Not long ago, while Uchiha Gen was still in Konoha, the appearance of Ryūjin Jakka had led Hatake Sakumo and Uchiha Gen to discuss swordsmanship.
It had been a... night well worth remembering.
Because that night.
...A memory...
The darkness lay gently over the land of Konohagakure like a thin veil soaked in cold water.
The village, bustling and clamorous by day, had fallen utterly silent. Its scattered houses lay submerged in shadows of varying depths, and sparse lights dotted the darkness like stars crushed by the evening breeze, faint and gentle, yet unable to hold up the vast expanse of night.
The Naka River, where Shisui's bones lay buried and where Big Hashirama and Wang Wenwang had forged their friendship skipping stones together, seemed to hold the most enduring sound in this village called Konoha.
The river, flowing ceaselessly for a thousand years, surged slowly onward. Water struck the small pebbles on the riverbed with a low, lingering murmur, neither loud nor turbulent, simply flowing quietly along, witnessing Konoha's founding and gradual decline over the decades.
The evening breeze passed through the thick green reeds along the bank and brushed across the cool river, carrying a faint mist and dispersing the lingering smoke of battle and daily life from the day, leaving only boundless coolness and peace.
The bluestones along the bank had been washed by flowing water year after year, worn smooth and cold, stripped of every sharp edge.
"Old Jar Pickled Cabbage Beef Noodles—now that's authentic flavor! Old Gen, that wasn't very decent of you, hiding something this good from me instead of bringing it out sooner. Mm, delicious. Say, why aren't you eating?"
Holding a bowl of Old Jar Pickled Cabbage Beef Noodles kindly provided by Uchiha Gen, Hatake Sakumo happily slurped his noodles as he