"You shall learn who stands behind this in time. As for how to face it..." Byakuya's figure had become almost transparent, but his voice still rang clear. "Believe in what you believe, protect what you hold dear, and walk the path you have chosen. As for Sasuke Uchiha..."
His voice seemed to pause, carrying a hint of something inscrutable.
"His path has already diverged. Whether it brings fortune or calamity depends upon his heart."
As his words faded, his figure vanished completely, as though he had never appeared. Only the two silver cherry blossom talismans floating in the air and the healed wound on Naruto's calf proved that it had not been an illusion.
Silence returned to the forest, but the atmosphere had changed entirely.
Naruto clenched his fists, tucked one Mind-Cleansing Talisman close to his body, and handed the other to Sakura. He raised his head toward Konoha, fierce flames burning in his eyes.
"The destruction of Konoha... I don't care who they are. If they want to destroy our village, they'll have to get through me!"
"Right!" Sakura nodded firmly and carefully put away her talisman as well. The fear in her eyes receded a little, replaced by a resolve to face their common enemy.
"Come on, Sakura! We have to get this news back right away! And we need to find the others and stop that mastermind's plot!"
Without further hesitation, the two chose a direction and raced toward the outskirts of the Forest of Death-and toward Konoha.
They failed to notice what lay in the shadows of the canopy higher above.
A wisp of black matter, even finer than before and almost indistinguishable from the darkness, slowly withdrew deep into a crack in the tree trunk like a startled viper, then vanished.
Konoha, Hokage Building,