The Misty Future

Sasuke seemed to be having a very long dream.

In his dream, he returned to his childhood when he was still an infant.

The Night of the Uchiha Massacre that took everything from him had not yet happened. His father was still the same stern-faced man, and his mother was as gentle as he remembered.

The tribespeople are still alive, living peaceful lives no different from usual.

That man— Uchiha Itachi —was gently embracing him.

That was the image I knew best; he was still the older brother I admired and loved the most.

Beside Itachi stood two figures that Sasuke found very familiar...

"Oh! Little Zhuzi has grown so much in just a few days! Come here, let me hug you and let your big brother see if your development is normal!"

The black-haired boy with a small braid excitedly took the still- Sasuke from Itachi's hands.

Shisui stood to the side, watching Kou's exaggerated expression, shrugged, and shook his head helplessly.

"Give up, Brother Kou. Sasuke is quite shy around strangers. He won't let anyone hug him except Itachi!"

Last time, when Izumi wanted to hug him, he cried so much...

Shisui's words were cut short by the sight before him.

Instead of crying or fussing, Sasuke, nestled in Kou's arms, grinned and giggled at Kou's teasing.

Two chubby little hands waved wildly in the air, as if trying to grab the hand that was waving in front of their eyes.

"Huh?! What, what on earth is going on...?"

Shisui murmured incredulously, feeling utterly defeated, as he brought his face close to Sasuke was nestled in his arms:

"Itachi is one thing, but why can't even Brother Kou be allowed to do it?"

She cried and fussed when she was in my arms last time...

"If you're bad at something, don't blame the road for being uneven. If you're not good, just practice more!"

While gently poking Sasuke's soft cheek with his fingertips, he glanced smugly at Shisui beside him:

"While you two youngsters may indeed surpass this old man in terms of strength, my years of age over you are not for nothing."

I held both of you when you were little, so handling little Sasuke a piece of cake.

You two were way more mischievous than this kid when you were little... well, you two are still pretty mischievous now, though.

Shisui watched as Kou began enthusiastically digging up their embarrassing past, and subconsciously shut his mouth.

He then glanced furtively at Itachi beside him, who was also affected by these words, and decisively chose to protect himself, not daring to say another word.

Itachi stood to the side, watching his two older brothers joking around as always. A nostalgic smile involuntarily appeared on his usually calm, almost indifferent face.

"Things from when I was little... I remember once when I was little, I begged my older brother to take me to the clan's library to study."

Back then, I was still quite naive. While my older brother was engrossed in reading, I took a scroll of Fire Release from the shelf and started practicing the Hand Seals according to the sequence on it.

I didn't expect to succeed on the first try. If Brother Kou hadn't discovered and stopped me in time, I almost burned down the entire library..."

How dare you bring that up!

Kou snorted coldly, interrupting Itachi's nostalgic reminiscence with annoyance:

"I got a good scolding from the old man with the Candle Flame just for cleaning up your mess!"

If it weren't for my good personal relationship with that old man, and the fact that he genuinely liked you, we'd both be on the library's blacklist, never to set foot inside again in this lifetime!

He paused for a moment, then continued meaningfully:

"Speaking of which, that old man Candle Flame really treated you well... I didn't even get that kind of treatment back then."

You heartless wretch, you don't even bother to look at other people.

That old man is getting on in years. If you don't go and visit him more often, you might not have another chance.

Upon hearing the elder's name, Itachi remained silent for a moment.

"Grandpa Candle Flame... he probably wouldn't want to see me, would he?"

Itachi's eyes dimmed slightly, and he shook his head with a wry smile.

"After all, we have different ideas. Even if I went, I would only argue with him like before and make him angry."

"Can't you just stop talking to him about all that political nonsense?"

Looking at Itachi, he couldn't help but frown slightly:

Even if you have different views, you and that old man have a friendship that has lasted for so many years, haven't you?

Although that old man was a bit simple-minded, he genuinely cared for the Uchiha and for us from the bottom of his heart.

"It's fine for you to think from Konoha's perspective, after all, we are all part of Konoha, but don't forget to think from the perspective of the Uchiha Clan members."

Don't forget, we... are our people, with whom we live and work every day."

Hearing Koko's meaningful words, Itachi fell silent again, saying nothing, just standing there quietly.

The originally warm atmosphere gradually became subtle.

Looking at the silent Itachi before him, a deep disappointment flashed across his eyes.

"Uh... alright, alright, today is a rare day off for Brother Kou, let's not talk about these unpleasant topics anymore!"

Shisui keenly sensed that the atmosphere was not right, and quickly stepped forward, smiling as he tried to smooth things over.

Kou didn't say anything more.

He simply turned his gaze back to the drowsy Sasuke in his arms, watching his dark, bright eyes slowly close, and sighed softly.

Kou spoke only in a voice only she could hear, as if talking to herself, to the child in her arms who knew nothing yet:

Hopefully, the Uchiha and Konoha can live in peace.

If nothing can be changed in the end, if that day is still inevitable.

Then I can only...

Sasuke didn't hear Koko's last words.

The dream has ended.

"!!!"

Sasuke suddenly opened his eyes, and what came into view was that unfamiliar yet familiar ceiling.

I'm currently at... Kakashi's house!

He covered his head, his mind a complete mess.

The past in my dream, the Night of the Uchiha Massacre not long ago, and that broad, warm embrace that felt so similar to the one in my dream—

Uchiha Kuro, everything that happened tonight, that reunion, that promise, that embrace...

Was it all just a dream?

Just as Sasuke was about to conclude that everything that had happened tonight was a dream that was too real, he suddenly touched a strange object.

He subconsciously looked to the side, and what came into view was a thick scroll that was carefully sealed.

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat.

As if realizing something, he quickly sat up, held the scroll in his hands, and opened it.

"This, this is..."

Sasuke stared wide-eyed at the neat and elegant handwriting on the scroll.

What was recorded above was a training plan specially tailored for him, as well as detailed insights into the Uchiha Clan's inherited Ninjutsu and the use of the Sharingan!

From basic Chakra control to the nature transformation of Fire Release, from advanced Shurikenjutsu techniques to the application of the Sharingan in actual combat...

Every detail is explained thoroughly, and the text is accompanied by numerous annotations and illustrations.

The person who wrote this scroll was of extremely high skill; even as a seven-year-old child, I could easily understand every point of knowledge recorded within!

Sasuke gripped the scroll tightly in his hand, the shock in his heart almost indescribable.

He was not without access to learn the Ninjutsu and secret techniques passed down through generations of the Uchiha Clan.

The Third Hokage Hokage had already entrusted all the books and scrolls collected in the Uchiha Clan Compound, along with the land deeds, to Kakashi for safekeeping, promising to return them all to him at the appropriate time.

However, faced with such a vast and complex heritage, without the guidance and instruction of predecessors, it is almost impossible to absorb the knowledge most suitable for oneself in the most efficient way.

And the scroll he now holds is exactly what he urgently needs right now...

"That wasn't a dream!"

Sasuke's eyes instantly regained their clarity.

He abruptly raised his head, instinctively scanning his surroundings, searching for that tall, roguish figure in black:

"Uchiha Kuro! Uchiha Kuro!!"

However, no matter how hard he searched, he couldn't find any trace of anyone in the small bedroom.

Clearly, the person he was looking for had already left.

Sasuke lowered his head somewhat dejectedly, looking at the scroll in his hand that was slightly gleaming in the moonlight, a complex light flashing in his eyes.

"So that's how it is..."

He remained silent for a long time, then muttered to himself in a voice only he could hear:

"We've known each other for a long time."

At that moment, Sasuke was unaware that the person he had been searching for was currently on the rooftop directly above him, leaning against the cold moonlight, silently watching his every move.

Kou took in the faint smile on Sasuke's face, then looked up at the night sky over Konoha and sighed deeply.

"Indra's... reincarnation?"

He murmured in a heavy voice, his heart sinking.

Sasuke doesn't have Indra's Chakra in his body, which is definitely not normal!

"Is Uchiha Madara really dead, just like Obito once told me?"

The thought of that possibility he had never truly explored made Kou shudder involuntarily.

If that old man is still alive, where is he now? And what is his purpose?

Why give the Rinnegan to Nagato? Why choose Obito as his proxy in the Ninja World?

All the information that was once completely under their control has now become unresolved questions, enough to shake the entire Ninja World!

Kou took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the chaotic thoughts in his heart, then turned his head and solemnly cast his gaze on the path illuminated by the streetlights not far away.

At the end of that road, two familiar auras were approaching him, one after the other.

One is lazy and relaxed, the other is lively and energetic.

"No matter how much we think about it, it's all just speculation now. Once we put it into practice, everything will become clear."

Knock sensed the two approaching auras and muttered to himself in a solemn tone:

"If we can find Asura's Chakra in Naruto's body, that would be fine. But if we can't even find it in his body..."

He paused, then fell silent.

He simply circulated his Chakra, and his figure vanished from the spot in an instant under the setting moon...