Chapter 117 — The Weight of Forgotten Souls
The moment Kakashi hit the ground, Akira's eyes widened.
"Kakashi!"
He rushed to his side, the fairy fluttering beside him, its glow trembling like a flickering flame.
Sakumo, startled, nearly dropped the eggs he was holding and hurried over as well.
"What happened?" Sakumo demanded, kneeling next to his son. But Akira didn't answer — his gaze was fixed on the glowing earrings in his hands.
The light from them pulsed wildly, spilling waves of golden and white radiance that wrapped around Kakashi's body like threads of energy.
The fairy's eyes widened. "This light… it's awakening his sealed memories!"
Akira turned sharply. "Sealed… memories?"
Before the fairy could respond, Kakashi's body jerked — and everything around him went still. The forest, the fire, even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Then — the memories came.
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Inside Kakashi's mind, time broke apart.
He was no longer lying on the forest ground, but standing beneath a vast silver sky. Before him stood the Crystal Citadel of Liminal Expanse, shining like a living dream.
There, he saw himself — not as the man of Konoha, but as someone else.
A warrior clad in black and white armor, his eyes filled with calm loyalty and unshakable devotion.
Before him stood a young boy — no older than eight — with silver hair glowing softly beneath the ethereal light. His eyes shone with warmth and quiet strength.
The Crown Prince.
The warrior knelt before him, holding two small boxes.
"My Lord," he said softly, his voice steady and respectful. "These are for you — a gift for mastering the Goshenite Sword Style, and for summoning the Goshenite Sword and Armor."
The prince tilted his head slightly, smiling. "Two pairs of earrings?"
"Yes," the man replied. "One pair — the white moon earrings — from your grandfather. The other pair — gold and blue — are the ones I made for you. Choose which to wear."
The boy laughed gently. "Then I'll wear one white and one gold… and you'll wear one blue and one white, alright?"
The man's lips curved into a rare smile. "As you wish, my Crown Prince."
In that moment, the glow from their earrings intertwined — a promise, silent yet eternal.
---
But the warmth shattered.
The sky split apart, fire and shadow tearing through the Citadel. Screams echoed across the heavens as demonic beings descended.
The Crown Prince stood in the heart of chaos, his body glowing with the light of the Goshenite Gem, calling upon its power to protect the world.
"Don't—!" the warrior shouted, running forward — but it was too late.
Light consumed everything.
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When the brightness faded, he stood among the ruins — his armor cracked, his heart broken beyond repair.
He found only what remained — two eggs, resting beside the shattered throne, and the earrings: gold, white, and blue.
He took them and left — but something inside him broke forever.
No one knew what happened afterward, only that the once-gentle warrior turned dark.
He slaughtered those who betrayed the Crown Prince, destroyed the Empyrean Schism, and drowned the world in crimson light.
His mind was no longer his own — something deep, unnatural had twisted his soul.
In his madness, he even killed his two closest friends.
When they returned to stop him, he killed them again and again — until finally, he collapsed, his body fading into sleep.
That sleep became reincarnation.
But he did not return as a whole being.
Before falling into darkness, he cut off a small fragment of his soul — the purest part — and cast it into the cycle of life, hoping it would find redemption.
That fragment was born again — this time, as Kakashi Hatake.
He carried only a fraction of his true self, and none of his memories. Until now.
And as the earrings glowed in Akira's hands, that final seal shattered.
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Kakashi's eyes snapped open, silver light flaring from them like fire. His breath came in ragged bursts, his hands clawing at the earth as the flood of memories tore through him.
Sakumo held his shoulders, calling his name, but Kakashi couldn't hear.
His entire being shook — not from physical pain, but from the unbearable weight of remembrance.
He looked at Akira — and for a fleeting moment, the boy's image overlapped with the one in his memory.
The same eyes.
The same light.
The same Crown Prince.
The agony of recognition cut through him deeper than any blade.
The fairy hovered close, its glow dim and trembling.
"The pain he feels, Crown Prince… it's not from the past alone. It's the torment of countless lives — the punishment of a soul that once defied fate itself."
Akira knelt beside him, his hand hovering uncertainly over Kakashi's shoulder.
"Then what should I do?" he whispered.
The fairy's glow softened, almost mournful.
"Nothing. His memories must settle on their own. But once they do… he may no longer be the same."
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