Uchiha Shinichi stood up.
His movements were slow, almost sluggish, like a rusted tin man, every joint voicing a silent protest that set one's teeth on edge.
But in the end, he stood straight.
The wind in the courtyard stopped.
The moon hanging overhead seemed to have had its pause button pressed by an invisible hand. Even the flow of its silvery light froze.
At that moment, the world became an insect trapped in amber.
And he was the only person outside that amber who could still move.
He formed no hand seals, looked at no one, and spared not even an unnecessary glance.
He simply had a thought.
Inside the Hokage Office.
Minato Namikaze had just signed his name on a budget report for upgrades to the sewer system.
He was about to pick up the next document when the scene before him dissolved without warning, like an oil painting soaked in water. It warped, then became pure, incomprehensible darkness.
At the Uchiha Residence.
Tsunade sat blankly on the edge of the bed, staring at the empty courtyard. It felt as though a great hole had opened in her chest, with wind whistling through it.
The next second, the bed beneath her, the walls, the ceiling, and even the moonlight outside the window became meaningless blocks of pixels, peeling away.
At the Underground Research Institute.
Orochimaru stood before a massive cultivation tank containing the "Beacon," which had already turned into ordinary meteoric iron. He extended his tongue and licked the corner of his mouth, his face filled with obsessive fervor.
"The signal's frequency... is increasing exponentially... what a beautiful 'symphony'..."
His words, along with the fervor in his eyes, were dragged into a silent vortex from which not even light could escape.
In the living room.
Kaguya Otsutsuki