Chapter 21: New Mission
For the Seireitei under their jurisdiction, Aizen's influence was not omnipresent—but it was far from insignificant.
Aizen himself seemed far more engrossed in his "Konoha consultant" role than in managing his subordinates. He spent nearly all his time within the village, buried in administrative affairs and politics. As for the others, he rarely interfered. Aside from occasionally assigning them black market missions to supplement their funding, he imposed no real control.
Even among those awakened from eternal sleep, not all chose to stay. Some returned to the void willingly, while others attempted to escape.
But Aizen never cared. In fact, he seemed to welcome it.
Like tossing a few restless catfish into still water, their movements stirred stagnation. Those who fled carried knowledge and ideas with them—unwittingly spreading innovation across the world.
After all, one man's mind was limited. But if more capable minds moved alongside his, progress became inevitable.
Under that philosophy, Aizen's rule was remarkably lenient. Tasks were listed, but none were mandatory. Anyone willing could pick a mission and act freely.
Uchiha Kagami's decision to take on a mission himself was more symbolic than practical—a declaration that he would never reconcile with Aizen. People, after all, need ritual. Without it, their existence feels no different from that of insects.
But for Hatake Sakumo, the concept of ritual was... different.
Watching Kagami's serious expression as he prepared for the mission, Sakumo couldn't help but feel something strange stirring within him.
He wasn't a scholar, nor a man of many words. His understanding of life was as simple and direct as his sword. When the world's judgment turned against him, his only solution had been death.
Even now, as he sat beside his companions, he couldn't quite put his feelings into words.
Kagami's anxious demeanor when he heard that the Uchiha ancestral land was being spied on contrasted sharply with how indifferent they all seemed toward Konoha's deeper decay.
They claimed to care for the village, but their eyes were closed to its people.
Something about that contradiction lodged itself in Sakumo's throat.
He wanted to name it—but lacked the education or eloquence to describe it. So, instead, he just watched Kagami silently, his thoughts unspoken.
"A white puppet?" Kagami muttered after hearing Sakumo's report. "Aren't these surveillance devices usually humanoid?"
Sakumo nodded grimly.
As he finished explaining, Kagami's face darkened further.
A group of unknown individuals had infiltrated Konoha's perimeter, monitoring the Uchiha's ancestral grounds and several other sensitive areas.
To Kagami, who cherished both his clan and the village, such audacity was intolerable.
If they had been spies from another nation, that would have been one thing—at least that enemy could be named. But these watchers had appeared from nowhere, beyond the village's detection systems, operating much like Aizen's own unseen network.
It was unsettling.
There was, it seemed, another shadow hidden within the shinobi world.
"It existed even before Aizen appeared... what's going on?" Kagami said, his tone tight with unease.
Kato Dan, who had been standing nearby, frowned deeply.
As the captain of the Secret Mobile and Execution Unit, even he had never heard of such entities spying within Konoha.
The revelation chilled him.
For Sakumo, however, the discovery was strangely comforting. As a member of a combat unit, he rarely interacted with elite clans like the Uchiha or high-ranking officers like Kato Dan. The only reason he had learned of this in the first place was because, unlike the others, he often took time to read the mission bulletin boards.
"That's what Aizen said," Sakumo muttered, taking a bite from a side dish. "But he won't move personally."
He chewed, swallowed, then added softly,
"Compared to the power of the past, he values the potential of the future. So he's leaving it to us to investigate. That's what he said."
Kato Dan sighed. "That man really knows how to push others around..."
"Why else do you think he revived us?" Sakumo replied with dry humor. "It's not like it's because we're good-looking."
Kagami gave him a flat look. "Sakumo-kun, haven't your comments been a bit sharp lately?"
"Maybe," Sakumo said lightly. "But from where I stand, it feels like I'm seeing things a little differently now."
He turned toward the window, where sunlight spilled across the rooftops of Konoha, and closed his eyes briefly.
"I suggest you both stop living inside your own worlds for a while," he said quietly. "Look around. You might gain a new perspective."
He paused, his gaze still fixed on the horizon.
"Konoha is flourishing now, yes. But if that prosperity is built on deceit and fear... is it truly right?"
Kato Dan leaned forward slightly, his tone cool. "If deceit and fear can bring peace and stability—then what's wrong with that?"
Sakumo looked at him steadily, the faintest smile touching his lips as he raised his cup.
"Maybe nothing," he murmured. "But I've learned something… Those who build their peace on lies always forget what it costs to keep it standing."
He drank slowly, letting the warmth of the sake linger on his tongue.
Unlike his two comrades—men with no children, no families—Hatake Sakumo had a son.
And before his death, he had believed that by dying, he would free Kakashi from pain and shame.
But now he understood.
Suicide was not redemption. It was surrender.
If possible, Hatake Sakumo wished for nothing more than a peaceful world—one free of chaos, one where his son could grow without pain or suffering.
As both a father and a commoner, his view was fundamentally different from that of men like Uchiha Kagami or Kato Dan, the Senju's son-in-law.
They cared about Konoha's power structure—about preserving the upper hierarchy and ensuring the village's political balance remained unshaken.
But Sakumo only wanted his child—and the people of Konoha—to live stable, quiet lives.
"Everyone just wants to live and work in peace," he said softly, his tone almost weary. "Konoha already has its Root and Anbu. Torture, conspiracies, secrets… we all play our part in that. Even I've done the same. So why is it acceptable for others—but not for Aizen?"
"Because Aizen is an evil man," Kato Dan replied firmly. "We don't even know what he truly wants."
He leaned forward, trying to reach the man across the table. "Sakumo-kun, I understand your confusion. You've seen the flaws in Konoha, but we can't let that shake our resolve. We can't let ourselves fracture from within."
"But he's the deputy advisor of Konoha," Sakumo countered quietly, "and in three years, he'll become the official advisor."
"That's just—"
"Just what?" Sakumo interrupted, his tone calm but heavy. "Aren't ninjas supposed to follow orders?"
He took a slow sip of sake, setting the cup down with deliberate care.
"If we were truly Konoha's shinobi, then we'd be bound to obey him. That's the law of the village."
He exhaled, glancing between his two companions.
"But we're not. Only we know what really lies beneath."
His gaze deepened.
"So from a certain point of view, aren't we the traitors? We're the ones opposing the advisor's plan to protect Konoha from the shadows, the ones breaking its unity. If Aizen says everything he does is for Konoha… then maybe it's us who betrayed the village."
The room fell silent.
Kato Dan and Uchiha Kagami exchanged uneasy looks.
As men from noble families who had long stood among the elite, they couldn't fully grasp Sakumo's perspective. The ideals they clung to—their understanding of Konoha's rules—were vastly different from his.
This notion, voiced by a man once branded a failure, stunned them both.
They wanted to refute him. To deny the logic. But the words wouldn't come.
After all, Sakumo wasn't wrong.
Aizen, as Konoha's acting advisor, was fully authorized to maintain hidden forces. His recruitment of operatives—like them—had been quietly approved by the village's leadership.
The upper echelons had given him the budget, the intelligence, and their silent consent.
So long as Aizen didn't betray Konoha, he remained one of its leaders.
And as his subordinates—living within the system, funded by its resources—they were technically still Konoha's shinobi.
If that was the truth… then what exactly made them different from him?
The realization struck like a blade of light, leaving both Kagami and Dan speechless.
Outside, the tavern had grown livelier. Laughter, sake cups, and the clinking of dice filled the air. But inside the private room, the silence only deepened.
Each man sat alone with his thoughts, questioning where he stood—and what "loyalty" even meant anymore.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Konoha—inside the Hokage's office—the Third Hokage sat behind his desk, his pipe resting in one hand.
Across from him, a young man with golden hair like sunlight smiled warmly at the dark-haired advisor standing beside him.
"Namikaze Minato has just returned from a successful mission," the Hokage said. "He's mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique. With it, he can retreat or strike instantly—perfect for emergency coordination. I plan to assign him to you, Aizen, to assist with your research into space-time ninjutsu. If you have questions, feel free to consult him directly."
The Hokage leaned back slightly, eyes gleaming with faint curiosity.
"It's interesting," he added. "Now that I think about it, the two of you are like the sun and moon of Konoha. Yet, you've never actually met, have you?"
Aizen smiled faintly, brushing a strand of hair from his face as he adjusted his glasses.
"You flatter us, Hokage-sama. I'm hardly worthy of such a title."
He turned to Minato, his expression warm.
"And it's good to see you again, Jonin Namikaze Minato. It's been quite a few years… or should I simply call you Minato?"
Minato chuckled lightly, his tone relaxed and friendly. "There's no need to be so formal, Sosuke. Just Minato is fine."
The Hokage blinked, startled.
"When did you two meet?" he asked in surprise.
Aizen smiled politely, as though recalling an old memory.
"Actually, it was long ago, Hokage-sama," he began. "I used to spend a great deal of time in the Konoha library, studying the Will of Fire and the histories of the ninja world. Minato-kun was a regular there as well—always eager to learn."
He adjusted his glasses again, his voice soft and composed.
"Since I was a few years older, I could borrow books he couldn't. I used to lend them to him so he could broaden his knowledge. Over time, we became quite familiar. He taught me a lot, too."
His smile deepened slightly.
"But that was years ago. As Minato-kun grew into one of Konoha's finest shinobi, someone as ordinary as me could never expect to cross paths with him again."
Aizen's gaze lingered on Minato's golden hair, his tone almost serene.
"I just didn't expect fate to bring us together like this once more."
He paused, then added with quiet sincerity,
"It's truly a pleasure to see you again."
The light glinted off his glasses as he smiled—refined, calm, and unreadable.
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