One day later.
At the Konoha Hospital, Sasuke woke up with a start, his body drenched in cold sweat.
Was it... a dream? He desperately tried to convince himself.
But the next moment, a searing, heart-wrenching pain radiated from his arm. The memory of that night, the exact second Itachi's shuriken tore through his left arm, surged back. Sasuke's pupils contracted in terror.
He wandered out of the hospital ward, still clinging to a sliver of hope. However, the whispers of the passing nurses shattered any remaining illusions.
"I heard that child is the only survivor."
"I remember he had an older brother and a younger sister, didn't he?"
"The sister is missing, presumed dead. As for the brother... he's also vanished without a trace."
"I can't believe something like this happened to the Uchiha clan..."
Sasuke lowered his head and fled the hospital. Refusing to believe the truth, he ran with every ounce of strength he possessed, racing from the hospital toward his home.
When he reached the Uchiha District, he found it cordoned off with "Keep Out" signs. Sasuke panted heavily, his breath hitching. The streets were empty, devoid of life. The people he once knew, the bustling shops… everything was hollow, as if they had never existed.
The rain began to pour, soaking Sasuke to the bone. He walked alone through the silent streets where neighbors used to greet him. Memories flooded his mind as he finally reached the front door of his house.
He pushed the door open, half-expecting to hear Kanon's voice chirping, "Welcome home, Sasuke-niichan!" But it was only a phantom of his imagination.
The house was cold and empty. Sasuke stepped into the foyer and walked through the rooms, each corner a repository of warm memories of his family. Haunted by the images of his parents and sister, he began to run.
He threw open the kitchen door. No one was there, only a frightened cat that hissed at him in anger. On the floor, there were only the white outlines of where his parents had lain and charred marks on the distorted walls. The only thing left in the silence was the sound of rainwater dripping from Sasuke's clothes.
…
That afternoon, Sasuke went to the main hall of the Naka Shrine. He counted to the seventh tatami mat from the right.
Sure enough, the secret passage had been uncovered. Sasuke felt a numb indifference; the Konoha ninja must have already searched the place. This was their clan's secret meeting ground, after all. He descended the stairs and came upon the ancient stone tablet. His gaze turned pitch-black.
"I see... so that's how it is!"
As he spoke, he detected a faint movement behind the stone tablet.
"Who's there?!"
There was no response. His heart hammering against his ribs, Sasuke swallowed hard and slowly approached. When he finally saw the person behind the stone, his pupils shrank.
It was Kanon. She sat with her knees pulled to her chest. Her blue coat was tattered and torn, her arms and legs covered in scratches, though the bleeding had stopped. The usually gentle and spirited Kanon now stared into space with hollow eyes, her face ashen. She sat there in total silence, as if the rest of the world no longer existed.
On her abdomen were two prominent, gruesome wounds, though they too had been staunched. Her beautiful face was stained with the dried tracks of blood-tears, and her hair was a tangled mess.
The moment Sasuke saw her, it felt as if a broken string in his heart had been reconnected.
"Ka... Kanon..." Sasuke's voice trembled, and tears finally broke through. It was a surge of overwhelming emotion—his little sister was alive!
He rushed forward and pulled the catatonic girl into a tight embrace.
Feeling the warmth of the hug, Kanon slowly lifted her head. When she saw Sasuke, the emptiness in her eyes vanished, replaced by a flood of fresh tears. The grief she thought she had exhausted came pouring out once more.
"Ni... Nii-chan!"
Finally, the six-year-old girl let out all the indignation and agony locked in her heart. She wailed, clinging to her brother, who was only a year older than her.
Sasuke sobbed with her, holding her close. In the entire Uchiha clan, only the two of them remained. There were no other survivors.
As Kanon's sobs gradually weakened, she suddenly slumped against him. The trauma of the past few days had pushed her body to the breaking point. She had reached her limit; Kanon finally lost consciousness.
"Kanon... leave the revenge against that bastard Itachi to me!" Sasuke vowed, his tears falling onto her pale face. His eyes bled into a piercing crimson, and a single tomoe began to spin into place. "You just... you just live a carefree life."
Sasuke gathered her small frame into his arms, ignoring the pain in his own wounded arm, and began a desperate sprint toward the Konoha Hospital.
…
Kanon was saved. When the medical staff saw the state of her body, they were horrified. They couldn't fathom how a six-year-old girl could have been subjected to such a brutal slaughter.
Had she been brought in two days later, she likely wouldn't have made it. Her body was covered in blade wounds and the devastating side-effects of pushing her physical limits to the extreme. No one could imagine the kind of battle she had endured.
Even Hiruzen Sarutobi rushed to the hospital upon hearing the news.
"Lord Third!" the nurses bowed.
"How is she?" Hiruzen asked.
"We've stabilized her..."
Hiruzen let out a long sigh of relief. It was a miracle that Itachi's sister had survived. Judging by her injuries, she had clearly fought a life-and-death struggle and somehow managed to escape.
"You've suffered so much, child..."
Beside him, Danzo Shimura stood with a look of cold dissatisfaction. Hiruzen caught the look in his old friend's eyes.
"Since she survived, consider it a blessing. If you dare lay a finger on her, don't blame me for disregarding our long history together!" Hiruzen glared at Danzo.
Danzo was momentarily stunned by Hiruzen's intensity. It was clear that Kanon Uchiha was off-limits. He looked away, his gaze icy.
"Hiruzen... your 'mercy' will be your downfall."
With those words, he turned and walked out of the office.
…
Outside a small hidden village, the masked man was walking through the woods. A White Zetsu slowly emerged from the trunk of a nearby tree.
"Obito, that little girl who jumped off the cliff... she didn't die."
The masked man froze. "She survived? Zetsu, that's not a very funny joke."
"I'm not lying. She's alive. She's injured, but she's being treated at the Konoha Hospital."
Seeing Zetsu's sincerity, the masked man realized it wasn't a joke.
At that moment, in the hidden village in the distance, a terrifying pillar of black flames erupted like a tornado. Itachi Uchiha's eyes widened as the village was instantaneousy incinerated.
When Itachi returned, the masked man informed him that Kanon was alive.
"What?! Kanon is alive!" Though Itachi acted shocked, a surge of secret joy filled his heart. She had actually survived an encounter with the man before him.
"Do you want me to go back tonight and finish her off?" the masked man asked casually.
Itachi shook his head. "No. Konoha will have her under heavy guard now. There's no need to cause unnecessary trouble."
"Fine. One survivor or two makes no difference," the masked man said. Privately, he thought she might still be of use later. His body was sucked into a spatial distortion, and he vanished from the spot.
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