From the night of genocide, marching towards the strongest.

Of course, that was impossible. How old was he back then? His identity was also a top secret.

Moreover, it was Uchiha Itachi who killed the entire Uchiha clan.

They were only responsible for collecting the bodies and cleaning up the ground; they didn't kill any Uchiha.

After calming himself down, the orange-haired man dismissed his thoughts as overthinking and said with a smile, "If you need a large quantity of white chrysanthemums, it's not a big problem. We have quite a few flower shops in the village. You can tell me the number and address, and I can deliver them to you the next morning."

"1754 copies, please deliver them to the Uchiha clan tomorrow."

Apart from the hundreds of Uchiha who died that night, the rest were clansmen who had died in the 60 years since the founding of Konoha due to war, illness, natural causes, or other reasons.

After agreeing on the terms, Sasuke paid the deposit and left the flower shop.

The orange-haired man watched Sasuke leave with a smile on his face, but once Sasuke was far away, the smile on his face vanished instantly, replaced by utter indifference.

Looking up at the eaves, a black-haired man suddenly appeared there, wearing a protective suit that covered almost his entire body and a goggles that covered the upper half of his face.

They nodded to each other, and the black-haired man disappeared in the next moment, heading in the direction Sasuke had left.

Mountain wind!

He was a member of the "Root" secret service directly under Shimura Danzo, one of Shimura Danzo's bodyguards, right-hand men, and two of his most trusted subordinates.

Of course, after the Root organization was forcibly disbanded by the Third Hokage four years ago, Yamanaka Fu's current public identity is that of a retired florist who runs a flower shop.

As Sasuke walked silently back home, all the information about the florist from before flooded his mind.

Oil Woman Takes Root!

The man secretly monitoring him was also one of Shimura Danzo's bodyguards, his right-hand man, and one of his most trusted subordinates.

However, unlike Yamanaka Fu's public identity as a retired ninja, Aburame Torune still holds a position under the Hokage's Anbu, but secretly only obeys Danzo Shimura's orders.

'If we're going to kill Danzo, we'll inevitably have to start with the two of you, hehe...'

Sasuke chuckled inwardly, a hint of killing intent flashing in his eyes.

As night gradually fell, by the time Sasuke leisurely arrived at the Uchiha clan's territory, it was already completely dark.

Aburame Torune, hidden on the rooftop, watched Sasuke enter the house with a blank expression. He remained quietly in the same spot for nearly an hour before turning and leaving.

With a few leaps, his figure quickly disappeared into the night.

Shortly after Aburame Torune left, a figure darted out from the Uchiha clan's territory. After standing still for a few minutes, the figure seemed to transform into a ghost and followed him without anyone noticing.

A few minutes later.........

Aburame Torune arrived at an unassuming shop on the west side of Konoha. He calmly observed his surroundings, and several invisible phosphorescent insects returned to his body.

Finding nothing amiss, he gave a cryptic signal and then walked into the store.

"So that's where you were hiding."

In the darkness, Sasuke watched as Aburame Torune entered the store, a slight smile playing on his lips.

the next day.

On a summer morning, as dawn slowly breaks, the azure sky is like a sapphire freshly washed with clear water, and a gentle breeze sweeps across everything.

In Konoha's third training ground, Kakashi, who was always late, was surprisingly punctual this time, much to the amazement of Naruto and Sakura.

"Ahem!" Kakashi coughed lightly, ignoring the two's complaints.

"Next, let's begin our special training!"

Having said that, Kakashi immediately created a shadow clone and spoke:

"Sakura, you stay here with my shadow clone for now."

Sakura nodded, said nothing more, and followed the shadow clone's power to leave the spot.

"Do you want to defeat Sasuke in the Chunin Finals a month from now?"

After Sakura left, Kakashi looked at Naruto, who seemed a little impatient, and said with a smile, "I have a technique here that's perfect for you."

"Kakashi-sensei, what kind of technique is that!?"

Upon hearing this, Naruto immediately became interested and quickly asked, "Can this technique help me defeat Sasuke?"

"It's not absolute, after all, you know Sasuke's strength better than anyone else." Kakashi shook his head and said, "It can only be said that this technique can greatly enhance your strength, and defeating Sasuke is not impossible."

Naruto urged hastily, "Then what are we waiting for? Kakashi-sensei, let's get started!"

"Wait a minute, let me ask you first, how much do you know about acupoints on the human body?"

"I can't say I know everything, but I know pretty much."

"Watch closely, Naruto!"

Kakashi nodded, unsurprised, and his body suddenly burst forth with a large amount of chakra, causing the surrounding air currents to surge.

"Those are thick eyebrows!?" Naruto was taken aback, and quickly asked, "Is that the Eight Gates!?"

"Kakashi-sensei, can you do this too?"

"Not bad! This isn't a difficult technique for me." Seeing Naruto's shocked expression, Kakashi was secretly pleased, but on the surface he appeared completely calm.

"This is a technique that releases the body's restrictions on chakra, allowing excess energy to be released. Within the chakra flow system, the points that suppress and control chakra within the body include the Opening Gate, the Resting Gate..."

"However, while gaining power, the caster will suffer damage, therefore this technique is listed as one of the forbidden techniques..."

Kakashi quickly explained the origins and characteristics of the Eight Gates, and Naruto listened quietly until Kakashi finished speaking before asking, "Anything else? Anything else!? Kakashi-sensei."

"Anything else? What else?"

Kakashi was taken aback, not understanding what Naruto meant. Naruto said, "Kakashi-sensei, you should only be in the Resting Gate state right now, right? Quickly show me what you'll look like after the Fifth and Sixth Gates, Kakashi-sensei."

In his taijutsu battle with Rock Lee, Naruto was still very disappointed that he couldn't experience the power of the Five Gates and wanted to satisfy his curiosity by fighting Kakashi.

Kakashi's lips twitched, and after a long silence, he said in a muffled voice, "This is pretty much my limit."

"No way?" Naruto frowned, looking incredulous. "That guy with the thick eyebrows can open the Fifth Gate as a genin, and you, Kakashi-sensei, are a jonin, yet you can't even reach half his level?"

"Well, just like you always say, you can't generalize about people's physical condition. Although Lee is a genin, his physical condition is very suitable for this forbidden technique, while mine is not so suitable."

Kakashi offered a casual explanation, then changed the subject: "However, although I can only open two gates, I have thoroughly studied the Eight Gates Formation. Teaching you would be no problem at all."

"Teacher Chen once told me that there are only three reasons why a person's physical condition is poor: congenital deficiency, insufficient training, and poor diet."

Naruto seemed not to have heard Kakashi's explanation. Instead, he stroked his chin, looking thoughtful and analytical: "Kakashi was the most famous genius back then. We can rule out innate deficiencies. Although Kakashi-sensei is usually lazy, he became a Jonin, so he shouldn't have slacked off in training... Hmm, then there's only one left."

"Kakashi-sensei, are you not eating well?"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow and denied it, saying, "No, I usually eat quite well."

"No, Kakashi-sensei, judging from your constitution, you must not be eating well on a regular basis!"

Naruto summarized, then seemed to remember something: "I remember Teacher Chen saying that people like Kakashi, who are physically weak, need to take some to strengthen their constitution and replenish their kidney energy, in addition to their regular dietary supplements, such as yam, goji berries, deer antler, and... um..."

Hearing this, Kakashi perked up his ears and quickly asked, "What else?"

"Kakashi-sensei, are you interested?" Naruto glanced at Kakashi, though he was just saying it casually and couldn't understand why Kakashi was in such a hurry.

"Well..." Kakashi coughed lightly and said seriously, "I'll ask for my friend."

"Red bean paste?"

Naruto looked at Kakashi with some doubt, but finally nodded: "Okay, but I can't remember for now. I'll ask him when I get back."

"Yes, ask more clearly, my friend is in a real hurry!"

"Alright, let's skip this topic for now." Kakashi clapped his hands, bringing the conversation back on track.

"Next, I will teach you the training method of the Eight Gates!"

Chapter 138 Learning Earth Escape

Kakashi's shadow clones led Sakura to another open area in the training ground.

Looking at the girl standing quietly before him, Kakashi pondered for a moment before asking, "What do you think of Gaara, our opponent a month from now?"

In the months since Team 7 was formed, the girl in front of him had demonstrated strong intelligence gathering and analysis abilities on more than one occasion. Kakashi knew that even if only a day had passed, Sakura should have gathered and analyzed a lot of information about Gaara.

Sakura pondered for a moment, then her cool voice rang out: "That guy must be a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast, right?"

"Why do you say that? Explain your analysis."

Kakashi smiled slightly and continued to ask.

"It's really not much of an analysis, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said with a faint smile, gently shaking her head.

“When I visited Ino at the hospital yesterday, she told me that when she used the Mind Transfer Technique, she saw a monster inside that guy whose entire body was covered in cursed patterns, seemingly made of sand, and that looked like a tanuki.”

"Based on her description, I consulted a lot of information last night. If I'm not mistaken, the monster Ino saw was Shukaku, the One-Tailed Beast. Gaara is the Jinchuriki of the One-Tailed Beast from Sunagakure."

"Sakura, you guessed right."

Kakashi nodded, agreeing with Sakura's analysis.

Actually, Kakashi had a feeling that Gaara had used sand during the preliminaries, but he wasn't sure. Sakura's words confirmed his guess.

To dare send a Jinchuriki to another village to take the exam, even if they are military allies, Sunagakure has a lot of nerve!

Kakashi narrowed his eyes slightly and said seriously, "Since you know that Gaara is a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast, you must also know the characteristics of a Jinchuriki, right?"

"It's chakra, isn't it, Kakashi-sensei?"

Sakura's emerald green eyes flickered slightly, and she spoke softly.

"Hmm! Although I don't know how much of the tailed beasts' power Gaara has mastered, even if it's just a little, the amount of chakra he can draw upon is far beyond what ordinary ninjas can achieve."

Kakashi nodded and continued, "Sakura, your chakra control is outstanding. Although you can use one part of chakra to achieve the effect of two or three parts, ultimately, you still have a weakness in terms of the amount of chakra you can use."

"The final arena is a tough place for you, as you are skilled in water-style combat. If you can't end the battle quickly, you'll easily find yourself in a passive position."

Sakura nodded. Having practiced Water Release techniques for over four years, she was acutely aware of the advantages and limitations of Water Release ninjas.

The advantage is that if fighting in environments with abundant water flow, such as rivers or oceans, the burst damage and endurance of water-style ninjas can be greatly increased.

But that's also the downside, aside from the Second Hokage that her master, Maruboshi Kosuke, told her about and Kisame Hoshigaki that she met in Takigakure.

Almost all water-style ninjas cannot unleash the full power of their water-style techniques in a waterless environment.

"I don't have much to do about your chakra, after all, I'm quite careful with my chakra."

Seeing the girl nod, Kakashi shrugged and said helplessly.