novelraw Chapter 523 Sasuke's Sparring Partner
Chapter 523 Sasuke's Sparring Partner
Chapter 523 Sasuke's Sparring Partner
As the first rays of morning sunlight pierce through the gaps between the high-rise buildings and fall upon the bustling streets of Xingzhidu East District.
The streets were already packed with people, including office workers and school children.
Steam rises from the breakfast stalls lining the road in the morning light, and the aroma of various breakfasts wafts through the streets and alleys.
The bus jingled as it passed by, carrying a carriage full of passengers, heading to every corner of the city.
In the heart of this bustling commercial district, a modern high-rise apartment building stands on a street corner.
The first floor houses several shops, including a convenience store, a flower shop, and a very popular bakery, where a small queue had already formed outside.
In a south-facing bedroom on a floor of an apartment building, the alarm clock rang.
"Beep beep beep beep beep beep—beep be ...—"
'
An arm peeked out from under the covers and fumbled around on the bedside table for a while before finally finding the noisy culprit and turning off the alarm clock.
The blanket was pulled back a corner, and Sato Sakumo, with messy black hair, sat up. He rubbed his eyes, yawned, and then sat blankly on the bed, staring at a poster on the opposite wall.
It was a promotional poster for the ninth anniversary celebration of the Star Kingdom, with the Star Kingdom's five-pointed star logo and the slogan "The vast universe, never stopping".
Zuo Yun watched for a while, then sighed.
"Is the holiday over already?!"
His voice was filled with a strong sense of morning grumpiness and a hint of resentment.
Even though the holiday still had several days left, and he had planned to play games at home until he was completely exhausted, a call came to his terminal yesterday afternoon.
It is a message from Teacher Guang.
The content of the communication was very simple.
There's a new recruit he needs to mentor for a while. The training will take place at the 13th Training Ground in the Star City Military District, and the training will begin early tomorrow morning.
As a disciple, he had no right to refuse.
Zuo Yun sighed again, then threw off the covers and stood up.
After washing up, he changed into the uniform of a Star Ninja Jonin, wearing a light gray Jonin vest over it, and then properly put on the Star Ninja headband on his forehead.
Finally, he walked to the weapon rack in the corner and picked up the pair of ninja swords leaning against it.
Thunder Blade - Fang.
The blade of this knife is quite peculiar, with two canine-tooth-like edges, and the handle is wrapped with brown non-slip cloth.
He gripped the hilt of the knife and gently pulled it out an inch. The blade reflected a cold, sharp light, and a faint arc of electricity flickered across the blade, producing a soft crackling sound.
Zuo Yun sheathed his sword, slung it over his back, and walked out of the house.
Before long, he walked out of the apartment building and stepped into the early morning streets.
The noise was overwhelming.
The sounds of car horns, trams clanging, pedestrians chatting, music wafting from shops, and breakfast vendors hawking their wares—
All these sounds blended together to form a symphony of the city morning.
Zuo Yun took a deep breath, a look of contentment on his face.
He liked this feeling.
Compared to the veteran ninja clans living in traditional courtyards in the western district of Star City, these younger generation of Star Ninjas prefer this bustling metropolis.
Skyscrapers, neon lights, convenient transportation, a wide variety of delicious food, and young people chatting in street-side cafes.
All of this made him feel truly alive.
He walked along the street for a while, then turned into a small alley and stopped in front of a breakfast shop.
The shop isn't big, but the aroma wafting from it is incredibly appetizing.
Zuo Yun was about to go in when he found the shop was already full of people.
Office workers, students, and the elderly filled the small shop to the brim, with even a few people standing at the door waiting to get their food packed up.
"Tsk, why are there so many people today—" he muttered, preparing to turn around and leave to find another shop.
"Zuoyun! Over here!"
A clear, crisp female voice came from inside the shop.
Zuo Yun looked in the direction of the sound and saw a blonde girl standing up by a table near the window, waving vigorously at him.
She has an adorable baby face, and her eyes crinkle into crescent shapes when she smiles.
Ai Suzuhara.
A man and a woman were sitting opposite her.
The man had short black hair and a muscular build; he was stuffing a fried dough stick into his mouth.
The woman had short, light brown hair and was drinking soy milk from a bowl. When she saw Zuo Yun, she nodded slightly as a greeting.
It is Toshihito Morishita and Hazuki Murahashi.
"You guys are having breakfast here too?" Zuo Yun walked over and sat down next to Suzuhara Ai.
Then he said to the waiter, "Give me a basket of pork buns, a basket of steamed dumplings, and a bowl of millet porridge."
"Okay! Please wait a moment!" the waiter replied, turning around to prepare.
Morishita Toshito swallowed the fried dough stick in his mouth and said casually, "I remember your vacation still had several days left. Why are you up so early?"
Suzuhara Ai tilted her head curiously: "Yeah, didn't you say you were going to stay home and play games until you beat the game? How did you manage to come out?"
Based on their understanding of Sato Sayun, this guy was a very lazy person.
When not on missions, I usually stay at home playing games, and only occasionally go out to find food or buy daily necessities.
What could make him voluntarily give up his vacation must be something significant.
Zuo Yun looked exhausted. He picked up a pair of disposable chopsticks from the table, unwrapped them, and sighed, saying, "I didn't want to either. But how could I refuse a task assigned directly by the teacher?"
"Teacher?" Suzuhara Ai's eyes lit up.
"Mr. Hikaru?"
"Who else could it be?" Zuo Yun nodded.
Upon hearing this, Murahashi Hazuki and Morishita Toshito also looked over curiously.
They were among the first two batches of students from the Ninja Academy to graduate from the Land of Stars, and now they are all around twenty years old.
Morishita Toshito and Sato Sakumo have become elite Jonin, and are among the best of the younger generation in the Land of Stars.
Hazuki Murahashi and Toshito Morishita were graduates of the class of '57, one year ahead of Sato Saeko and Ai Suzuhara.
The teacher who led Sato Sakumo, Suzuhara Ai, and Otsutsuki Toneri back then was Uchiha Hikaru.
The three underwent three years of rigorous training under her guidance. Although that period was the most tiring time of their lives, it was also the time when they grew the fastest.
Thinking of that stern and unsmiling teacher with unfathomable strength, Ai Suzuhara still feels a deep sense of awe.
She tilted her head and asked cautiously, "Teacher—did you assign some kind of combat mission? Let's not ask."
Zuo Yun picked up a freshly served bun with his chopsticks, took a bite, and the soup burst in his mouth. As he chewed, he mumbled, "It's nothing, just going to train the new junior brother."
"Junior brother?" Suzuhara Ai was taken aback.
"Has Master Guang taken on a new disciple?"
"Someone actually managed to become Master Guangda's disciple?" Even Murahashi Hazuki and Morishita Toshito became interested.
The Land of Stars will soon be ten years old, and Uchiha Hikaru has only ever led a class of students from that one class.
Despite the emergence of outstanding graduates afterward, she never personally led a team again, at most sending elite Jonin to guide the newcomers.
Now, she has actually made an exception and accepted a new disciple?
This is a very rare thing.
"I'll meet that kid later and we'll talk about him then." Zuo Yun didn't dwell on the topic.
He looked up at Murahashi Hazuki and Morishita Toshito across from him, a mischievous smile playing on his lips: "Let's talk about you two, when are you planning to get married?"
Upon hearing this, the two people opposite immediately sat up straight.
Hazuki Murahashi's face flushed instantly. She lowered her head, clutching the hem of her clothes, her eyes darting away shyly.
Morishita Toshito quickly waved his hand and said, "It's still early, it's still early—"
Before he could finish speaking, he was struck in the abdomen by a blow from Murahashi Hazuki's elbow.
"Ugh—!"
Morishita Toshito clutched his stomach and slumped onto the table, too pained to speak.
"Hmph." Hazuki Murahashi put away the pork knuckle, picked up the bowl of soy milk, and took a sip as if nothing had happened, but the blush on her ears betrayed her.
Seeing the two of them, Suzuhara Ai couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Zuo Yun shook his head, as if it were nothing new, and continued eating his steamed bun.
Their affair wasn't a secret within their small circle.
Moreover, the age of majority in the Star Kingdom is eighteen, and the two of them will be twenty next year. They've been dating for several years but haven't proposed yet. It seems someone is getting a little anxious.
After breakfast, Zuo Yun checked the time, stood up, and said, "I'm leaving now. They're waiting for me at the training ground."
"So soon?" Suzuhara Ai looked at him with some reluctance.
"Won't you stay a little longer?"
"No, I'll be late, and it'll be hard to explain to Teacher Guang." Zuo Yun waved his hand and turned to walk out of the store.
Watching Sakumo's departing figure, and then glancing at Suzuhara Ai's lingering gaze, Hazuki Murahashi asked with a smile, "Ai, that blockhead still hasn't figured it out?"
Suzuhara Ai turned around in a panic, her face flushed with embarrassment: "Hazuki—you—you—what did you say—"
I----"
Hazuki Murahashi simply looked at her best friend with a knowing smile, then glanced at Toshito Morishita, who was slumped over the table pretending to be dead, and sighed, "Sometimes, those lousy men are just like blocks of wood. Girls have to take the initiative."
It's no secret in their little circle that Ai Suzuhara has a crush on Sato Sao.
It's just that Zuo Yun, who used to be so carefree, has become so lazy and spends all his time at home playing video games.
Suzuhara Ai sighed, looking down at the half-eaten bowl of soy milk remaining in her bowl. She stirred it gently with a spoon, her voice somewhat dejected: "That idiot—she wasn't like this before."
Hazuki Murahashi leaned closer, lowered her voice, and whispered in her ear, "I heard from Toshito that Sagumo really likes playing video games. Do you want to cosplay his favorite female character?"
The two girls began to whisper in each other's ears.
As she spoke, Ai Suzuhara's face grew increasingly red, until it was almost steaming.
"This...this won't do! This is too...too shameful!"
"What's there to be ashamed of? If you like someone, just go for it!"
"But----"
"No buts, listen to your older sister—"
the other side.
Star City Military Zone, Training Ground No. 13.
This is a forest farm located in the eastern mountains of Star City, far away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
In the middle of the forest farm, there is a clearing overgrown with weeds, about the size of a football field.
Some wooden figures and targets were scattered in the open space, some of them covered with knife marks and shuriken scratches, clearly indicating that they had been used for a long time.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
The edge of the clearing is a dense forest, and when the wind blows, the leaves rustle and bring the fresh scent of the mountains and forests.
Sasuke arrived here early this morning.
He was leaning against a big tree, arms crossed, idly playing with the kunai in his hand.
Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the leaves, falling on him.
Two days have passed since their field trip to Onomura.
Upon returning, Sasuke intended to immediately throw himself into training, but was informed that Uchiha Hikaru had some important matters to attend to recently, so a sparring partner had been found for him.
The training ground has also been changed from the coastal desert of Wind County to this training ground in Star City.
Sasuke tossed the kunai up, caught it, and tossed it up again.
"I wonder how Naruto's training is going," he muttered to himself.
Sasuke got anxious at the thought of Naruto having to release the Nine-Tails every day to train his body to control the power of the tailed beast.
After this period of training, Naruto can now activate all four tails without going berserk, and his strength has visibly increased many times over.
But he hadn't even gotten close to the Mangekyou Sharingan.
How can I not be anxious?
Sasuke took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.
Impatience is a major taboo for ninjas, a fact he learned firsthand during his time in the Anbu.
Sasuke was also curious about who would be his sparring partner next.
Could it be Shisui who personally arranged this for Uchiha Hikaru?
After all, as far as he knew, there were only three Uchiha clan members in the Land of Stars who had awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan.
If it's a still water system—
Just as Sasuke was lost in thought, footsteps came from the woods opposite.
Sasuke snapped out of his daze, looked up, and gazed in the direction from which the sound came.
A figure slowly emerged from the forest.
He wore a blue-gray Jonin vest, carried a pair of ninja swords on his back, wore a Star Ninja headband on his forehead, and his medium-length black hair fluttered slightly in the morning breeze. There was a faint scar on his right eyebrow.
His steps were casual, as if he were taking a stroll, and he made no attempt to conceal his presence, walking confidently towards Sasuke.
Sasuke looked up at the other person, his brows furrowed slightly.
This person—he didn't know him, and he wasn't a member of the Uchiha clan.
Sato Sakun stopped about three steps away from Sasuke, looked him up and down, then scratched his head, his tone languid: "You must be Sasuke? Hmm, let me introduce myself, I'm Hikaru-sensei's disciple, Sato Sakun, an elite Jonin from the Land of Stars."
"He's also your senior brother."
He paused, then pointed at Sasuke, a smile playing on his lips: "For the next period of time, your task is to defeat me."
Sasuke glanced at the other man's Jonin vest, then at his lazy demeanor, which bore a resemblance to Kakashi's, and frowned as he asked, "Why is it you who came?"
"I know what you're wondering about." Sato Sakumo shrugged, looking helpless. "Shisui-sama is the head of the police department, he's very busy. Izumi and Inahikazuchi also have their own tasks."
He sighed, a hint of grievance in his voice: "Besides, I was on my vacation. If it weren't for Teacher Guang's personal order, do you think I would have given up my vacation to train with you? I still have several games at home that I haven't finished."
Sasuke ignored his complaints.
He slowly drew the ninja sword from his waist, his eyes now crimson, three tomoe slowly rotating in his pupils, radiating a fierce fighting spirit.
"Then—" His voice was low and cold.
"If I defeat you, I can continue receiving training from Hikaru-sensei, right?"
Sato Sakumo looked at his three-tomoe Sharingan eyes, which were full of fighting spirit, and his lazy expression softened slightly.
With one hand on his hip, he spoke slowly in a tone of authority, as if instructing a junior: "If you're not determined to kill me, it'll be very difficult to defeat me."
"Because—" Sato Sakumo paused, his pupils turning blood red.
Three tomoe slowly emerged in his blood-red pupils, emanating an aura completely different from Sasuke's.
"I am a non-Uchiha clan member with a three-tomoe Sharingan." Sato Sayun's tone became cold and arrogant.
Sasuke's hand holding the knife suddenly stopped.
He looked incredulously at the other person's blood-red eyes and at the three slowly rotating magatama.
Sharingan?
A non-Uchiha clan ninja with the three-tomoe Sharingan?
He knew that the Star Country's bloodline limit transplantation technology was very advanced. Since arriving in the Star Country, he had seen many ninjas who had transplanted the Byakugan, but this was the first time he had seen a ninja who had transplanted the Sharingan in the Star Country.
Moreover, the fact that the other party can open and close the Sharingan so freely clearly shows that their mastery of the Sharingan is even greater than that of Kakashi-sensei.
Sasuke didn't know how Kakashi obtained his Sharingan, but he did know that because it wasn't his original eye, Kakashi couldn't turn it off or control it freely, and usually had to cover it with his forehead bandage.
Furthermore, using the Sharingan consumes a lot of chakra, so Kakashi rarely keeps the Sharingan active for extended periods during battles.
But Sato Sayun in front of him could open and close his Sharingan freely, just like a member of the Uchiha clan, and there was no sign of it being depleted.
This means that the Sharingan transplantation technology in the Land of Stars has matured to the point that it can be perfectly adapted to non-Uchiha people.
A complex mix of emotions welled up in Sasuke's heart: surprise, wariness, and a hint of excitement.
He abandoned his initial disdain for the seemingly lazy man in front of him.
He was chosen as a disciple by Uchiha Hikaru, he was able to perfectly control the transplanted three-tomoe Sharingan, and he was sent to be his sparring partner.
This person is definitely not simple.
Sasuke slowly adjusted his breathing, gripped his ninja sword tightly, and locked his three-tomoe Sharingan firmly on his opponent.
"Then," his voice carried a chilling fighting spirit, "let me see what a Sharingan ninja who isn't from the Uchiha clan can do."
"Tsk, when I was as young as you, I was just as warlike, but I gradually discovered that there are many beautiful things in this world besides fighting." Sato Sayun looked at the burning fighting spirit in his eyes, marveling at the other's vitality, and then slowly took off the Raito Kiba from his back.
A bright blue arc of electricity flashed across the blade, producing a crisp "crackling" sound.