Naruto, What's the point of being Hokage without you!

"This isn't naivety, it's a dream that will one day become reality!"

Naruto roared, his power surging as he dragged his exhausted body forward to launch another fierce assault on Sasuke!

Bang—

Bang, bang, bang!

Lightning-fast punches and kicks rained down like a violent storm!

Sasuke found himself unable to parry for a moment, his brows furrowing tightly.

"The dead-last wants to defeat a genius?"

"Naruto, with just your current level of effort?"

"It's not enough..."

"It's still far from enough!"

Sasuke quickly adapted to Naruto's taijutsu, and after blocking the frantic offensive, he seized the chance to create distance and unleashed his ninjutsu once more.

"Fire Style! Great Fireball Technique!"

In an instant, a massive flame transformed into a fireball, rolling toward him and forcing Naruto to dodge.

But immediately after, two shuriken seemed to bypass the vision obscured by the fireball, spinning as they attacked from both sides. Naruto was startled and hurriedly rolled to evade again.

Sasuke's figure had already appeared in front of him.

Clearly, the Great Fireball Technique and the two shuriken were all part of a tactic Sasuke had calculated in advance.

Bang—

A violent knee strike slammed heavily into Naruto's chin.

Crack—

Naruto's jawbone fractured instantly, several teeth were knocked out, his mouth filled with blood, and his entire body was sent flying.

With a thud, he collapsed to the ground.

Sasuke landed with his hands in his pockets.

"Hmph, still as fragile as ever."

"Come back and challenge me after another ten years of effort."

Sasuke turned to leave.

However, Naruto struggled to climb back to his feet.

"What..."

Sasuke couldn't help but change his expression.

"That guy, to think he can still..."

Naruto spat out the blood in his mouth, clenched his fists, and gasped for air.

"Sasuke, as long as I can still stand..."

"The battle isn't over yet!"

He let out a roar and charged forward once again.

Sasuke frowned, but he didn't panic. He drew two Kunai with a backhand motion, spun them deftly in his palms, and launched a counterattack toward Naruto.

"Naruto!"

"Sasuke!"

The two of them collided in a desperate, life-or-death strike!

Naruto's Leaf Whirlwind bloomed once more!

Boom!

A loud crash sent the Kunai in one of Sasuke's hands flying, but the other Kunai was already thrusting toward Naruto's throat!

In this dream, Sasuke would show no mercy!

Just as Naruto was about to be defeated again.

Squelch—

He suddenly thrust out his palm, allowing the Kunai to pierce straight through his own hand!

Blood gushed out instantly!

It splattered across the faces of both Naruto and Sasuke.

Sasuke's heart trembled, and he instinctively closed his eyes.

Naruto gasped heavily, enduring the exhaustion and pain, and let out a grin.

"Can the dead-last never catch up to a genius?"

"Isn't this..."

"Right in front of you?!"

Naruto's palm, pierced by a Kunai, suddenly clamped down on Sasuke's hand, while his other hand balled into an iron fist and slammed fiercely into Sasuke's cheek!

BOOM!!!

A single Friendship Face-Breaking Fist sent Sasuke flying, crashing heavily to the ground, unable to move or struggle to his feet!

[Host victorious.]

The system announced coldly.

[Congratulations to the Host for raising the win rate against Sasuke Uchiha to 50%, unlocking the achievement: Fifty-Fifty with Sasuke!]

[From now on, whether in dreams or reality, your fighting spirit and morale will be boosted when battling Sasuke Uchiha, and your own strength will also receive a certain degree of enhancement!]

Naruto was stunned, then overjoyed.

What is this?

An Anti-Sasuke Noble Phantasm?!

Naruto heard the system's prompt, his lips curling upward uncontrollably.

Increased fighting spirit and strength when battling Sasuke!

This ability is practically tailor-made for him...

That guy Sasuke...

He definitely doesn't know yet that he has already obtained such a powerful Anti-Sasuke Noble Phantasm!

Naruto was incredibly excited, barely able to suppress his thrill, wanting to wake up immediately and have a real, no-holds-barred fight with Sasuke in the real world!

Unfortunately, the system would not grant his wish, and soon the next round of the dream battle began.

But that was fine too...

"Just reaching a 50% win rate against Sasuke gives such a reward."

"If... the win rate against Sasuke reaches 100%, hehe, hehe..."

Naruto had already begun to fantasize.

Meanwhile.

At the Uchiha Clan compound, it was already deep into the night, yet Sasuke still hadn't fallen asleep.

On the training ground under the cover of night, everything was silent, save for the occasional chirping of insects and birds.

Hum, hum, hum--

Suddenly, the sound of thin wires slicing through the air echoed, and Sasuke's figure emerged, darting through the tree branches.

Then...

Bang, bang, bang!

Several shuriken shot out at high speed, hitting every bullseye with extreme precision!

But Sasuke was not satisfied; he gave a sharp tug on the thin, tough wires in his hands, and the shuriken in the air abruptly changed direction, all shooting toward another straw dummy target.

Swish, swish, swish!

The shuriken, manipulated by the wires, pierced the heart, throat, and other vital points of the straw dummy with equal precision!

Only then did Sasuke's figure land lightly on the ground.

He was drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, his face deathly pale.

Clearly, he had overexerted himself.

But as he looked back at his training results, he nodded slightly with a hint of satisfaction.

"Shuriken Manipulation Technique..."

"Although it's only a D-rank jutsu, if used well, it can take an enemy by surprise."

He had just revealed a faint, satisfied smile.

It was quickly suppressed by his own willpower.

"No, not enough..."

"It's still far from enough!"

Sasuke slammed a fist into the tree trunk, causing the bark to peel and wood chips to fly.

In his mind, that bloody moonlit night surfaced once again...

The intense pain made him feel nauseous, almost to the point of vomiting on the spot.

"Uchiha Itachi!"

"I will kill you with my own hands!"

Sometimes he dared not think, unwilling to dwell on it, yet if he didn't, he would hate himself for forgetting the blood feud, forcing himself to think about it all over again.

Sasuke lived every day in such nightmares and agony.

"Naruto..."

At this moment, the battle he had with Naruto surfaced in his mind.

Aside from his hatred for Itachi Uchiha, this was the only existence that Sasuke felt even a shred of concern for.

Of course, even he himself would never admit to this.

He didn't even realize it at all.

"Damn it..."

"If the Third Hokage hadn't intervened, who would have had the last laugh?!"

At the time, he had been prepared to stake everything on a desperate strike with his Sharingan.

But Naruto's state had been incredibly bizarre and terrifying...

Back then, Naruto's killing intent was completely abnormal; it seemed as if that wasn't his true self, but some terrifying monster deeply hidden within him!

"That guy Naruto... he's hiding quite a few secrets of his own..."

Sasuke wasn't stupid; he could certainly see the strange attitude the people around them held toward Naruto.

It was different from the way they kept their distance from him out of fear.

It was filled with a strange hatred and loathing.

Of course, Sasuke didn't need anyone's approval or understanding.

Naruto, however, was the exact opposite.

He was too lonely, yearning for the approval and understanding of even a single person.