Being a rogue ninja is worse than being Hokage.

The biting cold wind blowing against the skin is extremely difficult for even a healthy person to endure, let alone Sasuke, who has just recovered from his injuries.

He continued, "Even as a ninja, you are at your weakest point."

However, Sasuke was not concerned about his physical condition; instead, he was immersed in a certain special emotion.

"The moon in the Land of Snow shines brighter than anywhere else."

He responded to Naruto's words, but it was a completely unrelated and nonsensical reply.

Naruto didn't mind and looked up at the bright, white full moon shining in the night.

"It's probably because there's less moisture in the air in winter, and the trees are mostly conifers with small, needle-like leaves, which makes the moonlight penetrate better," Naruto explained.

There aren't many thoughts that arise when gazing at the moon, and Naruto probably guessed Sasuke's current mood.

"The moon is the same as it was that night."

Sasuke's gaze remained fixed on the moon: "Looking at this moon, the details I'd forgotten from my memories are becoming clearer and clearer..."

That night, Itachi did shed tears.

But hatred made Sasuke overlook this fact... Perhaps before learning the truth, Sasuke thought that Itachi's tears were just Itachi's genjutsu.

"I can now truly feel Itachi's love for me. But correspondingly, I find it increasingly difficult to agree with the ninja way that Itachi has followed for my sake."

The elderly, children, or pregnant women of the Uchiha clan who are powerless to resist.

Even his own parents were killed by Itachi that very night.

The only surviving victim was Sasuke himself, Itachi's younger brother.

Itachi Uchiha was an older brother who deeply loved his younger brother, but also a vicious and despicable murderer who slaughtered the entire Uchiha clan.

Two extreme sides exist in the same person, and these two completely opposite extremes are inextricably linked to Sasuke.

After learning the truth about the Uchiha clan from Itachi, Sasuke calmed down and realized that the anger and hatred in his heart were growing deeper and deeper.

For the sake of peace, Itachi chose to become an extreme evil that could not be understood by the world.

Konoha, however, had the opportunity to prevent all of this from happening.

The reason why they condoned—or rather, personally caused—the current situation was simply because the Konoha leadership was acting out of their own despicable selfish interests.

Itachi's choice of ninja path, born from suppressing his grief and indignation, was seen as perfectly natural by the Konoha leadership.

Sasuke closed his eyes, and Itachi's relieved smile before he died was so deeply etched in his memory.

"Naruto, you don't need to worry too much about my health. I know my own body condition very well, and I don't need to spend any more time resting."

The longer one stays in the Land of Snow, the more one will cherish the peace and tranquility that this country possesses.

But Sasuke knew very well that he didn't have time to enjoy this peace now.

His revenge is not over yet.

"We have no time to waste, let's head to Konoha."

Sasuke left the moonlight and plunged back into the darkness.

In the darkness, Uchiha's crimson Sharingan stood out vividly.

Chapter 79 Invasion

The intelligence department, for ninjas who call themselves "intelligence life," should be a terrifying place.

They should hide in some unknown corner, where they can use every form of torture in the world to extract all the intelligence the enemy has obtained from the intelligence department.

However, contrary to intuition, Konoha's intelligence department was built in a prominent location in the village with a rather grand architectural style.

From the open-air public rest area inside the intelligence department, you can even see the Shadow Rock, which is carved with the images of the Hokage of each generation.

For Konoha, the Shadow Rock, where the Hokage with their resolute gazes are carved, represents Konoha's bright future.

But light is always accompanied by shadow.

Unlike the medical department, which is respected by everyone, the intelligence department, which represents all the bad things in the world, is terrifying just to be talked about.

Those who move forward cannot see the shadows behind them. Everyone tends to ignore the darkness, yet no one can deny its existence.

"I……"

Sakura clenched her fists and pressed them against her chest.

She has a clear understanding of her current situation.

The sunlight shone on Sakura, who was sitting alone on the long bench in the courtyard.

...Herself, Sakura Haruno, is undoubtedly a person who lives in the sunlight.

But what about Naruto and Sasuke?

The angle of the light cast Sakura's shadow, which should have been behind her, onto her front.

Darkness has always existed, so when a person becomes aware of the darkness they have forgotten, they have already fallen into its embrace and understand the despair that no matter how much they struggle, they cannot escape it.

What are you talking to yourself about?

The girl's voice abruptly interrupted Sakura's increasingly delusional reverie.

Sakura looked up at the girl who had asked the question; the girl's long, light golden hair that shimmered in the sunlight was all too familiar to Sakura.

"Ino?"

Unexpectedly meeting her best friend in the intelligence department, Sakura couldn't hide her confusion.

What are you doing here?

"My reason for being here is, of course, the same as yours."

Ino tossed her hair and moved closer to Sakura.

Sakura subconsciously shifted her position in the middle of the bench, making room for Ino to sit next to her.

As Sakura changed her seating position, the angle of the sunlight changed, and the shadow that had been covering Sakura tilted, allowing her to breathe in the light.

"Same?"

"It's related to the female ninja from Amegakure that Jiraiya-sama brought back."

As Sakura pressed for an answer, Ino, who was already sitting on the bench, revealed the answer.

Ino turned to look at Sakura, blinked, and continued, "It's not just me, Shikamaru and Choji—the entire Team 10 is here."

As the intelligence department is an important agency in the Konoha ninja system, it is not surprising that the ninjas are wary of it.

However, Team 10 is not under the jurisdiction of the Intelligence Department in Konoha's ninja system. This unusual team transfer actually indicates that Konoha, which seems ordinary now, is in a very special situation.

As for the reason, Ino has already said it—the female ninja from Amegakure who was brought back by Jiraiya—or to put it more clearly, the Intelligence Department will further select and mobilize external ninja teams from the existing ninja deployment to strengthen the Intelligence Department's defenses, all for Naruto.

All of this stemmed from Jiraiya's judgment.

The female ninja from Amegakure who was brought back to Konoha by Jiraiya was undoubtedly marked with the Flying Thunder God Technique by Naruto.

Since Konoha lost the Book of Seals that contained the Flying Thunder God Technique, Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha who taught the Fourth Hokage who also mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, is now the ninja in Konoha who understands the Flying Thunder God Technique the most.

Based on Jiraiya's assessment, Tsunade, as the Fifth Hokage, began preparing for the relocation of the Konoha ninja's intelligence department.

If Naruto really dares to invade Konoha in this way, then Konoha will keep him here forever.

The conversation turned to Naruto, and Ino and Sakura, these two best friends who could talk about anything, found themselves in a strange situation where they had nothing to say to each other.

"Sakura, do you think Naruto... will show up?"

After hesitating for a moment, Ino finally asked Sakura.

Ino had already heard about Konoha's decision regarding Naruto and Sasuke.

Upon returning from Amegakure, Jiraiya reassessed the threat that Naruto and Sasuke posed to Konoha.

Unlike the various ambiguous rumors and gossip circulating before.

The decision on how to deal with Naruto and Sasuke was proposed by Jiraiya and ultimately agreed to by the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade. It has been formally transmitted to the Konoha ninja as an official order.

The rogue ninjas Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha were to be killed without exception.

Jiraiya and Tsunade, who originally gave Sakura the greatest support in bringing Naruto and Sasuke back to Konoha, one being Sakura's guide on her ninjutsu path and the other her master, have now abandoned this commitment.

The crimes of Naruto and Sasuke were pronounced.

If... Naruto really chooses to invade Konoha, then there will be no way to undo the damage.

Sakura's perseverance over the past three years will all be in vain.

However, Sakura showed no sign of responding to Ino's questions.

Perhaps Sakura and Ino already knew the answer in their hearts.

That cruel answer is hard to say in person.

Or perhaps, reality has rendered the answers to the questions meaningless.

"I-no?"

Sakura was startled when Ino suddenly stood up from the bench without warning.

However, Ino only frowned and her eyes flickered.

A disbelieving whisper: "Impossible, this chakra..."

Among the many ninja clans in Konoha, the Yamanaka clan possesses secret techniques that grant them exceptional sensory abilities.

Ino's current unusual state is because she sensed chakra that shouldn't have been there.

Naruto!

Sakura finally realized what was happening and, like Ino, stood up abruptly. Without even thinking about Ino, Sakura immediately ran towards the intelligence department!

……

……

"It's been a long time, Mr. Inoichi."

Faced with an overwhelming number of Konoha ninjas, far exceeding his expectations, Naruto ignored them and exchanged a seemingly casual greeting with the middle-aged man with long ponytail in front of him: "The last time we met was back at the Ninja Academy."

Meanwhile, Yamanaka Inoichi was staring at Naruto, who had suddenly appeared in the intelligence department. The sixteen-year-old boy's face was beginning to show the shadow of an old friend.