met free Chapter 402 Sasuke felt he was capable again.
Chapter 402 Sasuke felt he was capable again.
Chapter 402 Sasuke felt he was capable again.
Sasuke was panting heavily.
The tears had dried up, but the emotion surging in my chest, almost burning away my reason, grew ever stronger.
Like magma churning in a volcano, like floodwaters roaring behind a dam, the faith that had fueled six years of revenge for his parents and people collapsed completely at this moment.
Then, that emotion found an outlet.
eye.
Those crimson eyes that bear the bloodline and curse of the Uchiha clan.
Sasuke felt his eye sockets burning, as if two pieces of red-hot coal were embedded in his eye sockets.
The third magatama, arranged in an equilateral triangle, slowly emerged in the scarlet pupils.
Three-tomoe Sharingan!
At this moment, fueled by the shock of the truth and catalyzed by six years of suppressed anger, evolution was completed.
"Oh?"
Gaara looked at the three tomoe forming in Sasuke's eyes and let out a soft snort.
"Not too useless."
These words were spoken casually, even with a hint of mockery.
But Gaara himself knew just how genius the three-tomoe Sharingan was at the age of twelve.
During his years in the Land of Stars, he had come into contact with many Uchiha clan members.
Most of the Uchiha children in the ninja academy don't awaken their Sharingan until they are thirteen or fourteen years old, after experiencing sufficient emotional stimulation or combat training.
One tomoe is the norm, two tomoe is already excellent, and those who can reach three tomoe before the age of fifteen are extremely rare!
And those who can awaken the three-tomoe jade at the age of twelve.
In Gaara's memory, there are only two people.
Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Hikaru.
Both of them awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan at the age of eleven or twelve, and then, under extreme emotional stimulation, they gave birth to the Mangekyou Sharingan.
Now, Sasuke has become the third.
But Gaara cannot praise him.
Not only should you not praise him, you should also suppress him, provoke him, and make him see the gap.
As Aunt Mikoto said, "That child is too proud and too fragile. If he knew I was still alive, he would rush over without hesitation. But Konoha will not let him go. He needs to become strong enough to see through Konoha's hypocrisy and to be able to make his own choice."
Therefore, Gaara never intended to kill Sasuke from the beginning.
But he couldn't tell Sasuke everything directly.
The best way is to let Sasuke "think it through" and "decide" to leave Konoha on his own.
And all of this is based on the premise that...
Let Sasuke see just how weak he is now.
"Sharingan—"
Sasuke slowly raised his head, his newly awakened ocular power flowing in his eyes, bringing him unprecedented confidence.
"Magic Illusion: The Shackles Technique!"
Sasuke's pupils contracted sharply, and his eye power transformed into invisible threads that pierced Gaara's eyes across the distance.
In that instant, Gaara felt the scene before him begin to distort and fade.
The desert has disappeared.
The sounds of Temari and Kankuro fighting faded into the distance.
The world turned a dark red, the sky was a dark red like congealed blood plasma, and the earth was scorched, cracked soil.
The air was filled with the smell of rust and ash.
He was nailed to the spot.
Six blood-red wedges, each as thick as an arm, pierced through his shoulders, knees, chest, and abdomen from the void.
The wedge was driven deep into the ground, fixing him in place like a specimen.
pain.
A sharp, real pain shot through the area that had been pierced.
Welcome to my world.
Sasuke's voice came from ahead.
Gaara, who was pinned to the spot, raised his head with some difficulty and saw Sasuke standing three meters in front of him.
In this illusionary space, Sasuke is no longer the defeated man bound by quicksand and in a sorry state.
He stood ramrod straight, his short black hair moving without wind, the three-tomoe crystals in his eyes slowly rotating, and a confident air of complete control on his lips.
"This is an independent mental space constructed by the Sharingan's genjutsu."
Sasuke raised his right hand, his five fingers spread.
As he moved, the dark crimson sky around him began to flow, like an inverted river of blood.
"Here, time flows hundreds of times faster than outside. I can make you experience ten minutes of torture, while only one second passes outside."
He lowered his hand, looked at Gaara who had been impaled by the wedge, and a confident smile appeared on his lips.
"And I have absolute control over this place."
confidence.
His absolute confidence was so inflated it was almost overflowing.
The moment the three tomoe were born, Sasuke felt that the whole world had changed.
Those once obscure principles of ninjutsu, those techniques that required repeated practice to master, can now be understood at a glance and mastered with just one try.
This is the power of the three-tomoe gem.
This is the power of the Uchiha!
In Sasuke's memory, every Uchiha who could awaken the three-tomoe Sharingan was, without exception, a powerful ninja at the elite Jonin level.
Itachi Uchiha was, Shisui Uchiha was, and all the Uchiha predecessors he had read about in the Anbu files were also included.
Although he has just evolved, with the power of his three-hook eyes, he can fight even a special Jonin!
Moreover, the Sharingan's genjutsu is the most advanced mental attack in the ninja world.
In this mental space dominated by him, even a Jonin would be at his mercy!
Sasuke looked at Gaara, waiting for the other to show an expression of fear, despair, or pleading.
He wanted to see the red-haired boy break down, wanted to hear him tell him his mother's whereabouts, wanted to—
however.
Gaara showed no fear on his face.
He was even laughing.
It wasn't a sneer, nor a mocking laugh, but a gentle laugh that bordered on pity.
"Is this your limit?"
Gaara spoke, and even though he was pierced by six blood wedges, his voice did not tremble in the slightest.
"Then I'll show you too—"
His emerald green eyes stared directly at Sasuke's three tomoe.
"Just how big is the gap between you and me?"
The moment the words fell.
boom-!!!
The entire illusion space began to tremble.
It was as if something was forcefully breaching the barriers of this space.
Black cracks appeared in the dark red sky.
The scorched earth shattered, revealing the endless void beneath.
"What?!" Sasuke's expression changed drastically. He frantically activated his eye power, trying to stabilize the space.
But it didn't work.
The cracks are becoming more numerous and larger.
Then, sand gushed out from those cracks.
Golden, viscous sand that exudes a murky chakra aura.
They were like living tentacles, spreading out from the depths of the void, entangling and eroding this illusory space.
At the source of the sand, behind Gaara, space was torn open, creating a huge gap.
Inside the gap was an eye.
A small yellow eye filled with tyranny and mockery.
The owner of the eyes slowly "squeezed" out from the gap.
It was a giant raccoon-shaped creature made of sand and cursed patterns.
It crouched behind Gaara, its size almost taking up half the sky, its yellow eyes narrowed into slits as it sized up the tiny Sasuke opposite it.
"Hey—hahaha!!!"
The enormous laughter shook the entire space.
"So this is the Sharingan that even made that stinky fox suffer? Hmm? Let me see what's so special about it!"
Shukaku extended a giant sand claw and gently swung it.
Click.
It sounded like glass shattering.
A crack appeared that pierced through the heavens and earth in the genjutsu space constructed by Sasuke.
Then came the second and third courses—
"No—impossible—" Sasuke's eyes widened, his three-tomoe jade rings spinning wildly in an attempt to repair the cracks: "This is my mental space! I am the master! How could you possibly—"
"Mental space?"
Shukaku tilted its huge head, as if it had heard a funny joke.
"Kid, you have no idea what kind of being you're using illusions on."
It raised its other paw, spread its five fingers, and then clenched its fist.
Boom! ...
The entire illusion space exploded.
Like glass shattered by a hammer, like a sandcastle swept away by a flood, the dark red sky and scorched earth disintegrated in an instant, turning into countless fragments, which were then swallowed and annihilated by the surging sand.
Sasuke's consciousness was abruptly "pulled" back to reality.
He was still bound by quicksand up to his neck, with only his head showing.
"Aaaaaah—!!!"
The excruciating pain came from my eyes, ten times more intense than when I had just evolved.
Warm liquid slowly flowed from his eyes.
blood.
The eyes are bleeding.
The three-tomoe Sharingan could no longer be maintained and automatically shut down, reverting to ordinary black pupils.
But deep within his pupils, a pricking pain still emanated from him—the mental backlash from the forced breaking of the illusion. Sasuke felt his vision blur, his ears ringing, and his brain felt like it had been turned into a mushy mess.
And opposite him.
Gaara stood still, surrounded by writhing yellow sand.
The sand formed a rough, strangely patterned armor on his body, making him look like some kind of inhuman monster.
The yellow sand began to peel away and disintegrate, turning back into ordinary sand and flowing back to the earth.
Gaara has returned to normal.
"Hey, Gaara!"
A disgruntled, harsh voice rang directly in Gaara's mind.
"I haven't had enough fun yet! That kid's Sharingan is interesting, let me play with it a little longer!"
It is Shukaku inside Gaara.
Although it was just a newly evolved three-tomoe Sharingan, and its genjutsu control couldn't yet reach the level of the Mangekyou Sharingan, which was effective against both tailed beasts and jinchūriki, Shukaku still really wanted to play with this little guy so that he could brag to that stinky fox about how he had utterly crushed the Sharingan-wielding Uchiha when he saw him in the future.
Gaara scoffed inwardly, "Quiet! You'll have your chance to shine in a few days."
"Tch—" Shukaku drawled, but ultimately didn't press the matter further: "Then I'll wait. But it's settled then, if there are any more of these amusing brats next time, remember to call me."
Gaara looked across at the other side.
Blood from Sasuke's eyes dripped slowly down his cheeks, spreading into dark red flowers on the sand.
He trembled all over, whether from pain, fear, or humiliation, he didn't know.
Gaara looked at Sasuke, who was now powerless to resist, remained silent for a few seconds, and then raised his right hand.
Spread your five fingers and gently clench your fist.
The quicksand that bound Sasuke turned back into loose sand.
Gaara turned around, ready to leave.
"Wait—wait—"
A hoarse voice, tinged with sobs, came from behind.
Sasuke propped himself up with trembling arms and struggled to crawl out of the sand.
He raised his head, his face covered in sand and blood, his eyes red and swollen, but in his black pupils burned an almost insane obsession.
"You bastard—tell me—where is she!"
He was asking about Mikoto's whereabouts.
But Gaara sensed something was off about his tone. It wasn't longing or yearning, but rather a betrayal of anger, a question of "Why did you abandon me?"
They don't even call her "mother" anymore; they just use "she" instead.
Just like when he mentioned Itachi Uchiha.
Gaara stopped in his tracks.
He didn't turn around, but just turned his head slightly and glanced at Sasuke behind him out of the corner of his eye.
The boy knelt on the sand, disheveled, but his eyes were fierce like those of a wounded beast.
The seeds have been planted.
Moreover, the germination rate was faster than expected.
However, this sprout seems to be growing crooked.
"If you want to know—" Gaara sighed inwardly, but his tone remained icy.
"Just go ask him yourself."
Having said that, Gaara didn't linger. In a flash, he appeared on a sand dune not far away.
Temari and Kankuro quickly broke free of their respective opponents and gathered around him.
"Let's go," Gaara said.
The three of them leaped up at the same time, landing on tree trunks in the distance. After a few leaps, they disappeared into the depths of the dense forest.
Sasuke stared in the direction they had disappeared, his teeth grinding together.
Sai and Shigaraki Tanuki walked over, supporting each other.
Their condition was not much better than Sasuke's; Sai's left hand was hanging unnaturally, clearly broken.
Shigaraki Tanuki had a deep cut on its face, running from its left eyebrow to the corner of its right mouth, with the skin turned outwards and blood flowing continuously.
Their defeat in this battle was inevitable; the difference in strength was as vast as an insurmountable chasm.
But they survived.
The other party clearly did not intend to kill.
This was more humiliating for Sasuke than being killed.
"Sasuke—" Sai wanted to say something.
But Sasuke suddenly raised his hand and stopped him.
He staggered to his feet, his eyes fixed on the direction Gaara had disappeared in, and squeezed out each word through clenched teeth: "Next time—I will definitely defeat you!"
"I will definitely make you—say it!"
The sound echoed across the empty sand before being dispersed by the wind.
Deep in the forest.
Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro swiftly weaved through the treetops, moving lightly towards the central tower.
In that brief but intense battle, their chakra consumption was minimal, and their stamina remained plentiful.
This is the gap.
"Hey, Gaara."
Kankuro was the first to break the silence.
As he leaped, he glanced sideways at Gaara, who was a body length ahead, his face filled with confusion: "Sasuke's strength... doesn't seem as great as I thought? Aunt Mikoto said he was very talented, but just now—"
He paused for a moment, then spoke his mind: "Why don't we just tie him up and take him back to Star City for Aunt Mikoto? She'll definitely be happy."
This is a very blunt and naive statement.
He was adopted by Aunt Mikoto when he was young and felt the maternal love he had lost. Deep down, he longed to help Aunt Mikoto fulfill her wish of reuniting with her son.
Temari rolled her eyes, wishing she could hit her younger brother on the head with her fan.
"Are you just thinking about puppet lubricant?" she said irritably. "Don't you realize how many eyes are watching Sasuke right now?"
Kankuro was taken aback: "Eyes?"
"Those two teammates," Temari lowered her voice, "that Sai guy has bizarre ninjutsu and his taijutsu is also strong; he's at least an elite Chunin. The other guy's fighting style is completely like an Anbu—ruthless..."
Efficient and reckless. Would two people like that be assigned to be teammates with an "ordinary genin"?
Kankuro scratched his head, recalling the battle that had just taken place.
Sai's secret technique was indeed troublesome, and his reaction was extremely fast. Even when he was ambushed, he was able to quickly counterattack and almost injured his puppet.
Shigaraki Tanuki was even more obvious; every move he made was a killing move. If it weren't for Temari's Wind Release having such a large range that it forced him to defend, the outcome of a close-quarters fight would have been unpredictable.
"You mean—" Kankuro hesitated, "Konoha sent two ANBU members, nominally Sasuke's teammates, but actually—to spy on him?"
"Otherwise what?" Temari scoffed. "After the Uchiha clan was wiped out, Sasuke was the only pure-blooded Uchiha left in Konoha. Those old fogies in Konoha's leadership know the value of the Sharingan better than anyone. Would they let Sasuke grow freely? Would they let him leave Konoha so easily?"
She glanced at Gaara's retreating figure.
Gaara continued to lead the way in silence, as if he hadn't heard their conversation.
But Temari knew he was listening.
"So what I said to Sasuke just now wasn't to provoke him, but rather—" Kankuro suddenly realized, "was it to plant a seed of doubt in his heart? To make him find a way to leave Konoha on his own?"
He looked at Gaara's silent and somewhat lonely figure ahead and seemed to understand something.
Why does Gaara repeatedly provoke Sasuke, wanting him to see the difference in their abilities and to tell him that Aunt Mikoto is still alive, yet never revealing her exact whereabouts?
Because some things cannot be said explicitly.
Only when Sasuke "figures it out" and "decides" to leave will he become cautious, scheming, and waiting for the right opportunity.
"It seems you're not entirely beyond redemption." Temari nodded, looking at Gaara with a complex expression, her voice lowering slightly: "Only when Sasuke himself develops doubt and distrust towards Konoha from within will this seed truly sprout."
"Whether it's a month later or a year later, as long as the time is right, he will naturally find a way to uncover the truth and escape the 'cage' that imprisons him."
She sighed softly, as if recalling some distant memory, her tone tinged with sadness: "Just like—my uncle back then, right?"
The moment the words fell.
Gaara's body, which was leaping on the tree branch, trembled almost imperceptibly.
Although they quickly regained their composure, Temari and Kankuro clearly captured that moment of stiffness.
Kankuro also fell silent.
He remembered that man.
Yashamaru.
The younger brother of their mother, Galuro; their uncle.
The man who always smiled gently, made desserts for them, stayed by Gaara's bedside when he had nightmares, and hummed softly to lull him to sleep.
He was also the man who, when Gaara was six years old, received orders from the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, to assassinate Gaara using explosive tags.
That night, Gaara roared uncontrollably.
That night, before Yashamaru died, he said to Gaara, "I have never loved you."
Gaara changed after that.
They became indifferent, closed off, and stopped trusting anyone.
Until they were taken to the Land of Stars, until they were adopted by Aunt Mikoto.
That gentle, motherly Uchiha woman gradually pried open Gaara's hard shell.
She told me that Yashamaru's last words might not have been sincere.
"When a person is about to die, they will say anything to protect the people they care about." Aunt Mikoto stroked Gaara's head and said softly, "Maybe he was using that method to make you hate him, to make you stop trusting others, so that—you would never be betrayed again, never be hurt again."
Gaara didn't say anything at the time.
But Temari knew that he had taken it to heart.
From that day on, Gaara began to secretly investigate what happened back then.
He wanted to know the truth.
I want to know if Yashamaru really hates him.
I want to know why my father, Rasa, gave that order.
However, after Rasa was defeated in the Land of Wind, he was imprisoned in the Land of Stars.
As the kage of a defeated nation, he lost his freedom.
Gaara has only one way to find out the truth.
To become a high-ranking official in the Star Kingdom.
Only by becoming a Jonin, achieving enough merit, and gaining sufficient authority can one be qualified to access those sealed files and to see the imprisoned Rasa.
That's why Gaara has worked harder than anyone else all these years.
Training, missions, and battles—he's always at the forefront, always demanding the best of himself.
And now, facing Sasuke—
Temari looked at Gaara's silent back and suddenly understood.
Gaara saw his younger self in Sasuke.
That self who was kept in the dark, deceived, and used, and whom even her closest relatives could not trust.
Therefore, he cannot tell Sasuke the truth directly.
I can't offer gentle guidance like Aunt Mikoto.
He could only use the cruelest method to let Sasuke discover, struggle, and make his own choice.
Just like how Yashamaru used the most cruel method to "protect" Gaara back then.
Temari said softly, "Some truths must be discovered by him; some paths must be chosen by him. Forcing his way in might only harm him."
Gaara did not respond.
He simply increased his speed, his figure flashing through the treetops a few times, leaving Temari and Kankuro some distance behind.
Temari watched her younger brother's retreating figure and sighed softly.
"Let him have some peace and quiet."
Temari also sped up her pace.
The forest is receding.
The wind whistled in my ears.
Gaara's mind, however, was unusually calm.
Yashamaru's face and Sasuke's face appeared alternately.
The uncle who smiled gently, and the boy who questioned him angrily.
The lines "I have never loved you" and "Where is she?"
Different times, different people, but the same despair of being "abandoned" by loved ones.
"Protect----"
Gaara silently repeated the word in his heart.
If it's about protection, why must it be done through harm?
If it's love, why must it be described as hate?
He didn't know that before.
But after meeting Sasuke, he gradually came to understand Yashamaru's possible feelings back then.
That kind of helplessness, "I can't tell you the truth, because the truth will kill you."
That kind of resolute determination: "I'd rather you hate me than let you die."
"Sasuke————"
Gaara raised his head and looked at the gray sky through the gaps in the tree canopy.
"Get stronger quickly."
"Strong enough to see through Konoha's lies, strong enough to protect himself, strong enough—"
His gaze hardened.
"I want to come to the Land of Stars and ask Aunt Mikoto in person why she didn't take you with her."
Before that.
Gaara will continue to grow stronger.
He is strong enough to know the truth about Yashamaru's assassination attempt on him, strong enough to have the right to see his imprisoned father, Rasa, and strong enough to protect everything he currently possesses!
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