Wind

In the empty conference room, Kou read through the letters one by one.

Mei Terumi stood quietly to the side, tidying up the letters scattered around the table and placing them one by one on the table.

Mei Terumi.

After an unknown amount of time, a slightly hoarse voice called out.

"Yes, I'm here."

Mei Terumi responded softly.

"... Thanks."

Kou raised his hand to cover his eyes, his voice trembling slightly:

Thank you.

Mei Terumi didn't say anything, but silently walked behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders.

Then, she leaned down and rested her chin on the top of the head that was half-buried in the letter.

"We should be the ones saying that."

Thank you... for everything you've done for us.

Mei Terumi buried her face in her slightly messy hair and said earnestly:

You no longer need to wear a mask.

No matter your identity, no matter who you are... I, and everyone in Mist Village, will always be by your side.

Kou didn't say anything, but simply raised the hand that had been covering his eyes and gently placed it on the back of Mei Terumi's hand that was resting on his shoulder.

"Home...?"

He whispered, then stopped speaking, only slightly tightening his grip on her clasped hand...

Outside the door, Karin carefully pressed her ear against the heavy wooden door.

After a long while, she closed her eyes contentedly, rested her forehead against the cool door panel, and murmured softly:

"That's wonderful, Master."

Karin couldn't help but smile, and before she knew it, her eyes were filled with tears that were almost overflowing.

She took a deep sniff, stood up from the doorway, turned around, and started walking briskly along the long corridor bathed in the midday sun.

"You've finally... found your home!"

--

Meanwhile, in the Underground Laboratory of Hozuki Castle...

The air was filled with a mixture of smells of medicine, rust, and blood.

The laboratory walls and floor were smooth and cold. At a glance, dozens of culture tanks made of transparent crystals stood quietly in this cold space.

The tank was filled with liquids of various colors, containing bizarrely shaped creatures and deformed living beings.

Their eyes were all tightly closed, as if they were asleep, or as if they had been ruthlessly pressed to the edge of life and death...

"Ughh...

A piercing wail echoed from the deepest part of the laboratory, tearing apart the heavy silence.

"Stop... please, please, stop!!"

Hiruko curled up in agony on a cold stone platform, his hands, wrapped in gray bandages, pressed tightly against his chest.

"I've given you many chances already, Hiruko."

Not far in front of him, a man dressed in black robes calmly looked down at him:

"They actually dared to secretly plant their own Cursed Seal within the incantation of the Chimera Technique."

Was it my indulgence that fueled your ridiculous ambition?

Hiruko, suppressing his pain, raised his head in shock and looked at the man in front of him with his bloodshot eyes.

How could this be? The fact that he secretly added Cursed Seal to the Chimera Technique should only have been known to him, the one who improved the technique.

I did it extremely discreetly, how could this idiot who knows nothing about research possibly notice?

"Could it be... that this guy is just bluffing me?"

Hiruko comforted himself inwardly, then struggled to his feet and cried out to Obito in a mournful voice:

"Injustice... Injustice! Lord Madara, I have never been disloyal to you!"

I absolutely did not tamper with the technique! Someone must be deliberately framing me!

"... Yeah."

Obito gave a calm reply, then raised his hand and slowly clenched it towards Hiruko's heart.

"Then, go die."

Feeling the excruciating pain in his heart, Hiruko disbelief, staring intently at Obito in front of him.

"Why...?"

He didn't understand.

If Obito truly has evidence that he tampered with the Chimera Technique, then he could simply keep himself alive and negotiate terms later.

As long as the experiment has not yielded a final result, he will remain irreplaceable to Obito.

Killing him would bring the man in front of him absolutely no benefit!

Before Hiruko could sort out his thoughts, his consciousness began to gradually dissipate.

A hint of unwillingness flashed in his eyes. He suddenly mobilized the Chakra within his body, attempting to activate the technique he had previously left on Obito.

However, nothing happened.

Obito still stood in front of him, coldly staring at him with the same look he had never had before, as if he were looking at a clown.

"This, this is impossible..."

Hiruko stared wide-eyed in despair and growled in disbelief.

That hidden weapon he once thought would be able to perish Obito at the crucial moment had vanished from his senses as if it had never existed?

Hiruko his mouth in resentment, but before he could utter a single word, he stiffened and collapsed.

Hiruko, died.

"... idiot."

Obito glanced disdainfully at the lifeless corpse on the stone platform and slowly lowered his hand.

"Oh dear, what a pity."

A hoarse voice came from the deeper shadows behind Obito.

A tall, thin man with a pale face and black hair emerged from the shadows.

Orochimaru walked to Hiruko's corpse, nudged the still-warm body half an inch away with his toe, and said with feigned regret:

"Although he's a fool, he was able to develop such a wonderful Ninjutsu as the Chimera Technique on his own, which means he can be considered to have transcended the category of mediocrity."

It's still a bit of a pity that such a person died like that.

"Hmph, stop pretending, Orochimaru."

Obito glanced at Orochimaru and said in a hoarse voice:

"You should have already read through all of Hiruko's research materials over the years, Hiruko?"

Starting today, this research lab is yours to use.

You will continue the research he was unable to finish.

"Hmph, what a surprise. That brat who used to always follow Uchiha Kuro around has become so arrogant now."

Orochimaru chuckled twice, then shifted his golden snake-like eyes from Hiruko's corpse to Obito, the light in his eyes sending chills down one's spine:

"However, you'd better face this reality: unlike this piece of trash on the ground, I'm not your subordinate."

"You're not the one I have a business relationship with."

Obito didn't refute, but simply replied coldly:

"This... is his intention."

"Hmph, is that so?"

Orochimaru raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes.

He didn't dwell on the matter further, naturally changing the subject, his voice regaining its languid tone:

"Since that person is already prepared to bring me into the open, it means that your experiment is probably nearing its end."

So... when do you plan to make your move?

Orochimaru excitedly licked his lips:

"Go and confirm the... final results of that experiment."

"... Now."

Having said that, Obito took a step forward and brushed past Orochimaru.

A spatial Uzumaki rapidly spread out from the Sharingan in his right eye, gradually engulfing him.

In the cold and empty laboratory, only Orochimaru remained.

Orochimaru gazed with amusement in the direction Obito had disappeared, his eyes lingering there for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, he chuckled softly.

"Hehe, this is getting more and more interesting."

Orochimaru stretched out his long tongue and excitedly licked the two lips that had already curved into a smile.

"The wind is about to start blowing."

"Uchiha Kuro, was it your sudden hurricane that toppled that mountain, or was it that mountain, which had already laid a solid foundation somewhere you couldn't see, that turned around and blocked your hurricane...?"

He murmured to himself, as if speaking to the slumbering beings filling the room, or perhaps relaying a message to the distant, black-haired man who was now standing somewhere unknown:

"Let me take a good look and see if you are truly the wind I've been waiting for."