An Exclusive .

  Link’s thoughts wandered back to his visit to the Hyūga pound earlier that m.

  Hiashi Hyūga’s invitation hadn’t been about any critical missioails—there wasn’t much to discuss, really. Weling the delegation from the Land of Wind was more a ceremonial gesture. They didn’t have to travel far outside the vilge, and everything would be coordinated by the Anbu. It was simply a formality.

  As the victorious side, Konoha’s Hokage had no reason to personally meet the delegation, but letting them ehe vilge unsupervised wasn’t an optioher. So, the task of weling them had been delegated to representatives.

  Hiashi’s invitation to visit the closed-off Hyūga pound seemed more like an attempt to foodwill. Yet what Link observed during his visit was a stifling atmosphere and a clear sense of exclusivity.

  The Hyūga main family held absolute power over the branch families, including trol of life ah via the Caged Bird Seal. Many teiques for mastering the Byakugan were kept exclusively within the main family. This hierarchical trol cast a pall over the entire .

  The branch families, resigo their fate, naturally submitted to the main family’s dominance.

  …

  “Opportunity!”

  Sasuke’s sharp eyes caught an opening, aruck decisively—

  “Sp!”

  Link grabbed Sasuke’s wrist mid-movement. Pulling himself out of his reverie, he smiled at the slightly winded boy.

  “Yetting close.”

  Still a long way to go.

  Sasuke released his grip and suddenly recalled a certain someone. If it were him, would he be able to get close to Link in battle?

  His Sharingan slowly receded into his normal bck pupils. Without a word, he turned ao tinue his training.

  “Sasuke’s progress is slowing.”

  Link observed as Sasuke moved away, noting the ge.

  The truth had dulled the sharp edge of Sasuke’s hatred. Without that intense drive, his growth was beginning to pteau.

  The Uchiha were peculiar in this way. Whether it was unlog the Sharingan or attaining greater power, they thrived oreme emotions. Without a clear goal or strong feelings, their growth slowed to a crawl.

  Itachi’s carefully id pn for Sasuke was straightforward: use hatred as fuel to grow stronger, kill his hated enemies, and awaken the Mangekyō Sharingaually, Sasuke would return to Konoha as a hero, transpnt Itachi’s eyes, and attaiernal Mangekyō.

  With power, perspective, and a future secured, Sasuke would be unstoppable.

  But the premature revetion of the truth had derailed this pn. With his father revived and standing by his side, Sasuke was caught between the vilge, his brother, and his te father.

  His hatred, once absolute, had been diluted. Now it was less about revenge and more about finding a purpose in the fusion.

  Without the catalyst of extreme emotions, the Uchiha’s power stagnated.

  Still, perhaps this wasn’t a bad thing.

  Link watched Sasuke, who tio push himself in training, sweat glistening on his brow. He had no iion of pushing Sasuke down a darker path.

  The Sasuke in the manga had grown immensely powerful but was riddled with uability. The Sasuke before him, however, was someone Link could truly rely on—a solid shield, loyal to him.

  “Speaking of Kakashi, he seems to have pletely left Sakura in Kurenai’s care and doesn’t pay much attention to Sasuke anymore. I wonder what he’s up to?”

  Link dismissed the thought and focused on his own training. F hand seals, he activated his Summoning Jutsu. Using Sasuke’s identity as a cover, he sent out a broadcast into the Pure Land.

  The previous night’s experimentation with shadow es and tailed beast chakra had reached a bottleneck. Like all his innovations in ninjutsu, it was a bck box—he khe inputs and the results but not the meics.

  The process required him to expend two-thirds of his chakra to create a single indepe shadow. bined with exteesting and his i reservations about these shadows, he had only mao create five by m.

  Though he maintained trol over them, the fact that they were now autonomous made him uneasy.

  “Are you Sasuke?”

  On his fourth attempt, a female voice responded with mild curiosity.

  Link focused, instantly reizing the voice’s otcha.

  “Rashōmon, open!”

  With a hand on the ground, he summohe gate. The sound caught Sasuke’s attention.

  The first figure to emerge was Fugaku Uchiha. Since his revival, the man seemed determio make up for the care he hadn’t shown in life. His attitude toward Sasuke was nothing short of doting.

  came Baki, as eager as ever to return to the living world. Knowing that Konoha and Sunagakure were now iating peace, he was quick to answer Link’s summons.

  Finally, the newly summoned woman stepped through the gate. Her features bore a striking resembo Sasuke’s—bck hair casg down her back, her expression warm and kind.

  “Mom!”

  Sasuke froze for a moment, stuhen, as the woman took in her surroundings and smiled, he bolted toward her, tears streaming down his face.

  Such raw emotion was a rare sight from him.

  Link tactfully grabbed Baki and stepped aside, leaving the reunited family of three to their moment.

  “How’s the peace talk progressing?”

  Baki, ever practical, immediately asked about the state of affairs. Time in the Pure Land was disorienting—he felt as though he had only just been summo time.

  “Tomorrow, the Land of Wind delegation will reach the border,” Link replied casually. He then shifted the topic. “What will it take for you to teach me the Bde of Wind teique?”

  Despite its seemingly straightforward he Bde of Wind was an A-rank jutsu not included in Konoha’s archives. Whether to trade for other jutsu or simply to expand his repertoire, Link was eager to learn it.

  He had asked Baki about it several times before, but the man was as stubborn as they came.

  Baki remained unmoved, his gaze steady. “I want to meet the Fourth Kazekage.”

  “Not happening.” Link’s refusal was immediate. He didn’t even know where the Fourth Kazekage was being held and had no iion of entangling himself in high-level political disputes.

  After a long pause, Baki offered a promise. “If you arrange a meeting with Temari… I’ll teach you the Bde of Wind.”

  “Deal.”

  Bleam