The Resolve to Become a Demon

The Chunin Exams finally came to an end.

Few genin teams managed to collect both the Heaven and Earth scrolls and arrive at Laozi Rock within the allotted time. Every team that successfully reached the destination was covered in exhaustion and wounds, yet their eyes were filled with pride and excitement. Naruto Uzumaki personally greeted these young people who had weathered the trials and announced the list of those who had passed the second exam.

The names of Kakashi Sakuya, Nadeshiko Haku, and Hatake Lian were prominently on the list. Although they were in terrible condition upon arrival—Sakuya was unconscious from severe injuries, and both Haku and Lian were wounded—the fact remained that they had arrived and submitted their scrolls. Their combat record, especially the rumor that Sakuya had single-handedly repelled three elite members of Root in front of Laozi Rock (though the higher-ups had deliberately suppressed the details, the general situation had still leaked), caused a silent shock among the passing candidates and the jonin proctors.

After the final assessment, the comprehensive results were announced. Thanks to their overwhelming strength, tactical execution, and ability to handle extreme situations displayed in the first two exams, Sakuya, Haku, and Lian were promoted to chunin without question.

After the promotion ceremony concluded, the crowd gradually dispersed.

"Kakashi Sakuya." An Anbu member appeared silently before Sakuya just as he was about to leave. "The Hokage wants to see you. Alone."

Sakuya's footsteps faltered, and a flash of realization crossed his deep purple eyes. He nodded, signaled to Haku and Lian beside him, and followed the Anbu in silence toward the Hokage's office.

Pushing open the door to the Hokage's office, Naruto Uzumaki was not sitting behind his desk. He stood before the massive floor-to-ceiling window, his back to the door, gazing out at the prosperous village of Konoha. The golden glow of the sunset spilled over his Hokage cloak, yet it seemed to carry a heavy weight.

"Close the door." Naruto's voice came, lacking its usual playfulness and warmth, sounding calm and grave.

Sakuya closed the door as instructed and stood quietly in the center of the office.

Naruto turned around slowly. His gaze was no longer the gentle look one gives a junior, but the scrutinizing and heavy stare of a Hokage. His eyes rested on Sakuya, as if trying to pierce through his body to see everything he was hiding.

The office fell into a silence, broken only by the faint, distant clamor of the village outside.

After a long while, Naruto finally spoke, his voice low: "I already know about what happened at Laozi Rock."

Sakuya did not speak, merely listening quietly.

"I will thoroughly investigate and deal with the remnants of Root." Naruto's tone carried unquestionable resolve, yet also a trace of deep exhaustion. "In this matter, Konoha has failed you brothers."

He took a few steps forward, his gaze becoming sharper: "But, Sakuya, do you realize how much you exposed? The Three-Tomoe Sharingan, your Uchiha identity, and your combat power and style that far exceed a genin, even rivaling a special jonin... these were all things Kakashi-sensei and I tried our best to hide for you."

Naruto walked up to Sakuya, his azure eyes fixed intently on him: "In that situation, I cannot blame you for unleashing your power to protect your companions. In fact, I want to thank you on behalf of Himawari and the others. But—"

His tone grew heavier: "What about the consequences? Have you thought about them? The people from Root failed, but the news has likely already leaked. The ones eyeing these eyes of yours are likely no longer just the darkness within Konoha."

Naruto sighed, rubbed his brow, and softened his tone, though it remained complex: "You and Lian are strong, stronger than I imagined. Especially you, Sakuya. When Kakashi-sensei told me, I found it hard to believe... but this exam has proven everything."

He paused, as if weighing his words: "Becoming a chunin means higher status, but it also means greater responsibility and more dangerous missions. You will no longer be protected like children. You will truly face the cruelty and darkness of this world."

"I called you here alone not to reprimand you as the Hokage." Naruto's gaze deepened. "But as a predecessor who also walked out of the darkness, and as a... Hokage who must protect the entire village, I want to ask you a question."

His body leaned forward slightly, bringing an invisible pressure: "Now that you possess this power and stand in this position, what do you intend to do? What kind of ninja do you and Lian truly want to become?"

The afterglow of the sunset stretched their shadows long across the floor. The Hokage's office was so quiet that they could hear each other's breathing.

Naruto Uzumaki waited for Kakashi Sakuya's answer. This answer would determine how Konoha would treat these two brothers who bore the hatred of the Uchiha in the future.

Sakuya lifted his eyes coldly. Back when he arrived, he had already removed the deep purple contact lenses used for concealment.

At this moment, exposed to Naruto's gaze was a pair of pitch-black, deep eyes, like a frozen pool. There was no youthful vitality in them, only an impenetrable coldness and dead silence.

Naruto's pupils contracted sharply! He clearly saw that in the deepest part of those black pupils, the outlines of three tomoe were faintly visible, emitting a heart-stopping, eerie sensation. These eyes were even more... close to that man than he had imagined.

Facing the Hokage's question and heavy gaze, Sakuya's voice lacked a single ripple, cold as a polar wind, every word carrying the metallic tang of blood:

"I will personally."

He paused, his eyes with the flickering tomoe meeting Naruto's sharp gaze without a hint of fear.

"Every last one of them,"

The final words were iron-clad, containing unquestionable resolve and killing intent.

"Kill everyone in 'Root'."

The air seemed to freeze at that moment.

There were no grand slogans, no lofty ideals, not even the slightest response to the so-called "Will of Fire." There was only the most direct, naked, and bloody declaration of revenge.

These were not words a youth should speak; they sounded more like the vow of an Asura who had returned from hell solely to settle old scores.

Naruto's azure eyes stared fixedly at Sakuya, trying to find a trace of wavering, hesitation, or a mask of his age within that cold darkness.

But all he saw was a near-pure, freezing killing intent and determination. This child was serious. He was not posturing; he was stating a future he was bound to act upon.

The office fell into an even longer, dead silence.

The expression on Naruto's face was incredibly complex. There was shock, gravity, and a trace of imperceptible heartache, but in the end, all these emotions settled into a profound solemnity.

He slowly straightened up, no longer trying to suppress the other with his presence. Because he understood that such things were ineffective against the youth before him.

"It seems... Kakashi-sensei was right." Naruto finally spoke again, his voice much lower. "The path you are walking is a completely different one."

He turned around, looking back out at Konoha as the sunset stretched his shadow long.

"I will not stop you." Naruto's words were unexpected. "What 'Root' has done truly needs to be thoroughly settled. This is a debt Konoha owes."

But he turned back abruptly, his gaze like a torch: "However, Sakuya, remember your current identity! You are a ninja of Konoha! Your blade cannot be pointed at the innocent! Your actions cannot bring catastrophic consequences to the village!"

"Revenge is fine." Naruto's tone was iron-clad. "But it must be under the rules of the Anbu, and with my permission! Otherwise, you will no longer be an avenger, but an enemy of the village."

"And I," Naruto looked at Sakuya, saying each word clearly, "will never allow anyone to threaten the peace and stability of Konoha. Even you, even if you possess such eyes and power. Do you understand?"

This was a warning, and also a bottom line.

The will of the Hokage and the killing intent of the Uchiha survivor collided silently in the sunset's afterglow.

Sakuya looked at Naruto in silence, his pitch-black eyes, with their faint tomoe shadows, still devoid of any emotion.

A moment later, he gave a slight nod.

No promises, no guarantees.

Just a simple gesture.

It signified that he had heard.

And it also signified that he would weigh the matter himself.

Then, without another word, he turned and left the Hokage Office in silence.

The door clicked shut.

Inside the office, Naruto Uzumaki remained alone, gazing at the setting sun outside the window, his brows furrowed in a long, wordless silence.

He knew that what he was releasing back into the wild was perhaps not just a new Chunin.

But a double-edged sword, tempered for ages, born for nothing but slaughter.