By the time the sun began to dip toward the horizon, Akira had already walked far from the burned settlement.
Eventually he reached a quiet forest clearing where a small pond rested between tall trees.
The water was still and clear.
Akira stopped at the edge and looked down at his reflection.
His clothes were stained with dried blood and soot. His arms still carried faint streaks of red from the fight.
For a moment he simply stood there.
Then he stepped into the shallow water.
Cold ripples spread across the pond as he knelt down and began washing the blood from his hands, arms, and face. The red stains slowly dissolved into the water, drifting away like fading shadows.
He scrubbed until nothing remained.
Just skin.
Just water.
Just silence.
Afterward, Akira wrung out the edge of his clothes and continued walking.
A few hours later, the forest road widened into something far more organized.
Stone-paved streets.
Merchant carts.
Rows of wooden and brick buildings.
He had arrived at a large town within the Land of Fire.
Despite its size, the marks of the Third Great Ninja War were visible everywhere.
Many buildings had repaired walls or fresh wooden supports where damage had once been. A few shops were closed entirely, their signs removed. Soldiers occasionally walked the streets among civilians, their presence a constant reminder that the war was still ongoing somewhere beyond the town's borders.
Still, life continued.
Merchants shouted prices from stalls.
Children ran through the streets.
People bought food and supplies as if the world outside the town wasn't collapsing into chaos.
Akira walked quietly through the crowd.
Inside his pockets was a scroll filled with the money Orochimaru had given him.
Two million sen.
The amount was enormous.
Roughly equivalent to the reward for completing a single S-Rank mission.
More than enough to survive comfortably for quite some time.
Akira eventually stopped at a respectable looking hotel near the center of town and rented a room.
The room itself was simple but clean.
A wooden bed.
A small desk.
A window overlooking the town's main road.
After entering, Akira immediately went to the bath area.
Hot water steamed in the wooden tub as he finally sank into it.
The warmth loosened the tension in his muscles.
The day's events slowly faded into the background of his mind as he leaned back and closed his eyes for a while.
Eventually he finished bathing, changed into clean clothes, and rested on the bed for a short time.
Later that evening, hunger finally pulled him downstairs to the hotel's restaurant.
The dining area was lively but not overly crowded.
Lanterns cast a warm glow across the wooden tables while the smell of cooking food drifted through the air.
Akira sat down quietly at a corner table.
A young waitress approached him with a polite smile.
"Good evening. What would you like to order?"
Akira ordered a simple but filling meal.
A few minutes later she returned carrying a tray.
She set the dishes down one by one.
First came a large bowl of steaming rice.
The grains were soft and slightly glossy from the steam rising off them.
Next was grilled river fish, its skin lightly charred and brushed with a salty glaze. The smell of roasted fish and soy sauce drifted upward immediately.
Beside it sat a bowl of miso soup filled with tofu cubes, sliced green onions, and seaweed floating in the warm broth.
There was also a small plate of pickled vegetables—cucumber and radish slices soaked in a sharp vinegar brine that cut through the heavier flavors of the meal.
Finally, she placed a rolled omelet on the table, lightly sweet and golden brown, sliced neatly into pieces.
"Enjoy your meal," the waitress said with a small bow before leaving.
Akira looked down at the food.
Steam rose from the rice and soup.
For the first time since morning, the world around him felt… normal.
'Finally some deserved peace in this damned world, since being reincarnated this the first time I have genuinely been happy', he thought.
He picked up his chopsticks and began eating quietly while the sounds of conversation and clinking dishes filled the restaurant around him.
------
Night had already fallen across the battlefield.
Near the front lines of the conflict with Iwagakure, a temporary medical facility had been set up by Konohagakure forces.
The large wooden structure was filled with injured shinobi.
Rows of beds stretched across the main hall. Some patients groaned quietly while others slept under the effects of painkillers and exhaustion. The sharp smell of antiseptics and medicinal herbs filled the air.
Outside the building, guards stood watch.
Inside, several medical ninja moved between the beds checking wounds and replacing bandages. Yet none of them noticed the man walking calmly through the hallway.
Orochimaru passed between the beds without a single shinobi reacting to his presence. Whether through stealth, chakra control, or simple distraction, his movements were completely ignored.
He walked deeper into the building.
Eventually he reached a quiet side corridor and pushed open a door.
Inside was a different kind of room.
While the rest of the building resembled a wartime hospital, this room looked more like a controlled laboratory.
Medical tools were arranged neatly on shelves. Glass containers held preserved specimens.
A large wooden desk sat near the center with scrolls, notes, and anatomical diagrams scattered across its surface.
Near that desk, someone was asleep.
A young girl with short dark hair had fallen forward onto the table, one arm under her head as she slept.
It was Anko Mitarashi, Orochimaru's student.
Several open scrolls lay around her where she had clearly been studying or working before exhaustion finally won.
Orochimaru glanced at her briefly
Then his gaze moved toward the window.
Moonlight poured through the open frame, illuminating another figure standing nearby.
A girl stood beside the window writing carefully on a long scroll.
Her hair was white as snow.
Her eyes were pale and pupil-less, as anyone with knowledge would realize they were the Byakugan.
The unmistakable feature of the Hyuga Clan only.
She didn't turn immediately, though it was clear she had sensed his presence long before he entered the room.
Finally she spoke.
"Where were you all this time, sensei?"
Her voice was calm as she continued writing.
Orochimaru stepped further into the room, his long sleeves shifting softly as he walked.
"I was gathering materials,"
Orochimaru's lips curved into a faint smile.
"With a certain someone."
The moonlight reflected faintly in his golden eyes as the quiet laboratory settled into silence once more.
________________________________________
Author here,
So the second Reincarnator has been revealed.