Return to the Temple

Souya stepped into the temple. There were quite a few worshippers offering incense today, and wisps of blue smoke drifted upward before being scattered by the breeze halfway through the air.

"Yo! Souya, you're back?" A middle-aged monk sweeping fallen leaves on the right side of the temple beamed and greeted him when he saw him.

"Hello, Uncle Hua Yan! Where's Master? Nothing's happened at the temple lately, right?" Souya replied cheerfully.

"Your master is in the rear courtyard. Everything's fine at the temple, so don't worry." Uncle Hua Yan spoke gently, his eyes narrowed into slits.

"Then I'll go see Master first!" Souya waved and passed through the worshippers, making his way familiarly to the rear courtyard.

Since a river ran nearby, rare vegetation could be found in this rear courtyard. A thick Ginkgo Tree stood tall in the center, displaying a dazzling golden hue. Countless fallen leaves drifted down, curling over the ground with the breeze and carpeting it in splendid gold.

His feet rustled over them, producing a soft "shush, shush" sound like an ethereal melody.

With a creak, Souya pushed open the familiar wooden door. An elderly monk was holding a book and earnestly instructing a young child who appeared to be only five or six years old.

"Master! I'm back!" Souya pressed his palms together and bowed respectfully.

"Good, good, good. It's good that you're back..." The Old Monk's cloudy eyes lit up when he saw Souya.

The room was fairly spacious. A bed lay along the inner side, while a desk and several meditation cushions occupied the outer area.

The child was clearly shy around strangers. When he saw Souya enter, an uneasy expression appeared on his face, and he quietly edged closer to the Old Monk.

"Master, who is he?" Souya had spent every night of his childhood in this very room after being taken in, so he did not stand on ceremony. He pulled over a meditation cushion himself and sat opposite the Old Monk.

"His name is Houichi. He's a new disciple Junior Brother Bunshou has taken in!" The Old Monk gently stroked the child's head with his thin, withered hand.

"What?! Doesn't that make this little guy my grand-uncle?" Souya shouted.

"Master, this is all your fault. I should obviously belong to the Fa generation too, but you insisted on making me part of the youngest Sou generation. Aren't I your disciple too?!" Souya pouted, his voice full of grievance.

"Hehe! You..." The Old Monk laughed and scolded him fondly. "I told you long ago that there is no true master-disciple bond between us. Besides, you're no longer a member of this temple, so what does the generational ranking have to do with you?" The furrow-like wrinkles on his face relaxed as he pointed at Souya's black hair.

Then the Old Monk stroked the smooth little head of the child beside him, as though he had suddenly returned to the past.

When he had brought Souya back to the temple, he had never imagined that the boy would start asking so many strange and bizarre questions once he grew a little older—things about the invincible Zofi, Captain Flame Head, and the like. Even though he prided himself on being broadly experienced and knowledgeable, he had been unable to answer them.

"Hehe!" Souya grinned. In this world, the Old Monk before him was his closest family, so their teasing and bantering was perfectly normal. His earlier remark about a "grand-uncle" had only been a joke.

Even this form of address, "Master," had only been tacitly accepted by the Old Monk because Souya had insisted on it. Originally, the Old Monk had not wanted someone "outside the establishment" like him to call him that.

However, when addressing the other people close to him in the temple, Souya would still properly call them "Uncle" or "Grand-Uncle" according to their generational rank. Only the Old Monk before him was an exception.

"You didn't run into any trouble while carrying out your mission, did you...?"

"What trouble could there be? Don't you know what I'm capable of...?"

Souya and the Old Monk naturally exchanged a lengthy round of pleasantries. Then Souya took a large pile of daily necessities, along with all kinds of fruits and vegetables, from his scroll.

"Remember to boil the water before drinking it. I've been telling you about this bad habit for ages..."

"You need to maintain a balanced diet. Don't go saying you're monks—you're not immortals. And even immortals have to eat..."

"These are newly bought cotton quilts. Take them out and use them when the weather gets cold. I bought plenty, and all the uncles and senior brothers have theirs too, so don't give yours away to them..."

"With those old, cold-sensitive legs of yours, how are you supposed to sleep without a warm enough blanket...?"

Souya chattered away as he cleaned the room. He directly put away the old quilt on the bed, then neatly laid out and folded the new sheets and quilts.

The bright red new quilt added a touch of life to the room.

Finally, Souya took out several brand-new leather balls and lined them up in the corner by the wall.

The Old Monk said nothing. He merely sat on his stool, smiling as he watched Souya bustle about.

The child stared wide-eyed at Souya as well. Ever since coming to the temple, the other monks had all seemed calm and detached. This was the first time he had seen someone as talkative as Souya...

"Master, is this little bald head naughty? Does he make you worry?" After finishing, Souya stood to the side and looked curiously at the child. The name Houichi seemed somehow familiar to him.

"Could he possibly be naughtier than you? Have you forgotten how you climbed up to the rafters on a ladder when you were two? You scared me half to death back then..." the Old Monk teased.

"Uh..." Souya scratched his head awkwardly.

"Master, I'll go see Grand-Uncle Bunpuku first. I'll come back later!" Finding an excuse, Souya slipped out of the room.

"Senior Uncle... who is he?" the child asked timidly, watching Souya's departing back outside.

"Him... He'll become a truly remarkable person someday!" The Old Monk's face was full of gratification.

"Then can I become a truly remarkable person too?" The child's eyes shone with hopeful anticipation.

"Of course you can!" The Old Monk kindly patted the child's head.

In a patch of wasteland some distance from the temple, the wind and sand howled loudly.

The blazing sun overhead showed no mercy, continuously pouring invisible flames of scorching heat down upon the land.

"Ah! It's so hot today!"

"Yeah! What rotten luck—this awful weather had to come when it was our turn on duty!"

"Sigh! That old guy inside has already been locked up for decades. How much longer are we supposed to keep him locked up...?"

A tall tower stood in the middle of the wasteland. Many strange black markings were inscribed upon its surface, giving the yellow tower an eerie aura.

The tower's lowest level was enclosed by a ring of railings forged from refined iron, as though some peerless ferocious beast were imprisoned within.

The two young ninja on duty stood in the shadows outside the fence, chatting. Fine beads of sweat kept forming on their foreheads, and their faces were full of complaints.

Suddenly, one of the sharper-eyed ninja spotted a figure in the distance and hurriedly signaled to his companion. The two quickly straightened up, staring ahead with the appearance of diligently guarding their post.

"Lord Souya!"

The two respectful calls rang out almost simultaneously. Souya gave a faint nod.

After all, as the Third Kazekage's direct disciple and a renowned genius, Souya was still addressed respectfully by lower-ranking ninja whenever they encountered him in Sunagakure.

"Lord Souya, are you bringing food again?" the more presentable-looking young ninja asked ingratiatingly.

"Yes. You two go rest first. I'll watch this place," Souya instructed. When he spoke with Grand-Uncle Bunpuku, he did not want irrelevant people around.

This was not the first time Souya had made such a request, and the two were more than happy to leave this boring, grueling post.