Playboy Sasuke took the wildflower he had been holding and tucked it back between his fingers before turning his head toward Kiyohara.
"By the way, Kiyohara-sensei, there is something serious I want to ask you about."
The carefree, playful smile on Playboy Sasuke's face disappeared. The pupils in his eyes gradually transformed into the scarlet hue of the Sharingan, and three tomoe slowly revolved within them.
"I have already awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, but I have never figured out how to break through to the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Kiyohara looked at his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, feeling slightly surprised.
In this world, Sasuke's personality was so carefree and easygoing, yet he had still managed to awaken the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
In the anime's "Limited Tsukuyomi," Sasuke seemed to have been weakened considerably. He had never awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Yet now, not only had he awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he was even trying to pursue the Mangekyo.
It seemed that this world really was somewhat different from the "Limited Tsukuyomi" world of the original story.
"The conditions for awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan are extremely demanding."
Kiyohara slowly began to explain.
"First, you need a sufficiently powerful foundation of ocular power. Your Three-Tomoe Sharingan already satisfies that requirement. Second, you need to experience an extreme emotional shock on a spiritual level."
"An extreme emotional shock?"
Playboy Sasuke looked puzzled.
"That's right."
Kiyohara nodded.
"You need an emotional shock powerful enough to tear your spirit apart. Usually, it comes in the form of overwhelming anger or grief."
Kiyohara paused for a moment before continuing.
"Put simply, something that is the most important thing in your life must be completely destroyed right before your eyes, while you are utterly powerless to do anything about it."
Playboy Sasuke fell silent.
He tucked the wildflower in his hand into the vase on the table. Then he leaned back against his chair and looked up at the ceiling.
"The most important thing being destroyed?"
Looking at him like this, Kiyohara could not help thinking that Sasuke of this world would probably have a very difficult time awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan.
After all, this was the world of the "Limited Tsukuyomi." All negative emotions had been twisted into their opposites. For a playboy who spent every day chasing after women and enjoying the pleasures of life, where could he possibly experience that kind of extreme despair?
"Well, it is not necessarily limited to that. If your Yin Release or Yang Release improves enough, it is not impossible for you to awaken it through another route."
Kiyohara spoke calmly.
He himself had never experienced that kind of extreme despair. The evolution of his Sharingan had all been accomplished through the inheritance from the Last Will system.
"We can talk about Sasuke's matter another time."
Naruto suddenly spoke up.
He turned his head toward Kiyohara.
"Kiyohara-sensei, your timing in returning this time is rather convenient. The borders of the shinobi world have been somewhat unstable recently. According to information from the ANBU, several small shinobi villages have been secretly transporting ores and scrolls. It seems that they are preparing something."
"We cannot concern ourselves with every little matter."
Kiyohara shook his head.
He had not come here to deal with these trivial affairs.
There were two main reasons for his visit.
The first was to fulfill the final wishes he had been entrusted with.
The second was to see what the God Tree of this world was actually like.
"By the way, Sasuke, I want to visit the Uchiha clan."
Kiyohara said this because he could learn about the changes in this world through the Uchiha Stone Tablet.
"Sure."
Although Playboy Sasuke was curious about why Kiyohara wanted to go there, he still nodded in agreement.
The Uchiha clan's district was not far from the Hyuga clan's district. The four of them walked for a while before arriving at their destination.
When Kiyohara stepped through the gates of the Uchiha clan's district, the scene before him was completely beyond his expectations.
A young man dressed in the Uchiha clan's uniform was helping an elderly woman with snow-white hair cross the street. The old woman was carrying a bag of oranges, and the young man had taken the bag from her. The two of them walked across the zebra crossing while chatting and laughing happily.
On the opposite side of the road, another Uchiha clan member was helping a sweating middle-aged man carry his luggage.
The luggage was even larger than the man himself, yet the Uchiha effortlessly supported it with one hand. With his other hand, he gestured toward the road ahead, patiently giving the middle-aged man directions.
At the entrances of the shops lining both sides of the street, several Uchiha children were helping the shopkeepers sweep the floors and wipe the windows.
Each of them wore the Uchiha clan crest on their forehead protectors, yet there was not the slightest trace of arrogance that one would expect from a prestigious shinobi clan.
Instead, their faces were filled with bright, happy smiles because they had been able to help someone.
An elderly Uchiha man was sitting on a bench by the roadside, enjoying the sunlight. An open book rested across his knees, while a teapot and several paper cups sat beside him.
When a passerby grew tired from walking, the old man immediately poured him a cup of tea and handed it over.
Kiyohara: "..."
This atmosphere was definitely not right.
The Uchiha clan he remembered was a proud and obsessive clan of warriors, known for their aloofness and intense emotions.
Yet the Uchiha clan before him was practically the embodiment of love and kindness.
They were even more harmonious and friendly than the Uchiha of the other world!
"What's wrong, Master?"
Big Sister Hinata noticed his strange expression and looked up at him.
"Nothing."
Kiyohara withdrew his gaze.
"I just think that everyone in the Uchiha clan is very kind and helpful."
"Of course. Everyone is like that."
Playboy Sasuke shrugged, speaking as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
From his perspective, this was simply everyday life.
When he was a child, he had even received praise from the Hokage for helping an elderly woman cross the street.
"Isn't helping others a tradition of the Uchiha clan? The glory of our clan is 'love,' after all."
Kiyohara glanced at Playboy Sasuke.
As expected, in the world of the "Limited Tsukuyomi," even the Uchiha clan's family teachings had been completely reversed.
"By the way, Sasuke, could you let me take a look at your clan's Uchiha Stone Tablet?"
Kiyohara suddenly asked.
Playboy Sasuke stopped walking.
He turned around, a puzzled expression appearing on his face.
"Kiyohara-sensei, the contents of that stone tablet can only be deciphered with the Sharingan. If you do not have the Sharingan, you will not be able to see anything."
"I know."
Kiyohara nodded.
"But the stone tablet itself is a valuable historical artifact. My interest is not limited to deciphering the words written on it."
"The Uchiha Stone Tablet is usually enshrined inside Naka Shrine. The clan members can indeed go there to look at it. But honestly, aside from those ancient words about 'the two opposing forces becoming one and giving birth to all things in the universe,' there is not much else worth looking at."
He waved his hand dismissively, clearly not taking the matter very seriously.
Kiyohara was secretly surprised when he heard this.
That phrase still existed in this world?
Playboy Sasuke was just about to continue speaking when Big Sister Hinata, who was standing nearby, silently lowered her arms from where they had been folded across her chest.
She clenched her right hand into a fist and lightly tapped it against her open left palm.
Crack.
The sound of her knuckles was surprisingly loud.
The smile on Playboy Sasuke's face immediately froze.
"All right, all right, I'll lead the way."
He instantly changed his mind and turned around.
Big Sister Hinata once again linked her arm with Kiyohara's, lifting her chin slightly.
That was more like it.
Naka Shrine was located deep within the Uchiha clan's district, situated on a small hill upstream along the Naka River.
The shrine's architecture was simple and solemn. The vermilion torii gate had already faded somewhat with age, while moss covered both sides of the stone steps.
Several ancient pine trees had grown through the cracks between the stones, their trunks twisted and sturdy from years of enduring the elements.
Naruto walked at the very front.
He pushed open the shrine's heavy wooden doors, and the hinges let out a low, muffled creak.
The interior of the shrine was dim.
Only a few eternal lamps burned before the altar, their weak flames providing the only source of light.
The Uchiha Stone Tablet stood directly in the center before the altar.
It was a black stone slab roughly the height of an adult, its surface smooth and polished like a mirror.
Kiyohara walked up to the stone tablet.
The Sharingan quietly appeared within his eyes, and a fleeting scarlet light flashed across them.
Playboy Sasuke happened to be standing behind him and caught that brief flash of red.
He rubbed his eyes and looked again.
By then, Kiyohara's eyes had already returned to their normal black color.
"Hmm?"
Playboy Sasuke stared at the back of Kiyohara's head for several seconds before shaking his head.
He had definitely seen it wrong.
Kiyohara-sensei did not possess Uchiha blood.
How could he possibly have the Sharingan?
He must simply have been too tired because he had not slept well last night.
Perhaps he should find a beautiful woman to keep him company tonight.
That thought crossed Playboy Sasuke's mind as he stood there.
Kiyohara paid no attention to Sasuke's doubts.
All of his attention was focused on the stone tablet before him.
That single moment had already allowed him to see every character engraved upon it.
With the level of ocular power he possessed, the stone tablet naturally held no secrets from him.
Kiyohara's gaze swept over the first line.
His pupils immediately contracted slightly.
The contents engraved upon the stone tablet were completely different from the Uchiha Stone Tablet he knew.
The Uchiha Stone Tablet in the real world had been left behind by the Sage of Six Paths. It recorded the Eye of the Moon Plan, the truth behind the Infinite Tsukuyomi, and the evolutionary path of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
But the stone tablet before him completely overturned everything from its very first sentence.
The opening passage of the stone tablet read:
"The Rabbit Goddess descended upon the mortal world with a heart of compassion. She bestowed chakra upon mankind, allowing people to become connected to one another and enabling all people to live in peace and prosperity."
"Her eldest son, the Sage of Six Paths, was consumed by greed. He sought to claim all chakra for himself and activated the forbidden technique known as the Infinite Tsukuyomi, trapping all living beings beneath the heavens within an illusory dream. He intended to drain the chakra from all things through this technique and achieve a state of immortality."
"To save all living beings, the Rabbit Goddess joined forces with her second son, Otsutsuki Hamura, and sealed the Sage of Six Paths upon the moon. This battle exhausted the goddess's power, causing her to fall into a thousand-year slumber."
Kiyohara read every line engraved upon the stone tablet.
His expression gradually changed.
In this world, Kaguya was on the side of justice?
And the Sage of Six Paths had instead become the villain who sought to destroy the world?
Kiyohara swept his eyes over the final lines of the stone tablet once again, making absolutely certain that he had not misread them.
The phrase, "When two opposing forces become one, they give birth to all things in the universe," did indeed appear on the stone tablets of both worlds.
However, within the context of this world, its meaning was already completely different.
"See? You really cannot see anything, right?"
Playboy Sasuke stood behind him. When he saw Kiyohara turn around, he spread his hands.
Kiyohara did not answer the question.
"Sasuke, are you certain that the contents of this stone tablet are the version that has been passed down through your clan all this time?"
"Of course."
Playboy Sasuke nodded.
"The story written on it is about the Rabbit Goddess saving the world. The elders of the clan have been telling us this story since we were children. The words on the stone tablet were personally left behind by the Rabbit Goddess. Only someone with the Sharingan can decipher them, so outsiders cannot see the contents."
He paused before tilting his head toward Kiyohara.
"What's wrong, Kiyohara-sensei? You really saw something, didn't you?"
"The stone tablet is indeed a very interesting historical artifact."
Kiyohara did not answer him directly. He merely replied casually.
Outside Naka Shrine.
The group walked out of the shrine.
Naruto was walking at the very back.
There was a thoughtful look in his calm eyes.
"Kiyohara-sensei."
Naruto suddenly spoke.
Kiyohara stopped walking and turned his head to look at him.
"I want to have a sparring match with you."
Naruto spoke calmly.
"I have been training for the past three years. There are some new things I want to show you, and I also want to know how large the gap between us is now."
Kiyohara looked at him.
There was no unnecessary expression on Naruto's face, but his eyes carried an almost stubborn seriousness.
The Naruto of this world was indeed completely different from the Naruto of his world. The Naruto Kiyohara knew was the type who would charge forward the moment his blood started boiling. The man standing before him, however, carefully considered every decision before acting.
"All right."
Kiyohara nodded.
"Master is going to fight?"
Big Sister Hinata's eyes immediately lit up.
She wanted to see Kiyohara's heroic figure in battle.
Playboy Sasuke also pulled the small mirror from inside his collar and glanced at his bangs. After confirming that his hairstyle was still perfect, he flipped his wrist and returned the mirror to his shinobi tool pouch.
"That's perfect. Let me see what kind of ultimate move Naruto has been cooking up for the past three years. But let me make this clear first. If anything gets damaged during the fight, Naruto, you are paying for it yourself."
"The training ground is Training Ground Three."
Naruto ignored Sasuke's teasing and turned toward the eastern part of the village.
He began walking.
…
Training Ground Three was an oval clearing surrounded by an iron fence.
Naruto removed his outer jacket, revealing a black, tight-fitting short-sleeved shirt underneath.
His build was relatively lean, but the definition of his muscles was clear, especially around his forearms and the front of his shoulders.
He rotated his wrists a few times, then took several kunai from his shinobi tool pouch and casually threw them toward different areas of the training ground.
The kunai struck tree trunks, the fence, and the ground, forming a loose formation around the battlefield.
"Kiyohara-sensei, you may go first."
Naruto raised his right hand and made an inviting gesture toward Kiyohara.
"No. You make the first move."
Kiyohara's hands hung naturally at his sides, and his tone remained calm.
Naruto nodded without arguing.
He took a deep breath, then brought his right hand up and formed a seal with his index and middle fingers pressed together.
In the next instant, he appeared beside one of the kunai embedded in a tree trunk behind Kiyohara and slightly to his left.
A rapidly rotating sphere of chakra had already condensed in the palm of his right hand.
Rasengan!
The chakra currents at the edge of the sphere emitted a sharp buzzing sound, as though countless tiny blades were simultaneously slicing through the air.
Naruto pushed off with his foot.
His figure disappeared once again.
This time, he appeared directly behind Kiyohara.
The Rasengan was driven straight toward the center of Kiyohara's back.
Boom!!
The Rasengan struck Kiyohara squarely in the back.
At the edge of the training ground, Big Sister Hinata instinctively clenched her fists.
The wildflower Playboy Sasuke had been casually spinning between his fingers also came to a sudden stop.
However, in the next moment, surprise appeared on both of their faces.
Naruto's eyes widened as well.
His Rasengan had struck Kiyohara directly in the back, yet Kiyohara had not even staggered.
He had not moved at all.
Even more astonishingly, Kiyohara's clothes had not been damaged.
"Completely unharmed..."
Naruto's voice was filled with disbelief, but his battle instincts prevented him from remaining where he was.
He immediately retreated to the edge of the training ground and opened up the distance again.
Kiyohara turned around and looked at Naruto.
"Keep going."
Kiyohara said calmly.
Naruto took a deep breath and returned the kunai in his hand to his shinobi tool pouch.
"Kiyohara-sensei, you really are very strong. But I have already won this spar."
His voice had returned to its usual calm and steady tone.
"When the Rasengan struck you just now, I also left a Flying Thunder God mark on your body. This mark will never disappear. From this moment onward, no matter where you go, I can instantly teleport to your side. The only way for it to disappear is if I remove it myself."
He looked directly at Kiyohara.
"So, you have already lost."
"As expected of Naruto."
Playboy Sasuke muttered quietly.
"Once something like that sticks to you, there is no getting rid of it. Kiyohara-sensei really was careless this time."
Big Sister Hinata did not say anything.
Her brows had already drawn together.
"It's just a mark."
Kiyohara said.
Naruto was seriously trying to show off his Flying Thunder God technique in front of an expert.
"The Flying Thunder God Technique is essentially an instantaneous movement technique that uses chakra to establish a spatial coordinate. The principle behind this mark is to imprint your chakra onto my body in the form of a technique. Then, when you sense that mark from a distance, you use your chakra as the coordinate and teleport to it."
Kiyohara's voice was neither hurried nor slow.
"So, the method of removing it is also very simple. As long as my chakra control is more precise than yours, I can use my own chakra to expel the chakra forming the mark from my body bit by bit. Once all of it has been removed, the mark will naturally disappear."
Several seconds later, the entire Flying Thunder God mark beneath Kiyohara's clothes completely vanished.
Naruto's pupils suddenly contracted.
"How is that possible?"
Naruto murmured.
"My father said that once a Flying Thunder God mark is placed, it cannot disappear unless the caster deliberately removes it or the person carrying the mark dies. How could you possibly..."
"There is nothing impossible about it."
Kiyohara interrupted him, his tone remaining calm.
"As long as my understanding and application of chakra are superior to yours, I can remove what you call an absolute mark. Your mark is not truly indestructible. For someone whose chakra control precision far exceeds yours, removing it is completely possible."
Kiyohara shook his head.
Moreover, the quality of his chakra had already touched the level of the Six Paths.
Naruto's brows furrowed deeply.
It had taken him several years of training to master the Flying Thunder God Technique to this level.
His father had told him that his Flying Thunder God marks were the strongest in all of Konoha. Even the Third Hokage might not necessarily have been capable of forcibly removing one.
Yet Kiyohara had merely stood there and moved his shoulders slightly several times before making the mark disappear as easily as dust being brushed away.
Big Sister Big Sister Hinata stood at the edge of the training ground.
The expression on her face changed from worry to shock.
Then that shock gradually transformed into admiration.
As expected of Master.
He really was the strongest!
"My goodness..."
Playboy Sasuke was completely stunned.
"Where exactly did Kiyohara-sensei go during these three years? He can even erase a Flying Thunder God mark. This has already gone completely beyond the scope of ordinary ninjutsu."
Naruto slowly lowered his hand.
He stared at his empty palm and remained silent for a long time.
Then he raised his head.
His calm blue eyes stared directly at Kiyohara.
"Kiyohara-sensei, how did you do that? I want to understand the principle behind it."
Kiyohara walked toward a large stone at the edge of the training ground and casually leaned against it.
He then explained some of his own ideas and theories.
As Naruto listened, his expression immediately became one of surprise.
There were many things Kiyohara mentioned that he had never even considered.
"I was trying to use this technique in front of you, but I still have a long way to go."
Naruto said.
"Thank you for your guidance, Kiyohara-sensei."
Kiyohara waved his hand and stood up from the stone.
"Go back and study it seriously."
"I will give it a try."
Big Sister Hinata ran over from the edge of the training ground, still visibly excited from what she had just witnessed.
"Master, you are amazing! You can even break Naruto's Flying Thunder God. Is there anything you cannot do?"
As she spoke, she reached out and grabbed Kiyohara's arm.
Kiyohara glanced at her but did not pull his arm away.
He could clearly feel two enormous soft mounds pressing against him.
The Hinata of this world really liked getting physical with people.
Still, Kiyohara did not dislike it.
There were certainly advantages to being well-endowed.
Bigger really was better.
Bigger was the truth.
Playboy Sasuke picked up the wildflower that had fallen onto the ground.
He blew the dust from its petals before looking thoughtfully at Kiyohara.
"Kiyohara-sensei, do you have the Sharingan too?"
Kiyohara turned his head and looked at him.
"Back at Naka Shrine, I saw a flash of red in your eyes. At first, I thought I had simply seen it wrong. But when you removed Naruto's Flying Thunder God mark just now, I realized that I have never even heard of anyone without a bloodline limit being capable of achieving that level of precision."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You are not merely strong in taijutsu and ninjutsu, are you?"
"Something like that."
Kiyohara nodded.
He neither confirmed nor denied it.
…
Meanwhile, approximately one kilometer away, on the roof of a three-story wooden building, another figure was silently observing everything.
Kaguya's chakra spirit floated approximately half a foot above the roof tiles.
Her body was a translucent, pale white, with an extremely faint blue glow surrounding its edges.
After replenishing her chakra from the Pure Land, she had followed the trail of that unfamiliar chakra all the way here.
In the end, she had found the outsider at Konoha's training ground.
At this moment, her Rinne Sharingan pierced through the distance of one kilometer, allowing her to see everything taking place on the training ground with absolute clarity.
The man had first endured a Rasengan without suffering even the slightest injury.
He had then used an incredibly sophisticated method of chakra manipulation to directly erase the permanent seal of Flying Thunder God.
Kaguya had only witnessed this level of chakra control in one place.
The Otsutsuki main branch.
Yet the nature of this man's chakra was completely different from that of the Otsutsuki clan.
"Who exactly is he?"
Kaguya murmured quietly.
An unprecedented seriousness appeared within her pure white eyes.
"I have never seen this face before."
Her brows tightened.
Judging from his abilities, he could effortlessly erase chakra marks placed by others.
If he intended to forcibly reclaim all the chakra scattered throughout this world, then given her current weakened state, she would probably have great difficulty stopping him.
But precisely because of that, she needed to get closer to this person.
She needed to understand who he was.
…
After the spar was over, Big Sister Hinata dragged Naruto to Ichiraku Ramen.
Several passing shinobi saw the young lady of the Hyuga clan once again walking through the street while holding a man's wrist, and they could not help turning their heads to look.
Big Sister Hinata, however, remained completely oblivious to their gazes.
Her chin was slightly raised, and her expression carried a natural, almost smug sense of pride.
"We're here! We're here!"
She stopped in front of the noren and reached up to lift the curtain.
She then stepped to the side, allowing Kiyohara to enter first.
The interior of Ichiraku Ramen was very simple.
A wooden counter stretched across the middle of the small shop, with seven or eight tall stools arranged in front of it.
The cooking stove was directly behind the counter.
Steam from the boiling pots continuously rose into the air, filling the entire shop with a warm and slightly humid atmosphere.
Kiyohara felt that this place was quite similar to the Ichiraku Ramen in his own world.
"Oh, isn't this the young lady of the Hyuga clan? It has been a long time since you came here. Did you bring a friend to eat ramen today?"
The owner greeted her warmly.
"This is my master!"
Big Sister Hinata pushed Kiyohara down onto one of the stools in front of the counter before sitting down beside him.
"Oh, so Kiyohara-sama has returned. It has been about three years since we last saw you, hasn't it? Today's meal is on me. Consider it a celebration of your return to the village."
Kiyohara nodded slightly.
"One large bowl of miso chashu ramen, with an extra serving of chashu. Also, one plate of pan-fried dumplings and a glass of ice water."
After placing her order, Big Sister Hinata turned her head toward Kiyohara.
"Master, what would you like?"
"Shoyu ramen. Large bowl. Add one soft-boiled egg."
Big Sister Hinata immediately raised one finger toward the ramen chef.
"Give him a double serving of chashu too!"
"That is not necessary."
"You have been traveling around outside for three years. You definitely have not had a proper meal in a long time. Eat more."
Big Sister Hinata said it matter-of-factly.
(End of Chapter)