The two weeks of mourning ended today.
Kiyoshi slung his ninja tool pouch over his shoulder.
Morning mist hugged the ground in the Clan Grounds.
Mikoto stood beneath the veranda, watching him.
"Go on," she said.
"And don't take another detour up the slope today," Mikoto added.
"We'll see," Kiyoshi said.
Mikoto shook her head and turned back into the kitchen.
The school gates were quieter than usual.
Everyone was there, but they kept their voices down and watched him out of the corners of their eyes.
Around this time in previous years, parents would gather around and ask with a smile, "Coming to school today too, Bro Hao?" Today, they carried their groceries and looked elsewhere.
A few villagers peered out from an alley, then ducked back when they saw him. An old woman selling vegetables murmured to the person beside her, "We blamed him unfairly."
Her voice was soft, but the wind carried it to Kiyoshi's ears.
"What are we still hiding for?" another person replied. "We owe him an apology."
Kiyoshi passed the alley entrance. A child clinging to his mother's leg poked his head out and called, "Bro Hao!" His mother yanked him back.
"Don't go calling him that," she whispered. The child looked bewildered, unable to understand what he had done wrong. Kiyoshi walked straight ahead.
He remembered how, just last month, this child had chased after him, asking to learn the "Uchiha Maniacal Laughter." Now he wasn't even allowed to call him by his nickname. His name had been cleared, and his nickname had been wiped away with it.
The old fishmonger pulled his stall farther back. When he spotted Kiyoshi, his hand stopped in midair. He almost nodded, then drew back.
Kiyoshi noticed the hesitation.
He stood at the alley entrance and looked,