After seeing off Nagato, who left with a heavy heart and an unfulfilled wish, and Konan, who accompanied him in silence, Naruto stood at the doorway and watched their figures disappear at the end of Konoha's nighttime street.
Their faint footsteps gradually faded, finally giving way to silence.
Naruto gently closed the door and turned to Karin and Hikari inside.
They, too, seemed affected by the heavy emotions in the conversation just now and had fallen quiet.
"Come on." Naruto rolled his slightly stiff shoulders, trying to dispel the lingering heaviness in the air. "Let's get some fresh air on the roof. The moon looks nice tonight."
Karin and Hikari nodded. They had promised Naruto before that they would watch the moon together often.
Rather than taking the stairs, the three leaped lightly a few times and went straight from inside the house to its broad rooftop.
It was another night of the full moon.
The full moon hung like a silver platter in the deep night sky, pouring down its silken radiance without reserve and shrouding all of Konoha in a hazy, gentle veil of silver.
In the distance, Hokage Rock stood sharply outlined in the moonlight, while the nearby houses and trees cast dappled shadows.
A cool night breeze brushed their cheeks, carrying the fresh scent of greenery and easing the weight in their hearts a little.
Karin drew a deep breath of the cool air. A smile returned to her face, and she was just about to say something to Naruto.
"How nice. Just the three of you tonight..."
A faint voice, laden with unmistakable resentment, suddenly drifted from the shadows on the other side of the roof.
All three froze and looked toward it.
In the shadow beneath the eaves, beyond the reach of the moonlight,