Tomb raider?

In the forest at Yato's training ground, two figures were fighting.

"Shave!" Yato muttered before suddenly bursting forward at unmatched speed. In an instant, he materialized in front of Sasuke.

Not expecting such speed, Sasuke's eyes widened, but he had no time to react.

Yato's fist collided with Sasuke's ribs, driving the air from his lungs. Before he could recover, a swift kick hit him in the side, sending him sprawling.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain, stumbling back to his feet, only to be met by another onslaught. Yato's next punch landed squarely on his jaw, snapping his head back, followed by a kick that sent him crashing into a tree, the bark splintering under the impact.

"Dammit!" Sasuke cursed, his voice strained as he forced himself up. His body was battered, bruises blossoming where Yato's blows had landed. But the pain didn't deter him. He made it a habit to return, day after day, to challenge Yato. Each defeat only seemed to fuel his determination.

He recalled the events of that fateful night—the night his entire clan was annihilated. Each defeat at Yato's hands was a reminder of how weak he was.

Deep down, perhaps he hoped to vent his resentment and grief this way and forget everything that happened that night. But he wouldn't admit it because it would make him feel like a coward. So Sasuke found another excuse for himself.

"I will bear the Uchiha name and create glory again," Sasuke vowed, spitting blood from his mouth. "How can I fall in a place like this? I must defeat him!"

Steeling his resolve, Sasuke charged once more, but Yato remained unfazed. In a blur, he was in front of him again and delivered a powerful punch to Sasuke's abdomen, lifting him off his feet, followed by a kick that sent him into a tree with a resounding thud.

"It's over. The so-called Uchiha's vengeful spirit," Yato said, his voice slightly mocking. This title was not given by Yato but was what Sasuke called himself when he first came to see Yato after his body recovered. It was very childish but clearly showed Sasuke's state of mind at that moment. His purpose in living was revenge.

"Damn, if I could just activate the Sharingan!"

This time, he did not launch another attack. Yato's movements were so fast that even his eyes couldn't keep up. Therefore, he really wished he had awakened the Sharingan at this moment so he could capture Yato's actions and then defeat him. In fact, even Yato hoped that Sasuke could flexibly use the power of the Sharingan at this time. This way, Sasuke could provide him with some practical training. Unfortunately, even though his Sharingan had been activated on the night of the clan's extermination, he had never been able to use it.

"Is it because of insufficient training or some other reason?" Yato couldn't figure it out because it was a mental issue and difficult to guess.

"Go away; don't interfere with my practice," Yato finally said, turning away to resume his own training. He couldn't afford distractions.

"Just wait; I will catch up with you soon," Sasuke whispered, more to himself than to Yato. "Now I am just like you, and I feel the loneliness of losing my loved ones. This loneliness will make me stronger!"

There was a new depth to Sasuke's gaze, a gloomy resolve that replaced his former coldness. He stood up again, clutching his bruised abdomen, and dragged his body out of the forest, step by step.

"Yato, I suddenly feel that he seems quite similar to you."

Looking at his back, Riku suddenly had a sense of déjà vu.

"It's just the surface. There is a deeper darkness waiting for him in the future."

Yato knew everything that would happen in the future. Now, even his reason to live was given by his brother Itachi, who used the power of hatred to push him forward. Later, even when he killed Itachi and successfully completed his so-called revenge, another truth awaited him that was even more difficult for him to accept. Then, his anger would be used by Uchiha Obito and driven forward by others again. Sasuke's fate was full of ups and downs and deceptions. No wonder he chose to leave Konoha and find himself after everything was over. Of course, Yato didn't think he was much better than Sasuke. Now, there was still a countdown and a knife hanging over his head. Compared to Sasuke, he was just living for the sake of living!

****

After dinner, Yato quietly came to Konoha's cemetery. Although the Uchiha clan died because of their rebellious intentions, Konoha did not make it public. They buried the Uchiha clan together with all the dead ninjas of Konoha, thus clearing themselves of the crime. As for Itachi, Konoha announced that he was the murderer who massacred the Uchiha clan. Konoha identified him as an S-rank traitor and issued a bounty. However, Sarutobi did not change the method of entering Konoha's barrier. As long as Itachi wanted to return to Konoha, no one would find out. This was a means to appease Itachi. With this, not only will he be able to check on Sasuke, but it will also be convenient for him to send information about the "Akatsuki" organization back to Konoha.

Sarutobi was very good at using the "Will of Fire." He knew very well that true loyalty could not be suppressed by violence and iron-bloodedness and that the bond established in the name of love was truly inseparable.

Sarutobi was old, but wise. He could see through people's hearts better than anyone else and was an excellent hostage. Just as Danzo commented on him, saying he was the light of Konoha, he only needed to play the role of a kindly old grandfather and sit back and relax. Just leave all those dirty things to Danzo.

Just like the "Uchiha clan genocide" incident, Itachi completely hated Danzo, and in the future, there would be a Sasuke who would be eyeing Danzo's life. On the contrary, Sarutobi, the number one leader of Konoha, was not only able to stay out of the matter but also made Itachi grateful to him! Of course, Yato did not rule out the possibility that this was his malicious speculation about Sarutobi's intention, but there was no harm in thinking about one side of things. After all, this world is full of deceiving people!

"Did you detect anyone around?"

The cemetery in Konoha was extremely quiet. Not only were there no people, but not even a single living creature could be seen. But Yato was still very careful because the bodies of almost all the dead ninjas of Konoha were buried here, including many ninjas with bloodline limits. Considering Sarutobi's caution, there shouldn't be anyone guarding here.

Sure enough, Riku raised its tail and swept it around, immediately discovering the ninja hiding in the dark.

"There are four chunin keeping watch, but you can try. They are very relaxed, playing cards, and not paying any attention to the cemetery."

"Four chunin?"

To deal with four chunin, with Yato's current combat power, he could end the battle in just a few minutes, but he did not act rashly. The Uchiha clan had just been destroyed, and the entire Konoha was on alert. If he eliminated these four chunin at this time, the village would probably have to go on alert again.

Riku was ready to make a move and asked, "How should we do it, Yato? Should we just attack directly?"

"There's no need for that."

Yato pulled off his invisibility cloak and disappeared into the shadows. Moving silently, he navigated the cemetery, making sure to avoid the chunins' line of sight. He had no intention of confronting them directly unless absolutely necessary.

After a while, he reached the area where the Uchiha clan were buried. There were many tombstones with different names, but they all shared one last name: Uchiha.

Even though he had obtained quite a few Sharingan, Yato wasn't completely satisfied. So, he thought about taking the eyes of those who didn't manage to awaken the Sharingan.

Even though they were ordinary eyes, deep in their DNA, they still had the Uchiha bloodline, so they must at least be worth something in the exchange system.

After hearing his plans to dig graves, Riku called Yato a ruthless, sick bastard, but he didn't care. If he stuck to morals too much, he wouldn't be able to reach the desired strength by the end of the war. Just like Sasuke left Konoha seeking more strength, Yato was slowly letting go of his morals to achieve his goal.

Yato looked around, and just as he was about to step in, Riku warned him.

"Yato, be careful. There are many hidden seals that would trigger once you stepped in."

Yato paused and looked at the ground. "Are you sure they're seals?"

"Yes."

"I guess it is to be expected. If they didn't put any hidden seals that warned them if someone attempted to dig for these bloodlines buried here, then anyone bold enough could take whatever they wanted."

"So, what are you going to do?" Riku asked, seeing Yato not moving.

"Couldn't you go past them?" Yato asked.

"I can." Riku nodded. "But the moment I touch the bodies, the seals might trigger a warning. So, do you still want me to do it?"

After thinking for a while, Yato gave up the plan. He was not willing to take the risk and planned to go back and think of another solution.

****

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