He suddenly froze.
Sasuke watched Naruto, who had fallen silent, as if lost in thought.
He didn't disturb him.
However… there was one thing that deeply unsettled Sasuke.
He sensed a very familiar chakra coming from Naruto's body.
That chakra… distant, yet familiar.
Just like Uchiha Itachi's.
How could his brother's chakra exist inside Naruto?
Could it be… the Kotoamatsukami from that time?
After a while, Naruto finally refocused his attention on Sasuke.
Only to find Sasuke staring at him warily.
"Why do you have Uchiha blood?" Sasuke asked.
"What?" Naruto looked slightly surprised. "You noticed that?"
Sasuke had only been guessing—but he hadn't expected it to be true.
Then why did it feel so similar to Itachi's aura?
Amaterasu?
Tsukuyomi?
Sasuke's expression hardened as he asked in a low voice, "What did you do to Uchiha Itachi?"
Naruto pouted. "Huh?"
Are you serious? Does this even concern you?
Naruto couldn't even be bothered to answer.
You're not even from this world—why are you worrying about that?
Seeing Naruto's indifferent attitude, Sasuke grew anxious.
No matter which world it was, he didn't want to see Itachi's eyes treated like tools.
"It seems asking for your help was a mistake," Sasuke said coldly.
"Someone who plays with the souls of the dead—and even takes other people's eyes—wouldn't care about things like that."
"I haven't taken anyone's eyes," Naruto replied subconsciously,
"Except for that pair of Rinnegan I wanted but didn't get."
"…Eh? Rinnegan?"
Naruto bent down and pried a Rinnegan and Obito's Kamui Mangekyō Sharingan from the corpse.
Then—
Sasuke stared at Naruto's hand.
Those two eyes.
And Naruto's earlier words—'I haven't taken anyone's eyes.'
They sounded incredibly ironic.
Naruto cleared his throat. "Sorry. That was just a subconscious action."
Sasuke frowned, completely disappointed.
At first, he thought that no matter how bad Naruto became, there would still be a limit.
But now it seemed… Naruto was far worse than he had imagined.
If you dared to touch Itachi, then I have no reason to hold back.
At such close range, Naruto instantly sensed Sasuke's killing intent.
With his own Mangekyō Sharingan, Naruto wasn't afraid of genjutsu.
That meant he only needed to guard against ninjutsu.
Naruto subconsciously activated his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
A violent chakra storm erupted around him.
The chakra condensed, forming a colossal golden Susanoo.
And Sasuke's attack arrived right on cue.
"A one-handed Chibaku Tensei… without any wind-up?"
Naruto stood atop Susanoo's head, watching the black sphere rise with interest.
"Tsk. As expected of Er Zhu Zi from that era."
However—
Every ninjutsu has a weakness.
Naruto knew exactly how Uchiha Itachi had once destroyed Nagato's Chibaku Tensei.
That black sphere was the core.
The core shot toward Naruto, carrying an overwhelming gravitational force.
The desert sand below spiraled violently.
Even the chakra coating on Susanoo began to show signs of being suppressed.
Naruto remained completely calm.
He took a step back.
A massive golden greatsword, forged from Nine-Tails chakra, materialized in Susanoo's hand.
Naruto's Susanoo stood like a divine statue—majestic and overwhelming.
The greatsword swung downward.
Crack—
Boom!
The Chibaku Tensei core collided with the blade.
Due to the massive disparity in chakra, the core shattered instantly.
A terrifying explosion engulfed the area, swallowing both Naruto's Susanoo and Sasuke.
Standing atop Susanoo's head, Naruto activated his Kagura Shingan to lock onto Sasuke's position.
Then Susanoo's body expanded further.
Gigantic, terrifying wings unfolded from its back.
With a single flap, it rose into the sky.
The next moment, it dived like a falcon hunting prey.
Boom!
Sasuke had just stabilized himself when Naruto's Susanoo appeared behind him.
He turned his head—and felt a chill.
This Susanoo was absurd.
It was, without question, the strongest Susanoo Sasuke had ever seen.
Even with Six Paths power, he couldn't manifest something this terrifying.
From below, Sasuke couldn't even see its head.
The golden greatsword it held pierced the heavens, as if embedded in outer space.
A sky-shaking roar echoed.
The blade shifted, pointed downward—
And smashed toward Sasuke.
Sasuke's expression didn't change.
He bent low and retreated.
Boom!
The desert within hundreds of meters trembled violently.
Quicksand erupted into the air, scattering everywhere.
The buried ruins of Rōran were exposed once more.
Amid the shockwaves, Sasuke had no choice but to activate his Susanoo.
Only then could he avoid injury.
Sasuke raised a hand to his forehead, staring at Naruto's monstrous Susanoo.
He no longer resisted.
Naruto noticed this.
So he dismissed his Susanoo and tossed a Flying Thunder God kunai in front of Sasuke.
Flash.
Naruto appeared before him.
"Hey," Naruto said, puzzled.
"Didn't you strike first? Why did you stop?"
"You're making it look like I'm bullying an old man."
Sasuke was silent for a moment, then spoke stiffly.
"…I'm sorry."
Naruto: "???"
Sasuke explained, "That chakra is your own bloodline—not Itachi's eyes."
Naruto's eyelid twitched.
"You threw Chibaku Tensei at me because of that?"
Sasuke replied calmly, as if it were only natural,
"That's why I apologized."
Naruto: "…"
After this exchange, Sasuke understood that persuading Naruto wouldn't be easy.
But… there were other options.
Ignoring whether Naruto accepted his apology, Sasuke spoke directly.
"Our world is being threatened by the Ōtsutsuki Clan. I need your help."
Naruto grimaced.
"You just tried to kill me. Why should I help you?"
Sasuke replied calmly, "Because your world will face the same threat sooner or later."
"You need intelligence on the Ōtsutsuki Clan."
"If you help us survive this crisis, you'll gain our experience—and possibly our military support."
"Isn't that right, Uzumaki Naruto?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
There are 30+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
📢 Check out my new Naruto fanfic!
[Naruto: I Don't Want Recognition]