After Nagato and the others repeatedly promised to occasionally come up and keep Toneri company, Toneri finally agreed to release everyone. A week after the sealing, the group returned to Amegakure-drenched village. Years of absence made Zaraki Kita acutely aware of how much she had missed this place as soon as her feet touched the ground.
Stretching lazily, feeling the gentle coolness of rain against her skin, Zaraki Kita couldn't help but widen her lips into a smile. This is my home. And now, I'm back.
"Ah~ finally back! Still more comfortable down here~" Obito said with contentment. Even though being above wasn't bad, Earth—his birthplace—felt inherently more comfortable after spending so much time in the skies.
"Thinking about it now, Toneri must've been pitiful, all alone up there. No chores to do… what did he even do all day?" Deidara said, pity lacing his voice. Itachi quickly interrupted him.
"If you want to pity Toneri's idle life, maybe think about what we're supposed to do next. The Otsutsuki problem's over—what's our next target?"
"That's for the boss to decide. What we think doesn't matter," Hidan said quickly. "Anyway, not my problem. I'm going back home for a proper hot spring soak, then sleep for three days straight. Kakuzu, even you can't wake me up!"
"Eh, I want to soak too! Boss, Sister Konan, let's go to the Land of Tides for a hot spring! Hmm!" Deidara said. Kakuzu immediately cut him off.
"The village has hot springs. Why go to the Land of Tides? We've had no income lately. We can't just live off savings. Our break isn't over yet—starting tomorrow, back to missions and earning money."
Sharp, rigid, a model miser.
Nagato rubbed his forehead. He both loved and hated Kakuzu—loved how skilled he was at making money, and hated how impossible it was to get him to spend any. Just as he was about to speak, Konan's voice carried across.
"You all do whatever you want. I'm tired—going to rest first. Nagato, for the next day, does not appear in front of me."
Nagato froze. Previously, even if he appeared in his true form, Konan never called him "Nagato." But now, not only did she address him by name, she spoke in a commanding tone. Though he had never had much face in front of Konan, this was in public. Being denied even this much respect made his position as leader difficult. He spent a long time trying to figure out what he had done wrong, only to vanish silently into Amegakure before he could say anything.
"KoKita really is amazing," Hidan muttered under his breath, loud enough for Nagato to hear. When Nagato glared, Hidan shivered and stepped back quietly.
"Heh… leaving Akatsuki really was the right decision," Orochimaru chuckled, only to be immediately cut down.
"Really? The guy who got scolded by a brat has the nerve to say that was your decision?"
Itachi silently rolled his eyes. "I'm not a brat, 'Uncle'!" he emphasized the last word maliciously.
Deidara immediately exploded. "You little weasel! You called him 'Uncle'?! Huh?!"
Kisame silently commented, "You two really know how to put on a show."
"Eh? Going to fight, huh? Huh!"
The quarrel almost erupted into full-blown chaos, while Orochimaru only smiled at Zaraki Kita, who was quietly observing the scene.
"Zaraki Kita."
At the call, she began walking slowly toward the exit. She nodded to Nagato.
"I…I need to… talk… with him… about… some things."
Nagato agreed.
Zaraki Kita took a few steps and then reached into her hand, pulling out a full bottle of dark green pills.
"Keep them?"
She nodded, slipping the bottle into her sleeve with a smile.
"Th-thank you," she said.
Orochimaru waved his hand dismissively.
"No, it's nothing."
She walked slowly toward the village outskirts.
"Thirteen days left. Manage your time wisely," Orochimaru called after her.
Zaraki Kita nodded silently, halting her steps. Orochimaru paused and looked back at her. Over the past few days, her health had improved significantly, and there was even a faint smile on her face.
"The things you were worried about… they're all over now. Enjoy life from here on," he said.
She smiled and looked at him. "You… you too."
Enjoy life… perhaps that's exactly what it should be.
Orochimaru no longer needed to fear death. As an immortal, time had slowed for him, and he could finally, as Zaraki Kita said, enjoy life. He wanted to apologize, feeling as though his immortality had been stolen from her, but he knew exactly how that apology would be received. So he swallowed it back.
He also wanted to speak about that day with Jiraiya—not as recognition of Naruto, but because the boy's presence had made it impossible for him to express anything. He wanted to say that Zaraki Kita's existence wasn't like the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki claimed—but no matter how much he thought about it, he knew she didn't care. Her indifference rendered all consolation unnecessary. Outside of these people in Akatsuki cloaks, she truly cared for nothing.
So he simply patted her shoulder and sighed.
"Don't eat too much."
Zaraki Kita smiled and nodded, not saying thanks this time.
"Goodbye," she said.
It wasn't that she had nowhere to go. At least Karin had a modest little house in the village—simple, but enough to shelter from the wind and rain. Not large, just two rooms and a living area, fully equipped. Akatsuki treated even its peripheral members well; such a home would have been impossible to buy on Karin's savings. Konan had clearly considered this, giving the empty house downstream to her.
In truth, the child had followed her, spending only a few peaceful days, yet suffering more than her fair share. Zaraki Kita sat inside, watching Karin cradle the sleeping Three-Tails, Isobu. A wave of guilt washed over her. Though Karin was nominally her student, she had never truly taught her—neither swordplay nor ninjutsu. Most of the time, missions kept her busy, leaving scrolls for Karin to explore on her own. Care? She could hardly claim to have done so. Yet Karin had always been looking after her.
Sitting in the corridor after Amegakure, drinking tea prepared by Karin, eating the food arranged by her, much of daily life had been handled entirely by Karin.
"Do… do you hate me?"
Zaraki Kita asked, looking at Karin. Karin held Isobu, who loved Amegakure. For him, this village was perfect.
"Huh? What did you say, Sister Kita?"
"The Three-Tails… sealed… in… you," Zaraki Kita said, pointing at Isobu.
Karin shook her head, smiling, and patted the back of Isobu in her arms.
"Sister Kita, his name is Isobu. He's male… no, a male turtle… err, a male… anyway, he's male."
"Ah… sorry," Zaraki Kita laughed.
Karin looked out at Amegakure. Isobu opened his eyes briefly, then closed them again.
"Sister Kita, back then, I was so scared."
She was referring to the time she had been captured by human traffickers many years ago, at age ten.
"At that time, I swore in my heart, whoever saved me, I'd give them my life. And then… Sister Kita, you saved me."
It had been a simple act, like feeding a stray cat along the way.
"I thought I'd be chewed up and spit out, living a life worse than death. But you protected me, cared for me… like family. So whatever you did to me, don't apologize. To me, you are family—and family doesn't need that."
Zaraki Kita sighed. Karin's request was that simple.
"I… I am… non-human, you… you are human."
Karin shook her head.
"If I didn't have this red hair, if I wasn't of the Uzumaki clan… when the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, we'd be the same," Karin said with a sigh unlike that of a fifteen-year-old girl.
"My father said that many people became non-human then. It was all the same—human or non-human. So, Sister Kita… stop saying such things."
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