Konoha's dango really was famous.
Three-color dango, in particular, was a favorite of many shinobi.
Hikaru rembered that Anko—Orochimaru's disciple—was absolutely obsessed with the stuff.
Unfortunately, he himself had never really eaten much of it.
He had bought plenty of it when he was younger, but most of the ti, it had been for soone else.
Especially that old seatmate of his.
Back then, whenever she got upset, one skewer of dango was enough to cheer her right back up.
Thinking about those childhood mories, Hikaru could not help but smile.
At that ti, he had possessed neither the power he had now, nor the status he held today.
But honestly, those days had been happy.
He had not needed to think too much. Life had not weighed on him the way it did now.
Still, happy was happy—he had no desire to go back.
People always moved forward.
The beauty of the past was ant to inspire a person to create an even better future.
Before long, Hikaru arrived at the dango shop with Aya.
The mont he stepped inside, he also noticed quite a few people in the surrounding area drifting toward the shop as well.
As expected, the four Senju guards handled things very reliably.
Officially, he had only brought Aya out for a talk.
But in reality, what he wanted to discuss involved ANBU's internal secrets.
Hikaru had never liked loudly plotting in public.
And given that he already controlled such a massive secret force within ANBU, it would have been a waste not to indulge in a little abuse of authority.
Not that it was his first ti doing so.
"Boss, bring us so of your specialty dango," Hikaru said as he casually picked a fairly decent seat.
Then, without forgetting old habits, he also ordered sothing he used to buy often.
"Right away!" the middle-aged owner answered with a grin.
But the mont he got a clear look at Hikaru, he paused briefly, then laughed.
"So it's you, young man."
Hikaru blinked in surprise.
"Boss, you know ?"
"Not exactly," the man said with a smile, though there was a hint of nostalgia in his voice. "I just rember that you used to co here a lot, years ago. You were only five or six back then, weren't you? Never thought you'd grow up this much."
"I see." Hikaru smiled and nodded. "I really did co often back then. Later, though, work got heavy, so I stopped having the ti."
"Ah, so that's it." The owner slapped his palm as if he had finally figured it out. "Because of the war, right? You people really have worked hard all these years. This one's on the house. I'll give you extra too."
Before Hikaru could even decline, the man turned and walked off.
That left Hikaru feeling a bit amused.
Strictly speaking, the owner was not wrong.
Hikaru had indeed contributed a great deal to the war effort.
Even if ANBU had not exactly been charging on the front lines.
He shook his head and let the matter go.
Konoha's civilians were still simple and genuine.
On the scale of the entire shinobi world, that sort of thing might seem insignificant.
But if one really paid attention to it, it was honestly rather nice.
"Calling out today," Aya said after the owner left, turning to him at last, "wasn't really just about eating sothing, was it?"
Though her voice remained cool and airy as always, there was obvious curiosity in it.
"Although I don't understand why you'd choose a place with this much risk, I trust your decisions completely."
"Don't you get moldy staying at ho all day?" Hikaru asked with a small laugh. Then he tapped the table lightly. "Besides, I don't want you staying at ho forever. Let ask you sothing. Do you rember what I asked you before I left Konoha?"
"I rember." Aya nodded seriously. "I rember everything you say."
Of course she rembered.
Before Hikaru had left, he had told her he would think about giving her a chance to truly show her worth.
She had no idea what that opportunity would be, but she had definitely hoped for it.
Spending day after day in Hikaru's house was, perhaps, the future she had no choice but to accept.
But deep down, she had never wanted her life to end there.
She wanted a stage of her own.
Since childhood, she had studied many things—shinobi matters, political matters, all sorts of family education.
The Senju might have declined, but they were still the Senju.
Their resources had been worn down, yes, and many things had been surrendered over the years, but the thousand-year legacy of that clan was still no small inheritance.
Aya had never thought herself incompetent.
Nor had she ever believed herself inferior to anyone.
Especially when her clan had once produced soone like Tsunade—a woman who could stand on her own and carry imnse weight.
How could she not long for the sa?
Unfortunately, the clan had never given her that chance.
Or rather, Senju Lingtai had never given her that chance.
Because of her own personality—and because of her mother—she had never openly resisted.
And in truth, she knew resistance would likely have accomplished nothing.
Lingtai had not been the sort of man to tolerate defiance.
But in the end, Hikaru had dealt with him.
She did not know exactly how.
But the fact that Elder Shin had taken over afterward said enough.
And more than that—
it seed quite obvious that even that elder was listening to Hikaru.
"To be honest, you should already know so of my situation, shouldn't you?" Hikaru said after glancing around the shop.
"I'm ANBU. That much you know. And you also know my rank in ANBU isn't low."
"Yes, I know." Aya nodded. "I've never asked, but I know you're at least a squad commander. Probably higher by now."
Hikaru smiled and nodded.
That guess did not surprise him at all.
He had never explicitly said anything, but neither had he gone out of his way to hide certain signs.
When she had first been sent to his house, Hikaru had already been a unit commander.
If he had only been a squad leader back then, even Elder Shin would never have chosen to place her there.
And now, after the Nine-Tails incident—after Hikaru had publicly displayed his Wood Release and strength to the entire village—it was only natural for her to guess his status had risen again.
"Correct." Hikaru nodded. "I'm higher now."
Aya stared at him, waiting.
And then Hikaru spoke calmly.
"To put it simply… I'm the ANBU Minister now."
…
Aya froze.
ANBU.
A force personally established by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama.
As soone raised on Senju history, she knew exactly what that ant.
It was one of the most special institutions in all of Konoha.
Even with all its restrictions, it still held extraordinary power.
At the sa ti, it was the Hokage's direct force, which gave it equally imnse political weight.
Every major clan in Konoha wanted to insert their people into it.
To join ANBU ant access to vast intelligence.
It ant direct proximity to the Hokage.
It ant an opportunity to display loyalty—or, for those with other motives, a chance to gather secrets.
And now—
the young man sitting before her controlled all of that.
Even though she had guessed he had risen high, she had never imagined this.
She had assud he had gained more authority after the Nine-Tails incident.
After all, he had helped save the village and worked with the Fourth Hokage to seal the Nine-Tails.
Receiving a major promotion from that was perfectly normal.
But ANBU Minister?
At his age?
With his background?
And what about the previous minister?
Where had he gone?
A thought flashed through her mind, and she almost opened her mouth—
but stopped herself just in ti.
Her gaze swept the entire shop.
Their conversation was not exactly quiet.
And what they were discussing involved ANBU.
Yet—
none of the diners around them showed the slightest reaction.
They went on chatting, laughing, eating, as if they had heard nothing at all.
The shop looked as harmonious as ever.
"Surprised?" Hikaru asked with a raised brow. "Didn't you already guess?"
"I guessed your status had risen again," Aya said after taking a slow breath. "But I never imagined you had actually… actually…"
"Actually beco the ANBU Minister?" Hikaru asked with a faint smile. "Being surprised is normal. My age and my background both make it sound unrealistic. And you're also wondering what happened to the previous minister, aren't you?"
"Yes." Aya nodded, then added seriously, "But no matter what you say, I'll believe you."
She did an it.
Even if countless questions were racing through her mind, she still chose his side.
And yet—
she could not deny it.
Her doubts were enormous.
At the sa ti, though, another emotion began stirring inside her.
Excitent.
If everything he said was true, then the stage she had imagined might be far larger than anything she had dared hope for.
She had once thought Hikaru was only a unit commander.
If that were the case, then perhaps the place for her to prove herself would only have been inside a single ANBU unit.
But now—
it might be the entire ANBU.
"You say that," Hikaru said, lightly shaking his head, "but I know your doubts are still huge."
He tapped the table again and spoke in a calm voice.
"Age and background aren't always the deciding factors. Sotis what matters is having the right support. And sotis what matters even more is that certain people have to die."
"Support… and soone died?" Aya repeated softly.
Then it clicked.
Support ant the Hokage.
The Third Hokage would never support Hikaru in this.
That ant the supporter had to be the Fourth Hokage.
And since the Fourth was no longer in Konoha, perhaps this had been a move he set up in advance, to prevent all his power from being carved apart while he was away.
And the one who had died—
must have been the forr ANBU Minister.
But how had he died?
Killed by the Nine-Tails?
Or…
That thought alone made her stomach tighten.
But Hikaru did not leave her to guess.
"The forr minister was unfortunate," Hikaru said with an easy smile. "He refused to deploy ANBU during the Nine-Tails incident, so I killed him."
Aya went cold all over.
She had never, not even in her worst guesses, imagined it had been Hikaru himself.
Her head slowly turned toward the "diners" around them.
And only now did she fully understand.
These were all ANBU.
Hikaru had already turned this entire place into his private room.
And the fact that those ANBU showed no reaction at all to what he had just said—
only ant one thing.
He had total control.
And that was what truly terrified her.
How long had it even been?
How could soone his age already possess that kind of thod, that kind of grip?
This was no longer rely "capable."
This was frightening.
"Enough explanations," Hikaru said, tapping the table again when he saw the stunned look in her eyes. "Now let's talk about the real matter."
He leaned slightly forward.
"I'm reforming ANBU. But I have too much to handle myself. That doesn't suit my style. So I need help."
"You want to help you?" Aya asked, forcing herself to steady her breathing.
Even after everything she had heard, she still managed to seize the core of it.
He needed her.
More precisely—
he wanted her to step into ANBU because of this reform.
And if that reform was truly as large as it sounded, then this really was the opportunity she had dread of.
"Yes." Hikaru nodded. "But there's sothing I need to make clear first."
Though he still looked loose and casual with one arm propping up his head, his expression had turned serious.
"What you'll be doing may put you in direct contact with ANBU's deepest secrets. If your performance fails to satisfy …"
"Sumr Hikaru, you're here too?"
A voice suddenly cut in.
…
Elsewhere, on Konoha's streets—
Uchiha Shin was walking with his granddaughter.
"So," he asked with a smile, "you've really liked dango since you were little. Why?"
Perhaps because he had finally settled sothing in his heart, his mood was clearly much better today.
He had decided to spend the evening with his granddaughter properly.
And after tonight—
he would go find Hikaru himself.
He still felt enormous pressure when facing that boy.
But from this mont onward, pressure was aningless.
He needed to keep moving.
For the clan.
For peace.
For the future.
"Dango?" Saya paused and looked forward, then smiled faintly. "I guess… it's because of a good mory."
As she spoke, her thoughts drifted back to many years ago.
Back then, she had only just entered the academy.
And almost imdiately, she had run into trouble.
"I heard you're from the Uchiha clan," a boy at the front had said, leading a group that blocked her way. "Aren't your eyes supposed to turn red? Show us."
"That's the Sharingan," Saya had answered, trying to stay calm despite the fear in her chest. "I don't have it."
"Tch. Sharingan, my foot. Sounds more like pinkeye." The boy leaned in and glared. "Hurry up. Everyone wants to see it. Or do you want everyone to hate you?"
Saya had not known what to do.
She did not want to be hated.
But she truly did not have the Sharingan.
In fact, many in the clan did not.
Awakening it was precisely what everyone took pride in.
And just as she had been on the verge of panic—
a voice rang out.
"I think you lot are the annoying ones."
A silver-haired boy walked into the classroom carrying a small bag, glancing at the scene with a look of disdain.
"So this kind of school bullying really exists everywhere, huh? And it doesn't even care about age."
"Oi, what did you just say?" the leading boy snapped. "What bullying? I don't hit girls. You white-haired brat are the annoying one!"
"Forget it. You wouldn't get it anyway," the silver-haired boy said with a shrug. Then he smiled. "You wanted to see red eyes, right?"
"Yeah. Can you show us?"
"Of course." The boy nodded. "Actually, you can too. I can even help you."
The words had barely left his mouth before he tossed the bag in the air and lunged forward.
One punch.
The lead boy took it straight to the face.
Then, before the others could react, the silver-haired boy moved through them one after another, knocking each of them flat with either a fist or a kick.
By the ti he was done, the bag had dropped back down into his waiting hand.
"Go find a mirror," he said cheerfully. "See if your eyes turned red yet."
The children had stared at him in total shock.
Then one started crying.
Then all of them did.
Soon they scrambled up and ran out of the classroom wailing.
Saya had been left standing there, completely stunned.
She had never imagined anyone would solve a problem like that.
When she finally looked at the silver-haired boy again, the light from the window had fallen across him so brightly that he seed almost dazzling.
Then he turned and smiled at her.
"Did I scare you just now?"
"N-No…"
"Here." He took out a skewer of dango and handed it to her. "Sweet food improves your mood. Sothing like that probably doesn't feel great."
"Th-Thank you…"
She had wanted to refuse.
Instead, she accepted it.
And when she bit into it, the sweetness blood not just on her tongue, but sohow in her chest too.
She had eaten dango before.
But never one that tasted this good.
"All right then, I'm off."
The silver-haired boy shrugged and turned away, muttering to himself:
"So Itachi got bullied too, huh? Didn't expect to actually see sothing like that."
Saya had not understood what he ant.
But before he could leave, she called after him.
"W-Wait!"
"Hm?" He turned back, puzzled. "What is it?"
"That…" She hesitated awkwardly, then quickly bowed. "My na is Saya. Uchiha Saya. Please take care of ."
"You don't have to be so formal. We're classmates," the boy said with a shrug. "It's just the first day. Seats haven't been assigned yet, but I know who you are. As for …"
He grinned.
"I'm Hikaru. Senju Hikaru. Nice to et you."
…
"Saya? What is it?"
Shin's voice brought her back to the present.
She smiled and shook her head.
Nothing more needed to be said.
That was where the dango began.
Over the next three years, whenever she had been upset, Hikaru had always bought her dango.
Every ti, she had wanted to decline.
Every ti, she had accepted.
Then when they turned eight, Hikaru left the academy.
After that, no one ever bought her dango when she was upset again.
Still, she kept the habit.
Because Hikaru had once told her that sweet things made a person feel better.
Though the dango she bought herself never tasted quite the sa, she still liked them.
And perhaps—
what she really missed was not the dango at all.
"But let's hurry," Saya said softly, pulling Shin along.
When they reached the shop, both of them froze.
"Why are there so many people?" Shin frowned and sighed. "Business is way too good today."
"Yes…" Saya also looked disappointed.
She knew the shop was usually popular.
But with it this crowded, they would probably have to take the dango to go.
Still, the mont they stepped inside, Saya had the strange feeling that many of the diners were watching them.
Shin frowned too.
But for the sake of his granddaughter, he held himself back.
Then—
his gaze landed on a familiar figure.
At first, he could not quite believe it.
But once he saw clearly—
he froze in place.
"Grandpa?" Saya asked, confused.
Then she followed his line of sight—
and her eyes lit up at once.
"Hikaru, you're here too?"
…
Hikaru looked at the two of them and could not help twitching at the corner of his mouth.
He really had not expected to run into them here.
Much less while he was in the middle of discussing sothing serious.
He glanced at Uchiha Shin and found it a little funny.
The old man clearly had not expected this either.
His face carried a mix of shock and unease.
He looked, quite frankly, a little afraid.
"Long ti no see," Saya said with a smile, clearly oblivious to her grandfather's state.
She stepped over to Hikaru's table as if ready to say more—
but then her eyes landed on Aya sitting opposite him.
The girl was beautiful.
Though her expression looked a little strange—half surprise, half sothing like joy.
And for so reason, Saya imdiately felt that this was not just so ordinary acquaintance.
The little spark of happiness in her chest cooled at once.
She looked at Aya, then asked:
"This is…?"
"Hello. My na is Aya. Nice to et you," Aya said, standing politely despite the obvious complexity in her expression.
"Aya…"
The na was unfamiliar to Saya.
Perhaps Hikaru's teammate?
After all, for years she had tried to learn more about Hikaru, only to get almost nothing.
It was only after eting him again this year that she had finally gotten even the smallest glimpse into the life of her forr classmate.
"My na is Saya. Uchiha Saya. Nice to et you as well." She bowed politely.
"You're still just as formal as before," Hikaru said with a helpless shake of his head.
That sight brought back the mory of their first eting all over again.
Then he turned his gaze toward Uchiha Shin, who was still standing there stiffly.
The old man looked deeply awkward, as though unsure whether he should approach or flee.
Hikaru chuckled softly.
"Elder Shin. Long ti no see."
"Captain Hikaru…" Shin let out a quiet sigh before answering. "I suppose it has been a while. I was actually wondering when I might get the chance to thank you properly."
"No need for thanks. You simply made the right choice." Hikaru shook his head, one hand idly tapping the table. "Sit. The place is crowded today. If you don't mind sharing, then make do."
"If it won't disturb your conversation, then please forgive our intrusion," Shin said after a mont's thought, finally nodding.
In truth, he wanted very badly to say that this had nothing to do with good business.
The shop had clearly been quietly taken over by ANBU.
That was why he had felt watched the mont he stepped in.
No outsider would have found a seat tonight.
But Shin was also curious.
What exactly had Hikaru been discussing with this girl?
And would barging in cause trouble?
Anything touching ANBU had to be approached with extre caution.
Especially since the only Uchiha he had managed to place inside was still just a child—Shisui, still training in the reserves.
"Whether it's an interruption or not," Hikaru said with a small smile, "there are so things I don't really intend to hide anymore. Once you've reached my position, there isn't much point in hiding them anyway."
"Captain Hikaru…" Shin looked at him, puzzled.
Then suddenly, his expression changed.
He understood.
If ANBU no longer needed to hide its minister's identity—
then there was only one possibility.
And Hikaru spoke at that exact mont.
"To be precise…"
He looked at Uchiha Shin calmly and said slowly,
"you should really be calling Minister now."
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