Chapter 3: ReturnSasuke leaned against Chinatsu's wardrobe, panting heavily. Clearly, it was too early for a six- or seven-year-old child like Sasuke Uchiha to experience something like this.
"Sister… what clothes should I take back…"
Sasuke hesitated. He had never paid attention to what Chinatsu wore in private, let alone opened her wardrobe like this.
In his memory, Chinatsu always dressed in neat, traditional Uchiha-style clothing—simple, elegant, and dignified… definitely not like the overwhelming variety currently before him.
"Could it be… this is Sister's real preference?!"
Sasuke raised his head, a sudden look of realization appearing on his face, but hesitation quickly followed.
In the end, after struggling internally, he chose a relatively conservative, traditional outfit and pulled it out.
Although Sasuke respected whatever preferences his sister might have…
He absolutely didn't want anyone else to see her dressed in something overly revealing!!!
Clutching the clothes tightly, Sasuke dashed out of the Uchiha compound and ran all the way back toward Konoha Hospital, his small figure moving as fast as he could.
Before long, he reached Chinatsu's hospital room.
But just as he was about to excitedly shout that he had returned—
He froze.
His sister wasn't alone.
Chinatsu stood beside the bed, and near the window stood a masked young man wearing standard ANBU attire.
Sasuke's pupils shrank instantly.
In his memory, there were only two kinds of masked figures.
One was the mysterious accomplice who stood beside Itachi Uchiha during the massacre—the man with the spiral mask and a single Sharingan eye, whose presence brought nothing but terror.
The other was Konoha's secret force—the Anbu Black Ops—who handled missions directly under the Hokage's command.
Neither category inspired any sense of safety.
"Don't come near my sister!!!"
Sasuke rushed forward without hesitation, spreading his arms to shield Chinatsu, his small body trembling but resolute as he glared at the masked shinobi.
The masked youth was slightly startled.
Chinatsu, standing behind Sasuke, was also momentarily stunned.
"Sasuke… it's alright. He's not an enemy."
Chinatsu gently placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, but Sasuke didn't relax in the slightest.
He couldn't afford to.
He had already lost everything—his clan, his parents, his home.
Chinatsu was the only thing left anchoring him to sanity.
The masked youth stared at Sasuke silently. Beneath the mask, his visible eye softened slightly, revealing a trace of guilt and melancholy.
"I'm sorry."
After speaking those quiet words, he turned without another explanation and leapt out of the window, disappearing with the speed characteristic of elite shinobi trained in the Body Flicker Technique.
Sasuke immediately ran to the window and looked outside, scanning the surroundings carefully.
Only after confirming that the masked shinobi had truly left did he finally relax, exhaling deeply.
A heavy sense of helplessness washed over him.
Too weak…
I'm too weak right now…
I couldn't stop that man… I couldn't protect my sister…
And I can't even think about avenging… him…
Sasuke lowered his head.
The polished floor beneath him seemed to distort, reflecting the horrifying images of the massacre—the lifeless bodies of his parents, the blood-stained clan compound, and the cold gaze of Itachi.
His emotions surged violently.
Hatred. Fear. Despair.
His eyes began to change.
The darkness in his pupils faded, replaced by a deep crimson hue. A single tomoe slowly formed within one eye—
The awakening of the Sharingan.
Just as Sasuke was about to be completely swallowed by those emotions—
Smack!
A firm hand struck the top of his head.
"Sasuke, where are my clothes?"
The sudden, almost mundane question shattered the rising storm within him.
"Clothes…? Oh—right! Sister, here!"
Sasuke blinked, momentarily dazed, before quickly turning and handing the clothes he had brought back to Chinatsu.
Chinatsu looked down at the outfit.
Then she let out a long breath of relief.
Not bad. Acceptable. Safe.
For a moment, she had been genuinely worried that Sasuke might bring back something far too… mature.
That would have been a disaster she wasn't mentally prepared to handle.
Without thinking too much, Chinatsu began unfastening the buttons of her hospital gown.
Sasuke's face instantly turned bright red.
He spun around at lightning speed and dashed out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him.
Even though Chinatsu had only undone a single button, the shock was more than enough for a child his age.
Chinatsu paused, glancing down at herself.
Then she sighed.
"Yeah… adapting to this situation isn't going to be easy…"
Meanwhile—
On the rooftop of a nearby building, the masked shinobi who had just left the hospital stood silently, deep in thought.
"I was discovered…"
His visible eye narrowed slightly.
"For someone at Chūnin level to detect me… that shouldn't have been possible."
Just minutes earlier, while observing from concealment, he had been called out directly by Chinatsu—as if she had seen through his disguise completely.
That wasn't something an ordinary Uchiha could do without activating the Sharingan.
And yet…
Her reaction hadn't seemed like a bluff.
Slowly, he reached up and removed his mask, revealing a familiar face.
Kakashi Hatake.
At twenty-one years old, Kakashi was already one of Konoha's elite jōnin, a former ANBU captain who had served directly under Minato Namikaze and now operated under the authority of the Hokage.
"Uchiha Chinatsu…"
Kakashi muttered quietly.
"Itachi… did you really overlook something?"
Back inside the hospital room—
Chinatsu had already finished dressing, relying on the original owner's muscle memory to properly wear the outfit.
It resembled a modified kimono-style dress common in the village, adapted for mobility.
Without those inherited memories, she probably would have worn it incorrectly.
Standing in front of the mirror, she examined her reflection carefully.
Then—
She struck a pose.
Another pose.
And another.
A few seconds later—
She froze.
Then immediately crouched down and covered her face.
"What am I even doing?!"
Yes, the face in the mirror was undeniably beautiful…
But mentally, she still hadn't fully accepted that this was now her body.
"Calm down… calm down…"
She took a deep breath, lightly patting her cheeks before standing up again.
With a soft click, she opened the door.
Outside, Sasuke was leaning against the wall, head lowered.
The moment he heard the sound, he looked up and rushed to her side.
"Sister!"
Chinatsu looked at him for a moment—then spoke calmly.
"Let's go home."
"…Mm!"
Sasuke nodded firmly.
He took a deep breath, gathering his courage.
This time, he wasn't just retrieving something and leaving.
He was returning—to the empty Uchiha compound.
To the place that had once been filled with laughter.
Side by side, Chinatsu and Sasuke walked out of Konoha Hospital, step by step—
Heading toward what remained of their home.