Winter, Year 48 of the Hidden Leaf Village
As the winter of Konoha's forty-seventh year passed in the lingering cold, the snowflakes slowly vanished from the skies. With them, the Hidden Leaf Village stepped quietly into its forty-eighth year.
Looking back, the forty-seventh year of Konoha had been a tumultuous one—both for the village and for the entire ninja world.
Perhaps no one gained more in this chaotic year than Uchiha Kai, a figure who had long remained hidden in the shadows of Konoha. At the height of the Third Shinobi World War, Kai awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan—an event both rare and dangerous for any Uchiha. Alongside that, his personal strength had grown immensely.
Within the village, he maneuvered political influence subtly, leading even the newly-appointed Fourth Hokage to believe that Kai's rise owed more to Uchiha coordination than to his own ambition. In the Uchiha clan, he had essentially seized real control over the Konoha Military Police Force, having removed or sidelined the clan's more radical elders.
In short, Uchiha Kai had gained much—power, influence, and the ear of key players in both the clan and the village leadership.
Of course, not everything had gone smoothly. His underground experiments—shrouded in secrecy—had run into frequent obstacles. But the research had only just begun. Kai still had time. He could afford to wait.
Meanwhile, the appointment of the Fourth Hokage had become official.
Though the village elders had initially tried to keep the selection quiet, word inevitably leaked. The clans had already caught wind of the decision, and by the time the official announcement came, the entire village—and soon, the ninja world—knew: Namikaze Minato had been chosen as the Fourth Hokage.
The selection shocked no one. Minato was a genius—"The Yellow Flash"—and had ended the war on multiple fronts. More importantly, he had the trust of the people and the backing of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As for his competitor, Orochimaru, his cold detachment and the growing suspicion around his personal experiments had ultimately turned the elders away. Hiruzen, once his teacher and supporter, had sensed a darkness in Orochimaru and made the difficult decision to back Minato.
It was a turning point for Orochimaru. Perhaps he had already foreseen it. He showed no outrage, only silence. By then, his ambitions had begun to shift. The title of Hokage no longer mattered to him.
The spring of the forty-eighth year arrived with quiet winds and loud celebration.
At the center of it all, Sarutobi Hiruzen formally retired—the first Hokage in Konoha's history to do so alive. It marked a symbolic end to decades of war, and many in the village believed a brighter era was ahead.
The inauguration of the Fourth Hokage became a festival unlike any other. That night, Konoha's streets were filled with joy and laughter, the skies lit up by brilliant fireworks. Even the normally reserved Uchiha Kai was convinced to attend, dragged out by Kenta Imai, and joined by Hyūga Aya.
Though Kai, Aya, and Kenta shared a complicated relationship forged in the fires of war—rife with tension and mutual skepticism—there was a sense of camaraderie now. As fellow survivors, they were something like equals, if only for a moment.
But joy in Konoha did not reach every heart.
Far above the village, on the Hokage Monument, a lone figure stood—his body shrouded in black, a swirling mask hiding his face. Behind it, a single Sharingan spun slowly in the dim light.
Uchiha Obito stared down at the village in silence.
"Minato-sensei..." he muttered, voice low with bitterness. The laughter below felt like mockery. The world, to him, was broken beyond repair.
"A hypocritical village… a false peace... You became Hokage, Minato-sensei. But the world is still twisted. So let me give you a gift—a reminder of what this place truly is."
With that, Obito vanished into space, consumed by a ripple of distorted chakra. Below him, the village roared in jubilation, unaware of the vengeance that quietly stirred in the shadows.
Elsewhere, in the village cemetery, Hatake Kakashi placed a white lily in front of a modest gravestone. Fireworks exploded in the sky above him, but here, in the cold silence of the dead, only memory echoed.
"Obito… Rin… Minato-sensei became Hokage yesterday," Kakashi said softly. "It's the Spring Festival of the forty-eighth year. Happy New Year."
His voice was calm, the kind of quiet reserved for old friends—gone but not forgotten.
He spoke for nearly an hour, updating them as if they still stood beside him: about Minato, about Uchiha Kai's odd but influential rise, even about trivial village rumors.
When the fireworks began to fade, Kakashi stood up, brushing snow from his cloak.
"I said it last time, but… take care of yourselves," he whispered. "I joined the Anbu. Sensei made me his direct subordinate. Kai suggested it might help me heal... but he doesn't understand. If I die, I get to see you again. That wouldn't be so bad."
He turned and walked away, disappearing into the dusk.
But even after Kakashi left, another figure came—cloaked in darkness, standing motionless before Rin's grave.
Of course, there was no body in the grave. Kakashi had found only fire that day. Whether it was an enemy's jutsu or the Uchiha's own practice of cremation, the result was the same. Only her belongings remained. A grave of clothes, they called it.
Obito said nothing.
He stared for a long time, then bent down and threw aside the white lily Kakashi had left. In its place, he laid down his own.
He didn't speak—not to Rin, not to the wind. Hours passed in silence. Not even the bitter wind could move him.
Only when the sky began to brighten did he finally whisper something, almost inaudible.
"Rin… wait for me."
Then, once again, he vanished into the ripples of space.
In a certain underground cavern within the Land of Fire, space twisted, and Obito reappeared.
"White Zetsu," he called out.
A pale figure emerged from the ground with a grin. "Obito, you're back! How's the situation in Konoha?"
Obito sat down, eyes glowing red. "Minato is Hokage. The village is drunk on celebration. Let them have their moment."
He paused.
"What about the Nine-Tails? I want every detail—host, power, seals."
White Zetsu didn't hesitate. "It's Kushina Uzumaki—your former teacher's wife. She's nearing childbirth. The seal's weak when that happens."
Obito smirked beneath the mask.
"Good. Then it begins. Nagato's ready. The Demonic Statue has been summoned. We have what we need. Let's start with the strongest—Kurama, the Nine-Tails."
He leaned forward, voice low and dangerous.
"I want to see Konoha burn."