Winter gave way to spring, and the weather gradually warmed. Under the sunlight, the thick blanket of snow melted quickly.
Early in the morning, Uzumaki Kuming left the house to buy supplies for the long journey, leaving Kakashi and the others to watch the place.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
As noon approached, someone knocked at the front gate. The four people training in the courtyard stopped what they were doing and looked toward the entrance in unison.
"Is Lord Kuming back?" Hearing the knock, Rin hurried to the gate and quickly opened it. But the moment it swung open, the people standing outside left her rooted to the spot.
"L-Lord Orochimaru?!" Rin's voice trembled despite herself. Her pupils shrank as she stared at the young man outside.
"Heh heh heh!"
"It's been a long time, Rin."
"Is Kuming here?"
Standing outside was Orochimaru, now a missing-nin wanted by Konoha. His skin was deathly pale, and not a trace of age showed on his face. Though he was decades old, he still looked like a young man.
Orochimaru wore a bizarre outfit: a black robe patterned with blood-red clouds. It was unsettling to look at.
Beside him stood a hunched figure wrapped in a cloud-patterned robe. He lifted his head and gazed at Rin with keen interest.
"Lord Kuming is..." Rin began to reply, but before she could finish, someone yanked her backward into the courtyard. Two figures stepped in front of her, warily facing Orochimaru and the strange man beside him.
"Lord Orochimaru, you betrayed Konoha, yet you still dare come looking for Lord Kuming? Aren't you afraid he'll capture you and take you back to the village?"
Kakashi and Obito stood in front of Rin. Facing Orochimaru and the other strange man, Kakashi demanded, "How dare you show your face