Gears

Konoha Hospital, special care ward.

When Baiye pushed open the door, Hatake Sakumo was sitting by the window, gazing at the sky outside. His face was still pale, but he no longer had the sickly look of someone on the brink of death.

There was simply no trace of Chakra left in him.

He was an ordinary man now.

Baiye walked over and stood beside him.

"I didn't expect to see you again so soon."

Sakumo turned to look at him and spoke.

"Lady Tsunade is still nominally in charge of you, but she's actually transferred your care to me."

As Baiye spoke, he took an apple from the fruit basket nearby and began peeling it without further ceremony.

"Oh? I take it the people watching me have all gone?"

"The one who was hidden deepest withdrew yesterday."

"It's certainly hard to get used to being without my strength."

Hatake Sakumo accepted the half apple Baiye handed him, a hint of self-mockery in his voice.

"Do you regret it? I promised I'd help you get your strength back whenever you wanted it."

"There's no hurry yet... Losing my strength all at once has been uncomfortable, but thanks to that, I've also come to understand a few things." Sakumo turned to look at Baiye. "I used to think that without strength, I couldn't do anything. Now I've found that without it, I can actually see some things more clearly."

"Like what?"

"Like who really cares about you, and who only cares about your blade."

Baiye fell silent for a moment.

"What are you planning to do from now on?"

Sakumo lowered his head and looked at his hands. Those hands that had once held a blade were now empty.

"Live as an ordinary person for a while," he said. "And wait and see what this 'new Konoha' you mentioned turns out to be like."

"And spend some time being a proper father."

There was a knock at the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Minato Namikaze came in. He was carrying fruit. When he saw Baiye, he paused briefly, then nodded.

"Baiye, you're here too."

"Minato-senpai."

Minato walked over and went to set the fruit basket by the bed, only to discover that the already opened basket there was identical to the one in his hand.

"This..."

"Haha, the apple in this basket was delicious, but unfortunately there was only one. I was wondering whether to ask where it came from, and then you happened to bring another."

Hatake Sakumo accepted the fruit basket with a smile.

"I thought you'd be down, senpai. I didn't expect you to still be so cheerful."

A happy smile appeared on Minato's face.

"The burden is gone." There was no frustration in Sakumo's voice over the loss of his strength. "When I take a step back and think about it, there's no hurdle I can't get past."

"I'm so glad you can see it that way," Minato said. "And please don't lose heart. With Lady Tsunade here, she'll be able to help you regain your strength someday."

Sakumo looked at him and said nothing for a few seconds.

"I'm sure that by then," Minato said, gazing at Sakumo as though making a promise, "there won't be any more senseless disputes in Konoha either."

Looking into those clear eyes, Hatake Sakumo suddenly laughed.

"Ever since you were little, I thought you'd become an extraordinary ninja someday... Time really does fly."

"If it weren't for your praise, I might never have met Jiraiya-sensei."

"Jiraiya? Haha, whoever became your teacher would only be lucky to have you."

"Well..."

Flushing a little at the string of compliments, Minato didn't dare say anything more.

"Konoha will be counting on you all from now on..."

Minato opened his mouth to say something, but Sakumo had already turned back to look out the window.

Minato exchanged a glance with Baiye, then smiled, somewhat relieved.

Minato was busy and left not long after seeing Sakumo.

Before leaving, he made plans to have barbecue with Baiye that evening.

The door to the ward closed.

"Is he the new Konoha you were talking about?"

Hatake Sakumo's voice broke the silence.

"What do you think?"

In the spring breeze, branches swayed, their new leaves moving back and forth before the window.

"The road ahead that you're looking forward to may not be smooth..." Hatake Sakumo thought of those clear eyes he had just seen. "But I have to say, it really is something to look forward to."

That evening.

The two walked out of the barbecue restaurant. Minato clutched his wallet, his face full of pain.

"You're a Jonin. Surely that little bit of money can't hurt that much?"

"No way. You go on missions pretty often too, don't you?... You've already handed it over? You've only just come of age, haven't you? Are you moving in with your girlfriend?"

"...I've never really thought of you as a child, but are you really twelve?"

"Since I was six, I've been the oldest male in my family."

"...I'm sorry..."

"Hey, don't apologize... You grew up in an orphanage..."

Before they knew it, the two had reached a deserted corner.

Minato suddenly stopped.

"Will Sakumo-senpai be able to recover?"

Baiye looked at him but didn't answer.

"My intuition tells me you were the one who did that, and if it was you, you probably wouldn't let things end this way."

Minato seemed to have already decided it was him.

"But you know I'm only twelve."

"For a true genius, twelve is old enough."

"...Intuition? That really doesn't play fair." Baiye gave a helpless smile.

"So?"

"He can recover, but..." Since he'd already admitted it, Baiye didn't try to hide anything. "I only gave him a way to step back behind the scenes for a while. As for whether he'll come back, we'll have to wait and see..."

"Phew~ That's such a relief."

"Hm?"

"I didn't even notice the rumors had hit Sakumo-senpai so hard..." Minato looked at Baiye and said sincerely, "Luckily, you noticed."

"Didn't I tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"I'd help in my own way."

Before transmigrating, Baiye had always thought that Minato Namikaze, the Hokage with the shortest tenure, was a lucky man who had gained his position because of the circumstances of the three Sannin, and a beneficiary of the power struggle between the Third and Danzo.

Baiye had deliberately gotten close to him before only because of his special status as the father of the world's protagonist, hoping to earn fate points without exposing himself to more danger.

But after only a few years together, his thoughts had changed without him realizing it.

He wanted to try to change Minato's fate of death.

Spend enough time with Minato, and one would discover that he was sincere, straightforward and gentle, while lacking neither wisdom nor strength.

Many people had already gathered around him without realizing it.

All he needed to become Hokage was an opportunity.

An opportunity that was destined to come—the Third Shinobi World War.

"Oh, right. The Third told me he wants me to be a supervising Jonin."

Baiye looked at him. He knew what Minato meant by "supervising Jonin"—Kakashi, Rin and Obito.

The legendary Team 7 was coming.

"Congratulations," he said.

Minato smiled, joy in his smile, but also apprehension.

"I just feel like time is passing too quickly."

With that, he patted Baiye on the shoulder, turned and left.

Baiye stood in the corner, watching him walk away.

The gears of fate had begun to turn.

A sense of urgency swept over him like a tide.

Late at night. Shin'ō Academy.

Baiye stood on the training ground, sweat pouring off him. He had been practicing for a long time—Hakuda, Zanjutsu and Shunpo, over and over, until his Reiatsu was nearly exhausted.

Aizen leaned against a wall, watching him without a word.

Baiye finally stopped, braced his hands on his knees and gasped for breath.

"Your Reiatsu has grown considerably stronger."

Aizen's voice came from behind him. "But your Shikai hasn't made much progress."

Baiye looked at him.

"It seems there's another secret I don't know."

Aizen walked over and stood beside him.

Aizen never hid his curiosity about Baiye or even this illusion, but his expression was always unruffled.

If I took out Shinsō right now and used it on Aizen, would it shock him? A pity I only have one chance...

"But even though your strength has improved, you're still somewhat anxious."

Aizen was a good teacher, but sometimes he was too perceptive, making Baiye wary of speaking too casually.

"Anxiety is useless. Thinking is what matters. Anxiety, panic... they're all inconsequential."

Baiye looked up, wanting to say something, but Aizen had already turned and walked away.

"Thinking?" Baiye repeated softly.

Baiye woke from Jinzen.

The sky outside the window was still dark. He sat on the bed with his tachi across his knees and began to think seriously about Aizen's words.

It was already difficult to quickly increase the soul strength of this body through Jinzen. It wasn't useless, but the period of rapid, "thousand miles a day" improvement was over. Further growth would take time and steady effort.

But Chakra was different.

His body had constantly been eroded by Transparent Release before, restricting his Chakra extraction, so he had always had very little Chakra. But now his Kaidō had risen to B-rank, and his Medical Ninjutsu had also made great strides after he mastered the Mystical Palm Technique. The erosion from Transparent Release had been suppressed to the point that it was almost nonexistent.

The "shackles" on his body had been removed.

Next, he could focus on training in Taijutsu to strengthen his body. With his high soul strength, he didn't need to worry about his mental energy at all. Once his body grew stronger, the amount of Chakra he had would naturally increase as well.

Whether in Reiatsu or Chakra, his talent was not first-rate. But by working on both, he could find a place for himself among the strongest.

Speaking of training in Taijutsu...

A figure in a green jumpsuit barged unbidden into his mind.

Baiye fell silent for a moment.

"...It's not impossible."

He closed his eyes again and began putting together a training plan in his mind.

It would take time. But at least he knew which way to go.