Itachi paused for a moment, then continued, "How could that be? Today, I'll accompany you for training as a reward for your perfect score."
"Really?" Sasuke said happily after hearing this, "I asked you to train with me before, but you were always busy with missions..."
"Not today, let's go train."
After speaking, Itachi took Sasuke to a secluded forest in Konoha Village, but he almost took a wrong turn since he wasn't very familiar with this Konoha a year into the future.
Finally arriving in the forest, Itachi trained shuriken throwing with Sasuke.
Skills like Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, Illusion Technique, and Genetic Primordial Energy couldn't be trained, as Sasuke in this timeline was just a normal seven or eight-year-old boy. Short-range shuriken throwing was fine, but the Uchiha Race's throwing technique was somewhat lacking.
It might be because he didn't have the Sharingan.
After observing for a while, Itachi quickly understood Sasuke's weaknesses, then gave him some pointers. He had observed very carefully earlier, and pointed out every area Sasuke needed to improve.
After listening, Sasuke adjusted his shuriken throwing habit according to Itachi's suggestions and quickly grasped the method of changing direction in the air.
Itachi also learned a lot of information from Sasuke, including things about his own parents in this world.
Uchiha Fugaku did not betray the village, but the Itachi of this world still had significant conflicts with him. Sasuke had seen this world's Itachi clash with Uchiha Fugaku more than once.
And then there was the news of Shisui's death, which greatly surprised Itachi. Without the Hell Raven, Shisui's skills were much stronger than his. He didn't expect Shisui to die as well, and this world's version of himself was even suspected of being the murderer.
"Sasuke, you should go back first. I have some things to do and may be back late...."
As the sky was getting dark, and after having learned almost everything Sasuke knew, Itachi told him to go back.
Sasuke, although he wanted to go home with Itachi, still greeted and left first; he gained too much from training with his brother today, feeling that he could easily take the top spot in shuriken throwing in the entire school.
But when Sasuke got home, he saw his mother Mikota standing at the door with a displeased expression.
Seeing Sasuke, Uchiha Mikota immediately asked, "Sasuke, where did you go today, why are you back so late?"
"I went to train with brother...."
As Uchiha Sasuke finished speaking, Uchiha Itachi just happened to return using the Instant Body Jutsu. Seeing Sasuke, he said, "Back already? Looks like I missed it."
However, Uchiha Mikota didn't plan to let Sasuke off the hook. She said, "Itachi came back early, we even went to the Ninja Academy looking for you when you hadn't returned. Yet you use your brother as an excuse, Sasuke, where did you learn this from?"
"No, Mom, I was really training with Brother just now."
Upon hearing this, Sasuke's eyes widened, and he looked at Uchiha Itachi, tugging his hand, saying, "Brother, say something...."
"..... Sasuke."
Uchiha Itachi, though wanting to speak up for Sasuke, was just under their mother's watchful eyes and couldn't lie, "Just now I was with Mother, and when you weren't back for a long time, we went to the Ninja Academy to look for you."
"Brother, you...."
Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief, unable to comprehend why his brother, who just taught him shuriken throwing, would reverse the story in front of their mother.
"Sasuke!"
Mikota knelt down and spoke to Sasuke, "Coming home late is a minor issue, but telling falsehoods and dragging your brother into it is making a wrong worse!"
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Three Gaze Eyes, this small town in the Land of Fire was always bustling with people.
However, Three Gaze Eyes was most famous for its casinos!
Because of the variety of gambling games and stories of people winning big, locals frequently came here to try their luck.
Today in one of the casinos in Three Gaze Eyes, there was a significant bet going on.
A person who had almost never lost at gambling won against a dozen gamblers in a row. Some suspected him of cheating, but even the casino owner brought in a ninja and found no sign of any cheating, so they let him continue winning.
Until the seventeenth person sat down at the table, the crowd recognized the woman and began to jeer
"Isn't this the legendary big sucker?"
"Does she want to win? Damn, why not bet with me, at least I can make back my loss!"
"Hey, hey, stop dreaming, bet with me instead, this time the big sucker brought a lot of money... Brother, why not add another?"
"Yeah, yeah, add a few more, we still want to gamble!"
The eyes of the surrounding gamblers lit up as they spoke, thinking that if they could bet with the legendary big sucker, they might at least recover some losses; she brought at least tens of millions of ryo, if divided among a dozen people, each could get a few million ryo!
"What does it have to do with you bastards, you lost your money, so just leave!"
Tsunade angrily waved her fist and shouted. She had already prayed before she came tonight, believing she would definitely win big.
Other gamblers also got angry when they heard this, saying, "What? The legendary big sucker is so arrogant, you'll lose everything soon!"
"That's right, since you're going to lose, why not lose to us..."
Thud, thud!
Uchiha Yoichi knocked twice on the tatami, interrupting the commotion inside the room, and said with a smile, "If you want to gamble, you can bet with her. I only accept opponents, not companions.... If you're not going to gamble, please leave, or I'll call the boss."
"Tsk, can't we even watch!"
"Forget it, let's go drink."
The other gamblers chose to leave upon hearing they had to gamble with the big sucker or leave; if they stayed with the big sucker, they too might become losers.
After the idle crowd left, Tsunade licked her lips, rolled up her sleeves, and said, "Alright, let's start gambling!"
"Roll...."
"Roll....."
"Roll....."
"Roll....."
Tsunade's momentum weakened, and in the end, looking pale and weak, she discovered after slowly lifting the dice cup that she still lost to the other side, crushing the dice cup in frustration.
"Damn it, continue!"
"Tsunade-sama, we are already out of money...."
Shizune timidly asked from the side, regretting that she hadn't set aside money for tonight's lodging; now even food and accommodation were a problem.
"Out of money? How did it run out so quickly..."
Seeing the empty box beside her, Tsunade didn't look too good either. She hadn't even played a few rounds, and the money was already gone.
".... Forget it, let's stop here for today..."
Before Tsunade could finish her sentence, Uchiha Yoichi interrupted her and said, "Want to continue gambling? You can use other things, barter is also acceptable."
"I see your necklace is quite nice; if you're willing to use it as collateral, we can gamble again for all the money here."
Upon hearing this, Shizune hurriedly advised, "Tsunade-sama, no, that necklace is..."
"I know, Shizune." Tsunade grumbled, what, do they think of her as a reckless gambler?
"Then let me change the stakes too, how about this necklace?"
As Uchiha Yoichi spoke, he took out a necklace from under his clothes and held it up, "It's similar to yours and should be of equal value, now is that acceptable?"
"You, why do you have this necklace?"
Upon seeing the necklace in Uchiha Yoichi's hand, both Tsunade and Shizune were shocked, and Tsunade instinctively reached for her own necklace, inspecting it closely.
No mistake, it was Grandfather's!
"Can I take a look at your necklace?"
"Be careful, it's a gift from my wife."
With that, Uchiha Yoichi tossed the necklace over, which Tsunade caught and compared side by side.
The same ornament, the same First Generation Chakra, even the cords were identical.
Seeing this, Shizune puzzledly asked, "Tsunade-sama, how can there be two necklaces?"
"How should I know...."
Tsunade shook her head, saying, did Grandfather make two necklaces? But why did Grandma Mito say there was only one? Did Grandfather hide it from Grandma Mito?
Uchiha Yoichi asked, "The necklace shouldn't be a problem, right? So, want to gamble?"
".... Yes, gamble!"
After contemplating for a while, Tsunade spoke, "But if I win, you have to answer some of my questions!"