Yuto Souta's expression was somewhat awkward, but the hand signs he was forming and the chakra in his body didn't stop.
"A coincidence, huh?"
"Indeed..."
Sakumo Hatake responded coldly.
The少年 (boy) in front of him wasn't wearing any disguise—this much Sakumo Hatake could tell at a glance.
But... how much time had passed?
To already master such advanced Earth Release techniques?
And those double-tomoe Sharingan...
He wasn't too familiar with the Uchiha clan, but he had never heard of any kid awakening the double-tomoe!
This made Sakumo Hatake start to grow suspicious...
Was the少年 (boy) before him really that genius Uchiha who had come back from the dead, or was he an Iwa spy skilled in disguise who had stolen information from Yuto Souta's mind?
"That noise... was that your doing, Souta?"
Sakumo Hatake probed.
Yuto Souta raised an eyebrow.
"Uh..."
"Sort of... I guess?"
His gaze flickered evasively.
The power of Hydrogen Release had exceeded his expectations.
As one of the methods that had shocked the world in his previous life in Kyushu, its might was equally terrifying in this world.
And that was with him exploiting the ninjutsu master bug...
The only downside was that it consumed too much chakra.
The Lightning Release needed to electrolyze a single Water Dragon Bullet, even with the chakra reduction from the ninjutsu master perk, was still not something he could casually unleash.
Yuto Souta had already made up his mind.
For now, he'd keep the ultimate form of this technique a secret and quickly develop a disguised version based on Hydrogen Release.
At least until he had enough chakra to sustain this ninjutsu, it was better not to reveal it.
Keeping a low profile was still crucial.
The suspicion in Sakumo Hatake's eyes deepened...
In fact,
He had come back this time fully prepared to face the consequences.
The people in the village didn't understand his actions, and the mission's failure had ultimately become a lifelong stain on his record.
He had already given up on the idea of proving himself again...
As the leader of the Anbu, commanding Konoha's most elite forces, with the Hokage's half-sleeve title and a seat among Konoha's higher-ups,
Even his junior and Orochimaru had once evaluated him...
If he had wanted to pursue that position, it would have been his after the Second Shinobi World War.
Konoha's White Fang—who in the vast shinobi world didn't know that name?
But he, with no interest in power, had still ended up as a thorn in some people's sides.
Sakumo Hatake wasn't without thoughts of rebellion.
With his strength, there were few in Konoha today who could stop him.
The clan heads of the major families? The Elder Council? Or perhaps... the one in the Hokage's office?
He was confident no one could hold him back.
If he wanted to leave, no one could make him stay!
But if he left... where would he go?
He still had the son his wife had entrusted to him before her death.
If he really did that, what would become of Kakashi?
Would he have to wander the world with him, living as the son of a rogue ninja?
Fortunately,
His son had made two good friends.
So his future wouldn't need to be something he worried about.
But things never went as planned.
Before he could even make that decision, Minato Namikaze came looking for him again.
Three kids had charged straight into the Iwa battlefield!
One of them had stayed behind to cover the others!
How similar was that to what he had done back then?!
Only, this little guy hadn't grown enough yet and didn't have the ability to personally save his comrades.
"Uh... Uncle Hatake, do you have something else to do...?"
"I kind of sneaked out here, and I still have a mission to get back to in Konoha, so how about..."
Yuto Souta's gaze darted away.
He had no intention of revealing the secret of Hydrogen Release to Sakumo Hatake...
What if, one day, he ended up using this technique against Konoha?
He had to consider what the future might hold.
Even someone like Sakumo Hatake, who had been thoroughly screwed over by Konoha's higher-ups, probably wouldn't allow him to do that, right?
Then his future enemies would include a close-combat-specialized Hokage half-sleeve!
These thoughts might seem a bit baseless.
But in reality, this was the mindset of a science nerd.
If you treated the future as an experiment in manipulating time, then all potential errors and possibilities related to the experiment should fall within his calculations.
Besides... defecting from Konoha wasn't exactly a low possibility, was it?
"You... are you really Souta?"
Sakumo Hatake's tone was filled with complexity and disbelief, but the wariness in his eyes finally began to fade.
The freely controlled Sharingan confirmed the少年 (boy)'s identity, and Sakumo Hatake was certain he wasn't looking at an enemy under a transformation jutsu.
What the少年 (boy) said was indeed a bit far-fetched, and he was deliberately hiding something.
But... that was exactly what made it more in line with his behavior.
A guy who could turn Fire Release into something like that—doing this kind of thing... was it really that surprising?
Still, as Sakumo Hatake looked at the awkward and conflicted Souta in front of him, he couldn't connect him to the countless severed limbs floating on that river.
Let alone the massive explosion from the Kannabi Bridge!
"At first, I just wanted to help Kakashi out..."
"But after fighting those Iwa ninjas, I realized they were ridiculously weak, so I thought I'd check out the Kannabi Bridge."
"And then..."
Yuto Souta finished his final explanation and quietly lowered his head.
He was thinking about how to come up with an excuse to cover up the existence of Hydrogen Release.
Blowing up the Kannabi Bridge... there was probably no hiding that now.
If he had snuck back to the Konoha frontlines, it'd be fine—he could say he got lucky or come up with some other excuse to brush it off.
But the problem was that Sakumo Hatake had caught him red-handed!
"And then you just went and blew up the Kannabi Bridge?"
Sakumo Hatake's voice now carried a tone of reprimand.
This caught Yuto Souta off guard.
"Do you know how dangerous what you did was?"
"Do you have any idea how worried Obito and Kakashi were about you?!"
"If something had really happened to you, what would they do? Live with guilt for the rest of their lives?!"
Sakumo Hatake's tone grew increasingly stern.
Yuto Souta's expression became even stranger.
He couldn't help but recall the scolding from his back when he'd stayed up all night cramming—harsh on the surface but full of concern underneath...
Sure enough.
Once Sakumo Hatake seemed to have vented all his worry and shock, he waved a hand toward the direction behind him.
"The two of them have already headed back to Konoha, and your teacher, Minato Namikaze, is preparing to report your situation to the Hokage."
"That kid's faster than me... even if I took you back now, we wouldn't make it in time."
"What happens next is up to you."
"And one more thing."
As Sakumo Hatake spoke, his gaze shifted back toward the Kannabi Bridge.
"We didn't meet here today."
"As for the Kannabi Bridge... if you don't want to admit it, no one can force you."
"That's what I say."
With a faint, almost amused glance at Yuto Souta, Sakumo Hatake's figure vanished from the spot...
Yuto Souta's expression grew even stranger.
After a long moment, he sighed.
"I'll hide it for as long as I can... sigh..."
Aside from a trump card like Hydrogen Release, the development of Wood Release would also have to be done in secret.
He was starting to understand Orochimaru's mindset a little...
In this world, the more powerful something was, the more trouble it could bring you.
His gaze fell toward the direction of the Kannabi Bridge, and Yuto Souta's brow twitched slightly.
This pitiful, fragile-hearted, tragic figure...
It was about time he let off some steam, wasn't it?
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