The waters of the shinobi world were deeper—and murkier—than anyone had imagined.
They were like small boats struggling in a pitch-black ocean, unable even to discern who their true enemy was.
The revelation that Karin was the "Demon Child" brought shock. But what followed was worse—a spreading fear of the deeper, stranger power behind her transformation.
Ninja Academy – Konoha
The Heavenly Curtain's latest revelation sparked another storm among the students.
"Karin… is the Demon Child? That's impossible!" Sasuke stared at the blood-soaked little figure on the screen, disbelief written plainly across his face.
The future teammate from Team Taka—
The one who would stand beside him—
Was the infamous "Crimson Demon Child" who single-handedly annihilated Kusagakure?
The contrast was too great.
Naruto, sensing an opportunity, pointed at Sasuke and shouted triumphantly:
"See, Sasuke?! I knew it! If someone that dangerous ends up on your team, then you definitely go bad in the future! You're hanging around with a mass murderer!"
"Shut up, dead last!" Sasuke snapped, turning sharply, dark eyes blazing.
"Don't forget—in that so-called 'future,' you're the one shouting about destroying the world!"
"I'm the one who stops you. Get your position straight."
He spoke each word with sharp emphasis.
"Remember this. I—Uchiha Sasuke—am the savior."
The words struck Naruto like a direct blow.
He opened his mouth to retort—
And froze.
In the first broadcast… the terrifying figure had indeed been himself.
His face flushed red, twisting with frustration, yet no argument came.
Sasuke gave a cold snort.
Then his gaze turned sharp—almost fanatical.
"And don't call her the 'Demon Child.'"
His voice dropped, edged with chilling intent.
"Because I don't think she did anything wrong."
"If it were me—if I had lived through what she did—I would have killed them too."
"Every single one."
The classroom fell silent.
"Sa—Sasuke…!" Naruto stared at him, stunned.
But Sasuke cut him off with a look of utter disdain.
"Someone like you—whose thoughts and hatred can be manipulated by that chakra—would never understand real pain."
"You don't even know what you should hate, or what you should forgive."
"So don't judge me with your prepackaged 'kindness.' And don't talk to me."
The phrase "manipulated by that chakra" pierced Naruto like a poisoned blade.
All his anger evaporated.
In its place came cold doubt.
Was he… just a puppet of the Nine-Tails' chakra?
Naruto lowered his head. His blue eyes dimmed with confusion and hurt.
Sasuke felt no satisfaction seeing him like that.
Only irritation.
And something lonelier.
He turned and walked away.
Naruto would never understand him.
Nor would he understand Karin.
The despair of losing everything.
The helpless hatred when a loved one dies before your eyes.
In that moment, Sasuke felt that the unseen Karin—the one who had become the Demon Child—might understand him better than the loud, naïve boy at his side.
A distorted sense of kinship—born of shared hatred—quietly took root in his heart.
He began to see Karin as something akin to himself.
And that recognition would shape the road ahead.
On the Road to the Land of Grass
Orochimaru, speeding toward the Land of Grass, had of course witnessed the Heavenly Curtain's continuation.
When Karin transformed into the Demon Child and crushed Kusagakure with overwhelming force, he did not feel fear.
He stopped in his tracks.
Golden, serpentine eyes gleamed with near-mad exhilaration.
"Karin… the 'Demon Child'… hehehe… so that's how it is."
His long tongue slid across his lips, leaving a slick trail.
"In the future… she belongs to me."
Though the Curtain had not shown the details, Orochimaru inferred from the first broadcast—where Karin appeared in Uchiha Sasuke's Team Taka—that she must eventually come under his influence.
"Why didn't my future self recognize her value sooner?" he mused, a flicker of irritation passing through his gaze—quickly replaced by hunger.
"But now that I know in advance, I won't make the same mistake."
"This opportunity… belongs to me."
He savored the words.
"Karin… Demon Child…"
"How fascinating."
"A helpless girl gaining such catastrophic power in an instant… undergoing such complete transformation…"
"What kind of 'inheritance' lies behind that?"
Orochimaru felt no fear of the Demon Child's reputation.
On the contrary, he craved the power that created her.
Karin was no longer merely an Uzumaki survivor with a rare bloodline.
She was a walking vault of secrets.
"Is it a power system akin to those so-called divine techniques? Or something older… darker… perhaps a contract of some kind?"
His eyes burned.
"Whatever it is, it is worth any price to study. To understand. To possess."
He even found himself anticipating a meeting with Karin in her Demon Child state.
To him, the more violent, the more aberrant—
The greater the research value.
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