The Greatest Flaw Is That You're Still Alive

Uchiha Sasuke walked back to where he lived now in a daze.

After witnessing those scenes, he had completely ignored the pain in his body, like a walking corpse.

He lay on his bed.

Suddenly looking around at his current home, though it was in the center of the village, it was only a few dozen square meters—not even as large as his former bedroom.

He recalled what the Third Hokage had said. "To keep him away from pain and prevent him from being left with trauma, move him to the village center!"

Was that really true?

But who lived around here? Naruto Uzumaki!

After the Uchiha Clan was exterminated, had they truly left behind no property at all?

Just among the places he knew of, the Uchiha had more than a dozen shops on the busiest streets. Yet as he walked past them today, every one of them now bore the crest of the Sarutobi Clan.

He was publicly recognized as the Uchiha Clan's heir, yet now he lived in a place like this, just like Naruto Uzumaki.

Then what about those shops and lands? No matter what, the Uchiha Clan had been one of the ninja clans that founded Konoha.

Those lands had been legally owned by the Uchiha Clan since Konoha was established.

And now they had been occupied by the clan of the Third Hokage?

The questions in his heart did not lessen. Instead, they only multiplied.

With those questions in mind, he spent the entire night awake.

The next afternoon.

Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke arrived at the training ground as promised.

Uchiha Feng had already begun his training for the day.

Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke glanced at each other, their hearts filled with similar doubts.

The one exposed eye of Hatake Kakashi was bloodshot, and even with his mask on, he could not hide the exhaustion on his face. "Uchiha Sasuke, what did you do yesterday? You look even more exhausted than I do after spending all night looking through documents."

Uchiha Sasuke's dark circles were especially obvious, and his eyes were equally bloodshot. "Kakashi-sensei, were you reading unhealthy books again? Why do you look so miserable?"

Uchiha Feng walked over. "Neither of you looks to be in very good shape. Are we still continuing today's training?"

Uchiha Feng inwardly looked smugly at his handiwork.

"Perfect. After I assign your training, I have some matters to attend to." Kakashi showed no embarrassment as he stated his arrangements directly. After searching all night, he had not found the slightest clue.

That was the most terrifying part. It was a mission known even to ordinary civilians.

What kind of mission could supposedly cause such massive losses to the village?

As an Anbu captain, he could not find a single record of it. Deep down, that gave him a bad feeling.

"No, I still want to train!" Uchiha Sasuke had been holding it in all night. How could he possibly give up this opportunity?

"Sasuke, you can't keep yourself wound tight while training. You need to learn how to rest!" Kakashi tried to advise the still-insistent Uchiha Sasuke.

"Fine." Uchiha Sasuke nodded perfunctorily.

Uchiha Sasuke now suspected Hatake Kakashi. In his eyes, Hatake Kakashi was a confidant of the Third Hokage. Why was he staying by his side?

Kakashi's attention was entirely focused on matters concerning his father, so he did not pay much attention to Uchiha Sasuke's attitude.

"Today's training: footwork training..."

After arranging Uchiha Feng's training, Hatake Kakashi left the training ground.

Uchiha Feng showed no sign of anything unusual.

Resistance bands were tied around his ankles as he fought against the pressure and adjusted his footwork.

With every step, he put everything into drawing-strike slashes, allowing himself to calmly execute his most familiar technique even under adversity.

Sasuke seemed to have gotten smarter. After a night of thought, he no longer trusted the Third Hokage, nor did he trust Uchiha Feng.

He observed Uchiha Feng's every movement.

Yet he was disappointed. Uchiha Feng was currently completely absorbed in his training.

Sasuke began his own training—Uchiha Throwing Technique.

He fired three shuriken at once. They collided in midair, their trajectories sealing off the enemy's best path of movement before they finally landed precisely on the target.

But one of them soon fell from the target.

He had failed to control the force properly during the collision, weakening that shuriken's lethality.

Scenes of Itachi teaching him resurfaced in his mind.

The current him was still inferior to Uchiha Itachi before he had even entered the Ninja Academy.

Three shuriken appeared in his hand again. He slightly adjusted their angles and force, then launched them as before, controlling the power perfectly.

They hit the target accurately and forcefully.

As they trained, the sky gradually darkened.

"Want to have a taijutsu match?" After wiping away the sweat on his body, Uchiha Feng came before Uchiha Sasuke.

"Like yesterday?" Uchiha Sasuke's eyes lit up. He had finally been waiting for this moment. He put away the shuriken in his hand and no longer bothered picking up the shuriken scattered across the ground.

"Just like yesterday!" Uchiha Feng smiled as well. It seemed Uchiha Sasuke was different from Hatake Kakashi—he had gained quite a bit.

The two assumed their stances, preparing to fight, while the mental channel in their minds was already established.

Uchiha Sasuke activated his Sharingan and used the Uchiha Clan's taijutsu.

Their clash was like a practice drill—harmonious, without yesterday's killing power!

[Who exactly are you?] Uchiha Sasuke asked.

[So, did you gain anything?] Uchiha Feng countered.

[Some of the Uchiha's assets have been confiscated by the Hidden Leaf Village. The Third Hokage may have been involved behind the scenes!] Uchiha Sasuke did not hide anything, wanting to see Uchiha Feng's reaction.

[Just some? You're still being too conservative! Do you know about the peace talks with the Hidden Mist Village? Those reparations all came from the Uchiha Clan's assets!] Uchiha Feng revealed more information that Sasuke could not find himself, yet could verify.

[What exactly are you trying to say? Tell me everything you know!] Uchiha Sasuke grew somewhat agitated.

Now, he finally knew that he was deeply trapped in a lie.

This lie involved not only his brother and the village he now lived in, but also the Third Hokage, and perhaps even the person before him?

What were they trying to do?

In his agitation, Uchiha Sasuke fully activated his Sharingan. The complete Two-Tomoe Sharingan even caught Uchiha Feng off guard.

[Would you believe me if I told you? Think carefully about the whole matter. Isn't the greatest flaw you?] Uchiha Feng guided Uchiha Sasuke's thoughts.

Uchiha Sasuke felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

Even his body froze in the middle of the fight.

Bang!

Uchiha Feng punched him in the chest, knocking him to the ground without causing any injury.

[Uchiha Style Taijutsu... Why do you know it too?] Uchiha Sasuke sensed something familiar.

Whenever his father guided him in battle, the final move was always like this: a punch to the chest that robbed him of the ability to move without causing any real damage.

[Think about it! Why? Everyone in the clan died, yet you're still alive? Just because of that ridiculous excuse your brother gave about measuring his own capacity?] Uchiha Feng did not answer him and instead continued guiding him.

Uchiha Sasuke sat on the ground, as though Uchiha Feng had opened up his line of thought.

Yeah... Why was he the only one alive? Was it really only because Itachi wanted to test his capacity? Then what about his father, with that kind of strength? Wouldn't he have been a better target?

For a moment, rather than being resolved, his doubts only grew greater.

"That will be all for today! I hope you'll improve by tomorrow!" After saying that, Uchiha Feng prepared to leave.

[You're an Uchiha Clan member too, aren't you?] Uchiha Sasuke's certain voice rang in Uchiha Feng's mind. There was now a hint of pleading in it. How much he hoped that there were still other members of the Uchiha Clan alive in this world.

Therefore, even if it was that demon who had hurt him time and again, he still hoped they would meet.

Uchiha Feng walked step by step toward his residence when a shuriken beneath his feet blocked his path. It was one that Uchiha Sasuke had left behind.

He kicked the shuriken with one foot. It shot out and struck another shuriken with perfect accuracy.