Sasuke looked down in a daze, and in his blurry vision, the indistinct face so close to him gradually became clear as his thoughts and reality merged.
It was a face that was incredibly familiar and dear to the reborn Sasuke!
Naruto lay quietly on the water, covered in wounds, his orange clothes stained with dirt.
"Ah, was it that time…?"
In Konoha Year 61, Sasuke, in order to seek the power to avenge Itachi, did not hesitate to defect from Konoha and join Orochimaru. Naruto pursued him relentlessly, and a battle ensued in the Valley of the End!
After their conflicting beliefs clashed… Naruto fell!
"I really have been reborn, precisely, rewound a full 40 years."
"Looking back on half my life, my first encounter, it's still you, Naruto…"
Sasuke smiled, and as he smiled, tears streamed down his face. He had wished more than once to see his best friend again, thinking it was a luxury, but now… his best friend was alive and well right in front of him!
He reached out and touched his best friend's face, thinking of the bonds that had been lost and that he had been powerless to save, barely surviving until now. Heaven had pity on him, allowing him to start over. He swore to his best friend's face.
"I swear… I will never let that future repeat itself!!!"
Deep in his soul, the emotions of separation and loss, suppressed for decades, had an impact far greater than merely witnessing the death of a loved one… it was many times more powerful!
A special Yin Release Chakra surged in his mind, acting on his optic nerves!
Zzzzt!
The hidden Three Tomoe emerged, and as they rotated in his eyes, they completed their transformation into a six-pointed star!
Sasuke, reborn from 40 years in the future, immediately activated his Mangekyo Sharingan…
The rain continued to fall, and ripples spread across the water. Returning from the joy of rebirth and seeing his best friend again, Sasuke stood up. With his mission, he would face his first choice.
The choice was whether to return to Konoha with Naruto and take things slowly, or to become a rogue ninja once again and go to Orochimaru!
Although he was extremely reluctant to separate from Naruto, he quickly made his choice!
"Orochimaru is the key to changing the future. Yama will awaken in 30 years. I must use these 30 years to bridge the gap of several millennia of foundation. From this moment on, I must seize every second!"
"It seems I am destined to become a rogue ninja again…"
Naruto's Ninja Way was a gospel for a prosperous era, and Sasuke had never denied it!
But facts had already proven that Naruto's Ninja Way could not save the Ninja World from the threat of the Ōtsutsuki God!
Sasuke looked at his best friend's peaceful sleeping face, and once again placed the forehead protector, symbolizing a rogue ninja, on his chest. But unlike before, this time he took his best friend's hands and laid them flat on the forehead protector. He leaped from the water onto the head of Senju Hashirama's statue, looking back at his best friend.
He knew… from this day, when he once again chose to defect from Konoha, the great battle in the Valley of the End would happen again!
But this time… the beliefs and goals carried in his eyes were completely different.
— "Naruto, this time it's my turn to change you. Wait for me…"
Sasuke set off resolutely.
Four days later, Orochimaru's lair.
Dressed in a pure white kimono, deep blue trousers, and a purple rope belt around his waist, just like before, he arrived before Orochimaru, led by Kabuto.
A meeting separated by four days, yet also by 40 years, thus arrived unexpectedly.
Four days ago, the parting in the distant starry sky, Orochimaru's intellectual voice and appearance seemed to be right there.
And now, Orochimaru's face, appearing sinister and charming in the dim candlelight, truly made Sasuke feel as if he had stepped into another world.
Sasuke knew very well that the Orochimaru in front of him was merely using his desire for revenge against Itachi, treating him as a vessel for reincarnation. This was not the Orochimaru he regarded as his mentor and family!
What he had to do was defeat Orochimaru and inject the Chakra orb, carrying the knowledge, memories, and emotions of the future Orochimaru, into Orochimaru's body!
During the Konoha Crush, his hands had been sealed by the Third Hokage using the Reaper Death Seal, leaving him unable to use Ninjutsu. And a few days ago, he had just completed a reincarnation using a test subject!
Orochimaru greeted him with a smile: "Sasuke-kun, I've been waiting for you for a long time!"
"…" Sasuke lowered his head and remained silent.
Yakushi Kabuto, standing nearby, pushed up his glasses and said: "Lift your head, let Lord Orochimaru see you."
Sasuke slowly raised his lowered head, meeting Orochimaru's eyes… The sense of discord coming from the depths of his soul made Orochimaru's hair stand on end!
"Hmm!?"
Orochimaru's pupils constricted: "Sasuke-kun's eyes are completely different from before!!!"
How could he know… that within Sasuke's young body, resided a powerful soul that had once rivaled the Six Paths!
Although he didn't know the details, his instinct told him that the Sasuke in front of him was incredibly dangerous!!!
"Kabuto…! Get away from that Sasuke!!"
"What…!?"
Kabuto hadn't even reacted when a dark purple demon suddenly appeared in the background of his mind, its large hand fiercely gripping him!
"Genjutsu? But this Chakra… what's going on?"
Thud!
Yakushi Kabuto's knees buckled, and he fell to the ground!
Zzzzt! Sasuke's eyes had already transformed into 'Mangekyo Sharingan'!
Orochimaru immediately understood: "So that's it. Those eyes… it seems you personally killed Naruto and obtained the same eyes as Itachi. This is quite unexpected…"
Zzzzt!
The power of the Cursed Seal on his neck was released, and lightning erupted from Sasuke's palm, launching a surprise attack on Orochimaru!
Whoosh!
Although Orochimaru's hands were crippled, his movements were still swift. He glanced at Kabuto, then flashed and disappeared from his seat!
Boom!
With a tearing sound through the wall, the two arrived outside!
At this point, Sasuke had already unleashed his Cursed Seal Level 2 state. His entire body had turned grayish-black, and he hovered in mid-air with wings made of hands on his back!
Orochimaru stood in the cold wind, his long hair fluttering, his body encircled by a giant snake. He looked up with vertical pupils and said: "Sasuke-kun, your growth in such a short time is indeed beyond my expectations. However, what puzzles me is that you should want to gain even greater power through me. Are you no longer planning to avenge Itachi?"
Sasuke's response was to flap his wings and dive down!!
Orochimaru sneered: "As expected, you're still naive!"
As Sasuke dived, he extended his right hand, covered in Chidori!
Sasuke used to habitually use his left hand, but in his battle with Naruto, he lost his left arm and lived for decades afterward using his right arm. Therefore, the reborn him was more accustomed to using his right hand!
Crack! As he charged, the lightning, without warning, extended, and with a snap, it pierced through the unprepared Orochimaru!
Orochimaru spat out blood, his vertical pupils filled with shock: "He just learned Chidori during the Chunin Exams. How could he master such a difficult shape transformation in such a short time…!?"
Perhaps the physical body has limitations in Chakra and muscle strength, but the memory of Ninjutsu is carried within the soul. At this moment, it was simply effortless!
"Ugh!!!" Orochimaru used his signature Shedding Skin Jutsu, spitting out a brand new version of himself!
The reborn Orochimaru's feet transformed into snake tails, and he quickly moved away!
Sasuke pursued relentlessly, chasing Orochimaru to a cliff face.
Orochimaru turned back and prostrated himself on the ground.
— Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!
Whoosh!
From his mouth, countless monstrous snakes emerged. As these monstrous snakes writhed, they spat out sharp kusanagi swords. Snake upon snake, sword upon sword, they surged forward, battling towards the sky!
Sasuke merely flicked his sleeve in mid-air!
— Chidori Senbon!
Whoosh! Sharp lightning senbon rained down, engulfing the snake multitude. With the subsequent Great Dragon Fire Technique, the snakes were incinerated into ash!
Boom…!!
The bursting flames were scattered by the expanding white snake bodies, and even the mountain wall behind them collapsed under the strain!
"Sasuke!!!"
After the flames and dust cleared, an eight-headed snake monster stood before them!
Sasuke narrowed his eyes: "He used the Eight Branches Technique so quickly…"
Zzzzt! At that moment, the 'six-pointed star' in Sasuke's left eye suddenly focused on the Eight-Headed Serpent's body!
— Amaterasu!
Swoosh…!!
Black flames… instantly ignited the snake body!
The Eight-Headed Serpent struggled painfully as it was burned by the black flames.
Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle!
However, Orochimaru's viscous body emerged from the central snake head, laughing wildly: "Hmph hmph, truly brothers. Even the Amaterasu ocular jutsu is exactly the same. But unfortunately, Amaterasu is completely ineffective against my immortal body…"
Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle… As his words fell, the Eight-Headed Serpent quickly shed its ignited skin!
Having witnessed Sasuke's rapid growth, Orochimaru placed even more of his future hopes on him, and thus he still tried to win Sasuke over.
Orochimaru: "How about it… Sasuke-kun, with your current methods, you cannot kill me! Although you've become stronger, you are still not as strong as Itachi. But as long as you stay by my side, in less than two years, no, in less than one year, I can make you possess power that surpasses Itachi!"
At this moment, Sasuke's right hand, hidden behind his back, revealed the 'white orb' Orochimaru had given him at their farewell, with Chidori's lightning covering its exterior.
Sasuke played along: "Is that so… If you can take my next move, I might consider it!"
Orochimaru laughed: "What an unyielding child. Come on!"
Sasuke flapped his wings and soared, thrusting the Chidori in his right hand towards Orochimaru's chest!
Orochimaru: "It's 'Chidori'. Sasuke, there's a limit to underestimating people…"
Crack!!
But… the moment the lightning pierced his chest, Orochimaru's expression suddenly froze!
"What did you do…?"
Sasuke's gaze was profound: "Orochimaru, you are still young at this moment. The arrogance brought by your immortality is what allowed you to fall for this so easily…"
Then, his gaze softened: "However, this is good…"
Zzzzt! The white orb hidden within the Chidori merged into Orochimaru's soul!
The vast knowledge, memories, and emotions from the future Orochimaru flooded his mind all at once!
"This, this is…!!!"
Boom…!!
The Eight-Headed Serpent's body… disintegrated with a crash, and Orochimaru fell into the ruins of black flame-encircled rocks.
Zzzzt, zzzzt, zzzzt…!
The Cursed Seal was released, and Sasuke landed in front of Orochimaru. He knew it would take time to digest such a vast amount of information!
In the next few short minutes, he saw his future life experiences of the next few decades in advance.
He already knew the end of his path, which had been fully demonstrated by Yakushi Kabuto.
The turning point arrived early, even more so than anticipated.
Perhaps his spiritual level could not instantly align with the future, but the baptism of that ultimate truth still greatly impacted Orochimaru's worldview, which was currently limited by his narrow outlook on life, allowing him to complete a transformation of his personality!
"Is that how it is…?"
When Orochimaru rose from the ruins, his eyes had completely changed.
Uchiha Sasuke, abandoning his previous dominance, solemnly knelt before Orochimaru: "Orochimaru, please, I want to change the future. Help me become — Ō-tsu-tsu-ki!"
Orochimaru stepped forward, helped Sasuke up, and a gentle, shallow smile appeared at the corner of his mouth: "Sasuke-kun, it must have been difficult for you to do it this way. It is I who should say, from now on, please guide me!"