It wasn't the Uchiha clan compound. Since the night of the clan's massacre, Sasuke had been living in another apartment.
Compared to usual, something felt a little different about Sasuke today… his mom made him breakfast!
"Mom, I'm done eating!"
Sasuke felt a little too full—maybe it was the long-lost feeling of family warmth affecting his appetite.
Now that he thought about it, it had been far too long since he tasted that familiar, motherly flavor...
After breakfast, it was time to head to school, but just as he was about to leave, Mikoto called out to him.
"Sasuke, take a bit for Naruto too."
Sasuke turned around to see Mikoto closing the lid of a bento box before walking over to hand it to him.
"Why do I have to do something like this?" Sasuke curled his lip and turned his head away.
"Isn't Naruto that kid who lives alone? He probably oversleeps and doesn't have time for breakfast," Mikoto said with a gentle smile, her eyes tinged with concern.
"Hmph~ That does sound like something that dead-last would do." Sasuke's words were sharp, but he still obediently accepted the bento box.
And honestly, it was pretty hefty.
"Get along with your classmates, okay?" Mikoto said as she looked down at Sasuke putting on his shoes at the entryway.
"I'm leaving," Sasuke muttered casually and quickly walked off.
So it's come to this, huh...
Mikoto sighed internally. Back then, Sasuke's relationships with his classmates were already so-so, and now it might be even worse.
Sasuke had been deeply influenced by the clan. She could hardly imagine how he made it through these years—probably just clinging to sheer will.
After returning to the village with Sasuke through the light screen, Mikoto met the Third Hokage.
That was only natural.
However, Mikoto knew nothing about the light screen. To her, being revived was an utterly sudden event.
What happens after death was impossible to explain. It might've been like a dream, or maybe she died one second and the next thing she knew, she was alive again.
The Third didn't make things difficult for Mikoto—he just asked a few simple questions and then arranged for her to live in an apartment next to Sasuke's.
That was just as well. Mikoto had no desire to return to the Uchiha compound or to revisit those heavy memories.
When reunited with his mother after so long in the limbo between life and death, Sasuke couldn't hold back anymore.
He was still just a fragile kid, who wanted nothing more than to cry in his mother's arms and spill out all his pain.
Mikoto's heart ached. Aside from guilt, there wasn't much else she could do—only double down on the motherly love she had once lost and now regained.
She knew the burden Itachi carried, but she couldn't say anything—at least, not yet.
But that was yesterday.
Today, as usual, students were gathering from all directions at the Ninja Academy, all excitedly talking about the ninja mobile game.
Naturally—what else could they talk about?
Sasuke entered the classroom and immediately spotted Naruto dozing off with his head on the desk.
Tap tap tap~
"Still alive, dead-last?" Sasuke knocked on the desk. When Naruto didn't respond, he simply dropped the bento box on Naruto's face.
It was still warm, and the sudden sensation startled Naruto awake.
"Sasuke? What the heck?!"
"Huh! Coming to class with dark circles? No wonder your grades suck if you can't even sleep properly at night," Sasuke said with faint mockery.
Naruto had no comeback. Was he supposed to say he couldn't sleep because Sasuke's mom made him imagine what his own mom might've been like?
Speaking of which, Auntie Mikoto really was kind. His mom was probably a beautiful and gentle woman too, right?
Seeing Naruto suddenly dazed, Sasuke felt speechless. He opened the bento box and shoved Naruto's face into it.
"Waaah! You bastard, Sasuke!" Naruto howled and grabbed the bento box, ready to throw it back.
"You sure you want to give it back? Not even gonna look?"
Naruto paused. When he saw the steaming, fragrant meal inside, his brain momentarily froze.
"This… is for me? From Auntie Mikoto? She made it for me?" Naruto quickly guessed.
Not hard to guess. What, like Sasuke could've made it? Don't be ridiculous.
"Probably compensation for declining Mom's invitation to come over yesterday," Sasuke said offhandedly.
Naruto clutched the bento box, unsure what to say.
He was someone who loved a lively atmosphere. Of course, he had a reason for not going—he didn't want to intrude on Sasuke's precious time with his mother.
"Thanks," Naruto said quietly, head lowered.
"Wash it and give it back when you're done," Sasuke said as he found a seat and sat down.
Their entire interaction had been witnessed by the other students in the room, who now wore slightly odd expressions.
But looking at Sasuke sitting there, arms crossed and back to his usual aloof self, no one dared to comment.
Naruto didn't notice. He quietly whispered "Let's eat" and dug into the bento.
What could he say? Just as delicious as expected. And the fact that someone had made it just for him...
Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke saw Naruto eating while silently crying and was thoroughly disgusted.
What an idiot.
Forget it. Not getting that bento box back.
Still, Sasuke couldn't help but recall his conversation with his mother yesterday.
"Why do you care so much about Naruto?" Sasuke had asked when Mikoto started asking him questions about Naruto.
"Because… his mother was a dear friend of mine!" Mikoto had said while gently patting Sasuke's head. "And he was the one who revived me. We owe Naruto a huge debt."
A friend, huh...
Sasuke's gaze shifted subtly, growing deeper.
What he said and what he thought were two very different things.
It was hard to put into words—mostly, it just felt awkward.
He didn't want to owe anyone, but he did. And what he got in return was exactly what he needed most.
He should've felt grateful and happy… but it all came with an edge of frustration.
So complicated, it gave him a headache.
As the classroom gradually filled with students, Iruka arrived right on time for class.
"Everyone, get ready for the lesson."
Naruto had already put the bento box away. In his hands now was an orange cellphone.
And he wasn't the only one. Sasuke, the other students, even Iruka all pulled out phones of various colors.
Everyone stared at their screens, watching a countdown that ticked steadily onward.
[Time until official launch of the Ninja Mobile Game:][10 minutes remaining.]
Ten minutes—neither long nor short—but everyone present, and indeed the entire ninja world, was holding their breath.
The announcement had come yesterday: the game would officially launch this morning. It was something no one could ignore.
Different locations, but the same action—everyone clutching their phones, watching the time slip away.
Like drops of water falling through an hourglass, and from the other side emerged a ferocious beast.
[ROAR!!!][Twelve years ago, the Nine-Tails suddenly appeared in the Hidden Leaf Village, its roar splitting the earth...]
Twelve years ago—the Nine-Tails attacked.