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Chapter 130 - Chapter 130: Talk-no-Jutsu Success

"There was no real 'choice' for Itachi. Konoha never gave him one. No one could truly understand the turmoil in his heart at the time."

Hyuga Gakuya spoke calmly as he recounted the events.

"Itachi alone could never have wiped out the entire Uchiha Clan. His strength, though formidable, was not enough."

"That's why he turned to Uchiha Obito, asking for his help in eliminating the Uchiha Police Force. The price he paid was allowing Obito to harvest the Sharingan of those he killed."

In Sasuke's mind, the figure of the crimson-eyed Obito surfaced.

"Itachi completed his mission as flawlessly as ever. At that point, the only one within the Uchiha Clan capable of standing against him was your father—Uchiha Fugaku, who also possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan."

"But he didn't resist. He accepted Itachi's decision and entrusted the Uchiha Clan's honor, its hope for revival... all to you, Sasuke."

Sasuke's eyes widened in shock. He had never known that his father had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, much less that he had willingly died for Sasuke's future.

"Itachi could bring himself to kill anyone, even their own parents... but when it came to you, his little brother, he couldn't do it."

"That was the deal he made with Konoha's leadership. So long as Uchiha Itachi annihilated his clan, they would spare Sasuke—the last Uchiha—to carry on the bloodline and embody the clan's future."

"Itachi destroyed his entire family with his own hands... and even after that, Konoha still wasn't done using him. Their final order was for him to infiltrate the Akatsuki, serving as Konoha's eyes and ears."

Sasuke's gaze was filled with rage and confusion.

Why? Why did Konoha have to drive the Uchiha to extinction? Why!?

"You know the story from there. As Itachi's closest friend, he entrusted me with a task: to guide you onto the right path. In return, I was given your father's Mangekyō Sharingan."

"After the death of the Third Hokage—the one who had promised to protect you—Konoha was no longer a safe place for you. That's why I took you away, protected you, and taught you ninjutsu."

Hyuga Gakuya pulled out a small glass case and handed it to Sasuke. Sasuke accepted it carefully, feeling the overwhelming power sealed within.

"It seems I failed to fulfill my promise... so, these rightfully belong to you."

Of course, this was only half true. Sasuke had been led away under the name of Orochimaru. Itachi had always believed that it was Orochimaru who had taken Sasuke.

As for the promise to guide Sasuke back to Konoha—that part had indeed existed.

But now, with no witnesses left, Gakuya could fabricate the details however he liked.

Sasuke placed the pair of eyes carefully on the table. Through gritted teeth, he asked,

"What is the right path?"

Gakuya replied, "As you were fighting, Team Dusk from the Five Great Nations was already en route here. Among them was your old friend—Naruto. Itachi believed Naruto could bring you back to Konoha."

"And that 'right path' meant returning to Konoha... protecting it... and eventually becoming the next Hokage."

He gently patted Sasuke on the shoulder and said in a low voice,

"But I believe you deserve to know the full truth. You deserve the right to choose for yourself. So I pushed Team Dusk back and laid everything bare."

"Now, two paths lie before you. First, you can follow Itachi's wishes, return to Konoha, and I will help restore your honor. You would return as a hero."

Before Gakuya could even finish, Sasuke's face twisted with rage. His clenched fists trembled, his whole body quivering with suppressed fury.

"Return to Konoha?" Sasuke hissed, the words grinding out between his teeth. "Return to the village that slaughtered the Uchiha Clan? Never!"

His voice was low and hoarse, crackling with barely contained hatred.

To Sasuke, Konoha was a nightmare—a graveyard of memories soaked in blood.

He would never forget the sight of his entire clan lying slaughtered before him.

Never forget the brother he once loved so deeply, standing among the corpses.

These wounds were carved into his soul, impossible to erase.

And it was all because of Konoha.

"Then there's the second option," Gakuya said, voice calm and inviting.

"Follow me. Together, we'll build a perfect world... and take revenge on Konoha."

A vision flashed before Sasuke's eyes—his family alive, smiling, together again.He reached out to touch them—only for the illusion to burst like a soap bubble.

Gakuya lifted the genjutsu, pulling them both back to reality.

But Sasuke's choice was already clear.

He would follow Hyuga Gakuya.

He would create a perfect world.

And he would rain vengeance down on Konoha.

Gakuya had barely even exerted any effort.

Just by telling Sasuke the truth of the Uchiha Massacre, Sasuke's heart had been decided.

How could anyone expect him to return to the arms of those who murdered his family?

Sasuke, ignoring the agony racking his body, climbed down from the hospital bed.

He walked over to Itachi's corpse.

Looking down at his brother—whose lips still seemed to carry the faintest trace of a smile—Sasuke swore:

"I will destroy everything about Konoha. I will make them suffer a hundredfold, a thousandfold, for what they made me endure!"

The more he spoke, the more intense his rage grew. His eyes bled tears of blood as the tomoe in his Sharingan began to spin faster and faster— Until they merged into the blood-red whorls of the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Gakuya observed quietly, without a hint of surprise.

If Sasuke hadn't awakened the Mangekyō now, it would have meant his potential was utterly spent.

The deeper the Uchiha's emotions, the greater their power.

Gakuya couldn't help but wonder what kind of abilities Sasuke's Mangekyō might manifest.

...

"This is the Uchiha's fate..."

Hyuga Gakuya muttered, watching from the side.

Sasuke, regaining his senses, gently touched his blood-stained eyelids.

"I'll make Konoha pay. One day... I'll make them suffer a thousand times over."

Gakuya sighed and shook his head.

"Are you certain about this? Walking the path of vengeance... joining me to build a perfect world, to revive your loved ones... This is not what Itachi wished for you."

His voice was thick with seeming concern, as if genuinely worried for Sasuke.

To any outsider, Gakuya would have seemed like a selfless mentor— one who didn't covet the Sharingan's power, who had even returned a pair of Mangekyō eyes without a second thought.

How could Sasuke ever suspect that Gakuya's motives might not be pure?

"If you return to Konoha, you might..."

Hearing Gakuya's soft persuasion, Sasuke felt a faint warmth flicker in his frozen heart.

But his voice remained cold and unwavering, cutting Gakuya off before he could finish:

"There's no need to try and change my mind, Sensei. I've already decided. And nothing will change that."

Gakuya almost sighed loudly to the heavens—but remembering they were still indoors, he restrained himself.

Instead, he turned silently toward Itachi's body, his gaze filled with bottomless sorrow and regret.

"The world sees the Uchiha as evil. They say the Sharingan can only be awakened through the death of a loved one."

"But reality is the opposite. The Uchiha are the ones who love the deepest."

"Itachi underestimated your resolve to take vengeance on Konoha. And he far, far underestimated how much you loved him."

Hearing this, Sasuke clenched his fists tightly.

He stood there, lost in silence.

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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