Chapter 545
Madara Uchiha and Otsutsuki Shiki
Parallel world, Konoha Village, evening.
After leaving Naruto's house, Sasuke did not go far.
He found a building nearby, climbed onto the roof, and from that angle, he could clearly see Naruko's windows.
He needed to observe, gather more intelligence, and also... sort out his chaotic emotions.
As the sun sets, the sky is dyed orange-red.
The light in Naruko's window came on, casting a dim, yellowish glow through the dirty glass.
Sasuke saw Naruko's busy figure moving behind the window; she was tidying up the room.
Although the distance was far, with his eyesight, he could clearly see the girl folding the empty instant noodle boxes one by one, putting them in a bag, and putting the scattered ninja tools back into the toolbox.
Sasuke thought of his room, which his mother, Mikoto, would tidy up every week, even paying attention to the order in which the scrolls were arranged.
The stark contrast made my chest feel tight.
When it was completely dark, Naruko's door opened.
The blonde girl came out carrying a large bag of trash and headed towards the garbage collection point in the distance.
Her shadow stretched long under the streetlights, her steps were light, and she even hummed an off-key song.
How could she still hum a song in such a lonely environment?
Sasuke couldn't understand.
For some reason, Naruto in this world attracted his attention just like Naruto in the main world.
Especially after learning that Naruko was a woman, a subtle change occurred in his heart.
This is... a bond?
When Naruko returned from throwing out the trash, she didn't go straight inside. Instead, she sat on the steps in front of the door, hugged her knees, and looked up at the stars.
This posture made her look very small and fragile, completely unlike the energetic girl she was during the day.
Sasuke watched her from the rooftop for a long time, until the moon was high in the sky, before Naruko got up and went back inside.
The lights went out, and everything returned to silence.
He should leave and go gather other intelligence.
But by some strange twist of fate, he returned to the area the next day.
This time, Naruko discovered him.
"Sasuke?"
The girl turned out from the street corner, carrying a bag from a convenience store, looking like she had just returned from shopping.
When she saw Sasuke, her eyes lit up, and she jogged over.
Are you training nearby again?
She asked, naturally interpreting his presence here as a form of spiritual practice.
"……Um."
Sasuke responded with a sneer.
"Would you like to come to my house for a while?"
Naruko held up the bag in her hand.
"I bought beef today! I can make beef udon noodles!"
It was another invitation. Sasuke should have refused, but looking into those expectant eyes, he couldn't bring himself to say no.
"casual."
So he stepped into that small building once again.
The room was a bit tidier than yesterday; at least there were fewer empty boxes, and the floor was cleaner.
Naruko excitedly went into the kitchen, where the sounds of chopping vegetables and boiling water could be heard.
Sasuke sat in the same spot he had been in yesterday, his gaze sweeping across the room.
He noticed that the expired milk in the corner was gone, replaced by several boxes of fresh milk.
"The noodles are ready!"
Naruko came out carrying two large bowls; this time the noodles were noticeably more plentiful.
Thick slices of beef, soft-boiled egg, chopped green onions, and a few pieces of seaweed.
Steaming hot, with a wonderful aroma.
"I'm starting!"
Naruko clasped her hands together and then eagerly began to eat.
Sasuke picked up his chopsticks and took a bite.
The broth is rich and flavorful, the beef is cooked until tender, and the noodles are chewy.
It's so much better than yesterday's instant noodles.
"How about it?"
Naruko asked questions as she ate, her cheeks bulging out.
"good."
Sasuke said.
Naruko smiled slightly.
She ate quickly but silently, occasionally glancing up at Sasuke with bright eyes.
After finishing her noodles, Naruko didn't clean up immediately. Instead, she sat on the mat with her knees drawn up to her chest, looking at Sasuke.
"Sasuke, can I ask you a question?"
"What."
"Why...do you want to become a ninja?"
Sasuke paused.
This was a question that no one in his world had ever asked.
The answer is obvious: he is the son of Uchiha Kiyoshi, a genius, and it is only natural that he becomes a powerful ninja.
But in this world, what should be Zuo Zhu's answer?
"revenge."
He chose the most likely answer.
Naruko wasn't surprised; she simply nodded.
"To get revenge on that man, right?"
Sasuke remained noncommittal.
"I think about it sometimes."
Naruko looked out at the night view and her voice softened.
"Can hatred really sustain a person for long? I've seen many people driven by hatred, and in the end, they all... got lost."
She paused, then turned to look at Sasuke:
“I’m not saying your hatred is wrong. Your brother killed the whole clan, and it’s normal for you to want revenge. I just… I just feel that there should be other things in life worth cherishing besides hatred.”
"for example?"
Sasuke asked.
"For example, ramen."
Naruko pointed to the empty bowl and smiled.
"For example, the process of becoming stronger, the missions I carried out with Sakura and Kakato-sensei, and... seeing the beautiful sunset today made me very happy."
Her smile was so pure that it was almost blinding to Sasuke.
"You make it sound so easy."
Sasuke shook his head.
"You have never lost anything important."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Sasuke regretted them.
What did Naruko lose in this world? Her parents? Her friends? Her dignity?
But Naruko's reaction was unexpected.
She paused for a few seconds, then said softly:
"I have lost."
Sasuke looked at her.
"I have lost the ability to live a normal life."
Naruko hugged her knees, resting her chin on her arm.
“From a young age, everyone looked at me like I was a monster. I had no friends, no family, and lived alone in this dilapidated house. Sometimes I would think, what would life be like if I weren’t the Nine-Tails’ Jinchuriki, if my parents were still alive?”
"But then I realized that thinking about those things was useless. I can't change the past, I can only look forward. So I want to become Hokage, to gain everyone's recognition, to prove that I'm not a monster, that I am Naruto Uzumaki, a ninja worthy of respect."
She looked up, her blue eyes sparkling in the light:
"This is my dream. It may be childish and naive, but it's what keeps me alive. Sasuke, what about you? What do you plan to do after you get your revenge?"
Sasuke was stunned.
After taking revenge?
He doesn't need to seek revenge at all.
Because this is what he in the parallel world needs to do.
In his world, he was like a carefree young master.
"I……"
Sasuke opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.
Naruko didn't ask any further questions; she simply stood up and began clearing the dishes.
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. Everyone has things they don't want to talk about, I understand."
She carried the bowl towards the kitchen, but stopped abruptly at the doorway, turning her back to Sasuke and saying:
“But Sasuke, if one day you feel tired and feel like you can’t see anything but hatred, you can come to me. I’ll cook noodles for you, and we can chat, or we can just sit on the steps and look at the stars without saying anything.”
You are not alone. At least... I can be your friend.
Sasuke sat there, watching Naruko disappear through the kitchen doorway, the sound of running water approaching.
friend.
This word is common in his world.
Naruto is his brother, who is both his enemy and friend; Sakura is his classmate; and he has good relationships with other classmates.
But in this world, what does friendship mean to "Zusuke"?
What does a friend who is willing to cook noodles for him and watch the stars with him mean to this lonely boy who is consumed by hatred?
Sasuke didn't know.
"Indeed, it's best to correct this situation as soon as possible."
Sasuke whispered again.
Behind the second-floor window of that small building, Naruko sat on the bed with her knees drawn up to her chest, looking in the direction Sasuke had left, and sighed softly.
"Zuozhu is indeed different today," she murmured to herself.
It's not just that it's not as cold anymore, but... it feels more real.
Zuo Zhu was like an ice wall, sealing all his emotions inside.
But today, Zuo Zhu will be stunned, silent, and his eyes will flicker when he hears certain words.
"But it's fine this way."
She lay down and looked at the mottled water stains on the ceiling.
"At least he looks more like a human being now."
…………
When consciousness awoke from its slumber, the first thing Uchiha Weasel sensed was chakra.
It was a chakra that was both extremely familiar and extremely unfamiliar. It originated from the same source as him, but was much more profound, like different branches on the same tree, extending towards the sunlight in completely different ways.
He opened his eyes.
What came into view was an unfamiliar ceiling.
Uchiha Weasel did not move.
His body still felt exhausted from the battle, and the stinging pain from overuse of the Mangekyou Sharingan had not completely subsided.
But what he cared about more was the person sitting by the window.
Uchiha Itachi.
No, I should say, another version of myself.
Itachi Uchiha had his back to the window, and his expression was obscured by the backlight.
"woke up."
Itachi Uchiha spoke.
Uchiha Weasel slowly sat up. He then realized that he was lying on a simple cot, covered with a thin gray blanket, and his wounds had been treated and neatly bandaged.
It wasn't medical ninjutsu, it was manual bandaging, but the technique was surprisingly skillful.
"...Where is this?"
The weasel's voice was drier than he had expected.
"Outside Konoha Village".
Itachi Uchiha answered.
The weasel remained silent for a few seconds.
He hadn't been to Konoha in a long time.
He remembered the streets of Konoha, the trees in the training grounds, and the black-tiled, white-walled houses in the Uchiha clan's territory.
He also remembered how those houses finally collapsed in the flames, and how the blood of his people soaked through the stone slabs.
“You took me away from Xiao.”
Uchiha Weasel said.
"Yes."
Itachi Uchiha did not deny it.
"why?"
The weasel raised its head and stared directly at its other self by the window.
This is a very broad question.
Why take action?
Why did you take him away?
Why should we wake him up and make him face all of this?
But Itachi Uchiha understood.
He was silent for a moment, then slowly began to speak:
"Because you shouldn't live like that."
These words were like a dull knife, slowly but forcefully dissecting the weasel's chest. Shouldn't one live like that?
How should he live?
After the night of his clan's massacre, after severing all ties with his own hands, after becoming a rogue ninja and walking in darkness, how could he possibly survive?
The weasel lowered its eyes, a self-deprecating smile curving its lips:
"Are you pitying me?"
"Do not."
Itachi Uchiha shook his head.
"I was just wondering if I would have gone down the same path if I hadn't met my father."
The weasel's eyelashes trembled slightly.
"...Father?"
He repeated the unfamiliar word.
"Uchiha Kiyoshi."
Itachi Uchiha said.
"My world, the Fourth Hokage, my...father."
The weasel listened in silence.
"Another world."
He spoke in a low voice, devoid of emotion, as if stating a distant and irrelevant fact.
"So, you are me from another world."
"Yes."
"In your world, the Uchiha clan was not wiped out."
"No."
“You have a father, a complete family. You don’t need to kill all your clansmen with your own hands when you were eleven years old, and you don’t need to kneel down in front of the memorial stone and beg the third generation to take care of that brother who hates you to the bone.”
Uchiha Weasel said.
Itachi Uchiha did not answer.
A silence spread between the two, like an invisible river separating them on opposite banks.
After a long while, the weasel raised its eyes and looked at its other self sitting in the light:
"What do you want me to see here?"
he asks.
"Another possibility?"
Itachi stood up, and his face finally became clear in the backlight.
That was a face that had never borne the sin of genocide.
"Not a possibility."
Itachi Uchiha said.
"It's reality."
He paused:
"I will take you back to my world, and then I will learn about your sins."
…………
Half a month has passed.
Konohagakure, Hokage's office.
Yuri stood at the doorway and took a deep breath.
Millennia.
A thousand years have passed.
She once thought she would sleep forever in the Pure Land, returning to nothingness with her longing and gratitude for the Ancestor.
But she was awakened.
He was awakened by the progenitor himself.
She looked down at her hands; they were fair, young, and full of strength.
These are not her wrinkled and age-spotted hands from when she was dying; this is her body when she was young, when she was most spirited and believed most strongly that the Ninja Sect could make the world a better place.
"Lady Haori, the Hokage requests your presence."
The guards at the door gave a quiet reminder.
Today, a woman who calls herself Yuri suddenly visits Konoha.
However, their Fourth Hokage had already given instructions that if any woman named Haori came, she should be allowed to pass.
Haori snapped out of her daze and nodded slightly.
She opened the door.
Haori walked over and stood in front of the desk.
"Lord Ancestor."
Kiyoshi put down his pen and looked up.
He wore the white holy robe symbolizing the Hokage, covered by a deep red haori, and his black hair was casually tied back.
"Haori".
Kiyoshi's voice was indifferent.
"You must be tired from the journey."
Haori straightened up, her eyes filled with complex emotions.
“Ancestor, I’ve come to tell you some information.”
Her voice was clear and crisp.
"While I was carrying out the mission you gave me, I discovered an organization called Akatsuki. They were hunting civilians in villages and using them to make puppets. Their methods were cruel and their actions were heinous. I fought with one of their members and defeated his puppet, but I failed to capture the real person."
She paused, then looked up at Kiyoshi:
"This disciple requests permission from the Ancestor to go and eradicate this evil organization."
Kiyoshi did not answer immediately.
He looked at the haori quietly.
"You can't handle this by yourself."
Kiyoshi said.
The Akatsuki organization also has capable members.
At least the level of Uchiha Madara, Uchiha Obito, and Nagato is beyond what Hagoromo can handle.
Haori paused slightly.
"Our Ancestor, I..."
"That organization is not simple."
Kiyoshi interrupted him.
"Their leader possesses the 'Rinnegan,' and some of their core members are acquaintances of mine."
He turned his head and looked at Yuzhi.
"You think they're just collecting materials for the puppets?"
Yuri's brows furrowed slightly.
"What the Ancestor means is..."
"They are gathering strength."
Qing Si said.
"They're collecting tailed beasts and transplanting Hashirama cells; they're preparing for war."
The haori fell silent.
She recalled the brief moment she exchanged blows with the puppeteer.
The opponent is indeed very strong, but that strength is limited and dependent on external factors.
She initially thought it was just the evil deeds of a cult that could be eliminated.
"I understand."
Her haori bowed her head.
"It was my oversight; please punish me, Ancestor."
"You did nothing wrong."
Kiyoshi walked back to his desk and sat down again.
"It's just a difference in perspective."
He paused, looking at the haori:
"You were used to solving problems on your own during the Ninjutsu era, stopping evil deeds and personally upholding justice. That was the educational approach of that time."
"But this is no longer the era of the Ninja Cult."
His voice was calm, yet it made Yuzhi's heart clench slightly.
"……Yes."
After a long pause, Haori responded softly.
She looked up, and something flickered slightly in her dark eyes.
"Our Ancestor, I have a question..."
She paused, seemingly considering her words.
"After my resurrection, what identity should I assume to exist in this era?"
This was a question she had wanted to ask for a long time, but hadn't dared to.
The Ninja Clan no longer exists.
The seeds of chakra have long been sown throughout the ninja world, transforming into countless ninjutsu, bloodline limits, and family traditions.
In this new era, how should she, a former member of the Ninja Clan, present herself?
"In what capacity do you wish to assume?"
Qing Si countered with a question.
The haori was stunned.
She had never thought about this question.
A thousand years ago, her identity was clear.
but now……
"I……"
She opened her mouth, but found herself unable to answer.
Seeing her bewildered expression, Kiyoshi smiled faintly.
"Not urgent."
he said.
"You can take your time to think about it."
"If you're tired from traveling, you can stay here temporarily. Konoha has many places that need manpower, such as the medical department, the education department, and the sealing class. You can choose whichever interests you."
Haori's eyes widened slightly.
"Lord Ancestor..."
"besides."
Kiyoshi took a thin scroll from the drawer and pushed it in front of her.
"This is the Konoha ninja registration form. Fill it out and submit it to the personnel department."
Yuri looked down at the scroll.
The scroll cover is printed with the logo of Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf Village).
Her fingers touched it lightly.
"……Yes."
She said in a low voice.
Kiyoshi didn't say anything more.
He picked up his pen again and continued working on the unread documents.
"Go."
Kiyoshi said.
Yuzhi bowed deeply, then turned and left.
The door closed gently behind her.
…………
A mountain cemetery.
Madara Uchiha still looks the same as he did when he was young, with long black hair reaching his waist, wearing red armor, and an arrogance etched into his bones between his brows and eyes.
"You've been hiding in the shadows spying on me, and now you finally dare to show your face?"
His voice carried its usual arrogance.
In the darkness, a figure slowly emerged.
It was a man wearing a white robe.
Otsutsuki Ichishiki.
Madara Uchiha finally opened his eyes.
"who are you?"
Madara Uchiha frowned.
This was the first time he had seen Isshiki Otsutsuki in his true form.
Especially when he saw the horns on Isshiki Otsutsuki's head, Madara Uchiha had a strange bad feeling.
This description looks like the Otsutsuki clan mentioned on the Uchiha stone tablet.
After all, Kaguya Otsutsuki also had horns like that. (End of Chapter)