Chapter 436: Short Tandem Repeat Testing
What mistake did I make?
Sasuke revisited this question.
Not handing over the Sharingan was, of course, a mistake. But since Tsunade would give the Sharingan back to him, it meant this wasn't a very important mistake. Tsunade was obviously not asking about this.
He looked at Tsunade in confusion, unable to come up with an answer for a moment.
The Fifth Hokage didn't make it difficult for him and directly stated the answer.
"The first mistake, you disobeyed orders."
"An order is an order. You can question it beforehand, you can ask for reflection afterwards, but as a ninja, when executing a mission, without special circumstances, you must execute the order without compromise!"
"Think carefully, were there any special circumstances in the previous mission that compelled you to disobey the order?"
Sasuke opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.
Under Tsunade's stern gaze, he couldn't come up with any excuse to defend himself.
"The second mistake, and the most serious one, is that you don't trust the village."
"You think the village will snatch the Sharingan from you like Root did, and I, as the leader of Konoha, will implant ten or eight Sharingan into myself like Danzo to enhance my strength, right?"
"Deep in your heart, you still believe that Uchiha and Konoha are two incompatible entities, and Konoha will definitely harm Uchiha, so you snatched the Sharingan as a form of resistance, right?"
"I..." Sasuke's face was pale, murmuring a word for a long time, unable to form a complete sentence.
Although Tsunade's words were a bit blunt and harsh, they hit right at his heart; some things he only realized he thought that way after Tsunade said them out loud!
Tsunade sighed.
"What did Sakura say in her reply to you?"
"She told me not to pit the Uchiha against the village." Sasuke recalled slowly, "She also said I am Konoha's Uchiha Sasuke."
"Do you understand what she meant now?"
"I..." Sasuke hesitated, "I understand somewhat now."
Tsunade continued: "Sasuke, do you know how many ninja clans there are in Konoha? Thousands."
From large ninja clans with hundreds or thousands of people to small families with only one or two active ninja, there are thousands of clans in Konoha. The so-called Konoha is a family alliance formed by these thousands of ninja clans uniting together.
Initially, it was just to band together for warmth, to establish a safe rear area, and to protect their relatives and clansmen, especially the elderly, children, and women. Later, the boundaries between clans gradually blurred, the concept of Konoha gradually took root in people's hearts, and the Will of Fire was born.
Under the illumination of the Will of Fire, in this village, everyone is not only a member of their own clan but also a person of Konoha; people help each other and protect the village, while the village also protects them. Therefore, this place is also called "home."
The Hokage is the executor of the Will of Fire. In the eyes of the Hokage, no clan can possess special status or override Konoha, not the Senju, nor the Uchiha; nor will any clan be bullied under the Hokage's watch. The Hokage protects every clan equally.
"The Uchiha are just a part of the village. Viewing the Uchiha and Konoha as opposing entities is equivalent to separating the Uchiha from Konoha. This is a very dangerous idea! It is also your biggest mistake! You are first an Uchiha ninja, but ultimately, you are a Konoha ninja!"
"If you trusted the village, you could have asked me for the Sharingan after completing the mission. As long as you have a suitable reason, I wouldn't refuse you... As Hokage, I treat every Konoha ninja as my own family member, and this naturally includes you, Sasuke. So, how could I take away your relatives' relics? Remember, the so-called 'Konoha' is an aggregate of thousands of ninja clans and tens of thousands of ninja, not an aggregate of ninja and Sharingan."
"You think the Sharingan is very important, you think everyone covets it like Danzo, but from the perspective of the village, from the perspective of the Hokage, no amount of Sharingan..."
"Is as important as Uchiha Sasuke, the Konoha ninja."
Sasuke was dumbfounded.
Only then did he finally understand what Haruno Sakura's two sentences truly meant.
What is a village? What is a clan?
Although the answer was not clear enough, at this moment, Sasuke was convinced by the answer given by Tsunade.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama." Sasuke handed the eleven Sharingan to Tsunade with both hands, lowered his head, and said, "I was wrong."
This time, he sincerely handed over the Sharingan to Tsunade.
Tsunade accepted them solemnly.
"Testing will take some time. You have already taken the batch with the most complete data and easiest matches. The remaining part..." Tsunade pondered for a moment and added an explanation, "It might take three to five months to clarify their identities. Some might never be identified clearly. Just come back at the end of the year."
"That long?" Sasuke asked in surprise.
"Can't be helped, the DNA Short Tandem Repeat testing technology is still very immature and takes a long time. Moreover, there are other technical difficulties involved... Actually, being able to identify a portion of the eyes is already quite good."
Sasuke blinked.
Wait, D-what technology?
That long string of nouns, he recognized every word, but combined together, he was dumbfounded; this familiar déjà vu, why did it feel very much like someone's style?
This kind of half-understood bad taste...
Tsunade chuckled: "That's right, it's the person you're thinking of."
She cleared her throat, looked at Sasuke seriously, and concluded: "Make sure to keep the words I said to you in your mind. Don't let them go in one ear and out the other. Go back and think about it carefully."
"Remember, you are Uchiha Sasuke. Konoha Ninja, Uchiha Sasuke. The village, I, Sakura, Naruto, Kakashi, and everyone, all trust you. So, please also trust the village."
The blonde woman patted Sasuke's shoulder solemnly.
"That's all for today. Remember to keep what you saw today confidential after you go back! Also, a piece of advice, take it or leave it. Cremate and bury them after you go back, let your clansmen rest in peace."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
Sasuke nodded and bowed, carrying his father's and others' Sharingan, and exited the laboratory.
"By the way, I have a favor to ask Hokage-sama!" Sasuke suddenly said at the door, "If my mother's eyes are identified—"
"I will notify you immediately." Tsunade smiled slightly, watched Sasuke walk away with relaxed steps, and closed the door.
"Phew, finally settled this kid. Chunibyo boys are really hard to fool. Truly mentally exhausting!"
The Fifth Hokage secretly wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Next time Sasuke causes trouble, better let Sakura and Naruto handle it." Tsunade made a decision secretly.
Thousands of miles away, someone in Shikkotsu Forest suddenly sneezed.
"Strange, I don't have a cold... By the way, a day has passed, how is Sasuke's matter handled? was my reply too short?"
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