After finally enjoying a few leisurely days, Natsuki was caught by Fugaku, who insisted that Sasuke take him as his master.
Previously, when the situation was still unclear, Fugaku had originally planned to send Sasuke out of the village. But Natsuki stopped him.
Natsuki's reasoning was simple: with so many ambitious schemers in the ninja world, without the protection of a Mangekyō Sharingan, Sasuke would be in even greater danger on his own.
Besides, if Sasuke left Konoha, how would he build a bond with Naruto? Grow stronger, get defeated, grow again, and repeat that cycle of setbacks and growth?
Of course, that was only one of Natsuki's idle thoughts—he didn't have much faith in Sasuke.
Even though Sasuke and Naruto were both "Children of Destiny"—Sasuke as Indra's reincarnation, Naruto as Asura's—Sasuke had always been far inferior. And the real issue wasn't Naruto's Nine-Tails "cheat"… it was Sasuke's weak character and poor aptitude.
As the saying goes: compare goods, and some end up discarded; compare people, and some might as well be dead.
The entire clan is slaughtered, and all he awakens is a single tomoe. Later, his two-tomoe and three-tomoe are triggered only through bonds with Naruto. Losing his parents wasn't even enough compared to Naruto's bond.
In Itachi's plan, Sasuke should have awakened the Mangekyō long before, leading to an evenly matched battle that would end with Sasuke killing him, releasing his hatred, and achieving the Eternal Mangekyō.
Instead, when he finally faced Itachi, all he had was a pitiful three-tomoe Sharingan. Itachi held back like the ocean itself, dying only because of his illness.
His intellect? Equally disappointing. An entire clan massacred, thousands dead, yet his brother's single sentence tricked him completely—no suspicion at all.
If he had been a clueless child, maybe it was forgivable. But even at sixteen, after Itachi's death, he still needed others to explain it to him before realizing what a fool he had been.
His personality was unbearably arrogant. A little strength, and he flaunts it everywhere. He gains the Mangekyō, and suddenly he thinks himself invincible. Always trying to leapfrog battles: three-tomoe against Mangekyō, Mangekyō against the Eight-Tails, Eternal Mangekyō against the Rinnegan. Never grounded.
Itachi had used his Mangekyō for years, but Sasuke? From awakening to blindness, it didn't even last two months. All because of his swollen ego.
In the end, he and Naruto sealed Kaguya together, but Natsuki could only see it as a "plot kill," full of contrivances and coincidence.
Natsuki never placed hope in such unstable factors.
He much preferred Itachi—sharp learning ability, mastery of kunai and shuriken far beyond peers, hand seals so fast they defied belief.
He could turn an enemy's attacks against them, controlling the flow of battle. After joining the Anbu, his growth surpassed even prodigy Kakashi. By the time he defected, he was already at Kage level.
His greatest strength lay in genjutsu: a single glance to reflect Kurenai, Konoha's genjutsu master; a single Tsukuyomi to instantly defeat Kakashi. Even one of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru, was paralyzed by Itachi's genjutsu.
Calm, composed, always analytical, always holding a trump card that could flip the battlefield. Every aspect eclipsed Sasuke—his only flaw being his fragile health, which was why Natsuki had sent him to the Land of Rice Fields.
Shisui, too, was a genius, awakening his Mangekyō earlier than Sasuke, his speed second to none save for space-time ninjutsu users. In the original world, had he not died young, his potential would have been limitless.
Thus, Natsuki made him another priority to cultivate.
As for Sasuke, Natsuki's interest was minimal.
But since Fugaku himself came to request it, Natsuki couldn't keep refusing.
After all, although the system had helped, it was Fugaku's unwavering support of his decisions that had allowed everything to progress so smoothly.
So, fine. Sasuke was Indra's reincarnation—Natsuki could at least reluctantly guide him.
Step one: beat down Sasuke's habit of showing off.
The reasons were many, but mostly? Because Natsuki simply found it annoying.
When Sasuke was first brought back to the village, he learned for the first time all that had happened during his absence.
The brother he admired, Shisui, had his eyes stolen. The clan had a new deputy chief. His beloved elder brother Itachi had defected, taking many Uchiha with him.
His own home had been destroyed, reduced to ruins. At least his father and mother were still alive.
In his five-year-old mind, he couldn't comprehend any of it.
He walked the streets gloomily. Though upset, he forced himself to keep a "cool" expression—after all, he was an Uchiha!
Villagers looked at him with mixed expressions, though mostly with sympathy. To them, the clan's tragedies marked the decline of a noble house.
Sasuke couldn't understand their looks, but it only made him more frustrated.
He ran forward blindly, eventually reaching the small forest he often visited.
There, sharp voices echoed.
"Get lost, you demon fox! Nobody wants to play with you!"
"Just wait—I'll definitely become Hokage!"
"Hahahaha! You? Become Hokage?"
"It's your fault my dad's dead, you damn fox!"
Pushing through the trees, Sasuke saw a group of children fighting.
Several kids had pinned Uzumaki Naruto to the ground, pummeling him. Tears streaked Naruto's face, but he refused to give in, struggling stubbornly.
"Hey! Who said you could bully someone!?"
Sasuke stepped out of the forest.
"Who are you!?"
"What's it to you!?"
Hands in his pockets, Sasuke replied coolly: "I'm Uchiha Sasuke. Let him go, or don't blame me for getting rough."
"Uchiha!?"
The kids exchanged looks—then burst into laughter.
"What's so great about the Uchiha, hahaha!"
"The Uchiha are finished!"
"Even your young clan head defected. What's left to brag about?"
"You bastards!" Sasuke roared, enraged.
"Today I'll teach you brats a lesson!"
He rushed forward, throwing a punch that knocked one boy off Naruto.
Naruto seized the chance to scramble up. Covered in dirt but unharmed, he joined Sasuke.
Together, they fought the remaining three.
Sasuke, trained in the Uchiha style, fought far more skillfully than Naruto's wild swings. A leg sweep, an elbow strike—and two kids went down. Naruto stubbornly tackled another.
The bullies realized they were losing, scrambled to their feet, and fled.
"One demon fox, one traitor's kin—you just wait!" they shouted as they ran.
Only Naruto, dirty-faced and tear-streaked, remained in the clearing.
Sasuke stood beside him, his clothes still neat, but his face equally dark.
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