I woke up in my mindscape, my body too tired or too damaged to house my consciousness at the moment. I wandered around for a while before finally sitting down on the shore of my chakra lake, where I observed the streams of spiritual and physical energy mixing together.
It didn't seem like a long time had passed, but since my physical body was unconscious, I wondered how long I had been out.
The crystals appeared ever-present in my mindscape, at least around the chakra lake, while some animals roamed freely, seemingly untouched. Among them was a small, deep orange fox with crimson eyes that approached me and lay down right next to me on the shore.
"Looks like I'll have to talk to Kurama about privacy..." I mumbled, glancing at the little fox, which smirked at me. Little devil.
"At least I have some company," I thought, gently scratching the fox behind its ears.
It felt like only a few hours had passed since I woke up, yet I sensed a presence that definitely shouldn't be here.
Someone had recently entered my mindscape. I didn't need to search for long. As I extended my senses as far as possible, I realized the intruder was quite close to me, at the edge of the clearing where the chakra lake lay.
Looking in the direction my senses guided me, I spotted a familiar, tall blonde man.
"Uncle Inoichi? How did you get in here?" I asked, confused. Did the Yamanaka clan have a jutsu that allowed them to invade other people's mindscapes?
He looked just as surprised to see me as I was to see him.
"I'm just checking if your mind is intact. I didn't expect you to have a fully formed mindscape; those are rather rare, even among seasoned ninja," he explained, looking around the forest clearing with curiosity.
I calmed down a little at the sight of a friendly face instead of an enemy.
"I see. How long has it been since the fight? Is Itachi okay?" I asked in rapid succession, still unaware of what had happened after we fell asleep.
"It's been almost two weeks, Ryuu-kun, and Itachi is fine; he woke up a few days ago," he reassured me. I breathed a sigh of relief.
Focusing my energy, I attempted to exit the mindscape and return to the outside world, but something was stopping me.
"I should be able to go out shortly, Uncle Inoichi. It seems like my body isn't fully healed yet," I said, feeling sad about having to wait here for some time.
At least I know you're okay. Your injuries were really bad," he said, a hint of relief in his voice.
"I'll be fine. See you on the outside," I replied, hoping I would be able to leave soon.
To my surprise, it didn't take long, at least from my perspective, and my consciousness returned.
I opened my eyes, squinting against the bright light that made it uncomfortable. I found myself lying in bed, staring at a white ceiling.
"Not the nap I wanted, but one I desperately needed," I mumbled under my breath as I scanned the room.
It was small, with white walls and a ceiling. Four beds lined the walls, two of which were empty. Itachi lay in the only other occupied bed, reading a book.
"Looks like we're both alive and well," I said, announcing my awakening.
He looked up from his book, relief evident in his eyes.
"You took your time; I was afraid you'd miss the end of the war," he said, his voice light, as if a heavy burden had recently been lifted.
"End of the war? Did we really win already?" I asked, unsure if I had heard him correctly.
"Capturing a Jinchuuriki makes peace talks rather one-sided, Ryuu," he confirmed, confirming that the war was indeed over, or at least close to it.
"Wait, so it's official? Kumo really surrendered?" I inquired again, hoping it was true. It would make a lot of things much easier.
"Yup... we got confirmation only yesterday, but the war should officially end within a week," Itachi confirmed.
A rush of relief and joy flooded through me; it was truly over.
Just a few hours back in the world of the living, the small hospital room began to feel crowded. Apparently, the village leadership was more curious about me than ever.
Hiruzen, his advisors, and even Jiraiya were in the room, debriefing me about the fight with Yugito, while Itachi returned to his book.
Of course, I told them what happened; there was no reason not to. They likely already had a report from Itachi, possibly even a memory of the fight extracted by Inoichi. Thankfully, they left shortly after my explanation, except for Jiraiya, who looked at me as if he recognized me from somewhere.
"Are you alright, Jiraiya-sama?" I asked, genuinely confused. I looked nothing like Minato, and yet Jiraiya looked at me as if he had seen me before.
"It's nothing, kid. You just didn't look good when I brought you in," he replied, trying to sound carefree.
"I'm aware... I remember my right arm being, let's say... injured," I said, glancing at my right arm.
It was completely healed; no bone fragments were sticking out, and my fingers functioned as if they had never been broken. The only difference was the large number of scars of various sizes running from the tips of my fingers all the way up to my upper arm, some of them even reached my shoulder.
"That's an understatement of the century. Your right arm was almost completely shredded, your left wrist and nearly all of your fingers were broken, you had a massive concussion, and crystal shards were stuck in your back and torso," he rattled off, listing of every injury he remembered.
"Honestly, had Tsunade not been here, you would have lost your right arm," he finished, sounding like a teacher chastising a student.
"Tsunade?" I thought. She wasn't supposed to be anywhere near Konoha for another five years or so.
"I see. Thank her for me when you next see her, Jiraiya-sama," I said slowly, still processing what he had just said.
"I take it that she left already, right?" I said, thankful for her help.
"She did but don't sweat it, kid," he said, smiling widely.
"It's thanks to the two of you that the war is over. Saving your arm is the least we could do," he concluded, his gaze still distant but his cheerful demeanor more convincing.
"You still look like you've seen a ghost, Jiraiya-sama," I remarked, pointing out his obvious state of mind.
He sighed, slightly surprised that I had noticed.
"Looking at you just brings back memories of my last student. Don't mind it too much," he said, but he clearly needed to say more. "He was strong and talented, and just like you, many called him a genius. Now that I've actually talked to you, it's even worse…" he trailed off.
Was I really that similar to Minato in his eyes?
"Just like you, he was thrown into the meat grinder at a young age, but it only made him stronger. He was always polite and had a warm personality," he continued listing our apparent similarities.
I still didn't see it, but clearly Jiraiya did, and more people might start to see it too.
Being compared to Minato didn't sit right with me. Unlike him, I wouldn't be a good Hokage; I would never be able to choose between family and duty.
I looked towards Jiraiya, who quickly collected his thoughts.
"You remind me of him enough that I'm afraid you, too, might die young. Don't rush towards death anymore, kid," he finished, his mask of happiness completely gone.
"If it eases your mind, I'm also rather sarcastic little brat." I said, trying to ease the mood before speaking again.
"I don't plan on ever becoming Hokage, Jiraiya-sama. It just isn't my style. I can only promise to do my best," I asserted, voicing my desire not to lead the village.
Hopefully, he would start seeing the differences between me and Minato soon. It would be rather troublesome if he didn't.
He just shook his head but now had a slight smile on his face.
"That goes for both of you youngsters. Let the old men fight next time instead of risking it all," he said as he walked toward the open window.
He looked at us one last time before he jumped out and disappeared from our view.
"Well, that happened," I mumbled under my breath as Itachi let out a small laugh.
"Anyway, what happened after I got blasted? How did the fight go when I was out?" I asked Itachi, curious about his experience with Yugito during their one-on-one battle.
He looked away from his book and shrugged.
"I didn't stand a chance... I was just stalling and hoping for a rescue," he said, sounding disappointed in himself.
"I don't think I would have lasted more than another minute. Every time she got close to me, my armor was seared to my flesh, and nothing I threw at her kept her down for long." His expression was still downcast, but determination was visible on his face.
"Those ten minutes when you were unconscious were the hardest of my life..." he paused for a moment.
"We still have a long way to go." He said, his eyes narrow and voice steady.
"That we do..." I agreed immediately. I couldn't wait to get out of there.
There was training to be done. After all, I had finally figured out how to channel both chakra and haki at the same time.
Fortunately for both Itachi and me, we were released soon, and by the next morning, I was back home with my right arm wrapped in bandages to avoid raising concerns from my parents.
I still shouldn't overexert myself, but some light training sessions should be fine.
"Maybe I can try teaching Sakura again..." I murmured as I planned my next week.
The day I returned, my parents decided to throw a 'welcome back' party, which was fun, albeit unnecessary, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Fortunately, they didn't question the bandages on my arm. Even better, Inoichi hadn't told them anything about my exploits; instead, he told them I was mostly doing supply runs and hadn't seen the frontlines at all.
Technically, that was true, which is the best kind of true. I did send supplies to our troops, and I truly hadn't seen the frontline even once.
Not everything went according to plan, though. Sakura, still unserious about ninja training, refused to train with me, saying she didn't want to get too dirty.
"Is she even a normal kid?" I questioned silently, recalling my first childhood when everyone, regardless of gender, would run around, climb trees, and generally goof off.
Sakura and Ino were different; they preferred to sit around and talk until their voices gave out. At least their friendship looked strong; hopefully, they wouldn't have a falling out because of a childish crush on Sasuke this time.
With Itachi busy with his clan and resuming Anbu duties, I was left with nothing to do for at least a week.
I decided to walk around the village, looking for another hidden spot to train or anything interesting. To my great chagrin, I couldn't find any secluded places to train.
"At least the parks are as serene as always..." I thought, feeling bored.
"Maybe I can try visiting the academy; it's been a while since I've seen Lee." I continued walking down one of the main streets, wandering aimlessly.
I stopped in my tracks as I scanned the surroundings. Right in front of me was a small ramen stall, too tiny to be considered a restaurant.
"Ichiraku Ramen, huh... I can't believe I haven't found it until now," I whispered to myself.
"Well... it's not like I have anything else to do right now." I sighed as I entered the fabled ramen place.
Inside, the stall had only eight bar stools for customers.
Behind the counter stood a middle-aged man with short, slightly graying hair. He was facing the kitchen, watching a large pot of broth simmering over a fire.
As soon as I sat down, he turned around to greet me, his gaze lingering on my headband for a moment.
"Hello! Welcome to Ichiraku Ramen. What can I get you, young man?" he asked, a big smile on his face.
"I'll have Tonkatsu Ramen, please," I replied simply. It had been a long time since I last enjoyed any ramen.
"I'll have it ready in a bit. Ayame, one bowl of Tonkatsu Ramen, please!" he called out toward the kitchen area.
Not long after, a young girl, about Itachi's age, emerged from the back with a steaming bowl of ramen.
"Thanks," I said quietly as I began to eat.
"What happened to your arm?" Ayame's question came out quickly, catching me off guard.
Teuchi shot her a warning glare, while she appeared both embarrassed and curious.
"It's just an injury that hasn't healed yet," I answered simply.
There was no need to explain how I got it. Thankfully, my brief explanation satisfied Ayame's curiosity, and Teuchi looked relieved as well.
Considering his past clientele, he had undoubtedly heard many gruesome war stories before.
I finished my meal in silence and then paid for it.
"Thanks for the meal! I'll come back next time I crave ramen," I said, waving goodbye to the father-daughter duo as I walked out.
Unfortunately, this visit to the ramen shop was the only exciting thing that happened all day.
Is it really possible that I have no hobbies? No one to spend time with outside of Itachi? Do I ever do anything that isn't related to getting stronger?
Everything started to make sense. It wasn't the world that was bland and boring; I had just returned home from a near-death experience.
After a month of constantly hunting enemies, coming back to an ordinary life felt surreal, so calm and peaceful. I found myself perpetually on guard, scanning every alley for an enemy that would never appear.
"Am I even fit for a normal life at this point?" I asked myself as I sat atop the Hokage monument just before sunset.
I had spent almost eight years preparing for war, training myself to fight. Yet, along the way, I forgot to live, to have fun, and to make friends.
While it was true I had Itachi as a friend, he was my only one. I had basically ignored people my own age in my rush for power. At this point, I could only hope it wasn't too late.
"After this war is officially over, I will try to live a little," I promised myself as I stood up, still trying to figure out what to do for the rest of the week.
My salvation was something I had explicitly wished to avoid: a mission directly assigned to me by the Third Hokage. I would be escorting him to the peace summit alongside Jiraiya and Kakashi.
My mission was to escort Yugito safely and hand her over to Kumo after the treaty was signed.
Apparently, Hiruzen wanted to make a power play against Ay and demonstrate exactly who had defeated one of his jinchuuriki. Why was Itachi not going with me, I had no idea.
"I guess the rest of the week will be spent on Fuinjutsu training to be safe," I thought with a groan as I listened to my mission description.
At least one good thing would come from this: I should be able to relay Kurama's message to the overgrown cat.
Now, I just had to figure out how to do it without being noticed.