Chapter 48: The Shadow of a Doubt

The sight that greeted Team Guy was one of profound devastation. As Ang led them past the village gates, they were met not with the bustling life of a hidden village, but with the grim, determined silence of a people picking up the pieces of their home. The air was thick with dust and the scent of shattered timber. Everywhere they looked, buildings lay in ruins, their walls scorched and collapsed into piles of rubble. The sounds of construction—the steady rhythm of hammers and the scrape of shovels—were undercut by a palpable current of grief and anger.

Naruto’s usual boisterous energy was immediately snuffed out.

“Whoa… this is Star Village?” he breathed out, his voice hushed with shock. “What the heck happened here?”

Ang’s shoulders tensed. He shot a glare over his shoulder, his eyes burning with a bitterness that seemed too old for his young face.

“Hmph! It’s not because of—” He cut himself off, biting his tongue as if physically restraining a torrent of accusations. He simply shook his head and gruffly muttered, “Just keep moving.”

Tenten leaned closer to Neji, her voice a nervous whisper.

“Neji, the way everyone is looking at us… it’s more than just rejecting outsiders. This feels like pure hatred.”

Neji’s Byakugan, though not actively activated, required no special vision to feel the weight of dozens of hostile stares drilling into them from villagers pausing their work. Their eyes were hollowed by loss and sharpened by a blame that was now directed squarely at the Konoha headbands on their foreheads. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel•fire.net

“I am aware,” Neji replied calmly, though his posture was rigid with alertness. “Do not engage. We will reserve our questions for their leader.”

Their progress was halted as a burly Star ninja, his arm bandaged and his clothes still smudged with soot, stepped directly into their path, ignoring Ang to glare at the foreign shinobi.

“Ang. Who are these people?” the man demanded, his voice a low growl.

“They are ninja from Konoha,” Ang replied, his tone formal. “Sent by their Hokage. The Star Shadow wishes to see them.”

“Konoha?” the man spat the word like a curse. “The one who destroyed our village… he had a pair of terrifying eyes. The Star Shadow himself said it was the ‘Sharingan’! That’s the bloodline limit of Konoha’s Uchiha clan! Was that monster sent by you? Is this some kind of twisted joke?!”

The words hit Naruto like a physical blow.

“Sharingan?!” he yelled, lurching forward before Neji could stop him. “You mean someone with the Sharingan did this? Tell me! Who was it? What did he look like?!”

Ang merely fixed Naruto with a final, contemptuous glance and turned on his heel, continuing his march toward the village center.

“The Star Shadow will provide the answers. Not me.”

“Hey! Wait! You’ve gotta tell me!” Naruto shouted, making to run after him.

A firm hand clamped down on his shoulder.

“Naruto, that’s enough!” Neji’s voice was sharp, leaving no room for argument. His white eyes were narrowed, radiating an authority that brooked no disobedience. “I am the captain of this mission. You will control yourself. We will get our information through proper channels, not by harassing a grieving villager.”

“But… but Neji, it could be—”

“I know who you think it is,” Neji interrupted, his voice lowering. “But charging in blind will solve nothing. We do this the right way. Is that understood?”

Naruto’s fists were clenched, his entire body trembling with a mixture of anxiety and fury. Finally, he deflated, the fight leaving him in a sigh.

“…Yeah. I get it.”

They were led to one of the few structures still largely intact, a central building that served as the Star Shadow’s office. The relative order within its walls was a stark contrast to the chaos outside.

“Wait here,” Ang said stiffly, before opening the door and announcing their presence.

The Fourth Star Shadow, Summer Star, sat behind a large desk. She looked tired, the weight of leadership etched into her face, but she offered them a small, weary smile as they entered. She was a picture of resilience amidst the ruin.

“Ang, you’ve returned. Thank you,” she said, her voice gentle yet carrying a leader’s strength. “Please, Konoha shinobi, have a seat.”

Once they were settled on the floor cushions, Summer Star inclined her head.

“I am Summer Star, the Fourth Star Shadow of this village. Welcome, though I wish it were under better circumstances.”

Naruto, unable to contain himself even now, blurted out,

“Star Shadow? But I thought only the five great villages had Kage?”

Ang, who had been standing by the door, bristled.

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean? Our village may be small now, but we—”

“Ang,” Summer Star said, her tone soft but firm. “That is enough.”

With a frustrated “Tch!” Ang shot a final glare at Naruto and stormed out of the room. Naruto, feeling a pang of guilt for his insensitivity, mumbled an apology.

“The apology is mine to give,” Summer Star said. “His emotions are… raw. As for the title,” she continued with a sad smile, “you are correct. We are not one of the great five. Our strength does not yet warrant the title in the eyes of the world. We hold onto it now as a symbol of hope for the future, a future that seems a little further away now.” She straightened in her chair. “But let us speak of your mission. What did the Fifth Hokage tell you?”

Neji, as the mission captain, answered with perfect composure.

“We were tasked to investigate the theft of your village’s star. We were instructed to gather information on the situation upon our arrival.”

“I see,” Summer Star nodded. “Then you have seen the truth of the situation with your own eyes. Our star was not stolen through stealth or deception. It was taken by force.”

She paused, collecting her thoughts, the memory clearly painful.

“The attacker came to us openly and demanded we hand over the star. We refused, of course. What happened next… was a massacre. His power was absolute, overwhelming. He challenged our entire village alone and… he won. To prevent the complete annihilation of my people, I made the decision to surrender the star. He took it and left, honoring the terms of our surrender.”

The Konoha ninja listened in stunned silence. The scale of the destruction outside made terrible sense now.

“A single shinobi did all this?” Tenten asked, her voice full of disbelief. “Who was he? What was his identity?”

Summer Star’s gaze grew distant.

“He wore no headband, offered no name. But his power was unmistakable, marked by eyes we have only heard of in stories and warnings.” She looked directly at them, her expression grave. “During the battle, he revealed his true power—the crimson eyes with three swirling tomoe. The bloodline trait of the Uchiha clan. The Sharingan.”

The confirmation landed in the room like a lead weight.

“The Sharingan… It can’t be a mistake?” Tenten pressed, hoping against hope.

“It is no mistake,” Summer Star stated, her voice unwavering. “I saw it myself. Every surviving ninja in this village saw it. The crimson pupils, the hypnotic swirl of black tomoe. It was the Sharingan.”

Neji’s mind raced, analyzing the implications. It pointed to an Uchiha. But there were so few left. The most obvious answer was also the most painful one.

Sasuke? Naruto’s heart screamed the name, but a new doubt crept in. But… to be this strong? To take on a whole village alone? What’s happened to you?

The mystery had just deepened, and the shadow of the Uchiha clan once again fell over them, darker and more dangerous than ever.

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