Settled as One (Grand Finale)

Back at Minato and Obito's battlefield, the victor had already been decided.

Obito, his heart pierced through, lay helplessly on the ground, devoid of all signs of life.

Minato stood nearby in silence. No one knew what was truly going through his mind.

Iori stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, telling him about his agreement with the Mizukage. Then he said, "There's nothing else to do right now. Why don't you look for a child named Kaguya Kimimaro?"

"I remember he should still be wandering somewhere nearby."

Minato nodded quietly and silently accepted the task.

Meanwhile, Iori took the opportunity to search for Haku.

After several hours, Iori found Haku wandering as a beggar in a town.

Though he was filthy from head to toe and looked little different from the other beggars, the chakra that had once awakened Ice Release stood out vividly in Iori's eyes.

There was no need for words. Looking into Iori's eyes, Haku understood that Iori was one of the "monsters" as well.

Without hesitation, he took Iori's outstretched hand and became his disciple.

After finding Haku, Iori brought him to meet up with Minato.

To his surprise, Minato had also found Kimimaro not long before.

Kimimaro, who had always been alone, encountered Minato, who was like a little sun. Moved by his warmth, he voluntarily asked to join Konoha.

With nothing in his heart, Kimimaro hoped that in Konoha, he could come to understand what this thing Minato called "love" truly was.

Night had fallen, and the four had nothing else to do, so they spent the night at an inn in a nearby town.

The next day, Iori walked down the stairs of the inn and discovered that Kirigakure's higher-ups were already waiting there.

"What is your decision? Fight, or surrender?"