Zhan

Hui Youling had never imagined that after coming to this world, she would see her evil self again. Her mother had once said that as soon as she began to hate, they would exist. So in any world, her hatred could take shape as evil.

"This is the first time I've seen you, Zhan..." Just as she had in the past, she called her by that name.

"I was born from your heart. Where there's darkness, there's me, Blood Sacrifice." She spoke calmly, her voice far too placid. Only the amusement in her gaze hinted at some hidden light.

Sadness flickered through Hui Youling's eyes. At last, she had remembered that name. Blood Sacrifice, Blood Sacrifice—an offering of blood.

"Oh, and thank you for your hatred." Zhan smiled faintly. Seeing her smile made Hui uneasy.

Zhan's pupils turned blood red. A single tomoe slowly appeared, then vanished in an instant, and her black eyes returned to normal.

Zhan sighed regretfully, though her tone was still mocking. "This time, you lost your Uchiha bloodline and survived in a new body. But fate is still so amusing. Heh..."

She looked at Hui and, sure enough, saw her trembling. "Your mother belonged to the Uzumaki Clan, Hui. I can't wait to see Orochimaru scheme against you again."

Zhan sneered. "Heh heh. Hui, do you really think it's a coincidence that I've returned to this world?" She blinked slowly and looked at Hui with contempt.

She continued in a leisurely tone, "Hui, your Uzumaki bloodline laid the groundwork for my existence long ago. Poor you, hidden away in the village by Konoha, while your mother was already going to war at a young age. By that measure, this body shouldn't be half bad..."

The corner of her mouth lifted in a strange smile. She slowly uttered a word, but Hui couldn't make out what she said.

Before long, Zhan's figure began to blur, until she vanished along with the darkness.

Hui pressed her lips together. Starting over had also erased Zhan's feelings for her, leaving only indifference.

Besides, she had no idea what abilities the Uzumaki Clan possessed. Other than being impossible to kill, she couldn't sense any power at all. Hui knew very well that right now, she was nothing but an ant.

The white hospital room was quiet except for the ticking of the clock. The Third Hokage stood not far away, watching the unconscious Hui Youling. He had a vague premonition that if he didn't clear some things up with her today, she would become a very different person.

His prediction wasn't wrong. Before long, Hui slowly opened her eyes, then abruptly sat up and stared blankly at the blanket over her.

But the Third Hokage noticed that the warmth in her eyes had vanished. The chill had deepened!

She looked around listlessly and caught sight of Naruto asleep with his head on the bedside. Her eyes gradually cleared, but a coldness still lingered in them.

"You're awake..." The Third Hokage's voice was heavy. Hui's body stiffened, and she pressed her lips together and turned her head away.

The Third Hokage fell silent for a moment, then made a slight gesture. In an instant, another person appeared in the room.

Hui looked at the person who had suddenly appeared before her, and a faint fear stirred in her heart.

A thought kept rising in her mind: she was weak, and had no right to act willfully anymore. The Third Hokage had already done all he reasonably could!

At the Third Hokage's signal, the person picked Naruto up and dragged him outside.

Naruto woke with a start and shouted, "What are you doing, you bas—!" He didn't get to finish before his mouth was covered and he was dragged away.

Hui watched, her neck rigid. She wanted to stop them, but she didn't dare move.

Only after the sound had completely faded did the Third Hokage speak. "You were unconscious for three days..."

Hui turned back to look at him. After a long silence, she slowly smiled. "Ah... What a shame I didn't die!" she said sarcastically.

She hadn't meant to say that, but the words just kept coming out of her mouth, beyond her control.

"Ah..." The Third Hokage sighed deeply.

His aged voice continued, "The situation at the time was complicated, Hui. Don't jump to conclusions."

The Third Hokage knew there had been reasons those people hadn't wanted to save her and Naruto, but he didn't want her to understand them.

Hui paused and lowered her head. Her fingers clenched the blanket as she asked hoarsely, "Where is Konoha's light, Grandpa Third?"

The Third Hokage stared at her. The white blanket was marked with damp spots. Hui was crying.

With a thick, stuffy voice, Hui said, "There are no leaves dancing in the wind, and no fire. It won't shine on me, when no one ever considered me a leaf of Konoha in the first place."

She was truly beginning to wonder whether the Will of Fire was all a lie.

The Third Hokage stared at Hui in a daze. The Will of Fire, the heart of a shinobi—when had Hui learned about such things? What was laughable was that she saw darkness instead of light. They said those who lived in darkness matured early. Had she seen through everything while living in darkness?

The Will of Fire was something he had given to the children who were about to become Chunins, because they carried Konoha's future on their shoulders.

Hui Youling understood, yet had never considered herself one of Konoha's leaves. It wasn't for any other reason; she was questioning him, questioning him as Hokage. And he could see Hui's resentment—and her pain...

Hui clenched her teeth, trying to hold back her tears. Her voice trembled as she said, "I know that both Naruto and I are hated, so I can bear it, but..."

Hui Youling's voice grew weaker, then quieted.

"I'm so weak... so... so fragile... I could die by accident..."

Hui Youling's hand finally let go of the blanket. She smiled bitterly and looked up at the ceiling. Before she could protect anyone else, she couldn't even protect herself. That helplessness was the most ironic thing of all.

"Grandpa Third, you're Konoha's strongest light, so you don't understand how devouring the darkness can be. You're the Hokage of Konoha..."

Hui Youling didn't dare say... didn't dare mention Danzo's existence. She wasn't qualified to judge any of that. Besides, right now she was merely voicing her resentment, saying things that didn't even make sense.

For some reason, Danzo came to mind. For some reason, she thought of the Third Hokage's inaction. All at once, a flood of doubts arose.

Where there was light, there was shadow. Where there was the Third Hokage, there was Danzo; otherwise, Konoha would have fallen into chaos long ago. Whether the Third Hokage understood her or thought she had lost her mind, even she could barely understand what she was saying.

The Third Hokage watched her silently, without a word. He had never been attached to power. If the Fourth Hokage hadn't died, he would have spent his days at home, staring into space and smoking.

He suddenly thought of Danzo, and of the children in Root, whom Danzo had turned into machines. Perhaps his own indifference to power had allowed Danzo to take too much for himself.

He no longer cared what Hui Youling had learned. Perhaps she hated Konoha, but she genuinely wanted to protect Naruto.

"There won't be another time, even if it's someone else."

The Third Hokage spoke sternly, no longer concealing the Hokage's authority.

Hui Youling looked dazed, as if she hadn't seen the Third Hokage like this in a very long time. She smiled inwardly.

This was the Third Hokage making a promise to her in his capacity as Konoha's Hokage. Had he understood after all? The Third Hokage really was worthy of the title.

"Mm... Thank you, Grandpa Third," Hui said, pressing her lips together.

The Third Hokage gave a quiet "Mm," then said, "Get some rest."

With that, he turned to leave. Just before he reached the door, he slowly turned back. "Uchiha Itachi saved you..."

Hui Youling's pupils widened slightly. So that gentle person really had been him?

"Mm..."

The Third Hokage smiled softly, glanced at her, then left.

"What are you hesitating over?" A voice rose in her mind. It was Zhan's, as coldly indifferent as ever.

"Did you notice..." Hui Youling gave a silent laugh. "I'm waiting for an opportunity. An opportunity to become stronger."

Zhan was silent for a moment, then asked, "Itachi?"

Or...

"Orochimaru?" Zhan's tone rose slightly, full of mockery.

Zhan chuckled lazily. "In the end, you'll still have to rely on Orochimaru. Right, Hui Youling? You'd already made up your mind. This time, you're just more determined."

"So what? I can't afford to die that easily. You told me about what happened to Hongye for this very reason, didn't you?" Hui Youling replied flatly. The nasal tone in her voice had disappeared.

Zhan laughed softly, like a cackling ghost, and drawled, "Hee hee hee... That's right. I just wanted you to know, even though you're powerless to do anything."

Hui Youling looked at Zhan with calm eyes. She didn't want to lose to anyone—least of all this woman.

Zhan noticed how calm her eyes were and smiled scornfully. "Heh... Really... really... I love it."

Hui Youling closed her eyes tightly, thinking of nothing. Zhan watched her coldly, the smile never leaving her lips, until it finally vanished altogether.

"You're all going to regret this!" Naruto shouted from outside the door.

Whoosh!

He yanked the door open. Seeing that Hui Youling was awake, he hurried over, delighted. "Hui, you're finally awake! Do you know how long you've been asleep?"

"Naruto..." Hui Youling's voice was flat and emotionless, like a robot's.

Naruto froze. He looked at Hui as she slowly spoke. "You have to—you have to become Hokage."

Naruto fell silent for a moment. Seeing the tear tracks on her face, he felt only a heavy sadness.

"Yeah..." Naruto answered earnestly. "I won't let you down."

Hui Youling knew that from the moment she chose Sasuke's path, she had no right to hope that she could save Naruto.

Because her own...

Her own inner demon...

Had already grown...