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Sasame did not immediately proceed with the eye-opening experiment on Uchiha Mikoto.
She had just endured a great ordeal and needed a few days to rest.
Besides, he still had unfinished business.
After temporarily entrusting the security of the area to Uchiha Shisui, Sasame returned to Konoha.
Ninja Academy
The impromptu exam had finally ended.
Uchiha Sasuke glanced at the sky—dusk had already passed, replaced by vast stretches of darkness.
With the Uchiha clan's new compound being so far away, by the time he got back, the moon would likely be high in the sky.
"I wonder if my brother came to pick me up?"
Sasuke felt a pang of frustration.
Lately, Uchiha Itachi had been extremely busy.
They barely saw each other more than once every few days.
For a brother-con like him, it was unbearable.
"Sasuke-kun!"
The voice of Haruno Sakura rang out from the doorway.
Noticing Sasuke's gaze, she hopped excitedly, her enthusiasm obvious.
"Why is she so annoying? Always wasting my time."
Sasuke couldn't help but grumble inwardly.
As he turned his head, he saw another bright face.
"Hey, Sasuke, how was the test?"
Uzumaki Naruto walked up to him and asked.
"Too easy."
Sasuke replied flatly.
"That's so like you!"
Naruto gave him a thumbs-up. "I wasn't so lucky—I wasn't sure about the last question."
"…"
Sasuke's heart skipped a beat.
He had struggled with it too.
But since he'd already boasted, he had no choice but to keep up the act.
"Please don't let my score be lower than Naruto's…"
In actual combat, he couldn't beat Naruto.
When it came to theory, they were evenly matched—though, to be precise, Sasuke had a slight advantage due to his Uchiha upbringing and broader knowledge.
"Sakura and Ino are waiting for you again."
Naruto remarked with a sigh. "You're pretty popular with the girls, Sasuke."
"Tch. Annoying."
Sasuke stood up, noticing Naruto's expression. He felt smug inside, but his face remained indifferent.
In this regard, he always came out on top.
But what he truly wanted wasn't admiration—it was to defeat Naruto.
"Want to grab dinner together?"
Sakura suggested.
"No. I'm eating at home."
Sasuke rejected her outright.
"I promised Rock Lee I'd train with him."
Naruto waved his hand, indirectly refusing her as well.
"Training?"
Sasuke immediately perked up. "What kind of training do you do with him?"
"We run laps around Konoha until we collapse from exhaustion."
Naruto paused, then grinned. "Wanna join us, Sasuke? It's pretty effective. After pushing yourself to the limit and recovering, your body feels way stronger."
Sasuke's eyes lit up.
Normally, he wouldn't care about an invitation like this—the Uchiha had plenty of training methods.
But Naruto was different.
He couldn't beat him.
If he trained alongside him, maybe he could uncover the secret to his strength.
"Damn it! Why do I have to compete with guys for a guy's attention?!"
Sakura clenched her fists, grinding her teeth in frustration.
Yamanaka Ino suppressed a laugh, not wanting to ruin their friendship.
After giving up the rivalry, she found it even more amusing to watch.
"It's too late today. I'll ask my father and train with you tomorrow."
Though prideful, Sasuke's attitude toward Naruto—someone he acknowledged—was still respectful.
"It's a deal, then!"
Naruto flashed a thumbs-up before bidding the three of them farewell.
"Hey, have you noticed something?"
Ino tilted her head. "Lately, he's been making that thumbs-up gesture a lot."
"Yeah…"
Sakura frowned, rubbing her chin. "It feels familiar, somehow."
"I'm leaving."
Without joining the discussion or giving them time to react, Sasuke turned and vanished into the night.
"Sasuke-kun~!"
Sakura's shrill voice startled the birds from the trees.
"Let's go."
Ino tugged Sakura along.
After a few steps, she suddenly looked regretful.
"I forgot to ask Naruto where Sasame lives."
Nightfall in Konoha
The sun had completely disappeared, leaving the village shrouded in darkness.
Thanks to the streetlights, it wasn't pitch black.
As Sasuke walked down the road, seeing couples and groups around him, a sense of loneliness crept in.
"Is my brother still at the ANBU headquarters… or has he gone home already?"
Lost in thought, he gradually approached the Uchiha compound.
"Halt!"
A sudden voice snapped Sasuke's attention upward.
Before him stood a masked shinobi with an ox-patterned faceplate.
"ANBU."
Since Itachi was the ANBU captain, Sasuke was familiar with them.
"This area is under lockdown. No one is permitted to enter."
"…What?"
Sasuke's eyes widened as a terrible premonition gripped him.
"I'm Uchiha Sasuke. This is my home. Why can't I go in?"
"You're Uchiha Sasuke?"
The ANBU member paused, taking in his appearance—black hair, dark eyes, a high-collared black shirt, and the distinctive Uchiha fan emblem on his back.
There was no mistaking his identity.
Hesitating, the ANBU debated whether to let him pass.
Seizing the moment of distraction, Sasuke activated the Body Flicker Technique and dashed inside.
"Poor kid…"
The ANBU sighed but didn't pursue him.
The Uchiha Massacre
Sasuke sprinted at full speed.
The Uchiha district, usually lively at night, was now eerily silent.
Not a single light was on.
In the moonlight, Sasuke could just make out traces of blood on the ground, not yet fully cleaned.
His heart clenched.
He ran faster.
Moments later, he reached the center—his home.
And froze.
Strange shinobi moved about, their faces unfamiliar.
And on the ground…
Row after row of corpses.
At the very front lay his father—Uchiha Fugaku.
"That's… Uchiha Sasuke?"
The ANBU were now in charge of the scene.
(Though ROOT had already swept through, taking whatever they deemed valuable—leaving only bodies behind.)
"Captain, what do we do?"
"The Hokage ordered us to treat him kindly. Leave him be."
After a brief exchange, the ANBU ignored Sasuke entirely.
"NO!"
Sasuke's scream was one of utter devastation.
He collapsed to his knees before Fugaku's body, tears streaming down his face.
His agonized wail echoed through the Uchiha compound.
"Sasuke."
A female ANBU operative wearing a frog mask approached, her voice laced with pity.
"WHO DID THIS?!"
Sasuke's head snapped up—his eyes now bore a single tomoe, his expression twisted in fury.
"It was Uchiha Itachi."
The ANBU was startled—he had awakened his Sharingan in this moment of trauma.
"LIAR!"
Sasuke's entire body shook. "MY BROTHER WOULD NEVER—!"
"I have no reason to lie."
The ANBU's voice was firm. "I know it's hard to accept, but this is the truth. Your brother slaughtered the entire clan… and defected."
Sasuke's vision blurred with rage.
The tomoe in his eyes spun wildly.
His chakra and ocular power grew unstable.
Before he could react—
Thud.
The ANBU knocked him unconscious.
"Rest now, Sasuke."
Note: So far this story is published up to chapter 180 on my patreon, go check it out and remember that if we reach the goal of 30 power stones I will publish the next chapter.
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