Oppression Beneath the Night

"All right, that's all for today's lesson. Class dismissed!" Iruka said to the students below after packing up his lesson plans at the podium.

"Ah, school's over. Shikamaru, let's go to the snack shop!" After seeing Iruka leave the Classroom, Choji Akimichi said to Shikamaru beside him.

"Meh, no thanks. Your mom is so kind—you're really lucky. If my mom finds out I bought snacks, that'll be a real hassle."

"Tch!" Sasuke Uchiha frowned in annoyance when he heard Choji and Shikamaru's conversation. Just as he was about to leave the Classroom, Sakura came up to him and said expectantly, "Hey, Sasuke, school's over. Let's walk home together!"

"Not interested." Sasuke glanced at Sakura and coldly replied before leaving on his own.

"Hey, Sakura, Sakura, I'll walk with you!" Naruto sidled over with a lecherous grin.

"Go die!" Sakura turned around and punched Naruto, raising a lump on his head.

"Nice one! That damned Naruto deserved it." The other personality in Sakura's mind shouted arrogantly.

After that, the students in the Classroom left one after another and returned to their homes.

After school, Sasuke did not go home. Instead, he went to a stretch of woods behind the former Uchiha Compound and began his daily training. Incidentally, this forest had once been the place where his brother, Uchiha Chen, trained. It had now become Sasuke's Training Ground.

Sasuke was drenched in sweat and panting heavily as he stared at several wooden posts not far ahead of him. Those posts were already covered in Shuriken.

Ever since the tragedy of the Night of the Massacre, Sasuke had become obsessed with pursuing power. He knew that he needed sufficient strength to take revenge on Uchiha Itachi. Right now, he was still too weak—far too weak. So weak that that man could not even be bothered to kill him himself.

Uchiha Itachi had long since been listed by Konoha as an S-Class Rogue Ninja and was wanted by the village. His strength had likely already reached Kage-level. With Sasuke's current strength, not even that of a Genin, seeking revenge against Uchiha Itachi was nothing but a fantasy.

"Ahh... I'll kill you! I'll definitely kill you!"

At the thought of Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke's body, which had nearly collapsed from exhaustion, seemed to be infused with strength once more. His hands rapidly formed seal after seal, and then he spat a ball of fire toward the wooden posts. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"

Sasuke looked at the burning posts before all the strength suddenly drained from his body, causing him to collapse onto the ground. His body rose and fell with his ragged breaths, proving that he was still alive.

After resting briefly, Sasuke dragged his exhausted body home. By then, night had already fallen.

Just then, a person suddenly appeared without warning some distance in front of Sasuke, staring at him intently.

"Who are you?" Sasuke was startled at once. He assumed a fighting stance toward the person and asked warily. Someone had appeared silently before him without him noticing at all. If that person had been an enemy... The thought sent a cold sweat down Sasuke's back.

The person before Sasuke wore Anbu attire and had a ridiculous cat-faced mask on his face, making him look rather comical. Yet Sasuke felt an unprecedented pressure emanating from him, a pressure he had not even felt from the Chunin Teachers at the Ninja Academy.

"Are you Sasuke Uchiha? Someone wishes to see you. Come with me." The mysterious person standing before Sasuke spoke without the slightest trace of emotion in his voice.

"Hm? Someone wants to see me? Not interested!" Though Sasuke was curious about who wanted to see him, he still disdainfully rejected the mysterious man.

"Hmph! That isn't your choice." As the mysterious man spoke, he released an intense killing intent.

"This... this is..." Sasuke was so oppressed by the powerful killing intent that he could barely breathe, unable to move in the slightest. Amid that overwhelming killing intent, Sasuke felt like a lone boat in a raging sea, liable to be swallowed by towering waves at any moment.

"D-Damn it... am I... am I going to die?" Just as Sasuke believed he was about to be killed, the mysterious man withdrew the killing intent directed at him.

"Stop trying to resist pointlessly. I don't want to waste any more time. Come with me." The mysterious man's icy voice sounded again. Then, with a Body Flicker Technique, he instantly appeared in front of Sasuke.

Just as the mysterious man reached out to grab Sasuke, a sharp whistling sound suddenly rang out. Three cold flashes shot toward him. Startled, the mysterious man used the Body Flicker Technique again and evaded them.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Three Shuriken embedded themselves in the spot where the mysterious man had just stood.

Sasuke looked around and discovered that several more people dressed exactly like the mysterious man had suddenly appeared. The newcomers stood scattered atop Branches, forming an encirclement around Sasuke and the mysterious man from before.

"Hm? Anbu? What do you mean by this? Why are you interfering in the affairs of our Root?" the mysterious man from before questioned the newcomers.

"We do not concern ourselves with Root's affairs. We are merely carrying out Hokage-sama's orders." One of the newcomers, who appeared to be their captain, said to the mysterious man who claimed to be from Root, "By Hokage-sama's order, we are taking Sasuke Uchiha away."

"Hm? Sasuke Uchiha? No. He is someone our lord wants. We cannot let you take him away." The Root member said warily to the Anbu.

"What? Are you planning to defy Hokage-sama's orders? Or could it be... that Root intends to rebel?"

"Uh... no, we wouldn't dare." Hearing the Anbu captain say that, the Root member had no choice but to yield.

Root was under Danzo's control and was essentially Danzo's private army. The ninja within obeyed only Danzo's orders. However, publicly, the Hokage was Konoha's highest leader. Root's members did not dare openly defy the Hokage's commands unless they truly intended to rebel, just as the Anbu had said. Moreover, the Anbu outnumbered them at the moment, so forcing a confrontation would be unwise.

Although Root's members were all elites from various Kekkei Genkai and secret technique clans, and might be somewhat stronger than the Anbu, the Anbu were not to be underestimated either.

Anbu, short for the Assassination Tactics Special Squad, was made up of outstanding ninja selected from within the village. Every member was proficient in human anatomy and deeply understood the weaknesses of the human body. To distinguish Anbu from ordinary ninja and conceal their true identities, all members wore white porcelain masks. They also had a standard uniform: black short-sleeved clothing, gray protective gear, arm guards, and spiral-pattern tattoos on their arms. Sometimes, Anbu members also wore cloaks; Anbu cloaks were black, while those of former Root members were white. Unlike ordinary ninja, every Anbu carried a ninja sword strapped to their back. To protect the ninja village, they had to ensure that no corpse was left behind should they face death.

The Anbu's work mainly involved protecting the Kage and the ninja village, carrying out high-risk missions in enemy nations such as espionage and assassination, and undertaking assignments that might involve confronting S-Class ninja. Since the Anbu answered directly to the Kage, their work was assigned by the Kage personally. The nature of their missions and all related information were confidential, and none of their actions or achievements were made public.

The Root member was not arrogant enough to believe he could abduct Sasuke Uchiha from the hands of several Anbu members. Besides, the Anbu had made things perfectly clear. If he continued to fight, it would amount to defying the Hokage's orders, which was equivalent to betraying the village. Therefore, the Root member wisely backed down.

"Good." The Anbu captain said.

"Since that is the case, I will return and report." The Root member activated the Body Flicker Technique and vanished into the night.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you may leave now. Also, you are not to mention anything that happened tonight to anyone." After the Root member disappeared, the Anbu captain issued Sasuke a warning. In truth, their orders had not been to take Sasuke away, but simply to ensure that Sasuke Uchiha was not taken away by Root.

"Mission complete. Withdraw!" The Anbu members then vanished into the night as well, leaving Sasuke alone where he stood.

"Damn it! Damn it!" After everyone had left, Sasuke collapsed to his knees and repeatedly slammed his fists into the ground.

Tonight's blow had been far too great. He had never expected himself to be so insignificant. When facing that Root ninja, the other party had merely released killing intent, yet Sasuke had been so thoroughly oppressed that he could not move and could not even summon the slightest thought of resistance. Before both groups, he was nothing more than a sheep waiting to be slaughtered, with no room to resist at all.

"Damn it... how am I supposed to kill him like this? How am I supposed to take revenge?" Tears of anguish welled up in Sasuke's eyes.

"No! I have to take revenge. I have to kill him!" Sasuke's face suddenly twisted with ferocity as he cried out in his heart, Become stronger. I have to become stronger. I need power. As long as it can give me power, I am willing to pay any price—even if I have to sell my soul to the devil.

At that moment, Sasuke's desire for power reached an unprecedented height.