Naruto: The Great change

Ch - 24 : Chunin Exams : Target Uzumaki Naruto II

Yo, let's get started.
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Naruto's eyes were wide, tracking the small, ricocheting shuriken until it thudded into the branch. A gasp escaped him. "Whoa! That was awesome, 'Ebisu-sensei's friend'! So the trick is all in the angle and the speed of the first throw?"

Sasuke, keeping his features neutral—a necessity to maintain his cover—nodded curtly. "Exactly. The speed of the first projectile determines its power upon impact. The ricochet angle is determined by the point of contact. With Shurikenjutsu, you're using geometry and physics, not just raw strength. You don't need a massive chakra blast to be lethal; you just need to think."

He watched the young knucklehead absorb the information. Naruto was nowhere near the genius level of his own past self, but he possessed a desperate, earnest eagerness to learn that was almost painful to witness.

"And combining that with Kayakujutsu..." Naruto trailed off, a mischievous glint in his eye. "I could throw a shuriken with a tag, bounce it off a tree, and blow up someone chasing me from behind!"

"Or just use the blast to cover your escape." Sasuke corrected, his voice low, constantly drilling this point in Naruto's subconscious influencing it through a subtle genjutsu. "Right now, your priority is to be untraceable. Get in, accomplish the mission, and get out. You’re learning these techniques to increase your chance of survival." To anyone else, this would seem like a teacher teaching his student for Chunin Exams, but Sasuke was teaching this to Naruto to escape Urashiki if he ever finds himself backed into a corner.

Survival.

Sasuke leaned back against the mossy stone of the riverbank, the sun dappling through the leaves, momentarily allowing his professional mask to slip. He felt the weight of Boruto’s reality—his own reality—pressing down on him.

It was true: attempting to teach this young Naruto anything requiring significant chakra control, like the Rasengan or high-level elemental jutsu, would be futile. The kid would just burn himself out or accidentally explode. The risk of leaving behind a dangerous, high-level jutsu in this era—even one that could be erased—was too great. Plus no matter how much Sasuke teaches this Naruto, he won't be able to beat Urashiki with a training of few days.

That's the same as training an academy student for few days and sending him to fight Uchiha Madara. Completely impractical and foolish. Bukijutsu was perfect though. It was practical, it was feasible within days, and it provided a perfect alibi for being near the boy. He subtly put a genjutsu on Ebisu to make him think that he was his old buddy and the fact that he was a circus performer, so him knowing these tricks wouldn't raise any red flags either.

He sighed inwardly. His actions were calculated, yet his motivation was purely personal. He owed this boy everything. Boruto’s words echoed in his mind, detailing how this Naruto talked about his teammates, the unwavering faith he had in Sasuke even if he doesn't remember having any sweet or personal moments between them before Chunin Exams.

I put him through hell. He faced death countless times just to bring me back, and he did it again and again.

In this dimension, Sasuke was a genius who was currently obsessed with power, blinded by hatred, and preparing to abandon his friends if things were going to be the same as his timeline. He saw the genuine warmth and light in young Naruto, the very thing his own lonely childhood Sasuke craved and ultimately discarded. This Naruto was the source of the future's warmth, the fire in the hearth of the world that had melted Sasuke's own deep-seated ice.

He yearned to reach out, to whisper a hundred warnings: Cherish your friendship with Naruto. Don't be consumed by revenge. Don't throw away what you have for what you think you deserve. But he couldn't. He silently spied on his younger version as well, looking at those eyes filled with hate and determination.