(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)
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"That's so cool!"
Naruto looked at Kakashi and Sasuke indignantly.
He had never got such a flashy entrance before.
As expected, the arena was buzzing with excitement again.
The Kazekage's son versus the last of the Uchiha clan - now this was interesting!
Beside Guy, Rock Lee was also fired up, looking at Sasuke in his black outfit with burning eyes.
"I can feel that Sasuke is different now."
This was the mark of a genius. Even if there was a gap, they could catch up in the shortest time.
Lee was allowed to attend to watch at this time.
Sensing Lee's disappointment, Guy patted his shoulder heavily.
"You are your own person, Lee; Your youth can't be stopped!"
Meanwhile, there was also a glint in Orochimaru's eyes.
'Let's see your progress, Sasuke!'
The match soon began!
Sasuke didn't dally and attacked first, several shurikens whizzing out, only to be blocked by Gaara's sand.
At the same time, a sand clone identical to Gaara stood between them. It went forth to engage in a taijutsu exchange.
However, facing the specially trained Sasuke, the sand clone didn't last long before being defeated.
After a month of training, Sasuke's physique had improved so much that even Guy and Lee were impressed.
Especially so, since the techniques that Lee had used, had all been copied by Sasuke.
After the lightning-nature chakra stimulated his cells, even his speed was greatly improved. Gaara's sand could no longer keep up.
"As expected of an Uchiha," the Fourth Kazekage (actually Orochimaru in disguise) praised repeatedly, not angry but rather delighted.
A thought remained unspoken in his mind: 'As expected of that person's younger brother.'
Even the Third Hokage glanced sideways at his fellow leader. It looked like the Kazekage's child was being beaten now, right? Why did it feel like the harder Gaara got hit, the happier the Fourth Kazekage seemed?
Meanwhile, the situation on the field had changed.
Gaara wrapped himself in a ball of sand, and Sasuke's attempts to break through were repelled by protruding spikes.
After several backflips, Sasuke jumped onto a tall wall and started making hand signs.
Colt scanned the surroundings and suddenly asked Ino and Hinata to return to their parents' side.
The two were with him long enough to not question why.
Colt then quietly came up behind Kakashi.
"Sensei, one should be modest."
Kakashi, who was excitedly telling Guy about his training results this month, broke out in a cold sweat as he heard that voice.
Most importantly…
'When! When did he show up?'
Just a simple complaint, but his heart skipped a beat.
"Yeah, it doesn't count. After all, you taught this jutsu. I just helped train it," Kakashi explained in a dry voice, the gaze behind him making him feel on edge.
Noticing the strange atmosphere between the master and student, Guy wisely chose to remain silent.
Colt said quietly, "Have you checked on Naruto's training this month?"
He didn't expect an answer, but none came anyway.
"I know a lot about your history with the Uchiha, but as Naruto said, they're all your students. It's time you set your priorities straight."
After speaking, Colt vanished, leaving Kakashi sweating profusely.
Colt had wanted to say these words for a long time, but for various reasons, he had chosen to keep quiet. But what happened this month was a bit too much. Kakashi never once asked about Naruto's situation.
Some might say Colt was being nosy, but now he had the strength to act according to his own preferences. If he didn't like something, it had to change! This was Colt's way of dealing with things.
Ignoring the turmoil he had stirred in Kakashi's heart, Colt turned his attention back to the match.
Sasuke had already started sprinting. This time, he didn't waste his Chidori by dragging it along the ground like in the original timeline, wasting more than half of his energy.
The unparalleled speed combined with the powerful penetrating power of the lightning attribute allowed Sasuke to break through Gaara's absolute defense in almost an instant.
A trickle of blood ran down Sasuke's arm.
At this moment, Gaara let out a painful roar. His killing intent erupted completely, and the One-Tailed Beast inside him was close to breaking free.
A monstrous arm knocked Sasuke far away.
The Third Hokage's pupils widened slightly, and Orochimaru's eyes sharpened.
The situation was changing rapidly.
"Temple of Nirvana Technique!"
In the sky, feathers began to fall.
The audience in the stands felt groggy and quickly fell asleep. Only a few ninjas sensed the Genjutsu and immediately formed the release seal.
At the highest viewing point, the Sand Village guards also threw a smoke bomb as a signal, clearly visible even from outside Konoha.
"Hokage-sama!"
Kakashi and Guy immediately tried to rush to the high platform but were stopped by a team of ANBU who ordered them to protect the civilians.
Meanwhile, Temari and Kankuro came to retrieve Gaara and take him away. Before leaving, Temari took one last look at Colt.
"I hope you... survive..."
She then continued on her way.
Colt was also completely relieved after seeing Hiashi and Inoichi evacuating the civilians along with Hinata and Ino respectively.
"Shikamaru, stop pretending to be asleep." Walking up to the seemingly unconscious Shikamaru, Colt kicked him angrily.
Naruto on the side also woke up.
In Colt's eyes, the 3-Tomoe Sharingan activated, and his consciousness entered the sealed space within Naruto.
"Nine-Tails, don't cause trouble for a while. You don't want to lose to that raccoon dog, do you?"
"Hmph!" The Nine-Tails snorted coldly, neither agreeing nor refusing.
The communication between man and beast was very brief, and Colt's consciousness quickly returned to reality.
"Shikamaru, Sasuke went after Gaara. You follow him. I'm worried something might happen."
"This is troublesome," Shikamaru complained, scratching his head in pain. His chakra hadn't recovered much yet.
At this time, Kakashi also came over, summoning Pakkun and handing him over to Shikamaru so they could better track Sasuke.
Colt thought for a moment and also performed the Summoning Technique. Ichibi who had undergone a fearsome training regime and changed into an absolute unit of a beast, one that had lost a lot of weight, appeared after a puff of smoke.
"Although Ichibi can't track, he can help you fight."
Shikamaru looked at the tall and ferocious creature, feeling a little more at ease. He nodded and left with Naruto and Sakura.
Colt opened his mouth but didn't speak in the end.
He had wanted to say that Sakura, that useless girl, would only add to the chaos. It would be better if just the two boys went.
There was a huge explosion in the Konoha Village, and giant snakes of various sizes were summoned, continuing to cause damage.
There were also many Sand and Sound ninjas disguised as spectators in the arena.
"Colt! Leave this to us here. Your battlefield is outside!" Guy kicked an enemy and shouted at Colt.
The Four Violet Flames Formation had already been erected in the sky, with several ANBU standing by as observers.
Kakashi and the others didn't move to rescue the Hokage, instead focusing on cleaning up the enemy forces in the arena.
A Sound ninja looked at Colt like a bystander and rushed at him, waving a kunai. "Go to hell!"
Colt didn't even look at him. He simply dodged sideways, grabbed the ninja's throat, and slammed him hard against the wall.
Boom!
The wall was smashed open, creating a passage to the outside world.
Colt threw away the Sound ninja like trash.
Colt took one last look at the Third Hokage trapped in the barrier and thought to himself.
"Farewell, Old Man..."