After Naraku left, a puddle of black mud slowly emerged from a dark corner in the previously silent and empty house, gradually enveloping Sakumo.
A moment later, Sakumo opened his eyes.
He sat up abruptly and quickly scanned his surroundings.
He was the only one in the entire room; there was no trace of anyone else having been there.
"Why was it dispelled...?"
He still remembered that the second before he fainted, his vision was filled with Naraku's crimson eyes, and then his consciousness was briefly plunged into sleep by the impact of the Genjutsu.
What a powerful Genjutsu... But his Chakra was still abundant, indicating that the Genjutsu had dissipated on its own.
Could it be that something had happened to Naraku...?
He grabbed his long blade and left directly... Sakumo Hatake was not unfamiliar with the darkness of the Ninja World.
After so many years as a Ninja, he had witnessed countless stories, both big and small, of baseness, cruelty, and filth.
These stories in the Ninja World were like spring weeds, growing chaotically and unrestrainedly; no matter how much they were cleared, they would always cover the mountains again in a very short time.
They couldn't be burned away, nor could they be killed off.
He had always thought he could protect the people within his reach; he was the white fang of konoha, a strong Ninja, and he could always eliminate all invading enemies and block all attacks.
But when he realized that the crisis came not only from enemies, but that those "companions" behind him could also harm his loved ones, he woke up.
How Naraku struggled to survive, escaping with his life from Amegakure, the Grass Ninja, and those "enemies" freely traversing the Land of Fire, he did not know;
What it felt like to face the enemy with a resolve to die, carrying the regret of not being able to reunite with his family, and the chilling pain of a broken blade piercing his body, he did not know;
What Naraku was thinking when he was forced to awaken his Sharingan due to an unexpected life-or-death crisis, and then woke up to learn he had an almost incurable bloodline limit sickness, he still did not know.
Are you only this capable, Sakumo Hatake?
You can't even protect your own family?
He kept asking himself, to what extent could he go.
Later, he heard his own answer.
Everything.
I can give everything.
So he was no longer anxious; his heart fell into a strange calm, a sense of relief that he could do anything and dared to do anything.
He would not give anyone another chance.
When rumors spread in the Village, he wasn't sad. If he were his old self, he might have suffered a collapse of faith to the point of ending his own life, but now, none of that mattered.
On his way to retrieve Tsunade from Konoha, Sakumo encountered a Root Ninja.
The person emerged from the darkness, wearing a mask and completely covered, blocking his path.
"Sakumo Hatake, Lord Danzo has ordered you to abandon Uchiha Naraku."
Sakumo sneered, enunciating each word: "I. Re. Fuse."
The Root Ninja seemed unsurprised by this, but continued in a wooden tone: "That's just a dying Uchiha, useless to you. Your reputation and your son Kakashi are the truly valuable things."
"I refuse."
"Lord Danzo will show you that his methods are not limited to this."
After the Root Ninja disappeared, he continued on, picked up Tsunade and Shizune, and the three returned to Konoha together.
There was hope for Naraku's bloodline limit sickness to heal, and a heavy weight lifted slightly from Sakumo's heart.
He heard that during the days he was away, the Uchiha Clan had tried to stop the spread of rumors, but later the Hokage handed over the handling of the matter to the Anbu, and the situation only worsened.
He looked up at the bright sun outside the window, then at his sun-drenched palm, no longer feeling its warmth.
Hokage-sama, even you are so... so disheartening.
He returned home and looked at the chakra blade on the sword rack in silence for a long time.
----------------------------------
I've already posted 70 new chapters on Patreon!
If you like the story and want to reaad more, please visit my patreon. Every support is very meaningful!
[patreon.com/Kazenova223]
Thank you very much!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"