Sasuke, standing nearby, frowned as he watched Naruto's smug expression.
"If Naruto really masters the Nine-Tails' power, he'll probably end up being much stronger than me…"
For as long as he could remember, Naruto had been the class dunce at the Ninja Academy. The thought of Naruto surpassing him one day was something Sasuke found impossible to accept.
He was proud—too proud to tolerate the idea of being overtaken by Naruto.
Sasuke turned to Yoruha. "That jutsu you used earlier—was it something Kakashi-sensei taught you?"
Yoruha froze for a moment, then quickly realized what Sasuke meant. He was clearly having trouble accepting the possibility that Naruto could surpass him, so now he wanted to know whether Kakashi could make him stronger too.
Naruto, equally curious, looked at Yoruha, as did Sakura.
Ever since earlier, all three of them had been dying to know what kind of jutsu Kakashi had taught Yoruha.
After a pause, Yoruha said, "It's the Body Flicker Technique. Once you learn to precisely control your chakra, you'll figure it out on your own. There's no need for anyone to teach you."
The three of them frowned, not quite understanding what he meant.
"The principle behind the Body Flicker Technique is actually simple. It's just like tree-climbing training—gathering chakra at the soles of your feet to achieve rapid movement."
Sasuke thought for a moment. "The principle might be simple, but it's not easy to reach the kind of speed you just showed."
He wasn't wrong. Yoruha's technique wasn't an ordinary Body Flicker—it was infused with lightning chakra, a Lightning Body Flicker.
At this point, Yoruha's Lightning Body Flicker was nearly as fast as lightning itself—slightly faster even than Kakashi's.
Of course, Yoruha couldn't admit that. He simply said, "Just train harder and you'll get there."
Sasuke, however, wasn't convinced. His sharp eyes fixed on Yoruha.
"Your speed was faster than Kakashi-sensei's. And the lightning around you looked completely different from his."
Sakura nodded in agreement. "That's true! Yoruha's lightning is faster, and it's a different color too. Kakashi-sensei's lightning is blue—but Yoruha's is golden."
Naruto laughed. "Are you pulling our leg?"
"I don't need to lie to you," Yoruha replied calmly. "The difference in color just comes from our chakra nature. You'll understand one day."
Sasuke then asked, "Why does Kakashi-sensei have a Sharingan? Is he also from the Uchiha clan?"
"If he's from the Uchiha clan, that means he's from the same family as you, right?" Naruto added, looking curiously at Yoruha.
Yoruha felt a headache coming on.
He'd only said all that earlier to steer them away from the topic of Kakashi teaching him ninjutsu—but now Sasuke had brought up something even more sensitive.
Everything about the Uzumaki clan Yoruha had mentioned before could be found in public library records, so it wasn't strange for him to know it.
But matters concerning the Uchiha clan were classified village secrets, and Yoruha didn't want to say too much.
Sasuke looked at him with an expectant expression. Deep down, he hoped Kakashi really was an Uchiha—then he wouldn't be so alone as the last one left in the village.
Seeing Yoruha hesitate, Naruto asked, "Is it something you can't tell us?"
"It's not that," Yoruha said slowly. "I just don't know the details myself."
He paused, then added, "But what I can tell you is that Kakashi-sensei isn't from the Uchiha clan."
Sasuke's hopeful expression fell into disappointment.
Sakura, puzzled, asked, "If Kakashi-sensei isn't from the Uchiha clan, then how does he have a Sharingan? Are there other families in Konoha that can awaken it?"
"That, I'm not sure about," Yoruha said, trying to dodge the question.
Sasuke spoke up instead. "No. The Sharingan only exists within the Uchiha clan—and even then, only a few members can awaken it."
"Then how did Kakashi-sensei get one?" Naruto asked, his curiosity growing.
Sasuke had a guess. It must have been transplanted.
But the thought made him uncomfortable. It was one of his clan's eyes—and now Kakashi possessed it. Who knew how he'd gotten it?
Yoruha glanced at Sasuke and could tell what he was thinking.
Although he didn't want to talk too much about the Uchiha, he also didn't want Sasuke to misunderstand Kakashi.
After a brief hesitation, Yoruha decided to explain.
"That Sharingan was given to Kakashi-sensei by one of his teammates—an Uchiha shinobi—during the Third Great Ninja War. Their squad was ambushed, and Kakashi lost one of his eyes in battle."
"That Uchiha teammate was crushed by an enemy's Earth Release jutsu, his body half destroyed. Before dying, he asked their medical ninja to transplant his remaining eye into Kakashi."
"It was at that moment that Kakashi received his Sharingan."
"That Uchiha teammate was one of Kakashi-sensei's closest friends. You've probably gone with Kakashi-sensei to pay respects at his grave before—that's the comrade who gave Kakashi his Sharingan."
As Yoruha finished recounting the story, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke all fell silent.
What shocked them wasn't just how Kakashi had gained the Sharingan—but the depth of friendship it represented.
Sasuke realized his earlier suspicions had been unfair.
Naruto sighed. "To think Kakashi-sensei became such a famous ninja even with a transplanted Sharingan… Yoruha, you're right. He really is incredible."
Yoruha smiled. "Of course. Kakashi-sensei was already a prodigy. By our age, he was a jōnin—and he earned that rank in the middle of a war. That says everything about his strength."
Sasuke didn't reply, but his eyes burned with renewed determination.
He was eager to see what Kakashi would eventually teach him—especially since Kakashi had experience using the Sharingan.
Perhaps one day, Kakashi could help him develop his own.
Sasuke looked at Yoruha again. "Yoruha, you seem to know a lot about the Uchiha clan. You even know about Kakashi-sensei's past and the secrets of the Uzumaki clan… You must understand the Uchiha clan really well, right?"
Sasuke's question came from genuine curiosity—and uncertainty.
There was so much about his own clan he didn't yet understand.
Even the true nature of the Sharingan was still a mystery to him.