[Early Graduation]

As Sasuke exited the forest, a sudden thought crossed his mind—who would be held responsible for the gorilla's death?

'Danzo? No, he shouldn't be so unlucky...' Sasuke thought, lacking confidence as he thought about how 'frameable' Danzo was.

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The day after his intense encounter with the gorilla in the Forest of Death, Sasuke found himself back at the academy.

Even though it was class time, he and his three companions were inexplicably drawn to a well-known spot near the academy. All four boys reclined on the lush grass, observing the clouds lazily meandering across the cerulean blue sky.

"Time has slipped away rather quickly," Sasuke murmured, his eyes fixed on the sky above him. His words were met with quiet nods from his friends.

"Huh, troublesome. This could be the last time the four of us get to laze around like this together," Shikamaru remarked, his words gradually tapering off into a whisper toward the end.

"Sasuke, your graduation exam is happening this afternoon, right? You think you've got it in the bag?" he continued, inquiring Sasuke about his graduation.

"Yeah, all I have to do is spar against a Chunin and last 3 minutes," Sasuke replied, rolling his eyes as thought about the exam he will have today. An exam he simply considered a waste of his time considering his strength.

"A piece of cake for you isn't it?" Shikamaru quipped, prompting all four of them to chuckle at his response.

"What about you three? It's not like you can't do that," Sasuke remarked.

Over the years, observing Sasuke's development, the other boys felt a sense of being left behind and forced themselves to train as diligently as possible.

Shikamaru and Choji both delved into mastering their respective clan's secret Jutsu to the best of their abilities, while Naruto persistently honed his basic abilities with the assistance of his companions. Now, Naruto boasted a rather solid understanding of the academic knowledge taught at the academy and held the highest Taijutsu proficiency in their class—excluding Sasuke, of course.

Yet, Naruto grappled with a persistent challenge — his inability to execute the Clone Jutsu. While he adeptly learned all the other Basic Jutsu and even managed to learn the Body Flicker Jutsu.

Something he had incorporated into the pranks he pulled on the village, which he still hasn't stopped over the years. Sasuke in particular found immense amusement in observing the chaos unfold, caused by Naruto's antics and the village's persistent attempts to apprehend him as he kept messing around.

However, mastering the Clone Jutsu still seemed impossible for Naruto despite Sasuke's efforts in training him on chakra control. Naruto had completed walking up a tree relying on chakra control and can now stand on the surface of water for a limited amount of time, though he still needs to work a bit more on that.

Sasuke theorised that the challenge stemmed from the fact that, Naruto currently only possesses half of the Nine-Tails within him. And the half of the Nine-Tails in him is the Yang half, Sasuke thinks that the Yang chakra interfering with Naruto should be the main culprit for Naruto's inability to cast the Clone Jutsu.

As the Clone Jutsu should be a minor application of Yin Release, the Yang chakra from the Nine-Tails might prevent Naruto from releasing it.

(Author: I feel like I heard this theory from a Fanfic the other day, "Naruto: Corrupting My Naruto". Tbh I could be wrong, but that seems to be the one I remember this from.)

And Sasuke soon realised he couldn't remember Naruto using any Yin Release techniques like Genjutsu throughout most of the series, making him feel more sure about his guess.

He believes that Naruto could only learn the Clone Jutsu once Naruto possesses the whole Nine-Tails or if the Nine-Tails chakra stops leaking from the seal within Naruto.

In Sasuke's perspective despite the issue with the Clone Jutsu from Naruto, all three of them possessed combat prowess on par with that of a normal Genin. He felt anticipation stirring within him as he witnessed their growth and wondered how much stronger they would become compared to their anime counterparts.

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As the afternoon approached, the academy's training ground buzzed with activity, filled with a diverse crowd of teachers, students, and villagers.

On the training ground, Sasuke positioned himself on one side, while on the opposite end stood a man not much older than 30. His curly brown hair and hazel eyes complemented the standard Chunin flak jacket he wore. Eyeing the young boy across from him, he couldn't help but mutter, "Damn! Why did I have to get picked for this."

Normally, facing an academy student wouldn't be a cause of concern for him, but standing across from him was the last Uchiha, at least in Konoha. The Chunin had heard rumours about the boy in front of him, and to his knowledge Sasuke's talent shouldn't be too far from his older brother.

It is said that he already has several C-Rank and B-Rank Jutsu in his arsenal as well as being the student of the village's Genjutsu specialist.

The only saving grace for the Chunin was that Sasuke didn't awaken his Sharingan yet.

Off to the side of the training ground, Iruka stood, asking, "Are both of you ready?"

Both individuals responded with a yes, one calm, the other a bit apprehensive.

Iruka took a deep breath and declared the start of the match before swiftly moving towards the edge of the training ground.

"Begin!"

Without giving anyone a chance to react, Sasuke vanished and materialized by the Chunin's side, delivering a swift punch to the man's stomach. The Chunin, attempting to counter, unleashed his own Ninjutsu to fend off Sasuke's unexpected appearance beside him.

Water Style: Wild Water Wave (C-Rank)

Nevertheless, the intended target effortlessly sidestepped the attack, reappearing closer to the Chunin. As Sasuke closed in on his opponent, he opted to bring an end to this farce, he seized the man's arms before throwing the Chunin over his shoulder, sending the poor man crashing into the ground. 

Silence...

The entire training ground fell into a hushed silence as the conflict concluded within a matter of seconds. No, they realized that it couldn't even be deemed a fight—it was a beatdown.

The crowd soon erupted into cheers as they recognised the emergence of another genius from within the village.

Iruka joyfully hopped back onto the training ground, a proud smile on his face as he witnessed his student officially graduating.

"Congratulations, Sasuke. You've successfully graduated," Iruka conveyed to Sasuke, handing him the Konoha ninja headband. Sasuke promptly picked up the headband and secured it onto his forehead, igniting an even more jubilant cascade of cheers from the enthusiastic crowd.

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After graduating, Sasuke hurried home to get an early rest, preparing for his imminent induction into Anbu the following day. Following a quick dinner, he retrieved a familiar old book.

It was the same book he had found in the library earlier, containing an array of Fuinjutsu seals within its pages, adorned with the Otsutsuki Clan Symbol on its cover.

Over the past few years, Sasuke has managed to develop a basic understanding of the contents of the book. It held knowledge of three sealing techniques, though Sasuke could only decipher the contents of the first technique. To further unravel the mysteries hidden within the other two techniques, he needed a more profound grasp and understanding of Fuinjutsu—an understanding that extended beyond the limits of the knowledge contained within the academy library.

Soul Dissociation Seal (Kisetsu Shiki Fujin)

Through the manipulation of chakra, an individual could inscribe a series of Fuinjutsu symbols onto their flesh, enabling their soul to separate from their physical body. However, this effect had a crucial limitation — it was temporary. The chakra-based symbols on their skin would naturally dissipate after some time had passed, though the duration of this was dependent on the user's Fuinjutsu proficiency as well as the strength of their soul.

Should an individual's soul fail to reunite with their body before the symbols vanish from their flesh, they would be left in the form of a soul, forced to witness the slow decay of their abandoned physical self. 

The soul lingering in the material world didn't fare much better than its physical body. Extended periods in this form result in a gradual degradation and eventual collapse of the individual's soul. Adding to the danger, the presence of such a soul could attract the attention of the Shinigami- causing it to be swallowed by the Shinigami.

Primarily designed for self-application it served as a tool for reconnaissance, providing a method to move around in their soul form discreetly. Additionally, practitioners could use this technique as a means to train their souls by engaging in meditative practices during their time spent away from the physical body, fostering the rapid growth of spiritual energy.

However, the true potential of this technique was said to reveal itself when used in conjunction with the second seal in the book. Although Sasuke remained in the dark regarding the specifics of this second seal and the combined effects it could unleash.

 The complexity of the first seal alone left Sasuke astounded; it took him years only to decode it let alone master it. The seal's effect appeared to have drawn inspiration from the 'Dead Demon Consuming Seal' used by Hiruzen on Orochimaru and the 'Spirit Transformation Jutsu' employed by Dan Kato. 

However, as Sasuke contemplated the age of the book cradled within his hands, a different perspective began to emerge. He soon entertained the notion that it might have been the other way around—that the first seal, could have been the source of inspiration for techniques like the 'Dead Demon Consuming Seal' and the 'Spirit Transformation Jutsu'

However, he soon began to realise an issue.

Where? 

From where did those two S-Ranked Jutsu come from?

He understood that the 'Dead Demon Consuming Seal' came from the Uzumaki Clan, but what about the 'Spirit Transformation Jutsu'?

Normally, he wouldn't have had a clue on its origin. But the fact it seems to be linked to this tattered old book along with the 'Dead Demon Consuming Seal', implies that all three of them should be linked to the Uzumaki clan.

In his recollection, the demise of the Uzumaki clan was attributed to a coalition of various ninja villages coveting their sealing techniques, driven by the desire to improve their tailed beast containment.

However, Sasuke couldn't shake the feeling that there might be more to this story.

This mysterious book, bearing the Otsutsuki insignia while being connected to the Uzumaki Clan, seemed to hint at a deeper relationship between Uzushiogakure and the Otsutsuki- something he initially didn't think about.

Soon another strange question popped into his head.

Why is the Uzumaki Clan the only group that seems to possess some sort of relationship with the Shinigami? 

Does this also have something to do with their link with the Otsutsuki?

Or is it the Shinigami that is associated with the Otsutsuki?

As questions lingered in his mind about the differences between the anime world and this reality, Sasuke began planning an investigation.

"I should set aside some time to investigate Uzushiogakure; perhaps I can find more information to decode the contents within this book as well as find out about all the timeline differences between in this world and its anime counterpart."