Before long, Sasuke found himself back in the Forest of Death, traversing the tree branches with a nimble quietness as he ventured deep into the dense woods.
It didn't take him much time to locate a suitable target for his practice—more precisely, targets. A pack of five wolves awaited him, their fur a chaotic silver and their emerald green eyes piercing through the darkness, reflecting the scarce light around them. Most of them measured about a meter in height, but one stood out significantly, towering at an imposing two meters.
As Sasuke descended upon them from the treetops, five sets of luminous green eyes locked onto him, and the forest air grew tense as the wolves began to reveal their ivory-like teeth.
Sasuke activated his Mangekyou as he was alone, thus didn't have to worry about exposing his abilities here. Determined to refine his skills efficiently, he decided to directly confront the pack of wolves that awaited him in the Forest of Death.
With a crimson glow emanating from his eyes, Sasuke disappeared from view, reappearing instantaneously beside one of the wolves as he threw a punch. His punch fell short, but a burst of fire erupted from the impact, engulfing the wolf's face.
The wolf began to roll around on the floor, attempting to get rid of this fire that stuck to its body with no avail as these flames seemed to carry on burning. Despite its desperate efforts, the flames persisted, proving its actions futile.
The other wolves finally began to realise what happened. They all soon pounced towards Sasuke, especially the big wolf whose eyes glowed with a bloodthirsty light. Sasuke then released the only Lightning Ninjutsu he knew that could be used in combat.
Lightning Bind
A surge of electricity crackled through the air as it shot towards the largest wolf, the dazzling current expertly binding around its feet. With a swift and precise motion, the wolf tripped over, crashing forcefully to the forest floor.
Capitalising on the momentary advantage, Sasuke deftly engaged with the three remaining wolves. However, the distraction bought ample time for another agile wolf to close in, launching a clawed attack at Sasuke's vulnerable back.
Time seemed to stretch and warp around Sasuke as his Mangekyou Sharingan locked onto the approaching threat. In a slowed-down reality, he pivoted to face the oncoming wolf. Inhaling sharply, he expelled a colossal dragon-shaped flame from his mouth, the intense collision with the wolf filling the air with the acrid scent of singed flesh and fur—a scent that Sasuke recognised he would need to become accustomed to if he continued practising in this manner.
Despite the injuries inflicted, the resilient wolf pressed forward, leaping onto Sasuke, and bringing him down to the forest floor. Realising the precarious situation he was in, Sasuke acted swiftly, gripping the wolf's neck with all his strength, preventing it from delivering a potentially fatal bite. The bulging veins on his hands attested to the intensity of his efforts.
Sasuke swiftly shifted his legs and pointed his feet toward the soft underbelly of the relentless wolf. Unaware of the impending danger, the wolf persisted in its attempt to rip Sasuke's neck, but a subtle warmth soon permeated along the wolf's underbelly- confusing the wolf briefly.
Flames erupted from Sasuke's feet, engulfing the wolf's stomach and propelling it skyward. Sasuke, seizing the opportunity, landed on his feet and executed the Body Flicker Jutsu, creating a swift distance between him and the remaining wolves.
Surveying the scene, Sasuke sighed, realising that while he had incapacitated three of the wolves initially, the one whose face he had seared still stood alongside the remaining two, undeterred by the severe injuries along its face.
The trio of wolves began a slow, methodical encirclement of Sasuke, closing in on him with a calculated precision. Sasuke tensed, ready for this impending confrontation as the forest's ominous atmosphere seemed to tighten around them.
'How do I break this stalemate?' Sasuke pondered, his mind racing for a solution.
Suddenly, the wolves broke the deadlock with blinding speed, converging on Sasuke with him as their singular target. Learning from their companion's restraint by Sasuke's lightning technique, they incorporated zigzagged patterns into their movements, eyes glinting with greed and joy as they closed in on what they believed to be their prey.
Sasuke's initial panic gave way to a realisation that he had a trump card for a situation like this. Swiftly rotating on the spot, flames erupted from his palms, generating a massive swirling inferno. The wolves, attempting to pounce on him, found themselves ensnared in the vortex of his technique. Howls of pain filled the air as the intense heat of the flames roasted them, while the tearing pressure applied by the rotation of the inferno added another layer of agony to their predicament.
The trio of wolves were flung forcefully into a distant tree, where they lay motionless, presumably incapacitated. Yet, Sasuke, well aware of their cunning demonstrated in the earlier stages of the fight, harboured doubts about their defeat. To confirm their condition, he retrieved three kunai and sent them hurtling towards the downed wolves.
To his surprise, one of the seemingly defeated wolves shot up with an enraged growl, the kunai embedded in its form. Blinded by rage, it dashed toward Sasuke once again, displaying an unexpected resilience.
'Called it,' Sasuke mused inwardly. Despite his outward cool demeanour, a hint of shock lingered beneath the surface. The wolf's tenacity served as a stark reminder of the unpredictable challenges that awaited him, even in encounters with these seemingly ordinary creatures.
Sasuke contemplated the potential complexities of any future confrontations with enemy ninjas, realising that he may need to be more careful with how he deals with them in the future.
Sighing to himself, Sasuke wasted no time. He propelled himself toward the injured beast, launching a powerful kick from a distance that conjured a trail of flames, slamming into its jaw. Not allowing it a moment's respite, Sasuke swiftly followed up with a second kick. Mid-air, he executed a graceful twist, bringing his foot crashing down onto the wolf's snout with force.
The largest wolf collapsed onto the forest floor, emitting a weak whine that, a few months ago, might have evoked a semblance of pity from Sasuke. However, his time in this world had twisted his perspective, leaving him unfazed by the creature's feeble cry. With cold determination, Sasuke launched a final fireball into the wolf's face, decisively ending its suffering.
Swiftly moving around, Sasuke confirmed the deaths of the four wolves that had engaged him in the intense battle. Satisfaction flickered in his eyes as he surveyed the aftermath of his display of power. Yet, a realisation dawned on him—four wolves?
"Damn! I forgot about you!" Sasuke's attention shifted to the largest wolf, which had been incapacitated by his Lightning Bind Jutsu at the beginning of the fight. The formidable creature lay motionless on the ground, a mere spectator to the chaotic battle that unfolded around it.
With his Sharingan firmly locked onto the big wolf, Sasuke decided to experiment. Putting the creature under a brief Genjutsu, he attempted to communicate with it.
"I do wonder if I can get this big guy to help me find the other animals in this forest," Sasuke mused aloud. Using Genjutsu as a means of communication with an animal was a desperate attempt, acknowledging his inability to speak the creature's language.
The cloudy, confused eyes of the beast soon cleared up, and it stared at Sasuke with an aggrieved expression before slowly nodding.
"What's with that look? Hey, I admit I did attack first, but it's not like you guys weren't going to do it too. Stop acting like a victim," Sasuke rolled his eyes, addressing himself. Yet, the wolf in front of him nodded again in apparent understanding.
"Wait, you understand me?" Sasuke questioned, puzzled. The wolf helplessly nodded once more. Sasuke found himself perplexed; he had thought that only animals practicing Senjutsu possessed the ability to understand and respond to humans in their language. Although this wolf couldn't speak, its comprehension of human language added a layer of confusion for Sasuke.
"So the Genjutsu was pointless?" Sasuke observed the wolf, now with tears in its eyes, nodding once again.
"Can you respond with something other than a nod?" Sasuke inquired, prompting the wolf to pause its nodding routine and instead raise its head, offering Sasuke a... toothy smile?
"Stop! Please just stop! I get it, you're rather intelligent aren't you?" Sasuke cringed at the unexpected display from the wolf.
Deciding to end the spectacle, Sasuke quickly backed off and released the Lightning Bind Technique on the wolf. He watched it stand up. Unconcerned about any potential attack, Sasuke knew his Mangekyou's reaction time and his strength were more than sufficient to handle it.
The wolf, now standing, stared at Sasuke with flickering green eyes, as if hesitating. Without warning, it abruptly sat down and wagged its tail. Sasuke, bemused by the unexpected behaviour, couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the canine's peculiar display of compliance.
"That was easier than I thought?" Sasuke wondered aloud. "I was expecting some sort of sneak attack from you. Frankly, I'm slightly disappointed," he continued, shaking his head. Despite his casual demeanour, Sasuke's eyes remained sharp, attentively analysing the wolf's reactions. A smirk crossed his face as he noticed the creature flinch at his teasing words.
'The idea definitely flashed through its mind.'
The notion swiftly crossed Sasuke's thoughts. Although intrigued by the wolf, he harboured no desire for a mindless summoning beast. The wolf's adeptness at analysing its surroundings and making informed decisions convinced Sasuke that forging a contract with it wasn't a bad choice.
It's not like he had any other animals he could enter into a contract with, anyway. The wolf, aside from boasting comparable strength to the bear he had faced before, possessed significantly more chakra than the bear- making it a good choice for a summoned beast.
After playfully toying with the wolf, Sasuke retrieved a storage scroll from the pouch he wore. Unfurling it, he revealed... another scroll?
Showing the scroll to the wolf, Sasuke began explaining, "This is a summoning scroll. It will allow me to contract you as my summoning beast. Nod if you agree with the idea. If you do, I can help you control your chakra. Ah, you probably don't know what that means. I'll try to help you get stronger after you become my summoning beast."
The scroll was something that his parents left him in their secret compartment.
Similar to most summoning scrolls, it remained void, presenting the opportunity for a ninja to establish a contract with an animal of their choosing. In contrast, other specialized contract scrolls, such as the one for Mt. Myoboku, facilitated affiliations with entire groups of summoned animals.
The wolf, initially motionless, swiftly transitioned to a nod in response to Sasuke's words. As a creature of the wild, the pursuit of heightened strength had long been etched into its instincts. Though it does feel a bit sorry for its subordinates, it seems to be a necessary sacrifice for him.
Unbeknownst to Sasuke, who remained oblivious to the inner workings of his newly contracted beast, he extracted blood from both himself and the wolf, placing it onto the summoning scroll.
With the completion of this ritual, the scroll vanished, and a peculiar connection swiftly enveloped the duo.
"Hello?" Sasuke attempted to communicate through his thoughts. Observing the animal before him, he witnessed a brief glance from the wolf towards him before it raised one of its front paws in response.
Content with having resolved the issue of him not having a summoning beast, Sasuke readied himself to return home.
"I'll visit here every few days for practice. Your role is simple – show me where the other animals in the forest live. Afterward, I'll give you brief training sessions to help you improve," Sasuke conveyed his message to the wolf, then swiftly dashed home to prepare some food.
In the days that followed, Sasuke diligently honed his various techniques and made modifications to some of his existing ones. He maintained consistent training in the Forest of Death, either alone or occasionally with Kurenai. Once in a while he would attend the academy in an attempt to relax and wind down, he would also meet up with his friends now and then outside of school.
As time passed swiftly, Sasuke found himself reaching the age of 10...