Konoha Village

Steady rain pattered down, running off the cloak. Wearing the cloak he'd found, Tsuki walked through the rain.

It had been half a day since Tsuki arrived. All around him, the fighting seemed to have only just ended. People in shinobi armor lay motionless on the ground.

"Hey, little guy. Are you lost?"

Tsuki looked up as raindrops fell on his face. A man's voice came from behind him.

He turned around. As the man came into view, Tsuki recognized him at once.

Long white hair, two streaks of paint across his cheeks—there was no doubt about it. The man before him was Jiraiya, one of the Sannin.

Jiraiya walked over, but Tsuki said nothing.

"Why the long face? The war's over."

Jiraiya came closer and crouched in front of Tsuki, bringing his gaze level with the boy's.

Tsuki felt a hand on his head. He knew Jiraiya was patting him.

"Mission triggered: Enter Konoha with Jiraiya's help. Reward: one draw."

The system's electronic voice sounded in his mind. Another mission had been triggered.

Tsuki looked at Jiraiya. For now, he couldn't think of how to get him to take him back to Konoha.

"Little guy, are you from Konoha?"

Jiraiya suddenly asked. Tsuki was taken aback. That Genin he'd fought earlier had also said he was from Konoha, but Tsuki still had no idea what was going on.

Jiraiya reached toward Tsuki's foot, then held up a Konoha Forehead Protector in front of him.

"When did that get there?"

Tsuki was stunned. He hadn't noticed at all that a Konoha Forehead Protector had been tied to his foot.

After waking up, he'd found himself in this world. He knew absolutely nothing else.

"Isn't it yours? I was wondering when Konoha had produced another genius. No wonder I didn't recognize you."

Jiraiya stood up.

"My name's Jiraiya. I'm a shinobi from Konoha. So?"

"Want to come back to Konoha with me?"

Jiraiya smiled. He'd done this sort of thing more than once. Whenever he came across orphans left behind by the war, he always tried to help them.

Tsuki was stunned for a moment. He hadn't expected the mission to be so easy to complete.

"Is that okay?"

"Of course. Konoha welcomes you."

The rain kept falling as two figures, one big and one small, walked away side by side.

Tsuki followed Jiraiya until they soon reached a camp. By then, the rain had stopped.

"I'm back."

Jiraiya lifted the flap and strode into the tent. Tsuki quietly followed behind him.

"Jiraiya, you're wandering off again."

A girl's voice came from inside. Tsuki looked in.

There were quite a few familiar faces. Orochimaru sat quietly, and Tsunade was still a young woman. All three young Sannin were there.

At this point in time, Salamander Hanzo had only just named them the Sannin.

There was also a white-haired man nearby who looked a lot like Kakashi, though slightly more mature.

This was Sakumo Hatake, known as Konoha's White Fang and the biological father of Kakashi Hatake, the Copy Ninja.

"Sorry, sorry. I was bored, so I went for a walk."

Jiraiya laughed it off, leaving the others helpless.

"Who's that child?"

Tsunade looked at Tsuki. She'd noticed him as soon as they came in.

"I just ran into him. He seems to be from Konoha. When I found him, he had a Konoha Forehead Protector tied to his foot."

Tsunade wasn't the only one looking over. Everyone else turned their eyes toward him too. Tsuki felt a little nervous. All four people in front of him were big shots, each more formidable than the last.

"Is that so?"

Tsunade's voice softened. She said no more and sat back down.

"All right. Our mission now is to withdraw. The war's over, so it's time to head back to Konoha."

Sakumo Hatake glanced at Tsunade, then spoke.

"Finally, it's over. I'm exhausted in both body and mind."

Orochimaru's languid voice chimed in from the side.

"Anyway, we've almost finished packing. Gather your companions. It's time to return to Konoha."

After Sakumo Hatake spoke, no one in the camp seemed particularly happy. If anything, the mood turned heavy. Tsunade looked especially downcast.

Jiraiya said nothing. He quietly watched everything, sighed, then turned and walked outside.

Tsuki followed him out.

"Come to think of it, I still don't know your name."

Jiraiya stopped in front of the camp.

"Tsuki. Himeshima Tsuki."

"That's a good name."

Jiraiya leaned against a tree.

"Sorry, but I can't go back to Konoha with you after all. You saw that beautiful big sister just now, right? Let her take you back instead."

Jiraiya smiled.

"Why?"

Tsuki asked, but then he suddenly remembered something.

When the Second Shinobi World War ended, Jiraiya hadn't returned to Konoha. Instead, he'd stayed in Amegakure for three years. During that time, he lived with three children, teaching them ninjutsu so they could live in peace in the war-torn village.

Those three would later become the senior members of Akatsuki—Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko.

"Well, men always have a few things keeping them busy. You'll understand when you're older."

Jiraiya chuckled softly, then hurried back into the camp.

"Tsunade, sorry to trouble you, but could you take this little guy back to Konoha later?"

As Jiraiya's voice rang out, another bout of chaos broke out in the camp.

Watching from outside, Tsuki's lips curved into a slight smile.

The gloom that had filled the camp eased after Jiraiya's little stunt. Even Tsunade had been swept up in it.

Just as Jiraiya had said, he left Tsuki with a goodbye, sporting a head full of bumps, then slipped away. Tsunade reluctantly took Tsuki with her as she and the Konoha forces withdrew from Amegakure.

Only then was the Second Shinobi World War truly over. But Amegakure, the battlefield, was no longer what it had once been.

The Konoha forces withdrew together. Tsunade, still reluctant, led Tsuki at the very front of the group.

Konoha.

Tsuki walked along, thinking. Just a day ago, he'd been nothing more than a fairly dedicated otaku who liked working out. Now he was standing on the land of the fictional world he'd loved most.

As he thought about it, Tsuki's lips lifted. He was excited and happy.

Tsunade glanced at Tsuki from the corner of her eye a few times, taking in his expression.

Her gaze grew distant. For a moment, she seemed to see another figure before her.

"Lady Tsunade,"

"What is it?"

Tsunade came back to herself and looked at Tsuki beside her.

"Thank you for taking me back to Konoha."

"What are you thanking me for? Thank Jiraiya, if anyone. He just loves sticking his nose into things."

Tsunade's voice sounded cool, but if one listened closely, there was a trace of warmth hidden beneath it.

Tsuki smiled and added, "Even so, I still think I should thank you."

Tsunade glanced at Tsuki twice, then turned her head away.

"Suit yourself."

Their conversation ended there. Tsunade paid him no more attention, and Tsuki didn't say anything else.

They walked side by side, one big and one small, at the head of the group.

Tsunade let out a quiet breath. No one noticed.

The faint smell of blood drifting from behind made her nauseous. She'd chosen to walk at the front precisely because she didn't want to see the blood she hated.

Even though it belonged to the comrades who had fought alongside her on this battlefield.

Jiraiya had gone and picked up another stray child, then dumped him straight on her. Tsunade had been furious at first, but the boy reminded her so much of her younger brother, Nawaki Senju.

Not because of his appearance, but because of the air he gave off. Especially when he smiled—it made Tsunade think of Nawaki as a child.

She stole another glance at Tsuki. He walked quietly, looking ahead, his eyes seeming to shine.

So much like him. Really, so much like him!

A wave of grief rose in Tsunade's chest. Nawaki had been like that too, with a light always shining in his eyes. He wasn't warm like sunlight. He was more like a great tree, gently embracing everything around him.

Tsunade looked away, easing the sorrow in her heart, and continued with the withdrawing forces.

They spent the next few days on the journey back. Amegakure wasn't very far from Konoha, but traveling as a group still took quite a while.

Tsuki stayed with Tsunade throughout those days. They didn't talk much, and the atmosphere remained the same. The other shinobi, however, gradually emerged from the shadow of their comrades' deaths now that the war was over. The group no longer seemed so weighed down.

After several days of walking, the Konoha Tsuki had been looking forward to finally came into view.

As they walked along a forest path, everyone's spirits lifted. The village gates gradually appeared, and the outline of the village slowly emerged before them.

It was like seeing an island appear on the horizon during a sea voyage. To Tsuki, it was like seeing a new continent. Konoha was his new world.

"Mission: Enter Konoha with Jiraiya's help: Complete. Reward: one draw."

The moment Tsuki took his first step through the gate, the voice sounded in his mind.