"Who are you?"
The words were brief, yet the damage was devastating. Dou involuntarily stopped his Mystical Palm Technique and ran frantically toward the distant stream.
"Why... why... why would the Director forget me?"
The babbling brook reflected Yakushi Kabuto's pale face, making his otherwise ordinary features appear strangely distorted.
What does all my perseverance mean? What does the family I miss mean?
Even the Director has forgotten me, so who in this world will remember me?
Who am I...?
He is Dou, that's the name others gave him.
Initially, he was a war orphan adopted by an Orphanage within the Konoha.
Then, he was a ninja of Konoha, a spy for Root infiltrating various Ninja Village, and someone who was willing to sacrifice himself for the Director and his brothers and sisters.
After that, he was Sunagakure, Kirigakure Ninja, Kumogakure...
All along, resisting external pressure and insisting on my own existence, it seems that at this moment, I am on the verge of collapse, simply because of that one question: Who are you?
He once thought that his only place of refuge was within the boundaries of Konoha, in that simple and cramped Orphanage.
Now, having lost his home, Dou is shrouded in unprecedented loneliness.
"Who I am?"
Near the body of Yakushi Nonō, two members of the Anbu quietly appeared. Upon discovering that there was only one corpse in the area, their voices behind their masks were unusually cold.
"There was only the wandering priestess. I didn't expect the loser to be Kabuto, who wasn't the one I predicted. Shall we make our move now?"
" Lord Danzo instructed that we must confirm that the two are completely dead. We are near Iwagakure, and we must not let them leave alive."
The sound was as faint as a mosquito's buzz. Just as the two were about to clean up the 'corpse' and take immediate action, a faint light suddenly flashed on Nonō's right shoulder.
"Spacetime marking, bad! Revert!"
Ignoring the risk of exposure, one of them shouted loudly, only to find that the pale blue, blood vessel-like fluctuations had completely imprisoned the two of them.
"Oh? Lord Danzo instructed... It seems you will also become one of the witnesses to cleanse the stain of darkness. Now, I trouble you to report to Danzo that the mission is complete. Thank you."
The intricate and strange patterns subtly rewrote the memories in the minds of the two.
Only after they blankly accepted the scroll and confirmed that there were no mistakes with the two corpses inside did they rush towards Konoha.
With her gaze fixed on Yakushi Nonō, whose pulse was weak and who seemed to have one foot in the Yomi, Huayue slowly extended her right hand and placed it over her heart.
The tranquil Natural Energy seemed to find its home at this moment, continuously replenishing the lost blood and life energy.
Before the other half of its foot had completely entered the Pure Land, an unprecedentedly powerful life force caused the soul to return to its own body.
"That was so dangerous! We almost had to use this body containing our genetic material to create a new Gigai. How does it feel to return to the human world, Sister Nonō?"
With a blank expression, Nonō opened her eyes. Through the broken Toad Glasses, she saw that familiar outfit and tone of voice, and her expression relaxed.
" Lord Huayue, it's been so many years! I'm so glad you still remember me... Just now... Just now a strange child called me Director, who was he?"
"Alright, rest assured. Once we get back, the truth will come out."
With a gentle and elegant smile, accompanied by the soothing fragrance of herbs, Nonō fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, by the stream, Kabuto, numb and listless, was cleaning the surgical tools in his ninja tool bag one by one.
Having lost everything, he no longer knew where he could find refuge in this Ninja World.
"Where are you going, Dou?"
The voice that had often echoed in his ears since childhood rang out, and a hint of joy flashed in Dou's eyes. Someone still remembered me, someone still remembered my existence!
Turning around abruptly, Kabuto's expression changed. Beside him, dressed in familiar Black Cloak, supporting a figure, was none other than Yakushi Nonō.
" Huayue... Brother, why, why can you recognize me, while the Director...?"
"This story might be a bit long. Let's leave here first and go to my secret hideout nearby. We'll talk about it later."
The next second, the two figures disappeared around Iwagakure. In no time, the Iwagakure pursuit force, which had been conducting thorough searches, swept through the air and flew in all directions.
Dozens of kilometers to the west of Iwagakure, Huayue placed Nonō on the bed and spoke in a low voice, making sure both of them could hear.
"You probably haven't heard of a term, but it's very relevant to the current situation: the Information Cocoon."
A fierce wind blew through the simple wooden house. Huayue pondered for a moment before continuing.
"Without other channels to receive information, relying solely on the provision and guidance of others, the original impression of things in memory is quietly changed."
Kabuto, who was able to carry out espionage work in various ninja villages, was no ordinary fool. Once he was enlightened, he realized how he had disappeared from the Director's world.
"So, in other words, Director Danzo my image with someone else's photo, right?"
Her eyes reddened; she had tricked herself into working for him, into having someone else replace her bond with the Director, and even into having him kill the Director with his own hands...
Danzo, Danzo, Danzo!
"I... will absolutely not let go of the one who Shimura Danzō!"
"By the way, Director, how is Director? Brother Huayue, you definitely have a way to save Director, right!"
On the old bed, Nonō frowned slightly and opened her heavy eyelids.
"Dou... I'm fine. I just need a good night's sleep. After that, we'll go back to the Orphanage together. Aqi and the others miss you a lot..."
With a thud, Dou collapsed to the ground and breathed a sigh of relief. An unprecedented weariness had accumulated in his heart, and only now did he finally relax.
"Yes, let's go home, Director..."
Seeing this, Huayue smiled and murmured softly to Dou, who was now clear-headed and had rediscovered the meaning of life.
"Kabuto, come help me, I'll deal with Danzo for you..."
Dou, sitting on the ground, nodded slightly, his eyes filled with a chilling and venomous look that could not be extinguished even by the most powerful forces.
He schemed against himself and the Director, almost causing him to lose his last path home and all his ties. Even if Brother Huayue doesn't say anything, he will make public everything he has done for Konoha over the years.
"Can I trust you to do everything in my power to completely eliminate Danzo and make him experience the pain of losing everything, Huayue- nii?"
"Who else but me could do all this?"
The two exchanged a smile. As Kabuto revealed all the information he had passed on to Konoha over the years, Huayue's lips curled into a smirk, his eyes full of mockery.