Chapter 304: Sasuke – There’s No Way My Future Self is This Weak

Even though Older Sasuke didn't know exactly what to do, he knew one thing for certain, he could not afford to be captured.

If they were caught, their entire mission would be over.

Still, there was at least one piece of good news, based on what this world's Sasuke had said, this was indeed Naruto's house. That meant Naruto was most likely still in the village, so they didn't need to search the entire world for him.

However, there was also a major problem…

Older Sasuke glanced at this world's younger Sasuke, who was holding a sword and staring at him like a predator eyeing its prey. There was no room for explanation here.

Even if he tried to explain, this Sasuke would probably capture them first and interrogate them later.

Right now, his own strength hadn't fully recovered, and Older Sasuke did not want to fight his past self from this world, so…

The next moment, Older Sasuke grabbed Boruto with his only arm and dashed backward.

Several ANBU agents immediately moved to block him.

However, Older Sasuke's combat prowess far exceeded their expectations. Even with only one arm and carrying Boruto, he effortlessly dodged their attempts to stop him and sent them flying aside with just his legs.

"Hmph, someone with that level of skill dares claim to be a simple street performer?" The younger Sasuke scoffed, his figure suddenly disappearing as he shot forward, rapidly closing in on Older Sasuke.

Older Sasuke was surprised at how fast his past self was.

At the same time, he understood that Urashiki had drained far too much of his chakra. While he could recover it over time, the process was excruciatingly slow for some reason.

As a result, his power had greatly diminished, his Rinnegan abilities were unusable, and even his speed was significantly weaker without chakra enhancement.

"Mr. Sasuke!"

Boruto suddenly cried out.

Older Sasuke noticed a kunai hurtling toward his chest. It was perfectly aimed and incredibly fast, if he didn't dodge, it would stab straight into his heart.

Without hesitation, he funneled his limited chakra into his legs and dodged to the side.

But in that moment, his eyes widened in shock, the kunai suddenly transformed into Sasuke himself!

Before Older Sasuke could react, the younger Sasuke swung his sword down.

In an instant, Older Sasuke and Boruto came to a complete halt, with the sword pressed against Older Sasuke's throat.

The younger Sasuke raised an eyebrow and, after hearing Boruto's earlier outburst, asked, "You… also go by the name Sasuke?"

Older Sasuke was still in shock. How had that kunai turned into Sasuke? There was no visible chakra fluctuation from a transformation jutsu.

Was that the Amenotejikara technique?

He quickly examined this Sasuke's eyes, they were jet black.

Unlike the Sharingan, the Rinnegan cannot be deactivated. That meant this Sasuke did not possess the Rinnegan, yet he had just performed a jutsu eerily similar to Amenotejikara.

Could it be a unique jutsu of this world? Older Sasuke considered. It was certainly a possibility.

"Hey, I asked you a question," the younger Sasuke frowned, pressing his blade harder against Older Sasuke's neck.

Only then did Older Sasuke snap out of his thoughts, feeling a sharp pain on his neck from the pressure of the sword.

He was still struggling to comprehend the absurdity of the situation.

He had just been captured… by a version of himself that was more than a decade younger.

"…Yes. My name is also Sasuke," Older Sasuke finally admitted, while frantically trying to figure out his next move.

"Hm."

The younger Sasuke didn't seem particularly surprised. There were plenty of people named Sasuke, after all. Even the Third Hokage's father was named Sasuke.

At that moment, the other Anbu members caught up, restraining both Older Sasuke and Boruto with ropes.

"Mr. Sasuke… what do we do now?" Boruto asked, looking completely bewildered.

"…"

Older Sasuke had no answer, he was just as confused as Boruto.

"What do you do when you're captured by your past self?!"

"Now… tell me. What is your real purpose for coming to Konoha?" the younger Sasuke demanded, staring at the two captives.

At first, he suspected this Sasuke was from the Akatsuki, attempting to capture the Nine-Tails.

But then he considered… would the Akatsuki really bring along a complete burden?

The younger Sasuke glanced at Boruto. At first, he thought the kid might have some special abilities, but by now, it was clear, Boruto was just a normal child.

That meant they probably weren't Akatsuki members.

After all, the Akatsuki never hid their identities. They always wore their black cloaks with red clouds and acted openly and fearlessly.

"If I told you that we came to protect Naruto, would you believe me?" Older Sasuke tested the waters.

Immediately, the younger Sasuke gave him a look like he was an idiot.

"With your level of strength?" the younger Sasuke scoffed. "You're in no position to protect Naruto. Besides, he doesn't need your protection."

Older Sasuke flinched, he couldn't refute that.

After all, he had literally been captured by a younger version of himself.

Even if he tried to claim he was actually strong, there was no way his younger self would believe it now.

"…Actually, Naruto is being targeted by someone. This enemy is highly dangerous and possesses abilities that are difficult to counter without prior preparation," Older Sasuke tried to explain.

If they were already captured, then they couldn't protect Naruto directly. The best thing to do was to warn this Sasuke about Urashiki.

He couldn't just let Urashiki steal the Nine-Tails' chakra.

"And why should I believe someone who won't even reveal his own identity?" the younger Sasuke countered.

Inwardly, he was already planning to report this to Natsuro, the Sixth Hokage of this world.

Right now, however, these two were just too suspicious.

Older Sasuke fell silent.

How could he gain his younger self's trust?

According to Karasuki, interacting too much with people connected to his past could alter history, leading to major disruptions.

But then again… this wasn't even his world.

So would it really matter if they interacted?

"Take them to the Intelligence Division," the younger Sasuke decided. Interrogation wasn't his job anyway.

"Wait!"

Older Sasuke suddenly called out.

The younger Sasuke frowned. "What is it now?"

Older Sasuke sighed, he was out of options.

His Rinnegan was hidden under his eyepatch, but if he was taken to the Intelligence Division, they would definitely discover it.

He had to do something.

Older Sasuke locked eyes with his younger self. His exposed eye suddenly shifted, revealing a six-pointed Mangekyō Sharingan.

He was going to use genjutsu to subdue his younger self, burn off his restraints with Amaterasu, and escape with Boruto.

If they had to flee Konoha, they would figure out another way to protect Naruto.

However…

His illusion didn't work.

Instead, the younger Sasuke activated his own Mangekyō Sharingan.

Older Sasuke's eyes went wide in shock.

The younger Sasuke smirked.

"This is the second time someone's tried using a Mangekyō illusion on me."

"And this guy didn't even have Tsukuyomi. What a joke."

Everything was so perfect, making Older Sasuke realize that this must be an illusion.

It helped that this world's Sasuke was conserving his ocular power, likely out of concern for potential blindness. Because of that, this Tsukuyomi world wasn't flawless, making it easier for Older Sasuke to notice the inconsistencies.

Older Sasuke now understood, his own illusion had failed to affect this world's Sasuke, but he had been caught in his counterpart's illusion instead.

How impressive…

Moreover, he realized that this illusion was different from ordinary genjutsu. If he had to compare it, it was similar to Itachi's Tsukuyomi, except, instead of torture, it was designed to make the target willingly sink into it forever.

So, this world's Sasuke had a Mangekyō Sharingan ability different from his own.

That also meant that the space-time jutsu from before might not have been Amenotejikara, but rather a different space-time ocular technique unique to this Sasuke.

Older Sasuke reluctantly took one last look at this illusion.

It was, perhaps, his dream come true, a world where everything had gone right.

But… he knew he couldn't allow himself to stay trapped.

He still had to return with Boruto to their world, and most importantly, he needed to stop Urashiki from obtaining the Nine-Tails' chakra.

As if sensing Older Sasuke's desire to leave, the illusion world began to distort and shift.

In the Real World

Outside the illusion, Older Sasuke was sweating profusely, his breathing ragged and uneven.

"Mr. Sasuke… what did you do to him?!" Boruto shouted, seeing Older Sasuke in distress. He wanted to lash out, but when he saw who his opponent was, he hesitated, it just felt too weird.

"Hmm… is he about to break free?" the younger Sasuke murmured, ignoring Boruto entirely.

It took longer than he expected. If Itachi had used Tsukuyomi at this level, his target would have escaped instantly.

Still, the younger Sasuke wasn't worried.

Before ending the illusion, he left a mark on Older Sasuke's chakra system using his left eye's ability, meaning he could track him anywhere.

A moment later, Older Sasuke collapsed to one knee, panting heavily. His expression was a mixture of bitterness and disbelief.

He hadn't expected to experience the terror of Tsukuyomi again at this point in his life.

The first half of the illusion had been enticingly perfect, but once he started trying to wake up, it became indistinguishable from Itachi's true Tsukuyomi—a painful and merciless battle to regain consciousness.

Part of Older Sasuke felt agonized, but another part of him felt strangely nostalgic.

"Are you awake now?" the younger Sasuke asked, staring down at him.

"I have one question—are there others outside Konoha with the same eyes as us?"

"If there are, I can petition the Sixth Hokage to release you."

The younger Sasuke's eyes glimmered with expectation. Older Sasuke's very existence had given him a sliver of hope—hope that there were more Uchiha survivors out there.

He had no idea that the man before him was actually himself from the future.

Older Sasuke froze for a moment when he saw the hope in his counterpart's eyes.

Then he realized, this world's version of himself had the same dream he once did.

Reviving the Uchiha Clan…

A bitter smile crept onto Older Sasuke's face.

If only that hope were real…

Over the years, he had traveled across lands, searching for other surviving Uchiha, but he had never found another.

Had his sudden appearance given this world's Sasuke false hope?

Older Sasuke sighed.

"Can we talk privately?" he asked.

The younger Sasuke narrowed his eyes, then nodded.

He issued orders to the Anbu and led Older Sasuke and Boruto toward the Uchiha District.

When Older Sasuke saw the familiar surroundings, he froze in place.

The Uchiha District… was still standing.

In his world, Nagato's invasion had reduced it to rubble—he hadn't seen it intact in years.

How… nostalgic.

"Now, talk," the younger Sasuke prompted.

Older Sasuke took a deep breath, looked at his counterpart, and finally spoke:

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha."

A cold glint flashed through the younger Sasuke's eyes.

He thought the man was mocking him.

"And his name is Boruto Uzumaki. He is Naruto's son. We came from the future."

The younger Sasuke's expression darkened further.

"Are you joking?" he said coldly.

"And more importantly, there's no way my future self is this weak!"

Older Sasuke was speechless.

So… he was being insulted now?!

"Mr. Sasuke isn't weak!" Boruto protested. "His chakra was just drained by that damn Urashiki, so he can't fight at full strength!"

The younger Sasuke frowned and placed a hand on Older Sasuke's shoulder, sending his own chakra into him to probe his condition.

Then, he froze.

Their chakra signatures were exactly the same.

The moment his chakra entered Older Sasuke's body, they almost fused together, as if they were one and the same.

Even brothers or fathers and sons wouldn't have chakra this identical.

Older Sasuke smirked knowingly.

He had deliberately allowed the connection, this was the best proof he could offer.

The younger Sasuke remained silent for a long moment, contemplating.

He also noticed that Older Sasuke's chakra reserves were extremely low. Additionally, some of his chakra felt sealed off, most likely the portion that Urashiki had stolen.

"Maybe your chakra just happens to be unusually similar to mine," the younger Sasuke muttered, still reluctant to believe it.

Time travel was one thing. But accepting that this weakened man was his future self?

That was too much.

"Every Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan pattern is unique," Older Sasuke finally said.

He activated his six-pointed Mangekyō Sharingan, revealing its distinctive design.

The younger Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"That's not proof. Maybe too few Uchiha have awakened the Mangekyō for me to have seen a duplicate," he countered.

Older Sasuke considered revealing personal memories to prove his identity.

But then he hesitated.

What if his past here wasn't the same as his past in his original world?

If their experiences differed, anything he said could backfire and make him seem like he was lying.

So instead, he carefully selected facts that should be universal, information about their family and clan.

The younger Sasuke was visibly shaken after hearing those details.

"You sure did your research," he muttered. But internally, he was beginning to believe.

The sheer accuracy of the details Older Sasuke provided was impossible to gather from records alone.

Boruto, meanwhile, looked exhausted.

"So this is what Mr. Sasuke was like as a kid… so stubborn!"

But then, just as Older Sasuke thought he was finally gaining his counterpart's trust…

The younger Sasuke suddenly snapped his gaze up and declared:

"Wait! There's no way you're my future self!"

Older Sasuke was dumbfounded.

Wasn't he just about to convince him?!

"If you were really me from the future," the younger Sasuke said coldly, "there's NO WAY you'd get caught in my Tsukuyomi!"

He refused to believe his future self's genjutsu resistance would be weaker than his own now.

There was just no way.

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