novelraw Chapter 494 Gaara: Sasuke, you bastard, you don't understand anything at all!
Chapter 494 Gaara: Sasuke, you bastard, you don't understand anything at all!
Chapter 494 Gaara: Sasuke, you bastard, you don't understand anything at all!
Late at night, in a relatively quiet neighborhood in the eastern part of Xingzhidu.
Unlike the commercial center on the west bank, this area is mostly comprised of well-planned residential buildings and detached courtyards, creating a tranquil environment.
Most of the windows were dark, with only a few streetlights casting long shadows in the night.
Occasionally, patrol cars would silently drive by, their roof lights flashing fleeting red and blue streaks in the darkness.
In a five-story hotel with a sign that reads "Starry Inn," a light was still on in a room on the second floor facing the street.
The room was small and simply furnished, with two single beds, a desk, two chairs, and a wardrobe.
The window was half open, and the evening breeze, carrying a slight chill, stirred the beige curtains.
On the desk, a boy who looked about twelve or thirteen years old, with blond spiky hair and wearing a black jacket, was lying on the desk.
He rested his chin on his hands, his brows furrowed, and his azure eyes were fixed on a strange creature on the table.
It was a strangely shaped "turtle" about the size of a palm.
Its shell is dark blue, covered with white circular patterns like tree rings, and gleams under the light.
The skin under the tortoise's shell is pink on top and white on the bottom, looking soft and elastic. Its eyes are narrowed into slits, as if it has never woken up.
This is the mysterious treasure used by the Otsutsuki clan for time travel, the "Li".
Boruto extended his index finger and cautiously poked the hard, blue-green shell of the "Li" with a hint of curiosity.
The plow remained unresponsive, as if it were truly just an inanimate object.
But a few seconds later, it raised its head slightly, and then a synthesized voice, devoid of any emotion and with a slightly mechanical quality, came from its slightly open mouth: "Energy absorption and conversion system operating normally. Spacetime coordinates anchored. Chakra charging progress: 100%."
"The time-space travel core is ready and can perform a reverse jump at the predetermined coordinates at any time to return to the original timeline node. Please issue the command."
Upon hearing this, Boruto's eyes lit up. He looked up at the other side of the room, where a tall figure was quietly leaning against the window, facing the night outside.
"Master!" Boruto's voice was filled with excitement and urgency: "This guy said the charging is complete! We—"
"Is it time to prepare to go back?"
I've been in this distorted time and space for over two months now.
In the past two months, they have experienced far more than they could have imagined in order to stop Urashiki Otsutsuki from harming young Naruto.
I witnessed the boy named Menma, during the Chunin Exams, crush two Otsutsuki who suddenly appeared.
Afterwards, they accepted Menma's invitation and came to this country called "Star Country", where they have been staying for ten days.
During these ten days, they witnessed firsthand the prosperity and vitality of the Star City. Its level of modernization, population size, and social order were even more astonishing than Konoha, the future most prosperous ninja village.
They also traveled to many places within the Land of Stars and saw the new order that the country had established after completely overthrowing the old aristocratic system, which was completely different from the traditions of the ninja world.
Emphasis should be placed on infrastructure development that benefits people's livelihoods, universal education and healthcare, the implementation of fair laws, and the high degree of nationalization of ninja power, deeply integrating it into the social production and governance system.
What they saw and heard had a profound impact on them, especially on young Sasuke, who was used to the conflicts in the ninja world.
This is a "new world" full of contradictions, yet vibrant, and on a completely unknown path.
However, no matter how novel, "correct" or "wrong" this place may be, it is ultimately not their time and space.
Boruto misses his comrades in Konoha and his parents.
Young Sasuke also knew that the time for his return seemed to have indeed come.
The young Sasuke, leaning against the window, did not immediately respond to Boruto.
He remained in that position, his head slightly tilted, his gaze piercing through the half-open curtains, across the quiet street, and landing on a detached three-story apartment building with a small courtyard not far away across the street.
Warm, bright light shines through the windows of the apartment building's ground-floor living room.
Through the floor-to-ceiling window with the curtains drawn, the interior of the living room can be clearly seen.
A woman dressed in dark purple loungewear, with long black hair reaching her waist, and a gentle and quiet demeanor, is facing away from the window, slightly bent over, seemingly tidying up a pile of clothes on the sofa.
Her movements were gentle and careful. Every now and then she would pick up a piece of clothing, gently smooth out the wrinkles, carefully fold it, and put it back in its place.
The light outlined her soft figure, and her focused yet gentle demeanor brought a long-lost sense of comfort to young Sasuke's heart.
That's Uchiha Mikoto.
In this timeline, she did not die on the night of the massacre, but was rescued by Kushina and came to the Land of Stars, where she has lived ever since.
Young Sasuke's gaze seemed to be fixed on that warm light and shadow.
He seemed to be breathing very softly, as if afraid of disturbing the peaceful scene inside the window.
In recent days, he has chosen not to knock on the door or disturb her.
Every night, he would simply watch that figure from a distance that would go unnoticed.
Boruto waited for a moment, but received no response. Somewhat puzzled, he stood up and walked to the window.
He followed young Sasuke's gaze and saw the black-haired woman tidying her clothes in the opposite window.
In the past few days, he had noticed that his master seemed to observe the house across the street every night, especially the figure of that woman.
He asked several times, but his master always remained silent.
Boruto is very smart. Combining what he saw in the Land of Stars about some Uchiha clan members who should have been exterminated, and his master's unusual reaction, he already had some guesses in his mind.
But since his master didn't say anything, he couldn't bear to point it out or ask further.
Just then, Boruto caught a glimpse of two figures walking slowly from one end of the quiet street toward the apartment building.
"Master, look!" Boruto immediately whispered a reminder, pointing downstairs.
"Is that you over there—in this time and space?"
The moment Boruto spoke, young Sasuke's gaze locked onto the two figures.
Walking in front was a young man with an ethereal air, dressed in a white kimono, named Ōtsutsuki Toneri.
Following him a step behind was a young Sasuke, wearing a black high-necked bodysuit, carrying a ninja sword on his back, with a cold face and a hint of tension and confusion in his eyes.
Young Sasuke wasn't surprised to see his younger self appear in Star City.
He could even say that he had anticipated this all along.
Since Menma in this timeline knows so many secrets, his allure is undoubtedly fatal to young Sasuke, who craves the power of revenge, the truth behind his family's massacre, and the chance to find his mother.
Whether it's to avenge Itachi Uchiha, to find his mother, or to follow the Uchiha clan members taken away by Shisui, young Sasuke will inevitably choose to come to the Land of Stars.
He just hadn't expected that the young Sasuke in this timeline would defect so quickly and so decisively.
In his memory, he had gone through a series of changes, hesitations and painful choices, and finally decided to cooperate with Orochimaru and betray Konoha because he believed that Konoha no longer had a way for him to continue to improve his strength.
And this "self" in this time and space seems to be driven by some force, embarking on this path earlier.
Just as young Sasuke's gaze followed young Sasuke and Toneri toward the apartment building, he keenly spotted three more figures approaching from another direction on the street.
One of them had striking red hair and a large gourd, which stood out under the streetlights.
Meanwhile, on the street outside the apartment building.
After leaving Black Stone Prison, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro walked silently along the night road back to their residence in the East District.
The streetlights cast their shadows long and short, but a heavy, lingering gloom hung over all three faces.
After hearing firsthand from their father, Rasa, the cruel and nauseating truth about how their uncle, Yashamaru, assassinated Gaara, they were nearly consumed by immense grief and anger.
They did not linger in Rosa's cell for long, nor did they engage in any further conversation.
Before leaving, Gaara said his last words to his father, who was still leaning back on the sofa: "You are not only a terrible Kazekage—you are also a completely failed father."
After saying that, he left without looking back, leaving behind the frozen exhaustion and gloom on Luo Sha's face.
The entire journey was speechless.
Temari looked at Gaara's back, which seemed to be carrying an immense burden, walking half a step ahead of her. She opened her mouth several times, wanting to say something to comfort him, but felt that any words would be pale and powerless.
Kankuro also kept his head down, mechanically taking steps, seemingly lost in thought.
At that moment, Gaara, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong, Gaara?" Temari was startled and almost bumped into his back, while Kankuro quickly stopped in his tracks.
Following Gaara's gaze, the two noticed two people standing under a streetlamp outside the familiar detached apartment building with a small courtyard not far ahead.
One of them was Otsutsuki Toneri, whom they knew.
Another boy, with his back to them and a somewhat thin build, stood out.
He stood blankly outside the tightly closed iron gate of the courtyard, his right hand stiffly raised in mid-air, his fingertips only centimeters away from the small doorbell button, yet he couldn't bring himself to lower it.
His back was ramrod straight, exuding tension and hesitation.
The servant noticed their arrival and looked up at them slightly.
The boy Sasuke, who was standing frozen outside the door, seemed to be startled by the sudden approaching footsteps and withdrew his hand.
He turned around abruptly, and when he saw that it was Gaara, a complex emotion flashed across his black eyes.
During the Chunin Exams, in the Forest of Death, Sasuke suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Gaara's overwhelming strength and Shukaku's terrifying power. Even with his Sharingan activated, he was powerless to resist, and his pride was severely wounded.
It was from Gaara that he first learned definitively that his mother, Uchiha Mikoto, had not died on the night of the massacre, but had been rescued and brought to the Land of Stars.
Ironically, he was left behind in Konoha.
The pain and confusion of being "abandoned," the resentment and longing towards his mother for "why she didn't take me with her," gnawed at his heart like a venomous snake, and were one of the important reasons that finally made him decide to defect from Konoha and come to the Land of Stars.
At this moment, outside the door of his mother's house, seeing Gaara and his two siblings who had been adopted by his mother, Sasuke's suppressed grievances were like a lit fuse, instantly turning into cold hostility and sharp pain.
Gaara looked at Sasuke's face, which was filled with stubbornness, wariness, and hidden pain, and ignored the hostility in his eyes, slowly walking towards Sasuke.
The footsteps were particularly clear on the quiet street.
Sasuke stood still, his body slightly tense, coldly watching Gaara approach.
He had no idea what this eccentric and powerful guy wanted. Was he there to mock him for not daring to ring the doorbell?
Or is he here to boast that he "replaced" her and enjoyed his mother's love?
Gaara stopped about three steps away from Sasuke.
He first looked at the house emitting warm light, then at Sasuke.
Then he said, "Let's go in."
Sasuke was stunned for a moment.
Gaara's blue-green eyes appeared somewhat dim and unclear under the streetlights, but the emotions within them were exceptionally complex.
"Don't you have a lot of questions—that you want to clarify?" Gaara continued.
"About what happened that night, about why I left you here, about—everything."
"She's inside now."
He pointed to the door.
"She has been waiting for you for a long time."
'
'
Sasuke's pupils suddenly contracted.
wait for me?"
For so many years, I struggled alone in Konoha, treated as a monster, as a remnant of the Uchiha clan, looked at with strange eyes by everyone, shrouded in the shadow of that man, and in so much pain that I was about to suffocate—where was she?
While she was in the Land of Stars, did she ever think that she had a son in Konoha, who was sinking into darkness and hatred?
A surge of long-suppressed grief and indignation suddenly rushed to Sasuke's head.
He glared at Gaara, his dark eyes forcedly cold: "Wait for me? Wait for me for what?!"
"All these years—she's never cared how I'm doing in Konoha!"
Sasuke's feigned coldness sent a chill down Temari and Kankuro's spines, and even Toneri, who had been silent all along, turned slightly toward Sasuke.
However, Sasuke had barely finished speaking when...
boom! !
A fist, carrying tiny grains of sand, slammed into Sasuke's left cheek before he could even react!
The immense force caused Sasuke to stumble backward several steps, finally collapsing backward onto the cold, hard concrete with a thud.
A searing pain shot through my left cheek, a metallic, metallic taste filled my mouth, and I saw stars before my eyes.
He was completely stunned. He sat on the ground, one hand covering his rapidly swollen cheek, looking incredulously at Gaara who had suddenly attacked.
"Gaara!" Temari and Kankuro exclaimed almost simultaneously, wanting to step forward to stop him, but they were stunned by the sudden burst of violent chakra from Gaara, which was like a volcanic eruption, and froze on the spot.
Shiren also took a small half-step forward, but seemed to judge that the punch was not fatal, so he stopped and just looked at Sasuke who was lying on the ground.
Gaara stood rooted to the spot, staring intently at Sasuke lying on the ground, his blue-green eyes now churning with overwhelming rage and pity.
"You—idiot!!!"
Gaara's hoarse voice rang out, breaking the silence of the neighborhood with an unprecedented intensity of emotion.
He roared at Sasuke, who was lying on the ground, "You know absolutely nothing!"
"You have no idea what Aunt Mikoto has been through all these years!"
His voice choked with emotion, his eyes filled with tears, and he swayed precariously.
"Do you think she's doing well here? Do you think she's forgotten you?! She stares at your picture every day! Every year on your birthday, she sits alone in her room, facing the empty walls, and cries all night!"
Gaara's tears rolled down his handsome face in large drops.
"Because of Itachi Uchiha! She didn't even—she didn't even dare to set foot on the Uchiha clan's territory!"
"She felt ashamed to face her familiar tribesmen, afraid to recall that night, afraid—to recall you!"
"She misses you more than anyone else! She's in more pain than anyone else!"
Gaara bent over, placing his hands on his knees as if he would collapse to the ground if he didn't.
He wept uncontrollably, his tears flowing like a burst dam, mixed with sand and dust, dripping onto the ground.
"If you want to know the truth—go in! Ask them face to face! Since you still love each other—don't play these guessing games! Don't play this self-torturing riddle game!"
Don't wait until it's too late to regret it.
In the end, Gaara's voice was reduced to a suppressed sob.
He slowly raised his hand, pointing to the door that still emitted warm light, and said in a hoarse voice to Sasuke, who was sitting on the ground, his face still showing shock and burning pain, "Otherwise—you'll end up like me—"
"I will never have the chance to lose the person who loves me the most, not even to say 'I'm sorry' or 'I miss you'."
"There won't be any more!"
Gaara let out his final roar.
He remembered the death of his uncle, Yashamaru.
He killed him with his own hands.
Only today did he finally realize that his uncle, who loved him the most, never wanted to kill him; he was forced to by Luo Sha!
Even until his death, Yashamaru was the person he should never have lost in this world.
He didn't even have a chance to explain things to Yashamaru face to face.
He didn't even have a chance to say "I'm sorry".
And this bastard in front of me, his mother is in this house with the lights on, just a door away, and she's still saying something like "Wait for me to do something" at the door.
The night wind blew, stirring up the fallen leaves on the ground, making a soft rustling sound.
The streetlights cast long, long shadows of Gaara's trembling figure, Sasuke's blank expression, Temari and Kankuro's red-rimmed eyes, and Toneri's silent silhouette.
Behind the window on the second floor of the inn across the street, young Sasuke stood quietly, taking in everything that was happening below.
He saw the confusion and pain of young Sasuke, the anger and lament of Gaara who was disappointed in his son, and the gentle figure behind the door who seemed to have stopped moving because of the noise outside and was walking towards the door.
His right hand was clenched into a fist, and deep within his dark eyes, a bottomless vortex seemed to be churning, before finally settling into a deep calm filled with endless memories and pain.
"Master?" Boruto lowered his voice, barely daring to breathe.
Time slipped away quietly amidst silence and sobs.
Until the tightly closed iron gate of the courtyard was gently pulled open from the inside by a slender hand that was trembling slightly.