The weather is still hot, but the chirping of the cicadas has disappeared, signaling the beginning of autumn. At this time, people will occasionally feel a bit of coolness.
However, when the white clouds drifted away and the sun shone down on the earth under the clear sky, the air would accumulate heat once again.
The sun had been shining on top of his head for half an afternoon already, and sweat dripped from his cheeks, mingling with the grass below, unseen.
"Ha ha..."
Inside the Uchiha Residence, a boy wearing a short-sleeved shirt with the Uchiha Clan's emblem was training.
His damp hair clung to his forehead as Sasuke looked up at the tall oak tree in front of him. It has the same height as the one Logan had demonstrated climbing for him.
Shaded by greenery, the hot wind rustled the leaves on the ground. Sasuke took a few deep breaths and stretched his body a few times. His hands and feet were covered with plasters, and white bandages were scattered around the injured areas. There are also a few bruises on his childish and delicate face.
He had retreated from the shade, probably about ten meters away from the trunk of the tree, and his bare skin crawled with golden tendrils as he climbed up. The corners of Sasuke's mouth twitched unconsciously, as under the bandages, the heat trapped in his injuries felt like they were about to ignite.
Summoning the little Chakra remained inside his body, he repeated the process countless times over the past few days and dashed towards the tall oak tree.
The image of that man effortlessly stepping onto it flashed through his mind as he ran, as his eyes were lowered as he ran. When the cracked black bark became clearly visible, Sasuke suddenly leaped, landing on the trunk.
Chakra adhered smoothly to the soles of his feet, and reliable stickiness came from it. With his vision inverted, Sasuke looked at the trunk in front of him, which had become a road. Brief yet complex—he had fallen countless times before.
'Hattori-sensei's words were not a joke.'
After just a pause to adapt to this state, Sasuke suddenly accelerated. His feet were staggering on the tree trunk like stepping on a tightrope. He then surpassed the height he had reached the day before in a single leap. Gaps between densely packed branches allowed dim light to shine through, and he stabilized his breathing, holding a kunai in his hand, ready to mark his 'achievement'.
The continuous practice had not been in vain. Without losing his balance, he crossed the height he had achieved yesterday in the next moment.
From left to right, he began to see slender branches growing under the green shade, crisscrossing each other. A half-yellowed leaf happened to touch his hair, and the sensation of brushing past made Sasuke nervous.
'Can I reach the top this time?'
This thought appeared on his mind and couldn't be suppressed. Sasuke tried his best to calm his emotions, but his steps still faltered. The ground was already barely visible around him, and at nearly twenty meters high, he felt like a rootless duckweed floating in the air... A piece of bark was kicked off, and Sasuke secretly thought that it was bad.
The familiar feeling of losing control swept over his body, and gravity pulled him down. Sasuke held his breath, and at the last moment, he reached out desperately, ignoring the unfamiliar and uncontrollable place his body was going into, allowing the kunai in his hand to reach a little higher, and finally, he put all his strength into the kunai.
Crack.
The sound of the bark being cut rang, and the heat and pain all over his body seemed to have disappeared, replaced by a clear stream of water surging in his heart, making him forget the discomfort. Just now, he carved the mark to the highest point.
However, before the joy of celebration could continue, the sudden fall caused Sasuke's expression to completely change.
In his eagerness to achieve the best result, he had put himself in a situation where he could not leverage his body. He couldn't reach the branches, or even touch the trunk. The speed of his fall quickly became dangerous, 'It's over.'
Neither leveraging nor landing cushioning protection worked. He fell into a completely dangerous situation. Although the ground was soft grass, he had fallen from nearly five stories high... Sasuke gritted his teeth, desperately concentrating Chakra, preparing to face this unknown impact.
At this moment, a figure suddenly rushed out from one side, catching Sasuke's out-of-control body with both hands. He leaned against the soft and reliable ground, and the enormous kinetic energy was eliminated without a trace.
The regret that might have caused him to be disabled was timely prevented by someone... Sasuke looked surprised at the person who caught him, and the familiar face made him exclaim in delight, "Hattori-sensei?!"
"You're committing suicide." Logan said with a stern face, not very kindly, then unceremoniously dropped Sasuke after landing.
"At least people jump off buildings to commit suicide, and you're jumping off trees. You sure know how to play."
It was really dangerous just now. An eight-year-old boy falling from such a height made Logan very frightened with just a glance. If he hadn't happened to return to the village and thought of taking a look at Sasuke, something bad might have happened.
"I'm sorry, sensei..." Sasuke winced as he was dropped on the ground, the pressure on his wounds causing him to grimace in pain.
Logan's tone was harsh as soon as he returned, but Sasuke had no reason to retort. He had indeed been too impatient just now. After getting up, he lowered his head and quickly apologized.
"I already told you that climbing trees is very dangerous and you should be careful if you fall. But you still did it. Have you ever practiced like this? If you ended up permanently disabled from falling, how would I explain to your brother…" Logan put on a stern teacher's demeanor and scolded, not mincing his words, but he stopped halfway through.
Sasuke accepted the criticism with a lowered head, similar to a student receiving a scolding from a teacher. Accustomed to only hearing the general gist, he cautiously raised his head when he heard Logan suddenly stopped speaking.
Logan almost said something he shouldn't have, but seeing only confusion in Sasuke's eyes and nothing else, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Forget it... just be careful next time." Looking down, Logan saw the bruises on Sasuke's face and the various bandages on his body.
"You're still so young. Take your training slow." Logan sighed inwardly, softened his tone, and realized that nothing serious had happened after all.
Sasuke nodded, and Logan said nothing more. At this time, the teacher and student without formal teacher-student certificates had met after a long time.
'I should say something.' Sasuke opened his mouth, intending to say something he thought he could say at this moment, but surprisingly, he couldn't find the words. Finally, he spoke slowly, "Sensei, welcome back."
Logan's eyes were hollow, then he glanced at Sasuke's flushed face due to the intense exercise and coughed lightly.
In order to avoid possible misunderstandings among the fans of the manga in the future, Logan turned sideways and looked at the large tree Sasuke had been practicing on with a solemn expression.
One by one, densely packed scars, the white flesh of the tree revealed after the bark was peeled off, which resembled a series of stairs, implying the owner's progress.
The entire trunk was marked with traces, some clearly defined, while others were dense or sparse. Just looking at these could give one a faint sense of the belief trapped in hardships and broken through countless times.
The last high mark caught Logan's eyes.
Sasuke stood behind, secretly observing Logan as he looked at his 'report card'.
Rubbing his face, Logan exhaled. Seeing Sasuke's progress, he had no choice but to turn around and show a smile to Sasuke.
"Well done."
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