"Meow?"
"Meow!"
"Lord Soren—where did you run off to?"
With a soft whoosh, Uchiha Soren vanished. Juno, thrown from the warm safety of his collar, landed neatly on a branch and blinked in confusion. She'd been eagerly waiting to watch her master pulverize that ugly ape—so she mewed anxiously.
"Master is being summoned, meow."
Sensing the summoning tug, Juno perked up and leapt into the void. In an instant, she was back in Soren's arms—
but now they stood in a mountain orchard, peach trees heavy with ripe fruit.
A dozen grim-faced apes perched in the branches—armed with knives, spears, and clubs.
The pair was instantly surrounded.
"Uchiha Soren!"
Sarumao, the ape-summon who'd tried to contact the Sarutobi clan, stepped forward with a trembling voice.
"This is Ape Mountain—beyond mortal law. What business do you have here?"
"Beyond mortal law?" Soren replied coolly.
"Do you think this is some sacred realm?"
Had it been a temptress speaking, Soren might have answered, "I came to bed you."
But a muscular ape hardly inspired such courtesy.
"Bread enters the mouth; trouble comes from the mouth," he continued.
"I'll teach you beasts some rhetoric. Tuition is cheap—your ape lives."
He raised his blade.
"Lesson one: Benevolence."
One clean stroke.
A shaggy ape split neatly in two.
"Lesson two: Righteousness."
Soren summoned Susanoo.
The crimson half-skeletal giant rose behind him, and with a single palm strike, smashed three apes into pulp.
"Righteousness," he said dryly, "is what hammers another's skull into his chest. My teacher's phrasing is rough, but I trust the meaning gets across."
Sarumao's face contorted with rage.
Red veins bulged as it howled and led an elite charge.
But no matter their tactics—
no matter their sacrifices—
the crimson Susanoo advanced through them like a god brushing ants aside.
Blood misted.
Bone cracked.
Flesh scattered across the orchard.
When Sarumao was finally clutched in Susanoo's palm, the remaining apes froze.
Their leader's screams echoed; panic shattered them.
They fled in a frenzy.
"Please… spare them…" Sarumao gasped, its ribs creaking under the giant's grip.
"They… are innocent…"
Blood spurted as its body slipped like noodles through Susanoo's fingers.
Soren dismissed the avatar.
Only non-jōnin scraps remained—
and Soren activated his left-eye Tenchō Risshon, its holographic map casting every hiding spot in luminous detail.
Five hundred hectares of orchard.
Thirty minutes of efficient movement.
By dawn, every ape lay dead.
Soren discarded his battered katana.
The killing aura clung to him like a second skin; with crimson eyes glowing faintly, he looked like a reaper risen from hell.
Even Juno trembled in his arms, whiskers shaking.
"Juno… how do you feel?" he asked quietly.
"Lord Soren… the cat is a little frightened," she admitted.
Her gaze searched his face.
"You looked… like killing had driven you mad."
Soren's expression was unreadable.
Juno curled tighter in fear—
she preferred the version of her master who carried mischief and chaos, not this silent, solemn predator.
After a long moment, Soren's voice softened.
"…I did go a bit berserk."
"The rush of life slipping through my fingers—even monkeys… it made me crave more."
"Juno, come here. Let me sniff once to calm down."
He closed his Sharingan and buried his face in the cat, inhaling deeply to soothe the spike of bloodlust.
(With Three-Tomoe, killing felt like slaughtering chickens. With Mangekyō… I'm becoming a fishmonger.)
(After I cut down Tobirama, I need to restrain myself. Don't want to end as a mindless slayer.)
(After I become Third Hokage, some self-cultivation. Maybe chasing pretty girls too…)
(Although Tsunade is still a child. Hmm. Has her mother even appeared yet?)
Tracing the source of his bloodlust, Soren breathed out slowly.
Repentance or romance—either would do for now.
He held Juno gently and summoned earth chakra.
"Earth Release: Tectonic Burial."
Soil and stone shifted, swallowing blood and bone beneath the ground.
In its own way, ninjutsu was excellent for land maintenance.
"Juno—this will be the Uchiha clan's playground."
He wasn't yet sure what he would build here—
but it would bear the Uchiha crest.
"And a playground for cats," Juno purred, flushed with relief.
Soren warmed at the sight—
dangerously warmed.
Was his cat… becoming adorable?
(A catgirl Juno…? Hmm. Tempting.)
"Ahem. Juno, be serious. Time to go."
Juno shot him a look of pure feline disgust.
The pair vanished into the void—
leaving the orchard to the silence of earth and the bones beneath.