I, Uchiha, will not be whitewashed!

Chapter 85 Unwilling!

On the third day after returning to Konoha, Sasuke stood on the training ground, holding a kunai in his hand, throwing it at the target one by one.

All ten are bullseye, hearts.

He threw ten more balls, and they all hit.

But his face remained expressionless.

He recalled Naruto's punch in the mine—it wasn't a shadow clone, it was the real Naruto.

The guy at the bottom of the gang punched the bandit leader in the face, sending him flying. He crashed into the cave wall, slid down, and passed out.

Sasuke couldn't muster the power to deliver that punch.

His kunai was fast, his taijutsu was precise, but his punches weren't that powerful. Naruto usually can't even do a proper push-up, so why did he suddenly unleash such power?

Sasuke put the kunai back into his ninja tool pouch, walked to the sandbag, and started punching it repeatedly.

The sandbag swayed a few times, making a dull sound.

He threw fifty punches; his arms ached, but the sandbag was still swaying.

not enough.

It's not enough.

How could they possibly bring that guy back under these circumstances?

Sasuke stopped, panting, staring at the worn-out seam on the sandbag.

Itachi's face flashed through his mind—those blood-red eyes, the three tomoe slowly turning, and a faint smile on his lips.

He clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white.

He wants to become stronger, strong enough to bring Itachi back.

It wasn't through some inexplicable power, but through my own strength.

He walked out of the training ground, crossed the stone path of the Uchiha compound, and stopped in front of a courtyard.

Shuoge's home.

The courtyard was quiet, the door was half-open, and through the crack you could see a person sitting on the porch with a knife across his lap, wiping a strip of cloth.

Sasuke pushed open the door and went inside.

Shuoge didn't look up. He had been watching the battle the whole time, so he knew that Sasuke had awakened his Sharingan. He was there because he had anticipated Sasuke's arrival.

"I've awakened my powers." Sasuke stood under the eaves.

Sakugo raised his head. Sasuke's eyes had turned red, and each pupil contained a tomoe that slowly rotated.

Shuoge put down the strip of cloth and stood up. "Tomorrow evening, at the training ground."

Sasuke turned and left.

The next evening, at the training ground.

Sasuke arrived ahead of time. He stood in the middle of the open space, holding no kunai, just standing there. The setting sun cast a long shadow of him, trailing on the ground.

Shuoge arrived on time, without a knife.

He walked up to Sasuke and pointed to a tree.

"past."

Sasuke walked over and stood under the tree.

Shuoge followed and pointed to a leaf on a branch.

"Keep an eye on it."

Sasuke looked at the leaf; it was green with a small patch of withered yellow at the edge, and the veins were clearly visible.

"Look at its veins, edges, and shadow," Shuoge said calmly. "See how it differs from other leaves."

Sasuke stared at the leaf, his eyes unblinking.

The sun slowly set, and the sky changed from orange-red to dark purple, then to gray-blue.

Mosquitoes started buzzing in his ear, but he resisted the urge to swat them.

His legs got tired from standing, so he shifted his weight and continued to stare.

It was getting dark. Shuoge said, "Come again tomorrow."

"Wait—" Sasuke called out to him. "What are you going to teach me?"

"Patience." Shuoge left.

Sasuke stood there, watching his figure disappear into the night.

He gritted his teeth, turned back, and continued to stare at the leaf.

Under the moonlight, the leaves turned silvery-white, the withered yellow edges were no longer visible, and the veins looked like a fine net.

He stared at the net for a long time.

On the evening of the third day, Sasuke came again.

Shuoge told him to keep staring at the leaves. This time, they changed to a different leaf; it was more withered and yellow, and the veins were thicker. Sasuke stared at it for an hour; his eyes were sore, but he didn't blink.

On the fourth day, they were still watching the leaves. Sasuke couldn't take it anymore. "What's the point?"

Sakugo pulled a kunai from his ninja tool pouch and stabbed it toward Sasuke's face.

It was fast and without warning. Sasuke instinctively turned his head, and a kunai grazed his ear, severing a few strands of hair.

Shuoge withdrew his hand and put the kunai back into his ninja tool pouch.

"What did you see?"

Sasuke's heart was still pounding. "Your hand—moved."

"How did it move?"

"Move your fingers first, then your wrist, then your arm."

Shuoge nodded. "You don't need to come tomorrow."

Sasuke paused, stunned. "Why?"

"Because you saw it."

Shuoge turned and left.

Sasuke stood there, slowly realizing what was happening.

Sakugo wasn't torturing him; he was training his observation skills. The Sharingan can detect subtle movements, but if you can't even see them, the best eyes are useless.

He bowed to Shuoge's retreating figure, and by the time he straightened up, Shuoge was already far away.

A few days later, in the evening, at Ichiraku Ramen.

Kakashi leaned against the innermost seat, holding "Icha Icha Paradise" in his hands, flipping to the middle and engrossed in reading it.

Sitting next to him was Kai, wearing a green bodysuit, a watermelon-shaped haircut, and a headband tied to his forehead. There were three bowls of ramen in front of him; he had already finished two bowls and was finishing the third.

Kurenai sat opposite Kakashi, twirling a kunai in her hand, her eyes gazing out the window.

Asma sat next to Red, a cigarette dangling from his lips, his hands in his pockets.

"How are your students?" Kai put down his bowl and wiped his mouth.

"Not bad." Kakashi turned a page of his book.

"What do you mean 'alright'?" Kai's voice rose. "Lee can already kick through wooden stakes! Neji's Rotation Technique is almost perfected! And Tenten's shuriken throwing is unmatched among her peers!"

Kurenai smiled. "Hinata's Gentle Fist has improved a lot, but she's still too shy. Kiba's nose is getting more and more sensitive, and Shino's control over his insects is becoming more and more stable."

Asuma took the cigarette out of his mouth. "Shikamaru is smart, but he's lazy. Ino talks too much, and Choji eats too much."

"Are you praising them or belittling them?" Hong asked.

"State the facts." Asma put the cigarette back in his mouth.

Kakashi finally closed the book and glanced at Guy. "Your student's taijutsu is indeed impressive. But what about ninjutsu and genjutsu?"

Kai paused for a moment, then clenched his fist. "Youth doesn't need ninjutsu or genjutsu!"

Kakashi did not respond.

Kai suddenly stood up. "Oh, right, let's invite Shuoge to come eat ramen! It's so boring for him to be alone!"

"He won't come," Kakashi said.

"Give it a try!" Kai had already rushed out.

Hong watched Kai's retreating figure and shook her head. "When will he ever stop?"

"Next life," Asma said.

At the edge of the training field, Shuoge emerged from the secret police's hideout, his mask tucked into his waistband and his knife hanging on his back. Kai ran towards them from a distance, his green bodysuit standing out starkly in the twilight.

"Sakugo! Let's go get ramen! Everyone, come!"

Shuoge didn't stop. "I'm not going."

Kai caught up with him and grabbed his arm. "Come on! Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma are all here, we're just missing you!"

Shuoge glanced at him. Kai was strong, but he didn't break free, nor did he bother. After being dragged a few steps, he shook off Kai's hand and walked on his own.

Kai grinned.

Ichiraku Ramen. Sakugo was pressed down next to Kakashi, while Guy sat back in his seat and called to the owner, "Another bowl, please."

A steaming bowl of miso chashu ramen was placed in front of Shuo Ge.

He didn't touch his chopsticks; he just watched.

Guy talked about his students, from Rock Lee's perseverance to Neji's talent, from Tenten's ninja tools to his own youth guidance techniques. Kurenai listened attentively, Asuma occasionally chimed in, and Kakashi continued reading his book.

Asma suddenly turned to Shogo. "Why don't you take charge of a shift?"

Kai immediately chimed in, "Yeah! You're way better than us! You must be amazing at leading a class!"

Shuoge did not respond.

Kurenai said, "You don't need to officially lead the class. You can come and give my class some pointers occasionally. Hinata's Gentle Fist has hit a bottleneck. My Gentle Fist style is different from the Hyuga clan's, so I can't teach her too much. You have the Mangekyou Sharingan, so your perception of chakra should be stronger than mine."

Shuoge finished the last bite of noodles and put down his chopsticks. "Not interested."

He stood up and left.

Kai watched his retreating figure and muttered, "It's still so cold."

Kakashi turned a page. "That's just how he is."

Red lowered her head, turning her kunai. She hadn't given up.

Shuoge walked home, the moonlight shining on him. He remembered when Jing taught him swordsmanship. Jing wasn't a talkative person, but every word she said was to the point.

He wasn't a talkative person, so he couldn't lead a class and teach a bunch of kids basic ninjutsu.

But perhaps offering occasional guidance would be helpful.

He neither agreed nor refused.

When he arrived home, Shisui was waiting for him at the door. He handed him a piece of intelligence, sent by Itachi. Sakugo took it, read it, and then burned it.

"Are you still going to guide Sasuke?" Shisui asked.

"He will come to me when he needs it."

Heart