The real Shinobi World...
After the breathtaking incident during the Chunin Ninja Exams came to an end, Konoha, like a warrior wounded in a storm yet unyielding, threw itself swiftly into recovery and reconstruction.
Busy figures filled the streets and alleyways.
The Ninja Academy students, usually so cheerful and carefree, now wore serious expressions as they diligently carried building materials. Their small bodies burst with energy as they made trip after trip, never stopping even as sweat soaked their backs.
The experienced Jonin used Ninjutsu to repair badly damaged homes and fortifications with precision and efficiency. Under their control, earth and stone seemed to come alive, obediently settling back into place.
The medical-nin were busy too, going in and out of makeshift medical stations, bandaging villagers and ninja accidentally injured during reconstruction and using healing Ninjutsu on them.
Everyone did their part, working together and using their own hands and sweat to erase the shadow left by that day's disaster, little by little. They eagerly hoped Konoha would soon regain its former prosperity and peace. Every one of them knew that each effort they made was another contribution to the village's rebirth.
Amid the intense reconstruction efforts in Konoha, the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, worked like a tireless precision machine, moving quickly and methodically.
She frequently went between the various confidential departments in the Hokage's office building, reviewing and issuing instructions on mountains of official documents and scrolls one by one.
She personally oversaw and decided countless official matters, from strategic decisions concerning the village's future development to plans for public welfare and the deployment of ninja forces. Every decision reflected her sense of responsibility to Konoha and her wisdom.
Even with enough official business to make her head spin, Tsunade never forgot her duties as a master.
Whenever she had a little free time, she hurried straight to the hospital. The moment she entered its corridors, filled with the smell of disinfectant, her gaze softened, and she went straight to Sakura, who was busy with her practical training.
By then, Sakura had shed the youthful inexperience of a beginner. Her eyes were resolute and focused as she carefully tended to the wounded and changed their bandages.
Tsunade quietly stopped behind her. After Sakura finished the initial treatment, Tsunade gently patted her shoulder and began explaining the finer points of more intricate and complex Medical Ninjutsu in meticulous detail.
From the subtle workings of the body's meridians, qi, and blood to the precise adjustment of Chakra for efficient treatment of different injuries, she explained every crucial point in depth and in simple terms, using practical examples.
Sakura listened intently and committed everything to memory, her pen never stopping as she took notes. With each exchange, the understanding and the passing on of knowledge between master and apprentice grew deeper.
Meanwhile, in another corner of the village, Jiraiya and Naruto were hard at work hauling timber.
Naruto's trademark orange jacket was already covered in dust, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, yet he remained full of energy. Gripping a thick timber firmly in both hands, he strained to move forward.
Jiraiya moved nimbly, and even while busy, he never forgot to keep an eye on Naruto, lending a hand whenever needed.
Every brief break became Jiraiya's "teaching time." He sat on the ground and gazed into the distance, as though recalling the countless thrilling and dangerous missions of his past.
In a calm voice full of concern, he told Naruto, "Naruto, carrying out missions outside isn't as easygoing as being in the village. Gathering intelligence is the most important thing. The slightest carelessness can drive the whole team into a desperate situation. You have to learn to use all sorts of methods to tell whether information is true or false. Sometimes, false intelligence deliberately leaked by the enemy is more dangerous than actual weapons..."
As he spoke, he used a branch to draw simple maps of the terrain on the ground, acting out scenarios such as enemy ambushes and misleading intelligence to vividly teach Naruto how to respond.
Naruto listened with rapt attention, his eyes shining with a thirst for knowledge, occasionally raising questions of his own. Through those questions and answers and Jiraiya's instruction and example, the once abstract and obscure ways a ninja survived outside the village took deep root in Naruto's heart like seeds, waiting to grow into towering trees that would protect Konoha.
Cold moonlight, like a shattered jade disk, slipped silently in thin strands through a battered paper door marked by the passage of time, casting alternating patches of light and shadow across the old tatami.
Sasuke sat cross-legged alone in the center of the empty, desolate training ground, like a cold, stern statue. A short sword lay crosswise before him, its icy blade gleaming coldly under the caress of the moonlight and reflecting his blood-red Sharingan. The hatred and resolve burning in those eyes seemed ready to set the night ablaze.
In the distance, the faces of the successive Hokage carved into the towering Hokage Rock shone with a pale, cold light beneath the moonlight, as though silently watching the turbulent Shinobi World.
"Cough—" A muffled cough broke the silence of the night. Sasuke suddenly pitched forward, spraying a mouthful of crimson blood without warning onto the cold blade, where it looked especially jarring in the moonlight.
It was an internal injury left by his breathtaking, life-or-death battle with Gaara a few days earlier. Scalding blood wound its way down the blade.
Memories flashed through his mind...
In an instant, the afterimage of Sakura throwing herself toward the Sand Spear without a thought for herself appeared before Sasuke's eyes like a ghost. The blood that had spattered across his face in that moment, its warm, metallic-smelling touch, remained branded on his heart, lingering even now.
What pierced his heart even more sharply was the giant toad Naruto had summoned at the critical moment—that guy who was always laughing and joking and whom everyone considered a dead last.
Yet at that life-or-death moment, he had unleashed such astonishing power, wielding a powerful Ninjutsu capable of turning the battle around. The sight had deeply wounded Sasuke's pride.
Bang! With a dull, thunderous crash, Sasuke slammed his fist into the hard floor. The sudden noise startled a flock of crows roosting beneath the eaves. Cawing, they beat their wings and flew into the night sky, leaving only a scattering of chaotic black shadows behind.
On the ninja tool rack at the edge of the training ground, several Shuriken that usually lay still seemed to sense the turbulent emotions in their master's heart and suddenly began to tremble slightly.
The scene shown on the Heavenly Screen of Sasuke fighting Kabuto alongside Itachi surfaced in his mind again. Not long ago, that mysterious Anbu member had sought him out specifically to tell him that the divine weapon he used on the Heavenly Screen, the Kusanagi Sword, actually belonged to Orochimaru.
He thought of how Sakura had become Tsunade's apprentice and learned superb Medical Ninjutsu and fierce Monstrous Strength, while Naruto's strength had also advanced by leaps and bounds under Jiraiya's attentive instruction. Kakashi-sensei, though powerful, seemed to have no more unique techniques to teach Sasuke that could help him break out of his current predicament.
To take revenge on Uchiha Itachi and discover the truth behind his clan's destruction, the resolute thought in Sasuke's heart grew ever firmer—he decided to defect from Konoha and set out on the unknown path to finding Orochimaru, even if the road ahead was choked with thorns, even if he had to make an enemy of the whole world.
Late at night, when all was silent, Naruto lay alone in bed, but his thoughts raced freely like a runaway horse. As he recalled how busy he had been these past days, it all seemed as vivid as ever.
In particular, the moments he had spent with Pervy Sage Jiraiya played over and over in his mind like a series of vivid pictures.
Pervy Sage's strictness and concern when teaching him Ninjutsu, and the way he told thrilling or amusing stories during their breaks, were all etched deep in his heart.
Every lesson had helped Naruto take great strides along the path of growth.
There was also his contact with Karin. As a fellow member of his clan, Karin had left a deep impression on Naruto with her resilience and distinctive bearing.
As they talked, Naruto gradually learned more about his clan's past. Those stories hidden deep in the years seemed to fill, however faintly, the gaps in his knowledge of his own origins.
And through all his struggles along the way, Naruto increasingly felt that he was drawing closer, step by step, to the heroic figure who had once appeared in the Heavenly Screen's images and defeated Pain to save Konoha.
He could feel the power surging within him. It was not only the gathering of Chakra, but also the vigorous growth of his conviction and courage.
Every transformation after overcoming a difficulty, every burst of determination as he broke free from confusion, was like a stone, building the steps on his path to becoming a hero.
Naruto clenched his fists, his eyes shining with a fiery light, as though he could already see his future self, stronger and shouldering the weighty duty of protecting others.
Late at night in Konoha, the clamor had gradually died down. Only the familiar tavern still glowed with flickering, yellow light.
Inside, the charcoal fire burned brightly, driving away the lingering chill of the late spring night.
Tsunade and Jiraiya sat facing each other, the low table before them covered with sake cups and several plates of drinking snacks. The fragrance of sake filled the air.
Tsunade raised a cup and drained it in one gulp. The sake burned as it went down, but it could not dispel the complicated emotions in her heart.
Setting down her cup, she frowned slightly and was the first to break the silence. "Jiraiya, how did Orochimaru end up like this?" Her words were full of pain and bewilderment, and her eyes reflected memories of the past.
Jiraiya's face was also full of sorrow. He picked up the sake flask and filled both Tsunade's cup and his own.
Only then did he speak slowly. "Sigh, who could have imagined it... Back then, the three of us became Teacher Sarutobi's students together. His talent and intelligence were there for everyone to see. I thought we could protect Konoha together and pass on the Will of Fire, but his heart..."
Jiraiya paused and tipped back a cup of sake. The burn brought a slight redness to his eyes. "I don't know when it happened, but it was swallowed by darkness."
"There's nothing wrong with seeking power. What ninja isn't climbing the path of power? But he'll stop at nothing to achieve his goals."
Tsunade tapped her fingers lightly on the table, a touch of anger in her voice. "He started a war, slaughtered innocents, and even tried to destroy Konoha, which everyone has poured their hearts into protecting. He even..." Her voice caught. "He killed Teacher Sarutobi."
A flicker of grief passed through Jiraiya's eyes. It was as though Teacher Sarutobi's voice and smile were still as vivid as yesterday. "Teacher always had high hopes for him back then, placing so much trust in him and teaching him so much. Perhaps his overwhelming desire for power made him lose himself, made him think that by breaking everything that existed, he could find his so-called truth."
"How much did it cost to stop him?" Tsunade looked past her cup and out the tavern window. The night was deep, as though concealing countless secrets. "But no matter what, as long as he refuses to turn back, Konoha will have no peace, and we absolutely can't let him continue doing evil."
Jiraiya nodded firmly and tightened his grip on his cup once more. "That's right. For Konoha, and for our departed teacher."
With that, the two exchanged a glance and once again drained their cups.
Deep within a hidden, dimly lit lair, Orochimaru stood alone, a cold, oppressive aura emanating from him.
His face was twisted, seemingly with anger, or perhaps unwillingness to accept what had happened, as he cursed incessantly. "That damned old man, even when things had come to that, he couldn't go quietly! He actually used the last of his strength before dying to seal my hands. Damn him!"
Orochimaru suddenly swept his sleeve out, knocking the bottles and jars on the table beside him to the floor. The sound of shattering glass was especially piercing in the silent space.
He paced back and forth, his steps hurried and uneven, while calculations raced through his mind. "Still, it wasn't a complete loss."
A sinister smile suddenly curled Orochimaru's lips, and a baleful light flashed in his eyes. "That boy Sasuke has already begun to waver. I could see his desire for power perfectly clearly. As long as I push a little harder and bring him completely over to my side, I'll finally get the new body I've been dreaming of."
Thinking of the powerful strength hidden within Sasuke, Orochimaru could not resist extending his tongue to lick his parched lips, as though he could already see himself taking over Sasuke's body and being born anew.