"Go home?"
Hearing Shikaku Nara's words, Ren Uchiha felt a jolt run through his body. He snapped his head up, eyes wide.
"Huh? When did I ever submit an application for that?"
"I didn't! Wait, I'm not hurt! I can still fight! Tatakae, izumo tataka—"
"Sigh, kids these days are such a pain..." Shikaku Nara dug a finger into his ear and tapped the desk with an expression of utter boredom. "Go ask your superiors. Everyone... just keeps dumping their troublesome chores on me."
"Or, would you like to stay and help me process this mountain of paperwork?"
Shikaku slumped behind his desk, which was buried under an avalanche of documents. He looked at Ren with the eyes of a dead fish and nudged a pile of files that was as tall as a person toward him.
Rustle, crash!
The paper mountain wobbled precariously.
Ren gulped, forcing the complaints that had risen to his throat back down. On second thought, given his current status and combat power, his deployment was no longer something a strategist like Shikaku—Jiraiya's second-in-command—could decide. Arguing here was pointless.
"Good. It seems you understand," Shikaku said.
"Even though this is only our second meeting, we're technically acquaintances now. Let me introduce myself formally. I am the 'Shika' of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, and the future head of the Nara Clan: Shikaku Nara."
Shikaku sat up and offered a small smile. A flicker of genuine admiration and respect flashed in his eyes as he reached under his desk and pulled out three gift boxes, pushing them across the table.
"Personally, I hate ceremonies. Too much trouble. I figured I'd just give you these instead."
"So, Ren Uchiha—"
"Congratulations on becoming a Jōnin!"
Holding the three differently sized gift boxes, Ren walked out of the tent with a look of utter confusion. He still couldn't wrap his head around why he was being sent back to the village.
A quick look around told him the story. The Konoha main camp was undergoing massive renovations. Most of the ninjas were carrying timber and hammers, moving supplies to build permanent structures.
It seemed Konoha knew this would be a long-drawn-out war. They were replacing tents with wooden cabins. The noise Ren had heard earlier was the sound of a front-line city being born.
Since the front was clearly remaining active, Orochimaru should have kept him here to keep fighting! He could have sabotaged the Sand-Rock alliance, fought Rasa, Chiyo, the Tailed Beasts of the Stone—the Four-Tails, the Five-Tails—or even Onoki himself!
So, it doesn't make sense. What happened?
Torune Aburame, who was waiting outside, smoothly took the boxes from Ren's hands and peeked inside.
"Tsk, tsk. Your social standing isn't bad, kid. Gifts from the Ino-Shika-Cho?"
"Let's see. The Yamanaka family sent flowers—Anthuriums. The card says: 'Wishing you a steady rise.' The Akimichi family sent a massive cured pig leg. And Shikaku Nara... typical. That lazy bum just gave you cash. 500,000 Ryo."
Ren turned to his superior, who was currently critiquing his gifts, and asked with a frown:
"Senior Torune,"
"Why?"
Torune knew exactly what Ren was asking. He handed the boxes to a Root ninja who materialized behind him; the ninja took them and vanished instantly.
Torune sighed, looking at Ren's face—which had thinned down to the bone.
"Do you know how long you were unconscious?"
Ren froze. He scratched his itchy neck, bewildered. "Half a day? A full day?"
He didn't feel like much time had passed. His last memory was being bitten by that little white snake and feeling the natural energy being drained from his body.
Torune exhaled a heavy breath and whispered, "You were out for a full half-month."
"Half a month. Do you understand what that means?"
"The war... is already over."
"In this campaign, the Konoha surprise force led by 'Shura' destroyed the Sand camp and carved a massive hole in their lines, providing a perfect opening for a counter-attack. After that, Shura slew the Sand's supreme commander, Ebizo. The merit you achieved shocked every ninja in Konoha!"
"After Shura and the Yellow Flash killed Ebizo, Konoha extracted a massive amount of intel from his brain. Using that, Lord Orochimaru led a counter-offensive, taking Sand positions in the Land of Rain one by one. The Sand, leaderless and in internal chaos, was forced to retreat to the oases behind the Land of Wind's border."
"Konoha won a massive victory! We've intimidated the other nations!"
"Following that, the Sand secretly contacted the Stone, sending envoys to Onoki. Lord Jiraiya led a strike team to break the Sand-Rock alliance, but they encountered the Four-Tails and Five-Tails and were forced to retreat..."
"The Sand-Rock alliance is now a reality. But fortunately, we held the advantage in the Land of Rain, and the Stone is currently engaged in a long-term conflict with the Mist. For now, the situation is stable. There won't be any large-scale combat for at least six months."
Ren stood frozen, staring at Torune in shock.
Half a month. Two weeks have passed!
I've been sleeping through all of this?!
The counter-attack, the alliance, Jiraiya's failed raid, the Tailed Beasts...
Ren's eyes sharpened. He looked at Torune and asked, "What about Orochimaru? Why didn't Lord Orochimaru wake me up?"
"Where is he now?!"
What is that snake-man doing? A party this exciting and he didn't invite me?
Torune's irritation flared at the question. He ground his teeth, looking at Ren with a heavy gaze.
"Do you have any idea how close you came? Your soul was almost completely twisted into a snake!"
"Who the hell taught you to use the Cursed Seal of Heaven like that? To recklessly touch the power of a Sage?!"
"Listen. This is what Orochimaru told me to tell you:"
"The power of Ryuchi Cave is dangerous. You were standing on the edge of losing yourself without even knowing it. Furthermore, your body has overextended its life force to a ridiculous degree."
"You're not dead right now only because your 'immortal body' gave you the concept of immortality, but that isn't true immortality. It's okay if you don't understand, just..."
Torune suddenly sighed and stepped forward to pull Ren into a brief hug.
"Welcome back,"
"My disciple."
He paused, then added: "Welcome back, my subordinate!"
Releasing Ren, Torune looked toward the direction of Konoha and spoke in a deep voice:
"To save you, Orochimaru resigned his position as commander immediately after the counter-attack and returned to the village. Now, you must return as well."
"There are three reasons."
"First, our top boss—the one who rules the darkness of the shinobi world—wants to see you."
"Second, the Uchiha clan has issued a formal demand that you return to the village immediately!"
"And finally, the most important reason—"
"If you want to live, you need a new power!"
"To that end, Orochimaru has restarted the Wood Style Experiments!"
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