Chapter 220: Moving Forward...

Ichiraku Ramen.

"Don't look so glum. You're about to surpass me and become a Jōnin, you know."

Link patted Sasuke on the shoulder and smiled. "You'll be on the same level as your sensei, Kakashi."

"Once Naruto comes back, he'll have to call you 'Jōnin' too. Doesn't that sound interesting?"

Uchiha Sasuke's expression shifted slightly, then returned to its usual silence. He didn't really know what meaning there was in becoming a Jōnin; he was simply following a friend's lead.

He had experienced the pain of losing a friend, had killed Itachi, and hadn't really smiled easily for a long time. There was too much weighing on him, and the hope of revenge seemed to be slipping further and further away. Was it painful? He didn't know.

Link's scheming, along with the bonds he had in the village, made Sasuke feel a strong sense of conflict. How exactly was he supposed to destroy the shinobi world? Where would he even start?

After the initial excitement faded, all that was left was simple confusion, right?

"Once the New Year passes, let's go take care of Danzo." Link's voice sounded at his side.

Uchiha Sasuke jerked his head around. "You—"

"This is part of the plan," Link said, avoiding his gaze slightly. "Since we've decided to ascend to the 'Throne,' how can we let the village restrain us?"

He went on, almost talking to himself, "When the time comes, you and 'Shadow' will be responsible for handling him. Leave everyone else to me."

"So, how about it? Are you confident? I've already told you everything I know about him."

"Whatever you do, just don't slip up." Link teased him with a laugh.

Uchiha Sasuke lowered his head, suppressing his emotions. Feeling his friend's steady gaze, he looked up, and a smile naturally appeared on his face: "I possess the strongest Sharingan."

"See? Smile more. Isn't that pretty cool?" Link seemed completely unconcerned about leaving the village. "If you want to revive the Uchiha Clan in the future, you can't do it alone—you'll need several kids. I've noticed Karin often goes to see you at the base to chat. Any thoughts there?"

A faint blush rose on Uchiha Sasuke's face as he avoided Link's amused expression, looking a bit embarrassed. "That kind of thing—"

"Don't worry. Since you're my strength," Link said, putting a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, "I'll take on your hatred, too."

"Your Mangekyō is extremely important. I'd never give up on you."

He wanted to ascend the 'Throne,' to become the strongest. Indeed, he couldn't discard the Mangekyō Sharingan. The more he invested, the more closely he could bind this excellent 'tank' (Sasuke) to his side. If he replaced Sasuke's eyes with Itachi's, he would immediately gain the Eternal Mangekyō. In just a few days, he could swap them out and become 'Fourth Ninja War Sasuke,' utterly invincible. There was no way he'd give that up.

Uchiha Sasuke's Adam's apple bobbed. He had a lot to say but said nothing, only murmuring, "I understand."

Just then, the ramen arrived.

They kept chatting as they ate. After a short while, a figure dropped down on Sasuke's other side, and a lazy-sounding voice called out, "One bowl of the signature miso ramen."

"What are you talking about?" Hatake Kakashi asked, turning his face toward them.

"We're celebrating Sasuke's upcoming promotion to Jōnin, of course," Link said with a smile. "You, his sensei, are about to be overtaken."

"Oh my, so I really am a sensei, am I?" Hatake Kakashi mused, rubbing the lower half of his face beneath the mask. "Some people are about to become Jōnin, and they've already learned my unique ninjutsu—but still haven't called me 'sensei' even once."

Link laughed. "So, does this so-called sensei have any gift prepared for his student who's about to be promoted?"

"You didn't get any presents from Ensui when you were promoted to special Jōnin?" Hatake Kakashi looked shocked. "That guy, seriously—"

Uchiha Sasuke quietly smiled.

Hatake Kakashi pressed two letters onto the table. "Naruto sent these to you."

"That kid…" Link tore open the one addressed to him, and the opening was full of warm concern.

"He sure does talk a lot," they said in unison, referring to Naruto's letter.

Kakashi raised his eyebrows. "You vanished these past few days, and Sakura was really worried about you."

"Mm." Uchiha Sasuke folded the longwinded letter and carefully put it in his pocket.

What made him different from how he was in the manga is that, after learning the entire truth—and being healed by his parents and Link—he never went to the extreme of wanting to destroy Konoha entirely. He only had a single goal: kill Shimura Danzo.

That inevitably meant leaving the village. But he would not hesitate.

Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura were important comrades, but not enough to make him stop his path forward. He treasured them, but he had to walk toward his own future.

As long as Link was by his side, he would feel no fear or hesitation for whatever was to come.

"Hah…" Hatake Kakashi let out a breath. He keenly sensed that something was off with Sasuke, but had no idea how to advise or comfort him—because Kakashi himself was a man buried in grief. His father had killed himself; his two companions died one after the other; his sensei also died… Once upon a time, he had lost everything he could.

If it hadn't been for Guy, he wouldn't have lived to that day.

[Link, will you become Sasuke's 'Guy'?]

Nighttime, at Link's home.

[Just a few more months, huh…]

Link lay on his bed, gazing at the moon outside his window, his expression unreadable.

He hadn't planned on leaving the village before; but now that things had progressed to this point, he'd decided he would have to leave, at least temporarily.

[I chose this path, so I won't regret it.]

[Whether it's Iris or Ami, they've all been 'meat shields' I've abandoned.]

[Ensui-sensei and Shikaku-Sensei, that bothersome Mitarashi Anko, the overly familiar Asuma, the straightforward Kurenai with her unmatchable drinking tolerance…]

He reached out as if to grab the moonlight, but of course, his gesture was in vain. The scattered emotions soon faded, leaving nothing but resolve.

Leaving the village wasn't necessarily a bad thing. He had already learned most of the village's ninjutsu. Even if he hadn't finished training them all, the knowledge was in his head. He would spend a couple more days memorizing the rest, and then, even if he left, it wouldn't matter.

After becoming a missing-nin, he could go to other villages to steal ninjutsu without worrying about the village's involvement—or rather, without them blaming him. With no baggage, he could do whatever he wanted, even capture a few more jinchūriki for fun.

[But when I cut off the Six-Tails' chakra, it seemed like it was in a lot of pain…]

Link didn't care what the tailed beasts felt, but he didn't enjoy torturing others. Since tailed beasts have intelligence on par with humans, tormenting them is no different than tormenting people.

[Damn it—only because my progress with Summoning Jutsu isn't going well did I set my sights on the tailed beasts.]

He opened up the Summoning Jutsu, continuing his usual chatter with the "netizens" in the Pure Land:

[It's all the Second Hokage's fault…]

[He was so strict with the Uchiha…]

Last time, when he wanted to draw some Uchihas over, only a few normal clan members—none of whom had awakened the Sharingan—showed up.

This time, while he had the chance, he vented his annoyance with the Uchiha policy in Konoha.

[Oh?]

~~~

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