"You've got guts."
Izayoi wasn't surprised by Uchiha Sasuke's choice.
Still, on the surface, he gave Uchiha Sasuke a thumbs-up.
This choice was also a good thing for Izayoi.
A Taijutsu duel couldn't bring out one's full strength. Even if he won, the drop rate would be lower than in a no-rules fight.
This was something Izayoi had confirmed.
When Hinata didn't use Gentle Fist to inject Chakra into his body, Izayoi defeated her without triggering a single entry drop.
The gap in strength between her and Izayoi was simply too vast.
Though a one-sided battle could still yield entries, the minuscule chance was something Izayoi hadn't encountered in the past year.
But when Hinata used Gentle Fist and went all out, Izayoi, over the course of that year, managed to trigger two entries from her—one purple, one blue.
Those two entries were none other than Kekkei Genkai: Byakugan (purple) and Chakra Control (blue).
It wasn't that Izayoi looked down on Uchiha Sasuke, but with his intimate knowledge of the plot and astonishing talent, he'd been taking shortcuts since he was three.
With his advantages, he was three or four years ahead of even someone like Sasuke.
If Uchiha Sasuke hadn't already mastered Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, he'd pose no threat to Izayoi at all.
And that Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique could boost Sasuke's drop rate.
A no-rules duel was the best choice.
"Let's get started!"
Izayoi stepped back a few paces, creating distance from Uchiha Sasuke, and then made the Seal of Confrontation.
Seeing this, Uchiha Sasuke formed the same seal.
Then, the two charged at each other.
As they closed in, Uchiha Sasuke threw a punch.
Izayoi sidestepped to dodge, simultaneously lifting his leg and spinning 180 degrees to aim a kick at Sasuke's face, displaying remarkable flexibility.
Caught off guard, Sasuke could only raise his other arm, blocking with his forearm, his body forced back several steps by the impact.
By the time he steadied himself, he was already at a severe disadvantage.
Izayoi rushed forward, arms swinging from both sides, targeting Sasuke's face and chest.
The strikes weren't powerful, but their speed was so overwhelming that Sasuke could barely react.
He blocked the first punch, but the second exploited an opening, landing squarely on his face.
After that first hit, Sasuke completely lost his rhythm, turning into a moving punching bag.
Any attempt to raise his arms was countered by Izayoi, who grabbed and pulled, throwing off his balance.
In contrast, Izayoi's flurry of attacks started chaotically but gradually found a rhythm.
It was reminiscent of the Hyuga clan's Eight Trigrams Palm—without injecting Chakra into the body, the damage wasn't great, but during the combo, the opponent was utterly helpless.
After an unknown number of hits, Izayoi finally stopped his attack, did a 360-degree turn, and with a charged kick, sent Uchiha Sasuke flying.
The force of this kick was far worse than the earlier combo, making it hard for Sasuke to breathe.
But as he looked at Izayoi retracting his leg, Sasuke—haunted for days by a Genjutsu space where he endlessly relived the massacre of his clan—suddenly saw Uchiha Itachi's shadow in Izayoi.
The words of disdain, refusing to kill him, echoed in his mind.
"You're too weak now. Live on in shame, clinging to life with all you've got…"
Sasuke's expression twisted.
"Uchiha Itachi, I'll kill you! Fire Release… Great Fireball Technique!"
Mistaking Izayoi for Itachi, he formed hand seals, spitting a small flame from his mouth that quickly swelled into a massive, scorching fireball, hurtling toward Izayoi.
"Just what I wanted! Wind Release… Wind Cutter Technique!"
Far from alarmed, Izayoi was delighted. He formed hand seals with a flourish, blowing out a breath that shifted from invisible to visible, forming a scythe-like, translucent wind blade that collided with the incoming fireball.
In the next instant, the massive fireball was sliced diagonally, and the weakened wind blade continued forward, striking Uchiha Sasuke.
Rip—
With the sound of tearing cloth, blood sprayed from Sasuke's body.
He hit the ground, motionless.
Izayoi, unfazed, walked over calmly.
Anyone might die now, but not Uchiha Sasuke or Uzumaki Naruto.
The news of the Gedo Statue being summoned from the moon must have reached the Sage of the Six Paths by now.
He surely knew the second pair of Rinnegan had emerged.
To prevent Indra and Asura's reincarnations from dying before they could grow—lest their mother revive prematurely—the Sage of the Six Paths would never let this generation's Indra and Asura die easily.
Besides, if a weakened C-rank Wind Cutter could kill him, Sasuke wouldn't deserve to be the second male lead.
Reaching Sasuke's side, Izayoi confirmed he was still breathing.
The wind blade had only torn his clothes, leaving a scratch on his body—no bones were visible.
Izayoi crouched down, using basic Medical Ninjutsu to treat him.
Pop—
At that moment, Izayoi thought he heard a sound crisper than a balloon bursting.
Following the sound, he focused intently.
Bubbles, visible only to Izayoi, floated around Sasuke's body.
He caught sight of one bubble bursting and a… red beam flying toward him.
"Huh?"
Staring at the red beam rapidly growing in his vision, Izayoi, for once, wore a stunned expression.
Red… red?
How many red entries did Sasuke have?
Was red the highest known rank, or was it purple?
But the chime in his mind confirmed he wasn't seeing things.
He'd hit the jackpot!
"Ding! You've obtained the talent entry [Sage's Eye (Red)]. Fuse or dismantle?"
"…Fuse!"
Izayoi shouted in his mind, barely containing the urge to grin.
Unsure if anyone was watching in secret, he suppressed the impulse, resulting in a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth, looking faintly comical.
At that moment, words couldn't describe Izayoi's feelings.
With Hinata as an example, he'd thought triggering Sasuke's red entry would take ages.
He'd even prepared to spar with Sasuke whenever he had time over the next five years.
If he still hadn't gotten a red entry by the end of ninja academy, Izayoi planned to slow his growth, keeping his strength on par with Sasuke and Hinata.
Yet, in his first no-rules duel, he'd triggered Uchiha Sasuke's Sage's Eye (Red).
This infinitesimal chance—he'd actually hit it.
In that moment, Izayoi finally understood the thrill of being a "lucky emperor."
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