"Uchiha Sogetsu. By order of Lord Hokage, I'll be escorting you to ANBU."
In the corridor outside the Hokage's office, an ANBU in a white animal mask was already waiting.
Codename: Elephant—rumoured to be one of Sarutobi Hiruzen's most trusted personal guards.
Sogetsu narrowed his eyes slightly and opened his spirit sight.
The man's etheric aura was darkened, tinged with a muted black. His mood was bad, and under that, there was grief.
"Understood. I'll be in your care," Sogetsu replied politely.
ANBU had no use for emotions; sentiment was excess baggage. Elephant only shot him a cold glance and jerked his chin, signalling Sogetsu to follow.
Yeah. Not feeling the love.
Sogetsu sighed inwardly. He'd known this was coming, but he still couldn't help cursing the Second Hokage in his heart.
Thanks to Senju Tobirama's policies, as the Uchiha clan grew and clashed repeatedly with the Hokage's faction, their reputation across Konoha had rotted. Maybe not quite "detested by man and dog alike"—but not far off.
Following Elephant through the hidden passages into ANBU headquarters, Sogetsu could feel the atmosphere grow heavier with every step.
Everyone's emotions carried the same faint shade of sadness.
Because of Hatake Sakumo's "suicide," huh…
Sogetsu's eyes narrowed. The reason behind the gloom wasn't hard to guess.
Hatake Sakumo, elite jonin, known as Konoha's White Fang.
Across the nations, his name carried even more weight than that of the legendary Sannin.
When you could make die-hard shinobi, trained to prioritise missions over their own lives, say things like "If we run into the White Fang, we can abandon the mission," that said everything about his reputation.
Sakumo wasn't just a powerhouse; he was also the head of ANBU. For Konoha, he was a symbol—inwardly and outwardly—a living banner that lifted morale simply by existing.
And yet a symbol that powerful had died for a reason that was practically a bad joke.
He'd saved his comrades at the cost of a mission and, instead of gratitude, been blamed by the people he rescued. Unable to bear the condemnation and whispers, he'd "killed himself."
Heh.
From any angle, that "reason" was nonsense.
A man who carved a legend with nothing but a short blade, the Leaf's White Fang, would really kill himself over something that small?
If you stripped it down, the truth was simple: White Fang was in the way.
His only sin was casting too long a shadow. When the man admired by every Konoha ninja had achievements and fame that were about to eclipse a certain "Lord Hokage"…
…someone had to go.
From that perspective, calling it "suicide" wasn't exactly wrong.
The process of joining ANBU wasn't long. With a direct order from the Hokage, all you needed was a codename and a completed dossier.
Name, age, sex, preferred ninjutsu, missions completed—that sort of thing.
"Uchiha Sogetsu… male… fifteen… jonin… codename 'Owl'… specialties: medical ninjutsu and… psychotherapy?"
The ANBU handling registration stopped mid-sentence and looked up, visibly startled.
On paper, ANBU was the Assassination and Tactical Squad—the name explained their job well enough. There were people here who knew medical ninjutsu, but very few would list it as their specialty.
And psychotherapy?
What was that supposed to be?
"It's treatment focused on the mind," Sogetsu said with an easy smile, clearly used to that reaction. "The theory's similar to medical ninjutsu."
"Human hearts are fragile things. Grief, pain, fear…" His tone stayed gentle, but his words landed with quiet weight. "Sometimes the smallest wound leaves a scar that never fully heals. My job is to help mend those scars."
"…Right. I… kind of get it," the ANBU said, expression odd behind the mask.
"Oh, that reminds me. I've just opened a new treatment program."
Sogetsu held out a small card.
The ANBU glanced down. Printed there were four neat characters: Sogetsu Mental Clinic.
Under the man's confused stare, Sogetsu went on cheerfully:
"Wish-Fulfillment Therapy. Lets patients achieve their old dreams in a shared dreamscape, patching over past regrets. If you're ever free, you can give it a try. Since we'll be colleagues, I'll give you a twenty percent discount."
One hundred thousand ryō… per session?!
The ANBU's whole body jolted. He almost dropped the card.
A B-rank mission usually paid around fifty thousand. This was practically an A-rank mission's pay.
"No thanks," he said instantly, shaking his head.
Was this a joke?
Risk your life for an A-rank mission, then spend most of your cut on "therapy"? Only an idiot would—
"Ah well."
Sogetsu looked mildly disappointed. Seemed that side quest would take some time yet.
"All right, you can head back," Elephant cut in, finally breaking his silence and derailing the sales pitch. "If there's a mission, someone will come find you."
"Got it. I'll leave it in your hands, then."
Sogetsu gave them a casual wave, then added with a smile, "If anyone needs mental health treatment, just contact me anytime."
They watched his back until he disappeared at the end of the dim corridor.
"…Owl," Elephant murmured. "That's an unsettling codename."
"You're pretty wary of him, huh, Elephant?" the registrar said. "Because of the name 'Uchiha'?"
"Not… just because he's Uchiha."
Elephant shook his head. A sliver of unease flashed through his eyes.
"It's just… a feeling, Horn. I don't know why, but when I face him… I get this sense of danger."
"Maybe you're overthinking it."
Horn chuckled, unconcerned. "Whichever way you look at him, he's just a slightly gifted Uchiha brat."
"…Let's hope so."
Elephant forced his unease down with a long exhale.
"White Fang's funeral is today, right?"
"Yeah. That's what I heard." At the mention of White Fang, Horn's voice dropped, threaded with a grief he couldn't quite hide. "I still can't believe it. For Lord White Fang to… do you really think he would have…"
"Horn."
Before he could finish, Elephant's gaze turned razor-sharp.
"Enough. Don't forget—we're ANBU."
"…Right. We're ANBU."
Horn lowered his head bitterly and fell silent.
Did Lord White Fang really die by his own hand?
He didn't dare ask. Didn't dare chase the truth. They were ANBU.
And ANBU's greatest duty was to obey the Hokage.
By the time the day's formalities finally ended and Sogetsu got back to the Uchiha compound, night had settled in.
In his dim room, freshly washed and ready for bed, he reached over almost absently and lit the ordinary brass candlestick in the corner.
Hermes' Brass Candlestick.
"Let's hope tonight's a good dream…"
He closed his eyes and let sleep take him.
Black mist seeped through the dream, soft and smothering. Time stretched thin, perception blurring at the edges.
Star-like lights flickered in the fog, appearing and disappearing. Whispers threaded through the dark—sometimes unreal, sometimes wild, sometimes restless.
Scattered thoughts pulled together, sinking deeper into the dream.
Falling, falling.
Falling without end.
At last, the descent bottomed out. Fragmented awareness coalesced again.
What formed was a hazy human silhouette, standing within a vast, towering cathedral.
Every pillar, every arch that held the cathedral up was made of bone—crowded stacks of bones from different creatures, pressed together in dense, chaotic layers.
The dome overhead was a field of skulls. Bone-white faces stared down at the hall below with empty eye sockets.
A colossal cross of interlocked bones dominated the far end of the hall. Countless pale hands wound around it, twisted and gnarled, like they were desperately embracing it. For all its strangeness, the sight carried no malice. If anything, it felt… holy.
All the windows and doors in the cathedral bulged outward. Human faces were stretched across them like thin, transparent veils, mouths open in silent struggle as they strained to push through.
A moment later, a second blurred figure appeared within the towering Cathedral of Bones.
The first silhouette, standing beneath the cross like a devout worshipper, spoke at last. It was as if they'd been expecting this all along.
"Well then. Can you answer me now?"
The voice was calm, almost gentle.
"After seeing the path of your fate with your own eyes… do you still intend to walk down it?"
The second figure was silent for a long time. When he finally spoke, his tone was complicated.
"Is the future really… like you described?"
"You're free not to believe me."
The first figure's words were light and flat. Warm, yet carrying a weight that did not allow for much doubt.
"…Then. I'll agree to it."
The second silhouette let out a bitter sigh.
"I just hope that our efforts can change the future you've painted."
"What has been proclaimed by the Lord… will come to pass. It will be performed, and made real."
Behind the veil of haze, Uchiha Sogetsu smiled faintly.
"Welcome to the Twilight Hermit Society, Hatake Sakumo."
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