Chapter 159: A New Start in Konoha: Resurrecting the Uchiha Clan!
Konoha Village.
Years had passed since that nightmare of a night, but the Uchiha compound still bore the scars of the massacre.
The houses, once filled with laughter, were now cold, empty shells. Weeds stubbornly pushed through the cracks in the stone pavement, spreading unchecked as if to swallow this forgotten land. The air was thick with the smell of dust and the muddy scent that comes after rain, carrying an aura of decay that refused to dissipate.
Sasuke walked alone, returning to this place. His steps were heavy as he walked the familiar streets of his memory. Every step felt like treading on a broken mirror, reflecting vivid fragments of the past. His gaze swept over the closed and broken doors.
Here, the neighbor lady used to hang laundry. There, children used to chase each other through the alleys. It was an ordinary, beautiful daily life—a warmth he could never grasp again after waking from that night.
He stopped in front of a house. This was his home. The door was half-open, revealing a black void inside. The plants in the garden had grown wild, almost blocking the path. He could almost hear his mother's gentle voice from the kitchen, see his father reading scrolls in the living room. The images were so real, yet so distant, like a story from another world.
And then, his brother.
The Itachi in his memories had a soft smile, would patiently tap his forehead with two fingers, would carry him on his back on the long walk home. That was the older brother he had trusted and loved with all his heart.
However, this warm memory was always ruthlessly torn apart by another image—a figure standing under the blood-red moonlight, a cold mask, and the moment his clansmen fell.
The gentle brother of his childhood. The cruel executioner of the massacre. These two contradictory images clashed violently in his mind. Each collision raised a tidal wave of anguish, shattering his already fragile heart. He couldn't understand. He couldn't accept it. This pain and confusion gnawed at his soul day and night.
Why? Why did it turn out like this? Why did he kill our own clan? Why didn't he spare the elderly, the women, the children? Why could he even kill Father and Mother? Why… am I the only one left?
He walked to the center of the plaza where the clan used to gather and looked around. The cold stone lanterns, the cracked tiles, and the Uchiha crest carved in the distance. And the massive stone monument, now covered in cracks. This place was once the symbol of Uchiha glory; now, it was his eternal scar.
Loneliness threatened to drown him. His thirst for power, his pursuit of the truth, his obsession with revenge—all reached their peak in this extreme pain and despair. He gritted his teeth, digging his nails deep into his palms, trying to use physical pain to suppress the turmoil inside.
I must gain power… I must find that man… I must kill him!!!
Just then, an abrupt voice broke the dead silence.
"You look very sad."
Sasuke spun around, dropping into a defensive stance. "Who?!"
He thought it was an enemy, or someone sent by the village to monitor him. But what appeared before him was a… strange creature. Is this someone's summoning animal?
It was small and pure white, with only a pair of round, red eyes staring straight at him. It seemed completely non-threatening, just sitting on a collapsed wall nearby, tilting its head.
"You can call me Kyubey."
"Your clan was massacred, the truth covered up by the village, and the real culprit may still be at large." Kyubey stated these facts plainly.
"What do you mean?!" Sasuke demanded. He didn't understand why this summoning-creature-looking thing was ripping open his scars here.
"Don't you want the clansmen you lived with day and night to return?" Kyubey continued in that flat, emotionless tone, but every word pierced the most fragile part of Sasuke's heart. "Your parents, your friends, your neighbors, those vivid faces you once saw—Don't you want them to return here, to live with you, to demand a blood debt from the one who destroyed everything here?"
!!!
What is this summon saying? Is that… possible?
The small creature leaned forward slightly, its red eyes flickering, but remaining cold. "I can help you grant this wish."
The air froze. Sasuke went rigid.
Bring the clan back? That was what he dreamed of, the root motivation for his revenge. This weird creature said it could make it happen? Was it mocking him?
"What are you? What do you want from me?"
"Make a contract with me, and become… a Magical Girl."
"…What?"
Sasuke suspected he had misheard, or that the creature was making fun of him. Magical Girl? What the hell is that? Is it the code name for some powerful Kekkei Genkai I don't know about? Or is this thing just messing with me for kicks?
His tone turned dark, chakra surging instability, his Sharingan slowly spinning in his eyes. "Are you toying with me?"
"No. All you have to do is make a wish. Don't you want to try?"
"What is the price?!" Sasuke didn't believe in free lunches.
Kyubey just tilted its head slightly, its red eyes watching Sasuke calmly. "If there is a price, would you not want to make it come true? We will collect the price ourselves after your wish is granted. I am merely offering you an opportunity. An opportunity to get what you desire."
Sasuke pondered the truth of the creature's words.
After a moment, Kyubey turned slightly, taking a small step away from Sasuke. "It seems you haven't made up your mind. Well then, I hope you won't regret your choice today when we meet again." It spoke in that emotionless voice, devoid of disappointment or urgency. Then it turned, seemingly about to leave.
Sasuke's heart sank. He stared at the white figure that looked ready to vanish, his internal struggle violent.
Just make a wish right here… and the clan comes back…? The price is collected after the wish is fulfilled.
The temptation was too great. The promise given by this strange creature was like a ray of light in a dark abyss. Even knowing it might hide immense danger, he couldn't easily ignore it. He could sense that Kyubey didn't radiate the obvious malice of those who had tried to use him before; its calmness seemed… strangely genuine. This odd sense of reality, combined with the promise that touched his deepest pain, made it impossible for him to determine if this was just a cruel joke or a trap.
And the opportunity… If I miss it this time… Next time? Who knows when that will be.
He couldn't miss such a… tiny possibility of saving everything. Besides, it was just making a wish. He could verify it the next moment.
"Wait!!!"
"If you dare deceive me. If my wish doesn't come true. I swear. I will kill you… in the most painful way possible."
Sasuke finally couldn't suppress the impulse in his heart and called out to the white figure.
"It seems you have made your choice."