If everything goes as expected...
Everything should be under control.
Uchiha Sasuke was very confident about this. As long as Kaguya Otsutsuki had not been resurrected and the Sage of Six Paths could not interfere in this world, his power in this world would be unmatched, capable of solving any problems he encountered.
However...
Power cannot solve everything.
For instance, the preliminary round before the third exam posed a problem.
Although Uchiha Sasuke had killed many people, the number of participants in the second exam was still too large, requiring an extra preliminary round to eliminate a group of genin.
The Chunin Exams were also a performance for the nobles and daimyo, and this performance didn't need that many performers, only the best genin.
Yet Uchiha Sasuke still felt that the number of participants in the third round of the Chunin Exams was too few.
Due to the pressure from Akihara Kagura in the real world, Mist Village had also sent people to participate in this Chunin Exam, and the relationship between Mist Village and Konoha in this world remained hostile.
However...
Other things remained unchanged.
Some events even developed in a positive direction.
For instance, the examiner of this preliminary round, Hayate Gekko.
In the real world, Hayate Gekko was also an unfortunate soul.
In the real world, because Hayate Gekko often coughed during exams, Akihara Kagura deemed it detrimental to Konoha's image, forcibly stripping him of his examiner qualification, and even humiliating him as a sickly person, ordering him to go to the Konoha Hospital for treatment. This greatly angered his girlfriend, Uzuki Yugao...
Fortunately.
In this world, Hayate Gekko was quite lucky.
Without someone like Akihara Kagura, who had a sharp tongue, Hayate Gekko finally fulfilled his duties as an examiner.
"Cough cough..."
Examiner Hayate Gekko, pale and thin, with a fist over his mouth, broadcast the first match slowly and weakly: "The first match... cough cough... Uchiha Sasuke vs. Yoroi Akado!"
"..."
Uchiha Sasuke's expression was complex.
Actually...
This world without Akihara Kagura might not be a bad thing for everyone...
At least some people's lives might take a better path, without being inexplicably humiliated by someone...
Never mind.
Better focus on the exam first!
Uchiha Sasuke's opponent was Orochimaru's subordinate, Yoroi Akado. Following Orochimaru's orders, Yoroi Akado immediately surrendered to avoid being killed by Uchiha Sasuke, lacking the courage to defy Orochimaru's orders.
"Hmph..."
"That guy has some self-awareness..."
Uchiha Sasuke glanced towards the direction of the Jonin leading the Sound Village, recognizing the disguised Orochimaru. Clearly, Orochimaru had suffered at his hands.
"Some sacrifices are unnecessary..."
Orochimaru noticed Uchiha Sasuke's gaze and smiled kindly, masking the hidden conspiracy within his heart.
Everything...
Was proceeding in an orderly manner.
Everything...
Seemed to happen as if by fate.
For instance, the clash between Hyuga Hinata and Hyuga Neji, a battle between the main and branch families. Hyuga Hinata nearly died at the hands of Hyuga Neji, just like in the real world. After being saved, Hyuga Neji began questioning Konoha's preferential treatment of the main family...
It was...
A bit infuriating to watch.
Now, Uchiha Sasuke had no time to deal with the Hyuga family's mess. He knew that under the pressure of overwhelming power, the Hyuga clan would easily submit...
Now, Uchiha Sasuke just found this preliminary round a bit boring, as everyone participating in the exam seemed like insects to him.
However, an unexpected turn quickly occurred...
The next match!
Team 3's Rock Lee vs. Sand Village's Gaara!
In the real world, Rock Lee was an unlucky guy who got disqualified from the exam for defying Akihara Kagura, leaving him to weep with his teacher Might Guy...
In this world, thirteen-year-old Rock Lee demonstrated the prowess of a taijutsu ninja, boldly opening the Eight Gates, fiercely battling Gaara in one of the most exciting matches of this preliminary round!
But...
The cost was extremely tragic!
A flower that blooms too early often withers easily.
Rock Lee, showcasing his youth in this exam, paid a heavy price. Exhausted from the battle, he couldn't sustain himself for long, and his left leg and arm were broken by Gaara's sand manipulation...
A group of new generation ninjas awaited news outside Konoha Hospital, only to be greeted with shocking news that they might lose a comrade...
"Medical ninjas have checked him over..."
Might Guy stood outside the hospital room, heavily discussing his prized student's condition: "With the current level of medical expertise, it's impossible to fully heal Lee. His injuries cannot be completely repaired, and he will never be able to continue his ninja career..."
"..."
The new generation of Konoha ninjas couldn't believe it.
A talented taijutsu ninja, similar in age to them, could no longer continue as a ninja just because of injuries from one battle? Reduced to an ordinary villager in the village?
"You must be joking..."
Uzumaki Naruto couldn't believe it, recalling Rock Lee's vigorous performance after opening the Fifth Gate: "Lee was so strong..."
"..."
Uchiha Sasuke couldn't help but marvel at the whims of fate.
He remembered Rock Lee from the real world.
In the real world, Rock Lee was disqualified, allowing Gaara to advance by default. Yet, Rock Lee soon shone brightly in Konoha...
It seems...
Rock Lee from the real world might not be so unlucky...
Compared to the Rock Lee of this world, the one in the real world might actually be a lucky guy!
"Kabuto."
Uchiha Sasuke actively sought out Yakushi Kabuto, asking if he had the medical expertise to treat Rock Lee, but received a negative response.
"I can't do it."
Yakushi Kabuto knew his limits and wouldn't take on tasks he couldn't accomplish: "In the entire ninja world, perhaps only one person can do it, the legendary Tsunade-sama, one of the Sannin, the strongest medical ninja."
"But..."
"Frankly speaking..."
Yakushi Kabuto adjusted his glasses, modest yet confident in his medical ninjutsu: "If Tsunade-sama's medical skills are within my understanding, or if she hasn't developed more advanced techniques, she might not be able to do it either. Unless her skills surpass the current understanding of the ninja world and create miracles unknown to me..."
"..."
Uchiha Sasuke could only pin his hopes on Tsunade, hoping that the future Fifth Hokage of Konoha possessed medical skills beyond comprehension.
"It seems Sasuke-kun is quite concerned about Rock Lee's injuries…"
Yakushi Kabuto brought up the issue of Rock Lee to probe information from Uchiha Sasuke: "It seems that in Sasuke-kun's world, Sasuke-kun should have a good relationship with Rock Lee..."
"Not particularly..."
Uchiha Sasuke responded indifferently.
Alright.
He did have some attention on Rock Lee.
Because Rock Lee and he were both new generation ninjas from Konoha, and moreover, Rock Lee was a disciple of Might Guy. Both teacher and disciple were extremely proficient in the Eight Gates technique, a forbidden jutsu that could wield significant power even against Six Paths-level ninjas!
If the tragedy of the Chunin Exam hadn't occurred…
If everything had played out according to the story in the real world, Rock Lee would have just missed this Chunin Exam, and his future would have been truly promising...
As Uchiha Sasuke and Yakushi Kabuto discussed the strange fate of Rock Lee, another ensuing tragedy suddenly made Uchiha Sasuke realize a problem—Rock Lee's fate was not a coincidence!
"Sasuke..."
"Someone in the village has sacrificed..."
"Lately, we should all be cautious of anyone who needs to be watched..."
"Who sacrificed?"
"It seems to be the examiner of our third exam..."
"The examiner who was always coughing, looking very ill..."
When Uchiha Sasuke received this news, he couldn't believe his ears. Their third exam's examiner, Hayate Gekko, had been assassinated one night!
Wait a minute...
Something seems off!
The absence of Akihara Kagura in this world should have been a good thing for Hayate Gekko, right?
Uchiha Sasuke felt that the events surrounding Rock Lee and Hayate Gekko were likely not coincidences, because these two had no significant connection to Akihara Kagura in the real world. Rock Lee was just a companion of Tenten, and Hayate Gekko was merely an ordinary special Jonin...
Even...
In the real world, Hayate Gekko seemed to have only interacted with Akihara Kagura during the Chunin Exams, where he was humiliated. How could the fate of Hayate Gekko be so drastically different in the two worlds?
Clearly...
Rock Lee and Hayate Gekko...
Were just a bit unlucky in the real world...
So why did this world spawn even more horrifying tragedies?
Uchiha Sasuke no longer believed this was a coincidence because everyone who had any connection with Akihara Kagura had their fate changed without exception...
In this world...
Most people's destinies had become tragedies.
Whether it was himself and the Uchiha clan, Kabuto and Karin, or even seemingly unrelated people like Rock Lee and Hayate Gekko...
In comparison...
In his own world, aside from the chaos brought by Akihara Kagura in the Ninja World, everyone's story endings weren't so bad...
"Akihara Kagura..."
Sitting by the Naka River, Uchiha Sasuke couldn't imagine his thoughts about Akihara Kagura. A sudden fear surfaced in his heart: "Could that guy have been observing our fates all along, silently changing something..."
To verify his suspicion, Uchiha Sasuke quietly started observing the differences between the two worlds before the start of the third Chunin Exam and finally discovered the most terrifying thing!
In the history before Akihara Kagura's appearance in the Ninja World, there were no differences in the historical concepts of the two worlds, not even in the people. Both worlds were identical...
At least on the surface...
This meant there was no significant difference between the two worlds, except that in the real world, Akihara Kagura appeared, causing the divergence of the two worlds' trajectories and the gradual change in the fates of the ninjas.
History...
Because of one person...
Created two different future paths.
"That guy..."
"Ultimately referred to himself as an observer..."
Uchiha Sasuke buried his hands in his hair, pressing his brain hard, searching for evidence, and fear emerged in his heart: "Perhaps... this world is our world's original form?"
"Our lives..."
"Our fates..."
"Our world..."
"Originally it should have been a series of tragedies..."
"Because of Akihara Kagura's interference, these tragedies didn't play out, and everyone's lives changed in ways that were difficult to comprehend..."
"This world truly exists..."
"Our world should originally look like this world..."
Uchiha Sasuke's mind became clearer, gradually connecting the stories of Uchiha, Karin, Kabuto, Rock Lee, and Hayate Gekko into a line. His eyes turned blood red.
"Our world... our everything..."
"Was originally in a hell filled with tragedies..."
Uchiha Sasuke's eyes widened, staring blankly as if completely frightened by his speculation and analysis: "Now that it's already a hellish world, how many more tragedies will occur in the future..."
"Akihara Kagura..."
"Is it because of you that any changes happened?"
"What were you thinking during those times?"
Uchiha Sasuke closed his eyes, like someone praying to a trusted god, but ultimately received no response. That god, who no longer responded, seemed to have returned the fate of the Ninja World to the ninjas of this world.
After a long time.
Uchiha Sasuke opened his eyes, filled with loneliness, recalling the scenes where he interacted with Akihara Kagura, one by one, going over all his memories of Akihara Kagura...
Because...
These memories would change the tragic future of the entire Ninja World.
The man who liked to hide in the shadows had also always hidden his kindness towards the world.
"Akihara Kagura..."
"I seem to understand you now..."
"You were really gentle in your actions..."
By the Naka River.
A gentle breeze blew.
As Uchiha Sasuke reminisced with complex emotions about the senior who had once guided him on the right path, a series of mismatched wooden sandal sounds reached Uchiha Sasuke's ears.
Tap, tap, tap...
An old man with bandages wrapped around his head walked up to Uchiha Sasuke, his aged and deep voice echoing by the Naka River: "Uchiha Sasuke, are you here to remember your deceased clan members?"
"Oh..."
"Speaking of..."
"Perhaps you don't know me..."
The old man with bandages around his head squinted his eyes, sizing up Uchiha Sasuke, and slowly began talking about a topic that piqued Uchiha Sasuke's interest: "I am Danzo, once the advisor to the Hokage. Four years ago, I was responsible for hunting down your brother, Uchiha Itachi..."
"I heard..."
"You've always wanted to seek revenge on Itachi?"