UK:GSW Chapter 354 – Sasuke's Personality Skips Straight to the Shippuden Ending, and His Resolve to Confront Itachi
"Sasuke! You're back? How is it? Are you alright?"
At the temporary base of Snake Team, Sasuke's three teammates had been anxiously waiting.
When Sasuke finally returned, his face heavy with thought, the three breathed a sigh of relief at seeing him safe, and immediately rushed over.
Hearing their concern, Sasuke glanced at them, then nodded. "Don't worry, I'm fine. Sorry for making you worry."
At those words, all three froze, eyes wide and mouths agape, staring at Sasuke in disbelief. They had never seen him this polite—let alone apologizing first. It felt like something out of a dream.
After all, Sasuke had always been the quiet, cold "cool guy." Even before his later "Team Taka" period—when hatred and the Mangekyō Sharingan made him icy and ruthless—he was still aloof and taciturn, never one to apologize or speak more than necessary.
So what was this? So courteous, even showing concern for others… was this really Sasuke? Was he brainwashed or replaced?
But Sasuke didn't acknowledge their shocked expressions—or perhaps his mind wasn't on them at all. He simply walked past under their stunned gaze, went inside, and sat cross-legged at the low table, deep in thought.
Seeing this, Karin, Jugo, and Suigetsu exchanged looks, then huddled together, whispering.
"What's going on with Sasuke?"
"No idea, but he's clearly got a lot on his mind."
"Hey, woman, didn't you say that Uchiha Kei guy put him into some kind of illusion world and made him go through a long illusion? You think maybe he got brainwashed?"
"Idiot. Sasuke's not someone who can be brainwashed that easily. This must mean Lord Kei told him a lot of things—things that have him thinking hard right now."
"Uh… so what do we do?"
"Mm… we wait. Judging by him, he's processing things. He has his own ideas. Let's wait until he's thought it through, then we'll ask."
And so, the three decided to wait. It was already something of a Snake Team habit—after all, Sasuke formed the team, and his will was their guiding principle. Everything else was secondary.
Whatever Sasuke decided to do next, Snake Team would follow.
At this moment, Sasuke's thoughts truly were heavy, and many. Uchiha Kei had told him everything—the full truth of the Uchiha massacre and much of what had been hidden behind it.
Not only the political struggle between Konoha's leadership and the Uchiha, nor only Itachi's so-called "brilliant" choice, but also how Uchiha Obito had been deceived by Uchiha Madara, inherited Madara's will, and resolved to carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan—setting into motion the Nine-Tails' attack and countless other events.
Kei had made it clear: if not for Obito launching the Nine-Tails' attack, killing the Fourth Hokage and many others, the Uchiha of Sasuke's world and Konoha would never have reached that point. They might even have reconciled and integrated into the village like in this parallel world.
Which meant Obito was the root of all evil—the one Sasuke most deserved to hate.
And Sasuke agreed. Whether Itachi, Obito, or even Madara—who had manipulated Obito—they were all clowns.
Because at the root of it all, the Eye of the Moon Plan itself was absurd and laughable.
Madara and Obito's dream of "eternal peace" was nothing more than a childish fantasy, and yet they believed in it completely.
Kei hadn't yet told Sasuke the deeper truth—that the Eye of the Moon Plan was actually the greatest scam in shinobi history, orchestrated by Black Zetsu—but with the perspective and knowledge Sasuke had gained during his "Batman" experience, he could already see the flaws.
A plan to put everyone into a dream world? Ridiculous.
How would humanity continue? Would people die in the process? How would civilization progress? Wasn't this basically just an excuse for mass euthanasia?
Well, yes—if everyone was dead, there'd be peace.
Of course, that would only mean humans were at peace. In the shinobi world, peace never truly exists—life itself is competitive. Even without humans, other species would fight over resources, and many would be eliminated in the struggle, vanishing into unrecorded history.
So, in Sasuke's eyes, Madara and Obito were without a doubt fools—short-sighted to the point of idiocy. In the terms of the Batman world, they were like high school dropouts trying to change the world with an elementary school education—thus coming up with the "brilliant" Eye of the Moon Plan.
Brilliant or not, it was certainly world-shaking.
Likewise, Itachi's course of action in wiping out the Uchiha was laughable—disgusting, even.
"To protect the village, destroy the clan."
"Between the clan and the village, my brother is more important."
"Leave him alive, and arrange his future myself."
Every part of it made Sasuke sick.
Especially when Kei told him that the Third Hokage had opposed the massacre, and had tried to control the situation beforehand—but Itachi still chose to act with Danzo alone—that was when Sasuke almost laughed in rage.
Another "genius" Uchiha. Unbelievable.
By contrast, though Kei was a troll with a sometimes obnoxious way of doing things, his "schemes" only made people feel like they'd swallowed something foul—without truly harming them—and often brought them great benefits in the end.
Compared to those "genius" Uchihas, Kei could almost be called the ultimate good guy.
Shaking his head, Sasuke pulled himself from his thoughts. By now, an hour had passed since he'd returned.
Seeing him come back to himself, his three teammates immediately came over in concern.
Sasuke thanked them again, and even showed a faintly apologetic expression on his usually impassive face.
This only shocked them more—Suigetsu's body even began to lose cohesion, liquefying as he nervously asked what was going on, saying today was just too strange.
Sasuke understood why his attitude unsettled them—his change was that obvious. After all, while the Batman life had been fake, the experiences were real.
Sometimes, growth and change only require certain experiences. And Sasuke was the kind who, once he went through something deeply affecting, would change rapidly—different from Naruto, who grew a bit with every such experience.
So he told them, "Don't be surprised by my change. I've just been through some things. Also—every Uchiha who awakens the Mangekyō has their personality and thinking influenced by it. I'm no exception."
That was something Kei had explained to him, using Madara, Obito, and Itachi as examples. When Sasuke had called them extreme and insane, Kei had explained that this was the Mangekyō's effect on the Uchiha mind—and that no one was immune, unless they awakened it naturally through steady growth, without trauma.
At the time, Sasuke had scoffed at the idea—how could that exist, when Mangekyō always came from great trauma and loss of love?
Kei had only smiled meaningfully.
That sly, self-satisfied smile had burned into Sasuke's memory—and that was when he realized exactly who Kei meant by "natural awakening."
Once again, real-name envy.jpg.
Because now, having awakened his Mangekyō, Sasuke could feel its influence twisting his thinking. If not for having awakened it in the illusion world—and knowing it was just an illusion—he would already be heading down the path of his original self.
In short, Kei's biggest influence on Sasuke had left him thinking more like the one-armed Sasuke from the Shippuden finale—except without the sins and burdens, since many events hadn't yet happened.
It was then that Sasuke spoke: "Our Snake Team's objective stays the same—find and confront Uchiha Itachi. This time, with my Mangekyō Sharingan, I will surely defeat him."
Defeat—not kill.
Of course, Sasuke knew Itachi would die regardless. Kei had made no effort to hide his killing intent toward Itachi, saying simply that no matter the reason, for what he had done, he had to die.
The only question was how—whether he was killed on the spot, or captured and executed publicly.
Kei preferred the latter—Itachi had killed the entire Uchiha clan, so he should be tried before them.
Naturally, this saddened Sasuke. But he had no intention of defending Itachi—after his time in "Gotham Academy," he understood that once certain things are done, the consequences must be faced.
If Sasuke didn't move against him, then given Kei's stance, Itachi would likely be hunted by a large number of top Uchiha, or even all the Hokage.
Even with the Akatsuki's protection, Itachi was doomed—Kei's casual "they're alright" attitude toward the Akatsuki suggested that the Leaf of this world could crush them with ease.
So Sasuke resolved to end it himself—because if Kei did, it would be game over with no hope of turning back.
That was the conclusion Sasuke came to—and the one Kei had quietly pushed him toward.
Hearing Sasuke's decision, his teammates accepted his change at last.
In the shinobi world, drastic personality shifts after major events were common. In fact, Sasuke's was relatively mild—he'd even changed for the better, becoming easier to be around.
Karin felt this most strongly. As a member of the Uzumaki clan, she could sense the "temperature" of someone's chakra—the color of their mind and heart.
Chakra, being a blend of physical and spiritual energy, naturally reflected such things.
Before, Sasuke's chakra was cold, hiding a chill flame—that was his pain and desire for revenge. Beneath that was a small trace of warmth, showing he still had a soft part inside.
Now, while the yin aspect of his chakra had surged thanks to the Mangekyō, the part representing hatred had weakened, replaced by much more warmth.
This surprised and pleased Karin. She hadn't fallen for him just because he was a handsome cool guy—if that were all, she'd never have endured his cold nature.
Growing up as she had, unless she were a true masochist, she'd never have been drawn to someone so cold inside and out, with only the faintest bit of warmth.
This was shown in the original story—Karin had an instinctive craving for "sunlight" and "warmth." The first time she met Naruto, she was shocked by the warmth of his chakra.
By contrast, she'd feared the darkened Sasuke, instinctively wanting to stay away—but her feelings for him had overridden that instinct.
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