When the Sound Four found Sasuke, Chen watched from the sidelines. He knew it was time to leave.
He watched as Sasuke went home, packed his things, and headed for Konoha's gates. He also saw Sakura Haruno confess to Sasuke, and Sasuke knock her unconscious. After Sasuke left, Chen emerged from the shadows.
"Got to watch a good show for free, but the ending wasn't as happy as I'd imagined! Now that Sasuke has defected to Orochimaru, I have nothing left to worry about. It's time to say goodbye to Konoha!"
Chen headed for the village gates without a care in the world. "Konoha's security is terrible. It's one thing that Itachi and Kisame managed to sneak in—they're both Kage Level powerhouses, after all. But even the likes of the Sound Four can come and go as they please without anyone noticing. And right now, there isn't a single guard at the gates. This makes no sense!"
As Chen passed Sakura Haruno, he gave her a look of disgust. "Idiot. You're such a nuisance!" But he didn't bother with her and continued out of the village.
Once he was through the gates, Chen looked around. His heart raced with excitement. He was finally leaving the prison where he'd spent thirteen years of his life. Though he'd lived in Konoha for over a decade, he'd spent all his time cooped up at home since the Night of the Massacre. He felt no particular attachment to Konoha. The only person he was bound to was his own brother, Sasuke Uchiha. In his previous life, Chen hadn't liked Sasuke—in fact, he could even say he hated him. But in this life, by a twist of fate, he'd become Sasuke's biological brother, Uchiha Chen. And over the past few years, Sasuke had always looked after him. Though Sasuke acted disdainful toward him every time, Chen could still feel how much his brother cared. Now that Sasuke had left Konoha to join Orochimaru, Chen had nothing left to stay for.
Chen picked a direction at random and walked a few steps before turning to glance back at Konoha. "Goodbye, Konoha!" Then he turned and left without a shred of reluctance.
Chen chose a direction and sprinted as fast as he could. He ran and ran, for a long, long time. He had no idea where the road led, and he didn't need to know. All that mattered was that he was free. He no longer had to hide and cower like before. In the quiet of the night, Chen raced alone through the forest, shouting as he ran, "I want to write an extra chapter! I want to write an extra chapter!"
After running for a long time, Chen finally crossed the forest and reached a main road. Since it was the middle of the night, he didn't encounter a single person.
"I've been running all night. I must be pretty far from Konoha by now. I'll rest for a while. This is a main road, so there'll definitely be Merchant Caravans passing through tomorrow. I can leave with one of them then." With that, Chen hopped into a tree by the roadside, found a comfortable spot, and settled in for the night.
The next morning, someone woke the unconscious Sakura. She then reported Sasuke's escape to the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade. Tsunade ordered Shikamaru to form a team to pursue Sasuke and lead it himself. But none of that had anything to do with Chen. He wasn't worried Sasuke would be caught and brought back; he'd seen the anime in his previous life and already knew how things would turn out. Though someone like him had been added to the story in this life, he hadn't affected the plot so far.
Chen woke to the sound of his stomach growling. When he opened his eyes, it was already noon. Still groggy, he looked around and instinctively thought he was at home. It took him a moment to realize where he was. Then he burst into delight. "I'm not at home, and I'm not in Konoha. I've left the village! This isn't a dream! Hahaha! I'm free!" he shouted excitedly.
But the wailing of his stomach brought him back to reality. "Looks like I need to find something to eat. I haven't had anything since yesterday, so no wonder my stomach's growling." Chen summoned a little Pomeranian and sent it hunting while he found a place to build a fire and waited. Every Pomeranian was a natural hunter. Before long, the little Pomeranian Chen had summoned brought him an unfamiliar animal that looked like a rabbit. Chen didn't think twice. He skinned it, put it over the fire, and roasted it. Once it was cooked, he dug in. It tasted pretty good, even without any seasoning.
As he ate the roast rabbit, Chen thought about what to do next. "I don't have a penny to my name. The most urgent thing is to get some money, and I can't neglect my training either. That gives me an idea. The Underground Exchange would be a good place to start. I can practice on the people with bounty notices, earn a hefty reward, and improve my strength at the same time. More importantly, I can earn Points! I'll do that for now. I haven't decided where to go yet, so I might as well pick somewhere at random."
Chen quickly finished his food and continued walking along the main road. Before long, a group of people came up behind him, hauling several carts of goods. It looked like a Merchant Caravan. There were seven or eight men in the group, all of them burly. Two rode horses, each with a katana hanging at his waist; they were probably the caravan's guards. Four more horses pulled four carts. Three were piled high with goods, while the last was a covered carriage for passengers. The group noticed Chen walking alone along the road and found it a little strange. There wasn't a village or shop in sight, and the next waystation was still a long way off. Was this boy planning to walk there by himself?
Just then, an elderly man stepped out of the covered carriage and approached Chen. "Where are you headed, young man? Why are you traveling alone?"
Chen had been about to approach the caravan and ask for a ride. Before he could say anything, the old man had spoken to him first.
Chen politely replied, "Hello, sir. I'm trying to get to the next town. Could you give me a ride?"
"I see. The next waystation is still a long way off. If you don't mind, come along with us. There's nothing around here, and you might run into trouble on your own. You can leave once we reach the next waystation." After hearing Chen out, the old man agreed. Chen was young and didn't look like a bad person, so the old man figured that taking one more boy along wouldn't make much difference. He could let Chen go on his way at the next waystation.
"Sir..." Two of the caravan's guards started to say something to the old man, but he waved them off, signaling that they needn't say more. Then he turned back to Chen. "Well?"
Chen was more than happy to accept. He nodded without a second thought.
"Then ride in Zongtian's cart. Zongtian, take this young man with you," the old man said to the man in one of the carts.
"Yes, sir," the burly man named Zongtian replied.
"Go on, young man. We're setting off. We need to reach that waystation before dark; it'll be dangerous out here at night," the old man told Chen, then headed back toward the covered carriage.
"Thank you, sir." Chen thanked him, then climbed into Zongtian's cart and sat beside the burly man.
"All right, let's get moving!" Once the old man had returned to the covered carriage, the two guards called out to everyone. They rode ahead to lead the way, and the rest of the caravan followed close behind.
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