In the dead of night.
Sasuke met up with Uchiha Shinji, and the two started chatting idly at the ramen shop.
Sasuke grumbled, "That Danzo guy is disgusting, questioning us right in front of the Hokage! How could we possibly be part of the Akatsuki? He's lost it!"
"Uh-huh…"
Shinji slurped his ramen, mumbling in response.
Sasuke continued, "Shinji, having an elder advisor take you as a disciple is huge! You won't have to worry about those rumors flying around anymore!"
Shinji, mid-bite, paused and glanced at Sasuke.
The night of the clan massacre had changed Sasuke a lot, but he still seemed like that guy with a cold exterior and a soft heart.
"In his heart, who matters more—me or Naruto?"
Shinji looked away and went back to eating his ramen.
For now, he felt Sasuke might care about him more. After all, they were the last two Uchiha in the Hidden Leaf Village.
Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he mused, "Hmm, if that's the case, could I stage a scene to push Sasuke to awaken his dojutsu?"
He shook his head.
Using someone's care to provoke them wasn't something he wanted to do, especially since his 'Reincarnation Eye Plan' was progressing smoothly, and he didn't have a strong need for Sasuke to unlock the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Noticing Shinji's odd behavior, Sasuke asked, "What's up?"
Shinji grinned, "Enough talk, or the ramen's gonna get cold!"
At the Hyuga main family estate.
Thud, thud, thud.
After a series of muffled strikes, two figures leapt back.
The two locked in combat were Hizashi and Neji.
Hizashi looked puzzled, "Neji, how did your speed and strength get even stronger?"
Hizashi was pleased with Neji's growth, but the speed of his progress over the past few days was so startling it made him suspicious.
"Is that so?"
Neji's face lit up, instinctively touching his chest.
As the fusion deepened, the 'biological exoskeleton' implanted in his chest had fully merged with his skin, undetectable even to Hizashi's Byakugan.
Unable to figure it out, Hizashi chalked it up to Neji's physical development.
After all, Neji was ten, entering a phase of rapid growth. A surge in speed and strength wasn't entirely unreasonable.
After training, Hizashi told Neji, "Be careful these days. Don't wander around recklessly!"
Neji knew what Hizashi was worried about and quickly replied, "Got it, I'll be careful!"
Hizashi patted Neji's shoulder, "No need to worry too much. As long as you stay in the village, the Otsutsuki branch family wouldn't dare act recklessly. We'll figure out the rest later."
Neji nodded.
Leaving the main estate, Neji strolled through the Hyuga clan grounds, his mind alternating between the world-ending crisis on the moon and the 'biological exoskeleton' in his body.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a figure dropped from the sky, landing in front of him.
Neji focused and saw a silver-haired, strikingly delicate boy.
And in the boy's eye sockets were a pair of pristine Byakugan.
Neji was stunned, "You're an Otsutsuki—"
Swish!
Before Neji could finish, the boy raised a hand, firing a chakra light orb!
Boom!
Caught off guard, Neji took the full brunt of the chakra orb, sent crashing through several walls.
The Byakugan-wielding boy flashed to the rubble, grabbed the unconscious Neji with a gesture, and vanished with a whoosh.
The boy moved so fast that by the time the Hyuga clan heard the explosion and rushed to the scene, he had already fled with Neji.
Staring at the wreckage, Hizashi's face darkened as he ordered, "After him!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Hyuga clan scattered in pursuit.
On the streets.
Having finished their ramen, Shinji and Sasuke leisurely strolled.
Boom, boom, boom!
Suddenly, a series of explosions echoed from afar. The two looked toward the sound, seeing flames light up the sky and hearing the faint shouts of Hidden Leaf shinobi.
Sasuke's brows furrowed, "What's going on? Another Akatsuki attack?"
Without a second thought, he activated his Body Flicker Technique and rushed toward the explosions.
"I didn't plan any attack!"
Shinji froze for a moment before following.
After a few leaps, Shinji reached a rooftop, gazing at the distant battlefield.
In the center of the fray, a white-robed boy held an unconscious Neji, while around him lay a sprawl of defeated Hidden Leaf shinobi.
Even Sasuke, who had just been beside him, was slumped against a wall, bloodied and badly injured.
"Otsutsuki Toneri!?"
Shinji's expression darkened.
The young white-robed boy might be unknown to others, but Shinji recognized him instantly. He was the last of the Otsutsuki branch family on the moon and the most gifted Otsutsuki of his time.
In the original timeline, Otsutsuki Momoshiki visited the moon before invading the shinobi world, meeting Toneri—who had lost his eyes—and acknowledging his pure Otsutsuki bloodline.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
At that moment, Tsunade arrived with Shizune, Yakumo, and a large group of Hidden Leaf shinobi.
Seeing the attacker wasn't from the Akatsuki, Yakumo quietly sighed in relief and immediately unleashed her Wood Release.
But the instant Yakumo activated her Wood Release, Toneri flashed forward, closing the distance and reaching out.
Yakumo didn't panic, moving to block his arm.
Yet the moment they made contact, she felt an overwhelming suction force from his arm, impossible to resist.
"This—"
To her shock, her chakra was instantly drained by Toneri.
Even Toneri was surprised. He hadn't expected this young girl to possess such a massive amount of chakra. Struggling to contain it, he casually flung the absorbed chakra away.
Boom!
A massive explosion rocked the Hidden Leaf Village, the flames lighting up the night sky!
Beyond the streets consumed by the blast, the shockwave toppled everything and everyone near the battlefield.
Holding Neji, Toneri didn't linger. With a single leap, he vanished from the scene.
The battlefield he left behind was chaos.
Tsunade and Shizune rushed to Yakumo, who had fallen unconscious. The other Hidden Leaf shinobi were either tending to the wounded or lying injured, groaning in pain.
On the rooftop.
Having dodged the shockwave, Shinji ignored the others and chased after Toneri.
Sasuke, sprawled on the ground, shouted, "Shinji, don't chase!"