Reactions from All Sides

In the late autumn of Konoha's forty-sixth year, the chill deepened, and even the air seemed frozen with the grim tension of an impending war. On the eve of receiving his orders to follow Orochimaru to the Land of Rivers front, Uchiha Kyohaku received two relatives he had not seen in a long time. Taking advantage of a brief break after returning from a mission, they came to his secluded cottage on the edge of the village.

When the knock sounded, Kyohaku had just finished organizing some of the experimental notes he needed to carry with him. He rose and walked steadily across the small yard before opening the gate.

Outside stood the travel-worn Uchiha Maiyi and Uchiha Shota. Maiyi still wore a chunin flak jacket, though her features now carried a little more of the resolute strength forged by war. Uchiha Shota, meanwhile, looked exhausted. The Military Police Force's duties had become especially demanding during wartime.

"Kyohaku, we just finished our mission and happened to be passing by, so we came to see you..." Maiyi's words abruptly stopped. Her beautiful eyes widened as she stared in disbelief at Kyohaku's right foot, then suddenly raised her gaze to his face. "You... your foot...?!"

She could clearly see that Kyohaku stood there with his weight balanced firmly on both legs, without relying on that familiar crutch! And he seemed... a little taller. Though he was still slender, he no longer gave off the impression of frailty, but rather of a restrained, lean strength.

Uchiha Shota was equally stunned, his stern face filled with shock. His sharp gaze swept over Kyohaku from head to toe before finally settling on those steadily planted legs, his pupils narrowing slightly.

A perfectly measured smile appeared on Kyohaku's face, carrying a hint of shyness and joy—an expression he had carefully practiced. "Sister Maiyi, Uncle. You're here. Come in and talk."

He stepped aside, his movements smooth and natural.

Once inside, Maiyi's excitement remained difficult to contain. She practically circled Kyohaku once, her voice brimming with surprise. "Oh my god! Kyohaku! Your foot is really healed?! When did this happen? How did it heal? That's wonderful! This is... this is truly wonderful!" She could not help reaching out to lightly pat his arm, and even a glimmer of relieved tears appeared in her eyes. She was genuinely happy for this cousin who had suffered so much misfortune.

Uchiha Shota was much more composed, but his tightly furrowed brows relaxed as well. He let out a long breath and said with emotion, "This is truly unexpected... I never thought there would come a day when your injury could be healed. This is wonderful. Now your parents can rest in peace." His gaze at Kyohaku was complicated, filled with concern, relief, and a trace of released burden. As a ninja, he knew all too well what disability meant. Kyohaku's recovery was undoubtedly an immense blessing.

However, after the initial surprise passed, Uchiha Shota's powers of observation as a veteran jonin and squad captain of the Military Police Force began to show. He noticed Kyohaku's unusually bloodless pale skin. It was not sickly, yet it gave off a cold sense of detachment. He also keenly sensed the faint chakra fluctuations surrounding Kyohaku—condensed yet unscattered, calm yet immense, something that no genin or even chunin should possess.

More importantly, he knew who Kyohaku had been close to these past few years—Orochimaru. One of the Sannin, a man with a strange temperament and an obsession with forbidden techniques.

His joy was gradually replaced by a trace of doubt and concern. After pondering for a moment, Shota slowly spoke, his tone becoming cautious. "Kyohaku, how exactly was your injury... healed? As far as I know, even Lady Tsunade back then..." He did not finish, but his meaning was clear. An old injury that even the medical master had been powerless to treat had suddenly healed. That was anything but ordinary.

Kyohaku had long prepared an explanation. He answered naturally, "It was thanks to Teacher Orochimaru. One of his new cellular activation techniques, combined with the medical ninjutsu training I've persisted with over the past few years, stimulated the atrophied meridians to regrow. The process was very slow, and it was only recently that it fully stabilized." He credited most of it to Orochimaru, which was both consistent with the facts—on the surface—and sufficient to explain this miraculous recovery.

"Lord Orochimaru..." Uchiha Shota murmured. The doubt in his eyes did not fully fade. He knew very well that Orochimaru's methods often came with risks and costs beyond ordinary people's imagination. Looking at Kyohaku's abnormal pallor, he could not help connecting this change to that cold-blooded man. Was this recovery truly a blessing, or a curse? Unease stirred in his heart, but faced with Kyohaku's obvious "health," he could say nothing more. He could only remind him in a low voice, "Lord Orochimaru... possesses extraordinary methods. It is fortunate that you received his treatment, but... you must be more careful in all things. Protect yourself."

"I understand, Uncle. Thank you for your concern." Kyohaku answered respectfully, his attitude flawless.

Maiyi did not seem to have given it much thought. Still immersed in the joy of her cousin's recovery, she eagerly began asking Kyohaku about his plans for the future and whether he had considered returning to a regular ninja squad.

Kyohaku did not reveal that he was about to head to the front lines. He merely vaguely said that he would continue studying medical ninjutsu and conducting research under Teacher Orochimaru.

After the brief visit ended and he saw his cousin and uncle off, Kyohaku closed the door. The "joy" and "shyness" on his face instantly faded, returning to his usual calm.

He knew his uncle was surely suspicious, but it did not matter. As long as everything appeared reasonable on the surface, no one would investigate further. As for Danzo and the Third Hokage...

Just as he had expected, whether in Root's shadowy base or the Hokage's office, no one paid any attention to the recovery of a "minor figure" like Uchiha Kyohaku.

In Danzo's eyes, he was still an "insignificant crippled Uchiha trash." Even if he had recovered, at most he would be an ordinary medical ninja, with no value worth recruiting. Danzo could not even be bothered to update the intelligence on him.

For the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the relentless demands of wartime administration and weighty strategic decisions left him with no time to spare for anything else. A brief report on "Uchiha Kyohaku's recovery" might once have rested in a corner of his mountain of documents, perhaps prompting a relieved sigh of "a blessing amid misfortune," before being buried beneath more urgent reports of frontline casualties, supply deployment, and diplomatic maneuvering.

No one truly saw the power hidden beneath his pale skin. No one knew that he was about to willingly step into that bloody battlefield of carnage.

That was exactly what Kyohaku wanted.

Amid the deliberate and unintentional neglect of all sides, he completed his final preparations before the war.

The pale youth stood quietly by the window, gazing at the gloomy sky outside. His eyes seemed to pierce through the distance, falling upon the Land of Rain, which would soon be stained red with blood and fire.

The storm was coming. And he was ready.