Down on the floor, the Young Sasuke gripped his hands into fists. He looked at the ceiling and then at the floor. He was looking for any way out, but the walls were closing in. They were seconds away from being seen by both sides.
Young Sasuke didn't wait any longer. He took a deep breath and stepped out toward the right—directly toward the clerk.
Neji's eyes nearly popped out of his head. 'What is he doing?!' he screamed in his mind. 'He's walking straight toward the man who knows his face! Is he crazy?'
But Neji and Lee had no choice. They kept their heads down and followed Sasuke, walking close to the wall. They tried to act like normal, boring guests, though their hearts were drumming against their ribs.
The clerk walked closer. The hallway was narrow, so they had to pass right next to him. Sasuke kept his chin down, his black hair hiding his eyes. Neji held his breath, and Lee looked at his own feet so hard he almost tripped.
As they moved past, the clerk slowed down. He was looking right at them. He looked at Sasuke's yukata, then at Lee's shoes.
The three boys kept walking.
They were almost past him.
They were just one step away from the corner when the clerk's voice rang out, stopping them cold.
"Wait.." the clerk said. His voice was shaky and confused.
Sasuke's thoughts raced, 'DAMN IT!!'
"Umm... have I seen you somewhere?"
The boys froze. It felt like the world stopped turning. Sasuke's heart was beating so loud he was sure the clerk could hear it.
Neji's eyes were shut tighter than usual, and Lee looked like he was ready to faint.
Slowly, they turned around to face him.
The clerk tilted his head, squinting his eyes. He looked at Sasuke's face, trying to remember something through the foggy memory of the Genjutsu.
He looked like a man trying to remember a dream that was turning into a nightmare.
"You three..." the clerk whispered, stepping a bit closer. "Have we met before? Your face... it feels very familiar."
Behind them, the sound of the Samurai's armor was getting even louder. The clank-clank-clank of the metal was deadly. They were trapped between a man who was starting to remember and the Samurai who were ready to kill.
"Then allow me to give you a proper introduction," Adult Sasuke whispered.
The air in the hallway didn't just feel heavy; it felt like it had been replaced with solid lead. The two Samurai froze, their fingers locked around their sword hilts.
They looked at the man in the black cloak. He didn't look like a traveler. He looked like a shadow that had grown tired of the dark and decided to walk among men.
His cloak was a deep, ink-black fabric that seemed to swallow the dim light of the hallway lamp. Even though his face was hidden, the sheer pressure of his chakra was like a physical hand pressing against their chests.
"You speak of the Black Devil.." Sasuke continued, his voice calm and terrifyingly steady. "But do you even know what to look for? Do you know the signs of his arrival?"
The Border Samurai swallowed hard, his bravado from earlier completely gone. "Signs? What... what signs?"
Adult Sasuke tilted his head slightly. "He is not a man who walks through doors. He is a ghost of the canopy. If you are ever walking through the woods, and you feel eyes upon you... look up."
"Whenever you see a man sitting silently on the branch of a tree, watching the world with a single, cold eye... understand that it is the BLACK DEVIL. And understand that your life is no longer yours."
Down below, the City Samurai stepped back, his face turning pale in the mask.
"A man on a branch... why would he be on a branch?"
Sasuke didn't strike yet. He was watching the corner of his eye, waiting for the kids to realize the path was clear. He was spinning a web of suspense, making the Samurai so afraid of a 'man on a tree branch' that they wouldn't notice three twelve-year-olds slipping away right under their noses.
"So.." Sasuke whispered, the hilt of his sword clicking against the scabbard. "Tell me... have you looked at the trees lately?"
The Samurai were paralyzed. The hallway, which had been a simple corridor moments ago, now felt like a cage. They weren't looking for three runaway children anymore; they were looking for shadows on the ceiling, terrified that a 'branch-sitting devil' was about to descend upon them.
Up in the corner, Minato's face was pressed against the wooden beam, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. He had to bite his lip to keep from making a sound.
'He's actually doing it!' Minato thought, his blue eyes sparkling with pure amusement. 'I thought he just sat on branches because he liked the view or wanted to be thoughtful in private. But he's turned his weirdest habit into a legendary ghost story!'
Minato looked down at the back of Sasuke's
cloaked head, mentally shaking his own.
'He's standing there with all that terrifying chakra, making these grown men fear the local scenery.'
' 'Look for a man on a branch'... it's so ridiculous, yet he's saying it with such a straight face that they probably won't even look at a tree the same way again. Sasuke, you are truly a menace.' '
Down below, the City Samurai stepped back, his face turning a sickly shade of pale. "A man on a branch... why would—"
"Because from the heights, he sees everything." Sasuke interrupted, his voice dropping to a low, vibrating hum.
"He sees the secrets you hide. He sees the crests you find. And he especially dislikes it when people touch his cloak."
The Border Samurai realized he was still holding a piece of Sasuke's heavy fabric and let go as if he had just touched a burning fire. He scrambled back, his boots scuffing loudly on the floor. Though he didn't knew that the man who was giving the introduction was the 'BLACK DEVIL.'
The distraction was absolute. The Samurai were so occupied with the 'Black Devil' and his tree-sitting preferences that the hallway to the right—where the kids and the clerk were—was completely ignored by the guards.
But the air was about to get even thicker.
Sasuke's hand stayed on his blade, but his eyes suddenly darted toward the shadows behind the Samurai.
A familiar, oily chill began to seep through the floorboards. Sasuke's jaw tightened. He had given a specific order to stay away, but some people simply didn't know how to follow directions.
A pale, slender hand emerged from the darkness of a side door, the skin looking like polished marble in the dim light.
"My, my... what a fascinating introduction.." a silk-smooth, slithering voice hissed.
The Samurai whirled around, but they found themselves staring into a pair of golden, slitted eyes that made the 'Black Devil' look like a pleasant dream.
A figure stepped into the light, a mocking smile on a face as pale as death.
"I believe," the stranger whispered, glancing toward the man in the black cloak, "you forgot to mention the part where the Black Devil occasionally keeps company with... snakes."
Adult Sasuke's jaw tightened. Even without looking, he knew the identity of the uninvited guest who had just ignored his direct orders.
Standing there, his presence coiling through the hallway like a physical weight, was Orochimaru
The Samurai leaders stood frozen, their eyes darting between the man in the black cloak and the new arrival. The hallway was so silent you could hear the flickering of the wall lamps.
"Who... who are you?" the City Samurai leader stammered, his spear tip trembling. "And what did you mean by 'snakes'?"
The figure stepped fully into the light, moving with a grace that was almost too fluid to be human. "Meaning is such a subjective thing, don't you think?" the voice hissed—a deep, sandpaper-on-silk tone that resonated through the floorboards.
Suddenly, one of the younger Samurai in the back gasped, his eyes wide as he stared at the newcomer's features. "A... a woman?" he whispered, his voice cracking with pure confusion. "Wait, who is she? Is she with this traveler?"
Up in the corner, Minato's eyebrows shot so high they nearly disappeared into his blonde hair. He leaned over the edge, trying to peek at the person standing below.
Adult Sasuke, still facing the other direction, felt a massive headache beginning to erupt behind his temples.
He didn't need to turn around. He would know that oily, arrogant chakra anywhere in the world, in any timeline.
'These blind Tetsu no Kuni shinobi,' Sasuke thought, his jaw tightening in sheer annoyance. 'In what way does that monster appear as a wom—'
His internal dialogue was cut short as he finally shifted his gaze to see who had just crashed his mission.
He stopped.
Standing there was a figure with long, straight raven hair that framed a face of haunting, porcelain perfection. The skin was unnaturally smooth, devoid of any lines or warmth, topped with lips painted a soft, deceptive pink.
It was a face that looked like a delicate aristocrat's mask, but the eyes—those slitted, amber-gold snake eyes—burned with an ancient, predatory hunger that no disguise could hide.
Sasuke's eye twitched.
'You have got to be kidding me...' he thought, a wave of pure irritation washing over him. 'Of all the disguises in the world... he chose that one? Again? Does he think he's being standard? He looks like a nightmare trying to pass as a noblewoman.'
He wanted to say something. He wanted to berate the Sannin for ignoring his direct orders and for choosing the most recognizable 'unique' face in his history.
But he had to stay in character. He just stood there, appearing terrifyingly stoic on the outside, while on the inside, he was mentally face-palming so hard it hurt.
The 'harmony' of their partnership was currently just Sasuke wishing he could use a lightning strike on the Sannin's sense of fashion.
Orochimaru tilted his head, his 'feminine' features stretching into a chillingly beautiful smile as he looked at Sasuke. "Is something wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."
The atmosphere was a bizarre of soul-crushing dread and ridiculous confusion.
While the leaders were sweating, the troops behind them—the younger Samurai—had started whispering about the two strangers blocking their path.
"Hey," one whispered, nudging his comrade. "You think she's that traveler's girlfriend? Look at how she's teasing him. That's a 'lovers' spat' if I've ever seen one."
"Are you blind?" the second one hissed back. "Look at the tension. That's clearly his wife. She probably followed him here because he's in trouble."
A third Samurai butted in, shaking his head while keeping a wary eye on the man in the black cloak. "You guys are both wrong. A man that powerful? A man who talks about the 'Black Devil' like he knows him personally? He would never accept an old hag like her as his woman. He has standards."
The first one scoffed. "His face isn't even visible under that hood! How can you guarantee if he's even handsome enough to turn her down?"
The third one crossed his arms. "It's his intelligence. He knows things we don't. And as everyone knows..."
"THE BLACK DEVIL..." they all murmured together in a terrified chorus, glancing at the ceiling branches as if the ghost Sasuke described might appear.
"If that traveler knows the Devil, he is indeed intelligent. And as we know intelligent men are always beautiful."
A fourth Samurai leaned in. "I'll tell you exactly what's happening. She's his mother-in-law. His wife probably had a massive fight with him, so the old lady is here to taunt him. Look at that smile—that is the smile of a woman who knows where your secrets are buried."
Adult Sasuke's left eye was practically vibrating. Thanks to his enhanced hearing, every single word of their 'theory' was echoing in his ears.
'Mother-in-law?' Sasuke thought, his jaw tightening. 'Intelligent and beautiful? I am surrounded by complete and utter morons.'
Orochimaru, hearing it all, leaned in closer to Sasuke, his voice a silk-smooth mockery. "My, my... it seems the public has spoken. It's truly an honor to be your wife."
Sasuke didn't even look at him. "No thanks," he gritted out through clenched teeth. "I already have one. And she's actually human."
Under his breath, Sasuke hissed, "I told you not to come. Why this face? You're making this a circus."
Orochimaru let out a soft, feminine giggle. "Don't be so cruel. I know your wife is quite beautiful... is that why you neglect other, less pretty women like me? Don't be so selfish."
Sasuke felt like his brain was melting. He was trying to be a figure of mystery, and he was being hit on by a snake-man while a squad of Samurai debated his ethics status.
And then, the 'harmony' was shattered by the auditory explosion from the other hallway.
The air ripped by Neji's frantic shout,
"LEEEEEEEE!!"
---
A MESSAGE TO THE READERS !! 📢
Author's Note — 💗❄️
OK OK OK 😭✋
I KNOW the absolute COMEDY of Sasuke introducing himself to people while literally standing there AS the Black Devil himself 😭😭😭
The irony in this chapter was INSANE 💀
But please note carefully 👀✨
Until this WHOLE chapter, the Samurai DO NOT know that the man standing in front of them IS the Black Devil himself 😭🙏
To them he is just:
❄️ a terrifying traveler
❄️ a tree-obsessed menace
❄️ an emotionally unavailable husband apparently
❄️ and somehow a victim of mother-in-law allegations 💀
Meanwhile Sasuke is internally:
🖤 "I am going to kill everyone in this hallway."
I KNOW my little detectives 🔎 probably already noticed this detail hehehe 😭💞
AND AND AND 😂😭😭😭
YES.
Orochimaru came disguised as a woman 😭🙏
Well…
to be VERY specific—
Come closer so nobody hears this 👂🤫
If you remember the face Orochimaru used during the fight against Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen...
THAT face 😭😭😭
IT IS CANON 😉✨
NOW YOU UNDERSTAND why the Samurai immediately started saying:
🧍♂️ "wife"
🧍♂️ "girlfriend"
🧍♂️ "mother-in-law"
HELP 😭😭😭
And poor Sasuke was standing there getting psychologically damaged in real time 💀
ALSO PLEASE NOTICE THIS LINE 👀💞
❄️ "I already have one. And she's actually human." ❄️
I don't think I need to explain further 😭🫶✨
Sasuke Uchiha everybody.
Emotionally constipated since birth but still loyal 😭💔
And PLEASE forgive the gap between updates 😭🙏
Like I warned you all before...
the gigantic 🪨 BOULDER disguised as exams attacked me from nowhere 💀📚
Your evil author who survived academic assassination attempts and still refuses to give spoilers,
— Shinomiya Sakura 🌸✨
⚡ NEXT CHAPTER ⚡
The Frozen Crane Hotel descends into chaos.
A single mistake echoes through the hallway— and suddenly steel, shadows, and fear begin to collide.
As the Samurai close in…
a golden flash appears where no one should exist.
Above the battlefield, the Black Devil finally stops hiding.
And when his eyes open—
the very structure of the world begins to distort.
❄️ Space bends.
❄️ Fear spreads.
❄️ And the timeline trembles once again.
But in the middle of the confusion…
one wrong step changes everything.
A staircase seals shut. A teammate is left behind. And for the first time tonight—
the children become separated.
👉 Chapter 20: THE CELESTIAL STAR OF THE ETERNAL MANGEKYO — THE TIMELINE SHOOK AGAIN
Some powers are feared.
Others should never have existed.
SNEAK PEEK LINES 💬
"....you were told to look at the trees. You should have stayed there."
"My boy? Wife? Mother-in-law? "My boy...?"
---
—With love, one forehead poke away from collapse,
Sakura Shinomiya 💫
---