Sakura observed the battle unfold, her sharp mind quickly picking up on the pattern.
Every time that Oto-nin, Tayuya, uttered a single note, Sasuke would be struck by a powerful, unseen force. This wasn't a conventional attack. It wasn't speed, strength, or even chakra manipulation in the usual sense. It was sound.
Realizing this, Sakura acted immediately. "Sasuke, cover your ears! Don't listen to anything!" she commanded.
Sasuke, though skilled, had been too focused on the fight to piece it together himself. But with Sakura's warning, he understood in an instant. Without hesitation, he channeled chakra to his ears, sealing off his hearing.
However, this also created a new problem. Without his sense of sound, Sasuke could no longer track his enemies as easily. Their movements became unpredictable, forcing him to rely solely on sight, something that wasn't ideal against multiple opponents.
The Sound Four had initially dismissed Sakura as irrelevant, focusing entirely on Sasuke. But now, they saw the flaw in that assumption. This girl, who had been nothing more than an afterthought, had single-handedly disrupted their attack.
Tayuya clicked her tongue in irritation. "Tch. Annoying little brat."
"Then we take her out first," Kidōmaru muttered, his six arms tensing in preparation.
Jirōbō cracked his knuckles. "Without her, Uchiha won't last long."
But Sasuke had anticipated this. He remained positioned between Sakura and the Sound Four, a silent declaration that they would have to get through him first. His grip on his sword tightened, the crimson glow of his Sharingan burning into them.
Not far away, Tsunade had been observing the battle and let out a quiet huff of amusement. "That kid..." She glanced at Tatsuya and motioned toward the fight. "Take a look at this."
Tatsuya had already been watching closely, his sharp gaze catching details even Tsunade might have missed.
In the dead of night, they had stationed themselves here, giving Sasuke a chance to handle things on his own. Yet even now, amid battle, the boy couldn't shake his instincts. The ingrained tendency to shield others, even when it put him at risk.
Tsunade crossed her arms. "It's a nice trait to have... in moderation."
Tatsuya sighed. "It's an admirable habit, sure, but against multiple enemies? He should be focusing on taking them all down as fast as possible. The best way to protect someone isn't to stand in front of them. It's to make sure the threat is eliminated before they can even get close."
Sasuke was strong, but sentiment could be a weakness in battle. If he wanted to win, he had to be ruthless.
And from the way his Sharingan flared dangerously, it seemed he had already come to the same conclusion.
That being said, Tatsuya wasn't necessarily any better than Sasuke when it came to execution.
During the Third Shinobi War, Tatsuya hadn't been able to prevent Nohara Rin's fate, even when he had tried to keep her by his side. White Zetsu had nearly succeeded in tricking her away, and in the end, history had taken its course.
Now, Sasuke had that same burning desire to protect someone. His own hero instinct. And the Sound Four were more than happy to exploit it.
All four of them rushed him at once.
With seamless coordination, they flickered into position, surrounding Sasuke. Their movements were too quick, their teleportation too precise. Each one appearing at a different point around him, forming a perfect, inescapable encirclement.
With his hearing blocked by chakra, Sasuke couldn't rely on sound to track them. He couldn't predict where the attack would come from.
A fatal disadvantage.
Or so they thought.
The moment their strikes landed, they hit nothing but empty air. Sasuke had already moved.
In his place, only the remnants of his discarded weights lay in the dirt.
Even against four elite shinobi, his speed, unburdened by those restraints, was faster.
In that split second, he had cut away the weight-bearing braces from his body and vanished, moving not to fight, but to escape.
He grabbed Sakura without hesitation, and the two of them sped in the direction of Tatsuya's cabin.
Sasuke understood his limits. He knew this wasn't a fight he could win outright, not without reinforcements. His earlier stance had been a feint, just enough to lull the Sound Four into thinking he'd stay and fight. The real plan had always been to get Sakura out of there and regroup with Tatsuya and Tsunade.
What he didn't know was that neither of them was in the cabin.
They were right there.
The sudden burst of movement startled Tsunade. She hadn't expected them to head straight in their direction.
"Tch.. damn brat," she muttered, shifting her stance.
Tatsuya, however, reacted instantly. With swift precision, he grabbed Tsunade and moved them both before they could be spotted, narrowly avoiding detection. Had they remained in place, the two of them would have been discovered far too soon.
Tsunade exhaled sharply, still adjusting from the abrupt displacement. "Next time, a little warning would be nice."
Tatsuya smirked. "And miss the look on your face?"
He turned his attention back to the scene below. Sasuke's maneuver had been a good one. A clever retreat, well-executed.
But he was in for a disappointment when he reached the cabin and found no one there.
For now, though, that didn't matter.
Is this really happening?
Sasuke's arms were strong and unwavering as he carried her through the trees, his speed making the world blur around them. She could feel the heat of his body against hers, the steady rise and fall of his breath.
He's holding me… He's really holding me…
Her heart hammered in her chest, but she wasn't sure if it was from fear or something else entirely. The battle, the danger, the enemies chasing them. It all felt distant compared to the overwhelming realization that she was in his arms.
Focus, Sakura! This isn't the time to be acting like some love-struck fool!
And yet, no matter how hard she tried to push the thought away, it clung to her, burning deep in her mind.
I've imagined this so many times... but not like this. Not running for our lives. Not with blood on his hands and the enemy right behind us.
Jirōbō, who was pursuing them from behind, relentlessly hurled kunai coated in his Spider Sticky Gold technique. Each projectile gleamed with chakra-infused metal, sharp and deadly.
To evade the incoming kunai, Sasuke shifted his position constantly, weaving through the trees with precise movements. Despite the relatively short distance to their destination, their escape was taking longer than expected.
Tsunade and Tatsuya trailed them at a safe distance, carefully monitoring the battle while ensuring they remained undetected. Observing without interfering required precision, and though it had been years since Tsunade had engaged in something like this, she took it seriously.
She exhaled slowly, her sharp eyes following Sasuke's movements. "He's fast," she muttered, watching as he dodged another kunai mid-air.
Tatsuya, keeping his gaze steady on the battlefield, responded evenly. "Faster than I expected. He's adapting well."
Tsunade scoffed. "Yeah, well, speed alone won't save his ass if he gets careless." She shifted her weight slightly, tensing when one of the Oto-nin nearly clipped him with an attack. "Still, I'll admit. He's got a good head on his shoulders. Knows when to push forward and when to retreat."
Tatsuya smirked. "Sounds like you're impressed."
"Hmph," Tsunade crossed her arms. "Don't get ahead of yourself. I just hate seeing wasted potential."
Tatsuya chuckled. "Right. Because we both know you're only here for the thrill, not the kid's well-being."
Tsunade rolled her eyes but didn't argue. He wasn't wrong. Being Hokage had been its kind of torture. Drowning in paperwork, trapped behind a desk all day. It had been monotonous, exhausting, a far cry from the battlefield she had once thrived in.
But now? This was different. This was something she actually enjoyed.
A smirk played on her lips as she watched Sasuke execute a clever feint. "He's got guts," she admitted. "Let's see if he can back it up."
Even without much explanation from Tatsuya, Tsunade followed his lead, adapting to the situation with ease. They had to stay hidden, had to ensure they wouldn't be noticed. At least, not yet.
Tatsuya glanced at her. "Think we'll need to step in?"
Tsunade cracked her knuckles. "Not unless he screws up. But if he does…" A dangerous glint flashed in her eyes. "I wouldn't mind stretching my legs."
Tatsuya chuckled, shaking his head. "You just want to punch something."
"Damn right."
Meanwhile, the Sound Four had not anticipated just how fast Sasuke had become.
From their brief exchange earlier, they had gauged his combat ability to be around Chūnin level at best. By contrast, each of them possessed the strength of a basic Jōnin, making the power gap between them significant.
Yet, despite that, Sasuke's speed was undeniable.
This wasn't a result of teleportation or space-time ninjutsu. It was pure, refined taijutsu.
The Uchiha were renowned for their Sharingan, their prowess in ninjutsu and genjutsu, making them fearsome opponents. Most Uchiha never focused on physical combat because their dojutsu alone was enough to dominate battles. Their opponents, once caught in the gaze of their crimson eyes, often stood no chance.
And yet, Sasuke had honed his body beyond what was expected of his clan.
A genius among geniuses.
The Sound Four hadn't considered that a prodigy of the Uchiha would have such mastery over taijutsu. This was well beyond their expectations.
Kidōmaru had initially dismissed Sasuke, believing him to be nothing more than a privileged child with a famous surname. But now, he understood why Orochimaru had taken an interest in him.
The Sharingan alone made Sasuke invaluable. But his sheer speed, his adaptability—these traits made him even more formidable.
As the forest began to thin, revealing open space ahead, Sasuke smirked.
The cabin was just up ahead.
Soon, this fight would turn in his favor.
The Sound Four realized his intentions instantly, but they weren't concerned. They weren't afraid of Konoha's so-called "Black Fang" or even the legendary "White Fang" before him.
Their goal wasn't to kill Sasuke.
It was to recruit him.
Because, in their eyes, Sasuke was just like them. A lonely soul searching for purpose.
Oto Village was a haven for war orphans, a place where the forsaken could carve out a new destiny.
And Sasuke, whether he realized it or not, belonged with them.
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