After all, he was hailed as the strongest genin in all of Konoha.
Of course, that was merely how the younger generation saw things. They completely ignored an old man who remained a genin.
The man known as the "Eternal Genin"—the one who had mastered an S-ranked sword technique within the Leaf Stream.
"Compared to the original story, Sasuke seems even crueler," Shiki mused. Though he couldn't clearly recall what had originally happened, something about Sasuke's current behavior gave him that impression.
"But strangely, this version of Sasuke actually makes me more eager to fight."
Slightly stirred by the scene, Shiki instinctively reached behind his back for the Seiquan Sword—its blade encased in a pitch-black sheath.
But what happened next completely shocked him.
Sasuke Uchiha used [Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique] (a powerful fire jutsu that releases multiple small fireballs), hiding shuriken within the flames and successfully injuring Sakon.
Everything happened in an instant—lightning fast—so much so that many spectators couldn't even follow the movement.
All they saw was Sasuke once again standing behind Sakon.
"These hands of yours… is this what you're proud of?" Sasuke asked coolly.
Yet looking at the purple chakra swirling around Sasuke and the black tomoe markings decorating his body like ornaments,
no one would believe Sasuke's words were truly indifferent.
They could already see what was coming next.
Sasuke tightly grabbed Sakon's arms from behind and placed one foot firmly against his back.
At this moment, Sakon could no longer maintain his earlier arrogance. His once-cool spiked hairstyle now hung limp.
His eyes widened, and his entire body trembled violently. "N-no! I surrender!"
Sakon now looked like a kicked stray dog—but who could possibly stay calm when facing the loss of both arms?
But was there any chance Sasuke would actually spare him just because Sakon surrendered?
Rip!
"Ahh!" Sakon screamed toward the sky as unbearable pain engulfed him.
Blood spurted from where his arms had been, and Sasuke simply tossed the lifeless limbs onto the ground with indifference, as if throwing away trash.
This wasn't how it happened before.
Although Shiki's memory of this part was quite blurry, he was certain that back then, Sasuke hadn't torn Sakon's arms off—he'd only crippled them.
But now, this bloody scene played out right before his eyes.
Had Sasuke become even darker than in the original timeline? Or had his hunger for power grown so much that he'd become more ruthless?
Now among the Sound Ninja Trio, only Kin remained conscious. Dosu had already been knocked out during his fight with Lee—this version of Lee being slightly stronger than in the original story.
Though Lee himself was also heavily injured, it ended up as a mutual loss.
Kin knelt on the ground, trembling, and held out the Earth Scroll. "We surrender! Take the scroll! Please spare our lives!"
"Get lost," Sasuke coldly replied, his expression unmoved.
Having received permission, Qin hurried to shake Dosu awake, slung Sakon over her back, grabbed Sakon's bleeding hand, and quickly left.
In truth, if Sakon weren't a ninja, even such a short time might have been enough for him to lose his life due to blood loss.
Sakura let out a sigh of relief. For a moment, she'd feared Sasuke would chase after them without mercy. But since this Sasuke was still the familiar "Sasuke," naturally she wouldn't hold back her praise.
"Sasuke, you're really strong now! That battle just now scared me to death!"
"Exactly! Sasuke is definitely still our coolest, strongest Genin!" Ino loudly praised as well.
But after those two praises, the mood shifted — not a single word of admiration followed.
The atmosphere didn't become lively; instead, it grew colder.
Both Sakura and Ino were startled at the same time, turning their gazes toward the field. There stood Sasuke, still clad in his signature black-and-spotted pattern.
His blood-red Sharingan still burned brightly, but now that icy gaze wasn't fixed on enemies anymore.
It focused on
Shiki Uzumaki.
It turned out the reason he let the Sound Ninja Trio escape wasn't because he remained the principled Sasuke.
Rather, he wanted to save more time to fight the person directly before him.
Sakura nervously chuckled along. "Sasuke, come on! You've got to be kidding me, right? This isn't funny — seriously, not even a little bit…"
Her voice faded softer and softer until finally it became like the faint buzz of insect wings.
Because Sasuke never acknowledged her — his eyes never wavered from Shiki Uzumaki.
"Shiki Uzumaki, earlier we agreed that after defeating that useless trash, you'd fight me."
Though phrased as a question, anyone could tell from Sasuke's tone that it allowed no refusal.
Yuuma Akimoto anxiously tugged at Shiki's sleeve, rising onto her toes as she whispered into his ear, "Brother, please don't fight him."
Shiki glanced sideways with a smile — gentle as spring breezes blowing through — and patted Yuuma's head. "Don't worry. I'll be fine."
Then, Shiki Uzumaki turned toward Sasuke Uchiha. Quietly and calmly, he drew the Seiquan from behind his back.
Truth was, he'd lied — he didn't really believe he could beat this version of Sasuke.
Still, he made up his mind to fight. He had no choice — there was no backing down.
Lifting his head, he met Sasuke's gaze head-on. "If that's what you want, Sasuke… fine. I'll fight."
Chapter 131: Removing Weights
Body tense, Shiki gripped the Seiquan Sword tightly in front of him, waiting silently for the coming attack.
The sharp stench of blood still lingered in the air — Sakon's blood soaking into the ground. Such bloodstains might soon attract packs of wild beasts. Yet no one noticed these things anymore.
Naruto and Rock Lee had already been dragged aside. Originally they should have been woken up first for some treatment.
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