"R-Really?"
Rin Nohara had only come to confirm Uchiha Obito's current situation.
She never expected that the crisis might already be over.
The sudden good news came so quickly that she could barely process it.
"It's true," Uchiha Ren explained.
"That powerful figure has already died of old age. Before dying, he entrusted everything to Obito."
"After that, I gave Obito a proper beating and dragged him back to his senses."
"Right now he's helping me carry out a mission, so it'll still be some time before he returns."
"But the danger is basically gone."
"So you don't need to keep hiding anymore."
"When Minato and Kakashi see you again, they'll probably be shocked."
The dark cloud that had hung over Rin's heart for so long finally dispersed completely at Ren's words.
A genuine smile bloomed across her face.
"Thank you, Teacher Ren!"
Rin immediately bowed deeply—nearly ninety degrees.
Beside them, Yakushi Nono hesitated for a moment before suddenly speaking.
"Rin… if possible, I think you should go see Kakashi as soon as you can. His condition recently hasn't been very good."
"Huh?"
Rin froze, then quickly grew anxious.
"Did something happen to Kakashi?"
"Don't worry," Nono reassured her.
"It's just his mental state."
"After losing two teammates in succession… it's understandable."
"But I believe that as soon as you appear in front of him, everything will improve."
Nono had long been gathering intelligence for Ren and constantly kept an eye on events within the village.
Because of Rin, she had also paid extra attention to Kakashi.
At this point in time, Kakashi had just experienced the deaths of Uchiha Obito and Rin Nohara.
His entire demeanor radiated gloom and the aura of death.
If not for the deep shadow left by the suicide of his father, Sakumo Hatake, Kakashi might have already followed the same path and taken his own life.
But even so, the current Kakashi was little different from a walking corpse.
"Is that so… then I'll go find Kakashi right now!"
Rin immediately understood what Nono meant.
Even though Kakashi wasn't in immediate danger, she still decided to see him at once and tell him that Obito was still alive.
"Wait."
Ren suddenly stopped her as she was about to leave.
"Don't rush."
"Kakashi has been miserable for this many days already—waiting a little longer won't change much."
"And besides…"
Ren smiled faintly.
"Don't you think that someone who has been dead for so long deserves a grand reappearance when she returns?"
"Eh? A grand entrance?"
Rin blinked, confused.
"Is that really necessary?"
"Of course it is," Ren declared decisively.
"Not everyone gets the chance to come back from the dead and appear again before their friends and family."
"That's a very special experience."
"So just listen to me."
"I actually have something I want to talk to Kakashi about as well. Later, I'll go with you to see him."
"That settles it."
"Go wash your face, put on some makeup, and prepare yourself for the reunion."
As he spoke, Ren gently pushed Rin back toward the interior of the orphanage.
Still dazed, Rin walked away without fully realizing what had just happened.
"You always manage to come up with new tricks."
Nono shook her head, a faint smile on her lips.
Ren sighed softly.
"It's not a trick."
"I just want to teach that kid Kakashi a lesson."
"Honestly… he's been a disappointment."
"He's wasting his talent."
Just how high was Kakashi's talent ceiling?
No one truly knew.
When Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, the future protagonists of the era, were twelve years old, they had only just graduated from the Ninja Academy as genin.
But Kakashi had already become a jōnin at the age of twelve.
And his jōnin strength wasn't like Itachi Uchiha's, which came at the cost of exhausting his life potential.
Kakashi's strength had been genuine.
Unfortunately, after the age of twelve, Kakashi suffered blow after blow and gradually abandoned serious training.
By the time the original story began years later, he was still only a jōnin.
He had even once lost to Momochi Zabuza due to carelessness.
The golden period for a shinobi's growth is between twelve and eighteen years old.
During that period in the original timeline, Naruto, Sasuke, and the rest of the Konoha Twelve rapidly improved their abilities.
Kakashi, however, had completely wasted those years.
It was only after gradually rediscovering himself through Naruto that he resumed honing his strength.
By the time of Shippuden, he had finally begun stepping into the Kage-level tier.
In Ren's eyes, Kakashi had practically wasted a priceless gem.
After Obito and Rin had "died," Ren had tried several times to comfort Kakashi.
He had even hinted at the truth both directly and indirectly—just short of telling him everything outright.
Yet Kakashi remained like mud that couldn't be shaped.
It left Ren completely speechless.
As for revealing the truth directly…
Ren had considered it.
But secrets succeed through silence and fail through loose lips.
And Kakashi already had a history of accidentally leaking important information.
So in the end, Ren abandoned the idea and stopped interfering.
Besides, according to Ren's plans, Obito's situation would be resolved by next year at the latest.
Kakashi wouldn't end up wasting as many years as he had in the original timeline.
Still, since Ren had invested so much effort into the boy, how could he not properly "thank" Kakashi?
"Do as you like," Nono said, not pressing the matter further.
Then she added,
"As for the unusual movements from the village leadership today, I have a guess."
"They're probably planning to kill the Uchiha Clan with praise."
"Oh? You think so too?"
Ren snapped back to attention, looking at her with clear admiration.
Yakushi Nono truly lived up to her reputation as the legendary spy known as the "Walking Shrine Maiden."
Her political instincts were far sharper than those of Uchiha Fugaku, the clan head.
"They're using an open scheme," Nono explained.
"They're not afraid of people seeing through it."
"And I suspect they still have follow-up measures prepared to completely isolate the Uchiha Clan."
"You should be careful."
Ren nodded casually.
"I've already warned Fugaku."
"For now, we'll just see what move they make next and respond accordingly."
"Besides…"
He shrugged lightly.
"They're like grasshoppers after autumn—they won't be jumping around for much longer."
Nono frowned slightly at his relaxed tone.
"Ren."
"The more things look like this, the less you can afford to be careless."
Ren's heart tightened.
Only then did he realize something was wrong.
Perhaps it was because things had gone so smoothly in the Land of Rain, combined with the unexpected gain of bringing Obito back.
Without noticing it, he had begun to grow complacent.
Fortunately, Nono had reminded him in time.
Otherwise, it could have led to serious trouble.
"I'm sorry."
Ren straightened his posture and spoke sincerely.
"Nono… it's a good thing you reminded me."
"As long as you don't think I'm meddling," Nono replied, shaking her head.
Constant vigilance had become a habit from her long life as a spy.
It was both a blessing and a curse.
Because of it, Nono hadn't slept peacefully in a very long time.
Only when watching the children at the orphanage playing could she relax for a moment.
And only when Uchiha Ren was by her side could she feel truly at ease.
The two exchanged a smile.
Some things needed no words.
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