Red Cat

"Awrooo~"

Just as Sasuke was intently observing the slime inside a large glass tank, a cute little howl suddenly sounded behind him.

"Killing intent."

The moment he heard the sound, Sasuke felt a wave of killing intent engulf him without even turning around. It was unusually intense, and in an instant, he felt as though he had returned to Itachi's Genjutsu.

So, acting on instinct, Sasuke used the power of his Sharingan. His Three-Tomoe Sharingan instantly replaced his usual black-and-white eyes.

The Three-Tomoe Sharingan was the strongest state that the vast majority of Uchiha could reach in their lifetime. Uchiha who awakened the Sharingan gained significant boosts to their Genjutsu, Taijutsu, perception, learning ability, mental strength, eyesight, and more.

Of course, the Sharingan had one drawback: it consumed a great deal of Chakra. Most Uchiha ninja couldn't keep it activated for long.

Sasuke's Sharingan had awakened straight to the Three-Tomoe state. Although that was powerful, it also meant he couldn't use its full power for long. Once activated, it would probably last less than eight minutes, and if he had to fight, the time would be even shorter.

"Three-minute man" was an apt description of Sasuke right now.

Of course, this also showed how strong Sasuke was in the Three-Tomoe state. The moment his Sharingan activated, he pinpointed the enemy's location.

Sasuke raised a hand, somehow producing a Kunai from nowhere, and slashed at his target.

The entire process took less than a second, so Sasuke didn't remember Yu's earlier warning.

By the time Sasuke recalled what Yu had said, it was too late. The specially made Kunai was incredibly sharp and could even cut through steel. The enemy clearly didn't have much in the way of defenses, and Sasuke's Kunai cut straight through it.

The killing intent vanished, which meant the enemy had been defeated. The fight was over in an instant.

The enemy was the red cat lying in front of Sasuke, cut in half at the waist.

Seeing this, Sasuke came back to his senses and immediately understood what had happened. He stared at the scene in shock. The killing intent had caught him off guard, and he'd attacked on instinct. He never would have imagined that something like this could give off such an overwhelming killing intent.

Sasuke panicked as he looked at the red cat in two pieces. Yu had kindly invited him to see the laboratory, and he'd ended up killing Yu's Summoning Beast. What's more, Yu had warned him about it.

Just then, Yu's footsteps sounded. A particularly bad idea popped into Sasuke's head: Why not use the Great Fireball Technique on the red cat and destroy the evidence?

People always came up with terrible ideas when faced with a difficult situation. But the thought only crossed Sasuke's mind; he didn't act on it.

"Yu, I'm sorry..." Sasuke turned around, ready to apologize and ask for forgiveness.

"What are you doing?!"

Yu's scolding voice rang out.

Those words made Sasuke feel even worse. He'd really done something incredibly stupid this time.

In front of other people, Sasuke was always aloof and proud. The people around him—Naruto aside—barely registered in his eyes. But Yu was different. Yu was his younger brother and his only family.

Just as Sasuke was about to earnestly ask Yu to forgive him again, Yu walked over and kicked the red cat on the ground twice, sending both halves of its body flying.

"Aren't you always so cocky? You pick fights with everyone you see, but the moment you run into someone you can't handle, you chicken out and pretend to be dead!" Yu shouted at the red cat in the distance.

The red cat, which had been cut in half, suddenly began to move after Yu kicked it away. Its upper and lower halves pressed together at the cut, and in less than a second, they fused back into one. There wasn't even a trace of the wound.

The red cat glanced nervously at Yu, then immediately ran off somewhere else.

Yu turned back to Sasuke and smiled. "Did the red cat scare you? It's got a bit of a problem with its temperament. It's always been completely out of control in the laboratory. At least this time, it finally got taught a lesson. I think it'll keep a lower profile from now on."

Sasuke was staring in shock in the direction the red cat had gone.

"Um... Is the red cat okay after being hurt so badly?" Sasuke asked blankly.

"It's fine. Even if you cut it into seven or eight pieces, it won't be hurt. It just needs to eat something to make up for it," Yu said with a wave of his hand.

Yu's explanation did little to lessen the shock on Sasuke's face.

Of course, that was no fault of Sasuke's. He hadn't seen much of the world yet, and most of what he knew came from the Ninja Academy. The Academy didn't teach things like this. So it was only natural that Sasuke would be shocked by something that clearly went beyond his usual understanding.

Once Sasuke officially entered the Ninja World, he would learn about far stranger things. Even ancient ghosts whose bones had dissolved after death could return to the world, full of life and "bouncing around." Compared to that, the red cat's condition was nothing special.

After Yu gave Sasuke a brief explanation of the slime's traits, Sasuke nodded, only half understanding, and looked away.

The little incident was soon over. Next, Yu was going to show Sasuke part of his current power.

"Sasuke, your Sharingan should be able to see the Chakra inside my body, right?" Yu asked Sasuke in the newly built combat testing area of the laboratory.

"Yeah, I can."

Sasuke nodded in reply.

"Then take a look at the Chakra inside me," Yu said again.

Sasuke did as he was told and activated his Sharingan. The Sharingan could see the flow of Chakra inside other ninja. It couldn't compare to the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan, but it was still a powerful ability, useful in combat, reconnaissance, and guarding.

The flow of Chakra inside Yu's body appeared in Sasuke's eyes. After two years, Yu still didn't have much Chakra; he was still a ways off from having enough to be a Genin.

"Sasuke, can you see the Chakra inside me clearly?" Yu asked.

"I can."

Sasuke nodded.

"Great. Now it's time to witness a miracle, so don't blink!" Yu added playfully.

Sasuke nodded seriously, then focused intently on Yu's body. He wasn't going to miss a single detail.

Yu took a deep breath. This was the first time he was showing his power in front of anyone else.