Chapter 149: Kimimaro
"What, are you the only one?"
Sasuke walked out from his hiding place, glanced at the ninja standing in front of him, and said calmly.
So I've finally been discovered by the Sound ninja... His mood was grave.
Although he didn't know why, Orochimaru coveted his Sharingan and his body. He had a reincarnation jutsu that could take over others' bodies to achieve his own immortality. Kakashi had told Sasuke about these things, so Sasuke was very clear about who was the source of his current predicament.
That disgusting, androgynous fellow had encountered him during the Chunin Exams and had left a curse mark on him, a mark that could gradually erode Sasuke's body. Fortunately, Kakashi and Tsunade had successively dealt with it, and the curse mark had not had much effect on him.
His way of thinking was too far from that of the Sasuke in the original story. Although both of them had avenging Itachi and reviving the Uchiha as their life goals, the latter was obviously greatly influenced by Orochimaru's curse mark. His thoughts were dark and narrow, and he only blindly pursued power and craved revenge. When tempted, he could not calm down, and for the sake of power, he would not hesitate to defect from the village and cut off his bonds.
But this Sasuke that Sakura knew...
He knew what true power was.
Sasuke, who had already embarked on his own ninja path, had a clearer understanding of how to pursue power. The training path with Lightning Style as its main focus could reach the Kage-level. Paired with his Sharingan, it was not out of the question for him to become a standout among the Kage-level. Surpassing Itachi was no longer just a flower in the mirror or the moon in the water, but a goal that he could gradually touch as long as he walked forward step by step.
Not to mention Orochimaru's curse mark, because it had been sealed, it had never helped Sasuke obtain great power. Even if it had worked, Sasuke would not have regarded it as a necessary goal to pursue. He already had the broad, open road of training in Lightning Style in Konoha. Why would he defect to Orochimaru's side for a small, crooked path?
Setting aside bonds for the moment, just in terms of the Sharingan and Lightning Style, what Kakashi and Konoha could teach him was obviously much more than Orochimaru... At the very least, Orochimaru himself did not have over a decade of experience using the Sharingan. And speaking of Lightning Style, the training notes left by Kakashi's father, the White Fang of Konoha, were clearly more convincing.
Sasuke's mind was very clear. He was not the wet-behind-the-ears youth from the original story whose brain had been muddled by the flames of revenge. In his mind, the option of defecting from Konoha to join Orochimaru had never appeared.
What's more, in his mind, "reviving the Uchiha" was still a goal on the same level as "avenging Itachi."
Although he still didn't know how to truly revive the Uchiha, at the very least, he had to build a family and have children like most ninja...
It was Haruno Sakura who had reminded him about marrying and having children.
It was during a casual chat with Team 7 that Sakura had said this, which had made him feel a sense of reality about his goal of reviving the Uchiha—before, it had just been a slogan. He had no idea what to do specifically.
Of course, as for the girl's next suggestion: find a wife, then find a mistress, a second mistress, a third mistress, and so on, sow his seeds widely, and have the children brought home for the main wife to raise, he had absolutely and respectfully declined!
That was too much against his moral principles. And what the hell was a "seed-sower"?! At that time, Sasuke had complained to Haruno Sakura with a red face and ears, but Sakura had righteously told him that to revive the Uchiha, a thriving population was the first priority, and mistresses could significantly reduce the fertility pressure on the main wife, blah blah blah~!
Then, the latter had kindly educated him on what a harem, a stallion protagonist, and a harem ending were... Sasuke had almost had the door to a new world opened! No, no, no, in the end, he was not fooled by the girl's nonsense.
After all, ninja practiced monogamy. At the very least, an outstanding woman, especially a kunoichi, would absolutely not be able to share a husband with other women... And to continue the family's bloodline, choosing an outstanding girl as a wife was the most crucial thing.
So, if he were to join Orochimaru and become a rogue ninja, it would obviously be impossible to build a good family and revive the Uchiha.
But let's get back to the topic.
In short, the current Sasuke had no intention of joining Orochimaru at all, completely wasting all the various tricks Orochimaru had used on him.
But now it seemed that Orochimaru still hadn't given up on him.
However, Sasuke did not sense Orochimaru's chakra. Sasuke still had a deep impression of that cold and damp texture. If Orochimaru were present, he would absolutely be able to recognize it.
So, Orochimaru wasn't here?
At least Sasuke couldn't think of a reason why Orochimaru would hide his chakra and not appear at this time.
"Hmph, where's Orochimaru?"
Sasuke glanced around. Apart from the handsome, white-haired youth in front of him, there was no third person here.
His mood immediately relaxed.
If he had only been discovered by other Sound ninja and had not attracted Orochimaru, then his situation was obviously much better than he had imagined.
Did those clumsy Sound ninja think they could catch him? He had been hiding before only because he was wary of Orochimaru!
However, this young Sound ninja who had found him...
Sasuke activated his Sharingan. The handsome young man opposite him, just by standing there simply, gave him a sense of presence.
...He seemed to be not so simple!
"Lord Orochimaru..." When he said this name, Sasuke noticed a flash of light in the youth's eyes. "...is not here for the time being. However, to deal with you, I alone am enough."
"Hmph!" Sasuke sneered. "Just you?"
Although the ninja opposite him looked very strong, Sasuke, whose strength had been improving by leaps and bounds, was not some easy-to-deal-with rookie ninja either!
Sasuke, who had also recently been promoted to Chunin, besides occasionally taking on some missions outside the village to broaden his horizons, had spent most of his time training.
However, besides giving him pointers on his training, Kakashi would also from time to time find some high-difficulty missions and form a squad with Sasuke and other ninja to carry them out. These missions were usually accompanied by battles with ninja from enemy countries, and even Jonin-level battles were not uncommon. So recently, besides his increase in combat experience, Sasuke had also become very clear about his own strength.
He was about at the level of a Tokubetsu Jonin to a Jonin.
In terms of combat power alone, without considering experience, he was a proper Jonin-level ninja, and even among Jonin, he could be considered to have good combat power.
This point had also been recognized by Kakashi and the Konoha ninja who had temporarily teamed up with them.
Of course, a battle between ninja is not a matter of putting your rank on the ground and saying that a Jonin-level ninja can definitely defeat a Tokubetsu Jonin.
Nor is it a simple numerical comparison like "Hmph, my combat power is 100, which is higher than your 98. You've already lost!"
It is a very complex consideration of various battlefield conditions, the tactics used by each side, whether they possess various secret techniques, and so on. It is very difficult to tell the result without actually fighting a battle.
It was just that Sasuke, who possessed the Sharingan, obviously had more advantages in this kind of battle where the enemy's strength was unknown.
However, the other party looked... not to be trifled with either!
"Yes, just me alone," the youth in the elegant white kimono said faintly. "My apologies, Uchiha Sasuke. You are Lord Orochimaru's most valued target. Even if I have to break your arms and legs and seriously injure you, I must bring you back."
Sasuke let out a cold laugh.
The power of the Uchiha was not something a mere subordinate of Orochimaru could measure.
"If you think you can do it, then just you try...!"
Three black tomoe began to spin wildly in his red eyes.
However, facing the world-famous Sharingan, the opponent still maintained a calm and composed demeanor—
"Well then, I am Kimimaro... Please take care of me."
Kimimaro took out a bone spike from his palm.
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