Year 30 in Konoha.
Inside a tall, isolated house near the Hot Spring River, two men who had long harbored resentment were engaged in an "endless" battle.
"Jiraiya, you probably don't understand what it means to control the entire center of the board with just two pawns. We usually use only two words to describe someone like that: General God.
I often say this—back then, the First Hokage could take on the other four great ninja villages and awe the entire Ninjutsu World with only two people, his right-hand man with the Uchiha name, so today, I, Haseo Yu, can absolutely slice through this board with just two humble foot soldiers and leave not even one of your pieces standing. No problem at all.
I've laid a trap—you cannot capture my promoted knight, you don't even need to capture it. You're dead for sure.
Shifting my dragon king into position—you might reach me with your bishop, but no worries. Dare you come forward? If you do, you're just throwing yourself away. You can't beat me.
Pushing forward, leveling up—I've got an amazing board. If my bishop could promote to a Tatsuma right now, I'd be unstoppable. Unfortunately, promotion isn't possible yet.
What? You moved your pawn forward? F*** that—just directly put pressure on it.
Controlling the center and lower board, offensive and defensive at once. I'll move my silver general forward—wanna take it? Hurry up, don't dawdle.
Take your gold general again… Wait, no, I should've taken your bishop instead. Tsk…
But it doesn't matter! Can one single bishop wipe me out? Can you really kill me in one shot? If your bishop takes me down in one move, I'll eat this entire shogi board right here!"
Five minutes later... Anyway, Haseo's sportsmanship during the match was seriously questionable—he didn't end up eating that three-inch-thick oak shogi board after all.
Jiraiya wasn't particularly skilled at shogi; he barely reached beginner level. He played terribly, but coincidentally, some people played even worse—so why shouldn't he win?
But what's the point of winning the game while losing at life? Totally meaningless.
At this moment, the red markings beneath Jiraiya's eyes had almost spread down to the level of his nose tip. He was taller and more muscular than Haseo, played better than him, and had long surpassed him in rank as a ninja. Known as "the Dead Last," Jiraiya became a Jonin at age fourteen—a literally Dead Last.
So here's the question: Why is a ninja named Hyuga considered a genius for becoming Jonin at age fourteen, but Jiraiya is called the Dead Last for achieving the same thing?
Well, because Jiraiya's teammates were Tsunade and Orochimaru, while Hyuga's teammates were Melon Head and Bun Boy. No comparison, no pain.
"Another round?" Jiraiya asked, holding his piece toward Haseo.
"Forget it," Haseo shook his head. He wasn't someone who enjoyed being beaten badly just for fun. "Actually, I'm much better at gomoku and animal chess. But we'll stop here for now. I've got something else coming up later.
That's it for leisure time today. Jiraiya, stay sharp and keep your condition ready as a ninja. I hope you understand what I mean?"
Jiraiya nodded. "Lately, the situation in the Ninja World seems to be getting tenser. Every ninja can feel this kind of atmosphere."
He said with serious intent, but Haseo shook his head.
"It's not about that..."
"Not exactly. I'd say it's related to that matter," said Haseo. "Recently, Sunagakure has been unusually active, which naturally puts Iwagakure on edge. If things keep going like this, war might break out any day. So you need to stay sharp..."
Jiraiya didn't understand why he was saying this—it was just what he himself had mentioned earlier.
Until Haseo's next words came.
"That way, you can better protect Tsunade. You're a team, but I won't necessarily be moving with you... A friendly reminder: feel free to sell Orochimaru out whenever needed. Anyway, he's not the type who dies easily."
"...I'm off."
He seemed genuinely hurt.
Jiraiya merely cast another glance at him before leaving without looking back.
Hmm, this conversation felt unpleasant. Like hell he wouldn't protect Tsunade when necessary—why did Haseo have to remind him?
And how could his good buddy Orochimaru ever be so easily sacrificed?
Only under the most desperate circumstances would he do that.
...
Haseo watched Jiraiya's retreating figure and thought, Did I say something wrong? Is this guy really so sensitive inside? Why don't you just be a girl instead?
The older you get, the worse your temper becomes. That's why kids were cuter—you could mess with them however you wanted, and they wouldn't complain... Haseo thought optimistically, though the Sannin weren't his toys anyway.
Shortly after Jiraiya left, Haseo went out as well.
Leaving home, he walked toward the quietest place in Konoha—one he rarely visited: the Konoha ninja cemetery.
It wasn't hard for Haseo to express his true feelings; whether he liked or disliked something—admitting it was never an issue.
But the real question was, where would that line of thinking—"liking"—actually lead him? Would that mean trying to build a family in a world like this?
The concepts of family or clan were distant ones for Haseo.
As someone like him... Well, maybe shouldn't put it that way. But Haseo had gone through two lifetimes without ever understanding human relationships. In this world of ninjas, where life was fragile and death was commonplace, how much more fragile could emotions be?
Haseo strolled leisurely to the front of Sansho-sensei's gravestone. Clearly, this place was kept spotless. But obviously, it wasn't Haseo who cleaned here often.
"I'm doing fine, Sansho-sensei"—words he would never actually voice aloud. The dead remained dead; graveyards were only places for the living to express sorrow, and mourning itself was nothing more than sentimental formalities providing fleeting comfort.
So even though he wouldn't say such words out loud, Haseo indeed gave hints showing how well he was doing now.
"Doctor, honestly speaking, your death was kind of funny. Though... I guess there's nothing wrong with that.
Partially out of selfishness, I'm even a bit relieved because... I am Sansho-sensei's disciple, not yours."
Lowering himself slightly, Haseo whispered something completely disrespectful under his breath.
Sansho's tomb had now become a shared burial site for two people. What Haseo mocked was merely the other person recently buried here, someone who had died a sorrowful death.
Haseo approached things with a view somewhat similar to Sansho's, but never quite from Sansho's own perspective. Otherwise, she definitely wouldn't have found humor or comfort in the death of someone close to her. But Haseo was different… If someone had always loved Sansho in the past and still held those memories dear now, he truly believed that was something worth celebrating.
It proved that Sansho had once been a living person, leaving behind strong traces even after death—how much weight different lives and deaths carried within his heart was so clearly distinct.
After lingering at the cemetery for a while, Haseo finally turned and walked away. Next, he indeed still had other matters to attend to… Just as he had just told Jiraiya.
Leaving there, he made his way toward Mito Uzumaki's estate.
Earlier, Mito Uzumaki had notified him, asking him to come by later today.
When Haseo arrived, it was already nearing dusk. Stepping through the main gate, he immediately saw Mito Uzumaki standing in the courtyard.
Mito Uzumaki herself… was also "nearing dusk." Only a few years had passed, yet they had aged her drastically. She had already lived longer than most ninjas, but now, she was finally facing the reality of her own legacy.
Standing behind her was also a little red-haired girl.
Hmm, a little girl with bruises all over her face.
PS:
P.S. Hey friends, I'm cracking up. A bit of support would really help—I've got no drive when it feels like single-player mode.
Yesterday's numbers: 260 recommendation votes,
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Received 1 yuan in rewards.
These numbers really speak for themselves.
Still no recommended spot either—this situation is honestly frustrating.
I'm actually thinking about switching my update time to midnight. Otherwise, either way, I'll just get neglected.
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