Konoha's back mountain.
Evening.
At the Heroes' Memorial Cemetery, a newly constructed rectangular crystal monument stood quietly.
About three meters long and nearly eight meters wide, its surface was engraved with countless names—dense, yet orderly.
White roses circled the monument, adding solemn purity to the mourning.
In front of it stood clan heads of all sizes, jōnin, special jōnin, chūnin…
Even the Hokage and the two elders were present.
The war was over.
But those who had died would never return.
Kaito's gaze lingered on several familiar names:
Sarutobi Rōsuke.
Keita.
Shinji.
Yūshirō.
Even Mito Kadaze and Sarutobi—who had been promoted to chūnin four years ago.
Names upon names.
Roughly seventeen to eighteen hundred in total.
And that was only the dead.
Many more had survived with permanent injuries—crippled bodies, shattered minds.
They would never be shinobi again.
Because of this, the village now had an abundance of open positions among jōnin and special jōnin.
Promotions would come down to merit and contribution.
—In other words, rewards for service.
The memorial soon ended.
One by one, the attending shinobi departed, leaving behind only silence and a question no one dared voice:
Would anyone remember these heroes in the future?
As Kaito remained standing, Yūhi Ryūun—soon to be promoted directly to jōnin—passed by him and spoke softly:
"See you later."
Before Kaito could react, Uchiha Mikoto passed as well.
"See you later."
"…?"
Then Yakushi Nonō—now Deputy Director of Surgery at the hospital—brushed past him, her golden hair and familiar scent lingering.
"See you later~"
"?????"
Kaito nearly rolled his eyes out of his skull.
See me where?! Can you people finish your sentences?!
Soon, everyone else left.
Only four remained before the monument:
The Three Sannin—and Kaito.
Kaito stayed behind deliberately.
He wanted to see whether the end of the war had changed them.
"War is truly cruel," Orochimaru spoke calmly.
"So many fragile lives, gone one after another—exchanged only for hollow praise and pitiful compensation."
"Orochimaru?!"
Jiraiya stared at him in disbelief. "Do you even hear yourself?"
Tsunade's expression was no better. She had stayed to steady her own heart, yet she snapped back sharply:
"That's enough, Orochimaru! No one feels good about this—least of all us!"
Orochimaru chuckled coldly, ignoring them as he turned to leave.
Then—
He noticed Kaito.
Orochimaru stopped.
His pupils shrank.
The young man before him wore genuine sorrow on his face—yet beneath it lay resolve, a sharpening will.
And something else.
Something… wrong.
Four years.
No—three?
No. Four years had passed.
Yet Kaito showed no trace of age.
If anything, his skin looked brighter, clearer—untouched by time.
Orochimaru glanced at Jiraiya.
Compared to four years ago, Jiraiya looked worn. Stubble. Wrinkles. Fatigue etched into his face.
But Kaito?
It was as if the river of time had simply flowed around him.
"Subarashii…"
Orochimaru's eyes gleamed with dangerous curiosity.
He remembered Kaito once mentioning an awakened constitution, chakra quantity and quality both increasing, mastery over all five elements.
Now it was clear—
That explanation hadn't even scratched the surface.
"Kaito," Orochimaru said softly.
"You hide yourself well. But as your teacher… I'll have my chance to study you."
A chill flickered through his gaze.
Then he left.
Kaito exhaled slowly.
That stare…
Even hotter than the Hokage's.
Alright. Confirmation complete. Orochimaru has changed.
Time to run.
Travel. Disappear for a few years.
As for future wars, future deaths…
Power struggles were never about one person's death anyway.
Back in canon, even the Fourth Kazekage's death didn't cause Suna to declare mutual annihilation.
Wars were excuses.
They were fists being tested, benefits being seized.
"Something's off about the way Orochimaru looked at Kaito," Jiraiya muttered.
"Tsunade, do you know what he's been doing these past years?"
Tsunade shook her head.
"Ever since Kaito's incident back then… Orochimaru hasn't been the same."
She looked toward Kaito.
"If anything, he'd know best. He was Orochimaru's student."
Kaito's sorrow froze for a split second.
"Tsunade-sama," he said calmly,
"I don't recall being particularly close to Orochimaru-sensei."
"If you want answers," he added, "you might learn more from Nawaki."
Tsunade frowned, arms crossing over her armor.
"And yet my brother is about to become a special jōnin—while you're still a genin."
"…That's kind of embarrassing."
Perfect.
Instantly, Kaito's face crumpled.
Tears poured down like a broken faucet.
This was the first time Tsunade and Jiraiya had ever seen him cry.
"Hey—hey!" Tsunade panicked. "I didn't mean—did I say something that bad?!"
"…You kind of did," Jiraiya admitted awkwardly.
Kaito sobbed dramatically, wiping his eyes as he bolted toward the village.
"Tsunade-sama is the worst!!"
Tsunade stood frozen.
"…Was I really that harsh?"
"Probably," Jiraiya said, mood lightened despite himself.
Then he turned back to the monument, grief returning to his eyes.
I swear… I'll find the Child of Prophecy.
—
On the forest path back to the village.
Three girls stood with arms crossed, sparks practically colliding in the air.
"Kaito likes me!"
"Wrong, Mikoto! He visited me at the hospital all the time—obviously I'm the one!"
"Hmph! When I was injured, he promised to stand behind me forever! He supports me!"
"…Stare—" ×3
Nearby, Nawaki, Ibiki Yunma, Shimura Yūko, Hyūga Suzuka, Nurse Chief Inuzuka Umeko, and even the injured Kitada Hama could only smile helplessly.
"This is terrifying," Hama muttered.
Nawaki sighed.
"Let's just go home. I suddenly miss my sister…"
—
Later.
Inside the Hokage's office.
"…So that's the situation."
Kaito stood straight before Hiruzen Sarutobi, formally requesting his ninja registration be sealed—a temporary suspension of shinobi status.
Hiruzen smoked silently.
"…I approve."
Kaito resisted coughing from the secondhand smoke.
"But," the Hokage continued,
"I want you to write back occasionally. Like Jiraiya does. Stay safe… and gather information when possible."
"I will," Kaito said, bowing.
"One more thing," Hiruzen added.
"Before you leave… help me with my son."
"Shinnosuke?"
Hiruzen turned to the window.
"Second Team."
"Completely disabled."
Kaito's eyes widened.
"Nara Ha lost an eye."
"Yamanaka Taiji lost a leg."
"Akimi Yūmi survived using clan pills—but can never fight again."
"…Because Shinnosuke grew overconfident."
"And because I indulged him."
"Let me try," Kaito said firmly.
"I'll do everything I can."
Hiruzen looked at him with deep appreciation.
A good child.
And another casualty of war.
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/nani_kaito