A new year had arrived.
Konoha's square was decked out in festive lights, and the stage was more lavish than ever.
The Girl Group was busy backstage.
In a corner backstage, the Third was helping the Girl Group move a prop box. Chinatsu spotted him and took it from him, leaving the old man smiling beside her, unsure what to do with his hands. In the end, he tucked them into his sleeves and watched the bustle beneath the stage lights.
The Girl Group took the stage.
The opening notes of Blue Bird rang through Konoha once again. Chinatsu's voice filled the night sky, and the entire square sang along.
Coming-of-age ceremonies and newborn naming ceremonies were interspersed throughout the show. Several young people who had just turned eighteen received certificates from Tsunade, putting on mature expressions as the last traces of youthful awkwardness faded from their faces.
Several parents stood at center stage with newborns in their arms. The camera flashes made the babies bawl, but their parents couldn't stop grinning.
Everyone was smiling.
Everyone was enjoying the night.
Everyone had forgotten, or deliberately avoided thinking about, the person beneath the large tree at the very edge of the square.
Obito sat on a tree root, his hands and feet bound by sealing formulas. Two Anbu stood behind him, expressionless.
The moonlight made his scar stand out with particular clarity.
He watched the lights in the distance.
The stage lights broke into scattered halos in his eyes.
He didn't dare blink, afraid those lights would go out the moment he did.
When Kakashi and Rin walked onto the stage, Obito's body gave a sudden shudder.
Kakashi wore Konoha's standard jonin uniform, his forehead protector tied neatly across his forehead. He wasn't wearing a mask.
A few days earlier, Genya