Morning sunlight stread through the windows of the Ninja Academy classroom.
Sakura Haruno stood beside Sasuke's desk, her eyes filled with concern.
Sasuke hadn't co to school for an entire week. Today was finally the first ti she had seen him again.
She softly asked where he had been these past few days.
Sasuke's gaze remained fixed on the desk. He said nothing.
On the other side of the classroom, Ino Yamanaka kept glancing toward the doorway.
Her eyes swept across the room, searching for that familiar figure.
Kyoshin had already graduated a year ago, but she still instinctively looked for him.
Ino bit her lip.
Over the past few days, she had gone near the Uchiha compound several tis looking for Kyoshin, only to be stopped every ti by Anbu ninja.
They told her the area was now restricted. Outsiders weren't allowed in.
The unease in her heart kept growing stronger.
'Did sothing happened to Kyoshin?'
The thought left her restless.
Finally, Ino gathered her courage and walked toward Sasuke.
Her steps were hesitant, but she still stopped in front of him.
"Sasuke." Her voice trembled slightly. "Do you know where Kyoshin is? I haven't seen him in days."
The mont that na was spoken, the classroom suddenly fell silent.
Several students turned to look.
Sasuke raised his head, his black eyes calm and unreadable.
Looking at the expectation and fear on Ino's face, he slowly said, "Kyoshin is already dead."
The color instantly drained from Ino's face.
"Don't joke around. Didn't they say he just hadn't co back from a mission yet?"
Maybe she still hadn't heard about the false story Kyoshin had fabricated in order to distance himself from the Uchiha and Konoha, dying during a mission.
From the back of the classroom, Naruto Uzumaki suddenly shot to his feet.
He had been glaring at Sasuke with jealous eyes the entire ti, but now those blue eyes were filled with shock and fury, "You're lying! There's no way Kyoshin died! Sasuke, you bastard!"
Naruto charged over and grabbed Sasuke by the collar, "Kyoshin's my best friend! He promised he'd teach shuriken techniques!"
Sasuke slapped Naruto's hand away, his expression still cold, "I never lie."
Naruto spun around and bolted out of the classroom.
Sakura looked at the devastated Ino, wanting to say sothing but unable to speak.
Shikamaru Nara leaned against the window and sighed, a trace of gloom flashing through his eyes.
Sasuke lowered his head once more, as if nothing had happened.
Only his tightly clenched fists revealed the turmoil inside him.
———
The door to the Hokage's office slamd open.
Naruto rushed in, tears still hanging on his face.
"Old Man!" Naruto shouted anxiously. "What happened to Kyoshin? Sasuke said he's dead. That can't be true, right?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the docunt in his hand and looked up at the panic and hope in Naruto's eyes.
On the wall behind him, portraits of the previous Hokage silently overlooked the scene.
"Naruto." The Third Hokage's voice sounded slightly hoarse. "Are you still keeping up with your Academy classes?"
"Don't change the subject!" Naruto raised his voice. "Tell where Kyoshin is! He's my only friend!"
A complicated emotion flashed through the Third Hokage's eyes.
'That unusual Uchiha boy…'
Kyoshin really had been different from the other Uchiha.
"Ninja have the fate of ninja," the Third finally said. "Naruto, you should go back to class."
"But..." Naruto tried to continue.
"This is the Hokage's order." The Third's voice carried unquestionable authority. "Go back."
Naruto stared at the Third Hokage. The usually kind old face now held only sternness. Tears welled up again in his blue eyes.
"I don't care what happened. Soday I'm going to learn the truth!" Naruto turned and left the office, his shoulders slumped.
Hiruzen picked up the docunt again, but he couldn't read a single word.
He walked to the window and looked down at the streets of Konoha.
'Where is that child now?', The question lingered in his mind.
mories flooded back like a tide.
Hiruzen still rembered the first ti he t Kyoshin.
The other Uchiha children all carried an innate arrogance, but Kyoshin always wore a smile.
He could beco friends with anyone. Children from the Hyuga clan, the Yamanaka clan, ordinary civilian families.
He trained harder than anyone else. Shuriken techniques, taijutsu, ninjutsu, he excelled at all of them.
The teachers all called him a genius, yet he never acted proud because of it.
Instead, he often helped struggling classmates and patiently explained difficult concepts to them.
Kyoshin beca a legend within the Ninja Academy.
Not only because of his strength, but because of his character.
A kind-hearted Uchiha was rare even in Konoha's history.
Hiruzen had secretly kept an eye on the boy.
He watched Kyoshin beco friends with the lonely Naruto.
Kyoshin beca the most outstanding ninja student in recent years and graduated early, but later news arrived that he had died during a mission, leaving no remains behind.
That day, Hiruzen sat alone in his office for a very long ti.
After the massacre night, Uchiha Itachi's report brought a new truth.
Kyoshin hadn't died. He had escaped during the mission and left Konoha.
Hiruzen's emotions beca complicated.
On one hand, he felt relieved that Kyoshin was still alive.
On the other, deep concern took root.
From Itachi's deductions, Kyoshin knew the Uchiha clan's secrets.
He knew about the decisions made by Konoha's leadership.
If he made those things public, Konoha's reputation would be utterly ruined.
The balance among the Five Great Nations was already fragile. If Konoha lost credibility and internal disorder broke out, the consequences would be unimaginable.
The other villages would seize the opportunity to attack, and war could erupt once again.
The sorrow he once felt gradually gave way to practical anxiety.
Kyoshin was no longer the kind-hearted boy from his mories.
He had beco a potential threat.
A threat capable of destroying the prestige Konoha had built over decades.
And if he was a threat, then he had to be dealt with.
That was also why Hiruzen concealed the truth from Naruto.
Because he understood Naruto's personality too well. If Naruto learned Kyoshin was still alive, he would very likely turn Konoha upside down.
Hiruzen sighed and spoke into the empty air, "Call Advisor Shimura here."
———
A few minutes later, a hidden door in the office opened, and a figure walked in.
Shimura Danzo leaned on his cane. His right eye and right arm were wrapped in bandages, his expression cold, his single visible eye carrying a scrutinizing look.
"About Uchiha Kyoshin." Hiruzen spoke slowly. "He needs to be dealt with as soon as possible."
A mocking curve appeared at the corner of Danzo's mouth.
"That's a pretty gentle way to put it."
"Hiruzen, you're still the sa. You want to preserve everything, and in the end you preserve nothing properly."
"Danzo!" The Third's voice turned stern.
"I know what to do." Danzo turned toward the exit. "You always stand in the sunlight, while I'm destined to act in the shadows. Just like this ti, I'll handle the dirty work."
The hidden door closed, and silence returned to the office.
Outside the window, Konoha basked in bright sunlight. Children ran and played through the streets.
This was the place he had sworn to protect with his life.
Even if the price was carrying guilt once again.
Even if the price was making the child who once filled him with pride disappear forever.
The Hokage's responsibility outweighed everything.
Personal feelings had to yield to the village's interests.
That was the lesson he learned from the First and Second Hokage.
But then why did his heart still feel so heavy?
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