Freedom isn't being let go-it's choosing for yourself
Hidden Leaf, 6:03 PM.
The Uzumaki Estate, rooftop.
The setting sun was stuck on the fourth face of Hokage Rock, splitting the entire mountain in half gold and half darkness.
A breeze blew in from the south, carrying the smell of barbecue skewers that had just been sold at the street stalls below.
Konan stood on the edge of the rooftop.
I changed from barefoot to sandals—the same pair that were two sizes too big.
Her short blue hair was blown by the wind and clung to her neck, but she didn't bother to smooth it.
The door behind me opened.
It wasn't a push; someone used their knee to push him away—both his hands were in his pockets, so he couldn't free them.
Naruto walked up to her, keeping an arm's length distance.
He took something out of his pocket and placed it on the low wall of the rooftop.
Paper pass.
Hokage direct print.
Red.
Permit to leave the village.
Indefinitely.
No direction restriction.
Konan's gaze fell on the talisman.
A corner of the paper was lifted by the wind.
"It was signed by Tsunade."
Naruto leaned against the low wall, his back against the rough brick surface.
"You can leave now. The one on duty at the North Gate is a young man from the Sarutobi Clan. He'll let you through as soon as he sees the talisman and won't say a word."
Konan didn't move.
The wind tossed the pass over again.
It was almost blown away.
She reached out and pressed it down, but didn't pick it up.
Aren't you afraid?
What are you afraid of?
"You're afraid that if I return to Hidden Rain, you'll reveal all your secrets to Nagato."
Her voice was flat.
This isn't a test—it's a genuine question.
"Your Yang Release, your Sage Body recovery period, and that Byakugan that you can't use for thirty days."
Naruto turned his head to look at her.
There was no tension in his azure eyes.
They didn't even think about it.
This question wasn't even worth a second in his mind.
"Then go back and tell them."
Konan's eyelashes trembled.
"Report all my cards to Nagato —no, to those two rats who control Nagato."
Naruto's tone was so casual it was almost like he was talking about the weather.
"Once they've thoroughly investigated it, they can come to me with a solution."
He paused for a moment.
His mouth twisted slightly.
"Then I showed them—even knowing all my cards was useless."
Konan stared at his profile.
The setting sun burned the edges of his golden, tousled hair into a ring of orange-red.
The jawline is very taut, the kind of taut that's loose.
It wasn't feigned composure—deep down, I didn't see this as a threat.
She suddenly remembered someone.
Yahiko.
Many years ago, Yahiko had the same expression when he stood in the rain.
He said at the time, "Even if the whole world thinks peace is impossible—so what?"
The same unwavering certainty.
But Yahiko died.
He died because of his own naive conviction.
"If I go back," Konan's voice was low, almost drowned out by the wind, "Nagato will order me to kill you."
Naruto then turned his head.
Directly facing her.
Azure blue against amber.
"Then come on over."
Three words.
Without hesitation.
There were no confident assumptions like "you can't do it."
"You can decide which side you're on then."
Konan gripped the edge of the pass tightly with her fingers.
She crumpled the paper in her hands.
For the past thirty years.
Yahiko made the decision for her. "You are my companion."
Nagato made the decision for her: You are God's left wing.
Danzo wanted to decide for her—you are the bargaining chip.
Tsunade made the decision for her—you are the witness protector.
No one has ever said, "You choose for yourself."
I've made my choice; I'll bear the consequences.
She let go.
The pass was lifted by the wind and floated half an inch high.
Konan raised her hand and pressed it down.
Pick it up.
Naruto's eyes followed her movements.
Her expression remained unchanged—neither nervous that she would leave, nor smug that she would stay.
Konan folded the pass.
Fold in half.
Fold it again.
After folding four times, she turned around.
Naruto's pupils twitched.
She didn't go towards the door to the rooftop.
She handed the folded pass to Naruto.
"I stayed."
Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"But not to seek refuge with you."
The bewildered mist that had dissipated in Konan's amber eyes three days ago was gone.
What took its place was hard to define—not trust, not worship, not dependence.
He acted more like a referee, stepping onto the field.
Why is that?
Konan looked at him.
The wind stopped for a moment.
I can't hear what the children are shouting down the street.
"Just to see it with my own eyes."
She spoke each word clearly.
"Is the peace you speak of just another lie?"
There was a three-second silence.
Naruto smiled.
This is not sarcasm.
It's not about being proud.
It's that kind of smile—a smile tinged with appreciation—when someone finally says what he wants to hear.
He pushed himself up from the low wall, took the folded pass, and casually stuffed it back into his pocket.
"Fine. Then keep your eyes wide open and watch."
He walked towards the entrance to the rooftop.
He took two steps and then stopped.
He didn't look back.
"I'll show you the first show in three days."
The sound was carried away by the evening breeze, scattering in the golden-red sky above Hokage Rock.
Konan stood on the rooftop.
Her toes curled slightly inside the sandals.
She looked down at her empty palm.
The spot where I held the pass still bears the faint marks left by the edge of the paper.
Three days.
She looked up and headed northeast.
The sky in that direction was darker than elsewhere.
It looked like something was accumulating on the clouds.
The direction of the Hidden Rain.
Uzumaki Estate.
First floor.
Naruto came down from the rooftop, where Haku was already waiting at the end of the corridor.
Her long black hair was loosely tied back with a rope knot, and her maid outfit had been changed—it was light gray, more plain, and the cuffs were tighter for easier movement.
Her gaze swept across Naruto's face, then glanced towards the rooftop.
"She stayed?"
"Um."
Bai didn't ask any more questions.
He turned and went into the kitchen.
Something was simmering in the pot, carrying the salty aroma of miso.
Naruto leaned against the corridor wall and took the travel pass out of his pocket.
Expand.
I looked at it for two seconds.
On the paper, in addition to the red seal of the Hokage, there was also an extremely thin blue line.
Chakra Threads.
This was left when Konan folded it.
It is not a tracking technique.
It's not a signal flare.
It is the outline of a paper crane's crease.
She folded half a paper crane out of the travel permit, then unfolded it and handed it back.
Naruto's thumb traced the crease.
"... interesting."
He put the pass back into his pocket.
I stepped towards the kitchen.
Bai came out carrying two bowls of miso soup.
The apron on her hands was still on.
"Naruto."
Her voice was so soft, as if she didn't want to disturb something.
"We have a guest."
Naruto paused.
"Who?"
There was a knock on the front door from the outside.
It's not the rhythm of the Anbu.
It's not like Tsunade sent people.
It was a kind of three-hit combo that Naruto was very familiar with—lazy, nonchalant.
He walked over and Opening Gate.
Kakashi stood at the doorway.
Not wearing Forehead Protector.
Her silver hair was askew to one side.
The only eye that was visible on his face was unusually devoid of a smile.
He was holding a sealed scroll.
It was stamped with the Raikage's golden lightning emblem.
"Just delivered to the Hokage Tower."
Kakashi's voice was half a tone deeper than usual.
"The official letter from Kumogakure."
Naruto's gaze fell on the lightning emblem.
Gold.
Arrogant.
It's the same color as his hair.
(Amegakure. Tower Control Room)
Deva Path Pain's six bodies have already left the tower.
In the pouring rain, Six Paths figures embarked on the road to the Land of Fire.
Nagato's thin body was trapped in the life support device, like a skeleton still breathing.
He had his eyes closed.
His lips moved silently.
"Konan... you chose that side."
Third time.
The metal panel of the control panel was cracked all the way to the bottom.