Sasuke stood still beside Itachi's lifeless body, motionless, lost in thought.
For years, he had dedicated every single day to training, growing stronger, all for this moment, to kill Itachi with his own hands. And now that it had finally happened.
His emotions were more complex than he had imagined.
"Heh… Hahaha…!" Suddenly, Sasuke laughed.
At first, it was a small chuckle. Then, his laughter grew louder and wilder, turning into something almost manic. After a long while, he finally stopped, it had been a release, a way to vent the emotions weighing on him.
But then, his eyes sharpened. In an instant, Sasuke turned away from Itachi's body, and disappeared.
At the same time, a kunai Sasuke had placed in the surroundings was now exactly where he had been standing.
And so was a masked man, clad in the black cloak of the Akatsuki, adorned with red clouds.
The masked man had already reached out, grabbing the kunai.
"You must be the 'Madara Uchiha' that Itachi spoke of?" Sasuke's cold voice rang out as he reappeared a short distance away.
"I never thought the legendary Madara would be someone who prefers to sneak around in the shadows."
The masked man narrowed his eyes slightly. "A space-time technique, huh? Not bad, you truly are Itachi's brother."
He hadn't yet received a report from White Zetsu, so he was unaware of Sasuke's new abilities.
"But Itachi really did tell you quite a lot." The masked man rubbed his chin.
Since Itachi had already revealed the truth, there was no longer any need to act overly mysterious.
"Hmph. You coward, always hiding in the shadows, what is it you really want?"
Sasuke's eyes locked onto the masked man, his body tense.
He could tell that the way this man had appeared was also through a space-time jutsu.
"Sasuke, don't you want to know the real truth behind the Uchiha massacre?"
The masked man spoke suddenly. "If you do, then join us."
"Hmph. The truth? Isn't it obvious?" Sasuke's killing intent surged as he stared at the masked figure.
"You orchestrated the Nine-Tails attack, causing the death of the Fourth Hokage and leaving the Uchiha clan with no choice but to rebel, leading to their destruction."
Sasuke's gaze sharpened further as he caught sight of the three-tomoe Sharingan visible through the holes in the masked man's face.
At that moment, Sasuke's murderous intent became even stronger than it had been against Itachi.
If Itachi had been a sinner to the Uchiha, he was at least not a traitor to Konoha.
But this man? He was the true criminal.
The greatest enemy of both the Uchiha and Konoha alike. A man who deserved nothing but torture and death.
For a brief moment, Sasuke wanted to strike immediately. But his rational mind held him back.
After his intense battle with Itachi, he was in no condition for another fight.
And if this man truly was the legendary Madara, then even with his newly awakened Mangekyō Sharingan, Sasuke doubted he could win.
For now, attacking was not an option.
"Tsk tsk." The masked man clicked his tongue, a hint of amusement in his tone.
"Have you ever considered that Itachi told you all that just to clear Konoha of guilt?"
"That the real truth is something else entirely?"
Sasuke's eyes narrowed slightly.
Then, he smirked. "When did I ever say that Itachi was the one who told me all this?"
For the first time, the masked man fell silent.
Then, he sighed.
"So even after learning everything, you still chose to kill Itachi?" He shook his head slightly.
"How cold. How typical of the Uchiha."
Sasuke's expression didn't waver. "It is precisely because I know the truth that I chose to kill him."
"Itachi wanted to die by my hand, to atone for what he had done."
The masked man remained silent for a moment. He knew, persuading Sasuke was impossible.
But he had only been testing the waters anyway. He had never truly expected Sasuke to join Akatsuki so easily.
"Since that's the case, I have a request." The masked man finally spoke his true purpose.
"Hand over Itachi's body to me. As his former mentor, I will see to it that he is properly laid to rest."
For a moment, Sasuke looked at him as if he were a complete idiot.
"Are you joking?"
The masked man sighed internally. If Sasuke were alone, he might have simply taken Itachi's body by force.
But, his eyes shifted to the side, at the figure slowly approaching.
Natsuro.
The masked man immediately knew, getting Itachi's body from Sasuke was now impossible.
Originally, he had planned to use his space-time jutsu to catch Sasuke off guard. Even if he couldn't kill him, he could at least steal the body.
But, Sasuke's space-time ability was too similar to Flying Thunder God.
It was likely influenced by Natsuro.
And now that Natsuro was here, it was too late.
Truthfully, Itachi's body didn't hold much value for him.
He already had a collection of Sharingan, even if none were Mangekyō-level.
But for Sasuke, Itachi's eyes were important.
If Sasuke used them to unlock Eternal Mangekyō, it would make him even more of a threat.
From the masked man's perspective, Itachi was a complete traitor. He should never have been allowed to fight Sasuke in the first place.
"Hmph." The masked man's expression darkened slightly.
"I said from the beginning, it was a mistake to let Itachi fight him."
Despite being the public leader of the Akatsuki, Nagato had not rejected Itachi's request.
But more importantly, Nagato had also refused the masked man's request to come along.
If Nagato had been present, the masked man wouldn't necessarily have been able to defeat Natsuro, but at the very least, Nagato could have held him off.
If that had happened, the masked man might not have been able to capture Sasuke, but he definitely could have retrieved Itachi's body.
And that would have prevented Sasuke from obtaining the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
Yet, Nagato had refused.
His reasoning? Respecting the will of his subordinates.
To the masked man, that was the most laughable excuse imaginable. But at the same time, he couldn't argue against it. If he insisted too much, it would raise suspicion.
Because why would the legendary Madara Uchiha care so much about a single Sharingan?
Why would he be so wary of Natsuro?
If he pressed further, it would only expose his true identity. So, when Nagato refused, he had no choice but to give up.
Meanwhile, Natsuro finally reached Sasuke's side, his gaze falling on Itachi's lifeless body.
There was no longer any trace of life.
"Not bad." Natsuro offered a simple compliment, saying nothing more. He knew that Sasuke's emotions were likely in turmoil.
"Natsuro, be careful." Sasuke spoke up.
"This masked man who calls himself Madara Uchiha can also use space-time ninjutsu."
At this, Natsuro's expression turned amused. He turned to the masked man and smirked.
"Madara Uchiha?" His tone carried mockery.
"Madara isn't the type to hide behind a mask like a coward." The masked man stiffened for a moment.
Then, with a cold snort, he muttered,
"Sasuke Uchiha… Natsuro Shindōkawa… We will meet again!"
His body distorted, twisting through space. He vanished.
"…He ran away?"
Sasuke blinked, slightly caught off guard.
This only made him doubt the masked man's identity even more.
"Running away is the logical choice." Natsuro chuckled.
"He's just a clown pretending to be Madara. Even if the real Madara showed up, he might not be my match, let alone him."
"Mm." Sasuke nodded, not doubting Natsuro's words.
He knew better than anyone how powerful Natsuro truly was.
Even after awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan, Sasuke still couldn't fathom Natsuro's true strength.
As for the masked man's identity, although Itachi had told him that the masked man was Madara, Sasuke had never fully believed it.
And perhaps… Itachi had also been skeptical.
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Currently on Chapter 324: Cutting Through Space - Natsuro's New Breakthrough