Kurama Yakumo.
That explained the faint sense of familiarity. The Kurama clan was a small name now, but once, they had stood tall in Konoha. Their strength lay in genjutsu, refined to an extreme. At their peak, the best among them rivaled even the Uchiha in illusionary arts.
Now, only traces remained.
"Kurama-san," Sasuke said evenly. "How did you know who I was?"
He wasn't wearing the Uchiha crest. Today's clothes were plain. And despite being the sole survivor, he wasn't someone strangers should identify at a glance.
Yakumo seemed prepared for the question.
"By age, I should be a year ahead of you," she said softly. "But I never enrolled."
Her fingers tightened around her sketch board.
"I wanted to attend the academy," she continued. "But my body… it's weak. Every time I trained, something went wrong. I failed the physical test twice."
Her voice stayed calm. The envy beneath it didn't.
"So students like you," she said, meeting his eyes, "were impossible not to notice."
"I'm sorry," Sasuke replied after a pause.
It was all he could offer.
Yakumo blinked, then smiled faintly. "I shouldn't have said so much. Please forgive me."
She hesitated, then added, "I actually saw you once. Two years ago. At the academy entrance ceremony. You were there with your brother…"
Her face drained of color.
"I'm sorry," she said quickly, bowing. "I didn't mean to—"
"It's fine," Sasuke said.
And it was.
She wasn't careless. Just inexperienced with people.
Relief flickered across her expression.
"Still," Yakumo said, straightening, "I'm glad I met you today."There was a spark in her eyes now. "Even if my body is weak, I won't stop. I'll keep moving forward. I want to become a ninja."
Sasuke studied her for a moment.
Then he spoke, tone level and unadorned.
"Kurama-san. You don't need to chase anyone. Not me. And you won't catch up."
The words landed cleanly. Not cruel. Not gentle either.
Yakumo stared, then rolled her eyes, lips twitching despite herself. The sting faded quickly, leaving something steadier behind.
She nodded once. "Then I'll walk my own way."
Sasuke turned back to the stone, the conversation finished.
Behind him, Yakumo tightened her grip on the sketch board.
She would not stop.