Uchiha Sasuke walked out of the Konoha hospital, looked at the Hokage Rock in the distance, and pondered.
The Third Hokage was referring to a few nights ago, not three years ago.
Does that mean that during his three years in the Soul Society, time in this world was relatively stagnant, only beginning to flow again upon his return?
“Get out, get out, don’t you dare come near my shop!”
A burst of noise pulled Sasuke back to the real world.
“You bastard, what are you standing there for?
Can’t you understand human language?”
Not far away, a convenience store owner was holding a broom high, below him was a Yellow-Haired Brat clutching money, not daring to look up.
But the broom didn’t hit Naruto’s head as usual.
The moment the owner made his move.
A cold glint flashed, the soft handle was cut off with a snap, and the broom head fell to the ground.
“Bastard, my broom!”
The convenience store owner, blinded by rage, clearly didn’t realize what had happened, only caring about the useless broom.
He looked up, about to continue his yelling, when he suddenly noticed a blade pressed against his throat.
The blade was extremely thin, shimmering with an ominous light; with just a slight movement, it could slice open his windpipe in the next second.
All the shop owner’s curses were caught in his throat.
He looked at the child in front of him in horror, cold sweat instantly soaking his back.
Sasuke didn’t look up at him, merely said in a low voice, “Wielding a weapon at someone weaker than yourself…
how unsightly.”
“You…” The shop owner’s teeth began to chatter, his Adam’s apple bobbed with difficulty, unable to comprehend the inexplicable words.
Sasuke’s gaze finally shifted slightly upward, falling on the man’s face, twisted with fear.
“You’re too loud.”
He stated a simple fact, then the blade pressed against the man’s throat, with a slight increase in pressure, left a shallow trail of blood.
“If I hear your ugly roar again, or if I see your disgusting face again…”
Sasuke’s voice remained calm, yet it made the shop owner feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
“…I’ll kill you.”
As his words fell, he flicked his wrist, and the Zanpakuto returned to its sheath with a soft chime.
The damned oppressive feeling instantly vanished, the shop owner’s legs gave out, and he slumped to the ground, panting in small gasps, no longer daring to make a sound.
This was the most direct way of handling things he had learned in the Eleventh Division.
From beginning to end, Sasuke didn’t spare a glance for Naruto on the ground.
Having done all this, he turned and continued walking in the direction of the Uchiha Clan Compound, as if everything that had just happened had nothing to do with him.
Leaving behind the shop owner, slumped on the ground, and Uzumaki Naruto, who was clutching his head, secretly peeking at his departing back.
Smoke billowed.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind a large desk, taking a deep drag from his pipe.
In front of him, a crystal clear orb floated, clearly reflecting everything that had just happened on the street.
From the shop owner’s roar, to Sasuke’s extremely fast draw of his sword, and then to his cold threat.
The Third Hokage’s brows were tightly furrowed, his eyes complex.
When he saw Sasuke act on Naruto’s behalf, a hint of relief flashed in his heart.
“Even after such a tragedy, he still retains the instinct to protect his comrades?
This is the embodiment of the ‘will of fire’…” He subconsciously murmured to himself.
However, the next second, the image of Sasuke holding a blade to a villager’s throat, and the unhesitating words, “I’ll kill you,” made his heart sink again.
That didn’t seem like protection, but rather a casual act.
And the long blade that appeared out of thin air in his hand, these were like sharp thorns, piercing the Third Hokage’s heart.
“Hiruzen, it seems you’ve seen it too.”
A gloomy voice came from the shadows of the office.
Danzo Shimura, leaning on a cane, had appeared there at some unknown point, the bandages wrapped around half his face making him look even more sinister.
His gaze also fell upon the crystal ball, his eyes showing none of the Third Hokage’s worry, but rather an undisguised greed.
“An Uchiha survivor, filled with distrust for the Village, and possessing an unusual power.”
“Such an existence is too dangerous.”
Danzo’s voice was somewhat hoarse, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, “He is like a sharp blade without a sheath, capable of wounding the wielder at any moment.”
He turned his head and said to Hiruzen Sarutobi, “Give him to me, Hiruzen.”
“Only within the ‘Root’ can his superfluous emotions be completely erased, transforming him into a weapon used solely for Konoha.
This is the most beneficial choice for the Village.”
Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent, taking another puff from his pipe, the thick white smoke almost completely obscuring his face.
“Danzo, I refuse.”
“Why?!”
Danzo’s tone carried a hint of anger, as he reminded him, “Are you still holding onto your naive ideas?
The Uchiha Clan is naturally prone to being driven by hatred, let alone this child who witnessed everything firsthand!”
“Allowing him to grow freely will only give birth to a second Uchiha Madara!”
“Precisely because he witnessed everything, we must not push him into darkness,” Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly put down his pipe, looking directly into Danzo’s exposed eye.
“He is a hero of Konoha, the son of Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto, and a part of the Village.”
“We have already wronged the Uchiha enough; we cannot use dark methods to treat this sole survivor.”
“Naive!”
Danzo retorted angrily, “Womanly compassion will only destroy Konoha!”
“I know what I’m doing.” Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, walked to the window, and with his back to Danzo, looked down at the thriving Village.
“I will send people to guide him in the future.
I believe that only in sunlight can leaves grow strong.
I will make him understand that Konoha is his home, not a prison.”
“You will regret this, Monkey!”
Danzo forcefully struck his cane against the ground, “When this beast loses control and extends its claws towards the Village, you will deeply regret your decision today!”
Hiruzen Sarutobi did not turn back.
“Enough.
I will not regret it.
Remember, I am the Hokage.”
Bang!
Danzo was silent in the shadows for a moment, finally letting out a cold snort and storming out in a fit of pique.
The office returned to quiet once more.
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the empty doorway and couldn’t help but shake his head.
“Have someone replace the door, and put the cost on Danzo’s tab.”
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked down at the crystal ball again, his worry undiminished.
He knew that Danzo’s words were not entirely without merit.
That child’s cold profile, and the ninja blade that appeared out of nowhere…
“I hope my choice…
is the right one.” He murmured to himself, picking up the heavy pipe once more, and looking at the Hokage Rock in the distance.
“Sensei, everything that has happened these past few days, it’s all for Konoha, right…?”
…..