A number of shinobi had arrived at the Hyuga compound. Word was they’d been dispatched by the Hokage to investigate the murder of Hyuga Nio.

  Among them, the most conspicuous was a blond man dressed in the garb of the Yamanaka cn, their crest embzoned proudly on his back.

  Not that it really had anything to do with Makoto. The Hyuga seemed to be keeping the matter of the stolen Byakugan under wraps, which meant no one would ever come knocking on his door about it.

  And rightly so—it wasn't his business.

  Ayari came rushing over to his home again, worry etched all over her face.

  “Makoto, I heard your surgery’s been postponed...”

  The way she said it, you’d think she was afraid he’d start spiraling from the news.

  “Yeah, apparently there’s been some complications. The cn’s waiting for Lord Hiashi to return before making a final decision.”

  Makoto took it all in stride, answering calmly. He was reading again—these days, that was his one and only pastime. He’d already finished all the books in the house and had gone over that anatomical chart of chakra points more times than he could count.

  Something about his calm felt off to Ayari. She hesitated, then asked, “Are you... really okay?”

  “What could be wrong with me?” he said with a smile. “I’m on the verge of a full recovery.”

  Ayari couldn’t help but feel he should be more upset—even if he wasn’t shing out, shouldn’t there at least be a hint of frustration? Yet here he was, lying zily on the couch like nothing had happened.

  She sat down across from him and gnced at the book in his hand. “You’ve been reading that one a lot tely.”

  “Just brushing up while I’ve got time,” Makoto replied, then suddenly sat up straight, his eyes locked on her.

  “What?” Ayari stiffened under his intense stare.

  “Ayari-nee, give me your hand.”

  He’d studied the theory countless times. But he’d never had a chance to put it into practice.

  Ayari hesitated briefly, then slowly held out her arm.

  Makoto didn’t hold back. He grabbed her wrist and pushed up the sleeve, revealing pale, delicate skin.

  Ayari squirmed slightly. “What are you doing?”

  He began gently running his fingers along her forearm, as though searching for something. The way he focused made it look like he was about to stab her with a needle.

  “This spot here—it's Taiyuan, right?” he asked, pointing to a location on her wrist.

  Ayari fell silent for a moment before replying, “Yes.”

  “If you strike this point, a shinobi can’t form seals or use ninjutsu,” Makoto said matter-of-factly.

  Ayari sighed, then reached out and gently adjusted his fingers to a slightly different location. “The chakra meridians in the human body are extremely delicate. Precision is everything. Without the Byakugan, you just can’t see clearly.”

  She was starting to understand what he was thinking. The kid had gone a little mad—he was actually trying to master Gentle Fist without the Byakugan?

  “Makoto.” Ayari suddenly reached over and csped his hand, her eyes filled with concern. “You don’t need to go this far. The war will be over soon. Just wait for Lord Hiashi to return. For now, just take it easy at home. You don’t have to be a shinobi.”

  Makoto paused, then looked into her eyes and realized she’d misunderstood completely.

  “I told you, I’m fine. I just wanted to explore some ideas, that’s all,” he expined.

  “Really?” Ayari clearly didn’t believe him. She was now convinced the boy had taken a psychological hit and was starting to unravel.

  Makoto sighed. There was no point arguing. He flopped back onto the couch, staring at the ceiling.

  “Maybe you could bring me some more books,” he said suddenly.

  “Books?” Ayari blinked.

  “If I’m reading, I won’t start overthinking things.”

  “What kind of books?”

  “Anything on the human body, or chakra systems—stuff like that.”

  Ayari thought for a moment. “I might be able to dig up a few.”

  “Thanks, Ayari-nee.”

  She watched him dive back into his reading, still not quite at ease. After a long silence, she said, “How about I introduce you to a girl?”

  Makoto blinked. “...What?”

  “She’s from our cn too—you’ve seen her before. Honestly, I don’t think you’re really on her level, but it wouldn’t hurt to get to know her.”

  Ayari figured a boy his age should be brimming with curiosity about the opposite sex. Maybe this would help distract him a bit.

  “It’s settled then. I’ll bring her over next time.”

  …

  Hiruzen Sarutobi had just finished yet another war council meeting with the vilge elders. When he returned to his office, he found none other than Orochimaru sitting in his chair, casually flipping through the papers on his desk.

  That was the Hokage’s seat. No one had ever dared sit there while the Third was in office.

  Hiruzen didn’t say anything about it. He simply walked over and asked, “What brings you here?”

  Orochimaru picked up a letter from the desk and said, “More requests for supplies. The Daimyo’s shipments are deyed again?”

  Hiruzen didn’t answer. Instead, he smiled faintly. “I’m surprised you care about things like this.”

  “It is my vilge,” Orochimaru replied. “Of course I care.”

  That remark made Hiruzen’s eyes narrow. After a moment, he asked, “Would you be willing to take command of the Water Country front?”

  But Orochimaru countered with a question of his own: “If we drive off the Mist, do you really think we’ll win this war?”

  Hiruzen said nothing. Of course not. The real threat was still the Land of Earth to the north. Iwagakure was Konoha’s most dangerous enemy by far.

  The Mist had never committed to a full-on invasion. Their skirmishes were small, sporadic—clearly probing for weakness, waiting to strike when Konoha was at its lowest.

  Orochimaru reclined zily in the Hokage’s chair, cheek resting on his palm as he watched Hiruzen with a faint smile.

  Hiruzen, however, avoided meeting his eyes.

  In the entire vilge, only Orochimaru dared act this way toward the Third Hokage. If it had been Jiraiya, he’d have been booted out with a scolding already.

  But Jiraiya would never do something like this.

  “Minato’s really making a name for himself,” Orochimaru mused. “Listening to all his feats, you'd almost believe he’ll win the war by himself.”

  Hiruzen fell silent again. Then finally asked, “What exactly are you trying to do?”

  Orochimaru picked up another letter from the pile. “Just trying to ease the vilge’s burdens. What if I handled the Daimyo’s supply issue?”

  “They haven’t actually defaulted,” Hiruzen said. “They’re just expressing their displeasure by dragging things out a few days. Nothing more.”

  Orochimaru didn’t argue the point. “So you don’t want me to go?”

  Hiruzen choked on the words. Another silence followed.

  At st, he frowned and said, “Don’t do anything reckless.”

  Orochimaru chuckled. “It’s just a supply run. What could I possibly do? At most, I’ll reaffirm our undying loyalty to the Daimyo.”

  With that, he rose from the chair and turned to leave.

  “I depart tomorrow. Have a team ready, Hiruzen-sensei.”

  He walked past the Hokage without pausing, straight out the office door.

  When it shut behind him, Hiruzen let out a long sigh.

  His gaze drifted back to the chair Orochimaru had just vacated, expression troubled.

  Orochimaru... are you trying to make a point? What are you still holding on to? Why won’t you just let it go…?