On the way back to the village from the training ground, a certain black-haired boy lifted a hand to scratch his cheek.
"Haruno Sakura, I... my mother heard we became teammates and wants me to invite you to dinner at my place!"
Hearing this, Naruto, who was following behind, immediately started making a fuss.
"Ah, you sly guy! I want to treat Sakura to a meal too!"
Turning his head, Sasuke's attitude changed instantly, scolding Naruto angrily.
"Stop making so much noise, you slacker! Don't you know first come first served?"
"What, you stuck-up bastard, I-"
"Stop! That's enough!"
Sakura pressed down on both their heads with a hand each.
"I'm a Ninja. There's no such thing as being spread too thin. So... I'll go to both!"
Sakura casually formed a hand seal. A burst of smoke obscured the two boys' vision.
By the time the dust settled and their sight cleared, the three Sakuras standing before them were indistinguishable from the real one.
Three clones: one to freeload a meal at Sasuke's home household, one to sample snacks on South Street, and one to go home for dinner.
Today, Sakura's time management was once again flawless.
Ten minutes later, Uchiha Clan's compound.
Due to the Hawk Faction's defection incident, many Uchiha had left Konoha.
Some people within the compound had also quietly moved away, dispersing to other parts of the village to live.
The once bustling small streets now showed signs of desolation.
"Have Uncle Teyaki and Aunt Uruchi moved away too?"
Walking behind Sasuke with her hands behind her head, Sakura sighed somewhat sadly.
"Their children followed..." Sasuke bit his lip, "After that, they moved into the village to live."
"It's alright. As long as people are still alive, there's always hope."
Haruno Sakura's emerald-green eyes half-closed, and she made a soft sound.
It was like a satisfied, relieved, light sigh.
"Yeah... still alive..."
Sasuke responded sullenly and then fell silent.
Entering Sasuke's home, it hadn't changed much compared to four years ago.
It was just that the large house felt emptier without the people who should have been living there, with a faint air of loneliness in some places.
"Where's Aunt Mikoto?"
Sakura kicked off her sandals and plopped down casually on the tatami.
Picking up two teacups from the low table, she shook them at Sasuke.
Her lively eyes seemed to say, 'Go, pour me two cups of tea.'
"She went grocery shopping. Speaking of which, how can you not treat yourself like an outsider at all!"
Sasuke said it, but his body was honest. He took the cups, fetched tea bags, and headed towards the kitchen to make tea.
Just as he was carrying out the tray, Mikoto happened to return home.
"Sakura-chan!"
The beautiful woman carrying a grocery basket showed a delighted expression upon seeing Sakura.
"I thought this guy Sasuke would be too shy to invite you!"
"Mom!"
Sasuke, nearby, stumbled, scalding his hand with the spilled tea.
"Just kidding~ Wait a bit, dinner will be ready soon!"
Mikoto, having teased her son, was in excellent spirits and hummed a tune as she walked into the kitchen.
Mikoto worked quickly. A lavish dinner was very simple for her, a former Ninja.
At the dinner table, Mikoto, who hadn't entertained guests in a long time, made an exception and drank a little wine.
Then she started sharing Sasuke's embarrassing stories and trivial matters of daily life with Sakura. Occasionally, when she got excited, she would complain about the current quiet state of the Uchiha Clan's compound, mentioning how she had to walk a long way just to buy groceries.
Sakura listened quietly as Mikoto spoke, listening to the daily life this woman, who had lost her husband and whose eldest son had defected, was desperately maintaining.
Thump!
The chair scraped against the floor with a dull sound, and Sasuke suddenly stood up.
"I'm full!"
After throwing out these words, the little black-haired boy dashed out in a flash.
"Ara, I got a bit carried away accidentally..."
Mikoto's expression dimmed, then she looked up at Sakura with a hint of apology.
"It's fine. It was also my fault for being too busy with training to visit you, Aunt Mikoto."
Sakura's Observation Haki detected Sasuke running farther and farther away, heading straight for the Uchiha Clan's training ground.
She let out a breath and looked seriously at Uchiha Mikoto: "Aunt Mikoto, I encountered Itachi while I was out this time!"
Hearing her eldest son's name suddenly, Mikoto's shoulders jerked, but she didn't speak.
"He and the Uchiha who defected formed a Missing-nin group, making a living by taking on missions."
"Aunt Mikoto, I-"
Sakura had just opened her mouth when Uchiha Mikoto, who seemed prepared, covered it.
"Sakura-chan, you are such a gentle child. I've known about you and Fugaku's matters for a long time, so there's no need to bring it up again!"
Mikoto's eyes glistened slightly, but the determination within them could not be shaken by any external force.
…A woman is weak, but a mother is strong.
"For Sasuke's sake, no matter what happens, I will live on properly!"
"If you want to help me, please look after my Sasuke a bit more. He's been pushing himself a little too hard lately."
Mikoto, sitting back in her chair, clasped her hands together in a pleading gesture.
Even though she had been retired for years, as a former Jonin, Mikoto was well aware of the changes in her son recently.
"Alright, I'll go check on him!"
"Hehe, I like Sakura-chan the most. Be my daughter~"
"No way! Nuh-uh~"
…
Meanwhile, at the training ground.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Sasuke forcefully gathered Chakra and spat out a scorching fireball once again.
The crimson flames burned through the soil, erupting in black smoke and intense heat.
Blisters had already formed on the corners of his mouth from the heat, and sweat dripped from his body due to the temperature, yet Sasuke continued to refine his Chakra over and over.
"Practicing recklessly… Are trying to turn yourself into a cripple?"
Hearing the voice, Sasuke looked up and saw the girl in black Ninja attire crouching on a tree.
"It's you."
Sasuke replied coldly and turned to refine his Chakra again.
Whoosh!
A low hum echoed as space seemed to tear. A pink light flashed, and Sasuke was pressed to the ground by Sakura.
"Let me go!" Sasuke struggled with both hands and feet, "You should understand, that guy, if I don't-"
Bang!
While releasing Sasuke, Sakura didn't hesitate to punch him.
"First, don't make those who love you worry!"
"Second, how can you, so weak, hope to contend with Uchiha Itachi if you lose your composure and reason?"
Punched into a daze, Sasuke gritted his teeth, his voice rough and hoarse, filled with an urgency as if burned by flames.
"Then tell me, what should I do?!"
The clan's decline, the cold stares from clansmen, the villagers' rejection.
All of this stemmed from that disgrace! So he had to correct this mistake with his own hands!
It has to be him!
It must be him!
Because disgrace follows you for life!
"A solution? Some have brothers, some don't!"
Sakura grinned soundlessly, various series flashing through her mind: Armament Haki Sasuke, Observation Haki Sasuke, Great Swordsman Sasuke, Devil Fruit User Sasuke....
"I just don't know if you... can withstand this kind of hell?"
The girl pressed her hands together against her face, her emerald-green eyes emitting a dangerous light.
Before her, the boy trembled and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
"Gulp~"