The night was thick with darkness, suffocating and absolute.
In that endless void, Sasuke Uchiha stood still, his expression devoid of warmth. His eyes, once filled with conflict, had now become cold and distant—like a frozen lake untouched by emotion. Slowly, almost as if severing his final ties to the past, he closed his eyes.
A sharp, amused laugh broke the silence.
"It's over!" Kidōmaru sneered, his voice echoing through the shadows.
"Whether she survives or not… that's entirely up to her."
There was no sympathy in his tone—only cruel indifference.
"Let's go."
"Mm."
The figures vanished into the darkness, leaving behind nothing but silence… and the irreversible consequences of their actions.
Hours later, deep in the quiet of the night—
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A frantic knocking shattered the stillness.
Naruto Uzumaki jolted awake, his heart pounding as he sat upright in bed, disoriented.
"What the—?!"
"Naruto!" a voice called urgently from outside. "I'm an ANBU operative under the direct command of the Fifth Hokage!"
Naruto's expression immediately changed.
"The Hokage requests your presence—immediately!"
A chill ran down his spine.
A terrible premonition rose within him, gripping his chest tightly.
"…Got it. I'm coming right now!"
As he quickly got dressed and rushed out, a single thought echoed relentlessly in his mind:
Sasuke…
"You idiot…"
Moments later, Naruto arrived at the Hokage's office.
He didn't bother knocking.
He pushed the door open forcefully.
"Grandma Tsunade! What happened?!"
The room was heavy with tension.
An ANBU operative stood nearby, clearly distressed.
"This is bad, Naruto! Hokage-sama is facing a major—"
"It's fine," Tsunade interrupted sharply.
Her voice was calm… but her face betrayed everything.
Worry. Frustration. Exhaustion.
And something deeper—something close to despair.
Naruto's heart sank.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice quieter now.
Tsunade looked directly at him.
"Sasuke…"
She paused, as if the words themselves were difficult to say.
"…has left the village."
For a brief moment—
Time stopped.
Naruto's heartbeat seemed to vanish.
Even though he had already suspected it…
Hearing it confirmed felt like a heavy blow to the chest.
"…How…?" he whispered.
Tsunade's expression hardened.
"This isn't the time to dwell on details."
"He was taken—or rather, lured away—by shinobi from Otogakure."
"There's no doubt about it. He intends to defect… to Orochimaru."
Naruto clenched his fists tightly.
Orochimaru.
That name alone carried danger—and darkness.
"Listen carefully, Naruto," Tsunade continued.
"I'm assigning you a mission."
Naruto looked up.
"You will lead a team to intercept Sasuke…"
"…and bring him back."
Naruto blinked.
"Me…?"
"But what about Kakashi-sensei?"
Tsunade shook her head.
"Kakashi and the other Jonin are currently away on missions."
"The village is already stretched thin—internally and externally. We're short on manpower, and the situation is unstable."
"And now, Sasuke has chosen this moment to create even more chaos."
Naruto understood.
Konoha was not in a position to spare its strongest forces.
This mission… had fallen to him.
He took a deep breath.
"…Alright."
His voice steadied.
"I'll do it."
"I'll bring Sasuke back."
There was no hesitation left in his eyes.
"Good," Tsunade said.
"You'll be leading the team. Choose your members wisely."
Naruto scratched his head slightly, a hint of his usual self returning.
"So I can pick whoever I want?"
"To an extent," Tsunade replied.
"But don't get your hopes up. Your options are… limited."
Naruto grinned.
"That's fine!"
The first person who came to his mind was—
Hinata Hyuga.
Without wasting time, Naruto rushed to the Hyuga clan residence.
When he explained the situation, Hinata's eyes widened in shock.
"Sasuke… left the village?"
She placed a hand over her chest, clearly shaken.
"He's our teammate…"
Her voice trembled—but only briefly.
Soon, determination replaced it.
"I'll go with you, Naruto-kun."
Naruto smiled.
"Thanks, Hinata!"
"I know we can count on you."
Next—
Naruto immediately thought of Rock Lee.
Among the Konoha Twelve, Lee was someone he trusted deeply.
However—
Hinata hesitated.
"Naruto-kun… Lee has only just recovered from severe injuries."
"If we take him along, it might put too much strain on his body…"
Naruto froze.
"…Ah."
"I completely forgot."
He scratched his head awkwardly.
"Thanks for reminding me, Hinata."
"In that case… we'll choose based on strength and availability."
Hinata nodded.
"If that's the case… aside from you and Lee, the strongest would probably be Neji."
Naruto frowned slightly.
"…That guy?"
"I don't really like him…"
"But… yeah. He is strong."
"Alright. Let's go find him."
Unfortunately—
They were too late.
Neji wasn't in the village.
In fact, none of Team Guy was present.
Might Guy had taken on a high-level mission.
Lee, Neji, and Tenten had all left together.
Naruto sighed.
"This isn't going as smoothly as I hoped…"
"Next—Shikamaru!"
His eyes lit up.
"That guy may be lazy… but his brain is on another level!"
"If he joins us, this mission will be perfect!"
But once again—
Bad news.
Shikamaru was also away on a mission.
Choji had gone with him.
Only one member of their team remained—
Ino Yamanaka.
When she heard that Sasuke had defected, her reaction was immediate.
"What?!"
Without hesitation, she stepped forward.
"I'm coming with you!"
Naruto hesitated.
"Ino… I get how you feel, but your strength—"
"Don't underestimate me, you idiot!" she snapped angrily.
Hinata gently intervened.
"Naruto-kun… Ino is strong."
"And… she cares deeply about Sasuke."
"We should bring her along."
Naruto sighed.
"…Alright."
They continued searching.
Kiba and Sakura were also unavailable, having gone on a mission with Kurenai.
Naruto's options were rapidly shrinking.
Then—
They found someone.
Shino Aburame.
Fresh from completing a mission, Shino stood calmly, his expression unreadable as always.
Naruto's face brightened instantly.
"Perfect!"
"With Shino joining us, this mission is definitely going to succeed!"
Ino narrowed her eyes.
"…What exactly do you mean by that?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Naruto laughed nervously.
Shino adjusted his glasses slightly.
"So… you've finally gathered your team?"
"…Naruto."
"Does this mean… I was your last choice?"
Naruto froze.
He knew exactly what bothered Shino the most.
Being overlooked.
"Of course not!" Naruto said quickly.
"It's just that… the strongest always come last!"
Shino didn't look convinced.
"…Hmph."
Naruto wiped imaginary sweat from his forehead.
Leading a team is harder than I thought…
Finally, the group stood together.
Naruto looked at them all—Hinata, Ino, and Shino.
This was his team.
Not the strongest possible lineup…
But it was what he had.
And it would be enough.
"This mission…" Naruto began seriously.
"…is to bring Sasuke back."
"No matter what."
"We absolutely cannot let him go to Orochimaru."
"Failure is not an option."
Hinata nodded firmly.
"Understood, Naruto-kun."
Ino clenched her fists.
"That idiot… what is he even thinking?!"
"I'll beat some sense into him and drag him back myself!"
Shino spoke calmly.
"I may not know Sasuke well…"
"But he is our comrade."
"I will do everything I can to stop him."
Naruto smiled.
"…Good."
He took a step forward.
"Let's go."
And so—
The pursuit began.
This time, however…
Everything was different.
In the original course of events, the team had been led by Shikamaru, with members like Neji, Choji, Kiba, and Lee.
But now—
The team consisted of:
Naruto Uzumaki.
Hinata Hyuga.
Ino Yamanaka.
Shino Aburame.
A completely different lineup.
A completely different dynamic.
But one thing remained unchanged—
Naruto's resolve.
His fists clenched tightly.
His eyes burned with determination.
"Sasuke…"
"You bastard…"
"Even if I have to break your legs—"
"I'll drag you back to the village!!!"
This was the first time Naruto truly took command of a team.
In the original timeline, he wouldn't lead others until much later… until he became Hokage.
But now—
Everything had changed.
Less than a year after graduating from the Academy—
He had already become a Chunin.
His strength rivaled that of Jonin.
His name echoed across the ninja world.
He was hailed as Konoha's greatest genius.
And now—
He stood at the front.
Leading.
Fighting.
Carrying the weight of responsibility.
The boy who once struggled to be acknowledged…
Was now the one others followed.
The night stretched onward.
And ahead of them—
Awaited a battle that would test everything they had.
The chase for Sasuke Uchiha…
Had officially begun.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)
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