It had only happened yesterday, and Shinsei already knew? And from his tone, he seemed very familiar with the situation.
Uh... Shinsei had let it slip by accident, but it did not matter. He was in the Anbu, after all; he had his own sources.
"I know. Orochimaru came looking for me yesterday too. He tried to put a cursed seal on me, but failed."
Sasuke sat up straight. Shinsei's words revealed quite a bit. Orochimaru, who had attacked him yesterday, had also attacked Shinsei, yet the person who called himself Orochimaru back then had been killed by Rock Lee. If Shinsei said so, then that Orochimaru definitely had not been the real body. Otherwise, he would not have been killed by a Genin.
The real Orochimaru had gone after Shinsei, and had failed. Sasuke naturally believed that. Shinsei was someone who had forced Zabuza Momochi to surrender without a fight.
Sasuke opened his mouth, but did not know where to begin.
Looking at Sasuke, Shinsei more or less understood what he was thinking. They had been classmates for years and usually got along well. Though Sasuke was a little cold, he was still a good boy as long as he did not act like an idiot. He was smart and sensible, and would not abandon his teammates when facing an enemy. As long as his older brother was not mentioned, he would not do anything stupid.
After thinking for a moment, Shinsei found that the boy before him had nothing but good qualities. He had probably come to him now because he felt lost and did not know the road ahead.
Shinsei had wanted to talk to Sasuke for a long time too. This was a turning point in Sasuke's fate, and Shinsei had no good opinion of Orochimaru. He had not spoken before because he lacked strength. He could barely protect himself, much less persuade anyone else.
"Actually," Shinsei said, organizing his thoughts, "I still owe the Uchiha Clan a debt."
At the words "Uchiha Clan," Sasuke's eyes instantly reddened, not because he had activated his Sharingan, but because tears were welling up. Had anyone else brought it up, he would only have felt anger. Facing Shinsei, however, all he felt was a sense of hurt.
Sasuke turned his head away so Shinsei would not see his tears fall.
"Do you remember the first time we met?" Shinsei continued on his own. "Back then, my parents wouldn't let me become a ninja, and I had no way to learn how to train my chakra. It was Shisui Uchiha who taught me how."
Sasuke remembered Shisui Uchiha and his warm expression, the companion even that man had acknowledged, the boy who had always patted his head.
A tear fell onto the green grass, sending up a tiny splash.
"I know what happened to the Uchiha afterward too, but back then, I was powerless to change any of it." Shinsei sounded a little downcast. As a transmigrator, he had watched a predetermined fate unfold, yet struggled to change its outcome. That helplessness had frightened him so much that he could only quietly pretend to know nothing.
"That includes your older brother, Uchiha Itachi."
Sasuke's body trembled slightly, his back still turned, and veins bulged on his neck. "I'll kill him!"
"I'm only bringing this up to explain that I'm willing to help you. Whether it's because of my debt to the Uchiha Clan or our relationship since childhood, I'm willing to help you. And I know more than you imagine."
Shinsei's words washed over Sasuke's heart like a clear spring, extinguishing his anger and filling him with a cool, soothing comfort.
"I can't see a path to getting stronger. I don't know whether I should go to Orochimaru. But as long as I can get revenge, even if it means accepting Orochimaru's instruction, even if it means having my body taken by him."
"Heh!" Shinsei chuckled. "What does Orochimaru amount to?"
Shinsei was boasting. At present, Orochimaru was someone he could not defeat, but he no longer feared him. He would only grow stronger in the future, and even if he encountered Orochimaru now, he could still escape if he could not win.
"You're different!" Sasuke's voice carried confusion. As Shinsei's classmate, he had never heard of any powerful ninja teaching him, yet his strength had grown as though it had no upper limit. Even now, Sasuke could not force him to use his signature ninjutsu.
"Where did Orochimaru come from?" Shinsei asked.
"Konoha." Sasuke knew the answer to that question.
"Where did the Konoha Sannin come from?" Shinsei asked again.
"Konoha." After returning home yesterday, Sasuke had asked around about the Konoha Sannin. It was hardly a secret.
"If Konoha could train the Konoha Sannin, it can naturally teach you."
Sasuke fell silent. Shinsei's logic was sound, and he could not refute it. It was just that he could not find a way forward in Konoha.
Shinsei could see what was on his mind.
"How much do you know about your teacher, Kakashi?"
Sasuke thought of his laid-back teacher. Though he was powerful, he was at most on the same level as Zabuza Momochi. His instruction could not guarantee that Sasuke would be able to kill that man.
"It looks like you know nothing about Senior Kakashi." Shinsei smiled. "Kakashi Hatake graduated from the Ninja Academy at six, became a Jonin at twelve, and developed the Chidori ninjutsu while he was still a boy."
"Kakashi-sensei..." Sasuke's words caught in his mouth. He could hardly imagine his teacher being such a legend. It was a far cry from his current image.
"There are reasons he's the way he is now, of course. You know he has one Sharingan, right?"
Sasuke nodded. He had never asked about Kakashi's Sharingan, but he knew that the Sharingan did not appear in people outside the Uchiha Clan.
"Senior Kakashi's current condition has a lot to do with that Sharingan. The Sharingan is your Uchiha Clan's kekkei genkai. Even after someone outside the clan receives one through a transplant, it constantly consumes chakra."
"Then why doesn't Kakashi-sensei replace it?"
"Because it was a gift from his close friend Obito Uchiha when he died. Senior Kakashi happened to have lost an eye too. He wants to see the world through his comrade's eye."
This was the first Sasuke had learned of Kakashi's circumstances. He had never expected Kakashi-sensei to have such deep ties to the Uchiha Clan.
"Also, don't think Senior Kakashi can't teach you. Learn everything you can from his experience first. You should know that Senior Kakashi's father was the Konoha White Fang, whose reputation once surpassed even the Konoha Sannin's."
"The Konoha White Fang?" It was the first time Sasuke had heard that title.
"It's enough for you to know. Don't ask Kakashi about it either. That's another story, and he's also a weight on Senior Kakashi's mind."
Sasuke nodded thoughtfully.
"All right, I've told you all this because I want you to know that there's plenty Konoha can teach you." Shinsei reached into his ninja tool pouch and took out a shuriken.
He formed a sword gesture with his right hand, and a streak of blue-white chakra instantly extended from between his two fingers.
Lightning Release: Lightning Sword!
He held the shuriken above the Lightning Sword, then released his fingers, letting it fall freely.
Shing!
The shuriken, made of refined steel, was easily cut in half by the Lightning Sword.
"Impressive?" Shinsei asked with a smile.
Sasuke did not like to lie, even if Shinsei looked a little smug.
"A ninjutsu without hand seals. Lightning Release: Lightning Sword. I developed it. Want to learn?"
The enormous surprise came so suddenly that even Sasuke, with his calm temperament, could not keep his heart from racing. His head began nodding of its own accord.
"Call me teacher!"