Sasuke's room was pitch-black.
He sat on the floor, holding the two rice balls that had already gone cold.
The rice was a little cold, loosely packed, and even carried an earthy smell.
But he ate them anyway.
One bite at a time.
The emptiness in his stomach filled, and a warmth he had not felt in a long time rose from his belly.
Sasuke could not describe the feeling.
It was unfamiliar.
He had not felt this way since his family died.
Food was merely energy to sustain his life.
But these rice balls seemed a little different.
Why had that coward who did nothing but cry done this?
He could not understand.
Yet that tiny trace of warmth was soon swallowed by the far stronger restlessness in his heart.
He remembered the tedious sword swings during the day.
He remembered his master's lecture about the "soul of the sword."
Too slow.
Far too slow.
Demons would not stop eating people because he was here searching for some "soul."
The hatred over his family's slaughter would not be soothed by swinging a sword here.
He needed power.
Stronger, faster, more efficient power.
[Ding.]
An icy mechanical voice rang out in his mind.
[Demon activity detected nearby. Location: the town cemetery three kilometers east of Mount Momoyama.] [Would you like to hunt it down to obtain Revenge Points?]
Like a devil's whisper, the system prompt struck precisely at his deepest desire.
Revenge Points.
Upgrade the Sharingan.
Become stronger.
Sasuke's gaze sharpened instantly.
He remembered his promise to his master.
Until the Final Selection, he would not act on his own again.
But...
The image of his family being devoured flashed before his eyes.
Against that blood-red hatred, the promise seemed so pale and powerless.
Sasuke stood.
He finished both rice balls, leaving not a single grain.
Then he took the black wakizashi hanging on the wall and tucked it at his waist.
Without a sound.
Like a wildcat, he slipped out the window without making any noise.
Under the moonlight, his figure bounded a few times before disappearing into Mount Momoyama's dense woods, without alerting anyone.
The town three kilometers away had long since fallen asleep.
The cemetery on the eastern side of town was shrouded in a sinister atmosphere.
Sasuke moved like a ghost among the haphazard gravestones.
Soon, he found his target before a fresh burial mound.
It was a scrawny demon.
It crouched on the ground, clawing away the grave soil, seemingly trying to drag out the corpse inside to feast on it.
Its movements were greedy and urgent, and it was utterly oblivious to the shadow of death already looming over its head.
Sasuke stood in the shadows a short distance away, observing calmly.
He remembered the first time he had hunted a demon.
Back then, he had been frightened and nervous; even the hand holding his kunai had trembled.
But now, nothing remained in his heart but icy killing intent.
The creature before him was neither a life nor an enemy.
It was merely... walking Revenge Points.
"Who's there!"
The demon had a keen sense of smell. It seemed to catch the scent of a living person and abruptly turned its head.
It saw Sasuke.
It saw the boy standing in the moonlight, whose eyes looked more demonic than its own.
The demon let out a threatening growl, baring its sharp teeth.
But the next second, its growl caught in its throat.
Because it saw the boy's right eye suddenly turn blood-red, a single black tomoe slowly spinning within it.
Sharingan, activate.
In Sasuke's vision, every movement the demon made became incredibly slow.
Every twitch of its muscles, the trajectory of its impending lunge-all appeared clearly in his mind.
Openings everywhere.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Sasuke gave it no chance.
Two kunai flew from his hand, whistling through the air, one aimed at the demon's left eye and the other at its knee.
The demon instinctively raised a hand to block, its body freezing for an instant.
Now.
Sasuke lowered his body slightly, using Thunder Breathing's basic technique for generating force.
His figure vanished from where he stood in an instant.
The demon saw only a blur before the boy was already in front of it.
Too fast.
It did not even have time to react.
It could only watch as a black flash of steel swept across its neck.
Cold and precise.
Squelch.
The demon's head shot into the air, its face still wearing a stunned expression.
Its headless body swayed twice, crashed to the ground, and began turning to ash.
Sasuke slowly drew back his wakizashi, flicking nonexistent blood from its blade.
The entire process had taken no more than three seconds.
[Ding.] [Kill successful. Obtained 150 Revenge Points.]
Hearing the notification in his mind, Sasuke showed no expression.
He crouched, pulled out the two kunai, and carefully wiped them clean.
Then he filled in the grave soil the demon had clawed away, erasing every trace of the battle.
Only after finishing all this did he turn and melt into the boundless night once more.
As though nothing had happened.
Before you continue