Self-Doubt

"Achoo~"

"Never thought that even you, who defeated the Shinobi World's ceiling, could catch a cold."

On the street, Sarada walked alongside the White-Robed Man through the commercial district. An occasional cool breeze swept past, carrying a faint chill.

"After all, I'm still only flesh and blood. Forget a cold—even a kunai could kill me in one hit." The White-Robed Man curled his lips slightly and spoke without concern.

Sarada immediately pulled out a kunai and thrust it fiercely toward the White-Robed Man's waist.

But the kunai passed straight through his body. There was no sensation of striking anything solid, as though the one walking beside her was nothing more than a phantom.

"Interested in my ocular technique?" the White-Robed Man asked mockingly.

Sarada nodded without hesitation and stared intently at him. "The method you used to evade attacks was what allowed you to defeat my father and the Seventh, wasn't it?"

The White-Robed Man raised an eyebrow and looked back at Sarada with faint amusement. His voice was slightly cold, carrying a warning. "It seems that after resonating with the Seven-Tails, you've started getting carried away. Don't forget, it's merely a measure I stored inside your body.

"Until the organization finds a suitable place to imprison the Tailed Beasts, it can only temporarily be sealed inside a Jinchuriki."

Naturally, Sarada understood what he meant. Creatures as enormous as Tailed Beasts would draw attention wherever they were kept, so the best place to store them was inside a human body.

With a few casual words, the White-Robed Man vaguely revealed the general purpose of this trip to Sarada, seemingly expecting her to resist.

Sarada froze slightly. Her Mangekyō gaze turned complicated as she whispered in a voice only she could hear,

"The awakening of the Mangekyō comes with exceptionally cruel emotional upheaval. The fact that I awakened it was entirely part of your plan, wasn't it?"

Another breeze drifted past. The lights within the village finally brightened somewhat, or perhaps the sun was about to rise, making the world of night visible.

She would never forget the scenes she had witnessed when her eyes awakened. Naruto had drained every last bit of Chakra from his body for him, Sasuke had been slashed countless times until he was nearly hacked to pieces, and even Boruto had failed to escape a cruel death.

But in the end, all of it had merely been his Genjutsu. As for the reason, she had only learned it recently. After all, the Seven-Tails knew a little about the rumors surrounding the Uchiha's ocular awakenings.

After the Fourth Shinobi World War, none of that was a secret anymore.

"Perhaps." the White-Robed Man said.

The two walked silently through the deserted commercial district. The surrounding shops had long since closed, as it was already deep into the night and nearly dawn.

Thus, the entire village was practically shut down. Other than the wind, perhaps the only sounds along the way were their footsteps and Sarada's earlier whisper.

A faint ripple stirred within Sarada's heart. Perhaps this was what people called insignificant concern?

Sarada did not know whether she should thank him for granting her this precious eye or hate him for disrupting the course of her life, leaving her in pain and on the verge of collapse.

In the end, she sighed and could not help asking, "How much longer are we going to keep walking like this? We probably won't find any trace of an enemy just wandering the streets, will we?"

After all, this concerned her other eye. Though it only had a Single Tomoe for now, perhaps it would one day awaken to the Mangekyō level like this eye had.

"Heh heh." The White-Robed Man could not help laughing. He mocked her, "What enemy are we looking for? Haven't we just been chatting and taking a walk to clear our minds?"

"?" Sarada was stunned.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but... she had no right to.

The expression beneath the White-Robed Man's mask was exceedingly vivid as he sensed all of this. In the end, she understood her place. After all, she had always been nothing more than a hostage.

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Nest Hidden Village.

Tazeshi watched his companions, who were practically collapsed on the ground and gasping for breath, and fell into thought. Though their bodies had undergone phased modifications, they still could not endure continuously releasing such powerful ninjutsu.

Throughout this time, he had used crystals to absorb all the ninjutsu attacks. As for thrown weapons, he had blocked them with armor covered in rock.

He searched for a long time without seeing his other companion, and could not help wondering whether he had died in the earlier barrage of ninjutsu.

Suddenly, heavy panting sounded out. "Cough, cough... that was close. Too close."

A figure emerged from a half-abandoned building nearby. He was covered in dust and grime, staggering as he walked, seemingly shaken by the aftershock.

It was Moli, whom Tazeshi had previously ambushed and dragged into the earth before he vanished. He walked dazedly toward the other three companions and frowned at the scene.

"What is this?... Did you start fighting over how to divide the spoils?" Moli asked Tazeshi suspiciously.

After all, it was three against one. There was no need to think about it—Tazeshi must have harbored ulterior motives and wanted the greatest benefit for himself.

"Moli? Great, you're awake! Listen to me, the companions beside you may have fallen under a Genjutsu!" Tazeshi shouted excitedly.

Moli raised an eyebrow upon hearing that. He looked at the three panting companions, then at Tazeshi, who stood atop a pillar of earth with only slightly dirtied clothes, and fell into thought.

"Who the hell are you trying to fool with that? I think you're the one who fell under your so-called Genjutsu!" As Moli spoke, he pulled out a Shuriken from his satchel and threw it cleanly.

However, the rapidly spinning Shuriken struck Tazeshi's rock armor, scattering a few sparks before dropping weakly to the ground. Other weapons were also plainly scattered across the ground.

"Listen to me! If their Chakra hadn't been exhausted, the target of their attacks would probably have been you, since you're closer!"

Tazeshi tried his best to explain.

Moli turned to look at the panting companions, his questioning gaze falling upon them. They, too, tacitly turned to look at Moli.

"You want to kill me?"

"What nonsense are you talking about, Moli? We're companions who have lived and died through hardships together. How could we possibly attack you? Don't listen to that bastard's nonsense!"

"Heh." Moli chuckled softly, his murderous gaze fixing coldly on Tazeshi.

Tazeshi:...

So all of you are only targeting me, huh?

The atmosphere instantly became tense. Tazeshi did not want them to continue misunderstanding him. He thought that he had to find a way to dispel the Genjutsu on his companions.

Thus, he shouted, "Hey, Moli! Just place a hand on their shoulders and you'll know whether they're under a Genjutsu. You know how to break one, right?"

Half-believing him, Moli approached one of the three and tried placing his hand on the man's shoulder, injecting Chakra to disrupt the flow of Chakra within his body.

And in order to prove that he was not under a Genjutsu, the man did not resist.

After a while, Moli asked, "What exactly is going on?"

Heimulin looked slightly stunned and stared at Tazeshi in confusion. Under Tazeshi's expectant gaze, he slowly said, "He deserves to die."

Tazeshi:???

Was the Mangekyō's Genjutsu truly that powerful, or did you people genuinely want to kill me?