After catching Sasuke Uchiha before he collapsed, Sakura Haruno looked completely confused.
Because she had not sensed anything at all.
The terrifying pressure Yoruha released moments earlier had been directed entirely toward Sasuke alone.
To Sakura, it simply looked like Sasuke suddenly lost balance for no reason.
“Sasuke-kun!”
She supported him anxiously before glaring toward Yoruha.
“Yoruha!”
“What did you do to him?!”
Meanwhile, Sasuke’s condition looked terrible.
Cold sweat covered his forehead.
His breathing became uneven.
The usually cold and proud expression on his face had completely disappeared, replaced by lingering terror.
Moments ago—
He genuinely felt death.
Not metaphorical fear.
Actual death.
In that instant, Sasuke experienced an illusion far more horrifying than ordinary killing intent.
It felt as though he had been dragged into endless hell and repeatedly torn apart beneath overwhelming murderous pressure.
And Yoruha had done it casually.
Yoruha leaned back against his chair with folded arms and answered calmly:
“Nothing.”
“I merely let him experience true power for a moment.”
Sasuke’s pupils trembled slightly.
He stared at Yoruha while struggling to stabilize his breathing.
“…What exactly was that?”
His voice sounded dry.
“That power…”
“Is that why you became a Chunin?”
“When did Chunin become this terrifying?”
Sasuke was not ignorant.
Before the Uchiha massacre, he had grown up surrounded by police force members and experienced clan shinobi.
The Uchiha Clan alone possessed numerous Chunin-level ninja.
Yet none of them ever produced pressure remotely close to this.
What Yoruha released felt fundamentally different.
Yoruha remained completely calm.
“It was only a trace of aura.”
“If you already find it unbearable…”
“…then you are still very far away.”
Then Yoruha looked directly into Sasuke’s eyes.
“The person you truly care about…”
“…is someone you currently cannot defeat.”
“In fact, even back then…”
“…you couldn’t even touch him.”
The moment those words landed—
The memory returned instantly.
Blood.
Corpses.
Moonlight.
The massacre night.
Itachi Uchiha standing amidst the destruction of the clan.
Sasuke’s body stiffened violently.
His nails dug into his palms unconsciously.
For years, Sasuke maintained a cold exterior to suppress that wound emotionally.
But now—
Yoruha tore it open effortlessly.
Sasuke lowered his head slowly.
“…So all these years…”
“…I’ve barely moved forward at all.”
Pain twisted across his face.
After the massacre, Sasuke trained obsessively.
Every opportunity he found, he secretly studied the surviving Uchiha records and techniques.
Using his awakened one-tomoe Sharingan, he gradually deciphered portions of the Uchiha Stone Tablet.
Although the deeper contents required stronger Sharingan evolution, Sasuke still learned many clan techniques and theories from what he could read.
He believed he was progressing.
Growing stronger.
Yet now—
Facing Yoruha’s pressure alone nearly shattered his mind instantly.
And Itachi’s presence back then felt even more terrifying than this.
Sasuke clenched his fists tightly.
“If even someone like you can’t defeat him…”
“…then what exactly have I been doing all these years?”
“A complete failure…”
Yoruha’s eyelid twitched slightly.
“…Even I can’t defeat him?”
That sentence genuinely annoyed him slightly.
Was Sasuke seriously comparing current Itachi to someone possessing Admiral-level power amplified by chakra and Haki?
Even healthy adult Itachi at his peak still carried severe stamina limitations due to Mangekyō Sharingan overuse.
Meanwhile, Yoruha possessed monstrous vitality, overwhelming physical power, magma abilities, and Haki defenses.
Unless Six Paths-level characters appeared—
Very few individuals in the Naruto world could truly threaten him directly now.
Yoruha looked at Sasuke speechlessly.
“That assumption is rather arrogant.”
Sasuke froze briefly.
Then he stared intensely at Yoruha.
“…How did you become this strong?”
“Can you tell me?”
Nearby, Sakura looked increasingly shocked.
This was the first time she ever saw Sasuke speak to someone with such seriousness.
In her eyes, Sasuke always remained cold and superior toward classmates.
Yet now—
He was openly seeking answers from Yoruha.
Meanwhile, Yoruha found the question troublesome.
How was he supposed to explain it?
That he inherited Sakazuki’s abilities after some mysterious dream-like experience?
No normal person would believe that explanation anyway.
So Yoruha simply answered:
“It’s innate.”
“You can’t learn it.”
Sasuke frowned immediately.
“…You just don’t want to explain.”
Yoruha shrugged indifferently.
“Think whatever you want.”
Sasuke snorted coldly before straightening himself gradually.
His pride slowly returned.
“Fine.”
“Then I’ll become stronger myself.”
“One day…”
“…I’ll surpass you first.”
“And after that—”
“…I’ll defeat that man.”
Yoruha merely smiled faintly without responding.
At least Sasuke’s mentality had corrected somewhat.
Instead of obsessing over classmates, he finally remembered his real goal again.
Then—
The classroom door suddenly opened.
A silver-haired ninja entered lazily with one hand inside his pocket.
Kakashi Hatake.
The future instructor of Team 7.
The moment Kakashi entered, his visible eye instinctively landed on Yoruha first.
This was their first official face-to-face meeting.
And unlike the others—
Kakashi already knew exactly how terrifying this seemingly sleepy boy truly was.
Still, he showed no reaction outwardly.
“Team 7.”
“Follow me to the rooftop.”
After speaking casually, Kakashi disappeared immediately using the Body Flicker Technique.
Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto blinked.
“…What kind of instructor is that?” Sakura muttered.
Yoruha lazily reminded them:
“Your teacher already left.”
“Hurry up.”
Sasuke frowned slightly.
Instinctively, he felt this instructor seemed unreliable.
Still, before leaving, he turned back toward Yoruha one final time.
“Yoruha.”
“Sooner or later…”
“…I’ll surpass you.”
“You’ll become the first person I defeat.”
After delivering his declaration, Sasuke finally left alongside Sakura.
Throughout the entire conversation—
Naruto Uzumaki barely spoke at all.
He remained nervously hidden behind the others almost the entire time.
Especially after witnessing Sasuke nearly collapse without Yoruha visibly doing anything—
Naruto became even more terrified.
Eventually, Team 7 departed completely.
The classroom fell silent again.
Yoruha rested his head back onto the desk.
This time—
He genuinely fell asleep.
A while later, another presence entered quietly.
The Third Hokage.
Hiruzen Sarutobi walked over slowly before stopping beside Yoruha’s desk.
“Come.”
“I’ll bring you to the Hokage’s office and familiarize you with the environment.”
Without opening his eyes, Yoruha replied calmly:
“Hokage-sama.”
“What you did earlier was a little too high-profile.”
“You caused me quite a bit of unnecessary trouble.”
Hiruzen laughed openly.
“I don’t think you truly mind.”
Then he added casually:
“Originally, I considered promoting you directly to Jonin.”
“But after thinking carefully…”
“…that would have been excessive.”
“So I settled for Chunin instead.”
Yoruha finally opened his eyes speechlessly.
“…Direct Jonin?”
Even he found that outrageous.
Skipping Genin entirely already shattered Konoha convention.
Direct Jonin promotion from the academy would probably cause the entire village leadership to panic.
Still—
Neither Yoruha nor Hiruzen truly cared about public controversy.
Because strength itself justified everything.
The Third Hokage possessed enough authority to explain the promotion.
And Yoruha possessed enough strength to ignore opposition.
Hiruzen smiled while walking toward the classroom exit.
“So?”
“Would you rather start as a Genin instead?”
Yoruha immediately shook his head.
“Absolutely not.”
“Skipping low-level missions sounds much better.”
Catching lost cats and pulling weeds held no appeal whatsoever.
The Third Hokage chuckled again.
“You can gradually learn assistant duties while following me.”
“And during your free time…”
“…study some ninjutsu.”
“Your taijutsu already exceeds enough people.”
“But as a ninja, your ninjutsu foundation still needs development.”
“You may freely access basic ninjutsu archives within the Hokage’s office.”
Yoruha nodded slightly.
That part genuinely interested him.
After all, while Akainu’s power remained his true foundation—
Combining Naruto-world chakra applications with Haki and magma abilities could create entirely new possibilities.
And if he fully unleashed the combined power of magma, chakra, and Haki simultaneously—
Even Yoruha himself estimated—
His combat ability might already exceed ordinary Kage level.