This time, the duel between the two was not held at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind.
Madara Uchiha's sudden appearance last time startled everyone, and they probably won't go to that place again.
Surrounded by mountains on all sides, this place has a huge basin in the middle, which gathers lakes covering several square kilometers. The water surface ripples gently, making the white clouds in the sky look like sections of cotton.
Naruto and Sasuke stood facing each other on the lake. Naruto, radiating golden light, exuded extraordinary confidence.
Sasuke was equally impressive, crossing his arms and giving Naruto a cold, sidelong glance. The subtle mockery on his face infuriated Naruto.
"Arrogant Sasuke, whoever loses has to admit they're a loser and buy everyone ramen!"
Naruto clearly remembered the bet he hadn't finished with Shinsei, whose wallet had been stolen by Kushina, and he was now eager to earn it back from Sasuke.
"Idiot! You can't beat me." Although Naruto looks very different now than before, Sasuke, who had just defeated Uchiha Itachi, was also very confident.
Their eyes met, and suddenly they both rushed towards each other at the same time.
Sasuke was enveloped in blue and white lightning, while Naruto, accentuated by the Nine-Tails Chakra, resembled a golden god. The two began exchanging punches and palm strikes, the surrounding air whistling as their rapid blows reverberated.
Naruto could clearly see that Sasuke was different from before; his techniques seemed much more mature, and he no longer had that impetuousness.
Uchiha Itachi's death caused him to mature suddenly. His greatest obsession disappeared, and he began to focus on another obsession—rebuilding the Uchiha. This thought made him understand his responsibilities and duties, and even his personality underwent some changes.
With two loud "bangs," Sasuke was kicked twice by Naruto, the force of which sent him sliding dozens of meters across the water.
Even with his Mangekyou Mangekyō activated, Naruto's speed was simply too fast. Even though he could clearly see Naruto's moves, his body still couldn't keep up with the reaction. This wasn't because Sasuke's Lightning Release was too weak, but because Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra amplification was too significant.
"Haha, Sasuke, you'd better treat us to dinner tonight!"
Sasuke stood on the water's surface once more, the black Tomoe around his neck spinning rapidly, giving rise to countless lightning-like runes that covered his entire body.
This is the new Cursed Seal Mode. A surge of power filled Sasuke's entire body, and he felt every cell in his body boiling. His body swayed, leaving an afterimage in place.
The two figures, one in gold and one in blue, collided again at high speed. After using the Cursed Seal Chakra, Sasuke completely caught up with Naruto's speed, and was even slightly faster.
However, Naruto's tail was incredibly annoying, always managing to launch surprise attacks on Sasuke from unexpected angles. Fortunately, Sasuke's Sharingan could always predict Naruto's movements clearly.
The two exchanged blows, neither able to gain the upper hand for a Isshiki. Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode was powerful, but Sasuke's Cursed Seal Chakra was second only to Senjutsu Chakra.
The fight became increasingly intense, with both sides trying to gain the upper hand.
Both were severely exhausted, their movements became increasingly slow, but their moves became increasingly ruthless, all in an effort to conserve their energy and strive for a decisive victory!
Shinsei seized the opportunity, placed his hands on the water's surface, and a massive wall of water rose up, separating the two.
"That's settled then, it's a draw."
Naruto muttered defiantly, "I was about to win!"
Sasuke was also a little disappointed, as he felt he had figured out the pattern of Naruto's Nine-Tails Mode.
"What, haven't you two had enough? How about you two fight me?"
Sasuke and Naruto both looked eager to try after hearing Shinsei's words.
But after they each felt their own conditions, they gave up this tempting idea. If they were in full condition, they would really like to work together to beat Shinsei up.
But they've already expended so much energy; even if they team up, they'll only get beaten up.
"But what about our bet?" Naruto was still thinking about Sasuke's ramen.
Minato smiled gently and said, "I'll treat you. I happen to have some extra money to spend."
Minato receives mission allowances in this world. Although he doesn't usually go on missions, Shinsei asks him to look after Naruto and help out during special periods, for which he receives mission rewards.
Even Kushina received a monthly stipend for teaching Jinchūriki. These stipends were quite high, far exceeding the average for ninjas.
However, a portion of the reward went to two unnamed Hokage.
Shinsei didn't know was that two Hokage were receiving a monthly stipend equivalent to two S-rank missions, under the guise of Shinsei being their security advisor.
Minato led everyone back to Konoha. Sasuke, seeing that they were about to leave, quickly went up to them and grabbed their sleeves.
Seeing Sasuke's hesitant expression, Shinsei smiled and asked, "What's wrong? Is there something you're embarrassed to say?"
Sasuke turned to look in the direction of his clan and said softly, "I want to bring some of the Uchiha clan members from the other world over."
"I support you in principle, but you need to be careful with your approach. Your previous actions won't work."
Sasuke lowered his head and remained silent. Later, after calming down, he realized how reckless he had been.
"Wait a moment, I'll be going to another Konoha in the next couple of days, I'll call you then."
Sasuke nodded and turned to leave.
Rebuilding the Uchiha is indeed something worth doing. Exterminating the Uchiha Clan Massacre was a despicable act by the Konoha High Command leadership.
As one of the two great clans founded by Konoha, the fact that they were Hiruzen Sarutobi by Danzo Hashirama Senju, even after his Impure World Reincarnation, almost unable to hold his head up high.
Otherwise, given his personality, he would have been going to see Madara Uchiha Tenten, instead of staying in Konoha all the Tenten.
As one of the saviors in the original story, Sasuke is a future Six Paths Level Genin with his own clan in Konoha, which will tie an unbreakable chain to his emotions.
Shinsei now views Konoha like his own nursery. The more vigorously the crops in the nursery grow, the happier he is, and he has no worries whatsoever that these crops might overtake him.
That's a choice only an incompetent person would make. It's like playing a card game; no one would complain that their cards are too powerful.
I'm definitely getting Sasuke's SSR card!