A Sage's Pursuit of Power

"Naruto grew up surrounded by rejection and ridicule. Yet, he was never completely friendless. At school, Shikamaru, Choji, and Sasuke got along reasonably well with him.

The key reason they could be his friends was that they didn't treat him any differently.

Naruto doesn't ask for much. He just wants people to treat him like an ordinary person. Unfortunately, even such a simple request was too much for most of the people in Konoha. You should already understand the reasons for that."

That night, Minato had a private conversation with Hiruzen Sarutobi. Afterward, the Third Hokage was bedridden for five days before he could manage to get up.

"I understand," Minato replied, his voice heavy.

"If you understand that, then things are simple. You don't need to do anything extra. Just walk up to Naruto, look him in the eye, and say, Naruto, I am your father. I'm sorry for not being there for you."

"That simple?"

"Yes, it's that simple. I've told you, Naruto doesn't ask for much."

Minato felt a pang of guilt that cut deep into his heart.

"Of course, since you've waited so long, there's still a price you'll have to pay."

"What price?" Minato asked urgently. At this point, if Aoba had told him to go beat up the Third Hokage, he wouldn't hesitate for even a second.

"Hmm, let me think. Naruto will probably… punch you?"

"... And then?"

"Not enough? Well, you can let him hit you a few more times."

"..."

Minato disappeared from the bar, leaving Aoba with a sentence left unsaid.

"You didn't even pay the bill!"

At the Uchiha compound, Sasuke had just finished today's training to refine his Sharingan.

He could feel it clearly now, his reserves of ocular power had reached their peak.

However, due to the lack of certain biochemical triggers from the brain, the Mangekyo Sharingan refused to evolve.

Sasuke had tried using genjutsu to recall the memories of that fateful night, but no matter how deeply he delved into the sorrow, he always felt as though something was missing.

"As I thought, Aoba-sensei was right. My body is resisting the Mangekyo's awakening. But if that's the case, when will I ever have the power to defeat him?"

Under Aoba's tutelage, this version of Sasuke was far more composed than in the original storyline. However, his pain and grief had not disappeared... They were merely suppressed.

"Urgh…!" A sharp, searing pain erupted at the back of Sasuke's neck.

"It's the Curse Mark, the seal is loosening. Damn it."

Sasuke's face darkened as he quickly formed hand seals, attempting to use the Evil Sealing Method. But the interference from the Curse Mark caused his chakra to spiral out of control.

"This is bad." Black markings began spreading from his neck, creeping across his entire body.

"Sasuke!"

Sakura and Karin's voices echoed as they rushed into the room.

"What's happening to him?" Karin asked, alarmed.

"It's Orochimaru's Curse Mark. The Evil Sealing Method has weakened, and now it's backfiring," Sakura explained.

"Can you save him?"

"No, he doesn't need saving. This was all part of the plan."

As Aoba's direct disciple, Sakura had become an expert in sealing techniques. The Evil Sealing Method was no exception, but she didn't attempt to reinforce it.

"Karin, help me. We need to get him to the lab, now!"

Aoba received the news and immediately rushed to the lab.

"What happened?"

"The Curse Mark is backfiring. Earlier than we anticipated. I'm not sure why."

"Heh, probably Orochimaru's handiwork. He must have noticed something special about Sasuke and got impatient. No matter, the timing is good enough. Let's proceed with the plan."

Naruto and Sasuke had always been key players in Aoba's plans, his chosen allies in the grand scheme. However, he sought to empower them his way, not through the shortcuts of the Sage of Six Paths.

In the original storyline, during the final confrontation, Naruto and Sasuke received the Sage's power to seal Kaguya.

Naruto was even granted the use of Truth-Seeking Orbs during the battle. However, once the battle ended and the Sage's power waned, Naruto never used the orbs again.

This highlighted a glaring issue: the Sage's intervention was necessary because Naruto and Sasuke hadn't grown fast enough to keep up with the escalating conflicts.

Aoba's decision to train them early was aimed at preventing such a dependency.

Moreover, the original story hinted at the Sage's bias towards Ashura. Various narratives detailed the Sage's discontent with Indra and his favoritism for Ashura.

Aoba held no such biases. He wanted both Naruto and Sasuke to fully realize their potential as the chosen heirs of this era.

**Sasuke lacked the innate potential to train in Sage Mode. While this wasn't a weakness for most people, since almost no one could, it was indeed a shortcoming for Sasuke. Without the boost from Sage Mode, his abilities in the later stages would inevitably fall short compared to Naruto's.

Aoba had long wanted to help Sasuke overcome this weakness. However, Sage Mode wasn't something one could achieve through shortcuts or tricks.

In the original story, Madara compensated for this weakness after attaining Six Paths power by absorbing Sage Chakra from Hashirama.

While Sasuke wasn't anywhere near attaining Six Paths power, Orochimaru's Curse Mark presented an opportunity. Aoba hadn't stopped Orochimaru from placing the Curse Mark on Sasuke precisely because he had foreseen this possibility.

"The Curse Mark wasn't designed to kill Sasuke. Its purpose is to infect and erode him. The chakra it contains is a degraded form of Sage Chakra, mixed with Orochimaru's will."

Even Aoba had to admit that Orochimaru was a genius. This method of using chakra to invade and overwrite another's being, essentially hijacking their body, subtly brushed against some of the unspoken rules governing the ninja world.

Orochimaru himself might not yet realize the full implications of what he had achieved, but given time, he could very well uncover something extraordinary.

Aoba placed his hand on Sasuke's forehead, channeling his own chakra to connect with Sasuke's consciousness.

The process of linking their spiritual worlds through chakra was fundamentally similar to how the Curse Mark eroded its host. One of the reasons Aoba hadn't eliminated Orochimaru was because the rogue ninja might be one of the few who could truly grasp the foundational mechanisms of such techniques and potentially assist in Aoba's larger plans.

While Sasuke was in a state of unconsciousness, Naruto was experiencing a storm of emotions.

He stared at his teacher, Minato, his face a mix of anger, pain, and joy, all rolled into one.

"You're saying… you're my father? The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze?"

"Yes, Naruto. I'm sorry it took me so long to tell you. I was too much of a coward to face you. I couldn't muster the courage to reveal myself. I'm sorry."

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Currently on Chapter 248 - Chibaku Tensei! (Planetary Devastation)