Chapter 737: Uchiha Sasuke? A Spy!

"Where is this?"

In a daze, Sasuke found himself in a lush green forest, falling at an alarming speed.

Sasuke calmly adjusted his body and landed steadily.

"Why isn't Boruto with me?"

Sasuke scanned the surroundings, his expression turning serious—he and Boruto had been separated.

Sasuke did not act recklessly; he carefully observed the area while reflecting on what had just happened.

He and Boruto had been fighting Urashiki Ōtsutsuki at the Cultural Artifacts Research Institute, and ended up in a strange space along with him.

Inside that strange space, they continued to fight, but just when they were gaining the upper hand, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki's expression suddenly turned sour, he cursed his bad luck, and then, in a blur, Sasuke found himself in this forest.

"Judging by Urashiki Ōtsutsuki's reaction, this must be an unexpected incident, not something he planned. That means Boruto should be safe for now."

After analyzing the situation, Sasuke breathed a slight sigh of relief.

If something happened to Boruto, he wouldn't have the face to go back and see Naruto.

Sasuke leaped up into a tree, preparing to observe the area from a high point.

To avoid any surprises, he needed to find Boruto as soon as possible.

At that moment, Sasuke suddenly sensed something. His right hand quietly gripped the Kusanagi sword hidden under his black cloak, and he quickly turned around.

"Who are you?"

Itachi Uchiha looked curiously at Sasuke standing on the tree branch.

He had heard a noise and thought Shisui had returned, but it turned out to be a stranger he didn't recognize.

"?!"

Sasuke stared at the child who looked remarkably like his brother, his mind shaken, countless guesses flashing through his thoughts.

But Sasuke was a legendary ninja who had weathered countless storms; despite the turmoil in his mind, his facial expression remained unchanged.

"Has no one ever told you? Before asking someone else's name, you should say your own."

Sasuke said after a moment of thought.

"Are you an Uchiha?"

Itachi Uchiha did not answer Sasuke's question, but instead asked him another one.

Sasuke found it extremely strange.

Since this child, who looked so much like Itachi Uchiha, knew about the Uchiha clan, why didn't he recognize him—the most famous Uchiha powerhouse in the ninja world right now?

Sasuke hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"I see. Well then, you keep playing here. I'm going to train."

Itachi Uchiha chose not to exchange names with Sasuke, warily keeping his distance.

Although Sasuke was very interested in this child who resembled Itachi Uchiha, Boruto's safety was more important at the moment.

After confirming Boruto's safety, he would come back to investigate this child.

Swoosh!

Sasuke leaped several times to a higher vantage point and spotted a town not far away, as well as four stone faces on the cliff above.

"Only four!"

Sasuke was utterly shocked and rapidly checked his own chakra.

Even though with his Rinnegan and Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan it was almost impossible for him to be caught in a genjutsu, he still checked very carefully.

After confirming there was no issue, Sasuke looked at the Hokage faces again—yes, only four.

"Four stone faces, a child who looks like my brother... could it be that I've returned to the past?"

Sasuke connected all the information and made a judgment.

Although time travel seemed absurd, based on the available information, that absurd thing had indeed happened.

"If I were to go and kill Shimura Danzo right now…"

A strong killing intent surged within Sasuke.

If not for Shimura Danzo, his parents wouldn't have died, and his brother wouldn't have become the sinner who destroyed the clan.

Recalling that sorrowful blood-red night and his brother's dying face, the killing intent in Sasuke's heart swelled further.

"No, the urgent task is to find Boruto."

Sasuke let out a long breath, sheathed the Kusanagi sword he was about to draw, and suppressed the killing intent in his heart.

He still didn't understand everything, and he couldn't act rashly without knowing whether changing the past would have any adverse effects on the future.

"Uncle, I am Uchiha Itachi. This time can you tell me who you are?"

Just as Sasuke was about to set off to find Boruto, Uchiha Itachi, for some reason, ran back and told Sasuke his name.

Sasuke was silent for a moment.

Being called 'uncle' by his own brother was indeed a novel experience.

"Suigetsu."

Sasuke casually gave a name.

At this time he had already been born, so he definitely couldn't give his own name.

"I see. Uncle, are you a ninja?"

Uchiha Itachi continued to ask.

"No."

Sasuke shook his head.

He was not a ninja of this era; rashly admitting to being a ninja might cause unnecessary trouble.

"Itachi, I'm sorry. I lied to you just now. Actually, I am not a member of the Uchiha clan."

Sasuke said apologetically.

Just now, he didn't know he had traveled through time, and because of Uchiha Itachi, he admitted to being an Uchiha.

"I see. Then why did you lie to me, uncle? Lying is not good."

Uchiha Itachi said seriously.

"I greatly admire the ninjas of the Uchiha clan, so I said nonsense."

Sasuke explained.

Until he understood the consequences, Sasuke would not act rashly in the past.

"Specifically, who do you admire? Brother Shisui? Or Brother Obito?"

Uchiha Itachi continued to ask.

Hearing the name Obito, Sasuke couldn't help but show a strange expression on his face. What was there to admire about that guy?

"Also, can I ask you a question, uncle?"

Although Uchiha Itachi used a questioning tone, before Sasuke could give a reply, Uchiha Itachi asked the question.

"One day, while crossing the street, you meet an elderly man with difficulty walking. Which of the following three choices would you pick?"

"A. Help the old man cross the street."

"B. Ignore the old man and go your own way."

"C. Snatch the lollipop from the old man's hand."

Sasuke:?

Sasuke slowly typed a question mark in his mind.

Who turned his brother into this? Where did such a weird question come from?

"And, is my brother deliberately stalling for time?"

Sasuke noticed something.

Itachi Uchiha was being overly enthusiastic.

Normally, Itachi Uchiha wouldn't talk so much with a stranger he didn't know.

"Itachi, sorry, I have things to do today. I'll answer your questions next time for sure."

Sasuke turned around and prepared to leave.

It wasn't that he was worried about danger; no matter what Itachi Uchiha wanted to do, the current Itachi Uchiha was just a little kid, incapable of doing much.

His main concern was Boruto.

Not to mention Urashiki Ōtsutsuki, this era itself was very dangerous.

The era Boruto lived in was too peaceful, and Boruto wasn't a steady person; it would be easy for him to reveal something unusual and be taken for a spy from an enemy village.

"Dad, it's this black-robed man! He disguised himself as a clan member to approach me!"

At that moment, another Itachi Uchiha, along with Fugaku Uchiha and several Uchiha jōnin, rushed out and surrounded Sasuke.

At first, Itachi Uchiha actually didn't dislike the black-robed man.

For some reason, he inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity when he saw the black-robed man.

But after the black-robed man claimed to be an Uchiha, that familiarity, in Itachi's view, became proof that he was a dangerous element.

The Uchiha clan had only that many people, and they all lived in the clan compound, seeing each other every day; there was no way there could be an Uchiha he didn't know at all.

Disguising as an Uchiha, making him feel familiar, and probing for information—if Itachi Uchiha still couldn't see the problem, then all his theories would have been learned in vain.

Sasuke:...

He had to admit it was just like his genius older brother; he could already use the Shadow Clone Technique at such a young age.

"Who are you? Where do you come from? Why are you approaching Itachi!"

Fugaku Uchiha looked at Sasuke sternly and asked.

Seeing the familiar stern face from his memories, Sasuke felt a stir, and his desire to kill Danzō Shimura stirred again.

"I'm Suigetsu. Actually, this is a misunderstanding. I was just joking with Itachi."

Sasuke suppressed the chaotic thoughts in his heart and explained.

"Itachi, if you dispel the Shadow Clone, you'll understand."

Itachi Uchiha formed a hand seal and dispelled the Shadow Clone; the memories flowed back to the original body, and he looked thoughtful.

"It seems there really is some misunderstanding."

Itachi Uchiha was a bit uncertain.

In the Shadow Clone's memories, Sasuke had acted normally, not seeming to have any ill intent, but his previous behavior had indeed been confusing.

"Then, Mr. Suigetsu, please show your identification or ninja certificate."

Fugaku Uchiha shook his head at Itachi Uchiha, signaling him to step back, then looked at Sasuke and said.

Whether there was a problem or not, he would naturally find out after investigating.

"I'm not a ninja, nor a resident of Konoha. I'm a citizen of the Land of Rain. Life is hard there, so I came to Konoha to perform acrobatics to earn a meal."

Sasuke said without changing his expression.

After the Fourth Shinobi World War, in order to investigate matters concerning Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, he traveled all over the shinobi world and knew the conditions of every country inside out; there was absolutely no way he would be caught in a flaw.

"Life is hard for citizens of the Land of Rain?"

Fugaku Uchiha found it somewhat amusing. He even joked with Itachi, but revealed a flaw in his first sentence.

The Land of Rain's economy was now developing very well. Many places in the Five Great Nations couldn't compare to the well-developed cities of the Land of Rain.

Among them, the best-developed Rikudō City was so popular that it was hard to find a house; even with continuous expansion, it couldn't meet demand.

"Since you came to perform acrobatics, could you, Mr. Suigetsu, demonstrate some acrobatics?"

Fugaku Uchiha asked.

Sasuke nodded, took out a red ball from his chest, and threw it toward the sky.

In that instant, Uchiha Fugaku rushed at Sasuke, reaching out to grab him.

"He made a move—did I leave some opening?"

Sasuke noticed Uchiha Fugaku's sneak attack, dodged instinctively, and was very puzzled in his heart.

"Catch him, don't let him escape."

Seeing that Sasuke had actually managed to evade his attack, Uchiha Fugaku narrowed his eyes slightly and concentrated chakra in both eyes.

Without a doubt, he had caught a big fish.

Although he hadn't used his full strength just now, that had been a surprise attack, and the fact that Sasuke could dodge it was enough to prove his ability.

"Just who the hell are you!"

Seeing this, the other Uchiha jonin activated their Sharingan, spread out, and blocked Sasuke's escape routes.

"It's come to the worst situation."

Looking at the pairs of blood-red eyes fixed on him, Sasuke felt a headache coming on.

If it were him in his prime, he naturally wouldn't care about these ninja.

The problem was that he had no chakra now.

Part of his chakra had been consumed in the battle with Urashiki Ōtsutsuki, and another part had been fished away by Urashiki Ōtsutsuki.

All he had on him was a little bit of chakra he had just refined.

"No choice."

Sasuke sighed and slowly raised his right hand.

"This is really a misunderstanding."

Sasuke assumed a surrender posture and said.

If Sasuke were determined to fight, even with insufficient chakra, relying on his skill and experience, it wasn't impossible for him to escape.

But the problem was that his opponents were his family and clansmen, so Sasuke couldn't attack recklessly.

Moreover, this was Konoha. If Sasuke resisted arrest with force, he would immediately be put on a wanted list, and all the Anbu in the village would mobilize en masse—that would be even worse.

It would be better to just be thrown into prison; once Sasuke recovered his chakra, he had plenty of ways to get out.

"Search him for any suspicious items."

Uchiha Fugaku did not let his guard down just because Sasuke had given up resisting; he kept his Sharingan active and had his subordinates search Sasuke.

Fortunately, Sasuke hadn't brought anything with him—only the Kusanagi Sword was taken by the Uchiha jonin.

"Take him away."

Uchiha Fugaku nodded and, together with his subordinates, brought Sasuke to the interrogation room of the Police Force, where he personally interrogated Sasuke.

"What is your real name, where are you from, and what is your purpose in coming to Konoha?"

Uchiha Fugaku asked.

"Suigetsu, from the Rain Country. I was curious about Konoha, so I came to have a look."

Sasuke slightly altered his story.

After all, he had shown a bit of his strength, so he could no longer use street performance as an excuse.

"Then why did you lie earlier?"

"Because I'm tired of war. I'm no longer a ninja of the Rain Country and am being wanted by the village."

Sasuke explained.

This explanation had a huge flaw. If Konoha sent someone to investigate in the Rain Country, he would be exposed.

But the Rain Country had long been closed off, making investigation much more difficult than in ordinary countries.

By the time Konoha finished investigating and got results, he would have already escaped from prison and gone into hiding.

"Are you deliberately mocking me?"

Uchiha Fugaku glared sternly at Sasuke.

The Land of Rain hasn't seen war in ages, and now it's the era of the Shinobi Alliance—where would war come from?

Sasuke furrowed his brow, puzzled why Uchiha Fugaku was reacting this way.

There are plenty of rogue ninja in the Land of Rain; his rogue ninja identity should be reasonable enough. Plus, with the Land of Rain's perennial chaos, his aversion to conflict shouldn't be that big a problem.

Which link in the chain went wrong?

"Lock him up. We'll interrogate him tomorrow."

Uchiha Fugaku decided to starve Sasuke for a while first, to make him suffer a bit.

Looking at Uchiha Fugaku's icy expression, Sasuke's mood was complicated.

He had never seen Uchiha Fugaku like this. Though his father was usually strict, he had never worn such an expression.

"Mr. Sasuke, why are you still locked up?"

Having finally found Sasuke, Boruto couldn't help but complain.

He thought Sasuke was a reliable teacher, but instead, he had quietly been thrown into jail.