Yakushi Nonō and Kabuto Yakushi

Night shrouded Konoha.

Minamoto Takuya bade farewell to the warm, almost illusory lights of Minato Namikaze's home and slowly stepped onto the star-strewn road back.

A cool breeze brushed past his collar, bringing with it a trace of crisp tranquility.

After spending an evening in the Fourth's peaceful, warm home, steeped in the warmth of everyday life, even someone as detached as him could not help having the taut strings of his heart quietly plucked. He unconsciously relaxed, nearly immersing himself in that ordinary sense of security.

Yet though his steps were light, a lucid chill lingered within his heart.

The many secrets buried deep inside him were like an invisible chasm, quietly separating him from this rare warmth. He was destined to never truly fit into it and become a carefree bystander.

Still, Minamoto Takuya did not mind. Instead, he felt a sense of natural relief.

Compared to fitting into such an atmosphere, the flame burning within him was far fiercer: an absolute pursuit of power.

Looking back at himself, the road to the peak was covered in thorns, yet it had never seemed clearer in his eyes.

What he lacked now was simply time—time to let the waters flow quietly and temper his existing abilities to their utmost limit.

He was certain that if he could fully absorb and master every power currently at his disposal, whether gained through his own cultivation or acquired through planning, then the barrier before the threshold of Super Shadow would surely be broken.

If he reached that level of strength before the manga's plot even began, then he would be invincible in the Shinobi World for a time!

Even the Pain Six Paths would be useless against him!

His steps became even lighter with this surging ambition, as though he were walking