known. Through the earphone, the ANBU searches into the facility revealed yet another troubling detail; the children were imbued with remnants of chakra from the Nine Tails, meaning they could use the Kinjutsu several times in a day. Destroy several villages in one day. Densetsu grimaced, but kept his eyes focused on the boy, who was loosening up. The children were all just five year olds. As he removed his mask to further prove to the child he was harmless, Densetsu began to understand what had been happening, as the boy asked him where the "scary white robed men" had gone, knowing that the children had been tortured after the young boy began divulging details on the experimentation. The procedures had left the other two children on the brink of death, and only his body had lasted successfully. They had threatened the boy, saying that if he didn't cooperate, they'd kill his half-dead friends, and that the children had never been outside the facility since they were babies.
Densetsu decided to show the child the outside world, as the ANBU operatives were still surprised he hadn't taken the chance to kill the child yet. But Densetsu paid no heed to them, he was doing something that felt natural, and for the first time in one year, felt right. As they walked out, Densetsu discovered that the boy's name was Danzetsu, a coincidental similarity that brought out a chuckle from both the young child and Densetsu. Outside, the child marvelled at the beautiful scenery, of greens and vibrant colours in the sky, as the beautiful moment quickly faded away, the dream ending as a voice spoke in Densetsu's earphones. It was chief of the division. They wanted the child dead, immediately. Densetsu pleaded against this, desperately begging them to see that he was just a tortured child, and that he could be saved, but they wouldn't hear it. When he protested further, he was silenced by the reply of his commanding officer.
You've done this before, killing kids, even when we never told you to. Why are you hesitating when the future of so many lives, and villages is at stake?
That was the moment where it all piled up on the Uchiha. He had been doing it before, so this was supposed to make it normal. He had traded his values, his humanity, his conscience. He had killed so many people, without ever thinking of giving them a chance, when he could have spared them. He was a vile creature who feared the power of unborn children, and killed the young so that his village wouldn't have enemies in the future. Densetsu Uchiha realised he had become a monster of the worst degree. Hiroki and Ayato had both seen it, but he had ignored them. Why was it that now, now when he finally experienced happiness after what seemed to have been a eternity, why did he have to do something this cruel? As he clenched his fists so hard his palms bled, the young boy called out to him. Fighting back the tears, the boy's next words were like a dagger to the already hurt Uchiha's heart. The scientists had also enhanced the child's physical abilities, including his hearing. The boy had heard every single word spoken in Densetsu's microphone, as well as Densetsu's whispering, as well as his ANBU squad. But he relented. He knew he was a natural monstrosity, and a dangerous weapon, but he kept talking. The experiments made living painful, his lungs burned when he breathed, his body continuously felt like it was being torn to shreds. Living was painful. The boy told Densetsu that it was perfectly alright to kill him, and that he was thankful that for once, someone had shown him kindness. Looking one last time at the beautiful sky, he asked the sobbing Densetsu what it was. The Uchiha replied that it was sunset, to which the boy pleaded to make his death painless. With one quick swipe, Densetsu decapitated the boy, who died with a peaceful smile.
The smile on the heads of the child after his clean sweep would haunt Densetsu eternally, knowing that he had sunken to such painful depths on the excuse of duty. It was at this moment where Densetsu finally regained his humanity, having accepted that shockingly he had been doing exactly this all along in the ANBU, and how wrong it had been, no matter the reasons. Immediately he knew what Ayato and Hiroki had both tried to say, right up until both died. This wasn't what Densetsu wanted, it wasn't something he could take.
The constant murder, lies, loss of friends and brutality took a toll on Densetsu; he screamed frequently in his sleep, was plagued by violent nightmares and began showing signs of aggravated stress—accompanied by realistic hallucinations of his deceased victims and allies. All these factors coupled with the gradual realisation that he was under the Curse of Hatred led to the teenager engaging in a brutal mental battle with his own inner demons, a struggle to find out what he truly was—a merciless monster who eliminated any who threatened his allies, or a compassionate individual who understood the unjustness of circumstance and strove to protect those he loved by using his power to defend. Deciding that he was the latter, Densetsu prepared to leave the ANBU Black Ops and focus on redeeming himself instead. He had finally found the way to break out of this evil cycle—with his own voice. However, fate had other ideas in store for the troubled teenager.
Fall of the Uchiha Clan
"All the world will be your enemy, Prince of a Thousand Enemies, and if they catch you, they will kill you, but first, they must catch you." —Gendo's last words to himself, referring to Densetsu with a quote from his favourite book.
Aside from merely being in the ANBU, Densetsu was also an Uchiha that the village's upper echelon trusted, one of the three Uchiha ANBU; they were convinced that the boy owed no allegiance to his clan, mainly due to his dark past with them. After all, rigorous screening processes were required to initiate a person into the ANBU. Background checks, personal files; every single bit of information was gathered before one could be declared an ANBU candidate. Then upon carefully deliberated and observed selection, the candidates were narrowed down even further. Densetsu especially had been watched heavily, ensuring that the distance he had spent away from the Uchiha certainly separated him from their dangerous beliefs. But the day of reckoning was at hand, and the fate of the Uchiha hung on a thin thread so frequently argued over by Hiruzen, Danzo and the other elders. However everyone in that room knew that Densetsu had put his body on the line too many times to count for the village. And they knew damned well what he had lost and sacrificed for the village as well.
One sunny day roughly two days after he euthanised the child super weapon, Densetsu was summoned to a meeting with Hiruzen, Danzō and the elders alone, after their previous meeting with Itachi and Shisui Uchiha; by the Third Hokage himself. After delivering a series of ANBU reports as customary for a young Vice-Captain, he was briefed by the group about the situation in the Leaf pertaining to the Uchiha, they needed to have a final confirmation on his loyalty—which he pledged to Konoha, honestly. It was made known to Densetsu that the Uchiha were suspected to be increasingly on edge, and that there were suspicions that they could be plotting something that potentially destabilise the Leaf, and set into motion events that would threaten the very existence of Konohagakure. Densetsu soaked in the information, head bowed, eyes on the wooden floors—but he knew just as much as everyone in the room, how critical the situation was becoming. Gendo had briefed him about this more than a year back, long before Densetsu's meteoric rise in the ANBU. Long ago when he could sleep peacefully, before he had ever killed a person, when Ayato and Hiroki were alive; when Hitomi and he were so close. The details came in, and it became obvious that every single thing Gendo had told him was true. Hiruzen was looking for a peaceful solution. Danzo was looking for the quickest solution; and Densetsu could almost sense that the quickest solution was going to be a vicious one. Hiruzen informed him that he needed Densetsu on board with them, and that they would need Densetsu's help and cooperation to ensure that they could find the best possible way to end this; and to know which Uchiha stood with the village.
Excused from the meeting, Densetsu made his way to his home, his thoughts muddled; but still focused on the storm at hand. He had made his decision to step down from the ANBU, but the latest turn of events would surely ensure that he had to stay. At least until they could undo this impending flashpoint. On the way, he was stopped by his landlord. A letter had arrived, Gendo the writer. He asked Densetsu to stop by his home at the Uchiha District. Densetsu cringed at this, but relented. It was for the sake of an old friend. Striding into the District in ANBU attire after what had been around seven years, he kept his composure as numerous pairs of eyes turned to eye him. Almost all in silent curiosity, and some in regret. The story of what persecution had been experienced by Densetsu Uchiha's family had slipped out two years after his exile; when ironically all members of the clan who had persecuted Densetsu's father Fumio, had been killed in a double cross near Amegakure. Violent justice. But to Densetsu, their regret and pity meant nothing—he was here for one of the only people who had actually helped him from that Clan. Not for anyone else.
Gendo was bedridden, tubes stuck in his body, apparently forcing precious nutrients in his body. Why he wasn't in the hospital was beyond Densetsu, but the old man reached out for his hand upon seeing it, and Densetsu held it within his. Gendo was dying, had been for the past three years, and it was borrowed time he had been living on for the past few months. Densetsu was broken to hear this, but didn't show it. Hiroki, Ayato and now Gendo. It seemed that fate took pride in torturing him this way. But Gendo continued to speak. He knew that the Uchiha were as good as damned, as things had deteriorated over the year. He realised how naive he had been to believe that together, the Uchiha loyal to Konoha could make a difference. Densetsu attempted to appease the old man, stating that he knew Itachi Uchiha and Shisui Uchiha were still actively trying to make a difference, and that the higher ups trusted him now; but Gendo could just let out a sad, laboured laugh. They could never succeed, not with how things had transpired at the District, and not with Danzo around.
Gendo told him that he regretted asking him to join the ANBU, and that he had heard about Hiroki, and Densetsu's instability. He however was able to impart crucial information to Densetsu, Danzo would go for every single one of the Uchiha. His thinking was justifiable, the Uchiha were dangerous as long as even one lived, and unless Danzo gained from it, Gendo knew Densetsu would be killed by the militant minded leader of Root. He suspected from the whispers from a now dead source in Root, that Danzo would move within the month, or much sooner. With a laboured cough, he told Densetsu to never forget who he was, and who his father was; gripping his hand tightly. As another friend lay dying but still trying to light up his path, Densetsu decided that it was finally time to listen. Gripping the old man's hand in response, Densetsu nodded in tears, thanking Gendo for always watching out for him. But before they parted, Gendo growled one last set of orders at Densetsu with steely determination. Get away from Danzo, at all costs. That would be the last time Densetsu and Gendo ever talked. The old Uchiha passed away in his sleep that night, and Densetsu simply could not bear to attend another funeral when Shisui informed him about it the next day.
The next week passed by quickly, and with a coincidental respite in ANBU Operations, Densetsu was able to think his situation through carefully after mourning Gendo. After being in the ANBU for so long, he knew a good deal about Danzo. Or Lord Danzo, as he was properly called. A nobody to normal villagers, but a well known presence in the shadowy black ops world; he was the guy the clean people relied on to do the dirty, cruel stuff. He knew Hiruzen too, a peace-loving and calm man who wanted the best for all his people, but it was obvious whose choice was the most logical here. Even if logic didn't necessarily translate to right. Gendo and Densetsu both knew that Danzo's choice was the most bone chillingly straightforward one. Somehow, he would try and eliminate them before a village wide civil war began, in the gritty game of chicken, Konoha had already blinked first. Only Hiruzen was standing in Danzo's way now. If Hiruzen won, they all knew the conflict would only be postponed. If Danzo won, lives would be lost. If nothing happened on time, civil war would be initiated by the Clan. The question was how things would unravel. And Gendo's final words hung heaviest in Densetsu's mind—get away from Danzo, at all costs. Someone with as much knowledge as Gendo had to be acknowledged, he had always known things better than Densetsu the young ANBU upstart possibly could—he and his shady sources.
But before he made up his mind for sure, he had to take care of unfinished business. It had been exactly two months since Hiroki's death, and Densetsu hadn't seen Hitomi since that fateful outburst over Hiroki's then freshly covered grave. He wanted to change that, and he wanted to stay true to what he'd always felt ever since he had gotten to know her. Feelings that had only strengthened after her outburst and subsequent silence. Now more than ever, the truth had to reach her, since she was among the last people alive that he strove to hard to protect. And so Densetsu decided to reconnect with her, and heal, crossing into her path deliberately that night as she walked home after visiting the nearby mart. While their reunion was awkward after two months of avoiding each other, Densetsu knew exactly what he had to tell her to break that coldness; informing her of his decision to leave the ANBU before anything else to which she responded with only a warm smile. Taking this as a good sign, Densetsu offered to carry her bags for her, accompanying her back home as the two old teammates slowly reconnected; starting with casual with questions on how the other had been doing and culminating with what happened on that fateful night Hiroki lost his life.
Densetsu directly admitted that he hadn't wanted to talk to her about this after the incident because he knew it was his fault that his friend had died that night, and that Hiroki had intentionally intercepted a blow which the Uchiha had carelessly failed to avoid. He admitted that he had left Hitomi out because he didn't want it anymore, to lose people he cared for. But Densetsu knew that his logic had been flawed, and despite the losses he had suffered, he couldn't cut anyone else out of his life—let alone her. At this, Hitomi instinctively hugged him, making him promise that he'd never cut her out of any part of his life ever again, no matter the reason; and this ended up being a promise Densetsu would keep for the rest of his life. As they stayed in each others' arms, the young Uchiha asked her if what she had said at the graveyard two months ago still applied today; whether she still loved him. She replied that she did, and always had, as they remained in the moment for as long as possible, before Densetsu told her that something would be potentially coming, and that she would just have to trust him with this—no matter the outcome, and that he always would love her as well. While she protested when he kept his lips sealed, he promised her that he would tell her everything when the time was right; and this time, she relented. After making sure she had reached her home safely, Densetsu focused on his own plans.
There was however a letter on the desk of his little rented room, a summons to the Konoha Council Chambers at 10 in the following morning. A development in the Uchiha Issue. Densetsu enjoyed his sleep that night, as just for once, the troubles seemed just a little far away. The next morning found Densetsu in the Council Chambers in the presence of Hiruzen and two elders—with Danzō conspicuously absent. There, they informed Densetsu that a decision had been made: and that they had found a way to peacefully deal with the Uchiha Uprising and they wished for his help in this matter, helping them monitor the situation as an Uchiha himself. Despite his misgivings with them, it was generally known news that the remaining Uchiha did not harbour any hatred towards him, rather regarding him as a mysterious figure. Taking this as a sign that it was finally the right time to leave the cursed ANBU which had brought him so much pain, Densetsu put in a special request to Hiruzen on the spot; wishing to be taken out of the ANBU and given normal Chūnin duties in lieu with this new assignment—to which his old guardian agreed to.
But on that day itself, a shocking tragedy struck in the form of Shisui Uchiha's death, a single suicide note confirming this. Densetsu would not know about this, only finding out the following morning after another meeting summon. The background was somber, and after the Council of Elders (this time including Danzō) announced that they would have to rethink their approach towards the problem, Densetsu could already piece together the clues, concluding that Shisui had been their crutch to alleviate the crisis. But as the meeting ended and Densetsu walked out, he was stopped short by Danzō's rasping voice. The elder asked for some of the younger Uchiha's time, which Densetsu obliged to, out of respect. Danzō cut the small talk, bluntly telling Densetsu that he wanted the young teenager to join Root as one of his men. Danzō brought up Densetsu's past instability and his own psychological fragility which had been documented in the ANBU files. Danzō wanted Densetsu where he could be controlled, of course by Danzō—where his talents could be put to use as a weapon for the Leaf, instead of allowing his instability to turn him into a time bomb waiting to be unleashed on Konoha. Densetsu heard his words and knew his position; he felt Danzō twisting his arm harder with each word, and immediately he knew what Gendo had meant. And he already knew what his options were here. Join or incur the wrath. It fit ominously, Danzō's repertoire, his absence in the previous Council Meeting; and then Shisui Uchiha's unexplainable death by suicide. There was no definitive proof save for the menacing aura Danzō was giving off with every twitch in his body. But here, faced with the option of going back into the very hell he had lost so much to get out off, Densetsu stood his ground. One more time he said the word. No. And just then, with the Sensing ability he had been gradually honing for months, Densetsu picked it up. A whiff of chakra which felt just like Shisui's had, emanating from Danzō. And it was gone as quickly as it had arrived, but Densetsu kept his eyes focused on those bandages covering Danzō's eye. The shock and fear was creeping in, but his ANBU training kept his face calm, as he bowed and walked away from Danzō. But the Shimura ominously echoed behind, stating that it was a 'pity'.
Upon turning a corner, Densetsu vanished into the air, making haste to his rented room. There was no mistaking it. Densetsu had always known Danzō had been scouting him, but now it was different. Things had changed, and things were too dodgy. Far too dodgy. Gendo's words were pounding against his ears and Danzō's frightening tone was making the situation even more strenuous. And then Densetsu saw it. Activating his Sharingan, the clarity of his vision enabled him to spot it many hundreds of metres away further down the street. A single lone masked figure at the empty alleyway, holes of the mask fixed in his direction. Casually, Densetsu picked up a water bottle and drank from it, acting like he hadn't seen anything, but he knew damned well what this was. They were staying out of effective range from his Sharingan, but they were monitoring him. Danzō got what he wanted. The sun was hanging low on the horizon, it would be sunset soon, and Densetsu's success would depend on how well he could maintain his poker face. He had made his decision. He would make a break for it the moment the sun set. Straight through what he was sure, would be something similar to Formation C with unspecified variants—of the ANBU enclosing tactic. He slipped a letter of thanks that he had penned when Gendo died, addressed to his landlord. The landlord had shown him nothing by kindness even during tough times, and Densetsu wanted him to know that he appreciated that. He slipped cash along with the note and inserted it into an envelope, sliding it beneath his door. Staying away from the window, Densetsu shoved several clothes into a rucksack and strapped his weapons pouches, sheathing his trusted blade; the only remnant of his ANBU days.
The sun turned the sky crimson, and Densetsu began. Sending a shadow clone out of the window as a diversion, Densetsu drew his kunai and hid at the corner; as his identical copy whizzed along the power lines. And he saw it, movement. Formation C it had been, as he had expected. Making use of the diversion, the real Densetsu propelled himself out the window, flickering onto roof after roof, exploiting the blind spot he had just created. The Root members realised the ruse, quickly shifting their attention to the original. But Densetsu was crafty. He directed the chase to the rooftops of the village market, where the populace was still out in force. Now, they were unable to launch their ninjutsu without getting close; and Densetsu's prolific speed kept them at a comfortable distance. But the Root shinobi were no pushovers. They had apparently prepared a backup option in case Formation C failed, and two more ANBU Root members popped up from the streets under, in front of Densetsu. Bringing the total to 6 Root shinobi, Densetsu was forced to react; flinging a smoke bomb into the ground as the loud noise removed the element of surprise and alerted the civilians to the commotion on the roof tops. But all the combatants had already dashed away. Densetsu sprinted with his enhanced speed towards the forests, intent on making his way to the barrier's east end, which was the strongest portion of the barrier; hence the least protected. But ANBU members knew the pass technique, and since Densetsu had been in the ANBU only recently, the technique wouldn't have been changed. As they entered the forest, the true battle began. Spreading out, a plethora of ninjutsu made its way towards the young Uchiha, as flames licked the branches his feet had glanced seconds ago, and Wind based attacks exploded around him.
Nimbly side footing and somersaulting through the trees, Densetsu returned fire: shooting a fireball at his pursuers; resulting in a blast which forced two of his direct pursuers to split sideways. Launching himself at a tree, Densetsu drew in the other two who were flanking him, making his way up the thick, huge tree as they chased him down, trying to corner him so that the other four could finish him with a pincer move. Against enemies who knew each others' moves, it was just a matter of chicken; but with Sharingan, Densetsu always held the trump card. He let them come at him on the branches, as the lone tree became the site of a quick, but dazzling demonstration of Environmental Taijutsu. The first one landed right in front of him on the thick branch, launching a well balanced kick, only to be countered by Densetsu's shin to his groin, sending him reeling off dozens of feet below. The second followed up immediately, flinging a kunai which Densetsu's Sharingan read, allowing him to grab it in midair. Following through, Densetsu charged at him, flinging the kunai back at its owner, towards his attacker; which was subtly dodged. However Densetsu flung his own concealed kunai from his sleeve in rapid succession, which was also dodged by the Root shinobi. As the shinobi prepared to form hand signs, Densetsu leaped off the branch, seemingly becoming a sitting duck—but not before his foot left the branch to reveal an explosive tag, which subsequently detonated as Densetsu swung the other way; a series of wire strings connected to the kunai he had seemingly 'missed' the enemy with. The blast threw his opponent backwards, smashing him into the tree by the head, rendering him unconscious as he too, fell to the ground.
At this moment two fireballs and two balls of wind streaked towards Densetsu simultaneously from each cardinal direction, but though they impacted with a magnificent and malicious roar, they only destroyed a poor log, as Densetsu now streaked through the forest floor towards the exit. The chase intensified as Densetsu's Sharingan picked up the spreading and moulding of chakra through out the forest floor—Earth Release—as his opponents used the earth to fire al forms of projectiles at him, which he dodged, danced and evaded his way through. Densetsu knew he'd have to shake them all off for convenience's sake, opting to enter a narrow trail which led uphill, forcing more predictability from their attacks before creating his own wall from the earth under his feet, propelling himself in a backflip as he gracefully executed the hand signs. A magnificent torrent of flames blasted forth from his lips at his pursuers, just as a single extra hand sign forced the wind around him to comply as sharpened swords. The combined attacks flooded the forest behind the in glorious light, and then destruction, as screams echoed, signalling that someone had been hurt. But Densetsu had no time to worry about that as he emerged into the open, charging forward to freedom; before screeching to a halt.
Danzō stood between him and freedom. Densetsu's eyes narrowed but did nothing to dampen the fury of his Sharingan as Danzō's scowl did little to mellow the fiery situation. Two remaining Root members leaped out of the jungle behind and rejoined their leader. Their cloaks were burned off and they were injured too. Densetsu had to smirk. It felt good to be in charge again. But as Danzō stepped forward, his mind began to work again, trying to suppress the fear. Fear of what this man could do, without even losing sleep over it at night. Unlike him. Danzō was the perfect guardian of Konoha. An evil with a cause. An evil for a cause. Densetsu hated this man even though he barely knew him, but in any other situation he'd probably agree with his motives.
But he now knew that he would never accept the means in which Danzō achieved his goals.
Surveying his options quickly, Densetsu realised that merely escaping wouldn't be a wise option. These spec ops forces proved that they could withstand a high speed chase, and a whole big commotion would result in his potential capture. He had to take all three on, including Danzō, at least eliminating the two Root shinobi quickly to find an opening to escape. He reckoned that escaping from Danzō would be a more realistic option seeing that with the man's extended age, he wouldn't fare too well in an exteded chase.
But Danzō now maliciously slated Densetsu, accusing him of completely losing his bearings, and making a decision which had completely betrayed all the sacrifices he previously had made for his village. He stated that that night, the Uchiha Clan would fall, and he was extended a final warning to Densetsu: join him, or join the clan he himself had rejected, in extinction. Densetsu snarled at him in response, accepting the insult but viciously stating that a violent, dictatorial, power hungry old man with a saviour complex would not be the leader he bent his knee to. Danzō was taken aback by this rude defiance of authority and mercy, but all he had time for was to quickly leap away as Densetsu materialised in front of him, his incredible speed cutting the many metres that separated them like ribbons as the two Root members intercepted. Densetsu twisted and twirled, lining them up in front of his against Danzō to turn the distance he had made into a disadvantage. But this quick attack too, had been a diversion. The real Densetsu blasted his way out of the earth behind Danzō, simultaneously unleashing his signature flame attack at the old man's blind spot, which he also impressively avoided with a quick dash to the right. The attack cluttered into Densetsu's clone and the two Root members, as a massive explosion resulted, sending smoke spreading everywhere and blanketing the whole empty opening of the jungle.
In the smokescreen, Densetsu took full advantage of his planned attack—which he had hopefully wanted to maim Danzō, but unfortunately failed to. The Sharingan enabled him to detect the signatures of each person present through the thick smoke, and he put this to his full advantage. Densetsu dashed at the closest target, keeping a safe distance as he twisted gracefully midair, his blade carving through the legs and then back of one of the Root shinobi as he cried out in pain and the second Root shinobi heeded his cry, turning around 180 degrees to face the direction of the cry; but a lone Shuriken launched by Densetsu was already headed in the opposite direction, just as the Uchiha activated the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique. The Root shinobi dealt with them skilfully, ignoring the Shuriken that grazed past him and sliced thinly through his skin, but utilising his right arm to parry those Shuriken headed for his vitals—just as Densetsu darted behind him and slashed him across both thighs, causing him to keel over in pain. But at that moment, several projectiles of Wind streaked through the smoke all around Densetsu from his blind spot, and though his speed compensated for his not seeing the attack, he took one of the projectiles in his right shoulder blade, as it pierced his body upwards through his collarbone. Densetsu had carried out his manoeuvre to eliminate the Root ANBU in just seconds, but Danzō had responded equally fast, waiting for Densetsu to make his move before striking him with a dangerous counterattack. The smoke had dissipated with Danzō's forceful attack, but the elder rematerialised into existence directly in front of Densetsu (who had just shifted away from his attack), launching an axe kick at the Uchiha's damaged collarbone. Densetsu allow the attack to impact as his knees buckled, but wrapped his free arm around the elder's shin and rotated himself, sending Danzō sprawling to the scorched ground.
But the elder wasn't giving in, dashing at the wounded Uchiha with incredible speed, as Densetsu raised his right arm (with a great amount of pain) to intercept Danzō's kick, but this attack caused Densetsu to lose further ground as the elder wrapped a series of well worked combinations together to exploit Densetsu's injury, forcing him to dodge, roll and twist his way out with his Sharingan. With a huff of effort, Densetsu interrupted one of these rallies with a sophisticated kick to Danzō's manhood, sending him back with a groan of agony. But Danzō placed his palm on the ground, sending several blades crafted by the Wind forth; which Densetsu countered with a mighty wall which rose from the earth in front of him. But the attack's power shattered the wall and Danzō followed through by propelling himself straight through the rubble towards Densetsu, who stood his ground, shocked by the old man's persistence—but nevertheless able to work out a counter attack, and a brilliant one at that. The split second before his hand touched Densetsu's throat, the young Uchiha activated it. The move that had been envisioned by Gendo in his past but only had been partially successfully used by the old Uchiha; the Fire Release Cloak, Densetsu's own superior modification of that simple attack Gendo had shown him exactly a year before. The only move that Densetsu had practiced in secret even through those vicious ANBU times; and at this moment, he finally perfected it, showing it to the world. Densetsu's entire being was consumed by flame as only his Sharingan burned brighter, the symbolism being that Densetsu had finally physically displayed the true nature of his soul by beating back the darkness.
Danzō's arm burned up in realisation that this was an enhanced version of Gendo Uchiha's infamous Fire Limb Technique, which he had seen in two Great Wars, but even as his arm melted away in the supreme heat and two more fireballs sailed from Densetsu's index finger straight into his thighs, the great pain only complemented Danzō's shock for the fact that he had been severely wounded by a child whom he had just maimed earlier. Backing away in agony, Danzō could not evade the next attack as Densetsu surged forward, his good arm lashing at Danzō's face, his fingers clawing through the bandages and plucking out the eye Danzō had so eagerly stolen from Shisui, and as Danzō rolled on the ground in apparent agony, Densetsu stepped forward, his flaming figure highlighting his dominance as he spoke to Danzō, telling the defeated old man that he knew what he had done, he had seen Shisui's chakra signature in Danzō's eye and he now knew that Danzō had gotten his wish with the Uchiha Clan. But Densetsu further stated that he would take these secrets with him to the grave, as informing others that such a tyrant existed in Konoha's leadership would only destabilise his dear village's standing in the fragile global scale. But Densetsu fired a single warning to him: one day if the time was right, if the two of them were still alive, Densetsu would come for him in retribution for his crimes, and he would kill him. However, everything around Danzō faded away as the real world came into existence; as the masked faces of Root members surrounded him, asking him if he was alright. He had fallen victim to Densetsu's Amenokoyane, a visual Genjutsu enhanced with the Mangekyō Sharingan, directly after Densetsu had activated his Fire Release Cloak and maimed Danzō. The resulting attack had given Densetsu the necessary opening to escape as Danzō writhed, believing Densetsu had taken his eye.
As the elder was given emergency treatment in the secrecy of the Root headquarters, while Densetsu ran. Beyond the border, beyond Konoha, beyond everything he still loved. While Densetsu fled for dear life, the Uchiha clan fell to the hands of Itachi shortly after, and most of Konoha soon forgot all about their legendary prodigious Genin, who'd given so much for its safety and almost lost his soul to keep it safe...just another tragic Uchiha life lost in the brutal massacre, or so they believed. And so Densetsu kept running, hardened by the brutality of times in the toughest places most ninja could imagine, forced to mature into a world no adolescent should find itself in, but still fundamentally a child, all alone. And so he kept going, using every inch of chakra and strength and stamina he could muster, before his legs finally buckled.
Beginnings as a Vigilante
Being one of the only survivors of the Uchiha clan despite almost never affiliating himself with it, blacklisted by Danzō as a Missing-Nin being hunted by Root and literally alone so far from home; Densetsu faced a tough and uncertain future. After hours and days in thought, it dawned upon Densetsu that Danzō had probably been the one to spur Itachi into killing the clan, not Hiruzen. Blackmail, the only viable cause. He further suspected that Shisui had potentially been killed by the elder as well, instead of what Itachi said. Harbouring a deep grudge towards Danzō for forcing him away from home and for his crimes that night, Densetsu began to revert to his old self, deciding to wait it out until the time was right to reappear. Densetsu decided to take a path to redemption to make up for the destructive years he spent in the ANBU. While he protected his village initially through dark, merciless and unnecessarily violent methods, Densetsu decided to now defend it from any threat by virtuous and just means. He felt the need to set things straight by continuing to take on those who defied the law and ignored morality, but this time by using more peaceful methods unless absolutely necessary to do otherwise; redemption would never come easily anyway. Densetsu decided to take on wrongdoers one at a time, eliminating various evils in what definitely promised to be a long, gruelling and dangerous process—he had decided to turn into a vigilante. Building rudimentary shelters where he wandered, Densetsu cut his hair short and changed his outfit, now calling himself the Human Torch (due to his usage of the Fire Release Cloak and Body Flicker Technique in unison). The Human Torch's anonymity and lack of interests ensured that he could take on any enemy without fear of revenge attacks: an individual perfectly crafted to battle those with immense political reach. Densetsu began learning Senjutsu at this time as well, figuring with the help of the toads of Myōboku that his naturally enormous reserves were compatible for Senjutsu; a great power which Densetsu knew he would require to wage battles against the most fearsome elements of the world. As such Densetsu was frequently reversed summoned to Myōboku to learn Senjutsu, as well as the first Uchiha to learn to do so with the citizens of Mount Myōboku—which he began to quickly pick up in the space of a month.
A change of heart born out of sorrow, anguish and conflict. Densetsu's singleminded determination to undertake a journey of repentance sees the birth of a new persona. Nintou, the Human Torch.
His nomadic lifestyle took him on an adventurous journey and pitted him against smugglers, gangs and dangerous rogue shinobi, all who posed some threat or another to the tranquility in the Land of Fire. Under the guise of the Torch, Densetsu became known all through the Land of Fire: a mysterious individual who moved as quick as the wind, present whenever injustice showed itself. He initially took down various criminal rings that bullied and terrorised villages, but began hunting down bigger, deadlier criminals as his age and powers increased; turning into a known presence which struck terror in both the eyes of criminals and law enforcers as well, as to the common observer, his loyalties and motives were almost impossible to discern. In three months, Densetsu's actions as the Human Torch led to him waltzing into the Bingo Books of Konohagakure and Kirigakure, and in six months, his well meaning actions ironically invoked massive fear in the hearts of the higher ups of several nations. His brazen infiltrations into other lands and villages to overcome specific criminals, singlehanded decimation of entire criminal groups and lack of open, clear loyalty to any one source saw him pick up the fearsome S-rank rating six months after fleeing Konoha, and an entry in every major village's Bingo Book as the Human Torch—something he cheekily was proud off.
As an S-rated 'criminal', he used his own reputation to take on other criminals, and many would often give up without much resistance upon seeing him enter the fray. Shinobi were generally advised to never take him in groups less than 5, and his silent battle against evil saw him slowly gain popularity with the civilians of various lands—as he put entire gangs behind bars singlehandedly, when local enforcers could not. He became a figure of public admiration in his first year as a vigilante, a mysterious symbol of hope which offered protection to the weak, and fought evil without fear. A faceless warrior, blessed with a lion's heart.
Facing the Thunder Tyrant
Densetsu's exploits as the Human Torch would see him eventually hunt down a renowned missing-nin and criminal who ran a major trafficking trade around the borders of the great nations. Being a powerful former shinobi, his enemies understandably were eliminated the moment they made their animosities clear. Densetsu decided to test his own mettle against the man and his organisation, setting a month-long timeframe to sabotage the gangster's operations and break his business before putting him behind bars indefinitely. Thus, the Thunder Tyrant would become the first real "Big Fish" targeted by the rookie vigilante; the young Uchiha had also in fact taken down several allies of the gangster in prior months. Getting to the mysterious and elusive criminal would prove to be quite the challenge as he pulled millions of strings ever so smoothly behind the shadows, but training and executing covert missions with the ANBU Black Ops and spending the last seven months hunting down kingpins and thugs had turned Densetsu into a bloodhound to be reckoned with.
Over the next week Densetsu worked his way up from the muggers, robbers and pimps, crafting a ladder (often with a mixture of Genjutsu and persuasion, but fraught with occasional violence as well) which would lead him to the renowned kingpin. Day by day that followed, top guns of the criminal went missing progressively as Densetsu removed the foundation to the man's glorious empire. The prisons filled up quickly as well, as Densetsu weeded out those in hiding and brought out the moles among the enforcement authorities. Inside men quickly were singled out and compromised as the vigilante blew their cover. The long process reached its climax when the Thunder Tyrant himself, Kuro Nobuchika, caught wind of the hunter on his tail, sending a team of killers led by his own bodyguard to hunt down Densetsu and kill him before he crippled the gang's dealings too badly; a counter foil of sorts. After three weeks of Densetsu's ongoing assault, Nobuchika's men would finally track him down, and the first real intense duel of the mission began.
One of the informants Densetsu had tracked down turned to be part of the hit-team, and the ambush was set. The six professional killers attacked the former ANBU operative, whose special forces training instantly put him beyond their abilities. Bringing out his blade, Densetsu quickly handled all six with precise slashes and jabs to the legs and arms, rendering his opponents defenceless and cutting off their movement, countering them move by move with superior athleticism and speed. He tied all six up and displayed them atop a tall building in front of the public; but not before he extracted crucial information on Nobuchika's whereabouts from the bodyguard. That very night, Densetsu sent a vicious warning shot to Nobuchika by sabotaging a shipment of arms at a nearby dock, destroying the cargo after booby trapping the ship with numerous explosive tags—costing the crime lord untold millions. Enraged beyond all measure that the vigilante was apparently a shinobi, that he had defeated six of his most skilled samurai and that he had brazenly destroyed an entire fortune of Nobuchika's, the gangster sent in two bounty hunters, missing nin from Kusagakure, after Densetsu next—hoping to finally thwart him.
However the next batch of assassins would have no chance to hunt the Uchiha down, as the vigilante swiftly carried out numerous guerrilla style sabotages on numerous factories belonging to Nobuchika in just two days, utilising the knowledge he had gained earlier by interrogating the crime lord's bodyguard to locate warehouses and 'processing' centres important to the man and anonymously tip off local enforcement officers about the various areas of interest. As such Nobuchika lost several important sources of income as well as crucial manpower in just a few days, not to mention the gradual capture of many if his command chain. By the fifth week of the offensive, Nobuchika was already on the ropes and Densetsu prepared to hit the final nail in the coffin as he boldy infiltrated Nobuchika's well guarded fortress hideout; briefly splitting into several shadow clones as he handled Nobuchika's guards with pure numbers to even up the odds. Fuelled by rage and wounded pride, he made his way to the lower floors of his building to take on the vigilante and kill him, while his previously hired bounty hunters joined the fray as well. However the tide turned further as dozens and dozens of local civilians joined in the raid as well, determined to end Nobuchika and his gang's cruelty, thus enabling Densetsu to fully focus on finding the man himself while they took on the large number of guards in the complex.
Having dealt with the regular thugs and goons, a fight ensued next between the bounty hunters and Densetsu, which was significantly prolonged thanks to the relatively high pedigree of the experienced duo who did not give Densetsu too much space to effectively take them down too quickly. However his superior abilities saw him overcome the duo with a skilful demonstration of his basic ninja abilities, tricking the duo before knocking both out quickly. Making his way down, Nobuchika and Densetsu ran straight into each other as the finale came into play, with Nobuchika's brute power and speed enabling him the bash his younger opponent up in a match of taijutsu; before Densetsu rallied with the Fire Release Cloak, wounding the older man who badly burnt his fists after being caught terribly offguard in his rapid, unrelenting offence. Despite utilising the Water Release to neutralise the flame cloak, Nobuchika quickly realised that his younger counterpart was on a whole different level altogether than his previous opponents. He made the mistake of looking the Uchiha in the eye.
It was all over quickly after that.
Nobuchika was tricked into attacked an image of Densetsu, leaving himself open to the true attack as Densetsu quickly smashed the blunt edge of his katana's handle into the gangster's skull, knocking him out quickly. The resistance posed by the remainder of Nobuchika's men ended as Densetsu marched downstairs dragging the bound and defeated kingpin behind him. Upon Nobuchika's handover to the local authorities and finally to the Blood Prison, the entire region spoke the name of the Human Torch, as his first great success shone upon him. Densetsu had done what no previous man, shinobi or not, had done before. He had taken on a man with power, wealth and immense influence, stripping each from him in slightly over 4 weeks. Warnings of this vigilante would spread like wildfire in the criminal underworld, as more and more criminals met similar fates of incarceration and humiliation. The age of the Human Torch was upon crime, and no criminal—big or small, would be safe.
Appearance
Densetsu is slightly dark-skinned; tanned and toughened by numerous days fighting, running and training under the intense heat of the Sun, and tall—standing over 180 centimetres in height. He is of a thin, but well muscled body type; as a result of his regular exercise routines. Densetsu takes extreme care to not have any unnecessary fat in his body, obsessively and often comically, to the extent he ironically can't bulk up. Unfazed by this, he maintained the figure of an athlete; sleek, healthy, defined and balanced, which still garnered the attention of many adoring women. He is also described to be very good looking, with high cheekbones, a defined jawline plus sharp and chiseled features which are accentuated with a long, sharp nose. He has expressive, dark brown eyes when his Sharingan are inactive, with a constant expression of minor sadness even when he smiles; if one were to look very closely. He also now wears large, rectangular thick framed glasses when not using the Sharingan, depositing his spectacles into a scroll when combat begins; or often just sticking to contact lenses.
Densetsu appearing as he was at 9 years of age, under a Transformation Technique.
As a child, Densetsu looked very notably different from his early adolescent years. His features were tiny and round, with extremely large, bright eyes that forever displayed a sense of curiosity. He had long straight hair which he kept in the form of a fringe, neatly left to hang uncombed. He generally wore a loose turtleneck with grey shorts and traditional sandals. While not considered to be tall for his age, Densetsu was still of a moderate height, but still below some girls. At around 9 years of age, Densetsu's eyesight deteriorated mildly, and thus he wore a pair of plastic lenses spectacles to aid him; as he sat in the back rows of his classroom.
Before Part I, while he was in the ANBU, Densetsu had a mohawk hairstyle and wore an ANBU monkey mask. When not in ANBU wear, he wore a green flak jacket with a grey undershirt and dark trek pants, wearing his forehead protector on his right arm. He also carried a katana behind him. Densetsu also has been seen donning a long red coat. In Part I after fleeing Konoha, Densetsu displayed his allegiance to Konoha by continuing to wear the forehead protector now around his neck. He now just wore a cloak and grey undershirt most of the time with his utility belt and trek pants. His hairstyle had also changed, from the simple Mohawk to a long and spiked appearance. He also sported new, gold rimmed, round spectacles when not in battle. He also began carrying scrolls on his belt, in which he stores most of his equipment, except for his katana which he still kept slung on his back. He was noticeably thinner and slightly haggard on occasion however, as his strenuous life and irregular sleeping habits took a toll on his appearance and health at times.
Densetsu without glasses at the end of Part II.
In Part II, Densetsu gets rid off his crazier, long spiky hair, cutting it short and keeping a neater appearance, albeit still pointy haired. He no longer dons a coat, wearing a short-sleeved grey inner shirt and black jacket with his usual trek pants. His forehead protector is hidden behind his collar but still on his neck. Densetsu still carries his scrolls and katana, and now reverting to the normal spectacles he wore in his childhood. His glasses have also changed to a larger rimmed, rectangle like frame. At the end of Part II, Densetsu begins wearing contact lenses, also wearing his forehead protector like a belt on his waist. The years of constant battle have however left him with a scarred body, with numerous small marks and blemishes and a most notably two large scars on the middle of his chest and his back, where he was struck by Sensō's attack and nearly lost his life. After returning to Konoha, he donned a long black sleeved undershirt and a green flak jacket, together with black treks; the standard outfit of Konoha's forces.
Densetsu's mask as shown before his battle with The Brotherhood.
When performing his role as a vigilante, Densetsu donned a red monkey mask and a hooded jacket, taking the appearance of a snarling, demonic ape. Relying on silence, speed and efficiency to strike fear into his enemies, the intimidating mask aided Densetsu in terms of inserting the element of fear to go along with his reputation. Though the outfit was slightly bulky and movement restricting, it helped Densetsu look tougher than he actually was, and hide the fact that he was actually truly lean in build.
Densetsu's huge scar after almost dying against Sensō.
Two years after the Fourth Shinobi War, Densetsu now dons Konoha's new flak jacket, together with a short sleeved blue tee shirt underneath. Carrying many less scrolls on his jacket than earlier, he wears a leather belt with a weapons pouch attached behind, and the symbol of Konohagakure functioning as his belt buckle. His katana is still attached to his flak jacket, slung across his back as usual and he still retains his signature treks. The a Uchiha also keeps a custom made Flying Thunder God Kunai strapped to his side. Densetsu has also finally started wearing a symbol of his clan, a small chain on his neck with the Uchiha crest upon it, along with a golden wedding ring on his left ring finger after his marriage at the age of 20 in the spring. When off duty, his outfits are generally varied. He wears mostly casual and simple wear, keeping to shorts and tee shirts or singlets, but wears formal attires numerous times as well. Densetsu's high octane lifestyle had however allowed the seeds of the Marie Antoinette syndrome to set in, and his hair had completely greyed by the time he was 35; a constant reminder of just how chaotic and stress filled his life was. Thus, he was forced to dye his hair black again in a regular basis, or otherwise use his skill with the Transformation Technique to transform his hair to its healthy jet black tone any time he wished.
Personality
"We shinobi focus so much on power and glory that he forget the most basic thing—what it means to actually be a human. Instead, we spend our time trying to become a God; and finally being slain by another new God." —Densetsu
During his childhood in Konohagakure, Densetsu came off as a laid back, happy go lucky individual; the boy in class who flunked every single test but eventually aced the final real exam with good grades. He enjoyed making friends and was fairly popular among his classmates, bring an extrovert. He was very close and protective of his teammates and was willing to lay down his own life for them, viewing them as his direct family members. Densetsu generally enjoyed heading to the libraries and reading, or exercising in his free time—which he had in abundance as he generally was all alone. All through his childhood he lived somewhat hating his clan the Uchiha, for he viewed them to be selfish, arrogant and lusting for battle. As a result he distanced himself from them, living at a separate corner of Konohagakure, renting a room and going about his own business. This would also lead to Densetsu developing a need to avoid associating himself from his clan, often omitting his last name completely, which led some to mistake him of not appreciating his roots and heritage. Contrary to most Uchiha Clan members, Densetsu never openly displayed his clan's crest on his clothing until the age of 25, when he finally was able to forgive his clan. Even so, he only wore a small chain with the Uchiha symbol on it.
Densetsu's feral, unshackled rage.
After the gruesome Chunin Exams in which he witnessed the true dark horrors shinobi went through, he became more serious and morose, a fitting change to describe his ascent into the ranks of the ANBU Black Ops. Eventually Densetsu dedicated his life to the protection of Konoha, to protect his friends and whatever he still called family. Throughout his ANBU years, darkness began to grip him and as he began to kill regularly, deviating away from his initially peace loving and pacifist nature in extreme ways. Densetsu began to lose his way and was twisted by his "inner demons", drowning into the depths with each merciless act he committed. He murdered his opponents with no remorse, without recognition of age or gender. At the order of his superiors, Densetsu caried out morally atrocious acts like killing witnesses to activities of the ANBU and full out extermination missions. He eventually saw the wrong in his ways when one day, he was ordered to kill six children who were suspected affiliates of the enemy. At a dilemma seeing that they were not even ten years old, he executed them anyway, but was severely traumatised later on. It was then that Densetsu realised the sheer horrors of his past actions, and a catalyst to his change. Densetsu felt he needed to quit the Black Ops very quickly before he fell too far beyond redemption.
This never happened but after fleeing Konoha, Densetsu began to lighten up again, usually resorting to non lethal means to take down even deadly criminals. He continued to transform to his old self again as he progressed as a vigilante, maintaining his previous ideals with a more pacifistic approach, and a touch of humour to garnish his exploits throughout the lands. His imagination was vivid, colourful and even rather childish at times; but he rarely showed this side of himself in the open, thus maintaining a cool, collected image in front of most others. Playfully vain and sarcastic, Densetsu still liked to have a good laugh off and on, even with his slightly more serious outlook towards life at times. A characteristic of the a Uchiha was his love for making inappropriate one liners and puns which constantly made appearances during awkward moments and tight situations, showing an uncanny jovial side even in dangerous circumstances. That being said, his sense of humour would only increase throughout his teenage years, progressing from non existence (his earliest teen years) to over abundance (his late teens).
Eventhough several of his techniques have the potential to result in extremely gruesome outcomes, Densetsu is actually against violence as a whole and detested the bloodshed which he had become accustomed to. He was highly sensitive of his humanity in a whole, often keeping himself very morally upright after his ANBU years (which by his own admission had made him feel like light, good and humanity had left his soul forever). This inner affinity to good was also reflected by his chakra signature, which was incredibly hot and bright—a signature which sensors described to be 'utterly blissful' and 'beautiful', usually uncommon in most Uchiha who were known for potent and dark signatures.
Densetsu hugs his longtime love interest after finally returning to Konoha.
Densetsu is also a well known "semi-pervert". His good looks frequently aided him in his exploits as he sweet talked numerous women. This behaviour of his was frequently pointed out on by the Third Hokage, who Densetsu was on good terms with. Densetsu had the nasty habit of occasionally staring too long at women at times, and would even be caught several times in the act. This trait continued after his flight from Konoha, with Densetsu describing it to be 'the best part about being away from home'. While he had these traits, Densetsu never lost too much control and crossed his limits, describing himself to be a visual pleasure seeker, and not an actual playboy. This being said, some of his perverted actions put this line into doubt; as he has taken his visual pleasure to the extremes: actually entering the women's section in hot springs and spying on women close up, usually with a well maintained Transformation Technique. He was however still unshakeably loyal to Hitomi Sarutobi back home, attributing his longstanding romantic feelings towards her as motivation to "not go too far".
While staring, Densetsu comically tended to get oblivious to the fact that others saw through his staring as well.
However, his perversion also exposed one of his other flaws; his occasional hypocrisy. Densetsu was prone to silently labelling others as perverts in his head, when he himself was no better. This mild hypocrisy extended to Densetsu's beliefs as well, as he occasionally chastised others for their stances on certain issues, when they resembled his own views in an indirect way as well. However whatever said and done, his somewhat hypocritical tendencies did not cultivate an ego, or a biased take to things, and he would admit he errors if he saw his actions or words to be wrong.
While Densetsu is very lazy and unmotivated on many occasions, he has demonstrated himself to be capable of hard work when the situation demanded it. His natural characteristic unwillingness to commit to extreme hard work at times led to him finishing his endeavours in very quick, outlandish but nevertheless creative ways—proof that some lazy individuals could find the fastest and most efficient way to get the job done. Thus, his laziness was generally balanced out by his own unique creativity; although it was still quite evident especially when he flunked his Academy exams as a child. Even in his adolescent years, Densetsu tended to do horribly in his examinations due to his terrible lack of interest in studying. On the field however, Densetsu is anything but lazy—as he is driven by extreme purpose and dedication to his cases, even pulling off feats such as not sleeping for three whole days, making endless trips to various areas of interest, or doggedly working at suspect maps for an entire day.
Densetsu is also an incredibly courageous individual. He stood up to many powerful opponents without any fear, prepared to end their evil if it meant losing his life in the process during his vigilante days, and even in any form of lethal combat. Densetsu fought self proclaimed gods, merciless psychopaths, Jashinists, conquerors, fanatical zealots and numerous deadly crime rings in his years as a vigilante, and he never ever backed away from the threats they posed or the strength they flaunted. He saw evil as it was, and did not take into consideration the superiority of his enemy over him—to him evil was evil and there was nothing else to be done but to strive, and overcome it. His bravery was the trait he noticed the least about himself however, as he tended to pride his duty to "protect" above all else. When faced with innocent people caught in the crossfire of a battle, Densetsu's first instinct would always be to put himself between them and the crossfire, for reasons he has never been able to explain himself. While his high speed always ensured that he got to them in time and could still evade, the manoeuvres were still very dangerous as it was very easy to mistime his approach, and get hit by the attack instead. But he seemed not to care; in fact he didn't even seem to bothered about let alone notice this trait of his, unlike his peers who constantly commented that such care for his surroundings could be his downfall. To the Uchiha, his duty to "protect" preceded all else in battle and he never once attributed that selflessness to his own sheer bravery. As the Human Torch, the young Uchiha gradually realised that what he chased was justice in a whole, not just the safety of Konohagakure.
Taking pride in virtues of kindness and always pushing himself to be an understanding individual, these were some of Densetsu's key personality attributes since his childhood which continued to exist in his life after briefly disappearing during his time in the ANBU. Densetsu was a man whom at his core, seemed to be motivated to constantly treat others in a gentle and honourable manner, even his enemies to certain extents. He was willing to give second chances to individuals whom he believed still possessed even a minor spark of good in their souls. Densetsu frequently and desperately searched for this spark when battling his opponents, attempting not necessarily to win the battle–but mainly to redeem the soul of his fallen opponents as well. This rare ability to sniff out the good in people was a gift in Densetsu which was considered "supernatural" by some, but it could be due to the fact that Densetsu simply knew when an individual could or could not be changed due to his own experiences and struggled with the path of evil. A hidden dream of Densetsu's was to build bridges between people with words, uniting man under one common banner for the greater good so that future generations could enjoy what the past never could–a world without war and suffering. This was what spurred him to gradually leave the violent world of the shinobi and venture into the diplomatic corps at the age of 30, where he would use his titanic reputation and skill with words to build alliances between Konoha and other lands; helping greatly to usher an era of prosperity in the future.
The maverick Uchiha also comes to symbolise determination in almost every way. Determination to stay by his ideals, determination to never succumb to evil and determination to power past every obstacle without losing himself. This inner strength of will and indomitable spirit allows Densetsu to overcome his existing limitations and set new boundaries for himself, ensuring that he can always push on in situations where the bravest men would falter. His inner strength has also allowed him to carry on despite suffering horrific injuries and maintain his focus in terrifying circumstances. This determination often has resulted in an innate stubbornness which Densetsu frequently displays, a refusal to simply lie down and accept that he could not achieve something, or simply follow orders when not to the greater good. This stubbornness could also be defined as a character weakness, which clouded the brilliant man's otherwise calm and rational judgement at inopportune times. More often than not however, his unshakeable stance on matters has paid great dividends and has also turned him into a skilled, hard negotiator.
In battle, Densetsu displays an analytical and calm demeanour, often choosing to engage in mind games with his opponents, especially in one on one situations. Being supremely talented and skilled in various areas, Densetsu is confident in his abilities to the point that he even seems to display the vibrant arrogance of a peacock to his opponents. This was due to the fact that when engaging in his mind games, the Uchiha tended to purposely let out subtly demeaning statements to indirectly offset his opponents, and read their reactions carefully, effectively enabling him to gain insight into his opponents' personalities and personal flaws. At his core however, he is humble and openly acknowledges powerful opponents and has never ever embarrassed opponents with less power than his. Densetsu tended to also be very ferocious and relentless in battle, doggedly working around his enemies' strengths and only getting even more motivated by any potential failure.
Despite being brutally exposed to the worst of human nature, Densetsu miraculously manages to hold firm each time, clawing his way back from the abyss he fell into each time—showcasing incredible resilience and indomitable will. With every evil act he witnessed, he also encountered the greatness that human beings were capable off–which coupled with his past sins as a murderous ANBU operative, led to him developing an intense need to defend life at all costs. Densetsu developed an extreme regard for the preservation of life even when doing battle against dangerous, insane opponents; usually searching for non lethal options when lethal options were the easiest to execute and access. This trait was regarded by many shinobi as his flaw: an opening which enemies could exploit as his mercy only opened up new vulnerabilities in his defence which could be penetrated. However, pacifism is not a way of life that Densetsu has devoted himself to completely. Densetsu willingly performs brutal acts of torture, both mental and physical to extract information effectively, while also punishing wrongdoers who perform barbaric acts without hesitation. This brutal brand of justice leaves his victims maimed for life, often terribly; but it adheres to Densetsu's overall principle of not taking lives. In his career, Densetsu has been especially merciless to cultists; most notably the members of the Cult of Jashin, displaying ruthless violence against their uncompromising evil by making use of their immortality to maim them in unimaginably cruel ways. This delicate balance between extreme violence and pacifism is a thin and precarious line Densetsu walks on, where even a slight mistake could make him lose control and relapse into his wild ANBU persona, but it's a risk Densetsu has always willingly lived by so as to protect those he loves.
Densetsu cries after rescuing an infant, but witnessing haplessly as its' mother is killed in a building collapse.
While usually appearing to be very stoical and focused, Densetsu was actually a very emotional individual, no matter how much he tried to hide it with his calm and happy exterior. While shinobi were usually prohibited from showing their emotions so openly, he disregarded this rule fairly blatantly on a few occasions and was known to shed tears several times, mainly in anger or sorrow. This is mainly because Densetsu could relate to the pain and suffering others felt, having barely had a childhood and having lived through horrific situations and experiences himself. He felt for others, including most of his enemies when he fought them, and this empathy allowed him to deeply connect with others and even convert several of the individuals he faced to return to the path of good. These emotions however also gave way to powerful rage which gave way to violent encounters as mentioned before, however these instances of him flying into a murderous rage were very rare, and Densetsu almost always has managed to suppress the strong urge to kill even when his comrades are killed before his own eyes, though he inflicts horrifying, crippling injuries onto the killers of his allies every time. An enemy that frequently was fixated on and determined to bring out this evil at its peak in Densetsu however, was Masa Nakamura, who plagued the Uchiha doggedly for decades in a series of brutal encounters, although he never managed to force Densetsu to 'snap' and lose control—never succeeding in getting Densetsu to finally spiral back into the abyss. On a lesser level however, Densetsu can be described as a hot tempered individual, and there have been instances where his temper has gotten the better of him.
He also apparently enjoyed playing the role of mentor very much. Being a respected and feared shinobi with a massive reputation for being a defeated of armies, many have sought Densetsu's help and counsel—but aside from his Academy Students, Densetsu only ever has had one true apprentice—Shin Hayata. Having met each other in their respective times of youth, the teenaged Densetsu had taken the eight year junior Shin under his wing, forming a brotherly bond with him while also imparting great knowledge onto Shin. Under Densetsu's vast experience and wisdom, Shin was mounded into a truly fearsome shinobi who carved his own name with his medical ninjutsu and his Earth Release; quickly growing into one of Komoha's premier stalwarts, and a massive success to his master and best friend.
Marrying at the age of 20 and fathering his first child that very year proved to be one of the toughest challenges for the great ninja, as being a husband and father was never a walk in the park—especially at such a relatively young age. But it was safe to say that Densetsu adapted quickly to this new portion of his life, just like he always did, and in the next five years following Juro's birth; Kenshin, Teishi, Danzetsu, Hanako and Namazu would also enter into the world, transforming the once lonely household into a lively pot of mischief and mayhem. As a father, Densetsu is a very responsible and loving individual, placing his children's well-being above virtually everything else. He believed in making sure that all six of them would grow up to be morally upright before anything else, prizing ideals over academic performance or their own skill as shinobi. As a result, he spent a lot of time with all six kids, able to multitask very well between his diplomatic and family duties. The results of Densetsu's influence was visible in each of his children, with all of them inheriting his strong ethical codes in one way or another. He also gave each of them the childhood he never had, and ensured that they would get to actually live as children, and not tools for the ANBU or any other organisation. However as a consequence, Densetsu's fearsome reputation in the shinobi world would not exist in his home, as he pampered his children and left their disciplining to his wife, who performed her role admirably—and is also revealed to be among the only things on Earth that Densetsu fears—alongside tight spaces and clowns.
Abilities
As a child genius and highly adept warrior, Densetsu progressively sharpened and used his talents to become a fearsome opponent and a skilled shinobi at even the young age of 11. Being able to use high level ninjutsu at late childhood, his abilities were nothing short of exceptional. Relying on incredible speed, evasiveness and intellect while doing battle, his invitation to join the ANBU of Konoha was testament to his superior abilities. Densetsu mainly displayed immense skill with Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, while he was fairly adept with Taijutsu as well. He was also notoriously renowned for his great skill with an incredible four major elemental transformations, plus the even more impressive ability to utilise high level techniques in each of these four elements thanks to a lifetime of practice; a rare and truly exceptional talent to possess. His duelling style stays focused on unpredictability, pulling out unexpected types of attacks of differing magnitudes and strengths—which cemented Densetsu's reputation as a fierce, intelligent and incredibly well-rounded warrior who was terribly difficult to defeat even from his adolescence. However, despite his great array of talents, Densetsu's undoing was mainly his extreme pull to avoid the lethal solution; which opened up terrible holes in his defence and greatly reduced the full potential of his attacks. That being said, the fact that he still has defeated countless powerful opponents on his own often without killing most of them prove how dangerous a foe he truly is.
Densetsu's Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet is stopped only after five water based techniques are used.
He set a record in the Chunin Exams for the fastest knockout ever in the competition, and advanced to the finals with minimal difficulty. He would quickly be elected to the ranks of the ANBU, where he became known as its' most powerful member. Later on, his prowess would only increase after leaving Konoha. After this act, Densetsu was listed as an S-Rank rogue ninja and international criminal; the highest danger rating a criminal could receive. Singlehandedly, Densetsu easily overcame four ANBU Root shinobi with only a pair of kunai, fought and escaped from Danzo Shimura, destroyed an entire subcult of Jashin worshippers, killed one of the Swordsmen of the Mist and took down various internationally feared criminal rings—all on his own. Further proof of his skill was his ability to engage in battle alone with both Sasori and Deidara, two powerful Akatsuki members, and manage to survive at the mere age of 15. Besides that he also managed to defeat viciously trained enemies like Akuhei Iwao, Tsubusa Hareroyo, Hotaru Miyagi, Katsuro Minoru, Eji Arata and numerous other criminals. It was mentioned that Densetsu was one of the only human beings alive who could possibly stand up against all the Kage and live to tell the tale prior to the Fourth Shinobi War, and several people even speculated he was prodigious enough to stand alongside the likes of even Madara Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha in terms of power and wisdom respectively when he was in his late twenties.
Densetsu's incredible powers and strength were further showcased in the Naruto: Kaimetsu timeline, where he recognised as among the strongest shinobi alive after the deaths of Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha. Many believed his only true rivals to be Shenron Uzumaki and Eihei Uzumaki, and Densetsu would repeatedly prove this point, against combat hardened and terrifyingly skilled opposition. He was able to defeat the Beastmaster of Yugakure, subdue the Masked Man of Shiragiku with minimal effort and spearhead Konoha's intense victories at Yugakure, Yumegakure and the Battle of Thieves' Pit. His greatest achievement was arguably the herculean task of defeating Gengetsu Maeda, famously killing the immortal seventy times before finishing him off - all while Densetsu was battling with a fatal arrhythmia.
Chakra and Physical Prowess
Possessing abnormally enormous amounts of chakra reserves usually unnatural to the Uchiha, Densetsu has been known to keep fighting for hours without end with minimal strain, and was even known to have fought for almost a full day. This large, gargantuan reserve along with rather well trained, precise chakra control allows him the freedom to unleash very high calibrate ninjutsu frequently in battles, giving him a much needed edge in prolonged duels or battles against large groups of enemies. Having the ability to maintain severely chakra taxing techniques like Susanoo in its full form for incredibly long periods, Densetsu is a very, very powerful adversary suited to take on any enemy should the need for brute force ever arise. His chakra has been described as warm, gentle and bright; like a summer breeze, but very powerful. It takes the hue of a radiant bright blue, which is well demonstrated when his Susanoo is formed. Densetsu is also a master in manipulating, controlling and channelling his chakra. When utilising most basic to moderate Fire, Water and Earth based techniques, he suffered very minute, basically insignificant chakra loss and barely any strain to himself. With his Wind Release, Densetsu originally had problems with chakra loss and expenditure—though with enough practice and improvisation, he was able to overcome this hurdle as well, sharpening his Wind Release to an almost equally admirable state. Simple exertions of his chakra are powerful enough to knock projectiles backwards as well as make it seem like there was a scaled down hurricane billowing around him.
Densetsu's entire style of combat efficiency however revolved around unparalleled, very rarely matchable speed which he utilised to generate raw power, impossible feats of escapism and silently strike fear into unsuspecting minds; his speed either turning him into a complex blur of dizzying movement, or a supernatural being that seemed to be on par with the very wind—briefly appearing only once he had landed an attack, or launched one. Blessed with this fearsome, jaw dropping speed, Densetsu based his a majority of his attacks on blinding velocity and poignant grace. He relied on lightning quick punches and kicks to generate the momentum needed to land effective attacks (to make up for his lack of physical power), effectively compensating for an overall lack of supreme might. Densetsu often strung together quick punches and kicks in rapid succession taking down large groups of enemies with relative ease. Alone however, his attack speed was occasionally useless against single taijutsu opponents. Coupled with a high situational awareness, the Body Flicker Technique became his most common technique in fights, using it so much he could use it on a whim without hand seals or a second thought, literally becoming an instinct like breathing to him. He was known several times to reach enemy ranged weapons such as kunai, grab them in midair, and then reverse them towards the enemy with speeds very undetectable by the average eyes. Densetsu relied on his legendary speed to enable him to launch different elemental attacks at opponents from several directions, appearing at different directions to launch another attack before the previous attack had even struck, or cross hundreds of metres in literally a mere blink of the eye. His speed was so immense that he could even evade 360 degree all direction attacks with a simple Body Replacement Technique; able to leap away before the attacks were even launched. This could mainly be attributed to his incredibly keen senses and thought processing, as well as his usage of the Sharingan to observe the slightest muscle movement—enabling him to react mere milliseconds before an attack was launched, or before an enemy could even perceived that he had reacted to a supposed cornering.
This renowned speed made Densetsu notoriously hard to pin down, let alone hit and was even capable of straining the tracking abilities of the Sharingan. Densetsu's demonstrations of his speed were also visible when he drew his blade or fired ninja tools at his opponents, as one would only see the most minute rustle of his arms before witnessing several projectiles streaking towards them. Densetsu also possessed superhuman reaction times, able to react at roughly 20 milliseconds to impending danger naturally, or even much greater when coupled with the Sharingan. In fact his reflexes and reaction time are so well tuned that they enabled him to even keep up with his brother, a user of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode, on equal terms as well as against other more experienced users of the technique. He possesses the capability to also process information at bizarrely insane speeds in his brain when engaged in frenzied combat, performing thought processes and making decisions occasionally even three times faster than an ordinary human could. He could attack and evade so quickly that he seemed like a mad, blur of unpredictable and random movement, combining fist work, kicks and sudden slashes of his blade or weapons with frightening and incomparable skill. Later on Densetsu's already devilish speed would evolve to a completely different level, gaining knowledge of and eventually mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique—an ability which generally depended highly on a user's high reflexes to hold it superior against other speed orientated techniques, naturally fitting into Densetsu's fearsome arsenal. With this technique, Densetsu was hard to hit, let alone catch. He initially started by using basic seals to teleport, by slapping his palms on a surface to plant the seal, but eventually he learned to apply the technique like the Fourth Hokage. While he acquired the tools his predecessors had utilised as their trademarks, Densetsu improvised and tweaked this technique to suit his style. For these reasons alone the true extent of Densetsu's speed is generally impossible to compare—his insane natural reflexes and speed definitely cement his place as one of the fastest human beings to ever live, but to what extent, will probably never be known.
Densetsu's injuries were severe in some cases, but he possessed an innate determination which allowed him to power past intense pain.
His leaner, athletic build and lack of natural physical strength led to many underestimating Densetsu's basic damage resistance, but the Uchiha was actually incredibly resilient and able to withstand a lot of punishment mainly due to his willpower. Several times Densetsu has had severe damage dealt onto him, including sword injuries and internal damage from blunt trauma, but he possessed the ability to keep fighting despite sustaining terrible wounds. Having had a large chunk of the flesh underneath his shoulder get torn off as well as two fractures to his ribcage after being attacked by Sensō, Densetsu managed to rally and defeat the giant, only succumbing to the pain and blood loss a full twenty minutes after the injury was dealt, though his combat efficiency had been greatly reduced. His almost zero fat physique was made up of lean muscle, so he possessed some form of protection from brawlers, albeit minimal; but his frame aided him immensely when executing acrobatic manoeuvres, which Densetsu excelled at.
Kekkei Genkai
Sharingan
As an Uchiha, Densetsu had access to the clan's signature Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan. He awakened his Sharingan when he was 11 during his Chunin Exams, when he was put in a life threatening situation, immediately gaining two tomoe. He was a very skilled user of the Sharingan, even at a young age. Densetsu's already naturally honed reflexes are augmented greatly by the Sharingan, and he overcame his original weaknesses in Taijutsu by using his Sharingan to copy the Taijutsu techniques of others, tweaking them where necessary. His prowess with the Sharingan grew constantly, but Densetsu soon felt the effects of the Curse of Hatred. Due to the extreme pull to kill he experienced when utilizing the Sharingan, he chose to initially keep his usage of the dojutsu to a minimal capacity—though this noble desire shattered during his time in the ANBU. However, as he grew older, Densetsu learnt to deal with these feelings and isolate them completely—mainly after a period of repeated loss and personal pain. The key to breaking his Curse of Hatred had surfaced when Densetsu decided to follow his true feelings, devoting his life to protecting others, instead of mercilessly eliminating enemies who directly or indirectly threatened his loved ones. He trained himself to focus on the beauty of life, embracing love instead of isolating it. With control over his own once tumultuous feelings, the Sharingan quickly turned into a most reliable asset.
Eventually, he gained full mastery over it, able to coordinate his movements exceptionally even against users of the Gentle Fist style. His reaction time without the Sharingan was already abnormally high, but the augmentation the Sharingan provided him led to legendary feats of evasion and precision such as taking on two quick Taijutsu specialists (one powered by the first two of the eight chakra gates) simultaneously, or deflecting six kunai from different directions with only a pebble. Densetsu also began to copy and assimilate more and more powerful techniques into his already large arsenal, granting him immense tactical manoeuvrability, as well as the gradual ability to use any observable technique for four out of the five elemental transformations. He was also very notedly difficult to outmanoeuvre up close, as his predictive capabilities were refined to the extremes and enabled him to very efficiently knock out those who came uncomfortably close. Densetsu also showcased supreme mastery with more subtle abilities which the Sharingan granted; utilising them devastatingly due to his naturally augmented intellectual abilities, such as the ability to hypnotise opponents who made the mistake of looking him in the eye.
Densetsu with his Sharingan active.
Even the briefest eye contact would render any enemy into a genjutsu of his choosing, often paralysis; or worse. No matter how long the Genjutsu lasted, the chances were that coupled with Densetsu's tremendous pace, a vicious hit would have been launched no matter how quickly the Genjutsu had been broken out off; an especially frightening deed for other Dōjutsu users as well as Jinchūriki to consider. His great visual prowess also meant that his Genjutsu reversals would go unnoticed at times and an enemy would not even realise that their own Genjutsu had been redirected at them until they took the duel ending hit.
Densetsu was not beyond manipulating his opponents subtly during combat—casting a specific illusion to invoke a specific response; then quickly overwhelming an opponent with an easy, preplanned counterattack. This ability was used numerous times by Densetsu but most notably against Sadao, who had been wreaking uncontainable havoc in his Jūinjutsu form. Densetsu specifically relied on a very minute Genjutsu and combined it with well placed words to subconsciously coax the man to snap out of his Cursed Mark form and finish Densetsu off in his human form; effectively planting a willingness in Sadao to kill the Uchiha without any augmentations—in his bare form; thus enabling the Evil Sealing Method to kick in and seal down the Jūinjutsu thanks to Sadao subconsciously willing it. This masterful usage of the Sharingan led to Densetsu being called "The Boy With Deadly Eyes."
Mangekyō Sharingan
Eventually Densetsu awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan when he partook in his thirtieth ANBU mission. After being betrayed by one of their teammates, Densetsu's entire ANBU squad were ambushed and slaughtered by ANBU from Kumogakure. The emotional pain Densetsu experienced watching his best friend die enabled him to awaken the legendary dojūtsu and granted him new powers which he used to butcher the enemy ANBU. His potent skill with his eyes even caused Danzō to enact contingency plans if Densetsu were ever to defect from Konohagakure going rogue (measures which ultimately failed), and also made the Root leader secretly desire to have his eyes—if he were to be unable to bring the Uchiha under his control. However, after collecting loads of information on the advanced variant of the Sharingan, Densetsu became aware of its' risks and the potential blindness it could cause with frequent and extended periods of misuse; leading him to use it very sparingly in battle. This ultimately ensured that he did not get his eyesight too badly affected, despite the fact he was forced to wear glasses after mildly straining them in his early youth.
Amaterasu: The ability to utilise the black, eternal flames of Amaterasu was he first ability granted to the then young Densetsu—one which he was devastatingly proficient at using. The second gift brought to him by the Mangekyō Sharingan was the ability to control and freely manipulate his Amaterasu—the Blaze Release. Densetsu would craft cunning defences in mere instants with this manipulation of the black flames, scorching enemies before they had time to react, effectively turning their attempted attacks into egregious errors. By manipulating his flames in this manner, Densetsu is able to create a vicious shield of sorts similar to that used by Gaara's sand, which sacrifices overall defensive power for speed and a lethal finish should anyone touch it. However these would just be basic uses of Densetsu's Amaterasu, as the finished product was far more magnificent and terrifying, with the man being able to create and shape the flames into virtually any shape; long spears, gigantic cages to contain every enemy and in extreme circumstances, turn the entire battlefield ahead of him into a terrible ocean of black flames. With the Amaterasu, he can also coat his own Fire Release Cloak in the black flames to render it completely invulnerable to the Water Release; crafting the perfect—albeit somewhat momentary defence against the cloak's natural weakness. Densetsu also possesses the ability to extinguish his Amaterasu or completely control another enemy's Fire Release by layering them with his Amaterasu. This power grants Densetsu great dominion over other users of flames, as he can initiate a terrible backfiring of their own attacks at the moment they least expect it—with the only condition being that his Amaterasu mixes with the incoming flames, by even the most minimal amount. For extreme offensive intent, he can generate a cyclone like shape around his opponents—a massive demonstration of Amaterasu's lethality—and bring it collapsing into the enemy, exposing them to hellish flames in an instant (though this has only been used against a summon), causing irreversible damage and obviously death in seconds. Densetsu has also been known to utilise it in random bursts resembling explosions, suddenly forcing them on the limbs if his opponents to immediately cripple them with nothing but eye contact. Amaterasu however is rarely utilised by Densetsu after his ANBU days, but remains an effective hidden card should the need ever arise; its lethality having only increased throughout the decades—with Densetsu now using it to amplify his Susanoo in rare moments of need.
As Densetsu became very skilled with this variant of his Sharingan, he quickly accessed, mastered and perfected his blue Sage Fire Susanoo. His Susanoo became known as the "Protector of the Human Torch" and was known to be Densetsu's trump card, and literally his strongest technique where offensive and defensive power joined to form a fearsome construct, designed to power past any obstacle. Only a shinobi of extreme prowess could force Densetsu to utilise the Susanoo, and only those beyond this level could force him to attack with it. Taking the shape of a huge samurai, his Susanoo wielded two swords as well as the fabled Triduum Spear, ensuring that no enemy could withstand his offensive barrages. The Triduum Spear is also known as the Elemental Spear, as it enables to user to also neutralise any elemental attack launched at it, or redirect the same element from the spear, towards the enemy. His Susanoo also possessed several powerful ninjutsu techniques which ranged from an impenetrable barrier, firing waves of projectiles rapidly from its chest, a fūinjustsu capable of inflicting massive collateral damage, a powerful vacuum attack and the legendary, powerful ranged attack Susanoo wielders possessed—Yasaka Magatama. Densetsu used these projectiles to bury his opponents with repeated volleys of firepower, levelling the surrounding lands and his opponents, no matter how resilient. These attacks were known to have neutralised Tailed Beast Balls while also destroying an entire Wood Dragon cast by Akuhei Iwao.
Densetsu's Susanoo using Yasaka Magatama.
These formidable abilities were pushed even further with Densetsu's usage of the Flying Thunder God Technique, with which he figured how to move his Susanoo together with him to grant it unparalleled speed, and even place Flying Thunder God inscriptions with his Susanoo's limbs—though this did drain him of considerable amounts of chakra. The Flying Thunder God can also be executed via the Susanoo's projectile weapons, such as the Yasaka Magatama and the Tsukumo, as Densetsu merely has to inscribe the seal onto the weapons by further moulding his chakra onto these weapons. The colossal titan was also at the pinnacle of defensive sturdiness, able to take attacks of incredible magnitude directly and remain unscathed, granting absolute protection to the Uchiha within; as attacks such as even Tailed Beast Balls had failed to penetrate his Susanoo's chest area. In fact, it was not exaggeration to state that there were almost no techniques that could directly eliminate Densetsu's Susanoo in a direct brutish strike. Densetsu eventually also learned to utilise his Susanoo without having his Mangekyō Sharingan active, being the only other Uchiha able to do so; apart from Madara Uchiha—ensuring he is now able to access his most powerful gift without fear of blindness, greatly adding to his already glorious strength. Densetsu's respect for the technique's power is absolute, which is why he insists only on using it against the strongest opponents in the most dangerous battles; instead if simply using its' great power to decimate and dominate from the start.
Intelligence
Densetsu's defining and most renowned trait is his intelligence, and stunning mental strength and capacity; a powerful mind as a whole. Legendary shinobi such as Shenron Uzumaki have also taken note of Densetsu's extremely dangerous intellect when battling him, in recognition to Densetsu's internationally reputed mental brilliance. While he is a very strong opponent, fully capable of even holding his own against any Kage using ninjutsu alone, Densetsu is very aware that there would always be enemies stronger than he was, or situations where he would be at severe disadvantages. Therefore, Densetsu is very reliant on his mental capabilities especially in overcoming various overpowered opponents. Against powerful and even immortal enemies, Densetsu's intelligence has constantly prevailed, keeping him alive and enabling him to overcome the most impossible odds. In fact, while most shinobi increased their strength against stronger opponents, Densetsu instead focused on upping his mental game. His ability to solve complex problems in very short timeframes is a rare and complex one, which saved his life numerous times in impossible situations.
The "smarter man's policy".
With a genius level IQ rating of 150, he excels greatly in logic and strategy, often preferring to stay back and study his opponents before engaging them, to gain knowledge of their tactics. Though many geniuses who have faced him claim to possess higher IQ levels, and certain Nara even surpass his own IQ level, Densetsu has trumped many supposedly more intelligent foes in battle, proving that battles of wit were seldom won by intelligence quotients alone. Densetsu almost never goes or has gone into battle without giving room for an enemy's power. He also tended to use weaker long ranged moves to test his opponents from a distance lulling them into false complacency before unleashing a barrage of cunning tactics and powerful techniques. His quick thinking enabled him to burrow his way out of sure death situations, able to quickly counter any certain debilitating situation. Besides reading his enemies' attack patterns with his clones, Densetsu also would often make it a point to pinpoint the locations of his enemies tools so that he could remove them in the actual battle and remove a key element of the enemy's unpredictability. He also never relied on the probability of success, with at least three back up plans to any huge action he took. He was even capable of surviving several techniques which caused massive collateral damage after taking several precautions prior to his opponent's attacks against Hato Uchiha, who was much more powerful than he was. [1]
It could generally be argued that a majority of Densetsu's greatest abilities stem from his incredible intellectual prowess, possessing a great capability to learn quickly and effectively. Densetsu generally employs Shadow Clones to help himself learn as well, a crafty trait practiced by numerous others but even more so effective when used to study. Fūinjutsu, Barrier Ninjutsu and other shinobi techniques which often took decades to perfect are often finished up in mere months thanks to the Uchiha's cunning ability to mix effective time management, cloning, study and practice almost effortlessly well. Although not exactly mathematically inclined like his son, Densetsu can still carry out thought processes at unnatural speeds in his brain; a trait which served him well in the battlefield as well as modern life. It also helps greatly that he has an impeccable eye for the tiniest details and a highly logic inclined mind to piece seemingly unrelated clues together, displaying a great talent in deductive analysis. Densetsu sees different angles of the same picture—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he analyses details in almost fifteen extra angles compared to normal human beings, a trait which even enabled him to solve numerous homicides in his career while on missions and also aid in international espionage crises. This deductive prowess also helps greatly in battle; allowing Densetsu to chip at his opponents ferociously and even gaining insight into the moves of the enemy, and their plans, by simply noting seemingly insignificant factors that most overlook, and piecing them all together to form a decisive picture that can often lead him to discovering the keys in his opponents plans.
Densetsu is also a very quick-witted individual, able to adjust his strategies and fighting styles to suit the needs of a battle. In numerous occasions, he had won battles simply by using only the most basic and essential techniques employed by a ninja, which only prevailed due to superior tactics and his unique strategies. Densetsu also has the ability to see to the very heart of a matter, being able to grasp the gravity of a situation with remarkable understanding and clarity, and to make extremely tough calls and choices in split seconds, seeming to deliberate on hundreds of matters in a mere moment. These traits would see him get elected as the Head Diplomat of Konohagakure later on, as well as part of the Seventh Hokage's advisory team. He was also very skilled at defusing tense moments verbally, showing linguistic talents as well. Using all his wit and charm to prevent friction, Densetsu was a very shrewd and intelligent negotiator.
Densetsu also continues to sharpen his intellect, as even the greatest blades would become dull when left unsharpened. He realised this, and thus his pursuit of knowledge never wavered; simply becoming greater and greater over the passing years. His travels, experiences and habit of reading led to him becoming a very knowledgeable man, not only in combat skill but in war strategy, psychology, linguistics, philosophy and the natural sciences—culminating in the birth of a modern day renaissance man. To Densetsu, constant accumulation of knowledge aided him in combat, allowing him to polish his powers and channel them creatively in different ways. While he is by no means a master in any if the aforementioned fields, they obviously give him a wide intellectual base to aid in situational assessments and actual application. As a shinobi, investigator and diplomat of the highest calibre, it is obvious that none can argue with the reasons behind his consistent forays into these fields.
Senjutsu
Since he preferred not to use his visual gifts, Densetsu instead focused on his Senjutsu to boost his offensive and defensive arsenal. Training with the toads of Mount Myōboku for months as a teenager, Densetsu became accustomed to and comfortable with Senjutsu, as his massive and potent chakra reserves enabled him to excel in this field. His mastery in this form was so advanced that he could absorb nature energy faster than most individuals while he was stationary, effectively reaching Sage Mode quicker than most could. However, this did not remove the problems with mobility that a Senjutsu practitioner faced or the short span of Sage Mode, so Densetsu would often summon Fukasaku and Shima to help him gather nature energy while battling. With the main weakness of Senjutsu bypassed, Densetsu was now a fearsome opponent when in Sage Mode, able to raise his power to match seemingly any superior opponent went tactics and strategy simply couldn't cut it. Densetsu's Senjutsu has enabled,ed him to stand head to head against Jinchūriki, Pseudo Jinchūriki, and other amped up Senjutsu practitioners as an equal, or even a superior. As many of his allies noted, the biggest mistake an opponent could possibly make was to allow Densetsu the time and space to enter Sage Mode, if they were gaining the advantage. Densetsu's experience and proficiency with Senjutsu enabled him to turn virtually any disadvantage the other way around, and end fights in seconds.
He has access to several high variants of the Rasengan, all of which are highly lethal and destructive techniques—especially his renowned usage of the Big Ball Rasengan. His precise, intricate mastery over his chakra also meant that he could generate several of his Senjutsu enhanced Rasengan literally instantly and slam them repeatedly into his enemies at speeds matching a normal combination of quick punches. He could also utilise a powerful, gigantic senjutsu enhanced fireball attack and create a massive chasm in the earth to mop out large groups of enemies, or incapacitate gigantic adversaries. The former of the aforementioned attacks was a particular favourite of his, due to its insane range (both in terms of width and length) and ability to cause severe damage to sturdy targets (summons, constructs, barriers and so on)—as Densetsu once playfully christened it as his 'Fiery Butt Whipping Battering Ram no-Jutsu'. Densetsu's core physical attributes also were greatly raised when he was in Sage Mode. His attack speed which naturally was barely detectable by the Sharingan now had the potential to totally baffle the great exalted eyes even against experienced users, and his taijutsu attacks were almost impossible to dodge as most enemies' bodies could not react quickly enough by normal means. His perception and reaction time increased to such insane levels that he was once even able to keep up naturally with his own brother, who was a skilled user of the Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
His usual lack of strength is replaced by incredible raw power, able to lift huge structures, toss gigantic summons and smash through most substances with ease. With additionally augmented speed, Densetsu's taijutsu has been noted to be truly deadly in this empowered state: a single well aimed punch could and would easily end his opponent's life with as much difficulty as breaking a toothpick—allowing him to add killer power behind already existing flair. Coupled with his Sharingan, Densetsu could detect and evade high speed taijutsu attacks by combining the linear motion reading of his eyes with Senjutsu enhanced reflexes which made his body move as quickly as his eyes could detect an attack; all while in Sage Mode. The experienced Uchiha is also a practitioner of Frog Kata, a fighting form which utilised natural energy to land powerful blows incapable of being seen by an enemy, a fighting style which complements his crafty style perfectly. Densetsu can manipulate the natural energy around him to land blows undetectable by the human eye, reminiscent and comparable to invisible arms and legs and so on, with equivalent force to his actual fists in Sage Mode. In addition to these Senjutsu abilities, his normal ninjutsu and Genjutsu attacks were also massively augmented when in Sage Mode, his already great natural power would only increase several times in effect, capable of unleashing insane amounts of damage in battle, physical and mental. Densetsu is also capable of empowering his Mangekyo Sharingan techniques together with his Senjutsu, creating a truly fearsome combination—for example, boosting the terrifying offensive prowess of Amaterasu tenfold, or enhancing Susanoo's already almost impenetrable armour.
As expected, Densetsu's damage resistance was also greatly strengthened when in Sage Mode. He has survived normally fatal falls from hundreds of feet and is also capable of taking physical damage from opponents possessing massive brute strength, without suffering any broken limbs or such. With this superb resistance to blunt force trauma, came a resistance to pain as well—savage falls and repeated chains of strikes from enemies which could usually kill average humans, could be brushed off as stinging itches by the Senjutsu empowered Uchiha, and thus he could easily concentrate on turning his enemies' attacks against themselves, without the irritation of pain receptors ringing like alarm bells in his head. Taking on Densetsu in Sage Mode with one's bare hands would be considered unwise at least, as he has proven several times: making short work of dangerous opponents who dared. As also expected, Densetsu's natural sensory capabilities are also drastically upgraded when he harnesses Senjutsu to empower himself; enabling him to easily pick up chakra signatures in the radius of a huge village such as the whole of Konohagakure with shocking ease and accuracy. With sufficient concentration he can possibly extend this sensory range even much further, to pick up chakra laced traps or vast accumulations of chakra, but he generally estimates that his sensory range increases roughly five times more than normal.
Ninjutsu
From the start, Densetsu's strongest ability in the ninja field has been ninjutsu. Since he lacks the natural strength that most brawlers possess, Densetsu makes up for this weakness by applying and perfecting cunning and lethal ninjutsu techniques, relying on trickery, broad range and wit to outsmart his commonly stronger foes. Densetsu is a master of ninjutsu mainly due to his jack-of-all-trades skill with various different facets of Ninjutsu, such as Space-Time Techniques, Fūinjutsu and Barrier Ninjutsu to name a few; all melded together to provide overall mastery of the highest calibre in Ninjutsu as a whole. The sheer number of techniques he learnt have sufficed for virtually every occasion, copied and perfected with the aid of his Sharingan. This large selection of abilities coupled with an astute tactical nous made Densetsu a very adaptable individual. Densetsu could also have his clones perform ninjutsu on his behalf using this skill to lead enemies into concentrating their attacks at his clone, while he studied them from a distance; or while he laid a trap at a location of his choice, leading his opponent there later on. While a vast majority of his techniques were copied from other ninja and perfected with the use of his Sharingan as mentioned above, he still created several lethal techniques of his own, like Fire Release: Blazing Explosive Kunai Maelstrom and Wind Release: Rapid Fire Projectiles.
Basic Techniques: He also was very capable of flowing his chakra into his weapons, most prevalently using Wind Release to increase the offensive capabilities of his attacks; or using flames to enshroud his weapons. Densetsu also possessed immense skill with the Transformation Technique, able to flawlessly switch between different appearances, genders, sizes and ages to suit the needs of his predicament. Densetsu also possessed a unique Dōjutsu ability, the Konohanasakuyahime, which enabled him to become intangible for a few seconds at the cost of huge amounts of chakra. Densetsu was very proficient with this technique, and it enabled him to avoid any technique which could cause certain death. With frequent practice, Densetsu managed to find a way to trigger the technique while openly fighting; using it as backup in case an enemy unleashed an attack too powerful to dodge. This last minute escape technique makes Densetsu virtually invincible, as it negates any attack an enemy threw; no matter how powerful. It is however, Densetsu's closely guarded secret and as such, he barely ever uses it. Despite being a veteran combatant with more than enough variants of defensive ninjutsu, Densetsu's apparent soft spot for Academy Techniques can be further seen with the frequency at which he uses the Body Replacement Technique in battle. The simple emphasis on misdirection is greatly appreciated by the trickster, allowing him to make it appear as though his enemies had finally struck him, only for him to prey on their brief moment of fleeting confidence to end the encounter the moment they realised they had only hit a log. He also has shown his knack for setting off traps with this technique, rigging his replacements with flash bombs to blind, or explosive tags to maim. Indeed coupled with Densetsu's perceptive prowess thanks to the Sharingan, he can detect objects in his surroundings to replace himself with almost o a whim when in a pinch. Advantages like this are what truly allow his substitutions to be so spontaneous, sudden and effective. Densetsu also has another trick up his sleeves, a crafty technique he coined in the Chūnin Exams called the Thunder Foot Trap, where one basically sticks an explosive tag onto their opponent by means of a kick or a punch to a blindspot, before detonating it at the right, opportune moment. Of course, one could also utilise fake explosive tags as well, if intending to extort an opponent. Densetsu also showed off Academy Grade stunts like Tree Climbing and Water Surface Running with such subconscious ease that it infuriated numerous Genin, who had trouble with the techniques. Densetsu has also been able to pull off the Rope Escape Technique several times flawlessly when pretending to be captured for the sake of procuring information, able to apply the technique to a variety of different knots and even ropes.
Flying Thunder God Technique: Besides this, he also learnt the rare Flying Thunder God Technique and tweaked it to his style of combat to great efficiency. First being introduced to the mechanics of the technique by a drunken member of the Hokage Guard Platoon during his days in the ANBU, Densetsu gelled together the theory of the technique and rigorously worked at the intricacies of the Space-Time Ninjutsu; eagerly determined to master a technique which, apart from the Fourth and Second Hokage, required four members to perform. Densetsu would not achieve this feat until the age of 15, where he began to gradually gain the ability to use the Flying Thunder God Technique alone successfully—although a majority of the time his attempts to use it ended in failure. Though the complexity of the technique guaranteed that Densetsu would take many more years to use it masterfully, he eventually gained great proficiency with it by his nineteenth birthday. Upon achieving this significant milestone, the Uchiha evolved his speed to incomparable levels; gelling the teleportation together with his Body Flicker to outmanoeuvre his enemies frequently and frustratingly. In his twenties, Densetsu became feared for his use of the technique, which was so subtle that close to none had identified it to be a preexisting technique (mainly due to the fact that his hands moved so fast that enemies barely saw the kunai fly out let alone the movement, and wouldn't have the time to register what happened before getting knocked out), and his brilliant execution of the teleportation frightened superstitious criminals and shinobi alike—who began to suspect that he was truly a demon and not a man.
Apart from adding to his repertoire, this technique served to break distances between Densetsu and his enemies, or create them if needs be. As a combatant who was comfortable with the ever changing dynamics of battle, Densetsu loved to change the very parameters he fought his battles by; causing great degrees of discomfort by seemingly 'running' from everything his enemies threw at him. Years added to Densetsu's strength where this technique was concerned, and he soon emulated the Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder, a famous technique of Minato Namikaze's and created the Flying Thunder God: Formula Formation; a technique which allowed him to surround himself, or his enemies with numerous technique formulas to either enable instantaneous evasion, or a flurry of attacks with different algorithms from various directions in less than a second. Another key ability Densetsu gained was the ability to teleport others to him by means of this technique. Thus, he could take this a step further with the kunai he wielded, utilising them to effectively blind! and then pacify his aggressors. Never done before, this served to be Densetsu's twist to the already legendary technique; as marked enemies would instantly be taken to him and taken out instantaneously. To build upon this unique usage of the technique, Densetsu also learned an equally useful demonstration of this technique from Yasaki Hatake, a comrade of his from Konoha, the Reverse: Flight of Thunder God. With this technique, Densetsu is now able to completely overpower enemies who come too close in split seconds, rigging the game to his advantage by making use of the technique's devious manipulation of Fūinjutsu. Aside from this, Densetsu combines his skill with chakra flow and Kinjutsu to freely erase and summon his Technique Seals as long as they are connected to his chakra. Densetsu can effectively place seals on surfaces without using his body, but by using his chakra as an extension to place it as well. However despite these repeated demonstrations of stylish grace and swagger with the technique, Densetsu claims that he has still not mastered the technique, and claims to have one more ace up his sleeve with the technique to work on.
Densetsu's Big Ball Rasengan at full power
At a young age, Densetsu was also taught how to utilize the Rasengan by Jiraiya, who had been impressed by the then newly promoted Chūnin boy's abilities after encountering him in Konoha—a gift from the legendary shinobi to the young upstart to commemorate his promotion to Chūnin. After two explanation accompanied demonstrations from the legendary Sannin and a few months of practice, Densetsu mastered the Rasengan, and developed several lethal variations of the technique. Rasengan was Densetsu's ace in his sleeve when dealing with close range opponents, as he would spontaneously generate it and slam it into his opponents. Rasengan's lack of need for hand signs also greatly helped with Densetsu's high speed fuelled erratic spontaneousness, providing a powerful attack without the need to waste precious instances on moulding hand signs. The size of Densetsu's Rasengan was also a factor which he could easily control, and due to the Uchiha's potent and skilful chakra manipulation, his Rasengan in its' normal state was similar in size and power to the Big Ball Rasengan of Naruto Uzumaki. When smashed into a house, Densetsu's normal Rasengan proved to be so strong that it completely obliterated an entire side of the house's wall into tiny smithereens. Densetsu would not stop with a powerful natural Rasengan however. His own Big Ball Rasengan was a terrible floating sphere of destruction which he calmly held over his head in numerous battles, one wide and powerful enough to destroy even a Rashōmon Gate, and completely obliterate the entire stomach of a gigantic Salamander summon in its least concentrated form. When it impacted the ground, it was known to have generated a crater so large and deep that his teammates likened it to a large meteorite blast; and at full power, capable of decimating an entire street. When combined with his Senjutsu, the scope and power of his Rasengan were beyond normal comparison; with the capability to erase the sides of structures like mountains or even shockingly have his strongest manifestation of the Rasengan match a Tailed Beast Ball in power.
Elemental Transformation
Achieving a feat which is extremely rare in the ninja world, Densetsu wields complete mastery over four basic elemental natures; along with abilities to wield the Yin and Yang release—after a meeting with the Sage of Six Paths. As such, his ninjutsu were comprised of various elements, granting him great versatility. Densetsu mainly specialises fearsomely in Fire based techniques, and then Water and Earth based ninjutsu, using them very frequently in battle to create powerful, varied attacks and defences. He also can utilise high level Wind techniques for offence and defence, to almost equally glorious extents.
Being his affinity, Fire techniques are Densetsu's preferred and usually strongest form of attack, with close to none even coming close to standing next to him where the Fire Release was concerned. He can shoot out flames that cover a large surface area, reducing enemies and even large groups of enemies to ashes in seconds; utilise massive amounts of fire and shoot them like a huge flamethrower in the shape of a monstrous dragon at his enemies and so on. Besides that, he effortlessly uses his clan's signature technique the Fireball Technique very frequently and needless to mention, is extremely masterful in its' usage to the point that the technique is often mistaken for another stronger technique due to the devastating way he unleashes it. These Fire based techniques were considered to be immensely powerful on their own, but were on a completely different level of destructive force when utilised by the experienced Uchiha. Entire landscapes could be ravaged to smouldering cinders when Densetsu unleashed his attacks at absolute full potential, and his flames were not the only enemy to be dealt with; the heat surrounding/brought forth by his flames were also incredible—at full power they could and would easily melt flesh, then muscle with slightly more difficulty and gradually bone; even if the actual flames weren't even touching the victim. Inhaling the superheated air would also do damage to a victim's lungs, scorching them inside out very quickly. The light footed Uchiha is also a massive fan of the ancient Konoha technique, the Fire Dragon Flame Bullet. Like the water dragon, the flame dragon Densetsu casts is a handful on its own, but as savage as it is, it is only a mere prelude to the incoming chaos. He can split several streaks of fire from the main dragon to create 'additional' smaller dragons to attack individual foes and eliminate them from the combat equation, or utilise them to transform his enemies surroundings. His mastery with this technique also allowed him tank five Water Release users head on, rendering their own water attacks into steam when his Fire Dragon clashed with their liquid. Densetsu's crowning ability created via the Fire Release would be his Fire Release Cloak, which granted him a solid offence, a staunch defence and buckets of manoeuvrability, as he could pummel opponents with superheated flames and wreak havoc especially on large groups of opponents and not to mention huge thermal resistance, ensuring that the side effects brought by his pyrokinectic prowess did not damage him. The previously said effects of his normal Fire Release usage could be further amplified in this form, as it meant that the said effects wouldn't damage him either—leading to a terrifying increase in offensive power which is rarely seen due to his generally pacifistic approach. The Cloak is also involved with his ultimate attack, the Requiem of the Dying Sun; which was classified as the highest form of the Fire Release for offensive intent—a technique so powerful it vaporised any enemy in its path and left a circle of destruction with a radius more than 500 metres wide. This fearsome fearsome pyrokinesis has been terrifyingly displayed to burn even four immortal Jashinists to ashes in seconds; exhibiting his cruel pent up power. Densetsu's ferocious Fire Release mastery led to him getting the moniker Dragon of Konoha, based on an instance when the natives of an island believed him to be their dragon god after he demonstrated his mastery over flame against a group of terrorists.
The moment Densetsu's strongest Fire Release attack, the Requiem, makes impact.
He also is capable of generating Water in arid conditions, able to use powerful techniques such as the Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique, and the Water Release: Water Severing Wave without nearby sources of water. When utilising the Water Severing Wave, Densetsu could slice entire rock formation and earthen defences to shreds with a single, pressurised jet of water, even using it to defeat well armoured opponents. Even when used on their own, Densetsu's water based attacks are to be reckoned with, on par with most masters of the Water Release, but it is a whole different ball game when he is surrounded by natural formations of water, such as oceans, lakes and waterfalls. In these environments, Densetsu achieves terrifying feats with minimal chakra expenditure (by his terms), creating dragons as high and wide as buildings with incredible speed and bringing them down on his enemies, packing enough brute force to easily crush a human being without much effort. With these water dragons, Densetsu can also control and maintain them for such a long period of time that he can send them barging into numerous foes at high speed, knocking one after the other down and out, before having the dragon finally dissipate. Densetsu's execution of the Water Release: Water Formation Wall was also supreme as a defensive manoeuvre, able to blast large groups of shinobi away from him without too much effort, or shield himself from powerful Fire-based assaults. Indeed the Water Formation Wall has also been used by him to completely block out multi directional attacks, as he can extend the width and height of the wall to protect himself (or his allies) in a full sphere if necessary, ensuring that even projectiles fired from all directions cannot overpower the whipping, swirling wall's own velocity. Attacks of large radius and offensive potential such as even the exalted Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation Technique have been neutralised by the lone Densetsu's Water Release defence, despite some difficulty. Another noteworthy trait of Densetsu's Water Release was the way in which he toyed with pressure, force, magnitude and size of his techniques; granting him fearsome capability with this element and limitless potential for offence and defence.
Densetsu also utilised Earth based techniques to defend from attacks and bind enemies with strengthened soil. Most Earth Release users could achieve very sturdy defensive products with even minimal chakra expenditure, but users such as Densetsu possess such prowess with this element that can only be limited by the amount of chakra they put into the said technique. Densetsu has been known to create Earth Style Walls of such size and length that can only be described as jaw dropping; ranging from tiny walls that defend him from fierce, targeted attacks to colossal constructs that defend large groups of people from a single attack which could annihilate hundreds. By tapping into his gargantuan chakra well, he draws out enough chakra to be moulded into a wall long enough to stretch many hundreds of metres across the terrain, and many hundreds of meters high as well. The amount of chakra pumped in can also be used to strengthen the construct even further, providing a stout wall which can withstand intense flames, crushing torrents of water and even hold it's own against an element it is weak to—Lightning. Densetsu uses these simple Earth Release abilities and mixes them with his own ingenuity to even shape battlefields to his advantage, if needs be. The sturdiness of his techniques were reputedly as strong or almost as strong as actual diamond, which gave near flawless protection against projectiles and some explosions—fuelled by his powerful chakra and numerous years of study and practice. This ability also serves him well when utilising his Ensnaring Soil, a technique which sends mud at an individual in the form of thick, vine like structures which quickly solidify into a substance of strength close to diamond on the Mohs Scale. As the time taken for the mud to solidify is incredibly short, an opponent can be bound quickly by the very earth under his/her feet and rendered immobile in just three seconds or less. The quick, random, unpredictable and huge amount of the mud unleashed also means that dodging all would be a tricky and tough task, even for Sharingan bearers or those with immense reflexes. Densetsu also keeps a very basic technique up his sleeve as a personal favourite: the Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique. Having practiced the technique since his days as a toddler, Densetsu is well versed with the technique, able to use it to sink into, and travel through the ground at speeds faster than most can run. He can simply sink into the ground and reemerge somewhere else to attack from a blindspot, or create confusion in battle via other means. Having grown so fond of the technique, Densetsu usually uses it to get close enough to land a crucial strike, or simply to mess around in spars. However the technique is still very useful against attacks above ground—as the user has a quick means of evading powerful manoeuvres with minimal chakra loss.
Densetsu also possesses remarkable skill with the Wind Release. He can been seen occasionally using bullets sculpted by wind to pierce enemy defences and draw them away from strategic spots as it was a randomised attack which was spread over a large area. These bullets possess incredible cutting and penetrative power for their size, smashing through normal rocks and even certain types of armour. He also possesses the ability to utilise the Wind to create massive blades of differing sizes and magnitudes to slash objects in half or neutralise other Wind/Lightning attacks. He can also unleash three or even four of these blades simultaneously, sending them towards his enemy together; or in rapid succession. As the said blades can be very large, they are very well suited to take on massive opponents or groups of enemies; or to directly fuel the flames in any certain area. Densetsu also demonstrates great skill in shaping Wind chakra around himself or his weapons to create a minor boost in cutting power. Densetsu's katana is often heard producing a high pitched screech when pulled out of its scabbard, which has been confirmed to be his Wind nature flowing through the blade. Densetsu has thus been seen slicing through his enemy's blades if needed—such is the cutting power of his Wind, or slightly increasing the cutting edge of his blade by a few centimetres, hence increasing his attack range marginally. Perhaps the most common way in which Densetsu uses his Wind is together with his Fire Release Cloak. All Densetsu has to do is exert his chakra in any direction, toying with its' speed or the amount released before turning it into Wind; thus enabling it to fuel and magnify his flames. It is theorised that this could be behind the true reason his flames are so powerful and hot, but what is truly confirmed is the fact that his mastery over such a simple execution of Wind greatly aids his accuracy with small scaled flame attacks; enabling Densetsu to fire off tiny heated fireballs with shocking precision towards his opponents. This aids Densetsu's non lethal antics greatly, as he often has to just mix his flames and his wind and shoot them towards an aggressor's knees, thighs or palms and so on, stopping them in their tracks without much effort; Wind providing speed, Fire adding the sting. This tactic ensures that injuries are rather light, but nevertheless effective in neutralising enemies, contrary to his previously stated Wind techniques.
Clone Techniques
Due to his nature of never underestimating opponents, Densetsu always attacks his opponents with clones, specifically to gain insight on his opponents' strengths and weaknesses. His usage of clones was very skilful, utilising minor distractions to create a clone while the original hid underground with an Earth Release technique or simply stayed out of view. Densetsu mainly utilised the Shadow Clone Technique, dodging enemy attacks and reading their moves, or leading them into traps; putting great effort into keeping his clones intact during battle to know his enemies better. Due to his huge chakra reserves, he also uses the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique and Shadow Clone Shuriken Jutsu to overwhelm or hold off opponents while he set up a powerful attack. Densetsu's usage of the Multiple Shadow Clone technique also led to his own improvised combos, the most frequent being the Multiple Shadow Clone Binding Technique, which is designed to surround and pin an enemy down to create the slightest—or most obvious opening for Densetsu to exploit.
Densetsu utilising Shadow Clones
He also uses the Water Clone Technique frequently, as an instant attack on enemies; or to set the foundation for a huge attack. Densetsu's skill with Clone Techniques make him an unpredictable foe who always finds ways to bypass an opponent's defence, or defend against their attacks. Densetsu's clones are all forces to reckoned with, fully capable of handling tasks such as taking on large groups of criminals, or carrying out side tasks while he focused on something else of greater urgency. The speed at which he forms his clones while utilising brief distractions or in the open is nothing short of jaw dropping, as he can even create clones a few metres away from him to suddenly overwhelm opponents. When in the water, he can spontaneously generate Water Clones up to thirty metres away from himself or even further, adding great unpredictability and danger to the environment as he can freely attack from multiple angles. Though less commonly used than his preferred shadow clones, it is nigh needless to state that Densetsu also is highly proficient with the basic Clone Technique, when needing a brief and subtle diversion without having to split his power in any portion.
Fūinjutsu
Apart from that, Densetsu is also known to be proficient and familiar with Fuinjutsu, capable of utilising seals as basic as the Contract Seal and even the difficult Evil Sealing Method in his late teens. He also created his own sealing technique which enabled him to seal powerful attacks of any calibre into a specialised scroll, with three empty slots; then able to fire the stored attack(s) out quickly after. He also possessed the ability to use the Five Elements Seal and Five Elements Unseal when he got older with moderate skill, and after learning that he developed his Forced Suppression Seal, which could completely halt the chakra flow of his opponents in battle if performed right. The Five Elements Unseal was also used frequently by Densetsu to remove the Fūinjutsu cast by others onto himself or others, including Space-Time inscriptions and Chakra Blockage Techniques. Densetsu also soon crafted the cunning Trapping Seal Clone Technique; which he rigged a clone to unleash a paralysis seal by means of the smoke generated once it dispersed. This compilation of knowledge and talent in Fūinjutsu was developed to the extremes in Densetsu's early adulthood, specifically when he was 18-19 as his exile from Konohagakure had been overturned, enabling him to frequent libraries often as well as practice these techniques frequently. By the time Densetsu was 29, he was generally regarded as a Fūinjutsu expert, able to recognise various sealing techniques and come up with suitable counter measures to react against them. Perhaps his most defining trait in Fūinjutsu was the way he gelled together several Fūinjutsu to effectively 'shut down' opponents, utilising misdirection and subtlety to neutralise his enemies and render them immobile in battle; ending duels without bloodshed and even without as much as a brawl. His constant analysis of other Fūinjutsu combatants also helped him improve, providing him with application after he learned about any said technique from the libraries. Densetsu's Fūinjutsu talents were not an innate gift but rather one gained from a lifetime of study, which gave him the time to develop this craft to high levels. The Uchiha also specifically utilises his Toad Moistened Body Technique to counter any Fūinjutsu on his body, and eject any imprint on his body whatsoever; what he defines to be a 'life hack' when dealing with quick witted Fūinjutsu users, ensuring that any seal left on his body would never last for long.
Barrier Ninjutsu
Densetsu was greatly skilled and adept with barrier ninjutsu, capable of using basic barriers like the Pentagon Barrier which were impenetrable to all ninja tools, all the way to high level and ultra resilient techniques like the Uchiha Flame Formation and the Decagon Barrier which both could take direct hits from powerful Kage calibre techniques and were virtually invulnerable to most techniques. The Decagon Barrier when coupled with Senjutsu was easily capable of containing the might of the strongest tailed beasts inside as long as Densetsu could maintain his concentration. In many battles especially with dangerous ninjutsu users, Densetsu relied on these shielding techniques as initial moves in a battle to prevent or delay a fight while he formulated strategies. He would also trap users at the centre of a barrier to prevent them from giving him chase. With higher level shinobi, Densetsu had also formed the Four Red Yang Formation, the most powerful barrier ninjutsu in his considerable arsenal, capable of holding tailed beasts in, even absorbing their tailed beast balls. Indeed so mighty was this barrier, that it had been capable of holding in the Ten Tails when used by the Four Former Hokage of Konoha. As a Kage ranked shinobi, Densetsu's utilisation of the barrier saw him take on the mighty Sensō, boxing him in for a savage attack. His techniques especially came useful when he was surrounded, with barriers like the Decagon Barrier giving very reliable protection against most ninjutsu and even combined attacks, or even channeling his opponents' chakra in their attacks as a fuel source to keep the barrier going strong.
Summoning Technique
While he usually relied on his own prowess to overcome enemies, Densetsu was a skilled user of the Summoning Technique when things got out of hand. His personal summons were the toads of Myōboku; specifically the titanic Gamamōra. He could cooperate devastatingly well (using cooperation ninjutsu such as Fire Release: Toad Oil Flame Bullet) with his toad companion and was on very friendly terms with him, with the two specifically creating the Electric Firestorm Technique; a technique capable of massive collateral destruction, together. Densetsu also liked to utilise the enormous size and mass of the toad to summon him in midair and crush his opponents below: a tactic best used to pin down other titanic summons with the element of surprise. Together with the titanic toad, Densetsu could take on any opponent without much fear, as the combined ninjutsu prowess of the duo triumphed almost every time—with Mōra's power and courage greatly complimenting Densetsu's intellectual skill and keen perception. The duo could cooperate flawlessly and almost telepathically due to decades of teamwork and practice, unleashing waves of constant attacks repeatedly without getting in each others' ways. Densetsu also was capable of summoning the two Toad Sages, Shima and Fukasaku, who attached themselves to him to enable him to keep up his Sage Mode. This enabled the man to enter and keep up his Sage Mode for long periods of time and greatly enhance his core parameters. With the two Toads whom he considered his close friends, Densetsu was an even more formidable opponent, capable of holding out against anybody he faced.
Toad Techniques: After spending numerous days off and on at Mount Myōboku, Densetsu didn't only pick up the feared art of Sage Mode—he learnt numerous tricks from the toad inhabitants of the land. The toads shared their versatility with the then young teenager, teaching him various useful tricks and tactics which would give any user the subtlest edge over their opponents. The most basic Toad Technique Densetsu utilised in battle was the Toad Oil Bullet. Highly flammable, gooey and movement restricting, the Toad Oil Bullet was an easily learnable form of ninjutsu, which also granted its user many options in combat. Densetsu's enormous chakra reserves enable him to generate massive amounts of this substance, coating large areas with it, or immobilising giant adversaries before setting the said object(s) on fire, further strengthening the already fearsome flames. Densetsu's other famed Toad Art was the Toad Moistened Body Technique, a defensive manoeuvre designed to tackle Fūinjutsu, as well as setting up a shock attack to trap Taijutsu experts. This technique also aided him in underwater travelling, similarly to how toads breathe with their moist skin. Perhaps his most useful ability was one shared with the great Toad Sage of Myōboku himself, the Toad Flatness — Shadow Manipulation Technique. Leaping into the shadows of enemies and gaining control of their bodies, the Toad Flatness ability is a dangerous one at the hands of expert users, and under Densetsu, it became synonymous with his purest execution of ninja arts—the ability to remain undetected.
Combination Ninjutsu
Densetsu's fearsome combination technique: the Shining Demon of the Hidden Leaf.
By performing a Combination Transformation with his partner, Densetsu's combined form takes the shape of a massive Three Headed Wyvern. While enormously powerful on its own due to the massive amount of chakra poured in by Densetsu's summon, Densetsu is able to coat his new form with his Susanoo, crafting an almost impenetrable defence that can be upheld for even longer than his base Susanoo, as he relies on the chakra of his partner as additional fuel. This combined form relies greatly on the mutual understanding between Densetsu and Gamamōra to work, as their coordination has to be flawless to control the new, powered up form to perfection.
All three heads of the Wyvern are capable of firing streams of flames upon enemies, and can reduce opponents to ash in seconds. The unshackled might of this Susanoo clad combination technique allows Densetsu to march into large scaled battles without too much risk of being harmed. The Wyvern can utilise its limbs for combat as well, possessing a thick, long and powerful tail with spikes at the ends, which can be used as a channel for a stream of projectile attacks, or to smash into an enemy while breathing fire upon it. For a more controlled and compact form of attack, the Wyvern is capable of producing an enhanced and larger version of the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, shelling opponents with repeated and highly accurate blasts of fire. The Wyvern's wings are capable of functioning both offensively and defensively. Being the strongest portion of the Susanoo armour enveloping the Wyvern, it can be used to cover itself from a powerful attack or to slice into an enemy's defence.
Fundamentally, the Wyvern grants no new abilities beyond enhancements, and the ability to utilise Susanoo's great protection for an extremely long period of time, making it a very effective siege device. As it is made up of two users, one can collect Senjutsu while the other moves the entire creature as well; and the similar concept can be applied for Genjutsu—where one can break the other out, unless the Genjutsu tackles both combinants. As one of the famous paired combinations in the world, the Three Headed Wyvern is known as the Shining Demon of the Hidden Leaf, one of the Leaf's leading deterrents to attacks and a leading tool in offensive tactics. Densetsu famously used this technique in the Battle of the Narita Ruin, defeating six huge summons alone. The Three Headed Wyvern is agreed to possess the power of a Tailed Beast in battle, with the ability to counter Tailed Beast Balls and respond to most Tailed Beasts in terms of sheer strength.
Taijutsu
Initially, Densetsu showed minimal and basic prowess in taijutsu, especially in hand to hand combat. Identifying this as his Achilles Heel, he began focusing on improving himself in this field and after unlocking his Sharingan, Densetsu began copying his opponents tactics and gaining inspiration for his own combinations. To add to the mix, his Sharingan enabled him to read his opponent's movements and counter attack accordingly, making him very difficult to defeat in hand to hand combat. The first official combination born from his Sharingan's analysis was the Tiger Combo, which emphasised on speed and sheer ferocity—and became a technique which still saw usage in Densetsu's adult years. Eventually, Taijutsu became a commonly used form of combat for Densetsu. He made use of his speed and reflexes to become a skilled martial artist, relying on quick counter attacks and targeted attacks. He even developed his own taijutsu combinations and manoeuvres, capable of holding his own with his fists against very skilled opponents. However, by Densetsu's own admission, he was nowhere near mastery where taijutsu was concerned. Several times his lack of pure taijutsu mastery has been exploited by high level taijutsu orientated enemies, if they could figure ways to outmanoeuvre his eyes and his reaction time.
Densetsu's Taijutsu, revolving around speed and evasion, against multiple adversaries.
While he possessed great speed and grace, Dentetsu lacked a key component in further forms of taijutsu: sheer strength. He was occasionally overpowered by brawlers and quickly overrun by taijutsu specialists, like Tsubusa Hareroyo and Kimmimaro. This led to Densetsu utilising a randomised and unpredictable combat style very similar to Krav Maga, which wasn't bound by the rules of most fighting styles. Using his speed as an asset and his Sharingan as a pinpointer, Densetsu landed viciously quick strikes to the pressure points of his opponent's body, often resorting to measures described to be dirty (poking the eyes, targeting the groin, etcetera) in lightning quick succession. Densetsu utilised subtle grapples, attack reversals and quick momentum shifts to goad his enemies into fumbling, after which he would instantly capitalise by targeting their weak spots. By combining these skills with his own ingenuity, Densetsu practiced the art of being an intelligent fighter more than simply being an unbeatable one; which cemented his own place as a very talented fighter. Coupled with his ANBU training, it was safe to say that despite not being on par with masters of the art such as Might Guy, Rock Lee and such; Densetsu was a very dangerous Taijutsu exponent that could nevertheless hold his own against opponents of that level, and then overwhelm them with his vast expertise in other areas. When armed with a pair of kunai, Densetsu is also highly skilled and lethal fighter; as he showcased his stylish flair and blinding speed to devastating effect, as shown when he killed four ANBU Root shinobi. In Part II, his skills in taijutsu improved to a point where he basically showed near flawless demonstrations of taijutsu against various taijutsu users. He learned to make up for his lack of strength by improving on his speed and employing shadow clones, as well as bringing forth his free flowing, erratic style to the extremes.
Genjutsu
While Densetsu was not naturally a Genjutsu type shinobi, he was greatly skilled with the Genjutsu that were gifted to him due to his Sharingan; and he eventually ironed out this combat style to a level many regard to be mastery—most notedly after his ANBU days, when Densetsu still sought to maintain and dish out psychological brutality upon his opponents, while not physically harming them–a proper method fitting the pacifistic approach he would adopt from then on permanently. He was also highly knowledgable on the mechanics of powerful, ancient Genjutsu such as Izanami and Izanagi, and although he never used either, it is speculated strongly that he knows how to use them himself. Densetsu is highly perceptive and knowledgable with Genjutsu as a whole, able to quickly reverse an opponent's Genjutsu by overcoming it with Genjutsu of his own. Densetsu often did so stealthily, before his own opponent even realised that their own trick had been turned onto themselves. The second trick to this launching another Genjutsu to penetrate the enemy's mind before they undid their own redirected attack, and leave them vulnerable.
Densetsu prepares to cast Amenokoyane after activating his Sharingan, a very advanced and powerful, but fundamentally simple Genjutsu created, perfected and utilised solely by him.
Staring into Densetsu's eyes for the briefest instant is also an invitation for trouble, as no matter how good one was at Genjutsu, they would still have to deal with the subtleness of his own illusions—which would be easy to break to a keen specialist; but which also opened them up to a vicious real life attack for the briefest second. The Uchiha is known to have also copied numerous different Genjutsu himself, having access to a wide variety of techniques to torment his foes with. His illusions range from comical, to unrealistic, to gory and indistinguishable from reality. It is a general fact that Densetsu relies on simplicity for the greatest results—the simplest, least detectable means were very usually the most effective. These successes stem from the fact that the methods he employed in implanting his techniques were the most cumbersome to deal with; close quarters combatants would find it impossible to deal with him—the briefest, fleeting glance of his face or even a peripheral view of his fierce eyes would ultimately render them victim.
Besides the Genjutsu of his clan and those he had copied, he could identify and name many other Genjutsu, as well as find an effective way to counter them. He also used various visual genjutsu which the Sharingan offered him in battle and with the aid of his Sharingan he could also easily perceive Genjutsu and see through illusions rather quickly. As Densetsu had already assimilated and copied various types of Genjutsu on his own, he can bring forth several of these techniques into battle himself—able to access a shockingly vast multitude of techniques to throw at his enemy. Densetsu has copied low level techniques such as the Sly Mind Affect Technique, Leaf-Style Willow and Genjutsu Binding all the way to high level Genjutsu such as the Temple of Nirvana Technique; credits to decades fighting against various Genjutsu practitioners of differing skill. With elementary Genjutsu such as the Sly Mind Affect Technique, Densetsu has proven to be capable in switching details in an enemy's surroundings without them needing to even make eye contact, a truly devious tool at his disposal against those with lower perception. He has used this several times to aid with camouflage, or even in battle to tilt the odds ever so daintily in his favour.
Densetsu is also very skilled with Amenokoyane, a visual technique which was incredibly difficult to differentiate from reality, managing to even use this technique on somebody as powerful as Danzō Shimura. Amenokoyane basically allows its user to fully transform an entire landscape and reshape it according to the users wishes in the brain of the opponent, crafting immense realism at the cost of strength, ironically. Densetsu's usage of Amenokoyane is flawless, as he could 'wage battles in the mind' before his enemy even noticed. The technique's strength is truly in its immense realism, and most times enemies would fall before they even could come close to thinking that they were in a Genjutsu—such was its magnitude. Amenokoyane is known to be one of Densetsu's strongest moves despite being just an illusion, because one can almost never tell when they've been hit, and the versatility granted by the Genjutsu is undeniable.
Often using Genjutsu to penetrate his opponents minds and gain insight to their talents, Densetsu would still be at an advantage if the Genjutsu was broken. He also developed and refined the Hinderance Genjutsu, which allowed him to plant a Genjutsu into his enemy with even minimal visual contact, and execute the Genjutsu at the most unlikely moment, capturing an opponent very subtly and efficiently. However, Densetsu tended to use Genjutsu as a fall back option instead of a primary form of attack, and mainly to extract information through violent, virtual mental torture. Relying on powerful and vicious tactics in the mind to break his enemies, Densetsu inflicted gory illusions to extract information.
Other Skills
While he already boasted great skill in ninjutsu, near unrivalled speed, intelligence and courage, Densetsu is also a highly capable leader and field commander, able to motivate those under his command to never give in, even when the odds were stacked against them. He is apparently also rather skilled in kenjutsu, as he carries a katana with him at all times and has even duelled certain enemies with them; possessing heavily underrated (and wildly unpredictable) technique and precision with his blade. Densetsu was also able to hold his own against several rogue samurai with his blade alone, for an extended period of time. As a former ANBU member and captain, Densetsu was also immaculately well versed with the shadier facets of espionage; a capable spy who had partaken in deep cover missions and who was also greatly skilled in subterfuge, persuasive interrogation and so on. He also possessed remarkable intelligence gathering abilities: combining stealth and intuition to hunt down crucial information on many occasions, so much so his prowess as an investigator drew others to specifically request his expertise to Konoha for missions. As with most ANBU Operatives, Densetsu also possesses basic emergency first-aid knowledge, able to pull off basic stitching, staunch bleeding and treat minor injuries without mishap; and even perform CPR without wasting time.
As his cunning traits would suggest, Densetsu came full of surprises and unorthodox tricks. He used various ninja tools frequently, with great skill. He wielded shuriken, kunai and wire strings in a very tactical manner. He could also deflect the projectiles launched by others with projectiles of his own. When not given enough time to draw his sword, Densetsu relies on two kunai he kept strapped to his wrists; and has shown moments of great skill when using them to mow down enemies, or to deflect blades. Densetsu also had some experience in setting basic snares and rudimentary traps with his ninja tools, having learned to hunt at a young age from his father, and having being forced to find food in various environments while on the run. This ability gradually expanded to setting up nasty, cunning traps in pre-planned surroundings against certain opponents. Though basic, Densetsu's Bukijutsu was effective mainly because of his knack for leading the opponent into traps. Needless to say, Densetsu was also highly trained in Shurikenjutsu in his youth, becoming a flawless marksman when utilising ranged projectiles; able to hit enemies in their knees/crucial joints in rapid succession to cripple his opponents before they got to him.
Stats
| Stage | Ninjutsu | Taijutsu | Genjutsu | Intelligence | Strength | Speed | Stamina | Hand seals | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Childhood | 3 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 3 | 3 | 2.5 | 19.5 |
| Part I | 4.5 | 3.5 | 4 | 5 | 1.5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 31.5 |
| Part II | 5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 4.5 | 35.5 |
Part I
Gato Arc
After several encounters with a bunch of thugs, Densetsu attempted to break up a criminal ring led by the international criminal, Gato. After defeating several gangs of thugs, Densetsu began targeting Gato himself, hunting down his right hand men. After Densetsu captured a man called "The Collector", he quickly interrogated him, gaining knowledge of Gato's plans.
The vigilante began disrupting several trafficking activities which the crime lord used to increase outcome; easily defeating wave after wave of thugs. Threatened, Gato sent one of the infamous Northern Bloodhounds, missing nin of Kirigakure and thief of the Kabutowari belonging to Kirigakure, Muzai Akebino, after Densetsu. Launching a violent attack on a nearby fishing village, Akebino began massacring innocent civilians to lure Densetsu to the location.
Before he could decapitate a child, Densetsu appeared quickly and kneed Watanabe in the solar plexus. Taken aback by the shock attack, Akebino wielded Kabutowari devastatingly at Densetsu, who engaged him with a katana. Knowing he could not best a Northern Bloodhound in swordplay alone, Densetsu led the fallen shinobi away from the village by feigning an escape.
On the outskirts of the village, Densetsu used his blinding speed to evade Kabutowari and launch guerrilla style attacks on Akebino. With every attack, Densetsu gained knowledge on Watanabe's reflexes, tactics and weaknesses; although Watanabe did not realise this. To make up for the pounding he was receiving, Watanabe flung smoke bombs and conjured up several Water Clones, cornering Densetsu and eventually smashing him at full power with Kabutowari. However, it emerged that this was actually only a Shadow Clone of Densetsu which was utilised when Watanabe used the smoke bombs.
The real Densetsu used the Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique and emerged from the ground right underneath the real Akebino, using his katana to pierce Akebino's exposed chin. Watanabe however reacted very quickly, managing to pull of a Substitution Technique and evade certain death very narrowly. Noting Densetsu's intellect, Watanane vowed to kill him instantly.
Charging at Densetsu again, Akebino furiously unleashed Kabutowari, creating massive shockwaves and craters in the ground. Densetsu realised that the Swordsman of the Mist was simply keeping him from using ninjutsu by unleashing huge shockwaves; a useless delay tactic. Flinging a few Shuriken to distract Watanabe, Densetsu capitalised on the momentary distraction to use the his Earth Release: Ensnaring Soil to pin down and immobilise Watanabe. Eventhough he was outmatched from the start, Akebino refused to admit defeat, futilely struggling against the hardened and sturdy Earth tendrils. Densetsu left Akebino to the villagers' mercy. They decapitated him shortly after Densetsu left the scene, with Kiri reclaiming the blade.
Gato was eventually murdered later on by his own hired gun, one of the former Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Knowing his reign of terror was officially over, Densetsu moved away from the Land of Waves and headed towards a rich country named the Land of Corn, crossing a now completed bridge which reminded him of someone he once knew back at Konoha, the Great Naruto Bridge.
Uprising Arc
At the Land of Corn, Densetsu catches wind of a plot to overthrow the leadership of the land after capturing and beating up a thug. The leader of this revolt was a shinobi called Fuji Koharu who intended to take control of the land's financial muscle to finance his underground rebel movement. Knowing an 'underground army' would threaten the stability of the nearby countries and possibly even ignite a war between several states, the Uchiha decides to take down Koharu before his plans succeed.
One day, during a procession; Koharu sends several assassins to kill the Land of Corn's daimyo. Disguised in the crowd, Densetsu leaps into action and engages the assassins in a sword fight. Quickly stabbing one of them in the shoulder, the agile ninja holds the remaining assassins off while the royal guard surrounds the daimyo. After failing to overpower Densetsu, the remaining assassins flee. Impressed by the masked boy's skill, the daimyo asks Densetsu who he is; to which he replies "The Human Torch".
Several of the villagers recognise this moniker, as news of Muzai Akebino's defeat at the hands of a young boy had spread far and wide. Explaining the situation to the daimyo, Densetsu declares his willingness to help the daimyo defeat the rebels; who had been wrecking havoc with guerrilla style attacks around the land. Over the next month, Densetsu takes down the trouble makers with minimal ease; turning into a hero in the eyes of the villagers.
Determined to bring him down, Fuji Koharu himself decides to lead an assault on the royal residence. Killing the Daimyo's personal guards, Koharu infiltrates the Daimyo's quarters while his rebels fight the other guards. Koharu declares his wish to immediately kill the Daimyo, eliminate Densetsu later and take control of the land by force. As he swings the blade to slash the Daimyo, he is shocked when the Daimyo blocks the attack quickly with a kunai. It turns out that the "Daimyo" was actually Densetsu disguised by a Transformation Technique to lure Koharu to his location. Revealing that he had hidden the Daimyo in a secure location, Densetsu vowed to end the fight without using even 12% of his effort.
Pulling out a spare dagger, Koharu uses his kenjutsu prowess to force Densetsu on the defensive. However, without Koharu's knowledge; Densetsu had booby trapped certain parts of the room, simply leading Koharu into a trap while feigning to retreat. Koharu instantly falls for the first trap, a simple mouse trap hidden behind a rug. Distracted by his toe getting caught in the trap, Densetsu appears behind him and initiates the Tiger Combo to slam Koharu through a wall. Having twisted his neck very badly due to Densetsu's taijutsu attack, Koharu lies defeated outside in the terrace, with Densetsu pointing out that he was defeated without even wasting a little chakra.
The royal guards eventually defeat the other rebels and the day belongs to Densetsu. Grateful for Densetsu's help, the Daimyo asks if Densetsu wished for any reward while addressing the civilians in a speech. He simply says "Tell the criminals that the Torch is coming." Before anyone registers the following moments, Densetsu disappears in a cloud of smoke.
Hunted Arc
After his activities in the Land of Corn, word of Densetsu's power and skill spread across the nations like wildfire and the bounty and danger rating Densetsu held in Bingo Books increased tenfold. Constantly on the move, Densetsu stuck to his usual activities, foiling criminal activities and working for the greater good of the oppressed — although the murders of Muzai Akebino and the assassins only served to convince the leadership of several countries that he was a threat that had to be treated with caution, or eliminated.
One fine day, Densetsu discovered that one of his hideouts had been invaded and compromised after noting that one of his windows were tightly closed shut. As Densetsu always left the windows of his hideouts loosely closed with a small gap, he theorised that someone had entered his hideout from the window, possibly booby trapped it, and was even likely to be waiting nearby. Acting like nothing happened, Densetsu activates his Sharingan and pretends to walk away.
However upon turning his back, his plan works. The Sharingan detects the slightest movement behind the house near some bushes. Instantly the Uchiha turns and around and flings a kunai with an explosive tag at the bush. The invader escapes the explosion and charges at Densetsu, who throws a smoke bomb and disappears. Knowing that the assailant had been a bounty hunter, Densetsu decides to drop under the radar temporarily to lead the hunter off his trail.
Making his way towards the Land of Fire, Densetsu feels like he is being followed, eventhough he is moving at top speed through the trees. Feeling something being thrown at him, Densetsu ducks in time as three Shuriken hit the tree ahead of him. Reacting quickly, he acrobatically somersaults off the higher branches and makes his way to lower ground. Seeing a shadow on top of him, Densetsu sends an attack to the higher branches, but his enemy appears behind him quickly. Densetsu manages to evade the shock attack, noting his opponent's exceptional speed. Taken aback by Densetsu's counter attack, the opponent rushes at Densetsu and attacks.
Dodging the quick attacks with his Sharingan, a blow catches Densetsu in the face, shattering his mask. Shocked, Densetsu launches his own attacks, but is repelled by his opponent's taijutsu skill. Increasing his speed, Densetsu accelerates to a blur and manages to remove his opponent's mask this time, noticing his opponent is a Hyuga. The Hyuga charges forward again, this time using the Gentle Fist and pressing the Uchiha. While he is just barely able to avoid the blows of the bounty hunter, Densetsu is unable to use ninjutsu as the speed of the attacks were overpowering.
Taking advantage of a brief lapse in the bounty hunter's concentration, Densetsu casts Amenokoyane and traps the Hyuga momentarily; gaining knowledge of some of the hunter's moves in a split second before he snaps out of the Genjutsu. Shocked that someone could recognise Amenokoyane so quickly, Densetsu uses the Shadow Clone Technique and attacks the bounty hunter, however the shadow clones are quickly and almost effortlessly defeated. This gives Densetsu the needed opening and he manages to hit his opponent and thrust him backwards in the trees.
Evacuating the forest, Densetsu is intercepted by the bounty hunter again. Attacking him quickly, Densetsu attempts to find a blindspot in his opponent's defence; quickly appearing behind the Mud Wall that the Hyuga had erected to defend against the fire attack. However, the Byakugan makes sure that every angle of the bounty hunter's defence was well covered. Engaging him in a blade lock, the Hyuga confessed that he had been tailing Densetsu for a long time, gaining knowledge of many of his moves and tactics, pridefully declaring to bring him to the bounty office, dead or alive.
Smiling sarcastically, Densetsu reveals that the bounty hunter had just fallen into a trap. The soil begins to wrap and harden around the Hyuga's torso and legs, and the real Densetsu appears behind the Hyuga, revealing that his initial fire attack was just a distraction to send a clone to attack the bounty hunter, while he remained safely underground to launch a ninjutsu to immobilise the hunter. Cursing and praising the cunning move, the Hyuga who reveals himself to be Kaoru Shin'ya, uses his Eight Trigrams technique to easily break free of the bindings.
He proceeded to attack Densetsu again, this time shifting to a more advanced attacking style to force Densetsu to block. Eventually, Shin'ya lands enough hits on Densetsu's arms, shutting down the chakra points there and rendering him unable to mould chakra with hand seals. Deprived of many of his ninjutsu, Densetsu had to rely on taijutsu to dodge and counter attack his opponent, who had begun switching to more potent and advanced attacking forms. As Shin'ya's speed increased, Densetsu began having difficulty to keep up, even with his Sharingan. The tide tilted in the Hyuga's favour as he intensified his assault, hitting more and more of Densetsu's chakra points.
Densetsu activates his Mangekyō Sharingan, shocking Shin'ya. The fight now shifted in Densetsu's favour and he charged at the bounty hunter with a renewed vigour, launching lightning fast kicks while forcing his opponent back into the jungle. However as the battle raged on, the Mangekyō Sharingan began draining Densetsu of his chakra and he began slowing down. Shin'ya once again pressed, thundering Densetsu with quick and strong attacks, but Densetsu had noticed Shin'ya weakness. While he attacked with high speed, his attacks were mainly based on muscle memory and instinct — meaning he didn't have enough time to think as he attacked. Making use of this flaw, Densetsu flung a flash bomb and blinded Shin'ya for a split second.
Anticipating a sneak attack, Shin'ya went defensive and truly enough countered Densetsu's attempted Tiger Combo. Again Shin'ya pressed on, determined to defeat Densetsu quickly. Taking many hits, Densetsu gradually led Shin'ya towards a large tree and dodged one of the Hyuga's punches. The punch connected with an explosive tag which was strapped to the tree and thrust Shin'ya backwards. Shin'ya finally understood that the flash bomb hadn't been to blind him from Densetsu's sneak attack — it had been to disguise the planting of the explosive tag trap.
However he had no time to react. With his hand burnt by the blast, Densetsu used a toned down version of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms which he had copied with his Sharingan earlier, to hit Shin'ya's chakra points rapidly. Downing the shocked Hyuga, finally he used Amenokoyane again. Due to having his specific chakra points shut down, Kaoru Shin'ya could not escape this time from the Genjutsu since he could not channel chakra to break the genjutsu. Adding another Genjutsu to the mix, Densetsu peeled back the layers of his mind, viewing his past; his roots in Konoha, betraying the village and his clan, joining Takigakure, his suppressed pinings for his family, his regrets and his arrogance. Densetsu deduced that the bounty hunter was actually in the profession layer his guilt for betraying the Leaf and his clan to justify his betrayal by gaining power and defeating powerful ninja with large bounties. Shocked and powerless, the defeated Shin'ya lay on the ground, waiting for Densetsu to finish him.
Densetsu however saw the good in the young man deep down despite his traitorous actions, telling him to go home and surrender his knowledge of Takigakure's actions to Konoha's ANBU to receive a semi-pardon. Putting him into another Genjutsu to enable him to reflect on his actions, Densetsu knocked him out and fled the scene. Over the next month or so, there was no news from Shin'ya in any way, but Densetsu eventually heard rumours that a Hyuga man had returned to Konohagakure weeks before.
As he already was in the Land of Fire, Densetsu returned to Konoha for a brief time, bypassing the security barriers with the codes he knew due to his time in ANBU. Using the Transformation Technique to disguise himself as an old man, Densetsu made his way around the village sentimentally, noting the changes that had occurred in his 3 years away from it. Densetsu decided to pay a short visit to Itachi Uchiha's younger brother, Sasuke Uchiha, finding him with another interesting individual, Naruto Uzumaki. Watching the two from the distance, he noted how Sasuke bore a striking resemblance to his older brother, and reminisced to older days. Densetsu made his way out of the village quickly after that, heading to the Land of the Sun.
Land of Sun Arc
Densetsu arrived at the Land of Sun after reports of a suspicious group of cannibals which were terrorising the locals, especially vulnerable categories like the children, the disabled and the elderly. Victims were always kidnapped and witnesses were always found murdered, the latter always missing body parts. Due to there never being any evidence left behind, local police could never nail down suspects effectively, or make arrests. Densetsu's first order of business was to break into the local police station, immediately stealing the list of apprehended suspects who'd never been pinned down regarding the cases. After a daring midnight raid, the shinobi posed as a wandering tramp with the Transformation Technique, slotting in the midst of the locals uncomfortably, but easily warding of suspicion.
Densetsu eventually singled out the most conspicuous of the suspects, a man known as "Shadow", who ran multiple drug distribution rings and had also been arrested after being last seen with a little girl who was kidnapped half an hour later. As the other suspects on the list weren't seen in public and didn't seem to have such an interesting resume, Densetsu singled Shadow out and began stalking the man, eventually cornering him as he exited a bar alone to urinate. In a quick encounter, Densetsu disarmed Shadow easily, knocking his penknife away before whisking him off to a rooftop to interrogate him.
Densetsu first decided to question the man, adopting the "good cop" approach, but Shadow arrogantly rebuffed him, claiming to have nothing to do with the disappearances. The Uchiha however noticed that Shadow's hands were shaking mildly; which was a sign of Kuru, a disease which cannibals tended to suffer from. To confirm his suspicions, Densetsu placed the man in a fearsome genjutsu, forcing information out of him. While it took a long time, Shadow snapped and revealed the full extent to his involvement in the crimes, as well as confirming the truth in the rumours about the cannibals. He was able to track three men associated with the main group that kept in contact with Shadow. Satisfied, Densetsu deactivated the genjutsu, knocking the man out and dropping him through the roof of the police station. Since Shadow had been on drugs at the bar as well as stashing them in his pockets, Densetsu knew he would have a hard time getting out too soon.
As it was almost daybreak, Densetsu decided to head back to his motel room to rest up and hunt the remaining cannibals down. As they now suspect that someone was hunting them down, Densetsu hoped that the capture of Shadow would thwart any more kidnappings for at least two days. After a brief sleep, dusk approached and Densetsu prepared to hunt again, this time targeting three confirmed suspects which he had identified while interrogating Shadow. He found them soon, in the hideout he had seen in Shadow's mind—an underground construct hidden in an abandoned warehouse. Upon spotting the Uchiha, the men went in the offensive, but Densetsu wasn't in a merciful mood, seeing that the violent cannibals were too dangerous to be left alive. Quickly he killed two, before subduing the final man and interrogating him. Densetsu finally gained knowledge of the final five members of the group of cannibals, immediately setting off to hunt them down on the night itself, as he had seen the discussion the cannibals had par taken in to kidnap a girl that night, in the recently interrogated man's mind. However the moment he turned his back, the subdued man aimed to strike him from behind and kill him. Catching his movement with his Sharingan, Densetsu whirled quickly and decapitated him swiftly before moving on.
Quickly the Uchiha moved, desperate the foil the attempted kidnapping. He spotted commotion at an abandoned area of the village and immediately leaped in, to the scene of the five cannibals subduing a girl. Instantly Densetsu soared from the rooftop, landing on one of them, breaking the man's neck. Flinging his Flying Thunder God Kunai forward, the kunai buried itself into another's head while Densetsu teleported to it, slamming his Rasengan into another and ramming a kick into the neck of another. The two remaining cannibals regrouped and dropped the girl, charging at Densetsu. At point blank range, Densetsu spat a fireball at the two, setting one of them ablaze while the other evaded his attack. Realising that that kind if reflex only came to one with shinobi training, Densetsu charged again, only for the man to leap towards the unconscious girl and hold a kunai to her throat. While he held Densetsu at an ultimatum, the man who was on fire charged at Densetsu, aiming to take the Lightning Chunin with him to an infernal death.
Instantly Densetsu evaded him, but the other man grabbed the girl and dashed away, while Densetsu activated his Fire Release Chakra Mode and gave chase at high speed. The two men exchanged attacks on the rooftops, with Densetsu at a disadvantage as he couldn't risk hitting the girl who was slung on his back. Eventually Densetsu's speed gave him the advantage, and he smashed into the man full on, ramming him through a glass building. The man dropped the girl, sending her plummeting to her demise but Densetsu used his Flying Thunder God Technique to save the young girl, shielding her but dislocating his shoulder in the process. Taking advantage if the distraction, the cannibalistic shinobi leaped down in an attempt to kill the Uchiha and the girl, who had just woken up after the impact of her cushioned fall. Evading the attack aimed at him, the Human Torch heroically got in the way of the projectiles targeting the girl, taking two kunai in the back.
Immediately Densetsu incapacitated the man without even turning around, before quickly spinning and finishing him off. Densetsu grimaced in pain before removing the kunai in his back, much to the chorus of the girl's concern and gratitude. As several police appeared in front of the building, the Uchiha disappeared in his signature style: with the Fire Release Chakra Mode, which told every soul that the Human Torch had struck again. Posing again as the tramp, Densetsu received medical treatment for his wounds briefly in the outskirts of the village before leaving quickly after being stitched and bandaged.
Akatsuki Emergence Arc
After another sterling mission in the Land of Sun which further cemented his reputation, Densetsu ran into the activities of the Akatsuki. In a regular crime bust, Densetsu managed to apprehend and defeat an associate of the Akatsuki member known as Sasori. Intrigued by the strange smuggling activities the associate and his fellow thugs were carrying out, Densetsu probed further and caught a glimpse of Sasori instructing the man to obtain intel from Sunagakure, but further probings were irrelevant as Densetsu discovered that the man's memories had been wiped.
This random encounter tickled Densetsu's curiosity and through his investigations, he found out about the shady activities of Sasori, and eventually the Akatsuki. Obtaining a list of suspected activities the Akatsuki had been undertaking, Densetsu realised that a great evil had been running rampant in the shadows all along. Eventually, news reached Densetsu about the appearance of the Akatsuki in a town near his home, Konoha, which Itachi Uchiha had taken part in; much to Densetsu's bewilderment. Putting all that aside, the Uchiha resolved to handle his current assignment before worrying about the Akatsuki.
Hunting the remnants of Sasori's associate's gang, Densetsu did battle with the gang at an abandoned train station, subduing the lesser skilled shinobi without much effort. However the Uchiha's triumph was interrupted with a loud explosion, as two figures entered the abandoned station. Densetsu's quick reflexes enabled him to narrowly evade a sudden jab from a scorpion tail-like object, as the young vigilante was faced by Sasori himself, and his partner Deidara. Using Densetsu's 'meddling' as an excuse, Sasori threatened the Uchiha, telling him to carry his business elsewhere or die painfully. Deidara pointed out that his partner usually wasn't this merciful, and that Densetsu should merely back away.
Analysing the situation, Densetsu activates his Sharingan instantly, refusing to be bullied into submission by the two, declaring that he'd meddle all he wanted. Enraged, Sasori quickly fires a hail of senbon at the Uchiha, while Deidara fumes after realising that his opponent possessed the Sharingan. Densetsu rolled away from the open, taking cover behind a pillar as the senbon bounced harmlessly off. Noticing the purple stains on the projectiles, Densetsu deduced that Sasori poisoned all his weapons, before a swing from Sasori's tail smashed the pillar he was sheltering behind. Quickly he incinerated the area Sasori had attacked from, completely burning the puppeteer's cloak, revealing Sasori's Hiruko puppet, also revealing that Sasori was a puppeteer. However, Deidara immediately attacked with his explosive clay insects, forcing Densetsu to retreat. This time from behind the smoke and flames, Sasori attacked again, pelting Densetsu with more senbon, which were blocked by the quick witted teenager's Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall. Again, several explosives from Deidara blasted through his defence as Densetsu was again forced on the defensive, giving ground.
As the Akatsuki duo relentlessly pushed him back, Densetsu made use of the smoke; digging his way underground while sending out shadow clones through the smoke to fight on his behalf, while he assaulted the duo from their blindsides. The ruse worked, and Densetsu emerged behind Deidara from underground, landing a hit below the belt and tossing Deidara on the railroad. As his clones attempted to corner Sasori with a charged attack, Densetsu again narrowly dodged Hiruko's lethal tail, forced to back away. The two clones were dispatched by a swift strike from Hiruko's tail, as Deidara blasted a few more explosives at Densetsu, who was hurt in the attack, being thrown backwards through a window. As Sasori gave chase to finish him off, Densetsu detonated an explosive tag which he had flung on the roof before he fell; sending rubble towards the Hiruko puppet, crushing its' left arm as the puppet managed to escape. Noticing he still couldn't see the real Sasori, Densetsu peered through the puppet and with his ability to see chakra flow utilising the Sharingan, realised to his horror that Sasori was a small, disgusting organ; where all the chakra was emanating from.
Before he could attack, Deidara intervened, appearing next to Densetsu to strike a fatal blow, but the Uchiha whirled around and impaled the Explosion Release user with a lightning type attack. 'Deidara' however turned out to be a clay clone as Sasori brought out his prized puppet; the Third Kazekage. The real Deidara appeared ahead behind Sasori, as his clay clone suddenly split into many tiny clay minions; as Densetsu leaped for cover. There were massive explosions, but keen not to underestimate Densetsu who was holding the two off to a stalemate, he sent more explosives into the area, detonating them simultaneously. Again Densetsu emerged unscathed further behind them, as he unleashed a massive Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique at the duo, while feeding the flames with his Wind Release: Rapid Fire Projectiles, creating a fearsome inferno which engulfed the area around the two Akatsuki, making escape virtually impossible.
However, Sasori's puppet fended off the attack using its Iron Sand, as the puppet proceeded to launch the Iron Sand towards Densetsu, who was forced to duck and evade, while Deidara furiously set up numerous explosives to corner him. Noticing Deidara's eyepiece, Densetsu blinded him with a flash bomb temporarily, while he zipped away from Sasori's constant attacks. Leaping on the roof, Densetsu caught Deidara's attention as the later flung more clay towards the roof, detonating it but only catching a shadow clone. This time, Deidara seemingly had hit Densetsu, and prepared to blow him up, before a hard knock on his head from Sasori dispelled the Genjutsu he was in.
Deidara cursed as he realised that Densetsu had purposely set up the roof charade to trap him in a Genjutsu, purposely "blinding" him to distract him, then drawing his attention to the roof, wherein which Deidara would be forced to look into his Sharingan, putting him in a brief, but effective Genjutsu. Densetsu had made his escape during the flash bomb incident, evading even Sasori and escaping through the hole which the two Akatsuki had entered from. Far away, Densetsu studied the station, before begrudgingly admitting that he had almost met his match, and that the Akatsuki would have to be one of his main goals from then onwards.
Part II
Criminal X Arc
During the time skip, Densetsu's fame spread and his powers had improved even further. Now even respected by Kage level shinobi, Densetsu was now a controversial occupant in the Bingo Book, and only Root agents were still sent on his tail off and on. Keeping up with the Akatsuki and even Jashinists, Densetsu however had been occupied over the two years by a group of criminals led by the legendary and infamous ANBU killer, Criminal X.
Over time, Densetsu had been trying to research Criminal X's history, but the crime lord was as elusive as Densetsu was, carrying out robberies and murders and never leaving witnesses to tell tales of his strengths or weaknesses. Criminal X's henchmen were also well trained, capable of facing ANBU level shinobi with relative ease. However Densetsu's silent gathering of intelligence had still not been detected by Criminal X or his henchmen, so the Uchiha anonymously sent information on the organisations hideouts to the various ANBU black ops of different villages.
With the tip offs, Criminal X's cronies were gradually picked off one by one by suprise attacks led by ANBU black ops, with Densetsu always watching smugly from a distance, hidden. Eventually a few weeks later, a team of ANBU black ops assaulted a warehouse, only to be faced with a hooded masked man with a scythe. The man quickly proved to be a dangerous adversary, charging and killing two of the ANBU with his scythe the moment they entered the building. Capitalising on the remaining two members' shock, he charged again with his scythe and attacked again, however both the ANBU evaded the attack. Before he could launch another attack, Densetsu arrived and blocked his impending attack with a katana.
The other two ANBU recognised Densetsu as the Human Torch, and attempted to launch an attack at the masked man while Densetsu held him in a blade lock, however the man stomped on the ground quickly and summoned a Rashōmon wall, blocking both ANBU's ninjutsu attacks and causing Densetsu to retreat. The masked man left them no time to launch attacks, viciously desummoning his Rashōmon wall and immediately smashing his scythe in front of Densetsu and the two ANBU. While Densetsu jumped onto the top of the warehouse and held on to the ceiling, the masked man made quick work of the ANBU, punching one of them causing the ANBU operative to explode and decapitating the other one. Densetsu was shocked by the man's power, but immediately attacked from the ceiling, catching the masked man offguard in a series of explosions.
Densetsu jumped back to the ground, only to narrowly dodge a blow from the masked man who had appeared suddenly behind him. Shocked by the man's prowess, Densetsu rolled away and attacked again, this time using his Clone Shuriken Combo to overpower and suddenly appear behind the masked man, stabbing the masked man in the neck with a kunai. Again Densetsu expressed shock when the man casually pulled the kunai out of his throat unscathed. Wielding his scythe with surprising speed, the man forced Densetsu on the defensive, taking advantage of the Uchiha's lapse in concentration, unleashing a stream of lava at Densetsu. Densetsu reacted quickly to the Lava, utilising a fire ninjutsu and earth ninjutsu to neutralise and block the lava, respectively.
Praising Densetsu's versatility and skill, the masked man realises that ANBU black ops have surrounded the warehouse, and tells Densetsu that they will face again alone very soon, and that Densetsu would die then. When Densetsu attempts to stop him by using the Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet technique, the masked man creates a powerful explosion technique which destroys the whole warehouse. Densetsu is forced to momentarily use his Susanoo's ribcage to shield himself from the huge blast, but after the explosion, he notices the masked man has disappeared. Knowing the ANBU would move in soon, Densetsu quickly speeds away, intent on finding and neutralising the masked man.
Throughout the weeks, a series of grizzly rocked the great ninja nations, as the mutilated corpses of shinobi were found dumped in front of the borders of the great villages. Some of the bodies were charred, and Densetsu suspected strongly that it was done by the masked man. Eventually a big message painted in blood was found near Konohagakure, reading "Human Torch, I'm coming for you." Densetsu now knew without doubt that it was the masked man. Eventually a full scale attack on a nearby port caught Densetsu's attention. A man was seen carrying a scythe, killing innocent bystanders and slaughtering shinobi who fought back. Making his way to the location, Densetsu did battle with several of the masked man's henchman, allowing nearby bystanders to escape.
See main article: Duel of Destiny: The Chūnin Face Off
In a long drawn out duel, Densetsu and Iwao fought until the port was reduced to flame and rubble. Time and time again Densetsu landed critical blows on Iwao, who simply healed himself and fought Densetsu's wit with brutal power. Eventually Densetsu managed to seal Iwao's Kekkei Genkai, the Lava and Explosion Releases, after masterminding a brilliant move which took Iwao off guard. As Iwao's rage grew, the fought moved to the nearby forests, where Iwao gained a quick advantage by using the Wood Release.[2]
As Iwao used a Wood Dragon to decimate the area and overpower Densetsu, who summoned the Susanoo as the two waged a battle of epic proportions. The battle shifted to a nearby town, where both men engaged in a ground duel again, activating Sage Mode. Tossing each other through buildings in a display of sheer power and skill, they attacked each other without holding back and eventually Densetsu's wit won. Using two Lightning powered attacks to pressure Iwao's nervous system, Densetsu manages to fry the immortal's muscles and his nerves, rendering him immobile. Frustratedly Iwao concedes defeat, tearfully enraged that he cannot beat Densetsu no matter how powerful he becomes. Densetsu talks to him and points out his errors, before delivering Iwao back to Kirigakure to spend time incarcerated
Family
After a month of secretly watching the Jashin Cult and the defeat of Akuhei Iwao, Densetsu was batling a few rogue ninja near the borders of Kumogakure. Easily defeating them, Densetsu prepared to flee the scene as a group of Kumo ANBU approached. However one of them called out to him, causing him to temporarily pause. As he turned around, the ANBU who had called him removed his own animal mask while his allies apprehended the downed suspect. Densetsu was shocked, as it was revealed to be his older brother. As his brother ran and tearfully hugged him, Densetsu was speechless, still dumbfounded as he has finally stumbled across a family member. While the other ANBU cornered Densetsu to capture him, Densetsu whispered to his brother, telling him to return home and wait for him there. His brother did not understand, but after flinging a flashbomb, Densetsu disappeared. Densetsu would reappear an hour later, revealing that he marked his brother and teleported to him via the Flying Thunder God Technique. In front of the two men were their parents, who eyed Densetsu with tears and shock. In his mother's embrace, Densetsu broke down as well, behaving like a little child again as he poured out all his years of loneliness and sadness, without knowing where his parents and brother were. Densetsu's father and Densetsu talked after the emotional outburst, about his life and the events that had led up to their meeting. Densetsu lured the full details of the Uchiha Clan Massacre, to his battle with Danzō, to his current status as a wanted mercenary. After a happy, merry lunch with his family, Densetsu declared that he had to leave to continue his latest mission, which set spirits low again. Densetsu however promised to visit them soon, leaving a Flying Thunder God Kunai with his mother and promising to return when he mastered the technique, before disappearing.
Plague Arc
A new threat rose up Densetsu's radar very soon, a member of Akuhei Iwao's cult, Jashin. Densetsu has reason to believe this individual known as Pestillence was planning a deadly attack on Konoha itself; thanks to a lucky bit of information he uncovered during a routine battle with a team of smugglers. Hunting this mysterious individual down, Densetsu discovered the reason behind his notoriety, and the reason he could be a threat to the whole of Konoha singlehandedly. Pestillence was aptly named as such because of his own unique execution of the Jashin Cursed Techniques, able to turn his own blood into a powdery substance together with his chakra and distributing it into the air, killing any organism that inhaled it like a vicious poison. Pestillence was also one of the followers of Jashinism that had successfully become immortal, with three other henchmen who called themselves collectively as 'The Plague'.
After gathering this information, Densetsu decided to take this group on alone; after finding reason to believe that they had insiders in the target village—hence making a tipoff useless. Densetsu compiled lists of their activities and habits, stalking them from the shadows and witnessing their efficiency with his own eyes—as they effortlessly carved into their enemies without hesitation. Pestillence however was as observant as he was dangerous, suspecting that someone was watching their movements, even more so after discovering that one of their crates had been destroyed when their shipment was attacked the previous week by Densetsu himself. Making it a point to flush out this unknown assailant who was suspected to be the Human Torch, Pestillence attempted to bait him by setting up another false shipment near Konoha. While tempted, the spontaneous nature of this shipment sent alarms ringing in Densetsu's mind; and he left it as it was, choosing not to sabotage it, but nevertheless he showed up at the site, in case it truly was the real deal—a risk he was forced to take.
However he had still played to Pestillence's plan, and both Pestillence and Densetsu knew this. One of the three other members of the Plague spotted Densetsu in hiding and began his assault, setting off a frenzied commotion in the tree tops; a sign that he had been dispatched to end the individual who had been interrupting their plans. Knowing that this twisted foe was not one who could be redeemed, Densetsu removed the chains that bound him, brutalising his assailant, who was no match for him. Each swing of the Uchiha's blade parried the man's twin machetes, taking a slice of flesh with each counter, before taking the man's head as well. In the ensuing violence, the smugglers below dropped the crate: which turned out to be a bomb, designed to blow up when the crate was tampered with. Densetsu's quick thinking enabled him to save the smugglers' lives, quickly creating a thick wall of earth to separate them from the crate, the force of the explosion completely destroying the wall, but shielding the men from the brunt of the attack but nevertheless causing them injury. Returning to the still alive, severed head of the Plague henchman, Densetsu decided to send his own message as the foul mouthed man cursed at him in foul words.
When Pestillence arrived at the scene a few hours later, he arrived to the scene of his henchman's still living head skewered to the wall with his own machete; his tongue burnt off by his attacker to prevent him from talking, the look of mad fear etched into his eyes as his body lay many feet away. This sight terrified Pestillence's other henchmen as well, as nobody had ever brutalised one of them in such a manner; but Pestillence's rage grew, determined to see his plan through and destroy Konoha, whose ninja invaded his village and slaughtered his wife his the process many years back. Pestillence started seeing to his plans personally, doubling security and stealth as he commenced his final stage—executing the plan. Densetsu knew that his best chance would be to allow Pestillence to gather all his tools, before ultimately ruining his plan once there was nothing left to add. A clean, efficient sweep.
The remaining members of the Plague prepared for this final clash, eager to add the Human Torch to the altar of sacrifice to Lord Jashin. As they made their journey to Konoha, Densetsu attacked. The Plague's two henchmen faced off against Densetsu to buy Pestillence time to reach Konoha. Densetsu learned of his true plan finally as he did battle with these two; Pestilence would act as a 'bomb' spreading his blood into the air ahead of Konoha, killing the citizens with his diseased curse. Konoha would not see this cruel plan coming, this terrifying sleeper cell. With cruel but well founded rationale, Densetsu blasted the full power of his Fire Release Cloak onto the duo as Pestilence rushed ahead, incinerating the forests surrounding the duo with intense flames, heating the air to such an extent the Jashinists' lungs burnt before they could even scream. The fires were intense, melting the skin off their bodies immediately, before moving onto the muscle. Even their trained pain tolerance could not withstand this rage as their eyeballs melted, Densetsu ended their futile resistance by dashing forward, decapitating both with one sweep of his blade before chasing Pestilence down at high speed.
He intercepted the last Jashinist right on time, battering him aside from Konoha's route, engaging in yet another duel with the man. Knowing his blood's lethality, Densetsu was forced to both defend himself and prevent the man from drawing his own blood, leading to a frenzied battle. As Pestilence chastised him, Densetsu fought on, ensuring that the Jashinist would not be able to make his way closer to Konoha. With his mastery over flames, Densetsu duelled Pestilence to a stalemate, dealing vicious blows while cauterising the wounds, preventing potentially lethal blood to leak out. Despite having the clear upper hand, Densetsu was shocked by Pestilence's resilience and his dedication to the twisted cause he had in his mind, causing him to question Pestilence motives while holding him in a bladelock. It was then when the Jashinist snarled his past out that Densetsu understood.
It was Densetsu's ANBU team that had infiltrated Pestilence's village. It had been Densetsu who had slain Pestilence wife. Pestilence was doing this because he wanted Konoha to feel the pain he had felt, that incomparable pain of loss. His devotion to Jashin had simply been to gain the means for this vengeance. In this monologue, he managed to finally slit his wrist; forcing Densetsu to fall back hastily, covering the road to Konohagakure. As the poisonous blood spread in the air, Densetsu's Susanoo activated, moving into its second stage of manifestation to block out the particles. At a stalemate, Densetsu declared his apology earnestly, frustrated internally that yet another one of the blunders of his past had led to another vicious villain's formation. He however declared to Pestilence that he wouldn't have anyone threaten Konoha with such violence, despite being the core cause for that motive, utilising his Susanoo to instantly trap the man. As Pestilence raged inside the orb, cursing and cursing Densetsu, the Uchiha activated the attack, draining the pressure and air from the orb to force the blood pressure inside Pestilence's body to blast outwards; blowing him up from inside out inside the sphere. Though his shattered body was still very much alive, Densetsu activated his final countermeasure, gathering Senjutsu before channeling massive amounts of chakra and causing the orb to sink deep ground and sealing it with a Sage Technique, effectively burying the blown up Jashinist and his blood hundreds of feet below the earth, where it would soon become harmless.
But Pestilence had effectively lost his existence that day. His plan foiled, the broken shell that remained would live on, immobile and falling into hypoxia due to an immense loss of blood, he would probably spend the rest of his life unconscious, before dying of malnutrition. Yet another gruesome, albeit dark victory for the Human Torch, who cursed his past for creating another villain.
Rise of the Hunter Arc
After a long absence of over ten years, Densetsu's greatest enemy would finally resurface—the psychopathic former ANBU Captain of Kumogakure, and current S-rank criminal, Masa Nakamura. Ever since their first, bloody encounter whereupon Densetsu had forced the loss of Nakamura's left hand after killing Nakamura's entire team, and the criminal had killed Hiroki Nara, the Uchiha's best friend, both men had kept each other on their minds; Nakamura more than Densetsu. When Nakamura started carried out the shocking assassination of the Land of Waves' Daimyō, Densetsu had already begun tracking him down, chasing the illusive criminal from the shadows. When Nakamura managed to hit down the heavily guarded Land of Wind's Daimyo while slaughtering three of his elite guards, Densetsu devoted his full attention to the madman; who also had noticed that the Torch was after him. Nakamura began leaving cryptic, violent messages for Densetsu, mutilating corpses and leaving notes that only the Uchiha could decipher, goading him and challenging him to find him.
Nakamura killed and killed, taking down evildoers, innocent civilians and anyone who stood in his way, brutally leaving a ghastly crime scene each time with a sickening tone of nonchalance to his actions. Though hot on his heels, Densetsu was constantly foiled by Masa Nakamura's great intellectual prowess, impeded by the numerous, intricate false leads Nakamura employed. However, Densetsu caught a breakthrough after reading Nakamura's erratic patterns, seeing that the older man was using these murders as a foil and maze to disguise a bigger plot, one which Densetsu would have to unravel. Nakamura's next action was an especially bold one, breaking into the first news station ever and slaughtering the security and crew, unleashing a chilling public address to the first televisions strewn across the metropolises. In a nauseating video, he executed several survivors on live screen, declaring his message in a single finishing quote: if the world could not achieve peace, he would herald the coming of chaos as a substitute. He challenged his pursuers especially the Human Torch, who was watching the horrifying telecast from a nearby city, daring him to stop the next big plot.
Densetsu theorised that Nakamura could target another prominent leader, the only thing big enough to further highlight his power and even establish a following; or underline whatever mad message he was trying to bring forth to the world. Arriving at the telecommunications news station to a sight of mutilated, disembowelled corpses, Densetsu noted that certain video clippings had been left scattered on the floor. Upon quickly inserting these clippings into the player ahead of him, he discovered that the clips were different videos of the Land of Fire's Daimyo on his recent tour, his elite guards following him; probably this would have been aired as prooo games later, before the station was attacked. The Uchiha suspected that Nakamura had been studying these videos to gain insight on the old leader's defences, but quickly being forced to leave the moment local law enforcement arrived at the crime scene.
Masa Nakamura's attack took place exactly a week after the Station Masscacre. In a cunning move, Masa attacked the Daimyō's convoy, having booby trapped the route they were taking. Easily eliminating the normal guards with his Storm Release, he was faced with the current generation of the Elite Daimyo Protection Force, where he decapitated the first amomg them to charge at him with frightening ease. As Nakamura duelled the remaining members, he managed to separate them with a smokescreen of lead, before using this insane smokescreen to electrocute a whole group of them after he had clumped them together; killing another two while injuring many of the others badly. His surprise spree was interrupted by the arrival of the masked Densetsu, who managed to direct the battle away from the floored Daimyo and his dying guards. In a ferocious battle, Nakamura expressed his glee that he had got Densetsu on his trail for a showdown; instantly going all out against the Uchiha, who reciprocated in kind. After an intense exchange of elemental attacks, Nakamura outwitted Densetsu when the latter moved in to paralyse the former with his clones—shattering Densetsu's mask; the former revealing that he too utilised clones in battle.
Facing an enemy of superb intelligence, Densetsu's defensive Fūinjutsu had been discovered, and thus the two combatants progressed even further away from the initial chaos, pushing each others' wits and cunning to the limits as they exchanged tricks and flicks. Having withstood each other's utilisation of intellect, Nakamura gained a quick upper hand again, managing to stab Densetsu twice after noting a weakness in his reaction speed; forcing Densetsu to even up the odds with Susanoo. Not expecting this in his equation, Nakamura now took his turn on the backfoot as the injured Uchiha pressed on, eventually utilising a basic, but perfectly timed Academy trick to draw Nakamura's attention at a crucial moment—capitalising on the briefest distraction to smash a rudimentary Rasengan into the man's shoulder. Although Nakamura still managed to dodge most of the attack's lethality, he was injured too badly to continue; but before Densetsu could knock him out—he revealed his 'gift' to the Uchiha for beating him this time; a tipoff that Konoha would be attacked pretty soon, probably that day itself in fact—by the leader of the Akatsuki himself. While the injured, tired Densetsu glared at him with suspicion as the Daimyo Protection Force closed in again, Nakamura pointed to the skies, where an incredible amount of smoke was rising from the direction of Konoha. Without even hesitating, Densetsu shot away to his home despite his injuries, determined to partake in the defence of his village, knowing just how dangerous the Akatsuki were. The cunning, injured Masa thus escaped again, utilising a brief distraction to escape from his incoming pursuers, deeming Densetsu to be "too interesting to kill", while also setting his sights on another criminal group, deciding to lay low for the timebeing to recuperate.
Invasion of Konoha Arc
Arriving just in time to participate in the defence of Konoha after managing to only just survive against Masa Nakamura, the tired Densetsu witnessed the destruction of Konoha by the hands of the Asura Path. Realising the main danger would be the summons of the Animal Path, Densetsu chased it down; taking on one of the ox summons. Quickly overpowering it with ninjutsu, Densetsu used one of his Fire techniques to set the ox on fire, causing the Animal Path to quickly de-summon it before it died. Reaching the Animal Path, Densetsu engaged in taijutsu attacks to prevent the Animal Path from summoning more beasts.
Eventually, Densetsu bypasses its' defence, sending it a kick which sends it flying through a wall. Going through the wall, the Uchiha is ambushed by the Human Path, which in turn throws Densetsu back out into the streets. Appearing behind him, it attempts to quickly extract his soul and kill him, while searching for Naruto Uzumaki's whereabouts, but Densetsu's speed enables him to quickly manoeuvre himself to dodge the move. Launching a swift counter attack, Densetsu uses the another ninjutsu to try andelectrocute the Human Path, which evades his attack. Activating his Sharingan, Densetsu charges again, but this time is punched in the face by the resurgent Animal Path. With the help of his Sharingan, Densetsu evens up the odds taijutsu wise, launching quick attacks against the Animal Path while avoiding the lethal Human Path's hands.
Finding an opening, Densetsu manages to restrain the Human Path and uses a Fireball technique to briefly push back the Animal Path, however his efforts are in vain as the Deva Path arrives after just defeating Kakashi Hatake. Freeing the Human Path, the Animal and Human Paths retreat to other parts of the village while the Deva Path states that he must destroy Densetsu to make sure the Uchiha cannot meddle any further.
Despite using all his tricks and switching between various forms of ninjutsu, Densetsu is repelled easily by the Deva Path, just like earlier. Noting a time limit this time between Pain's abilities, Densetsu prepares to activate the Mangekyō Sharingan, but a well timed Shinra Tensei hits him full on, smashing him into rubble. Noting that Densetsu had used too much chakra against the previous Paths and was now fatigued, Pain drives a chakra receiver through Densetsu; however it turns out that "Densetsu" was just a Shadow Clone. Using the Toad Flatness technique, Densetsu emerged from Deva Path's shadow and prepared a sneak attack, but Pain, having known of Jiraiya's use the technique, countered him quickly by using another Shinra Tensei at point blank range.
The impact of the technique shatters some of Densetsu's ribs and left arm, but resiliently he performs another quick fire ninjutsu technique to exploit the time limit imposed by Shinra Tensei. However, another one of the Six Paths of Pain, the Preta Path, arrives and absorbs the ninjutsu. Shocked and almost out of chakra, Densetsu's Sharingan deactivates. Unable to use the Sharingan, activate the Mangekyō Sharingan or use any powerful techniques, Densetsu struggles to even stand; determined to take down both Pains somehow. Seeing his opponent was out of chakra, the Deva Path uses a final attack to topple a building and to send the rubble crashing down on Densetsu. With Kakashi and Densetsu out of the way, the Six Paths proceed with a fullscale assault on Konoha. Near death, Densetsu notes that he is too badly wounded to move as one of his ribs had pierced his right lung, and the rubble had broken his left knee; to add to the two badly bandaged stab wounds he had received at Masa's hands. Katsuyu however attaches herself to him and attempts to heal him, however Densetsu is forced to push himself beyond his limits, utilising the remnants of his chakra for another altruistic deed. Pain's destructive mega attack sends a fatal shockwave towards all of them, but Densetsu notes that the damaged daycare building ahead of them was exposed—containing forty children and a few adults, all cowering in fear. With selfless determination, he channels his chakra to create a massive earthen wall around them, shielding them from the worst of the shockwave and debris; before succumbing to the physical strain and losing consciousness.
Densetsu survives the massive destructive attack Pain launches on Konoha after being shielded by Katsuyu. After Naruto Uzumaki's victory against Pain however, Densetsu is jailed after being apprehended by Root; with Danzō ominously promising to "deal with him" after returning from the Kage Summit.
Pardon and Return to Konoha
After it transpired that Danzō had been killed by Sasuke Uchiha, Densetsu is brought before Tsunade; as Root has officially disbanded and its prisoners, freed. There, he explains his whole tale to Tsunade, explaining he's done running and wishes to stay home. Tsunade, still suspicious questions his motives further, but Densetsu responds that he did not have to return to Konoha to help them against Pain, but chose to do so anyway. Densetsu also further elaborates that he could have traded Konoha's secrets or helped the Akatsuki, but never did; in fact risking his life by returning to defend the village against Pain knowing fully well that Danzō would be nearby. Tsunade soon is fully convinced by Densetsu's innocence after several former Root members reveal the nature in which Danzō targeted Densetsu, the harassment he received all those years. An official pardon is issued worldwide, and Densetsu is removed from the list of missing-nin eventually, offered the chance to rejoin the ANBU black ops again, though this time as a normal member.
Densetsu however refuses, asking that Tsunade instead assign him to the Academy as an instructor. Tsunade accepts his request and officially promotes him to the rank of Jōnin. Now a free man whose deeds as a hero worshipped by the citizens of Konohagakure—especially after they had witnessed him take on Pain along with the defenders of the village, while also saving those children from certain death. Densetsu strode the ravaged streets and made his way past the the curious admiration of the villagers and to his old home. His landlord had passed away shortly before Pain's Invasion but apart from some minor damage, the house was still standing. It also transpired that the landlord had penned a will and inherited all her fortunes to Densetsu, whom she had grown to view as a son. Noting that his exile was over, Densetsu heads off to each of his safe houses, emptying them all and bringing their contents back to Konoha. Happily, Densetsu dons his forehead protector on his head again, officially back home, then heading to the streets to aid in the rebuilding of his home. Densetsu also begins training on implementing Minato Namikaze's sealing formulae into his own specialised kunai, to bring his Flying Thunder God Technique to the next level. Densetsu also meets Shinzui Uchiha, an ancient Uchiha at this time, kick starting a swashbuckling friendship filled with sake and adventure after a training session—the older man would end up becoming Densetsu's best friend and mentor to the ways of the world, his unique wisdom enlightening Densetsu's steps.
Battling the Brotherhood
First Phase
See Main Article: Conspiracy! The Brotherhood Shows Itself!
One silent night in Konoha, Densetsu was resting atop the Hokage Monument, enjoying life back home. Joined by his long-time girlfriend, Hitomi Sarutobi, the two had a jovial conversation before their moment was interrupted by Densetsu spotting several suspicious lights. Uncovering a small group of invaders headed to Tsunade's residences, the duo split up and engage the forces, quickly subduing the invaders before the ANBU arrive.
The next day, Densetsu was reunited with his former foes-turned-allies; Akuhei Iwao and Kaoru Shin'ya, on a highly secretive mission organised by the Allied Shinobi Force to silently break down a mysterious group known as The Brotherhood, whose suspicious archaeological activities had put the nations on high alert especially after a dual attack on Kumogakure and Konohagakure the previous day, both attacks had been foiled by Densetsu and his brother Kazuo, respectively. Making their way to a site which the Brotherhood was suspected to be carrying out mining operations, the lethal trio eliminate the guards and bring down the barriers, thanks to Densetsu's ingenuity and Akuhei's raw power. Upon entering the base, the trio are attacked by a large group of ninja, with Akuhei and Kaoru holding off the group while Densetsu made use of the distraction to infiltrate the command post.
Entering the building while his allies handled the mess outside, Densetsu was ambushed by Eji Arata as he attempted to examine a set of blueprints on a nearby table. Initially forced on the defensive, Densetsu eventually made short work of Arata after the latter's abilities were read by the Uchiha, who led Arata into a trap before blowing his feet off, before being forced to finish the older man off with a swift decapitation, procuring the documents with ease.
Outside, Akuhei and Kaoru had killed Yumiya, who had attempted to ambush the duo and given both a long duel. Iwao destroyed the entire lair while the survivors fled as the trio retreated to Konoha again. Submitting the new blueprinted evidence to Tsunade, the true motives of the organisation were clear—they intended to revive an ancient goliath called Sensō, and use him against the Allied Forces who were at war on other fronts, effectively eliminating resistance quickly. Densetsu, Kaoru and Akuhei were swiftly deployed on an important mission which would decide the fate of the world; to stop the Brotherhood from reviving Sensō at all costs.
Second Phase
The second phase of the battle was a straightforward one. The Brotherhood had reached the site where Sensō lay dormant, attempting to awaken him. Arriving at the site, Densetsu, Kaoru and Akuhei utilise their strongest techniques respectively—Susanoo, Wood Release: Wood Human Technique and the Eight Gates to overcome a vicious onslaught led by the members of the Brotherhood. In their way stood many of the command chain of the Brotherhood and normal members, who were trying to stall their advance, while their leader Katsuro Minoru made his way to Sensō. His bodyguards, Setsuna Yuki and Hotaru Miyagi, made their way to attack the incoming trio. Eventually the trio defeated a few of them—Akuhei killing the Senrō twins, Densetsu converting Pakura Arata from the Brotherhood and Kaoru defeating Gozen; pushing into the site by force until they were confronted by Setsuna and Hotaru, as well as the remainder of the chain of command. There, the trio were momentarily forced backwards—Densetsu being unable to utilise his Mangekyō Sharingan due to the risk of strain, Akuhei getting pinned by Setsuna's attacks and Kaoru being unable to progress due to being flanked by Hotaru's puppets. Eventually Densetsu manages to suppress Setsuna, forcing the older man back with a well coordinated Flying Thunder God Technique, enabling the powerful Akuhei to zip forward and destroy all of Hotaru's puppets. As Pakura and Densetsu team up to fight the remaining adversaries, Kaoru and Setsuna engage in an intense battle while Akuhei does battle with a giant puppet commandeered by Hotaru.
Knowing time is of the essence, the trio and Pakura switch targets and resort to clever guerrilla style alternating attacks to confuse their adversaries. Eventually Akuhei brutally murders several of the Brotherhood's lower ranking members, in turn disorientating Setsuna who is killed by the resurgent Kaoru. Akuhei and Densetsu in turn chase after Katsuro while Pakura and Kaoru battle Hotaru and his Master Puppets, triumphing after Pakura clogs Hotaru's puppets with Iron Sand and Kaoru knocks him out. However her usage of her signature technique drains her of her chakra and she is rendered unconscious while Kaoru drops her off away from the mines before rushing in to help his comrades. Akuhei and Densetsu meanwhile face Katsuro, who is attempting to buy time for Sensō's revival. The two attack him with powerful elemental attacks, but all their attacks are seemingly neutralised by the old man. Despite switching between various forms of ninjutsu and Akuhei utilising all three of his Kekkei Genkai, both men are attacked by and overwhelmed by Minoru—combining his defence with the Shadow manipulation of the Nara clan; which ironically enables Densetsu to see through the mechanics behind Katsuro's defence. Katsuro also displays a shocking ability to transfer his lifeforce and being to his Yin Clones, rendering critical damage useless. As Kaoru arrives, all three switch to Taijutsu and Akuhei's Jashin techniques (both of which cannot be neutralised by his defence, as Densetsu hypothesised), and with arduous effort and a brilliantly worked counterattack, they seemingly defeat the old man. Their victory however is short-lived as Sensō erupts from the ground, grabbing Akuhei and smashing him through the walls as Densetsu shields himself and Kaoru with his Susanoo—somehow activating it without his Mangekyō Sharingan being active.
Battling Sensō and Endgame
As Senso is released from his ancient tomb, he immediately breaks out of the mines with a powerful blast of chakra which destroys the entire complex, easily venturing back to the surface. As the facility caves in, Densetsu and Kaoru escape the collapse by shooting out from underground via Densetsu's complete Susanoo; which had also grown wings. Senso's victorious crowing about his return to the world is short lived, as a resurgent Akuhei charges at him with the Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique, attacking the behemoth while Densetsu's Susanoo lands directly on Senso, smashing the ancient creature into the soil. Senso quickly demonstrates why he was feared by the ancients, grabbing Densetsu's Susanoo with one hand and flinging it across the landscape many kilometres away while shattering Akuhei's Wood Dragon with a single, powerful punch. Senso shifts his attacks to Akuhei, attempting to pummel the former Jashinist who defends himself with a mixture of Explosion and Lava based attacks while Senso intensifies his barrage.
Densetsu quickly reenters the fray, his Susanoo now armed with the fabled Triduum Spear as he deals a savage thrust to Senso from the back, before completely manhandling the giant with a volley of Susanoo's punches. Akuhei blasts a vicious torrent of Lava from behind Senso as well, scalding the behemoth and enraging him further. Regenerating quickly from Densetsu's attack, Senso unleashes a powerful Water-based attack which floods the landscape and washes his opponents away, while he unleashes a fire element attack at Densetsu, destroying his Susanoo before the Uchiha could react defensively. Akuhei again attacks after coming close to the behemoth unnoticed, using the Wood Release: Wood Human Technique to attempt to match Senso pound by pound. Densetsu meanwhile summons Gamamora to transport himself and Kaoru while fighting Senso. Together, they attack Senso viciously, constantly battered by his strength and immense durability. Eventually, Densetsu comes up with a plan to attempt to overwhelm Senso with brute force while jettisoning Kaoru onto Senso's head in the chaos; to locate a weak spot and exploit it. Akuhei uses his Wood Release to create a massive forest which reduces the mobility of all of the combatants at Densetsu's bidding-since this reduced mobility would not affect Mora, whose powerful legs provided him incredible agility unfazed by the trees; while it would forcibly remove Senso's evasiveness. Having cornered their target, Densetsu and Mōra leap forward at Sensō who is busy trying to smash the branches entangling him, instantly dropping Kaoru onto the behemoth's face.
Activating the Sixth Gate, Kaoru smashes through Sensō's right eye into his skull, wreaking havoc inside as the titan roars in agony. Densetsu and Mōra smash Sensō to the ground where Akuhei's Wood Release ensnares and thickens around him. Inside his skull, Kaoru uses his Morning Peacock technique to wreak havoc in the giant's complex body. In a fit of pure power, Sensō breaks free of his bondages smashes his palm into his own face, knocking Kaoru straight out of his damaged face. As Akuhei intercepts the taijutsu specialist from a lethal fall, Densetsu and Mōra attempt to behead him, but Sensō unleashes his Almighty Shift, quickly knocking all his assailants back as he transforms the landscape violently to a smouldering ruin. The badly wounded Mōra is forced to return to Myōboku, while Densetsu has also suffered grievous injuries to his right shoulderblade and left ribcage. Kaoru's right foot is broken in Sensō's incredible attack, and Densetsu notes that if Mōra hadn't leaped and Akuhei hadn't shielded Kaoru and himself from the attack with the legendary Wood Release, they'd all have been long dead. Severely injured, Densetsu notes that the side of Sensō's face which had been destroyed was not healing rapidly now, and was instead recombining excruciatingly slowly. He deduced that somehow, Kaoru's internal attack had debilitated his healing abilities and that Sensō was now extremely vulnerable.
As Sensō marches to them slowly, preparing to kill them, Densetsu, Akuhei and Kaoru rally together one more time to defeat Sensō in his moment of vulnerability. Susanoo, Wood Human and Seven Gates combine as the trio take on the might of Sensō with a skilful display of literally godly power. The appendages of Densetsu's Susanoo rattled at Sensō rapidly, forcing the creature back as Akuhei got into the line of attack, using the sturdy Wood Human to intercept Sensō's powerful blows while Densetsu struck hard with the Triduum Spear. Despite Sensō dealing out brutal counterattacks, the determination displayed by the trio enables them to take hit after hit continuously but continue forward, covering each other when the other fell. Both Densetsu and Akuhei enter Sage Mode quickly while overwhelming Sensō (Densetsu being able to stay immobile in his Susanoo could charge it up), aiming to finish Sensō off immediately while they had the upper hand. Using the Sage Art: Abyss of Shadow Technique, Densetsu makes Sensō fall into a chasm below his feet, while Akuhei capitalises by firing searing Lava at his face. As Sensō reels in shock, Densetsu's Susanoo unleashes its powerful Susanoo: Divine Judgement and Sensō's entire chest is blasted away viciously, as Akuhei impales Sensō from behind. Kaoru however spots Katsuro Minoru with his Byakugan, alerting Densetsu to the arrival of the Yin-Yang specialist as the Uchiha thrusts his Spear through Sensō's shoulder.
To his horror, Densetsu suddenly realises what Katsuro's motives were; he never wanted to serve Sensō, he wanted to be Sensō. Densetsu remembered Katsuro's key ability; the lifeforce transference technique, deducing that Katsurp wanted them to weaken Sensō so that he could easily assume control of Sensō's body and combine the behemoth's power with his own incredible, calculative mind, literally becoming indestructible. He shouts this out to his allies as they form in a line around the defeated, battered Sensō's who is now too tired to fight. Densetsu forms the Uchiha Flame Formation around Sensō as the three men prepare to stop Katsuro from approaching. Seeing that Katsuro hasn't made a move from the distance, Densetsu theorises that his transference technique might be a close range one, transferring the possibility to his teammates, who agree with the hypothesis. The trio realise that Katsuro would be at an advantage due to his ultimate defence, but decide that he has to be defeated before Sensō can be eradicated. As Katsuro forms numerous Yin Release clones, the trio charge him head on man to man. Quickly the clones are defeated while the trio repeatedly force Katsuro away from Sensō. Katsuro displays his experience and quickly manages to separate the impulsive Akuhei from the other two, taking him head on and impaling him with a Yin Release technique, before rounding on the other two quickly. Densetsu and Kaoru engage Katsuro with a flurry of high speed taijutsu, but due to their fatigue after facing Sensō they stumble here and there and are unable to fully overwhelm Katsuro, who rapidly switches his lifeforce to another Clone whenever he receives sufficient damage.
The old man is still however, unable to match Densetsu and Kaoru in terms of speed, and the duo manage to knock him to the ground but before they can finish him off, Katsuro pulls an effective counterattack. Kicking Densetsu suddenly and quickly in the groin, he manages to trap Kaoru with his Shadow Imitation Technique, before firing his Yin Arrow Destruction at the Hyuga. Densetsu, faced with the split second decision of saving his ally or striking his enemy and losing Kaoru, acts instinctively and teleports the Hyuga away; revealing that both Akuhei and he and been marked many days back, as a precaution. In the confusion both reappear behind Katsuro, where Akuhei is, as Kaoru opens the Seventh Gate and charges at the offguard old man. In mere seconds, Katsuro is defeated and gravely wounded, but he reveals a hidden Yin Clone, and transfers his life force to it, as it runs towards Sensō to complete the merge with Akuhei pinned and Kaoru too exhausted to stop him. Densetsu however casts Amaterasu from the distance at Katsuro's legs, downing the old man. Almost out of chakra, Densetsu trudges forward towards the crawling, now feeble old man, drawing his katana.
With barely a word, Densetsu silently acknowledges to himself that Katsuro would not fail twice if he was allowed to live, concluding that even without Sensō , Katsuro would hatch something else equally dangerous. Pity however stays the Uchiha's hand and he lowers his blade. His Sharingan however catches a sudden movement as his Flame Formation is shattered, and Densetsu manages to dodge the powerful fist of Sensō which crushes and kills Katsuro. Sensō snarls that a traitor like Katsuro was a dead man walking, and starts gloating about how he was going to kill the trio. Unamused, Densetsu harnesses the power of Susanoo one more time, forming the complete version of the ethereal warrior. Triduum Spear in hand, he rams it into Sensō's still exposed heart, instantly causing a molten-like liquid to seep from every opening in the titan's body. With another swift movement, Susanoo's swords decapitate Sensō, as his remains crumble and turn to dust. The Susanoo disintegrates into nonexistence as Densetsu tiredly gets on his knees, completely worn out. Having suffered a grievous injury earlier and running on extremely low chakra, he can barely stand and finally collapses due to fatigue and blood loss, entering a comatose state, as Akuhei and Kaoru approach the unconscious Uchiha quickly. Meanwhile, Hotaru Miyagi and Pakura are captured by the ANBU forces of the great nations.
Limbo and Meeting the Sage of Six Paths
In critical condition, Densetsu is rushed to the Konoha Hospital with life threatening injuries, and as Akuhei and Kaoru recount the defeat of Sensō, they realise that the only reason Sensō had lost was because he had underestimated Densetsu's will, even with fatal injuries. With Densetsu comatose and Kaoru's being deemed unfit for missions, Akuhei is assigned on another mission while Densetsu fights on for his life. In his comatose state, Densetsu enters another plane of existence, where he is greeted by the legendary Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki. The legendary figure greets Densetsu and explains to him that he is now between the world of the living and the world of the dead—Limbo, a rare place for the living to venture into. Due to the severity of his wounds, Densetsu was told by the old man that he was venturing between the two worlds inconsistently; but the strong feelings of incompletion were still keeping him in the living world, despite the world of death clawing at him. Hagoromo then reveals that a certain power much higher than even he, had decided to give Densetsu a gift for his sacrifices over the years—the chance to truly move on.
Every single soul Densetsu had robbed, or that he couldn't let go materialised in this realm in front of him, a chance to give all their lives closure. To those whom he had killed cruelly in his ANBU years, Densetsu dropped to his knees in painful honesty, crying his heart out and begging for forgiveness earnestly, the regret not eating at his soul; but shattering it, as the sight of the souls of children and women tore him. His pain ironically increased, as they forgave him. All forty or so souls. Enemies, innocents alike. But they each offered him a plea; many had final wishes to be fulfilled, and wished for these to be channeled through to Densetsu if he decided to return, who agreed. One soul however remained. Densetsu's oldest friend, Hiroki Nara. Exchanging words with him and beaming about Densetsu's exploits (which he had kept track off in the Pure Land), Hiroki thanks Densetsu for how much he has changed and only requests to Densetsu for one thing: that he keep Hiroki in his heart, and forever stay as righteous as he currently was; if he chose to return to the living world. Densetsu is sorrowful, but finally free of the bondage of his guilt. Hagoromo returns and offers Densetsu the final question: to leave the living, or return to them. An answer never in doubt to him, Densetsu states that he wished to return.
Before departing, Hagoromo informs Densetsu that he will not be either a Saviour or a Destroyer, but rather a Guardian of the Balance, before Densetsu is erased from Limbo. However, due to the severity of his injuries, Densetsu remains comatose for a longer time, not waking up instantly. When he wakes up, he wakes up to great jubilation and the sight of his family, Hitomi, Akuhei and Kaoru. They inform him that the Fourth Shinobi War has ended, to which he responds sadly rues that it was done without him. As they fill him in with the full details of Naruto's and Sasuke's exploits, news of the S-Rank trio's heroic standoff against the Brotherhood had also broken through like wildfire after the battle, with their exploits being so unbelievable that people still doubted the authenticity of their tale. Densetsu however disappeared for some time, granting every wish of the fallen, which he had etched to his mind; giving them and himself, peace; effectively completing his redemption.
Beyond Part II
Stalker Arc
"Repeat that threat again you bastard, repeat it if you dare. If you touch my family, or anyone I care about–if you as much as PLUCK a hair on their heads, I'll find you, I swear I will! And I'll KILL you soon after." –Densetsu to Sadao
Three months after the end of the Fourth Shinobi War, things have been going well in the new era of peace. Densetsu has undertaken several goodwill missions and hasn't seen combat since the fateful battle against Sensō, enjoying his new role as aid giver and peace upholder. On a more personal note, Densetsu's love life has also progressed smoothly, with he and Hitomi growing more and more inseparable. Densetsu and his family also meet regularly and freely, after the allying of the Great Villages. Densetsu has also began training a young Genin called Shin Hayata, developing a brotherly bond between the two as well. However in this fruitful time, a new adversary enters Densetsu's life by a twist of bad luck, in the form of the son of an enemy who had met his end after a duel with the Human Torch. After Densetsu's battle with the cannibals exactly two years earlier, the son of one of the cannibals who had been killed by the Uchiha was on the hunt for his father's murderer.
On a mission to Kirigakure, Densetsu would finally run into the man. While carrying a few boxes of crates, Densetsu heard somebody shout "Human Torch", and understandably he instinctively turned around; but he came face to face with a brown haired man with an empty, cruel, but vengeful glint in his eyes. The man made his way towards Densetsu, who immediately knew that his identity as the Torch had been compromised. As a crowd approached in between the two men, Densetsu disappeared from the man's view, leaping over the buildings and heading to Konoha with great haste and urgency. While the situation caused Densetsu great panic, he eventually forgot about the man as two weeks and two missions passed by. However, the fear crept back into him when he believed to have caught a glimpse of the brown haired man behind Ramen Ichiraku at Konoha, with the man pointing at him with a knife. As he dashed towards the alley where he thought he saw the man, he found nothing, but sensed a very potent, foul and hostile chakra–as if the man had purposely wanted this to be sensed. Densetsu knew now that a very real threat had latched itself upon him, and he began to worry deeply as he still knew nothing off his adversary.
Exactly a day after the sighting at Ramen Ichiraku, the mysterious man would make yet another terrifying appearance to Densetsu, this time invading the privacy of the Uchiha's home itself. As Densetsu exited his bathroom, he saw the silhouette of the man at the entrance of his open window, with a blank look in his eyes, but a very discomforting smile. The man muttered the Uchiha's real name in a bone chilling slur, but before Densetsu could reach for his katana, the individual had disappeared with the wind, almost like an illusion. Densetsu began to doubt what he was seeing, suspecting that all this may just be an overreaction to the stranger's knowledge of his identity; which was not known by anybody outside the higherups. The encounters would become increasingly random and discomforting, as Densetsu caught sight of the figure watching him several times in the next days, with the man always disappearing when Densetsu turned his head for a better look. But the Uchiha's unease would continue to grow and he became increasingly on edge, sleeping with his katana next to his bedside and waking several times in the dead of the night at the slightest sounds; poised for combat.
A few days later, Densetsu and Hitomi were enjoying their weekend date, with Densetsu confiding to his lover the recent events which were plaguing him, especially the man's disturbing behaviour. She dismissed the panicky Uchiha jokingly, stating that after facing overpowered enemies, a simple stalker would be no problem. Feeling better, Densetsu walked Hitomi home in the evening that day, but his troubles would only escalate. Near her home, Densetsu sensed an extremely hostile chakra approaching rapidly behind them, instinctively pulling his girlfriend behind him as he faced the sudden threat head on; the threat being no other than the man who had been tailing Densetsu.
Visibly edgy and panicky after the events of the past week, Densetsu firmly questioned the emotionless man on his motives as they faced each other head to head for the first time. Demanding to know who he was and why he was following him, the Uchiha stared at his stalker, who calmly responded that he was interested in revenge, before tossing Densetsu's bloodstained specialised kunai on the ground. The man continued after seeing Densetsu's shock, stating that the kunai was what had killed his father, recounting the story of the cannibals in the land of the Sun to Densetsu, who grimly realised the situation. Though shocked, Densetsu apologised sincerely to him, attempting to clarify that Sadao's father had attacked him violently and he had been forced to defend himself, from a vicious cannibal; but Sadao refused the apology, being part of the sect himself, unfazed by his father's actions as the lifestyle of the cannibals was his lifestyle as well.
Upon hearing this, Densetsu and Hitomi both silently decided to apprehend the man–last of the cannibalistic cult–and forcibly bring him in custody as he was potentially and most probably a very dangerous criminal, guilty of multiple homicides as well as cannibalism. The two reacted in a flash, with Densetsu aiming a vicious slash from his blade at the man while Hitomi used her hair as senbon to immobilise the man. To both the Konoha shinobi's shock, Sadao merely grabbed Densetsu's blade with both hands and absorbed the qualities of the steel, hardening his body as the senbon bounced off harmlessly, as Densetsu noted that Sadao could utilise some type of substance assimilating technique. Pulling the Uchiha's blade out of his grasp and tossing it aside, Sadao's incredible reflexes enabled him to land a kick on Densetsu almost instantly, sending the boy sprawling backwards into his girlfriend, knocking both to the ground.
Upon landing in a heap, Densetsu launched an immediate attack at his opponent, using a well timed Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique from his mouth to blast a powerful, but thin torrent of water towards Sadao, tossing him backwards like a rag doll as Densetsu sprinted forward, intent on knocking his opponent out with a Rasengan, but the moment he made impact with his steel plated opponent, there was only a block of wood where the attack hit–a Body Replacement Technique. Sadao emerged unfazed behind Densetsu, before an intense Fire Release: Flame Bullet from Hitomi hit him head on before he could react. Suspecting that Sadao would attempt to assimilate the flames with his technique, Densetsu struck him with another water based attack, smothering the flames and downing Sadao again while Densetsu and Hitomi approached cautiously. Sadao chuckled malevolently as he crouched up, spitting a threat towards Densetsu's family, stating that he'd make Densetsu feel his pain soon. Densetsu retorted violently at the statement, stating that he'd kill Sadao if anyone he loved were to be harmed, but Sadao disappeared before they could apprehend him, with Densetsu noting his immense speed, as Sadao's chakra signature faded. Densetsu then orders Hitomi to stay clear of Sado and firmly to keep his Flying Thunder God Kunai next to her at all times so that he could reach her at any moment if Sadao were to get to her, despite her protesting; as Densetsu was very sure that someone as dangerous as Sadao would resort to any means to harm those close to him. This however led to a spat between Hitomi and Densetsu, the former accusing the later of being too protective and not having faith in her own abilities, while Densetsu furiously lashed back and stated that she could not last a second against most of the people who wanted to kill him; to which she responded that he was just beeping selfish.
Sadao's behaviour and background prompted Densetsu to take the matter to the Sixth Hokage, as the Uchiha explained the situation to Kakashi, leaving out no details. Action was taken on the pretence of an outsider illegally and threatening the internal security of Konoha, however despite a long search conducted by the ANBU as well as Densetsu, Sadao was not found, deeply worrying Densetsu. Kakashi promised to keep an eye out on the matter, but this did not ease the pins in Densetsu's stomach. After two days of silence, Hitomi and Densetsu finally reconciled with each other after she noticed that he had been secretly watching over her from the shadows in fear of Sadao, as Densetsu clarified that he only acted in such a paranoid way because he didn't want to lose someone he loved—especially her.
Then the murders began. On that night itself, Densetsu felt that foul chakra again very close by, as he was jolted from his slumber. At that very moment a knife whizzed through his window as he instinctively ducked. Densetsu's eyes widened in horror as he realised that the knife was badly bloodied, as he dashed out of the window. Sadao was nowhere to be seen but a series of cryptic clues were left for Densetsu to follow: arrows drawn by blood, and finally human limbs which "pointed" in a specific direction; an alley with a dead end. The scene of the crime was horrific, as the mutilated body of a naked woman lay there with the words "Aren't you going to kill me?" smeared on the wall behind the body. The female's eyes and heart had been gouged out. Trembling in fury and horror, Densetsu shouted Sadao's name in rage.
The next day Konoha was placed on high alert in the search for the killer, as house to house searches were coordinated in wake of the violent murder. Kakashi assigned several ANBU to hunt Sadao based on the clues provided by the forensics department, which were minimal at best thanks to the efficiency at which Sadao worked. Security at the entrance of the village was doubled and a massive manhunt ensued, led by a team which consisted of Densetsu as well, who obsessively hunted the vicious murderer down. But again somehow, they were not able to find the man despite a long hunt. Despite the immense mental strain, the Uchiha managed to realise something–the reason as to why they could not locate Sadao. He was probably among them, the core of the search party itself. Densetsu kept this to himself but immediately brought the matter to Kakashi that evening, the possibility of a well kept up transformation technique.
Though plausible, Kakashi stated that it wasn't sufficient to go on for sure, especially since the foul chakra associated with Sadao wasn't detected anywhere at all among the members of the party, and also that to pose as one of the party he'd have to kill the member first–and keep the murder under wraps. Densetsu proceeded to bring forth an outlandish and never before heard claim; that Sadao could somehow manipulate his own chakra signature, and that he may have even taken down a Konoha shinobi easily with the skills he possessed; in or outside the village. The Hokage agreed with this claim, and tasked Densetsu with an important job—to carry out a silent investigation on each member of the task force and identify which had been acting suspiciously over the past weeks and single the individual out, for further "questioning". Densetsu agreed and the mission was a go, with time off the essence.
Densetsu proceeded with the first stage of his plan, a narrowing down off the target. At seven in the evening that night, he called a meeting into order with the ten other members, with the guise of a status report. After the meeting, Densetsu randomly brought up a fact on Sadao, attempting to elicit some sort of enraged response from any one of them which would help him identify a suspect. Densetsu brought up Sadao's father's death at his hand, with a derogatory speech about the man's foul attributes in front of his team, and he received what he was looking for. The room flashed briefly with Sadao's cruel, vicious chakra, but only momentarily. Densetsu didn't bat an eyelid, so as to shirk off any suspicion whatsoever, but he knew that Sadao was somewhere on the right side of the room, where three of his team were standing. One of them was definitely him, Sadao had let that slip temporarily after losing his cool briefly over Densetsu's outburst. The Uchiha dismissed them and instantly began identifying associates of the two men, intent on questioning their acquaintances and weeding out any suspicious behaviour.
The increased security that night bought Densetsu some time, or so it was supposed to be. While drawing up a map of individuals to question the next day above a rooftop near the home of his girlfriend, the silence in the village was interrupted by a man's bloodcurdling scream. There was commotion all over as the ANBU sped to the location, and the Jonin on duty, as well as Densetsu, a visible cloud of panic had enveloped the village as the houses began lighting up. The ANBU located the next bodies, three males, naked, much more mutilated than before. Their bodies had been all cut in half, and drained of blood, without eyeballs and hearts as usual, and now with Glasgow Smiles carved onto their faces. They were members of Densetsu's team. Their blood had been crudely splashed all over the nearby walls of houses, and another message had been written on the nearby walls. "You still haven't killed me, you're going to suffer." Densetsu crumpled to the ground, inner agony pounding against his chest as he struggled to keep his panic and shock in; all of these feelings compounded by the violent crime scene. Unable to contain the sudden fear, Densetsu sped back to the rooftop, only to find the map that he had been drawing up to have been burnt—replaced with a note written with blood. "Naughty, naughty, trying to track me."He knew Densetsu was on his tail. The anxiety was uncontainable now, even for Densetsu as he was thrown backwards in shock at the man's brazenness. He knew that the investigation would have to be concluded on the spot, on that night itself, before others lost their lives. Densetsu calmed himself down and decided to check on Hitomi briefly, who had been woken by the ensuing chaos, relieved that she was unharmed.
As the day broke, Densetsu began a rushed cross examination after forming four shadow clones to investigate the families of the three suspects on the prior day, while he called another meeting into order; ensuring every surviving member was present—especially the three men he had laid suspicion on. While he eulogised the three men who had savagely lost their lives the previous night, his clones began gaining leads and narrowing the case down to one final suspect—who had been acting a little strangely for the last two weeks, after returning from a mission. While his actions had been only a little unusual, Densetsu realised that this was probably the man Sadao was impersonating, and had probably been killed prior. An elaborate set up, planned to perfection. Acted almost equally well. Almost. As the Shadow Clones dissipated, Densetsu's seized his chance, swiftly firing three shuriken into the leg of the said man as they stood in the room; to which the man shockingly evaded. The transformation ended and this man was truly revealed to have been Sadao, as the deranged young man drew his blade with swift efficiency, cutting down one man before he and Densetsu could react, and narrowly missing the other as Densetsu moved in directly to intercept him.
The two remaining members of the squad and Densetsu quickly cornered Sadao in the room, daring him to make his next move, hands gripping their weapons tightly. But he moved like lightning. Assimilating some metal substance on his belt, he quickly rammed through all of them and narrowly evaded Densetsu's attack before smashing head first through a window in escape. Densetsu leaped out in response, entering his Fire Release Cloak as he gave heavy persuit. Sadao mowed through the streets as Densetsu cut off his routes with timed bursts of flames, keeping Sadao away from the civilians as various ANBU and Jōnin joined in the persuit; pummelling the man with a variety of techniques which he shrug off after assimilating a diamond which hung upon his neck. After ordering the extra forces to evacuate the civilians, Densetsu alone maintained hot persuit while his compatriots focused on keeping people out of the murderer's way, firing heated projectiles repeatedly at Sadao who was forced to rapidly readjust his trajectory despite his speed. Possessing the home ground advantage, Densetsu led Sadao away gradually from the populated regions, attempting to shift the battleground to a sparsely occupied area. Although successful, Densetsu's plan was interrupted when two Chūnin and a Jōnin joined the fray, despite Densetsu's various warnings for them to stay clear. Sadao quickly and effortlessly shifted the battle in his favour, positioning himself behind them so that Densetsu would have no clear hit. The Uchiha attempted to manoeuvre himself several times but Sadao showcased his brilliance as he quickly disposed off one of the Chūnin, grabbing the other as a hostage while timing a slash perfectly as he beheaded the Jōnin swiftly.
Sadao quickly cherished the moment as Densetsu tried to talk him out of killing the remaining hostage, firing repeated insults and threats at the Uchiha while threatening to snap the Chūnin's neck if the Uchiha attempted to 'play a game of speed'. But Sadao had made his mistake, briefly looking into Densetsu's deadly Sharingan. The illusion was brief, but it enabled the real Densetsu to quickly teleport to Sadao while a fake illusion 'negiotated', and free his hostage, before swiftly placing both the Forced Suppression Seal and Flying Thunder God formula on Sadao's back, causing him to lose his Assimilation as he crumpled, effectively seeming to end the battle. But with fury, he reached behind and managed to claw out both the seals with his bare hands as he sped at Densetsu with incredible velocity, knocking the Chūnin out of the way as he attacked the Uchiha with a mad rage.
Densetsu's reaction time and Sharingan aided him as he countered each blow, returning swift and vicious hits which broke Sadao's nose, pummelling the cannibal like he was a rag doll. However Sadao was counting on this and quickly reached for Densetsu's face as he assimilated the rocky ground beneath them, pulling the Uchiha's face into his rocky knee, delivering a devastating blow. With his next move, he flung the Uchiha backwards into the forest, before leaping inside as well. Densetsu recovered quickly and fired an attack at Sadao while he was in midair, incinerating him and burning his left arm completely off, causing Sadao to howl in agony as his assimilation ended; revealing that Densetsu had studied his assimilations and deduced that he had the weakness of whatever he assimilated. The battle shifted in Densetsu's favour again as the Uchiha exploited Sadao's normal form with malignant grace and rage, pummelling his body with violent kicks and punches, drawing blood from every crevice in Sadao's body; as to his shock, the arm he blew off regenerated. With this shocking discovery, Densetsu was forced back as Sadao utilised a variety of assimilations to press him back. Despite this, Densetsu's tactical nous prevailed again as he distracted Sadao with a well timed switch with a Shadow Clone, before landing a Big Ball Rasengan in Sadao's back, flooring the now metallic assimilator into the soil, while also activating his Fire Release Cloak, heating the temperature to an extent that it would melt the substance and kill Sadao off.
Densetsu incinerates Sadao.
However, Sadao activated his Cursed Seal and quickly overpowered Densetsu, showing incomprehensible resistance to the intense flames as he began quickly overpowering the Uchiha, who simply couldn't penetrate the new form of Sadao despite luring him into various traps and devastating attacks. Any injury Sadao sustained somehow healed itself, quickly cutting off Densetsu's options even as backup arrived. Finally Densetsu came up with another plan to defeat the creature, resorting to first somehow nullify the Juinjutsu before sealing the decisive blow. As various shinobi pressed Sadao back, keeping him from coming close, Densetsu managed to mark Sadao again with the Flying Thunder God formula with a disguised attack, while a viable distance away, his Shadow Clone prepared the ritualistic setting necessary to unleash the Evil Sealing Method. Densetsu also noticed that Sadao was in a blind rage while taken over by the Juinjutsu, sacrificing intellect for power, thus giving him another necessary tool to successfully overcome the Juinjutsu.
With Sadao marked and the ritual ready, Densetsu teleported his clone and the ritual towards Sadao, who was now destroying his assailants. At that very instant, Sadao killed off the clone with a savage slash, before Densetsu's Trapping Seal Clone Technique came into effect, paralysing him temporarily as the original Densetsu teleported and placed the Forced Suppression Seal again on the Juinjutsu, before initiating the Evil Sealing Method. It also turned out that the Uchiha had been subtly toying with Sadao's state with various visual Genjutsu, increasing Sadao's willingness to kill Densetsu in his human form instead of the cursed mark form, a subtle trick to purposely loosen the juinjutsu's hold on him and allow the Evil Sealing Method to suppress it for the time being. However, the seal took a long time to take effect due to the strength of the Juinjutsu. As the Juinjutsu only slowly waned, Sadao only got more violent, killing all those near him in a fit of psychotic rage and terrifying speed, breaking the paralysis seal. Even as various kunai pierced his body, the juinjutsu's regeneration effects saved him again despite it being inactive, enabling him to take hit after hit but continue fighting. He came for Densetsu again, killing those who interfered with minimal hesitation as they waged another intense battle, culminating in Sadao tossing the Uchiha into a building and preparing to fully finish him off before his Juinjutsu was fully sealed. Densetsu's weapon pouch dislodged during the beating, scattering its contents all over the floor. As Sadao approached, Densetsu quickly stuffed two senbon in his mouth, before taking a vicious punch in the gut from the weakening monster, knocking him through a brick wall.
The battle had now shifted to the final stage, a construction site which was still under heavy work, as the combatants chased each other up a building, chased by the shinobi of the leaf who had cornered them and prepared to strike back. Sadao had now shifted to his human form, enraged, suppressed but raring to make one more kill. He leaped on Densetsu, who used Susanoo's ribcage and arm to first defend from the impact, then swat Sadao away, though Sadao managed to use the Body Replacement. Having evaded this attack, Sadao pressed Densetsu's face down on the ground and prepared to strangle him to death; before the Uchiha spat both the senbon at Sadao's eyes, hitting both spot on and blinding Sadao. Sadao screamed in agony and clawed at his eyes, compounding the injury, staggering backwards further and further before finally tripping. He fell off the third floor of the building and onto a few beams below, which impaled him, piercing his heart in one foul movement. Sadao writhed and writhed but Densetsu watched from above, somewhat in horror now as he realised where Sadao's weak spot actually was. His heart. It couldn't regenerate. As the ANBU cornered his body, he stopped moving. The serial killer had met his end the way he dished it out onto others; losing his heart and his eyes, to his own rage.
Sadao's rampage in Konoha had been brief and suicidal, but still devastating. He had taken the lives of 11 citizens of the village before finally succumbing, and Konoha realised that even after Pain's infiltration, a lot had to be done about the general security. Measures were tightened the moment Sadao's remains were cremated by the ANBU, for fear that such a terrifying Juinjutsu may be replicated, under the close supervision of Densetsu, who finally could rest after a horrific few weeks. He was further comforted when he realised that the next name on Sadao's list had been Hitomi; a target on that night itself, thwarted only by Sadao's death that morning. The circle of revenge which had started all that time ago in the Land of Sun was complete. The experience would still scar Densetsu and make him realise that he still had ferocious enemies to deal with, even if they weren't the most powerful by any margin. Sadao proved that the true evils would target those around him remorselessly and attempt to break his spirit; something Sadao came dangerously close to achieving.
Lost Scrolls Arc
After a week off following the mass murders, Densetsu would see action again in a much less violent adventure, but one of importance as well. A power struggle had broken out in one of the lands affiliated with the Land of a Fire—the Land of Swamps, where two rival political parties were fighting over a single scroll which would determine who was the true heir in line to be the next ruler of the Land. However, an unknown third party with ulterior motives stole the said scroll, igniting a furious power struggle which was gradually tilting the Land to the path of a civil war. In desperation, the citizens of the land with the backing of the Land of Fire's Daimyo would send a plea to Konoha to intervene and somehow find a way to recover the scroll, as well as apprehend its thieves if possible. In light of the need for an individual with impeccable talents in the art of investigation and information gathering, a direct recommendation was made for the Human Torch to be part of the mission—in hopes that his repertoire cracking down on various criminal rings and syndicates would help to solve this heinous crime.
Thus, Densetsu would be given his next S-ranked mission: preventing a civil war with an unpredictable, unreliable timeframe. Along with Kaoru Shin'ya, whom Densetsu had worked with in the Sensō Battle a few months prior, Konoha dispatched two other Chūnin, Kogami Hisakawa and Fū Matsuda to accompany the former S-ranked Jōnin duo and avert the crisis, under heavy orders to only do as they were told and nothing more. Upon arriving at the Land a few days later, the precarious situation was made obvious to the Konohagakure shinobi, as large riots were seen all over the passing towns, with a heavily hostile atmosphere lingering in the air. The convoy made its way to meet with the leaders of the opposing sides in one of the administrative buildings in the very centre of the land—where Kaoru and Densetsu would attempt to negotiate a temporary ceasefire until they could locate the scroll and determine the true heir to the leadership of the land. Albeit tense and very fiery, Densetsu and Kaoru used their respective reputations to aid them in ironing out a deal between the two leaders; hence agreeing on a one week ceasefire to allow them space to carry out their investigation.
However, Hisakawa managed to notice a suspicious parcel sticking out at the edge of the room close to the negotiating table, alerting the participants to its existence. However, his message arrives too late and the parcel detonates, with the occupants only saved by the instinctive reaction of Kaoru, who tosses the large rectangular table in the way of the blast, shielding them momentarily before Densetsu's wall of earth is erected to further defend them from the bomb. However in the confusion, a group of assassins break into the room from the ceiling through the chaos, as Densetsu and Kaoru swiftly move to intercept, ordering Hisakawa and Matsuda to guard the two politicians. The highly skilled duo quickly subdue six of the assassins in moments, but even more join the fray and surround the two Jōnin, attempting to make up with numbers. At the same moment, Matsuda and Hisakawa are forced to escort the politicians out of the room after they are hunted down by two very skilled assassins possessing ninjutsu knowledge. As Densetsu and Kaoru flush out the next wave with more difficulty, the former realises that the entire attack was a deliberate ruse to separate them from the lower ranked Chūnin, and rushes after the other duo as Kaoru holds off the remaining assassins.
Densetsu is met with more resistance before finally catching up with his team members, who are both struggling against a pair of Jōnin level assailants. Shortly before Densetsu joins the fray, he is unable to reach them in time and prevent a third assassin from joining the fray, as he digs his katana into the neck of one of the politicians. Enraged at the sight before him, Densetsu manages to intervene right before the next man is killed, his Flying Thunder God Kunai landing straight in the back of the politician's killer's neck, shocking him. Densetsu's subsequent teleportation took the other two Jōnin by surprise as Densetsu split one away from the two Chūnin with a vicious spinning kick, sending the man reeling back. In the confusion, Hisakawa is able to kill the other two distracted assassins, while Densetsu subdues the remaining one with an attack to his legs.
The death of the politician sets his supporters on edge as they suspect that the entire attack was a deliberate assassination carried out by the opposing faction, and not the third party. As the situation reaches its flashpoint, Kaoru intervenes with terrifying force and threatens them to hold true to the truce at very least until they could investigate the crime, find the scroll as well as the perpetrators. In the meantime, Densetsu and Matsuda carry out their information gathering process from the captured assassin, subjecting him to various mental and physical torture in their race to find his employers. After much resistance, he finally cracks to Densetsu's Amenokoyane and spills the necessary information. It is revealed that it was a deliberate plot by the third party involved to kill both the politicians or at least one, and ignite a war between the two factions; which Densetsu theorised would be used to facilitate a coup d'état by the said party in the country's moment of weakness. With further probing, the man leaks information on several key figures involved in the hiring of the assassins, as the torture inflicted upon him by Matsuda proves too great to resist.
With immediate haste Densetsu and Kaoru decide to work behind the scenes and drag the suspects in for interrogation, as the situation was at its most delicate. They had only six days left to locate the scroll and now bring the killers to justice, and both men agreed that going by the books on this type of case would prove detrimental to stopping the civil war. In a quick move, the four Konoha shinobi spread out and silently kidnap the said men, with the Jōnin targeting the bigger guns. As Hisakawa and Matsuda easily roundup the smaller fish, Densetsu infiltrates a heavily fortified manor to capture Lord Garyu; a wealthy businessman who had plans to appear on the political landscape of the Land of Swamps as well. Garyu's guards were methodically knocked out by the stealthy Uchiha, who caught wind of something interesting in the process—talk of a scroll. As he hid in Garyu's office, he became convinced that Garyu was directly involved in its theft. Quickly confronting Garyu from his hiding spot, Densetsu muffles the man's mouth and presses him against the wall with all his might, demanding that Garyu reveal the location of the scroll.
As the businessman maintains his innocence, Densetsu detects the lies in the man's eyes and ferociously knees him repeatedly before slamming him against the wall again. Now chuckling, Garyu spits blood at the Uchiha's face and declares that he'd see the Land of Swamps burn itself to ashes, then take over as its leader once his competition killed each other. With surprising speed he attempts to counter Densetsu, but the latter's quick reflexes enable him to swiftly counter and knock Garyu's front teeth out. However, another man bursts from the window and attacks, forcing Densetsu to release Garyu to evade. The man and Densetsu engage in a flurry of blows, as he demonstrates his own tremendous skill and swiftly overpowers Densetsu in taijutsu, throwing the lighter built Uchiha through the main door as Garyu made a run for it. As the fight progresses in the corridor, Densetsu gains the upper hand by utilising several distractions to land vicious attacks on the man, besting him eventually with a powerful fireball that sets him on fire immediately, before ending the fight by smothering the flames with a pressurised jet of water, as well as knocking the would be assassin out. As Garyu flees the building, Densetsu easily catches him having marked him with the Flying Thunder God Seal earlier. Repeating the process, Densetsu roughens him up, forcing him to spit out information by putting him in a realistic torture sequence. After the gory illusion, Garyu cracks and reveals that the scroll had been truly taken by a group of villainous S-rank missing nin from Kirigakure, and that every other politician captured by the Konoha ninja were mere puppets. The rebel shinobi were planning to take over the Land of Swamps, and they simply killed all those who opposed them.
As Garyu urinated in his pants, Densetsu needed no further convincing that the man spoke the truth. After taking Garyu under their custody, Densetsu and the others deliberate on ther next course of action; as fighting shinobi of such dangerous calibre would be no easy task for a group of just four. Having used up two days already, times were getting desperate as the small group of four were also functioning as a makeshift peacekeeping group, struggling to keep the balance as flashpoints erupted all over the country. As more and more troublemakers popped into the scene, it became even more difficult to effectively delegate attention to the true suspects. The situation escalated further on that night of the second day, as another riot was launched at the residences of the Konoha delegation, as civilians expressed their rash, hurried displeasure with the way the team was handling the case. The arrival of two of the members of the group of missing-nin that night at the residences further compounded the matter, as they demanded that they four men release the prisoners they captured. All four disagreed, as Densetsu went as far as to threaten the missing-nin with military action if they did not back away immediately. Demanding to be let in to see the prisoners, the man squared up to Densetsu as a tense verbal exchange broke out, with both sides threatening to fire the first shot.
A shrill cry from the inside of the residences broke the heated exchange as the Konoha delegation discovered that all the prisoners were now dead—their throats slit by the assassin who had been captured on the first day. The man too was dead after having carried out his deed, having consumed some form of poison. As their shock set in at the death of their potential witnesses, the four young men rushed back to the entrance of the residence, where the missing-nin held a cryptic expressions upon their faces. As they swiftly disappeared, Densetsu understood their message. Leave or die. It was clear that they were dealing with a determined, experienced bunch who were used to disposing of evidence and equally adept in the art of murder. It was at this moment that Densetsu proposed that they go against their orders and get involved on a personal level, for the sake of the entire country. His proposal was met with instant debate from his teammates, as it would jeapordise Konoha's reputation if they failed, and even worse they were severely underpowered to take on such a large group of suspected powerful criminals. However Densetsu was staunch in his stance and determination to prevent a violent civil war, and then a brutal takeover by a criminal group. Densetsu volunteers to singlehandedly track down their hideout and infiltrate it alone if necessary, and locate the scroll; which he was certain lay in their hideout and nowhere else.
After more debate, they agree to go against their orders and break the set rules to somehow defeat the group of missing-nin and retrieve the scroll, or risk severe disciplinary action if they failed. Utilising the information they gathered during the interrogations, Hisakawa, Densetsu and Matsuda painstakingly put the facts together to try and pinpoint the locations of their hideout, or their base, as Kaoru heads out to obtain more information pertaining to the mysterious adversaries of theirs. Piecing together their movements and the groups they recruited, with the addition of the intelligence gathered by Kaoru after two more strenuous days, they manage to locate the men's hideout. To cover their behind the scenes intelligence gathering, the four men had disguised their movements over the past two days with seemingly meaningless and normal actions—breaking up riots, taking out troublemakers on shifts, and carrying out seemingly useless public investigations. The plan was set for Matsuda, Densetsu and Kaoru to carry out a sudden assault the underground bunker the missing nin hid at, revealed to be cleverly positioned on the edge of the city, while Hisakawa stayed in the residences with several shadow clones of his teammates to keep up their act. Four days passed and the fifth was used to carry out scouting on the underground bunker, as Matsuda gathered information on enemy numbers, booby traps and individual prowess.
That night, the attack begun. Without any attempt at secrecy, Matsuda followed Densetsu into the bunker as the latter blew his way through the unprepared defences of the bunker. A small number of guards were quickly defeated by the duo's superior skill and element of surprise, as Kaoru entered another point in the complex, taking on one of the missing-nin and defeating him. As they began their pincer attack from two ends, Densetsu and Matsuda eventually run into more resistance in the form of two more missing-nin, as a furious battle took place in the corridor. Keeping the two Konoha ninja suppressed, the missing nin advanced in an attempt to press the duo back, before being pressed back themselves after a volley of fire based attacks from the Uchiha and Matsuda filled the narrow corridor. In his natural element now, Densetsu quickly took charged and overpowered the enemy duo while Matsuda provided covering attacks; as they finally defeated the two after a drawn out battle. Engaging in his brief routine of torture, Matsuda extracted the location of the scroll from one of the fallen enemies. As sounds of battle rang nearby, they deduced that Kaoru was engaging another higher calibre opponent as they dashed downwards to the safe room where the scroll was being kept. As Matsuda took the lead, his youthful rashness led to Densetsu asking him to keep a level head, out of fear Matsuda may jeapordise their chances. As they approached the door which was loosely open, Densetsu sensed a trap but his warnings to Matsuda fell on deaf years as his younger counterpart dashed through the door before even Densetsu could reach him.
As he burst through, three kunai buried themselves into Matsuda's temple, ear and neck, killing him instantly. Propelling himself forward into a slide on the ground, Densetsu had no time to allow his shock, grief and anger register as his speed enabled him to effectively slide under the line of fire of his enemy, as several projectiles missed him. Firing a kunai during his slide at the direction of the hidden enemy, Densetsu managed to teleport towards the final opponent in the room, attacking him with a barrage of rage filled punches, as he viciously broke the man's defence. Up close and personal where both opponents had no time to mould ninjutsu, Densetsu's randomised attacks struck the man in his weak spots, as the former S-rank vigilante pummelled his opponent in anger. Briefly distracted by the sight of the scroll, Densetsu allowed the man to get back into the battle, as the two engaged in a vicious battle of ninjutsu. The man's Water Release mastery countered Densetsu's first wave of Fire based attacks, before a combination of clone techniques from the more quick witted Uchiha overpowered the shinobi again. While the man attempted to fight back, Densetsu's Fūinjutsu kicked in as his clones were destroyed, paralysing the man instantly, as the Uchiha's relentless rage led to him slamming a massive Rasengan into the back of his paralysed enemy. The powerful sphere of energy obliterates the man's back and sends him into a 2 feet deep crater in the ground, not killing him, but paralysing him for life permanently as it shatters the bones in his back.
As Densetsu retrieves the scroll from a nearby desk, he grievingly picks up the body of Matsuda and carries it out of the room as a bloodied Kaoru appears, having slaughtered his opponent. They return to the residences with the scroll and Matsuda's body, where they organise an emergency meeting with high ranked civilians and the two political factions, determined to settle the power struggle that night itself. As the true heir is revealed in the scroll, several arguments break out at the table—including the authenticity of the scroll. At that very point, Densetsu loses his cool and blows his top at the table, pointing out that they risked their lives, and Matsuda lost his, for the persuit of another land's interests which did not concern them—just to stop a war. At this point he walks out of the room, as do the surviving two other members of Konoha's task force. The agreement is finally reached as according the scroll, and a leader is selected; but the remainder of Konoha's team get to transporting their deceased companion as they quietly make their journey back to the village with the Flying Thunder God Technique. As Matsuda is buried, Densetsu realises that his suggestion was what probably cost the young man's life in the end. Although Kaoru disputes this by stating that it was simply Matsuda's own rashness that got him killed; but Densetsu would always carry the guilt brought by Matsuda's death in a part of his mind for a long time.
Shadow Vigilante Arc
As Densetsu's appearances as a vigilante were generally less frequent as they once were (having cleaned up up to 55% of the big organisations in many surrounding lands), a new spectre began adopting its' own mantle in the battle against crime; utilising a brutal and merciless approach to dispose of criminals, unlike the more non-lethal approach Densetsu had become synonymous with. While he secretly disagreed with the persona's violence, Densetsu generally left the matter aside as the mysterious person was afterall, cleaning up the streets. The two vigilantes' paths would however intertwine fairly soon enough.
During one of several clean up missions partaken by Densetsu, Akuhei Iwao and Kaoru Shin'ya as a special taskforce sent to break down extremely dangerous groups of foes, the trio fought against a large group of fanatically devoted followers of the Akatsuki, who unfortunately were powerful Jōnin level ninja. Despite that, the trio were far too skilful compared to the criminal group, and the task was completed fairly quickly; before one of the criminals managed to break free and make a run for it. As Densetsu gave chase and caught up very quickly, he arrived in time to watch the man buckle forward dead, with a kunai in his throat. In shock, Densetsu came face to face with the Shadow Vigilante himself; but as the former prepared to draw his blade, the latter was quick to state that he meant no hostile intent. Densetsu was still severely displeased that the man had interrupted official government business, and killed a prisoner at that, and the two men engaged in an argument of ideals which culminated in the newer vigilante branding Densetsu as a hypocrite. Densetsu warns him further to stay out of official business from that moment on, keen to avoid an unnecessary fight; but the vigilante is adamant to crack this case with his own methods—by killing the organisations members himself.
The arrival of Akuhei made the Shadow Vigilante beat a hasty retreat, but Densetsu knew the man meant business, and they'd have to move faster than him if they wanted to apprehend members of the organisation alive. True to his suspicions, Densetsu engaged in a game of tactics with the Shadow Vigilante over the criminals in the group, a dangerous race which decided the lives of the targets. Densetsu and his team were rarely victorious, the Shadow Vigilante amazingly notched nine more kills; convincing the trio that he truly was a very dangerous enemy, since he could take out Jōnin level threats with such ease. In the few days, Densetsu, Akuhei and Kaoru had put around 3 of the group behind bars, and lost a shocking total of 11 of the criminals to the other vigilante. The man's brutal efficiency shocked the S-rank trio, as they were confused as to how he was getting to all of their targets before themselves. At the end of the week, only the organisation's leader and two others remained, and Densetsu and Kaoru were sent after the two while Akuhei hunted the leader.
In the ensuing fight, Densetsu and Kaoru split up a long distance to engage their respective targets. Upon approaching his target, Densetsu was shocked to learn that his opponent was actually the Shadow Vigilante. The Vigilante shared his tale with Densetsu, how he'd joined the organisation many years back, committed numerous villainous acts under its' name and how it had still taken everything; his family, his fortunes, his property, away from him mercilessly. It turned out that the Vigilante had kept all his pain inside and feigned loyalty to the cause, while secretly and violently disposing off thugs associated with his group, and gradually taking down members of his group as well. While his reasoning fit perfectly, Densetsu decided that the Vigilante was still a criminal, and that he would have to stand trial for his past sins; and the recent murders he committed. The Uchiha's plea for the man to surrender fell on dead ears, and the Vigilante revealed to be known as Shogo, challenged Densetsu to a dual to the death. The two men began to fight, and despite Shogo's own skill, he wasn't able to fully pressure Densetsu's staunch defence despite the Uchiha taking a very non lethal and rather minimally aggressive approach to the fight. Shogo gained a quick advantage later on, but Densetsu quickly turned the situation on his head and defeated him, apprehending him immediately.
As expected, Kaoru and Akuhei had no problems either with their respective opponents, and the trio reunited with their captured enemies in hand. Realising Shogo was the Shadow Vigilante (the vigilante's mask was hanging from his belt at the time), the captured leader of the organisation fires several insults and swears to kill Shogo mercilessly when they were freed from prison, while struggling vainly against Akuhei's powerful grip. Taking it a step further, the man taunts Shogo by recounting in gory detail and revealing that it was he who had raped and killed Shogo's wife, and killed his sons; while Densetsu cringed. In a split second, Shogo summoned immense inner strength for one final push; breaking free from Densetsu in an instant and launching himself at the man with incredible speed, biting into his neck and ripping out his throat with his teeth before Akuhei could intervene, killing him immediately. Tapping his two feet together, Shogo forms a small dome of water around himself, forcing the incoming Densetsu and Akuhei backwards. In the dome, Shogo breaks his own thumb and frees himself from his bindings.
Separated from the other three, Shogo admits that the sins he has committed in his past are too great to warrant his life, and says that he was always preparing to end it all after killing the man who took his family from him. Stating that there was nothing left for him, Shogo thanks Densetsu for having inspired him to do some measure of good to atone for his previous sins; as the age of the Human Torch had inspired him to also become the Shadow Vigilante. Shogo pulls a scroll and unseals a blade, preparing to take his own life despite Densetsu pleading to him not to. As Shogo commits seppuku, the dome disintegrates and Akuhei quickly beheads him the moment his intestines spill, as an act of mercy.
After depositing the remaining criminal, Akuhei tells Densetsu that he noticed him deliberately allowing Shogo to charge at the now deceased leader of the organisation. Densetsu responds that Shogo was a broken man, and that he needed the closure, especially against a man evil enough to take his family from him; adding that he also knew Akuhei had purposely chosen not to react when Shogo burst forward. The two teenagers leave their reasons to themselves as they reflect on Shogo's actions throughout the week in silence while finishing their supper, still shocked with the story of the Shadow Vigilante.
The Timeless Land
The Three Trials
On an average sunny day off, Densetsu received a surprise visit from his mother Suzume, learning the shocking matter that his father had been missing for 6 days, and that Densetsu's brother, Kazuo had gone out to search for him. After further questioning his mother, Densetsu realised that his father had set out on a journey to locate 'a land of great importance', which made no sense to Suzume. However upon further deliberation throughout the day while his mother rested in the bedroom upstairs, Densetsu realised what had happened, recounting the stories his father used to tell him as a child, about a wondrous land inhabited by an ancient race of people, known as Shifuku, whose beauty also came with a blurry legend of time manipulation. While Densetsu knew this was hard to take in, he believed that his father had passed this message on to his mother deliberately, knowing she would pass it on to Densetsu and Kazuo. However, the purported 'path' to Shifuku was a wild one, passing through borders and lands ruled by violent thugs and criminals, dangerous escaped missing-nin, and such; at least according to his father. Upon hearing the news of his father's disappearance later that day, Densetsu's two friends, Kaoru and Densetsu's young apprentice Shin expressed their interest to join Densetsu on the quest, as they really had nothing to do either, and so that they may aid him in anyway necessary to find his father.
As the boys departed, Densetsu promised his mother that they would find his father, and asked her not to fret; before sending her back to her home. The trio were joined by yet another familiar face who had been dropping by to deliver a covert report, Akuhei Iwao, who also decided to follow them as he was curious to explore the Wild Lands himself. With a large party with him, Densetsu immediately set out with great haste to track his father, Fumio's path based on what his mother had told him. The four passed through the very edges of the lands they were comfortable with, following the older man's path doggedly by investigating towns and picking up leads, which Fumio was apparently generously giving. After a quick two day dash with minimal sleep, they discovered that Fumio was truly headed through the Wild Lands, beyond the Five Great Nations. Densetsu knew without a shadow of a doubt that he was now chasing Shifuku, and thus their epic journey officially began. At the end of their third day scaling mountains, crossing canyons and living off the lands, the four's tracking abilities enabled them to get close enough to Fumio, who had been travelling slowly, which Kaoru theorised was to enable Densetsu to catch up.
But they were in great shock as they discovered that not only had Kazuo caught up with Fumio, but that both had been captured by a group of masked, cloaked men, bound with chakra impeding restraints. Akuhei recognised them to be the Lost Ten of Kusa, an infamous group of rogues who had defected from Kusagakure ten years prior—known for their power and greed. Upon hearing in on them, it was revealed that Kaoru and Fumio had been defeated by these missing-nin after a skirmish, and that they were now going to be involved as hostages—to ensure that the group got the money they so desired from the home village of the two shinobi. Densetsu, Shin, Akuhei and Kazuo lay in wait safely and silently, waiting for the time to strike—with Densetsu forbidding the young Shin from involving himself in a potentially dangerous fight. Waiting for nightfall, the S-rank trio struck (with Shin grumbling, watching from the sidelines, waiting to play his role). Unleashing hell on the Kusa Ten, the three powerhouses reduced the number of their opponents to six very quickly, though these six began to show why they were so feared. Among their abilities were generating demonic summons, absorbing foreign chakra to utilise as their own reserves, gathering sage mode while moving, Boil Release and blazing speed. Having a challenge on their hands, the S-rank trio neverthelessly were able to keep up with their opposition—distracting them long enough for Shin to sneak past the combatants to free Kazuo and Fumio. Having executed their plan, the trio immobilised the thugs, with Fumio adding the finishing Genjutsu to knock them into a world of dreams and illusions; leaving them for the authorities to handle.
Fumio then revealed to Densetsu the full details of his quest to find Shifuku, divulging that it wasn't a mythical story, as he had been there before—and that he needed to return immediately to see it, believing it to be in danger. Fumio however warned the small company that the challenges which awaited those who wished to discover Shifuku were great, and that the obstacles would challenge even mighty shinobi of their calibre, and even endanger their lives. While Densetsu was shocked by the sudden revelation, he agreed to personally accompany his father to fulfil his wishes, as does his brother; but leaving it up to his friends to continue the journey with him or not to. Wanting to witness the legend of Shifuku and participate in an epic adventure themselves, all of them unanimously agree to continue the quest. Thus the party travelled out for a further two days, clearing all lands known to them by great distances, and even breaking free of the Wilbefore reaching the first obstacle; a dense jungle which acted like an impenetrable maze with no end—serving to discourage most adventures and convince them that the story was just a myth. As his father knew these parts shockingly well, Densetsu watched with curiosity as a side of his estranged father he had never known popped up as the man led them through the thick forests as though he were walking in a local park. In no time at all, they had cleared this maze, approaching the next obstacle—a temple in the middle of a clearing, separating them from the exit of the forest. The only way out, was through the complex. When Shin brought up the idea of scaling the walls, Fumio ominously warned him not to choose a path which guaranteed his death.
The entrance of the complex contained a message inscribed in an ancient language; a sign to those who enter to face themselves, and let nobody else do so. According to what Fumio had stated earlier, the main reason to pass through the temple was to pass the test of spirit—the mysterious complex was where they would do battle with that which they feared most, and if they could not triumph, they would not pass. As the old man elaborated that they would have to do ferocious battle and that the price of defeat would be death, Densetsu became even more reluctant to allow Shin to proceed with something clearly this risky—but his young protege was determined to partake in this trial by fire, and wished for his tutor to express confidence in his abilities, no matter the odds; to which Densetsu gave into, reluctantly putting faith in his student. Fumio also explained that while their trials would present themselves in the splitting image of the individual they had come to test, they would later morph into the one thing they feared most. Thus their next trial began as soon as they navigated further and further into the construct, and they knew it was time for their duels when an exact copy of themselves appeared ahead, blocking the group's progress. The first to be faced with this challenge was Densetsu himself, looking at a flawless copy of himself; almost as though a real clone had gained independent sentience.
But the clone didn't morph into anything. As Densetsu entered the stance of battle, it activated its Mangekyō Sharingan while drawing its sword out of the scabbard, revealing a blood stained blade with bits and pieces of flesh sticking to it, as the sickening colour of blood do different hues—from both arteries and veins, bright and dark, stained its entire being. Its savage, wild grin freezing him in his tracks. Densetsu realised it immediately. He feared himself, he feared losing control again. The first attack came, with Densetsu evading very narrowly, on the backfoot as his doppelgänger intensified its barrages, with Densetsu's signature speed and frenzied unpredictability incorporated in its style. Each attack unsettled Densetsu even further, as he realised he possessed a crucial disadvantage that his for did not—restraint, the lust to kill. Forced into a corner by his own strongest techniques, Densetsu seemed to lose more and more movement and rationalisation as the battle progressed, making near crucial slip ups. But admits the foul creature's stinging taunts and jeers, he remembered his friends, he remembered why he did what he did, he remembered why he held back; he remembered that he had to win. Rallying, Densetsu launched himself forward, removing the chains of restraint and unleashing his full rage upon his opponent. After a tiring effort, Densetsu defeated him, but was faced with one final dilemma; to pull to kill the defeated foe. Which he didn't, thus overcoming his ultimate fears and hence being able to progress down the corridor, to the now opened exit; as the defeated foe turned into a shadow and disappeared into nonexistence.
One by one, the others emerged from the complex, some bloodied, some unhurt. Kazuo emerges with the worst injuries, having taken his own attack directly in the gut. While Shin, badly hurt himself, attempts to heal the now collapsed Kazuo with the help of Akuhei, the injury is too great for him to fully heal; though he's able to staunch the bleeding to an extent. Fumio, Densetsu and the others worriedly agree that their only hope was to reach Shifuku at an even quicker rate for immediate medical assistance, or risk Kazuo losing his life. The final challenge seemed easier, but in actuality was just as hard. A river which flowed to Shifuku, but one which possessed numerous gigantic beasts and a current which was the mightiest adversary, which had drowned a great number of those who managed to overcome the first three challenges. After a brief 15 minute walk out of the jungle, the men reached the river, Akuhei's Wood Release prowess allowing him to forge several boats (as creating a single large boat would attract the biggest 'fish' according to Fumio) with his own chakra to enable them to travel through its fearsome currents. Thus the men set off Fumio leading, Kaoru behind, Shin and the injured Kazuo in the middle, with the ranged specialists Densetsu and Akuhei forming the rearguard. After a relatively smooth first few hours, the current picked up significantly, pitting the shinobi against nature herself, their own strength battling her ancient might, forcing their way against the currents through the paths Fumio commanded. Evading large rocks and terrible, violent amounts of water, the tired group pressed on determinedly; as a silent stalker followed them from beneath.
As the currents worsened and they were swept along a mountainous terrain, the creature finally attacked. Gunning for the rear guard, a massive humanoid creature which seemed to be as large as the mountains erupted from the waters, bringing a massive fist down upon Akuhei's boat. A colossal battle ensued, as the former Jashinist fought back with his Wood Release, unleashing a Wood Dragon on the creature with great difficulty, commanding his allies to go on. As this battle ensued, tentacles erupted from the waters around the rest of the convoy, attempting to pull them into the deep dark waters. Countered by Densetsu's powerful blades of Wind and Kaoru's activation if the Eight Gates, the creature turned particularly vicious, whipping even more attacks at the men; who continued beating back their opponent, before erupting out of the waters: a colossal octopus, deflected onto a nearby cliff by a punch from Densetsu's Susanoo. As the creature launched itself into the water again, Densetsu launched the next attack, forming a Water Dragon to combat this persistent animal, slamming the construct into his sneaky foe repeatedly to its displeasure. However it was finally defeated by its fellow monster, which thrown across the water by Akuhei, landed directly on it while it burst out of the waters. As Akuhei rejoined the party after the defeat of these threats, Fumio announced that they had arrived. The confusing rock formations and paths parted to reveal the magnificent sight; the Gates of Shifuku. Beyond the gates was the waterfall, the final portion of this challenge that they had to survive, before reaching the fabled city. While low on chakra after their battles with their own selves, the group decided that it would take a combined effort to survive, especially with a critically injured man on board. With the existence of Densetsu's perfect Susanoo however, this was an achievable task; though it had to be done quickly, as Densetsu was already dangerously low on chakra. Densetsu formed the behemoth quickly over it, providing them with crucial transport as it flew down the waterfall, which was shockingly high; much higher than any they had ever seen or heard off. Having just enough energy for this act, Densetsu's Susanoo dissipates as he reaches the ground with the others, leaving him fatigued and on the brink of chakra loss.
Ahead lay a translucent veil which seemed to radiate light, between two huge cliffs ahead of the river bank. The men approached this, the entrance of Shifuku, as Fumio commanded them all to join hands, which they did; before entering.
The Heir of Shifuku
Upon passing through this glittering barrier, the group find themselves in a beautiful land, vast and magnificent, ancient and glorious—which Fumio states is Shifuku. Almost immediately the group are surrounded by individuals armed with spears, but upon seeing Fumio, they lower their weapons and now to him. Upon seeing this act of apparent respect, Densetsu eyes his father with curiosity, wondering how the now reclusive man could have garnered the respect of such an ancient people. As the pass through the land, Densetsu also notices that his father seems to have grown younger, learning from the now seemingly younger man that Shifuku transforms any individual into the form they were in when they first stepped foot in it, in Fumio's case, a 32 year old man. They notice that Shifuku has a rather large population as they make their way to a huge castle in the centre ahead, a populace actively engaged in agriculture mainly. With Fumio's pleas, Kazuo is taken to the infirmary for treatment, with Shin following to supervise. As Densetsu finds himself alone with his father, he instantly rounds on his father and demands to know what was going on and how Fumio had established contact with Shifuku; and most importantly why, as well.
Despite the old man's reluctance, his son demands to know even further, as Densetsu realises that even his mother was never aware of Fumio's business at Shifuku. Fumio then explains, how he 'stumbled' across the land on an adventure, while eventually learning that he was the 'Keeper of Shifuku', a being designed to be the bridge between Shifuku and the world; a post which lasted every 50 'normal' years, before a new successor was elected and the previous one retires. The Keeper of Shifuku however would reside outside of Shifuku, only returning with the chosen successor at the end of the 50 year period, prior to retirement. Fumio reveals that his paternal bloodline have all been Keepers, but the misadventure which had led to him discovering the land had also taken the life of the previous keeper—Densetsu's grandfather. As the two previous keepers had been killed in conflict, Fumio had to return to Shifuku, as it was his duty. Densetsu then deduced that he was the next in line, to which Fumio acknowledges to be true.
Before the father and son can commence their speech, an emissary arrives, telling the duo that the Princess of Shifuku would now meet them. While making his way to the throne room, Fumio informs Densetsu that he had never met the Princess, as Shifuku had earlier been ruled by a Queen, who had apparently died after leaving Shifuku briefly. Densetsu further learns that Shifuku's tradition is to grow its Princess outside the land, only bringing her back at the age of sixteen, to ensure that she doesn't stay as a child forever; as beings that enter Shifuku do not age. Upon entering the throne room, Densetsu is taken aback—as the Princess possesses immense beauty which he has never seen in the world, which he defines to be greatly supernatural. Instinctively bowing and bending to one knee, the Princess courteously told him to be at ease, as she wasn't the sort who was comfortable around these things. The Queen later appears, another stunning woman, albeit nowhere on the Princesses' level in Densetsu's view. Fumio and this Queen quickly start chattering, apparently old acquaintances; the Queen bidding the young Princess to give Densetsu a tour of the land while they caught up. The Queen also states that Densetsu grew up to be a carbon copy of his father, which Densetsu finally notices, as well. While exploring the land with the young girl, Densetsu was taken aback by its beauty and it's population; all of which were courteous and apparently virtuous individuals—something Densetsu had never seen in immortals, who ended up like Jashinists and cultists or conquerors outside Shifuku.
While carrying out a discussion with the Princess, Densetsu finds out that she was only 16, having loved outside of Shifuku until just recently. As the technicalities of the time dilution between Shifuku and the outside world were so complex and illogical, Densetsu overlooked explanation here, instead getting to know the girl throughout their tour, whose name ended up being revealed to be Yui. After this tour, Densetsu checks on Kazuo, who has healed very well, surprisingly quickly. Shin states that the medical technology here was on another level altogether, trumping anything in the outside world. Upon exploring the vast fields, Densetsu finds that Akuhei has gotten into a sparring match with one of Shifuku's guard platoon members; shockingly losing the spar. The spectating Kaoru reveals that the guards could indeed mould chakra, though they utilised some unique form of ninjutsu he had never laid eyes upon. Remembering his meeting with Hagoromo, Densetsu explains that this is Ninshu, the powerful and mysterious predecessor of ninjutsu. The core Guard Platoon's immense skill easily put their members on par with Densetsu, Akuhei and Kaoru; such was the capability of Shifuku's military. A truly frightening prospect. During this process, Densetsu is introduced to the Captain of the Guard Platoon, a man known as Hō, also recognised as the strongest fighter in Shifuku; also the one who had just defeated Akuhei.
Upon returning to his quarters, Densetsu and Fumio have a long discussion that hadn't taken place since Densetsu was a child; officially catching up with his son, as they had never talked too much even after being reunited. After a deep conversation, Fumio apologises for never being there for his son, which Densetsu dismisses, despite feeling the hurt inside. Fumio then drops a shocker, stating that they would have to stay at Shifuku for a further six months before returning, to which Densetsu lets his objections known. Fumio however calms him down, stating that time outside of Shifuku basically was progressing so extremely slowly, that it could be considered to have already stopped. The logic of this illogical statement somewhat reached Densetsu, who decided to place his faith in his father, who revealed that Akuhei, Kazuo, Kaoru and Shin had agreed too. These six months were compulsory for Densetsu to make the final decision on whether or not to accept the mantle as Shifuku's next Keeper. Thus, Densetsu's time in Shifuku began that night itself, as he prepared himself for a long half year.
Across the six months, Densetsu learned a great many things from the people of Shifuku. His curiosity with their way of life led to fascination towards the beautiful populace, both inside and out. Their love for peace and knowledge and their ability to enjoy life made Densetsu realise that this land was an Utopia, as he partook in various meetings and conversations with the people. He learned of Shifuku's history, how every citizen had originated from the outside world—purified by the Three Challenges, changed by the promise of absolute peace. Those who threatened Shifuku's stability were always exiled, having their memories of the land wiped—an ultimate curse. Along the way, Densetsu's relationship with the Princess had also strengthened intensely and while he viewed her as a trusted friend, she had already fallen in love with him. On the last three days of Densetsu's six month period, he had finally made his decision. He would become the Keeper of Shifuku, with Shin functioning as his Binder; the individual who watched over the Keeper in the real world (and carried news to Shifuku if he died without finishing his 50 year period). The ritual was completed on that night itself, Fumio passing the responsibility to Densetsu, who also earned the tattoo of Shifuku upon his entire right thigh, sealing him to Shifuku. Akuhei, Shin, Kaoru and Kazuo received their tattoos of citizenship as well, signalling that they would always be welcome to Shifuku from then onwards.
The party of introduction went merrily through the night, until Fumio rushed in again, revealing that a mutiny was on the horizon. Hō intended to take the throne of Shifuku for his own. Fumio collapsed, a knife in his back. In shock, Densetsu rushed to his father, as the remaining loyal Guard Platoon escorted the Princess and Queen to a safe room. Hō and his renegade guards rushed in immediately, cutting down those that stood in their paths. As Densetsu hoisted his father on his shoulders, the others engaged the mutineers, causing an intense battle in the castle courtyard. While Densetsu leaped up the wide castle stairs to safety, his father filled him in on the treachery that had transpired; and how Hō had been planning to mount the uprising when the foreigners had left, but hadn't expected his eavesdropping. Upon discovering him, they had wounded him in the hopes of stopping him, but he had made it to foil their plans. However, the father and son duo watched in shock as a projectile struck the Queen from all the way down, killing her instantly, as her defenders engaged with rogue guards who had breached the stairs as well.
At his father's bidding, Densetsu went after the Princess after depositing his father at a safe zone, intent on defending the heir to Shifuku from the traitors. Summoning a wall of earth to defend themselves from an onslaught of arrows, Densetsu fought the other rebels who had made it up there, forced to stick to cautious attacks out of fear for harming the Princess. Though triumphant, Densetsu was quickly closed down by Hō himself, whose companions were challenging the might of even Densetsu's party below, preventing them from aiding Densetsu. Forced to repeatedly give ground to the Ninshu master, their battle took them between the towers of the castle as Densetsu's adversary quickly showed the untamed powers of Ninshu to him; dragging the battle to such an extent Densetsu was forced to utilise even the legendary Amaterasu on Hō. Utilising the Amaterasu bought Densetsu some time and space to flee with the Princess from Hō, but only momentarily. Densetsu gains a spontaneous but risky idea to trick Hō, by transforming his own clone into a copy of the Princess to lead Hō away while the real Princess hid safely. Crafting an elaborate discussion in case Hō could sense chakra, the Uchiha's plan worked and Hō ended up chasing him to the balcony of the throne room, where Densetsu finally unleashed his full strength without hesitation or fear of harming the girl, blocking off the exits and facing Hō in a brutal beatdown.
Despite having a more even chance, Densetsu still struggled against Ninshu's superiority and Hō's own great experience, but doggedly kept his eyes trained for potential weak spots—finally spotting a weakness in Hō's patterns that left a gaping opening. He overcooked his punches when forced to resort to close quarters Taijutsu, leaving his ribs exposed for too long. After purposely taking a battering, Densetsu exploited this weakness, ramming a Rasengan into the man, completely shattering his specially forged armour and destroying part of his flesh too, before the force sent him toppling back over the balcony. Densetsu gripped his arm, refusing to let him fall to his demise, but Hō disgrace and arrogance prevented him from accepting this defeat. Letting go of Densetsu's hand, he plummeted to the ground below, dying instantly. At that moment the Princess reappeared before the battered Uchiha, embracing him tightly and thanking him, before giving him a kiss on the cheek. It was at this moment where she revealed her true feelings towards him, how she had grown to love him over the past six months. Though honoured, Densetsu revealed that he was already in love with someone at home, and that his heart already belonged to that individual. Upon witnessing the Princesses' heartbreak, he lets his honest thoughts leak through, revealing that had he not fallen in love before this, he would never had said no to the Princess, which cheers her up a little. She however held his hand and told him that she would forever wait for his return, as either a friend, or a lover.
As Densetsu returns to the courtyard, he finds that together with the loyal guards, his companions had ended the uprising as well, with numerous losses, nevertheless. The survivors among the Revolters were banished, having their memories of Shifuku wiped, doomed to live and die as mortals again After a three day recuperation period and the funeral of the Queen, the group were finally ready to return to Konoha again. As they made their way to the gates with the thanks of the citizens and prepared to exit, Fumio stopped his sons, Densetsu and Kazuo. While initially curious, the boys realise that Fumio had not carried any bags, justifying their suspicions when he informed them that he wouldn't be leaving Shifuku again. While Kazuo understood this, Densetsu simply couldn't; upon which Fumio requested to be left alone with just Densetsu.
The tearful Densetsu was distraught, pouring out his feelings to his father, blaming him for leaving him at the very moment they were supposed to reconcile and be a father and son again; Densetsu blaming the older man for never being there for him when he needed him most. The older man realised that all those years in isolation, especially his being left in Konoha to fend for himself were doing the talking, that his son had never truly forgiven him despite his outwardly friendly demeanour. Taking this into consideration, Fumio expresses his belief in his son, which he had on the day he left Konoha and even still had in the current; making these tough calls pertaining to Densetsu because he ws confident in his son's abilities. Fumio pours his heart to his son, his pride for seeing him develop into the splendid man, shinobi and hero he had become; to have even become a much greater man that he'd have imagined his ownself to be. While this touching, lengthy speech calms Densetsu down; his father entrusts him with a letter to be delivered to his mother, explaining that his mother would understand when she read it, as she was Fumio's wife after all. With this, he bids his son farewell, telling him that he would see him again in 50 years, to which Densetsu cracks a smile through tears stating, "50 years for me, but maybe just a blink for you."
As Densetsu and his remaining companions Shin, Kazuo, Kaoru and Akuhei prepare to depart, Densetsu takes one look back at his father and the princess, the former nodding to him in approval. Immediately the six boys step through the Gateway and exit Shifuku. Upon returning to Konoha, the party find out that it has only been 12 days since their departure (6 days to get to Shifuku, 6 days to get back), which meant that time had truly barely moved while they were at Shifuku. When Densetsu's mother asks about his father however, he says they found him, but pulls out the letter to be handed to her. After reading it, she seemed to understand, and no more words were said as she gave her son a hug.
The Metal War
A month later, the seemingly peaceful world was thrust into a violent conflict again. An attempt was made on the the life of Mifune, the leader of the Land of Iron. The botched assassination attempt was thwarted thanks to the bravery of the old Samurai's bodyguards, who intercepted the killing blows meant for him. An investigation was launched, and the Land of Iron sent a plea for aid to Konoha to help them hunt down the culprit. As such, he found himself in the midst of his most frequent line of work—investigative duties, albeit now on a massive scale. Working hand in hand with the intelligence division of the Land of Iron from the shadows, Densetsu narrowed down the culprits based on the evidence provided to him, as well as some private snooping; eventually finding out from a poorly disposed pile of paperwork that the neighbouring Land of Steel had sanctioned the hit on Mifune.
While initially denying the intense allegations vehemently, the Land of Steel eventually dropped their masquerade and declared full out war on the Land of Iron after intentionally setting off a border dispute, signalling the start of the 'Metal War'; a full blown conflict initiated by the Steel to subjugate the smaller Land of Iron and reunite it with them; an initiative driven by the Steel's new leader, who had assumed dictatorial rule over the land and had even gone to the extent of hiding his identity from his own civilians. The smaller besieged forces turned to their military allies, Konoha, for assistance in terms of manpower as per a military agreement they had signed a month after the Fourth Shinobi War. Konoha complied, and sent a small, but professional platoon of shinobi to aid the Samurai against their aggressors, as did Iwagakure and Kirigakure. Combined with the strategic advantage, the Land of Iron's still tiny overall forces now possessed a fighting chance against their aggressors; especially after a terribly failed attempt at diplomacy which saw the deaths of the Land of Iron's diplomatic team.
Without much warning, the conflict started immediately, the border of both nations became a river of blood, where both forces held each other off with all their strength at a stalemate in several skirmishes. In the midst of the chaos, Densetsu's involvement in the escalating violence became an important one—he and a small group had been personally tasked with infiltrating the Land of Steel to identify and remove its' secret leader, to force peace talks. Though against the idea of murder, Densetsu complied as it was the only way to save countless other lives. He joined up with a team of two ANBU operatives, twin brothers codenamed Y and Z whose inseparable bond had accomplished a shocking 45 S-rank missions, to begin the treacherous journey to the very heart of the Land of Steel through the front lines, and end the war as soon as possible.
Witnessing the sheer carnage along the way, the three man squad were joined by a frail middle aged man who had defected from the Steel a year ago and temporarily sought asylum in Iwagakure, a former intelligence expert known as Sochiro, who had been assigned by Iwagakure to help out with this covert mission. Together, they managed to slip past the front lines and heavily guarded portions of the Land of Steel in a journey to its centre which spanned a week, before finally reaching the capital. Now here, they had to find a safe place to shelter while they collected information, a difficult task as they had no help here—as all suspected allies of the Land of Iron had either been banished or executed on espionage charges. Over the next few days, their stealthy probing yielded information that revealed how cautious this dictator actually was; a man who wore a mask even at meeting with his top generals, in the heavily fortified citadel. Every evening, he broadcasted his messages and propaganda to the people of the city and the whole land, via numerous loudspeakers, while carrying out violent mass beheadings to inspire fear into the hearts of those who weren't twisted by his charming words.
Along with the numerous discussions and care they were taking to remain hidden, Densetsu began forging bonds with Y, Z and Sochiro; whom all possessed reputable CV's. Despite this, the Uchiha felt a foreboding sensation in his gut: things had simply been progressing too smoothly. While openly maintaining a friendly relationship with the other members, Densetsu didn't trust them inside, refusing to rule out potential sabotage. So far they had courted no suspicion whatsoever, and the areas they generally scouted were surprisingly clear off enemies; too much luck to be genuine, further fuelling Densetsu's suspicions. Densetsu was also silently most suspicious of Sochiro, who had frequently volunteered to take the same night shift repeatedly, but refraining from letting his thoughts be known—suspecting he could be a double agent. Thus on the fifth day of the mission, the Uchiha openly asked him why he did so, being met with a sheepish answer which did not ease his discomfort. However as though to appease his fears, that night, Sochiro offered to skip his shift, as he was feeling under the weather; to which the others consented to.
The attack came that night itself. While on Z's shift, the special ops of the Land of Steel struck, attacking the complex by surprise and streaming into the building like ants to attack the resting shinobi. Instantly a massive firefight ensued, with the sleeping Densetsu narrowly escaping with his life as the team managed to escape the building, with Sochiro suffering injuries, but remaining alive; thanks to Densetsu hoisting an arm over him to bring him to safety—but not before witnessing a scene behind the flames and chaos—Z seemingly being spared after being cornered. As they finally got some distance from their assailants, Densetsu, Sochiro and Z regrouped, Densetsu's thoughts were now muddled—having suspected Sochiro but having the attack strike on the day he ironically left his shift reeked of suspicion, but the fact that Sochiro had been struck gravely and almost killed was also worrying his train of thought. Equally brain wracking was the fact that Densetsu had witnessed Z get cornered and disarmed through the carnage, as though the enemy had spared his life for a shady reason. To make things worse, Y had been captured alive. There was no way he could suspect any of them more than the other, and now the situation had quickly deteriorated. Z however reveals that the ANBU had Genjutsu guards in their minds, to prevent interrogations, and states sadly that no matter what, Y would not yield. However despite this, Densetsu knew that he had to take into consideration that both Z and Y could be the enemy. But something in him told him that the bruised and battered, sagely Sochiro was the true criminal, though he had no solid evidence...yet.
The next day, security was tightened even further, and Z displayed his true ability—the ability to change one's chakra signature completely for ultimate espionage. With this and transformation techniques, the trio of Densetsu, Sochiro and Z could move around more safely, albeit not too close to each other. What disturbed Densetsu further was the fact that no announcements were made about Y's capture, not even in the daily evening address by the Dictator. Densetsu however knew for sure that there wouldn't be another attack on their next hideout too soon, as the traitor had fluffed his chance at the first go. A further attempt could possibly expose his identity, and Densetsu knew both Z and Sochiro were too sharp for such an error, openly letting it known that one of the trio was definitely a traitor: with even Sochiro and Z beginning to ferociously suspect each other.
While the tense atmosphere continued, Densetsu acted on his own accord, assigning a young toad on espionage duty, informing it to infiltrate the palace and get information on the Dictator; while he attempted to flush the rogue agent out. The war was getting bloodier, with the Land of Steel finally moving into the Land of Iron, marching further to the capital. Densetsu's time was running short. That afternoon, the trio engaged in a fierce argument with each other over who the potential traitor was. In the ensuing argument Sochiro brought out a fantastic argument—stating that it was confirmed evidence that Z and Y were behind it, as Y had apparently not even been executed yet, and had conveniently been 'kidnapped' during Z's watch, while Z was still conveniently with them to report back to base, where his brother was safe. Z was shocked and visibly unnerved, but could not dispute the evidence which seemed to point towards him, and together with the scene that Densetsu had secretly witnessed of Z's life being spared; it was compelling to agree with Sochiro's outburst.
Almost too compelling, despite the factual stability, as Densetsu noted. The toad returned that night, meeting it's Summoner while he was in the loo, away from the eyes of Z and Sochiro, informing Densetsu that Y was still alive; albeit caged in a room he whole day, heavily drugged and submitted to frequent torture. It also revealed that the Dictator was heavily guarded and masked at all times, but had been observed entering a room alone an hour prior to his annual meetings with his generals and the evening address. Upon closer inspection behind the guarded doors, the toad discovered that some type of monologue was taking place inside, which lasted at least half an hour. Upon Densetsu asking if there was ever anyone in the room, the toad said it could only sense one presence—the Dictator's and nobody else, ever. Densetsu's eyes widened as a potentially huge revelation came to him. Entering a room alone for half an hour, monologuing...it seemed to him like a false religious prophet who was receiving orders from the divine; or in this case, a man receiving orders from a true mastermind. He finally understood, this man was merely a puppet controlled by the true dictator, who could be anywhere. Anywhere but in that citadel. Assassinating that man would do no good. However the fact that Y had been drugged and tortured effectively cleared Z from suspicion in Densetsu's eyes.
Densetsu could now freely suspect Sochiro again, now convinced that he was somehow in contact with the special ops and could engage with them without the others noticing, even Densetsu's keen eyes. Densetsu now decided to put Sochiro through several inconspicuous tests, approaching the middle aged man and declaring that he had no faith in Z any longer, suspecting him to be the traitor. Sochiro vigorously agreed and planned to somehow apprehend him. Upon calling Z in as well, Densetsu further lied to both that it was now time for them to officially make their move and assault the castle, to make the assassination attempt; requesting Z to carry out a scouting run in the meantime. As if on cue, security at the citadel tripled in the next two hours, and Densetsu chuckled to himself, having put Sochiro in a position to frame Z which was too seductive to turn down. Despite Sochiro's cunning, he had severely underestimated the X factors, such as Densetsu's toad's infiltration. Sochiro had attempted to place the blame on Z to an unquestionable point where the evidence would overwhelm Z. But more misfortune headed Sochiro's way. As Densetsu called off the mission, the toad returned again, as they were out of view, informing Densetsu that the mysterious room the Dictator frequently visited contained a machine which translated a code onto paper. Morse code. The whole sequence finally made sense as Densetsu approached a shocking conclusion, as a whole puzzle solved itself in his head.
Sochiro had been communicating with the enemy without them knowing. There was a machine which translated entire morse code into something easily readable, for the false leader to follow. Sochiro's constant night shifts at the beginning if the operation would have been the times he sent the longer messages, while shorter messages could have been delivered at other times of the day when Densetsu, Y and Z were lax. On the night he traded his regular shift, the enemy had attacked—Sochiro could have easily planned it this way to shift suspicion. He had also manipulated numerous events to shift the blame onto Z, including keeping his brother alive this long. Sochiro had been manipulating proceedings all along from Iwa, then the front lines, then with the very team who had been seeking his head. All this time, he had been allowed the privilege of being one step ahead at all times, even if his craftily covered tracks evoked suspicion, logical evidence was always in his favour. But not any more. In the rundown shack they were sheltering in, Densetsu heard sounds of scuffle, rushing to the scene to find Sochiro holding a dagger to the bloodied throat of Z, who was panting on the ground. Sochiro claimed that Z had finally made the move to try and kill him, and that he had failed, informing Densetsu he was going to kill Z. With a swift flick of a kunai, Densetsu disarmed Sochiro and thrust him against a wall. In the process, a small mechanical device slipped out of Sochiro's jacket and hit the floorboard, with a spring operated button in the middle—apparently the device Sochiro had been using to transmit the morse code messages.
His suspicions confirmed, Densetsu commands Z to send a hawk to the front lines and inform them to begin the counter offensive, as they had discovered the leader, to which Z complies, summoning a hawk between his laboured breaths and attaching a message to it; as Densetsu viciously buried his knee repeatedly into Sochiro's gut. Pressing his arm to the older man's throat to strangle him, Densetsu also asks the wounded Z for one more favour; to summon the false leader out of his citadel by means of morse code, kicking the device towards him as he knocked a few more blows into the struggling Sochiro, who realised he'd been found out, as Densetsu struggles on with Sochiro, who proved to be a deceptively formidable taijutsu opponent. Upon him doing so, Densetsu manages to finally neutralise Sochiro by smashing him at the wall, rendering him unconscious . Realising what had to be done and what Densetsu was planning, the mortally wounded Z offers to head out into the open and kill the impostor leader while Densetsu brought the true one back to the Land of Iron to use as leverage to force a ceasefire.
Regretfully, Densetsu agreed, promising to try and free Y, to which Z responds that it's okay if he doesn't, as he knew Y was probably tortured so badly he was close to death. Sochiro however quickly stands up and bars the two men from finishing the plan, pulling out a detonator device and threatening to activate every bomb in the numerous civilian buildings—unless he was set free and allowed to head to the Citadel, together with the surrender of both men. Sochiro gloated on about this being the reason why the citizens were so obedient, as they knew their lives could be terminated at any moment if they planned to revolt. He went even further to state that the army's top commanders were also in danger, and that they had been forced to comply to his wishes, his madness further fuelling his overconfidence at supposedly cornering his attackers—and that the only man truly loyal to him was his imposter, his own younger brother. that He made his second mistake by threatening Densetsu, who barely even flinched as he provided a live fire lesson to Sochiro on speed, drawing his blade, slicing the man's thumb and then removing his entire hand from the arm, with one single dash forward—a manoeuvre which lasted less than a second as Z disappeared as well. Incinerating and destroying the detonator, Densetsu grabbed the man's throat and teleported back to the Land of Iron, a silent prayer in his heart for the heroic Z, who drove his katana into the neck of the false leader—showing the other citizens present that their leader was apparently now dead; before setting off the explosive tags on his own body.
When Densetsu returned, the brief three week long War ended a few hours later, with both the dictator and his brother gone; as the largely anti-Sochiro Army leadership mounted an uprising to quell any influence the dictator still had, before agreeing to surrender and head to the bargaining table. It transpired that Y had lost his life in the previous night's torture sequence as well, leaving Densetsu as the only survivor of the team with the exception of Sochiro; the man who had taken an entire nation hostage with a few powerful, corrupt individuals; and his own twisted notions of keeping his citizens as hostages. Sochiro was tried by the international courts of the Great Nations and eventually sentenced to life behind bars, for war crimes and numerous other offences. Having played a crucial part in the Metal War, Densetsu was still unable to prevent a staggering 18, 450 lives being lost in the three week war, upon which the snowy borders of both countries had changed hue to a gawdy crimson shade, proof of the tremendous amount of lives lost in the battles waged there. After attending the private funeral of Y and the memorial of Z, Densetsu was given a month long respite after his most famous espionage case to date, which he used to unwind and get the horrific experience out of his mind, before returning to active duty on a series of A-ranked missions.
Descent into the Darkness
On New Year's Eve, a grand message was launched to the Five Great Nations simulcast. A hooded figure appeared, enlarged projected in the air near the entrance of each village, for all their citizens to see. A shocking fact is revealed, the hooded man has kidnapped the Daimyō from each great Land, each of them gagged and forced to kneel. Several other figures appear behind the captured old men, and the scenes turned gruesome as one by one, knives were drawn across each one's neck. As the bodies dropped one by one, all the citizens—and even Kage could do was stop and stare in horror and shock as the blood chilling projection waned on; the now 20 year old Densetsu among the shocked on lookers at Konoha, having spent the so far peaceful night with his girlfriend at Yakiniku Q. With the five Daimyo dead, the hooded man issued a warning to the Five Great Lands, challenging them to band together again and defeat a threat which wasn't Godly, but of the human race itself. The man claimed to be from a worldwide network known as 'The Organisation', and stated that on that night itself, they would carry out the mission that their predecessors; the Akatsuki and the Brotherhood had seeked to accomplish, to change the world and rule it differently—and that their war would be a different one, one which the superior firepower of the Allied Shinobi Forces would not be able to overcome. But this mysterious leader wasn't done yet, warning the nations that there was one more threat awaiting them—show of fireworks. It didn't take the various citizens long to figure this cryptic riddle out, as a series of bombs exploded throughout the Five Great Villages, including in Konoha's west section, near the abandoned Uchiha district. While the bombs had been placed as an apparent warning and only 4 lives were lost all in all, the Nations took notice of this new threat, regarding the quintuple assassinations and bombings as an act of war, as the Kage assumed temporary control over the positions of the Daimyo as well, pending an emergency election.
As pretty much one of the foremost shinobi with immense investigative experience over the past two years including several international cases, Densetsu was one of the names tasked by the Allied Forces, together with his other two usual teammates Akuhei Iwao and Kaoru Shin'ya, part of a large group of independent small teams assigned to hunt down members of this 'Organisation', in a covert operation directly commanded by Kakashi Hatake, the Hokage. With absolutely nothing to start on, each of the teams agreed to start from the days leading up to the disappearances of each Daimyo, which had somehow been intricately planned with the use of shockingly flawless decoy tactics. Densetsu and several others also brought up the undeniable point that there were moles in each village, with Densetsu even going as far as insisting that he and all the other members should undergo an interrogation under Ibiki Morino to weed out the traitors. While there was visible unease, two traitors immediately showed themselves at this statement, declaring their fanatical allegiance to their Organisation while revealing their suicide vests. The quick thinking of several of the elite shinobi in the room prevented any deaths save for the two traitors; who blew themselves up shortly after several protective ninjutsu barriers were brought up. Nevertheless, it became obvious that the test would have to be carried out—and on the day of the interrogation, one more individual had gone missing.
As Morino carried out his various means of 'extracting information', the remaining 25 men and women were all cleared of any hint of treachery, hence the group's confidential dealings would not be compromised. The Operatives split into two groups, one to find the sleeper agents hidden in each village and one more to hunt down the actual perpetrators, with Densetsu's team being assigned to the latter, with 10 others. The operatives worked tirelessly, pulling out all nighters as they raced against the clock to find this latest breed of terrorists, the group tasked with hunting sleeper agents found more success than Densetsu's group, although their targets always died fighting, never allowing themselves to be captured—each with anti interrogation seals to prevent their corpses from revealing anything. These fanatics drove the elite teams to a dead end; before Densetsu stumbled across a potentially game breaking discovery: a young maid had been present on the day the Land of Lightning's Daimyo had been kidnapped, witnessing the act while she peered from an opposing window—though her initial silence had prevented both parties from discovering that she was a witness. Two teams immediately headed out for this witness, Densetsu, Akuhei and Kaoru among them. After a long session, they received crucial physical information on the four masked kidnappers, discovering that two of the men had an ANBU shaped tattoos on their arms, and together they had spirited the old daimyo away on the night of his execution, leaving a clone as a decoy. Upon noting that the kidnappers had directly left without a fight at the border, Densetsu theorised that they had used a weak spot in the barrier, away from the guards—typical as the ANBU knew the passcode. As another one of the team members pointed out that Kumogakure's barrier pass combination was toggled every two months, the teams deduced that at least one of the defectors would have only recently defected, to know the current passcode, and with the physical characteristics vaguely given, they were able to narrow down the list to a certain man named Kawashima, who had been an ANBU operative until just two months prior.
Setting Kawashima as public enemy number one, a 7 man force was sent to hunt him down from the group tasked with hunting perpetrators, with only Densetsu and his team left at Konoha to organise the hunt from afar. Two nights later, the mysterious leader of the Organisation projected his message across the Great Nations again, this time declaring that he had delivered a special gift for the people of Kirigakure. Immediately there were reports that ordinary citizens were suddenly dropping dead; and then the terrifying confirmation came that the Organisation had hatched another devious plot—poisoning their entire water supply somehow. That night the number of dead skyrocketed in Kirigakure, as a shocking 342 souls were extinguished after this latest terrorist attack, much more brutal than before; but on that very night itself, Kawashima had been captured. Under wraps from everybody else he was smuggled to Konoha at top speed, whereupon he was broken repeatedly by the interrogatory might of Ibiki Morino. As Densetsu and the task force members watched on together with the Hokage, Kawashima's fanatical delusions were broken as he began to spill whatever knowledge he knew, delivering names that the task force members leaped to hunt down, all in one shocking night.
However, some of them had walked straight into traps. Several of the locations listed by Kawashima were booby trapped, and the task force members were met with terrifying creatures and horrendous traps, as 4 of them died that night; while attempting to retrieve crucial information. However many of the bits of information from the man's mouth were legitimate, like the location Densetsu had headed to, where they captured the elusive leader of the poisoning cell, the group that had succeeded in poisoning Kiri; after walking head first into a terrible series of traps which had been successfully sprung by the immortal Akuhei. Upon returning, Morino revealed to them that the masterminds had deliberately fed false leads to the lower dogs, just to cause loss of life if they were interrogated. As they set up to interrogate this new villain behind the catastrophe at Kiri, the remaining six men realised that they'd walked into a trap again. This criminal mastermind was a human explosive, having stitched several explosives in his intestines to purposely get caught, and kill his interrogators. As Densetsu and the others dove for cover he detonated himself, killing the first line of interrogators, though Ibiki Morino survived. Having narrowly evaded death again, Densetsu noted that the enemy was very cautious, but somewhat overconfident—as they had still kept crucial evidence stashed, instead of setting up false trails with false booby traps. It was fair to say that they were gaining on their aggressors.
In another broadcast a night later, the mysterious leader warned the Nations that their meddling had not gone unnoticed, gloating that the endgame would still end in glorious defeat for the Great Nations, no matter his good their espionage chain was—before revealing a savage series of coordinated bomb detonations in Kusagakure, which yielded a final death toll of 622. Concluding that their enemies were extremely on edge now, the Great Nations pooled their evidence to bring forth a list of suspects and their locations after finally electing their new respective Daimyo; aiming to send different teams after these individuals, and eliminate them to end the shoddy, albeit brutal uprising. Morale was further boosted after an attempted mass bombing in Konoha was thwarted thanks to the quick thinking of the remaining six members of the Perpetrator force and the Sleeper Cell detection team; who managed to intercept a coded message and eliminate a hidden group of bombers in Konoha. With the increased security and numerous leads, the other Nations began foiling the sleeper cell attacks with great frequency as a new hint dropped on after a suspicious message was successfully intercepted by Iwagakure's codebreakers, revealing a shocking leak: the leaders of these terrorists were holed up on an island in the middle of the famed Sea of Darkness; a group of highly skilled Water Release masters who called the rough, deadly seas their home.
However this success was barred by a major setback, as the two other remaining members of the Perpetrator Force excluding Team Densetsu were executed in a mass projection that evening, their severed heads set upon likes and tossed into their home, Kumogakure. But the remaining 18 members of the initial task force had been gathered and rallied. On the night before he left, Densetsu was confronted by his lover under the stars, who finally admitted to him that she feared for his life in this mission especially; as the enemies Densetsu had faced so far had been much more powerful, but not as methodical and silent as these terrorists, who now happened to be led by a celebrated group of shinobi in their home element—a fact which Densetsu admitted to as well. Wanting her soul mate to return alive but also knowing that it could be the last time they ever saw each other again, Hitomi and Densetsu became one that night, expressing their love for each other by finally uniting. Hitomi told Densetsu that he would be the only one for her, and that she was waiting for him to return, so that they could finally begin a life together. Determined to finish the mission to defend his friends, family and village while also keeping his life intact for the sake of the woman waiting for him, the Uchiha set off with the others, to the Sea of Darkness. They would march into the Sea of Darkness, and kill or capture all the terrorists involved in the heinous plots, before they could take any more lives. Densetsu had also been charged with leading the operation.
Upon the Taskforce finally crossing the tumultuous ocean by boat, rapidly gaining on the island, the Organisation finally realised that they had been had, scrambling an emergency force to counter their assailants—Densetsu seeing straight through their plan, assuming that the high chain of command would try to evacuate in the chaos. Dedicating a majority of the taskforce to counter the massive amount of enemies entering the waters, the Uchiha surged towards the shores with Susanoo, as their assailants set the water off with surges of electricity, turning the ocean into a death trap for those who failed to react quickly, Densetsu and other Earth Release users joined together to form structures rising from the ocean to provide safe, albeit temporary (due to Earth being weak against Lightning) passage to get to the shore. At the shores, the true fight began, with Akuhei and Kaoru taking command of the beach skirmish while Densetsu and another team of speed orientated shinobi penetrated the front lines, mounting a direct assault on the bunker further uphill; where the enemy command would be holed up, and definitely plotting to escape. They were attacked by a massive wave of crushing water as they got close to the building, facing on of the higher ranked organisation members who decided to buy time for his companions to escape; taking out an ANBU from Konohagakure that left Densetsu with one man down. With a no nonsense approach, the Uchiha and his two remaining teammates dove straight at the man, as Densetsu's Rasengan smashed his massive water release attack into shreds after tanking it directly, shocking its caster. Dashing past the dumbfounded man, Densetsu left him to the two remaining men on his team, as he burst into the entrance of the complex.
Quickly dispatching the shocked guard inside, the Uchiha was confronted by a group of sword wielding individuals, all who blocked a large doorway which was obviously important. Without as much as a sweat, the relentless Uchiha removed them from the picture, using untraceable speed to severely damage the legs of each one, before bursting through the huge, beautifully designed doors. He burst into a large meeting hall, with a large cylindrical table made out of marble, with 16 chairs, with 12 men and 4 women sitting in them. Upon witnessing his entry, they all stood, some heading for the exit behind them, others preparing to assault him. In a quick movement, Densetsu assumed his Fire Release Cloak, blasting the two men nearest to him squarely in the chest with two balls of flames from his fingertips. As the remaining men gathered their chakra and expelled various attacks towards the Uchiha, all he could do was construct a toughened wall of earth to defend himself from the vicious onslaught. However as if on cue, the walls of the richly designed, expensive room burst open, Akuhei Iwao's Wood Release reducing the left side to nothing while the power of Kaoru Shin'ya's Fifth Gate decimated the right side; the survivors of the beach skirmish pouring in to attack the fourteen big guns of the Organisation. One of these leaders dove for the back exit, catching Densetsu's keen eyes through the chaos—he was the Executioner who had been appearing in the projections; he apparently was the biggest gun, the top dog of this vicious kennel. Bursting through the rapidly deteriorating series of Elemental Attacks and destruction, Densetsu blasted after him, creating a wall of flames to separate the fleeing man from the corridor which assured his freedom. As chaos continued in the room behind them, Densetsu and the man faced each other; the makings of a vicious battle already in the air.
The fight started with the man's extensive usage of Water Release, a formidable weapon which forced Densetsu on the defensive, completely nullifying the effects of his Fire Release Cloak in the rather confined space, before eventually putting it out. Densetsu charged in with a quick combination of Earth Release ninjutsu and Clone Techniques, attempting to bypass the desperate man's wild, wide water based manoeuvres. As the two ninjutsu specialists slogged it out the hard way, Densetsu pressed the man further, attempting to use his speed to break the deadlock; although he only succeeded in knocking the man's mouth mask off, revealing his true face; before he unleashed a string of devilishly well practiced Taijutsu on Densetsu, unexpectedly breaking three of the Uchiha's fingers with a precise jab. Forced to contend with his experienced foe's barrage of Water, Densetsu began working with combinations of Earth and Wind to push the man back and gain a foothold on the battle, evening things up by managing to drive his a kunai through the older man's wrist. As the two opponents studied each other in a brief pause in combat, the older man asked for Densetsu's name, which he gave; the older man also revealing his name to be Yoroi Akise, whom Densetsu recognised to have been the legendary Bloody Waterfall of Kirigakure. Akise stated that he had never fought an opponent of Densetsu's calibre before, stating that he was going to lose the battle—but demanding that Densetsu go all out on him nevertheless, a sign to respect their battle. Densetsu honoured his request, bringing forth his strongest technique—Susanoo, as Akise utilised his signature Water Release ability: the Heavenly Earth Convergence Technique. They clashed, but Akise's immense firepower paled in comparison to the ethereal Susanoo, as he was quickly overwhelmed by the power of Susanoo's Triduum Spear. Nevertheless, the old man gave it his all, unleashing terrifying attacks as they moved through the corridors, shattering whatever part of the building they were fighting in, eventually ending up onside, on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Here Akise unleashed his strongest attack by using the might of the ocean behind, smashing Densetsu's Susanoo at long last, but effectively giving Densetsu a crucial opening, which he utilised to restrain the man, ending the battle.
However Akise chuckled, stating that he had exhausted all of his chakra in the skirmish—and was inevitably about to die, much to Densetsu's shock. Akise holds on defiantly, stating that his actions would have changed the world, but acknowledging that all would be lost, as he had failed to foresee the raid and dispose of the numerous plans the Organisation had concocted. At this moment the survivors of the taskforce emerge behind the two discussing men, watching the proceedings. While detesting the feeble man in front of him for the atrocious acts he had committed, Densetsu showed him a final act of courtesy, asking if he had any final intentions before he passed on, to which Akise responded that he had achieved his ultimate goal—to die believing in a cause close to his heart, against a glorious opponent. These words from the evil man actually touched Densetsu's heart, but the old man gave him another hint with his dying breaths—stating that many cells of the Organisation were still littered all over the world, waiting to execute lone wolf strikes with the chain of command now gone, meaning they'd still have to be hunted down—but in the files left behind in the meeting room, their locations would be revealed by means of cleverly disguised codes. While Densetsu questions why he revealed this much, he replies that it was his gift to the man who had defeated him, before slumping over, dead. Akuhei volunteers to shoulder the task of hunting the Organisation's splinter cells, stating that he would complete his own path to redemption by setting himself the challenge over the next years, hunting them all over the world til none remained. Kaoru questions Densetsu on what he would do next on his holiday after this long ordeal, at which Densetsu cheekily replies that he'd think of starting a family.
Happily Ever After
After the events of Densetsu's battle against the Organisation and his marriage proposal to Hitomi which she accepted, it is revealed that the pair got married a month later, in a grand ceremony imvolving the whole of Konoha. After a timeskip of several years, Densetsu is seen hurriedly being forced to prepare his younger children: Danzetsu, Hanako, Kenshin and Namazu in time for the big day in Konoha—the coronation ceremony of the Seventh Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki, while his wife and older sons (Juro and Teishi are hogging the three bathrooms). In the time since then, Densetsu has mostly left the direct action of the shinobi world to settle into the role of a diplomat, ushering peace from Konoha's front and making numerous allies for the Leaf. As such, just as always, his immense contributions have been from the shadows, as these allies also helped bring numerous technological advancements and other wonders of the modern world to the once backward Leaf Village. While still haunted by his violent past in the form of vivid nightmares, Densetsu eventually discovered that his great power had made him a terrifying force in the shinobi world, but it was a world he would never belong in.
The killing, the violence, the lies. It would never accommodate a man who stood against murder, at least not without costing him his own life.
As the bustling family finally manage to finally get ready, Densetsu rushes down into the basement to collect his daughter's brooch. Along the way, he accidentally pushes a door in the wall, making it part inwards to reveal his old Human Torch outfit hanging behind, as well as his weaponry. Out of sentimentality, he pulls his sheathed katana out as a symbolic weapon to go with his outfit, taking a quick look at his old mask before whispering 'Thank You', and shutting the door. Shin (finally becoming a Jōnin) and Kaoru make an appearance, ringing the doorbell to remind the family that they're running late; and that Densetsu's brother is scheduled to arrive later for the feast, with his mother. Akuhei has also sent a postcard from overseas, stating that he has 'dispatched' most of the Organisation, and that he would return very soon. As Densetsu rushes outwards to pin the brooch onto his little daughter, Juro shuts the house door and the happy family is heard arguing away comically as they make their way to the Hokage Office, with Densetsu making fun of Juro's relationship with a certain girl(who happens to also be watching them from a house behind theirs), with Hanako and Kenshin joining in. A closer inspection around his once lonely house reveals walls filled with individual and group pictures of him with his wife and children, his parents and his brother, his friends and a massive framed picture of his days in Team Ayato—a picture he had once kept in his closet as he could never get over Ayato's and Hiroki's death, revealing that he had truly finally moved on. Along the way, the nine year old Juro asks his father what it truly means to be a shinobi. With a gentle smile, Densetsu holds the young child's shoulders and repeats what had been passed on through various generations, stating that the strongest shinobi is the one who endures, symbolically passing the Will of Fire to Juro.
From here onward, the tale of Densetsu as it is, officially ends. In the official storyline, Densetsu never again dons the mask of the Human Torch, and gradually retires completely from the shinobi line of work at the age of 36, still in his prime. From there on, his story is passed onto Juro and Hanako, effectively closing his tale on a happy note. However, Densetsu remains active in other different timelines which are not part of the original; such as Chaos Labyrinth, where he serves as Shinzui's right hand man.
Quotes
- "I'm a genius, I'm not perfection."—Densetsu's punchline.
- "People like me are bound obsessively to duty, to the point we turn into selfish monsters. Individuals like Hiroki were also loyal to their duties, but they never forgot their friends. Hiroki never forgot me, or abandoned me no matter how far I fell; his firm arm was always there to pull me out of every deep pit my uncompromising rage flung me into. He was my voice of reason, my pillar of strength and he's the reason I'm still standing here today. I knew him for 10 years, and he was my best friend. To all of you now, he is but a memory; whose body is in this casket in front of me—but the lessons Hiroki taught me in this brief time will stay with me 'til the day I close my eyes as well. I'll always carry you with me, Hiro." —Densetsu eulogises Hiroki Nara.
- Listen, I don't have much time here, every second I spend in Konoha could be my last, but if I leave without seeing you, it's the equivalent of dying each day I spend in exile with guilt. It's simple, but you may never see me alive again; the path I'm going down...well, I just want you to know that you weren't just a friend to me—I love you, I always have and I always will. —Densetsu to Hitomi Sarutobi before the Uchiha Clan Downfall.
- "I have no need to pass judgement on you based on your actions, and it is not my right to take your life...I'll hand you over to fate—fate in the form of the families of the people you just killed." —Densetsu's words to Jinin Akebino before handing him over to the villagers for 'judgement'.
- "You and I have very differing views on power. You measure your power based on how many people you defeat; how much you gain dominion over. My power is demonstrated in terms of how many people I save, have saved and will save—and in the end, some other half sane megalomaniac will come in and kill you too...that's how the world works, you twisted lunatic." —Densetsu to Katsuro Minoru
- "I don't get what's their problem...it's like they've gotta be so traditional over every single thing, especially the fact that they don't use deodorant." —Densetsu takes a dig at Samurai.
- "B...A...yes, C! Oh, oh, ooh another C! OH YEAH, D!! SWEET HELL, E!!! Is that an F—UARRGHHH!!"—Densetsu is punched by Hitomi after being caught staring at a swimming pool.
- "You can't defeat me now; my strengths stem from the hearts that beat around me. Every threat you aim towards my loved ones, every action you try to unsettle me with; only serves to make me more powerful than you can ever imagine. Densetsu won't kill you, but if you touch his loved ones...the one you face—the one who kills you, won't be Densetsu, but what lies locked inside."—Densetsu to Sadao.
- "There's basically one general rule in the world—people won't see the good in you, unless you see it in yourself in the first place. If you explore that line a little deeply, you'll realise that you've gotta place faith in your own abilities, work at them and respect what you've become at the end, and eventually people are gonna see what you see too, and they'll respect you. But the key word here is yourself. You're never going to move forward until you respect yourself." —Densetsu to Shin Hayata.
- "Juro, the strongest shinobi isn't the one with the most techniques, or the strongest technique. It's the shinobi who can stand against the deadliest technique, willing to take hit after hit without falling; who never budges in resolve, who stares death in the face and says "You're not getting me anytime soon buddy", the one who's willing to endure incredible odds and believe he can pull through. The shinobi is the one who endures. That's who you should aspire to be, a man I'm confident you will be, now make me proud, son." —Densetsu to Juro Uchiha, his son.
- "Whining and giving up when crap hits the fan isn't my thing. Arrows are pulled backwards before they fly; they'll never fly if they aren't dragged back. Getting pushed to the ground only means I'll get back up twice as tall."
- "If such a thing called fate did exist, it is not the duty of man to read it. Either way, it's what you make of it. None more, none less."
Trivia
- Densetsu's main theme is Psycho Pass OST 1 (From Psycho Pass)
- Densetsu's storyline songs were chosen based on the situations he faced in Part I and II. They are:
- Unravel by TK (From Tokyo Ghoul) — The phase of Densetsu's which was filled with violence and brutal self discovery, which culminated in his fleeing Konoha and becoming a vigilante seeking redemption for his past sins. This theme song symbolises those struggles and turmoils within and around Densetsu.
- Rahshisa by Super Beaver (From Barakamon) — After establishing himself as a legendary vigilante, Densetsu has finally redeemed himself, leading to this theme song to symbolise his moving away from the sins of his youth, and embracing it—finally crafting a beautiful path for himself, which he can be proud off.
- Densetsu has completed 1190 missions in total; 91 D-Rank, 235 C-Rank, 345 B-Rank, 405 A-Rank and 116 S-Rank.
- Densetsu's favourite word is "Salvation" (済度, Saido).
- His favourite food is chicken rice with pork, served in various sauces.
- Densetsu hates raw food.
- Densetsu wishes to fight Itachi Uchiha, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Kabuto Yakushi.
- Densetsu hates wasting money( saving his cash up carefully in a hole he dug near the Hokage Monument) and Danzō Shimura.
- His hobbies are drawing, lying down atop the Hokage Monument to watch the sky, reading and napping.
- Densetsu is modelled mainly after Shinichi Izumi (Parasyte: The Maxim), with Shū Maiko (Nisekoi) for some pictures and Vash the Stampede (Trigun).
- By typing " (Densetsu) " in the chat, one can access an emoji of Densetsu.
- Densetsu's infobox was adapted from Sigma's design. The author thanks him for giving permission to use it.
- The author decided that Densetsu's main seiyuu would be Yuki Kaji, known for his roles in Attack on Titan (Eren Yeager), Tokyo Ghoul (Ayato Kirishima) and Nisekoi (Shū Maiko); while the seiyuu who voices Densetsu behind his mask would be Toshiyuki Morikawa (who also voices Minato Namikaze in Naruto). His English voice actor would be Scott Menville who notably brought life to Robin of the Teen Titans.
- The reason behind choosing Kaji for the role is due to the fact that he handles comical situations and serious moments with incredible fluency, able to alternate between the two in an instant—a crucial trait needed to bring life to Densetsu, who displays numerous differing emotions regularly. The same can be said about Menville, whose forever adolescent voice provides another angle to Densetsu's adventures; adding a cool touch to his heroics when needed, and an eccentric pinch of humour to his misadventures.
- Densetsu's name literally means 'Legendary'.
- Densetsu is officially only 37 years of age, though he's in his 50's in Dreamscape and 53 in the Chaos Labyrinth timeline.
- In his whole family, Densetsu is the only one capable of utilising Senjutsu.
Achievements
- Densetsu is over 400 000 bytes in total, once making him the longest page on the entire Naruto Fanon Wiki. He held this record from 2015 to 2022. He first broke into the top 10 longest articles in 2015.
- Densetsu was officially completed (excluding future corrections and modifications) by the author on December 17, 2015; after slightly over a year of editing.
- Densetsu ranked #8 in a poll which to determine the Top 10 Strongest Characters on the Naruto Fanon Wiki as of 2016.
- Densetsu was included in the pool of articles to be randomly featured on June 2017.
- Densetsu is included in the Naruto Fanon Wiki Hall of Fame since 2017.
Behind the Scenes
Densetsu has been the character that I, the author, have wanted to bring to NF since 2010, but only managed to create in 2014. I'd always been fascinated by the idea of an Uchiha who is as great as the Clan's most celebrated members...but at the same time so different. Though I had these aspirations, I was also well aware that the Uchiha were overrated on NF—everybody seemed to want to make their own Uchiha as the allure of Susanoo, Tsukuyomi, Kamui and Amaterasu were too good to turn down; especially since Kishi did a good job in making the Uchiha so invulnerable (cue Obito and Madara especially). This made me hesitate, but I decided that I'd go on with it anyway and create an Uchiha who would actually be a good guy this time; but he had to be completely different from the good guy Uchiha like Shisui and Itachi as well: a true challenge. But one that I accepted.
I started off rather weakly, making a complete Mary-Sue out of Densetsu, but thanks to the supportive community I saw what I was doing wrong, and how I was truly f**king something with so much potential up. Thus I began revamping him for over a month, arduously. I began to pour a lot of emphasis into his backstory and creating an entire storyline for him, as well as his personality; ensuring that I crafted a character who fit into the Uchiha clan, but wasn't of them. Densetsu by definition is supposed to be set apart from the typical Uchiha genres (super bad evil main villains, or heroic good guys too good to be afflicted by the Curse). He was born a good guy, was seduced into becoming a mindless bad guy, but through various traumas and losses; rediscovered himself and his spark of light. I tried my best to create a man who was tainted by the darkness of the Uchiha, but fought back and earned his repentance to stand tall in a way no other Uchiha had—as a symbol of hope and contrition.
"Be wise and be brave, the rest will follow."
Of course, I also tried my level best to portray Densetsu as an immensely powerful shinobi, one who had the potential to strike fear into the hearts of entire armies, but was still not a God. Inheriting the power of his clan and a sharp intellect, Densetsu displays many skills and abilities which make him a match for most powerful adversaries—but in the end, I hope I've emphasised enough that he's a mere mortal in the end. But one who has and will continue doing great things. Of course Densetsu can still be improved upon, and he is not the greatest work of art; but he's my pride and joy and the greatest article I have ever written anywhere. I consider him a finished article where story is concerned, and I'm happy with how everything turned out, after an intense year of work. I feel that I've done myself some justice where he's concerned, but I hope I've done him justice as well.
