The Hokage's office was quiet.
The Third Hokage sat behind his desk, pipe resting to one side, and looked up as Kakashi entered.
"You're punctual, Kakashi," he said with a mild smile.
"At your summons, Third-sama," Kakashi replied, bowing slightly.
After a few routine words, the Hokage folded his hands. "You've been in contact with Uchiha Sasuke for two years now. What do you think of the boy?"
Kakashi considered the question.
"Calm. Rational. Hard-working," he said at last. "He doesn't panic under pressure. Speaks little, but when he does, it cuts to the point. His emotions don't show easily. Overall… a composed child who keeps his inner world sealed."
The Third Hokage chuckled softly. "That sounds a lot like you at that age."
Kakashi gave a small nod.
He'd noticed it too. The same silence after loss. The same habit of burying everything under training. The difference was subtle. Back then, Kakashi had been cold. Sasuke was simply controlled.
"And his strength?" the Hokage asked. "He's been under your guidance for a year now."
"Exceptional," Kakashi said without hesitation. "At twelve, I wasn't his equal."
The implication didn't need spelling out.
The Third Hokage's gaze drifted, thoughtful. Brothers, he thought. The elder had been a prodigy beyond measure. The younger was following close behind.
"Compared to Uchiha Itachi at the same age?" he asked.
Kakashi paused.
At this point, he still believed the story everyone else believed.
"I can't give a clean answer," he said finally. "Both are balanced. Ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu. Sasuke has the edge in physical ability and sword work. Itachi had stronger genjutsu and far more real combat experience."
He exhaled. "If I had to put a number on it… evenly matched."
"The deciding factor," Kakashi added, "would be how much of his strength Sasuke can bring out in a real fight."
The Third Hokage nodded. Life-and-death battles stripped people bare. Some sharpened. Others broke.
"I understand," he said. "You may go. And don't forget, next month you'll be taking on a jōnin team again. Prepare yourself."
"Yes, Third-sama."
Kakashi turned and left.
The Hokage watched the door close, then sighed quietly and reached for the stack of graduation records waiting in his drawer.
That evening, at the Uchiha compound.
After dinner, Sasuke left a shadow clone upstairs and descended into the basement he'd recently finished building.
The room was clean, bare, and well-lit. A single worktable stood at the center. Around it lay neatly arranged tools: scalpels, fine tweezers, needles, syringes, gauze, a microscope.
He placed a small cage on the table and opened it.
Two white mice darted inside, energetic and alert. The moment they noticed him, they squeaked in alarm.
Sasuke's expression softened slightly.
He lifted one out with careful hands and began his inspection, focusing on its eyes.
"A-subject," he murmured, writing as he observed. "Pupil size normal. Shape normal. Color normal."
He gently examined the conjunctiva, the cornea, the response to light.
"Reaction slightly delayed," he noted after shining a small flashlight. "Likely adjustment period."
He pressed lightly near the tear duct. A trace of moisture appeared. Sasuke nodded and wrote again.
"No swelling. No blockage."
After several more minutes, he set the mouse aside and repeated the process with the second.
Only when both examinations were complete did he return them to the cage and step back.
"So it worked," he said quietly.
The procedure had been done just one day earlier. Both subjects were already adapting.
Medical ninjutsu really was… unreasonable.
He shut off the lights and left the basement in silence.