At dusk, Sasuke, having finished another day at the Ninja Academy, slowly walked into the deserted Uchiha Clan Compound.
The moment he entered the compound gates, Sasuke sensed someone watching him from a rooftop to the east. Following the gaze, he saw a cat dressed in blue, carrying a small scroll on its back. It had pointed ears, raccoon-like fur, and the character "Ninja" written on its forehead.
"Young Master Sasuke!"
When it saw that Sasuke had noticed it, the cat actually spoke. With a few light leaps and agile twists, it appeared beside Sasuke and said,
"Young Master Sasuke, the Chakra weapons you ordered are ready."
"Mm. Thanks, Denka."
Sasuke nodded, took the scroll from the ninja cat's back, and handed it a bottle of silvervine drink.
The moment the cat accepted the drink, it eagerly opened it and took a sniff, wearing an expression of bliss like a cat high on catnip.
The Ninken Clan was the Uchiha family's source of intelligence. Raised by Nekomata, who specialized in making tools for cats, these ninja cats loved silvervine drinks most of all.
They lived in the ruins of a city dozens of kilometers outside Konoha, in a place called the Empty District.
The two sides had worked together for decades. Besides serving as the Uchiha's intelligence network, Nekomata and the Ninken Clan also accepted Uchiha commissions to forge custom ninja tools and weapons.
When Sasuke had wanted to purchase a katana forged entirely from Chakra-conductive metal, he had sent the commission to Nekomata through the ninja cats.
After all, given Sasuke's current status and strength, even if he had money, obtaining a Chakra Metal weapon in Konoha would have been difficult. Moreover, there were few people he could trust and rely on now, and Nekomata was one of them.
Still, even after entrusting the commission to Nekomata, Chakra Metal was not easy to find. It was a precious material, after all. More than two months had passed since the commission before he finally received these weapons today.
Sasuke opened the storage scroll. After a puff of smoke, a katana and a dagger-sized short blade appeared in his hands.
The katana was pure white, its blade gleaming. It was a tachi with a blade roughly eighty centimeters long, an exceptionally long edge, and a slender, thin body. A red-and-white braided cord was tied around its hilt.
"Fine blade!"
After examining it for a while, Sasuke sheathed the katana and asked,
"Does this blade have a name?"
Hearing that, Denka reluctantly tore his gaze away from the silvervine drink and replied, "No, Young Master Sasuke. Nekomata said you are the owner of these two weapons, so you may name them yourself, meow!"
"Alright."
Sasuke nodded and took out the other short dagger to inspect it.
The longer the weapon, the greater the reach; the shorter the weapon, the greater the danger.
He had previously considered his role and fighting style. In the future, he would inevitably face situations requiring close-quarters combat, so aside from the katana, he had also commissioned Nekomata to forge a short blade.
Besides its use in close combat, the short blade could also be used with his throwing techniques as a kunai or shuriken.
Of course, after his earlier conversation with Sakura, Sasuke now had other plans for this short blade.
"Oh, right, Denka. I have another matter I'd like to ask Nekomata to help with."
"Young Master Sasuke, please say it, meow!"
"Please ask Nekomata to help me collect some Lightning Release..."
Sasuke hesitated, then continued, "Ninjutsu from all five elements. The rank does not matter, though the higher the better."
Although he now possessed Uchiha Style Fire Release ninjutsu and Uchiha Shisui's Fire Release sword techniques, he knew that the original Sasuke's talent for Lightning Release was exceptionally high. He could not possibly waste such a powerful gift. For now, Fire Release would remain his main focus, but in the future, the two would need to develop side by side.
As for the other three elements, he only wanted them for reference. For the moment, he had no intention of training in them.
"Young Master Sasuke, do you want to collect scrolls containing ninjutsu from all five elements?"
Denka licked his paw and put on a thoughtful expression. After a moment, he said, "I heard Nekomata mention that there are some scrolls concerning five-element ninjutsu at home, but most are D-rank or C-rank. Anything above C-rank may be difficult, meow!"
"That's fine. Basic ones will do."
Sasuke nodded, his voice low.
"Alright!" Denka nodded his little head.
"Young Master Sasuke, if there is nothing else, I'll be leaving first, meow!"
"Mm."
As soon as he finished speaking, Denka turned into a puff of smoke and vanished.
Sasuke familiarized himself with his two new weapons, then continued his daily routine of training.
The next day, at the Uchiha Clan Compound.
After breakfast that morning, Sasuke completed his usual physical training, then took the dagger he had just acquired and headed for the back mountain of Konoha.
It was the weekend, so there was no school. Sasuke did not plan to spend the day in his usual grueling training regimen. Instead, he intended to begin a new phase of training.
As he walked along the Konoha road leading to the back mountain, he was noticeably taller than he had been two months ago.
A regular schedule, all kinds of nutritious meals,
More than two months of relentless physical training, along with Yoga stretching and flexibility exercises, had made his body leaner and sturdier than that of most children his age.
"That's Senior Sasuke. He's the genius from the grade above ours at the Ninja Academy."
A chorus of chirping voices reached him. Sasuke looked over and saw two little girls two or three years younger than him whispering to each other, occasionally glancing his way.
When Sasuke looked at them, the two girls did not become shy. Instead, they waved at him, then covered their mouths and giggled quietly together.
"So I'm a celebrity at the Ninja Academy too..."
In the week or so since school started, Sasuke had often run into or overheard younger students discussing him. The boys naturally talked about his talent and strength, their words filled with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
As for those bold little girls, Sasuke could tell at a glance that they were captivated by his looks.
Amused, Sasuke unknowingly arrived at the foot of the back mountain. The moment he reached the area, he sensed at least five or six hidden gazes fixing on him.
Sasuke's expression did not change. Maintaining his calm appearance, he slowly entered the back mountain. Those gazes lingered on him for only a dozen seconds before disappearing.
Konoha's back mountain was also part of Konoha Village. Villagers and ninja were not prohibited from entering it. In fact, some ninja even had homes on the mountain, such as Might Guy and his father in the original story.
However, the back mountain had many forests and hills, making it highly concealable. To prevent unidentified people from infiltrating the village, and to protect villagers from being attacked by wild beasts that might wander into the area,
several squads of Anbu ninja patrolled this region day and night.
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