Training ground.
On the open field, lightning formed from Lightning Release chakra occasionally flashed across Yagyu's body.
For a moment, he looked almost like a thunder god.
But in reality, it was mostly just for show.
"This Lightning Release ninja body technique is much simpler than I expected."
Feeling the Lightning Release chakra flowing through his body, Yagyu spoke with a serious expression.
"It feels like it originated from Kakashi's method of stimulating his body to achieve high speed while developing Chidori, just refined into a more complete technique."
As he spoke,
Yagyu gradually increased the intensity of the Lightning Release chakra surrounding his body.
His already powerful physique was rapidly adapting to the violent nature of Lightning Release chakra.
With the scroll as a reference, and with his previous experience developing the Wind Release chakra mode,
Yagyu was certain of one thing.
At most ten days, or perhaps even just a week,
He would fully master this Lightning Release ninja body technique.
And refine it further to create his own version—
Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
While Ino watched her man with unwavering eyes,
And Yagyu trained seriously,
Whoosh.
A sharp sound of wind cutting through the air suddenly appeared.
Then,
A young man wearing clothes marked with the Uchiha clan symbol appeared in the training ground using the Body Flicker Technique.
The quiet atmosphere was instantly broken.
Ino blinked in surprise.
"Uchiha Sasuke?!"
Because she had often competed with Haruno Sakura over their favorite boy,
Ino had never developed a good impression of Sasuke.
So even though they had been classmates for six years,
Unlike the original storyline,
Ino only regarded Sasuke as a fellow student.
Nothing more.
Sasuke's sudden appearance
Disrupted the peaceful atmosphere, which made Ino somewhat unhappy.
At the same time,
Yagyu stopped his training.
With a thoughtful expression, he looked at Sasuke.
"You came to ask me about Uchiha Itachi, didn't you?"
Although phrased as a question,
Yagyu sounded completely certain.
There was only one thing that could make Sasuke lose his composure like this.
And that was information about Uchiha Itachi.
"Sōsuke!"
Sasuke's expression was cold.
His eyes were faintly red, and his voice sounded hoarse.
"Please tell me any information you have about Uchiha Itachi."
That was indeed the case.
After finishing a mission and returning to the village,
Sasuke had accidentally heard the rumors spreading throughout Konoha about Yagyu's previous mission.
And when he heard the name Uchiha Itachi,
He could no longer remain calm.
So he came directly to find Yagyu.
He wanted information about Itachi.
"I can tell you."
Looking at Sasuke, Yagyu nodded.
"But I advise you not to act impulsively. And definitely don't try to find him right now. Impulse is the devil, understand?"
To be honest,
Because of Yagyu's overwhelming presence,
Sasuke had never developed the arrogant mentality of believing the Uchiha bloodline made him invincible.
Compared with the Sasuke Yagyu remembered,
This Sasuke
Was much calmer and more composed.
He was not beyond saving.
Truthfully speaking,
Although Sasuke's later actions often seemed frustrating,
He was still a pitiful person.
If possible,
Yagyu did not mind giving him a helping hand.
After all,
His combat potential was extremely strong.
If he could become Yagyu's ally,
That would be very useful.
To be honest,
Sasuke going to Orochimaru was completely unnecessary.
Compared with Orochimaru,
Yagyu himself was actually a far better teacher for Sasuke.
If Sasuke did not defect,
Yagyu could make him even stronger than in the original timeline.
Whether he could change his destiny
Depended entirely on Sasuke's own choices.
After hearing Yagyu's warning, Sasuke spoke calmly.
"I know that I'm not that man's opponent right now. I'm also very calm… but I still want to know what he's like now."
After merging with Asura Chakra,
Yagyu had become much more sensitive to people's emotions.
At the same time, his own presence carried greater influence.
He could easily tell that Sasuke was not lying.
"He seems to be doing quite well."
After organizing his thoughts, Yagyu continued.
"That's just my impression. I didn't speak with him much. But I can tell you this. Uchiha Itachi's current strength…"
He paused briefly.
Then spoke with a serious tone.
"Without a doubt, he has already reached the level of the leaders of the Five Great Ninja Villages. In other words, the Kage level. And among people at that level, he has already gone very far."
Yagyu did not hide anything.
He directly explained his encounter with Itachi.
After hearing everything,
Sasuke stood silently in place.
Meanwhile,
Yagyu walked over and sat beside Ino.
Ignoring Ino rolling her eyes,
He casually held his girlfriend's soft hand and played with it while waiting for Sasuke to recover.
"Sōsuke, I thought you and Sasuke didn't get along."
Ino leaned close to Yagyu's ear and whispered.
"Why did you tell him all that?"
Yagyu glanced at his protective girlfriend and smiled calmly.
Then he replied casually,
"No matter what, Sasuke is still our classmate. A friend. And in the future… a companion. It's just information. There's no reason to hide it."
On the other side,
After hearing Yagyu's words,
Sasuke finally snapped out of his daze.
He looked at Yagyu with complicated emotions.
There were two reasons.
First,
He had always regarded Yagyu as his greatest rival.
But he never expected that Yagyu had already grown strong enough to confront Itachi and his teammates directly,
And still retreat safely while protecting someone else.
Second,
Because of what Yagyu had just said.
Although this Sasuke was less arrogant and jealous than the one Yagyu remembered,
He was still walking the path of darkness.
That much had not changed.
A darkened heart could hardly be expected to show kindness.
In Sasuke's mind,
He cared mainly about himself.
Yet despite that,
Yagyu had called him a classmate, a friend, and even a future companion.
Those words stirred something within him.
"It seems you finally understand the gap between you and Uchiha Itachi."
Seeing Sasuke regain his focus, Yagyu spoke again.
"Hatred can drive people forward. But it's not the best source of strength. Sasuke, only power born from the desire to protect is truly powerful."
Of course,
That was partly manipulation.
Yagyu was simply trying to recruit Sasuke,
One of the strongest fighters of the future.
Even though the saying went,
Going dark makes you ten times stronger, redemption weakens you by thirty percent.
But even after losing that thirty percent,
Sasuke would still possess tremendous power.
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