"Couldn't it?" Orochimaru asked in return, his face unreadable.
"My lord, don't forget — I am an Uchiha," Saitama replied, his calm far beyond his years.
"Don't forget that Saitama is one of Konoha's rising talents," Orochimaru said with a faint smile. He didn't see any problem in accepting an Uchiha into his tutelage. The political tension surrounding the clan didn't matter to him. Why should it? He was Orochimaru, after all.
"I'm honored, but it seems I won't have the time to accept your guidance, Orochimaru-sama," Saitama said, with a hint of regret. He hadn't expected Orochimaru to extend an olive branch at such a time, but it didn't change his plans.
During this period, Orochimaru had already begun dabbling in human experimentation — something the Third Hokage would only discover after the war. By Konoha Year 46 or 47, Orochimaru would leave the village.
So, within the next year or two, he'd be gone.
"I heard you've applied to leave the front lines. If you ever change your mind, come find me. I'll help you — when the time comes," Orochimaru said with a thin smile. His pale face, golden snake-like pupils, and the deep eye shadow trailing to his nose gave him a haunting charm.
"Thank you, sir."
Saitama bowed his head, Orochimaru's raspy voice echoing in his mind, then stood up and took his leave.
As Saitama stepped outside, he couldn't help but feel that Orochimaru had seen through everything. Those piercing eyes lingered in his thoughts long after he turned away.
"How fascinating… that child," Orochimaru murmured, licking his lips. He could almost see Saitama's future — and wondered what kind of Uchiha he would become.
Still, Orochimaru didn't try to force Saitama to become his disciple. Perhaps… it simply wasn't the right time.
A pale light flickered inside the tent as the curtain fell. Saitama disappeared through the entrance, leaving Orochimaru alone in the dark.
---
"Hah…" Outside, Saitama took a deep breath of fresh air. He felt a strange sense of relief, not because of Orochimaru's presence, but from the heavy pressure he had placed on himself.
"Time to go," he whispered, looking over the war camp.
Soon, it would be Konoha Year 45.
---
"Are you really going back, Saitama?" a voice called out.
Saitama, with his sword slung at his waist, casually pulled at his ear, pretending not to hear.
"Hey! Saitama, at least act like you respect me!" Samu growled. He had only just found out about Saitama's departure and felt deeply unsettled.
He didn't believe that someone as fearless as Saitama would withdraw from the front lines under these circumstances.
"I'm leaving soon. If you've got something to say, say it," Saitama replied calmly. He knew Samu could be annoyingly persistent, but also knew he'd stop once he got it off his chest.
"…You've got your own plans, huh?" Samu finally sighed. After so many battles together, he truly considered Saitama a comrade — even if Saitama was hard to sway once he'd made up his mind.
"Yeah." Saitama patted Samu's shoulder. They were about the same height, despite the age gap. Samu, being a civilian-born shinobi, looked a bit malnourished — just a little taller than Saitama.
"Take care. Hope we meet again," Saitama said as he turned, his figure casting a long shadow in the evening light.
"You too, Saitama…" Samu whispered.
Saitama heard him anyway.
---
After nearly half a month of escorting the wounded back to the village, Saitama finally returned to Konoha.
He had left as a boy, but returned a warrior. Still, Saitama had only been gone for just over half a year.
After submitting his mission report, he walked down the familiar streets of the village.
The road home… It felt warm, somehow. Though the time hadn't been long, everything that had happened during the war felt like several lifetimes. The brushes with death, the bloodshed — how many of them could one soul endure?
By the time he arrived, it was past three in the afternoon. The sky was tinged with the fading glow of sunset as he walked toward home.
Nothing much had changed. The village looked just as it had when he left — though it felt quieter, and the shopping streets were less lively than before.
"Click."
He pushed open the door to his home. A light glowed in the kitchen.
"Shisui? Is something wrong this late? Saitama hasn't come back yet, and I'm doing fine—"
A voice rang out — Uchiha Kaka's voice. She heard someone enter and assumed it was Shisui. He was the only one who regularly visited her during Saitama's absence.
The kitchen door opened. Wearing an apron, Uchiha Kaka stepped into the hallway — and froze.
For a moment, everything was still. The golden sunset bathed the courtyard in unreal light.
"…Ah, it's Saitama!" she exclaimed, holding a plate.
She covered her mouth with one hand. Her eyes widened with disbelief and joy.
"It's me, Kaka," Saitama said gently. Though they weren't related by blood, her presence felt like home.
Smiling, he stepped forward and embraced her.
"Mm." Kaka let out a soft whimper. Despite her age, she couldn't hold back her emotion.
"You've been gone so long… I barely recognized you," she said, placing a hand on his back. She could clearly feel how much he had grown.
"I'm still the same Saitama you knew," he replied, his voice softer than the battlefield tone he had become used to.
---
"Have you eaten yet? I was just cooking," Kaka asked, her eyes full of concern.
"Not yet. I rushed back because I missed your cooking too much," Saitama replied. Though his tone was calm, it warmed her heart.
"Well then, wait just a bit longer," she said, handing him the plate she had been holding — it held several seaweed-wrapped rice balls.
Saitama nodded and followed her into the kitchen.
---
"Hah… hah…" Saitama bent over, breathing heavily, his sweat-soaked clothes clinging to him.
Two days had passed since his return, but he hadn't let himself rest. Most of his time was spent training at the Uchiha Guard's private grounds.
"The lightning chakra nature change… I've only applied it to basic forms like Chidori. But this version still feels weaker than the original. Something's missing…" he muttered, eyeing the damage he had done to various targets. Some were scorched, others pierced clean through.
"Saitama, how's it going?" Uchiha Sen asked. He had been observing after getting Saitama's permission.
"Not bad. It takes a lot of chakra, though," Saitama said, straightening up and wiping sweat from his brow.
"Using lightning chakra to stimulate cellular function… that's similar to what the Cloud Shinobi do. Seems effective," Sen mused.
"When chakra reserves are stable, it's an excellent support method," he added with a serious nod. He took Saitama's development seriously and often evaluated his techniques.
"Hmph." Saitama pulled the blade from the ground and reattached it to his waist.
"Has anything changed in the clan while I was gone?" he asked.
"Nothing major. Same old stuff," Sen replied. "Though… the Hokage's advisors seem to be softening their stance a little — probably because of complaints about the Uchiha being sidelined during the war."
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