Sasuke left without a shred of lingering attachment.
He had officially embarked on the path he had chosen for his future. His life had already been twisted by his own older brother; he didn't feel his choice was wrong in the slightest. However, his actions were clearly not what Itachi wanted to see.
It must be known that in Itachi's script, he wanted to see his little brother become a hero who protected the Hidden Leaf. Itachi saw himself merely as a stepping stone arranged for his brother's sake. Whether it was the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan or the act of killing the rogue ninja Itachi Uchiha, all of it was the future Itachi had preordained for Sasuke.
Unfortunately, Itachi didn't understand the principle that things turn into their opposites when pushed to the extreme.
His high pressure, his indifference.
All of it drove Sasuke onto a path Itachi couldn't predict at all. In the original story, the final result did align with Itachi's wishes, but the process was absolutely not what Itachi would have wanted. Did he not know what kind of person Orochimaru was?!
In the Leaf, Itachi could still exercise some control, but with Orochimaru, everything would depend entirely on Sasuke himself.
During this process, if any accident occurred, his beloved little brother would be gone for good.
This absolutely touched upon Itachi's reverse scale—his one untouchable trigger.
But just like Itachi's methods, which involved keeping Sasuke completely in the dark...
Sasuke's own choices were also completely beyond Itachi's control.
Sasuke's future.
It truly was up to Sasuke alone to grasp.
As Sasuke left with the Sound Four, it was impossible to keep it hidden forever. Even with someone helping to cover their tracks, paper cannot wrap fire.
No matter how weakened the Leaf was, it was still the top existence in the ninja world. A single clue could easily lead to an expanded investigation.
In less than half a day.
Information confirming with high probability—no, practically one hundred percent certainty—that Uchiha Sasuke had defected appeared directly on the desk of the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade.
"What did you say?! Sasuke Uchiha has defected?"
Tsunade stood up abruptly, her voice rising as she questioned Shizune, who stood before her.
Although his identity and uniqueness didn't quite match Menma's...
As the sole surviving member of the Uchiha Clan in the Leaf, Sasuke Uchiha's status was not comparable to that of an ordinary ninja.
He represented the strongest Dōjutsu in the ninja world—the Sharingan!
The defection of a ninja with such a special status was no small matter for the Hidden Leaf. Moreover, Sasuke was also a member of Team 7. Counting Menma, who had defected earlier, this meant that in less than a month, Team 7 had lost two members to defection.
This gave Tsunade, who had just begun to relax slightly as the situation in the Leaf stabilized, a fresh headache.
Before, when she wasn't in the village and had no heart to care about these things, she naturally didn't understand.
But now, after taking over the position of Hokage, Tsunade had come to learn the inside story of the Uchiha Clan massacre and the truth about Itachi Uchiha's special identity.
This wasn't just because Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane were obligated to tell her, but because the Hokage had the authority to investigate all files and manage all affairs within the village.
Even regarding Danzo's Root, if Tsunade really made up her mind, she could forcefully intervene—it was just a matter of weighing the potential fallout afterward.
Therefore, Tsunade was crystal clear about the Uchiha affair and the relationship between Itachi and Sasuke.
Suddenly hearing the news of Sasuke's defection, how could Tsunade not be shocked?
"Yes, Tsunade-sama. This is confirmed intelligence. It came from a forward reconnaissance outpost. They happened to run into patrol personnel. The ones who took Sasuke Uchiha were Sound Ninja."
Shizune said with a bitter smile.
"Sound Ninja? Orochimaru... could he have been abducted!?"
Tsunade frowned instantly. She knew, of course, about Orochimaru's contact with Sasuke during the Chunin Exams. This was something that should have been guarded against, but there had been far too many issues in the village recently. Tsunade had subconsciously put this matter on the back burner, and now it seemed that was a major oversight.
"Bewitching Menma Uzumaki wasn't enough, now he has to come and bewitch Sasuke Uchiha too?"
Tsunade refused to believe that Menma and Sasuke had gone to find Orochimaru willingly.
They were only twelve years old; how could they have any accurate judgment?
Orochimaru must be behind all of this, playing his tricks.
"No, Tsunade-sama. Judging from the investigation, there are no signs of a struggle."
Even if the strength gap was obvious, if he had truly been abducted, it wouldn't have been so clean.
Shizune's answer made the situation very clear.
"Call Kakashi and Naruto here immediately."
This was a moment where a decision had to be made.
Tsunade didn't hesitate at all and issued the order directly.
This was Team 7's business.
Naturally, Tsunade hoped it could be handled by Team 7's own people. And again, rules are dead, but people are alive. If any other ordinary person defected, there would be no discussion—Anbu would be sent to execute them on the spot.
But whether it was Menma or Sasuke, they couldn't be handled that way.
The harshest measure would be, at most, capturing them and placing them under house arrest. A double standard? Yes, very much so, but that was reality.
The reality of the gap in identity and status.
"Tsunade-sama, have you forgotten? Kakashi-san went out on a mission two days ago."
Shizune said with a helpless smile.
"Oh, right, I remember now. Then call Raido... no, Asuma? Choza? Uh, Might Guy?"
Tsunade proposed several names in succession, but realized that during this period, most of the Jonin in the village were out on missions—and important ones at that, like defense and patrols. It had to be remembered that just a while ago, the entire ninja world felt like a storm was brewing.
A great war could have erupted at any moment.
Naturally, the Leaf had to be on high alert.
Immediate combat forces had to be dispatched, especially to the northern frontline facing the Cloud. The Cloud had actively initiated friction; even if the probability of war wasn't extremely high, they had to guard against it. If they had zero preparation and the enemy marched south, the front line would collapse completely!
Therefore, at this critical juncture, the number of Jonin the Hidden Leaf could dispatch was truly pitifully small. The few that remained held important posts and couldn't leave easily.
Take Shikaku for instance—he was the Jonin Commander, a quasi-high-level figure in the village, and Tsunade's right-hand man. He couldn't leave the village lightly.
"Forget it. Call Naruto here first. Then send someone immediately to relay orders to Kakashi. Tell him to hand over his current mission to someone else and rush back at full speed to provide support. Oh, right, also call that kid from Shikaku's family."
Tsunade paused, then continued speaking to Shizune.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama."
After responding quickly, Shizune turned and left to execute Tsunade's orders.
Not long after.
Having received the news from Shizune, Naruto arrived in a frantic rush.
The look of anxiety and disbelief on his face perfectly illustrated Naruto's current state of mind.