Chapter 3: Could This Be the Light of Buddha?
"Naruto, Shikamaru, what brings you here? Come on in."
Opening the door and seeing Sarada, Naruto, and Shikamaru, Sakura Haruno greeted them warmly.
"No, we won't come in. We've still got work back at the Hokage's office. We're just here to drop Sarada off."
Naruto, who had already taken Boruto and Shikadai home, replied.
"Did something happen in the village, Naruto?"
Sakura's cheerful expression upon seeing her long-time friends quickly faded, replaced by a serious look.
"Yeah. Sakura, keep Sarada safe."
After Naruto and Shikamaru left Sakura's house, they rushed back toward the Hokage's office.
"Mom, besides Dad, is there anyone else in the world with the Mangekyō Sharingan?"
The moment they got home, Sarada couldn't wait to ask her mother.
"Probably not. Why do you ask, Sarada?"
Busy hanging laundry in the yard, Sakura asked curiously. She didn't think much of the village's current crisis—having lived through the Fourth Great Ninja War, she was well aware of Naruto's strength and had full faith he would protect everyone.
"Just now, Boruto and I ran into a masked man wearing a demon mask—he had the Mangekyō Sharingan. What's his connection to Dad?"
"And when exactly is Dad coming back?"
"Why are Dad and I the only ones left in the Uchiha clan?"
Faced with Sarada's string of questions, Sakura could only fall silent. She didn't know when Sasuke would return, nor could she explain the situation with the mysterious masked man. As for why only Sasuke and Sarada remained of the Uchiha clan, that wasn't something a child should be told.
"..."
"Mom never seems to know anything."
"..."
"Well, it makes sense—Mom's not an Uchiha. It's only natural she wouldn't know. If you don't, then I'll go investigate myself."
Having barely seen her father since she was a child, Sarada was extremely sensitive about anything related to him.
"Wait, Sarada!"
Watching her daughter's departing figure, Sakura, in a panic, slammed her fist—taught to her by her master Tsunade—into the ground.
Cracks rippled out from the impact, spreading across the yard and into the house, which collapsed in just three or four seconds.
"...The house we haven't even finished paying off... it's gone... just like that..."
Unable to bear the shock, Sakura collapsed on the ground and fainted.
Even in unconsciousness, she kept murmuring the words "mortgage," "house," and "gone."
"Mom!"
Sarada, who had been about to head off on her own investigation, hurried back to her mother's side.
Ten minutes later—
"Don't worry, Sarada. Sakura's just exhausted. A bit of rest and she'll be fine. I'll take her to the hospital—want to come along?"
After a quick examination, a now middle-aged Shizune spoke gently.
"No, I've got some things I need to look into about Dad."
Though worried about her mother, Sarada's desire to learn about her father outweighed her concerns.
"Sasuke, huh? If you want to know more about him, why not ask Naruto?"
In the end, Shizune carried the unconscious Sakura off to the Konoha Hospital, while Sarada sprinted toward the Hokage's office.
...
"Naruto, did you use Nine-Tails chakra earlier because you ran into a tough enemy?" In the Hokage's office, Shikamaru asked in his role as advisor.
"Yeah. I was chasing Boruto for vandalizing the Hokage Rock when I ran into a masked man in an Akatsuki cloak."
Seated in the Hokage's chair, Naruto replied. Though there was still a mountain of work waiting for him, now wasn't the time for paperwork. What weighed on his mind was the potential outbreak of a Fifth Great Ninja War.
"Couldn't it be someone impersonating them?"
Shikamaru stood in front of Naruto, analyzing calmly.
"Let's set the Akatsuki aside for now. What really got my attention was that the masked man had a Mangekyō Sharingan."
Both Naruto and Shikamaru wore grave expressions.
"Then we can't rule out the possibility that someone used a technique like Edo Tensei to resurrect an Akatsuki member. This is becoming a real headache... Should we summon Sasuke back from his investigation of the Ōtsutsuki?"
Shikamaru stroked the mustache he'd painstakingly grown over the years—just as dear to him as the village, his wife, and his son.
At that moment, the sound of something tapping the glass reached their ears.
"It's Sasuke's summoning hawk."
As Naruto opened the window to let the hawk in, he muttered.
"He's still using this old-fashioned method of communication."
Shikamaru continued stroking his mustache as he commented.
"Maybe his comms device ran out of power. It's probably hard to charge things where he is."
Reading the scroll the hawk had delivered, Naruto's face darkened even more.
"What's wrong, Naruto?"
Seeing the change in Naruto's expression, Shikamaru stopped stroking his mustache.
"Sasuke also ran into someone with a Sharingan. It seems he's uncovered some intel on these people too. I have to go see him in person."
Just outside the Hokage's office, Sarada happened to overhear Naruto and Shikamaru's conversation.
"Shikamaru, no need to see me off. Also, while I'm away, I'm counting on you to manage the village. And to guard against the Mangekyō Sharingan user attacking, call Kakashi-sensei back from his vacation."
Donning his Hokage cloak, Naruto walked out of the office.
"Got it, Naruto. Be careful."
As Naruto left the village, Sarada quietly followed him.
What she didn't know was that as she followed Naruto, Uchiha Itachi was following her.
To protect his little brother's daughter, Itachi had been shadowing Sarada closely—even at the cost of putting off a mission from Shisui.
...
"Seventh's really fast."
Even though Sarada was running with all her strength, the gap between her and Naruto was only growing.
Suddenly, a small white figure appeared in her path.
"A three-tomoe Sharingan... Who are you?"
Sarada stayed alert, her left hand quietly reaching for a kunai from her pouch.
"My name is Shin Uchiha. Come with me. It's my father's orders."
The boy with the strange white cowlick on his head spoke bluntly.
"Who's your father?"
Ignoring her question, Shin took out a scroll and spread it open on the ground. A strange weapon appeared—a large, cross-shaped shuriken chained to a handle.
"You sure ask a lot of questions. I guess I'll just have to take you by force."
Swinging the weapon, Shin attacked.
Though Sarada reacted quickly and threw a kunai, it was deflected effortlessly by Shin's bizarre weapon.
"Crap—no way to dodge!"
By choosing to counterattack with a kunai, she had already missed her best chance to evade.
Sarada instinctively shut her eyes—just then, a figure appeared at her side, scooped her up, and used Body Flicker to leap onto a nearby tree branch.
"Looks like peace has dulled the new generation's combat instincts."
Standing on the branch with Sarada in his arms, Uchiha Itachi spoke calmly.
...