Tsunade's matter had come to an end. The daimyō of the Land of Fire would negotiate with the daimyō of the Land of Waterfalls, and in the end, the Land of Waterfalls would compensate the Land of Fire with twenty million ryō.
As for the Hero Water, there was still no news of it in the end.
The matter had come to an end.
A week later,
Winter was gradually approaching. The paulownia trees in Konoha stood lonely, with only a few leaves stubbornly clinging to their branches, as though a gust of wind would send them tumbling down.
Early that morning, a boy's cheerful cry rang out from a room in Konoha Hospital.
"Big Brother! Big Brother, I'm here to see you."
Before he arrived, his voice came first. Then, with a thunderous crash, the spiky-haired Shisui burst into the hospital room.
At a glance, he spotted the sorrowful youth lying on the hospital bed and gazing out the window. Well, one could not actually tell the youth's gender from his appearance, because the person on the bed was wrapped in bandages from head to toe, leaving only a pair of sorrowful eyes exposed.
"Big Brother, why are you up so early today?" Shisui asked in pleasant surprise.
A week earlier, when he had learned that his beloved big brother had suffered severe injuries and that his life or death was unknown, he had felt as though the sky had fallen. Especially when he had seen him covered in blood and disfigured beyond recognition—he had wailed his heart out.
Then, a day later, Sora Uchiha had become the way he was now. He had taken a full three days to wake up, and even now, he could barely sit up.
Hearing Shisui's voice, Sora Uchiha turned his head stiffly.
"Shisui, you're here."
As for why he had gotten up so early, it was because he spent all day in bed with nothing to do. His days and nights had been completely reversed, and his routine was a mess.
As for why his eyes looked so sorrowful, that was because the doctor had said he would have to lie in bed for at least a month.
Besides...
Sora Uchiha looked at Shisui in front of him. In his eyes, Shisui's handsome face was somewhat blurry, and phantom images occasionally flickered across it.
He knew exactly what had caused this: the aftereffects of overusing the Mangekyō Sharingan, which had drastically impaired his vision.
He was practically going blind. How could he not be depressed? Before he had even awakened the Sharingan, he had already experienced the suffering of the "Uchiha Sasuke in the Hawk Squad" period.
"Big Brother, have some porridge." Shisui raised the bowl in his hand and shook it.
"Oh, sure."
Before long, Sora Uchiha sucked the porridge from the cup through a straw. Ever since waking up, this was the only way he could eat. At first, he had found it embarrassing, but after several days...
Heh heh, guess what?
It actually felt pretty good.
"Big Brother, how much longer until you can take off the bandages?" Shisui asked fretfully. He thought his big brother looked so pitiful like this.
"According to the doctor, maybe another week?" Sora Uchiha replied uncertainly. His injuries really were quite severe. The doctor had said his bones were shattered and his blood vessels had burst. The fact that he had survived at all meant his ancestors were smiling upon him.
Still, the mission had not been without its rewards. At least he had completed all the system's missions.
This time, the reward was the summoning of Shukaku, the One-Tail.
He had originally thought this move would directly summon the Shukaku in Sunagakure. However, after asking the system, he discovered that was not the case.
The Shukaku rewarded by the system was a smaller, imitation Shukaku. It could not move freely, and it could not use abilities possessed by all Tailed Beasts, such as the Tailed Beast Bomb. It could only create a gigantic sandstorm to trap enemies.
Even so, Sora Uchiha was satisfied.
"Knock, knock, knock—"
There was a knock at the door. Shisui ran over and opened it.
"Oh, it's Big Brother Kazuki!" Shisui exclaimed in delight.
The person who had come to visit Sora Uchiha was Kazuki Utsuki. As for why Shisui knew him, Kazuki Utsuki had frequently come to visit over the past few days, and Shisui had gradually gotten to know him.
Besides, since he often came to visit his big brother, Shisui thought he was his big brother's friend and welcomed him warmly.
"Hello, Shisui." Kazuki Utsuki smiled kindly and rubbed Shisui's curly hair. Then his gaze fell on the mummy on the hospital bed.
"Sora, are you feeling any better?" As he spoke, he placed the flowers beside the bed. He had originally wanted to bring fruit, but since Sora Uchiha could not eat fruit in his current condition, he had brought flowers instead.
"Not bad." Sora Uchiha nodded and raised his leg slightly to show that he could move it.
As for Kazuki Utsuki, Sora Uchiha's feelings toward him were somewhat complicated. Kazuki Utsuki had kept coming to visit him over the past few days, and he was also an Anbu member.
So Momosuke had investigated him and discovered that Kazuki Utsuki had once had a twelve-year-old younger brother. Unfortunately, the boy had died young.
Only then did Sora Uchiha understand why Kazuki Utsuki treated him so well. It was because Sora Uchiha reminded him of his younger brother.
"Don't you have any missions these days?" Sora Uchiha asked.
"Well, you could say that. Besides, winter has arrived, and even the fighting on the front lines has gotten a breather. This period is a rare stretch of leisure," Kazuki Utsuki explained.
Hearing this, Sora Uchiha's heart stirred. If that was the case, Kurenai Yuhi and the others should have returned too. Come to think of it, he had not seen his peers for more than a month.
But... if Obito found out he was like this now, wouldn't he laugh himself to death?
He smiled, and his mood inexplicably improved.
"Hiss—"
It hurt. He had pulled at his wounds.
Not hehe. (T＿T)
"Your body is already in this state. Get some proper rest." Seeing him grimace, Kazuki Utsuki found it amusing yet somewhat painful. He then used the Mystical Palm Technique to ease Sora Uchiha's pain.
To be honest, Sora Uchiha was not used to Kazuki Utsuki's gentle tone. He was still more accustomed to the aloof monkey who carried out missions.
But he could not bring himself to say anything overly sentimental, so he could only remain silent.
Fortunately, this strange atmosphere did not last long, because a frivolous voice came from the doorway.
"Hey, kid. Looks like you're doing pretty well."
Sora Uchiha looked over and saw Tsunade staring at him with a beaming smile. The corner of his mouth twitched.
Why is this woman here?
Compared with a week earlier, Tsunade looked like a completely different person. She showed no sign of having been injured. But that made sense. Tsunade was a member of the Senju Clan and was skilled in Medical Ninjutsu, so it was normal for her to recover quickly.
"Do I look like I'm doing well to you?" Sora Uchiha complained.
As soon as he finished speaking, something resembling a "caterpillar" flew onto his face. It was Katsuyu. Katsuyu immediately emitted a faint green glow and began healing Sora Uchiha.
"Hehe, no thanks necessary," Tsunade said in advance. Then she sat directly on the hospital bed, narrowed her eyes at the mummy, and, after a moment, curiously reached out and pressed it with one finger.
"Hiss!" Sora Uchiha sucked in a sharp breath and glared resentfully at Tsunade. He hated people with no sense of boundaries.
"Tsk, tsk. You look really ugly like this." Tsunade giggled. The current Sora Uchiha was nothing like the proud youth he had been in the cave.
"Heh. Who do you think I ended up like this because of?" Sora Uchiha said gloomily.
Faced with his resentful gaze, Tsunade paused, then glared at him with her beautiful eyes.
"Who told you not to listen to me and insist on acting alone?"
"And I'm an Anbu member. I only take orders from the Hokage and my captain. Big Sister Tsunade, you don't have the authority to order me around~" Tsunade imitated what Sora Uchiha had said to her back then, looking incredibly annoying.
"I surrender, I surrender." Sora Uchiha spoke helplessly.
Kazuki Utsuki had remained silent the entire time. As he listened to the conversation between Tsunade and Sora Uchiha, his heart churned.
The terrifying traces of battle left behind back then were really caused by Sora Uchiha?
"Bang!" The door was kicked open.
"Sora! I'm here to see you!"
The corner of Sora Uchiha's mouth twitched. What day was it today? Had they all agreed to come visit him this morning?
Before you continue