"They say the Sharingan is an eye that reflects the heart. Sasuke, why do I feel like both of your pupil techniques are kind of aimed straight at me?", Aoba looked at Sasuke with a half-smile that wasn't quite a smile.
Even though he already knew why Sasuke had awakened these two pupil techniques, that didn't stop him from using it as an excuse to tease him.
"Uh…"
Sasuke, who had been wearing a smug expression from awakening two powerful pupil techniques, stiffened slightly.
If he were alone with Aoba, he absolutely wouldn't beat around the bush.
You could say that Aoba had been his greatest obsession over these years, so strong that even taking revenge on Uchiha Itachi had to be pushed back a notch.
Because he had his mother and friends by his side, and Naruto hadn't come along to stir up trouble, revenge wasn't the only thing in Sasuke's life.
On top of that, the last time Uchiha Itachi appeared was already about two years ago.
But his obsession with Aoba had been building little by little ever since he was five years old.
From childhood to now, the first time they met and sparred, he had been beaten badly by the other party.
By now he could barely remember how many times he had challenged him, but he had never won even once.
And as time passed, the gap between the two of them kept growing wider, to the point where Sasuke even felt that in this lifetime he might never be able to see the other person's back.
That was why the two pupil techniques were so targeted at Aoba.
And it was precisely these two pupil techniques that let him see the possibility of catching up to Aoba's back.
It was just that Uchiha Mikoto was standing right there watching.
Even though his current strength already put him in the top tier of all of Konoha, in front of his mother, he would always just be a child.
So when faced with Uchiha Mikoto's slightly stern gaze, he silently lowered his head.
"I'm not targeting you. I just purely want to become stronger, and it just so happened that I awakened these two pupil techniques that match what I wanted."
There was guilt in his tone.
Aoba didn't really care whether Sasuke was targeting him or not. After all, his cheat was bigger than Sasuke's.
Seeing Sasuke look this guilty right now, he instead found it inexplicably amusing.
But he didn't care, while Uchiha Mikoto very much did.
After all, one was her son, and the other was the person she would spend her entire life with.
But even if she cared, there was nothing she could do about it. Perhaps this was just the helplessness of a blended family.
As a mother, she also knew just how obsessed Sasuke was with defeating Aoba.
She couldn't exactly have Aoba deliberately lose to Sasuke once, could she?
Even if Aoba were willing, Sasuke wouldn't acknowledge a victory like that.
Fortunately, Sasuke hadn't undergone any extreme personality changes after awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Thinking about what her other son had done after awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan, by comparison, using that "enlightenment" to awaken the Mangekyo might actually be much better than the traditional method.
With that thought, Uchiha Mikoto smiled gently yet helplessly as she reached out and patted Sasuke's head.
This was a head pat Sasuke couldn't escape even after awakening the Mangekyo.
"Since you've successfully awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, Sasuke, you should take these next couple of days to rest properly. Mom still has work to do and can't stay here for long."
"Mm, Mom, go take care of your work. I'll rest properly," Sasuke nodded obediently.
Seeing this, Uchiha Mikoto looked over at Naruto, her smile still gentle.
"Then Naruto, I'll leave Sasuke in your care."
"Don't worry, Aunt Mikoto, I'll take good care of Sasuke!", Naruto grinned with a bright, sunny smile.
"Mhm. Aoba, are you coming back with me?", Uchiha Mikoto nodded, then finally looked at Aoba. As she spoke, the hand she had been holding gently squeezed his fingers.
'Is that hinting at something?'
Aoba blinked, "Let's go back together. I still have quite a bit of work too."
He had come along with Uchiha Mikoto in the first place. Since she was leaving, there was no reason for him to stay behind.
"Then Sasuke, Naruto, we'll be heading off first."
After saying their goodbyes, the two of them disappeared from the spot.
"Being Hokage feels like such a pain. There's endless work every single day."
Naruto looked at the spot where Aoba had disappeared, scratched his head, then turned back to Sasuke and patted his chest.
"Sasuke, it's lunchtime already. What do you want to eat? I'll go buy it all for you."
Looking at Naruto, who looked eager and genuinely wanted to take care of him, Sasuke couldn't help twitching the corner of his mouth.
He hadn't been injured at all. Even if he were, he could just use his pupil technique to recover.
He just didn't know why. Clearly, the Land of Roots technique consumed a huge amount of pupil power, but he had used it several times in a row earlier and now didn't have a single adverse reaction.
'Is it because of that enlightenment, or Aoba's methods?'
'I'll ask that guy next time.'
"No need. Let's go eat outside together."
As he spoke, he got down from the hospital bed.
"Then are you really okay?", Naruto asked worriedly.
"Relax. My body has never felt better."
Sasuke stretched a bit, then walked toward the ward exit, but as he walked, he suddenly paused.
"Oh right. Later, come with me to the training field. I'll show you the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan."
After calming down, he'd thought it through. Before he fully adapted to the power of these eyes, he probably still wasn't Aoba's match, so he might as well warm up with Naruto first.
After all, he hadn't lost to Naruto only once or twice before. This was a good chance to get some payback and let Naruto experience the power of the Uchiha clan.
Naruto didn't think much of it. He had come in the first place to check out Sasuke's eyes.
Seeing that Sasuke really seemed fine, he hurried to follow, asking at the same time, "Then should we go call Sai and Shikamaru too?"
He didn't overthink it. He just felt that more friends would make it livelier.
But when Sasuke heard that, his body paused slightly again, and the corners of his mouth faintly looked like they were about to curl crookedly.
There was even a hint of a Dragon King vibe about him.
"Sure!"
———
On the other side.
Aoba brought Uchiha Mikoto back to the Hokage Building.
The two appeared hand in hand inside Uchiha Mikoto's office.
Before Aoba could say anything, seeing that no one was around, Uchiha Mikoto had already wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
"?"
Aoba froze for a moment, then responded.
Uchiha Mikoto's cheeks grew redder and redder, and in her eyes it was as if pink hearts had appeared.
After a long while, their lips parted.
"Thank you, Aoba."
Uchiha Mikoto held onto his neck and once again expressed her gratitude to Aoba.
In this kind of atmosphere, Aoba didn't say anything polite. Holding her full waist, he teased, "Is Aunt Mikoto's thanks just a kiss?"
"I… but Aoba, didn't you just compensate Shizune with just a kiss too?", Uchiha Mikoto muttered.
"Wasn't that because you were there at the time, Aunt Mikoto? If you hadn't been there, what came after wouldn't necessarily have stopped there," As he spoke, Aoba's hand had already seized the high ground behind her.
"Wait, it's already mealtime. I haven't eaten yet!"
"It's fine. I won't let Aunt Mikoto go hungry."
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