After learning the Shadow Clone Technique from Hyuga Hiashi, he used the Transformation Technique to disguise himself among the cargo and leave Konoha.
Over the next few months, to avoid being discovered by the Otsutsuki, he sent out Shadow Clones twice to follow them from a distance whenever they traveled to Earth.
Aoike was now seven years old and had finally learned the location of the passage between the Earth and the Moon.
But today, something more important was happening for Konoha.
Aoike had noticed long ago that the Police Force had been almost completely silent lately, and he no longer saw many Uchiha clan members wandering the streets.
With classes ending late and Sasuke being seven, it was almost certain that the Uchiha Clan Massacre would happen today.
Sure enough, the next day Sasuke didn't come to class, and the hot-tempered Sakura started picking on Naruto.
Naruto still didn't know what had happened to Sasuke, and lounged carelessly in his seat as usual.
"Stuck-up Sasuke's definitely scared of me. He doesn't dare show his face!"
Naruto shouted loudly, completely ignoring Sakura's hair as it floated upward in defiance of gravity.
After the righteous fist came down, the classroom finally fell quiet. That was because Iruka had entered.
His expression was grave as he said,
"Something happened in Sasuke's family, so he won't be coming to the Ninja Academy for a while..."
With the end-of-term exams coming up, most people didn't pay much attention to Sasuke's situation.
But Aoike knew the Uchiha Clan Massacre couldn't be kept secret for long. Once the news got out, it would surely shock the entire Ninja World.
After the Senju and Uzumaki had disappeared, the Uchiha were undoubtedly the most powerful clan in Konoha—and the entire Ninja World.
Once the clan had been wiped out overnight, spies from other villages and organizations would naturally seize the opportunity to infiltrate Konoha and probe the strength of the greatest of the Five Great Villages.
Another bloody storm was bound to follow.
Still, it had little to do with Aoike.
If he weren't so weak, he'd want to take the opportunity to grab a couple of Sharingan himself. Paired with Izanagi, they'd be like extra lives. Who wouldn't be tempted?
What a pity. He just wasn't strong enough.
Hinata, beside him, had only heard Aoike muttering to himself. She turned her head curiously and asked,
"Big Brother Aoike, what are you talking about?"
"Nothing, Hinata. I'm just looking forward to the coming vacation."
Hinata pinched the hem of her clothes with both hands, looking a little shy as a blush spread across her face.
"Um... Big Brother, will you still train with me this vacation...?"
Her voice grew softer and softer, but the hope in her words didn't fade at all.
Aoike walked with Hinata along the road back to the Hyuga compound.
"Of course."
In the courtyard at home, a piece of Chakra Paper burned, split, crumbled, and grew damp between Aoike's fingers, revealing his aptitude for four chakra natures.
Aoike's lips curved into a smile.
With this, the technique he had in mind would be powerful enough, at least in its early stages.
He took a deep breath and settled into a stance. A little chakra flowed out of his tenketsu, then began to rotate clockwise.
Rotation!
A hemispherical chakra barrier surrounded Aoike, forming what was known as absolute defense.
After a dozen seconds, Aoike stopped. The difficulty of Rotation lay in controlling the tenketsu and chakra, and Aoike had already mastered both.
As for using Rotation to develop a new technique, he planned something akin to Cloud Village's Lightning Style and the Tailed Beast Chakra Cloak. The former required a punishing training regimen to make progress, while the latter required a massive amount of chakra.
Although seven-year-old Aoike already had a full card's worth of chakra, it was nowhere near enough to create a Chakra Cloak.
So the new technique would have to rely on his highly refined control over Chakra Nature Transformation, with the Byakugan assisting him. Chakra would flow through his tenketsu and spread from point to point, wrapping around his body until it formed a chakra mode of his own.
The technique would be no easy feat.
But it's the most suitable technique for me to develop right now.
Once he'd made up his mind, he immediately began training in Chakra Nature Transformation. Water and wind were the best elements to start with.
Since he already had experience training in Wind Style, it was the obvious choice for his first chakra mode.
He'd learned to climb trees and walk on water when he was six, so now all he needed to do was master nature transformation.
Aoike held a leaf in his hand and infused it with chakra, trying to separate the veins from the flesh. His first attempt ended in failure.
Aoike didn't rush. He still had plenty of time at the Ninja Academy. Once he finished developing the technique, he would apply to graduate and get some real combat experience.
From then on, having finished training in Gentle Fist, he devoted himself to developing his new technique.
Day after day passed. Training with a clear goal always made time fly. Meanwhile, his progress on the new technique continued to accelerate, and he also had to deal with challenges from Uchiha Sasuke.
Ever since recovering, Sasuke had made training for revenge his obsession. But unlike Aoike, he had no one to guide him and little experience.
As a result, his training could only be called impressive for a student. Compared with Kakashi and Itachi, however, he didn't amount to much.
At least Aoike had Gentle Fist to use as a reference. After the massacre, Sasuke had been left with nothing but a few possessions.
Sasuke's current skills were Great Fireball, throwing weapons, and Taijutsu.
Another year passed. Aoike was now eight.
To everyone's surprise, Sasuke chose Aoike as his opponent again for the end-of-term sparring exam.
Aoike had beaten him just two days ago. Judging by past experience, Sasuke usually took a week to recover before challenging him again. What was going on today?
What Aoike didn't know was that, after being defeated again two days earlier, Sasuke had nearly lost faith in himself. In his mind, Itachi was the greatest genius, with Aoike—who had kept beating him over the past year—in second place. Now he couldn't even get past the mountain that was Aoike, leaving him lost about the path to revenge ahead.
In the midst of all that pent-up frustration, the One-Tomoe Sharingan that had awakened long ago only to fall dormant appeared again as Sasuke pounded the ground, blow after blow.
In other words, Sasuke, now with a One-Tomoe Sharingan, felt the skies clear and the rain stop. He was back in the game.