"I'll awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan soon enough!"
Sasuke had regained his composure, his eyes full of stubborn resolve as he stared directly at Naruto and declared his intent.
Naruto gave him a sidelong glance, a faint scoff hidden in his expression.
"Yeah? Maybe focus on mastering the things I already gave you first."
At those words, a flicker of determination crossed Sasuke's face. Without hesitation, he pulled out the last remaining storage scroll and got to work.
Within moments, he had reassembled all the mechanized crossbows onto the surrounding tree trunks near the training grounds.
Then came the armor—piece by piece, he strapped on protective gear until his entire body was covered. Even his head was enclosed beneath a helmet with a full-face visor.
But just as he clipped on the visor and glanced over at Naruto—
He caught sight of Naruto staring back at him... with a look that screamed:
"Are you seriously this dumb?"
"What? What am I doing wrong?"
Sasuke couldn't bear the look Naruto was giving him. It was like being stared at by someone watching a toddler fumble with chopsticks.
"Wow. A 'genius', huh?" Naruto deadpanned. "Your intelligence really takes my breath away."
"I thought—just maybe—you'd have the smarts to use ninjutsu creatively. I even made sure to—hmm?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes.
"Made sure to what?"
But Naruto didn't answer. He paused mid-sentence, as if something had just occurred to him, then turned away.
"It's nothing," he said coolly and walked off.
Sasuke stood there dumbfounded.
Naruto… just left?
On the path home, Naruto's expression was thoughtful.
He'd just received the memory feedback from the Shadow Clone he left behind at home.
Apparently, while the clone had been walking Hinata home, the same group of punks that had thrown rocks at them last time showed up again.
This time they brought reinforcements—clearly looking for revenge.
The clone had been ready to deal with it, but to his surprise…
Hinata had made the first move.
She'd awakened her Byakugan on the spot—
And used Gentle Fist to disable all of them with precise chakra point strikes.
Meanwhile, in the Hyuga Clan Main Estate,
Hyuga Ko, one of the clan's retainers and Hinata's escort, knelt respectfully before the current Clan Head, Hyuga Hiashi.
"Lord Hiashi, that's what happened. The young lady has indeed awakened her Byakugan."
Hiashi fell silent for a long moment.
"So you're saying her recent personality shift, and the awakening of her Byakugan at such a young age… all started after interacting with Uzumaki Naruto?"
"Yes, sir," Ko replied, head still bowed.
"While her contact with him could be seen as… inappropriate, I must admit—the things he said to her clearly left a deep impact."
"Whether we like it or not, it was his words that made Lady Hinata understand the importance of strength."
Hiashi slowly nodded.
Indeed, Hinata's recent training had been unusually intense.
He had always seen her as too gentle and weak—but perhaps he had been too harsh in his guidance.
And awakening the Byakugan at just seven years old…
That alone spoke volumes of her potential.
As the silence stretched on, Ko cautiously asked:
"Lord Hiashi… should we advise the young lady to stop interacting with that boy?"
"You're aware of who—no, what—he is…"
"No need to interfere," Hiashi said flatly.
"If the Third Hokage were truly displeased, he'd have shown up at our doorstep just like back then."
Mount Myōboku
High atop the great hall, Great Toad Sage sat snoozing.
After a moment, a small toad the size of a human infant hopped in, followed by a tall man with long white hair trailing to his waist.
"Great Elder! Jiraiya has arrived!"
The Sage slowly opened one eye.
"Ah… Fukasaku, is it? So Jiraiya's here…"
"Indeed, Great Toad Sage. I've come," Jiraiya said respectfully, kneeling before the elder.
The Sage gave him a heavy-lidded glance.
"The other day, I had a dream... a new prophecy. One concerning your future."
"A new prophecy?" Jiraiya straightened. "Is it about the Child of Prophecy?"
"No…" the Sage yawned. "The child's image is still blurred… but I clearly saw the future shifting down an unpredictable path."
"You must go to the Land of Demons. Find the current priestess, Miroku, and assist her in strengthening the seal on the Demon Spirit Mōryō. It will influence the fate of the entire ninja world."
Jiraiya blinked.
"Mōryō…? In the Land of Demons?"
He'd heard of it before—a powerful entity whose influence had once created an undead army. The shinobi nations had united in the past to defeat them.
Just a few days ago, he'd received an assignment from Konoha to investigate the Akatsuki in the Land of Rain.
But after considering the Sage's warning, Jiraiya nodded.
"Understood, Great Toad Sage."
Just as he was forming a hand seal to depart—
"Wait," the Sage called out again.
"After the Land of Demons, head to the Ruins of Rōran. There you must find a Sand shinobi named Mukade, and stop him from breaking the seal on the Dragon Vein."
Jiraiya's face darkened.
"The Dragon Vein… the one Minato sealed back then…"
The Next Morning
After sending his Shadow Clone to school, Naruto immediately sensed Sasuke's chakra—two separate signatures heading in different directions.
"So he finally figured out how to use Shadow Clones properly…"
Naruto smiled faintly and entered the Mirror World.
He tapped open the system interface, selected the Third Hokage's profile, and instantly transported to the training field.
Before the data dummy fully formed, Naruto swiftly scattered kunai and shuriken all around the area—setting up his battlefield.
The moment the simulated Third Hokage activated, Naruto vanished with a yellow flash.
A brilliant explosion of light consumed the training field.
Ding!
"Congratulations! You've gained Fire Chakra Affinity!"
"Congratulations! You've gained experience in the Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
Naruto furrowed his brow.
"Still no Earth Chakra Affinity…"
So he launched a second round.
This time, instead of a direct blitz, he waited for the dummy to finish forming.
Then—
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The Hokage immediately reacted.
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!"
Naruto's eyes flashed.
Flying Thunder God—activate.
Ding!
"Congratulations! You've gained experience in the Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
"Congratulations! You've learned Telescope Technique!"
Hearing the second reward, Naruto immediately exited the Mirror World.
Back in the real world, he teleported straight to the forest training ground—only to see Sasuke gasping for breath on the stone platform.
Naruto frowned and walked over.
"Don't tell me… you've been using Shadow Clones just to skip class?"
Sasuke blinked in surprise.
Before he could reply, Naruto began forming hand seals—
And in a flash, over twenty Shadow Clones appeared.
Sasuke's jaw dropped as he watched each clone begin different forms of training—chakra control, taijutsu, throwing techniques…
Now he understood.
This was why Naruto had looked at him with such disappointment yesterday.
This was the meaning of that unfinished sentence.
"So this is what you meant… using Shadow Clones for actual training…"
Sasuke was speechless.
He finally understood how badly he'd been wasting his time.
(End of Chapter)
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