Boom!
'Uchiha Itachi' burst into smoke and vanished.
Snapping back to reality, Sasuke immediately took out his forehead protector and tied it around his head. Then he sat cross-legged on a rock and formed the Ram Seal.
Meanwhile — In the Land of Snow
A few minutes earlier, high above at an altitude of over 20,000 meters, a silver-white airship over 200 meters long floated silently through the clouds.
Naruto stood by a window in one of the cabins. Through the glass, he gazed at the vast sea of clouds—churning and shifting like ocean waves.
Knock, knock.
"Come in."
A soft knock was followed by the cabin door sliding open. A young man dressed like a security officer entered respectfully. He looked under twenty but carried himself with a calm maturity beyond his age.
"Sir," the young man bowed. "All data has been collected. In an hour, we'll enter the stratosphere. But the power system on this latest model won't be able to bring us back to the surface safely."
"Then we return."
Naruto turned around, a look of satisfaction in his eyes.
"Kichijiro, your efficiency impresses me. Compared to your father, Professor Ichikawa, you're far more capable. Once we return, you'll be the head of this lab."
"Thank you, sir! I won't disappoint you!"
Kichijiro froze for a second, then dropped to his knees, overwhelmed with emotion.
Naruto turned back toward the window.
"You may go."
Kichijiro stood and exited the cabin, barely containing his excitement. After bowing once more, he quietly closed the door.
When the hands on the wall clock aligned, Naruto received feedback from his shadow clone dispelling. His expression sharpened, and he quickly formed a Ram Seal.
Behind him, a swirling figure of light appeared—an illusionary form shaped exactly like Sasuke.
"Huh? You're in the sky?"
Sasuke's Sharingan spun as he approached the window and stood beside Naruto.
Naruto glanced at the image.
"I've already dispelled my shadow clones. Did you really need to use the Phantom Light Technique to find me?"
Sasuke's eyes slowly rotated.
"I came to remind you—Kakashi's moved our training time to 1 PM."
"Ah~ Only 56 minutes left. Tight schedule, huh?"
Naruto glanced at the clock, then nodded calmly.
"Don't worry. I'll be there."
"Hmph."
With a snort, Sasuke's illusion dispersed. Almost instantly, Naruto activated the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Sasuke had barely collected his thoughts when Naruto grabbed his shoulder.
Before Sasuke could even open his mouth—
Whoosh!
They reappeared atop a towering tree in the Forest of Death.
"You—!"
Sasuke managed just one word before the scene changed again. Naruto brought him to a small grove by the Naka River where they trained.
"See you this afternoon."
With those words, Naruto vanished.
"Damn it!"
Sasuke glared at the empty air for a long time before heading toward the river.
Inside the Mirror World
"Huh? Why are they headed that way?"
Naruto had returned home. After receiving updates from his shadow clones in the village, he entered the Mirror World—though it had changed drastically since last time.
Now his consciousness floated in a space filled with flowing light. Below him stretched a vast map of the continent, where three red dots were rapidly heading toward the western edge of the Land of Earth.
After some thought, Naruto raised his hand, and the map shrank. A holographic projection of the entire ninja world appeared before him, the red dots still blinking on it.
"Still not convenient enough…"
Muttering, Naruto tapped one of the red dots with a finger. Instantly, his body turned into a stream of light and merged into the projection.
The next moment, he stood in a wide desert.
The ground began to tremble. Moments later, a giant wheel rolled toward him—followed by the massive forms of Kurama and Matatabi.
"What are you three up to?"
Hearing Naruto's voice, the wheel screeched to a stop and shifted into Isobu's form.
"We wanted to check out the other side."
Naruto blinked.
"The other side?"
"Yeah!" Kurama chuckled, flicking his nine tails.
"Isobu said he swam across the ocean a few days ago and reached another continent—but couldn't enter. Said the place looked like an illusion. So now we're trying from the Land of Earth's side. None of us have ever been to the other side of the world."
"Besides," added Matatabi, stretching her neck,
"now that the Mirror World's been upgraded, we can move freely across the entire map. Even if we fire Tailed Beast Bombs, it resets afterward. It's so real, I'd almost believe this was another version of the ninja world if I didn't know it was fake."
"Yeah," Matatabi nodded.
"We've got Danzo to thank for this. If not for his data, we'd still be stuck hiding outside Konoha's forest."
Naruto gave the three beasts a strange look.
"You didn't read the patch notes, did you?"
"Too many words," Kurama said, eyes closed.
"Didn't care."
"I didn't read them either," Isobu rumbled.
"I just looked through the puppet's memories. Aside from Danzo secretly contacting Orochimaru, nothing major."
Matatabi's expression turned sheepish.
"They didn't read it… so I didn't either."
Naruto shook his head.
"The update notes clearly say: Danzo tried to unify the ninja world. He planted spies in every nation. The Mirror World copied the territories where his agents had been."
"Isobu, the reason you couldn't enter the other continent is because Danzo never sent agents there. Without data, access is restricted. No matter how much you try, you won't get in."
Kurama opened one eye and shot a look at Isobu.
"Next time, check your facts."
With that, he turned into light and vanished—just like Naruto had earlier.
Isobu looked helplessly at Matatabi. She flicked her tail and left without a word.
Naruto waved to Isobu and vanished too.
Isobu sat there stunned for a moment. Then his three tails tucked in under his shell and—whoosh!—he spun off again as a giant wheel.
Afternoon – Training Ground No. 5
"Here—some Lightning Release jutsu that'll suit your training."
Kakashi handed Naruto two scrolls.
"Thanks, Kakashi-senpai."
Naruto smiled, already knowing what was inside from reading Kakashi's memories earlier. The Third Hokage had suggested Naruto learn more ninjutsu—with the Chūnin Exams only five months away.
Also, to get out of extra teaching, Kakashi had pulled in his friend and taijutsu specialist—Might Guy, whom he had won over in a spar.
But Guy hadn't arrived yet.
"Sasuke, these techniques will work for you too. You can train alongside Naruto."
Seeing Naruto hadn't opened the scrolls yet, Kakashi reminded Sasuke.
"Got it."
Sasuke nodded casually.
"Sakura, your chakra control is good, but your taijutsu and ninjutsu need work."
"Yes! I'll work harder!"
Sakura nodded seriously. Not being a fangirl today, she clearly knew her weaknesses.
Kakashi turned back to Naruto.
"Later, a taijutsu expert will join us—with his students."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow.
"Taijutsu expert?"
Thirty minutes later, Sasuke finally saw who Kakashi meant—and he was... skeptical.
"Yo! Kakashi! Youth waits for no one! Let's begin our intense training!"
"Guy... I told you, this is for you and my students to exchange techniques. Where are your three students?"
"Hahaha! Kakashi, your students are full of youthful energy! They'll be here in no time!"
"…"
Sasuke could barely handle it.
This guy in a green jumpsuit, with a bowl haircut and monstrously thick eyebrows, didn't look like a taijutsu expert at all.
Everything about him—his look, his words, even Kakashi's attitude—was just weird.
He glanced at Naruto, curious how he'd react—only to be shocked when Naruto walked straight up to the bowl cut and extended a hand.
"Nice to meet you, senpai! I'm Uzumaki Naruto."
"Hahaha! Hello, Naruto! Kakashi, your student has spirit!"
Might Guy shook Naruto's hand warmly, not noticing Kakashi giving Naruto a strange look.
"Wait… is this guy really a top-tier ninja?"
Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. Naruto never approached people without a reason.
Just then, three more figures appeared nearby.
Sasuke froze.
One of them was another green jumpsuit bowl cut, eyebrows just as thick—and the spitting image of Might Guy.
The new arrival instantly locked eyes on Sakura and wore a lovestruck expression.
Sakura shivered.
"An angel! Sakura, please go out with me!"
"What?!"
Sakura's pupils widened. She jumped behind Sasuke and shouted,
"No way I'd date a weirdo like you!"
Sasuke frowned and walked off toward Kakashi in silence—where he saw Hyūga Neji, the one Naruto had defeated with shadow clones.
Sakura hesitated—only to find the new green jumpsuit guy still staring at her. She hurried after Sasuke.
"Wait!"
The bowl-cut teen leaped in front of Sasuke, blocking his path.
"Wrong person."
Sasuke said coldly, glancing at Sakura now hiding behind Kakashi.
"No!"
The boy's eyes burned with determination.
"My name is Rock Lee. And you—Uchiha Sasuke, the genius of the Uchiha Clan—have caught my interest."
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