Konoha, Hokage Office.
After returning from the Shinobi Academy, Minato had been buried in the pile of files on his desk, his blond hair shimmering under the sunlight.
A tall, straight figure wearing an animal mask appeared soundlessly before the desk, unmistakably dressed in Anbu attire.
"Kakashi, you're here," Minato looked up, his clear blue eyes showing unconcealed satisfaction.
Since Takuno stepped down, the heavy burden of the entire Anbu had almost entirely fallen on the shoulders of his most outstanding student.
Although the overall efficiency might not match the smoothness and harmony of Takuno's era, it was already commendable that Kakashi alone could keep the precise yet heavy machinery of the Anbu running, and even make progress in some areas.
Minato understood well the difficulty of it.
Kakashi stood ramrod straight, maintaining the respectful posture a subordinate should have towards the Hokage.
However, his slightly slanted shoulders, his somewhat lax stance, and the trace of laziness in his single exposed right eye all indicated he was gradually aligning with the 'Copy Shinobi' familiar to the world.
It was just that, before his teacher at this moment, that inherent casualness was ultimately reined in a bit; he didn't dare to relax completely.
"Sensei, what did you call me here for?" Kakashi's voice came through the mask, carrying a hint of barely perceptible, weary hoarseness.
The recent intelligence work felt like a constantly growing mountain pressing down on him. Vast amounts of information needed screening and verification for authenticity. Every report that could affect the Village's safety required his personal review and judgment.
The tediousness and pressure involved far exceeded his initial expectations.
He sometimes couldn't help but wonder, just how did Takuno-senpai manage to handle heavy responsibilities with such ease back then, even appearing to have quite some leisure?
Minato didn't get straight to the point. Instead, he asked gently, "Kakashi, you're almost thirty this year, right?"
The sentence was like a small stone thrown into calm water.
Kakashi's brow beneath the mask instantly furrowed imperceptibly, his heart giving a sudden thud.
Could it be that Sensei, like Sensei's wife, is starting to worry about my life's major event, planning some kind of arranged meeting?
He was truly... averse to such matters.
"Sensei," Kakashi quickly spoke up, his voice deliberately emphasized, "I'm still four years away from thirty."
He tried to remind his teacher with the exact number that he was still far from the 'advanced age' requiring marriage pressure.
A knowing smile played at the corner of Minato's mouth. He nodded and changed the subject.
"Kakashi, would you be interested in leading a Genin team?"
"Sensei, I'm still young, I'm not in a hurry to find..." Kakashi replied almost reflexively, cutting himself off mid-sentence.
He realized he had misunderstood.
Looking up, he met Minato's smiling blue eyes, which sparkled with teasing light.
Kakashi immediately felt a wave of embarrassment. The mask effectively hid any possible blush, but the discomfort clearly leaked from his stiff posture.
He quickly adjusted his emotions, cleared his throat, and forcibly steered the topic back on track.
"Ahem... that, if I go to lead a team, what about the affairs on the Anbu side?"
He didn't outright refuse. As Minato's student, he naturally knew that his teacher's son, Naruto, was about to graduate from the Shinobi Academy this year.
Becoming the Jonin instructor for his own teacher's child was something he was quite interested in.
Watching his student's slightly flustered yet forcefully composed appearance, the amusement in Minato's eyes deepened, but he stopped teasing him.
He set aside the joking expression and said seriously, "The matter of Uchiha Itachi, whom you recommended before, taking up the position of Deputy Commander of the Anbu has already passed the secret evaluation. It's time for him to take on more responsibility. From now on, the daily operations of the Anbu can be handed over to him first. When encountering tricky or uncertain matters, you can assist from the side and provide oversight."
This information was like sunlight breaking through the clouds.
Kakashi's exposed right eye instantly brightened. Finally, someone could share this heavy burden!
He had deep confidence in Itachi's abilities and character.
"This is the appointment letter. Deliver it to Itachi personally," Minato took out a formal document stamped with the Hokage's seal from a drawer and handed it to Kakashi.
His tone became serious and low the moment he handed over the document, carrying a solemn reminder.
"At the same time, be sure to remind him of one thing. His promotion to Deputy Commander of the Anbu is highly classified. He must not reveal it to anyone within the Uchiha Clan, including his parents, before receiving my explicit permission."
Kakashi took the weighty appointment letter. He set aside his earlier casualness and nodded solemnly, "I understand, Sensei."
Since that incident, although the relationship between the Uchiha Clan and the Village had improved tremendously, it didn't mean they immediately let go of prejudices with all other clans in the Village.
For example, the covert and overt struggles between the Hyuga and the Uchiha, he, as the head of the Anbu, saw clearly.
Appropriate competition could stimulate vitality and become a driving force for the Village's progress, but all this was built upon a certain balance.
Once this balance was broken, whichever side lost restraint could potentially cause unpredictable trouble.
Therefore, it was better not to expose certain things if possible.
"Kakashi," Minato's voice broke the brief silence, his tone carrying more gravity than when he had given the task earlier, "also..."
Kakashi tilted his head slightly, a flash of confusion in his exposed right eye.
Wasn't the task already explained? This hesitant manner from his teacher was truly rare.
Minato cleared his throat, adopting a bit of an elder-like concern.
"Kakashi, you really aren't young anymore. It's time to seriously consider finding a suitable wife."
He said this frankly and sincerely, like a father concerned about his child's life event.
"Ahem!" Kakashi seemed scalded by the sudden topic. His gaze instantly became evasive, and he subconsciously scratched his iconic silver hair.
"Ah! That... Sensei!"
His speech noticeably sped up, and his body slightly turned towards the direction of the door.
"I just remembered, I must immediately explain the Anbu shift handover and a few key protocols to Uchiha Itachi! It can't be delayed. I'll take my leave now!"
Before the words finished, Kakashi's figure had already vanished from the spot with a whoosh, leaving only a slight tremor in the doorframe and a wisp of faint, almost imperceptible dust.
That speed was almost three times faster than when he executed the most urgent S-rank missions.
Minato looked at the empty doorway, first shaking his head with an amused smile, a helpless curve forming at the corner of his mouth.
However, that smile soon settled down, turning into a long, complex sigh.
He understood this student too well.
Although over the years, under the careful companionship and guidance of him and his wife Kushina, Kakashi had finally broken free from the immense blow and numbness of that series of events, rediscovering the rhythm of life and the responsibilities of a Shinobi.
But 'recovery' did not equal 'healing'.
Those deeply etched pains, the shadows of losing important comrades, had long since turned into invisible brands, deeply engraved in the depths of Kakashi's soul, affecting how he viewed the world, especially intimate relationships.
Minato understood in his heart that this was perhaps the fundamental reason why Kakashi still avoided emotional matters like the plague, finding it difficult to open his heart to others.
It wasn't that he didn't want to; it was that the wall around his heart was built too thick.
His thoughts drifted far. Minato's fingers unconsciously tapped lightly on the desktop.
Kakashi's evasion made him involuntarily think of another similarly 'hard-to-settle' figure, Takuno-senpai.
This one, much older than Kakashi, wasn't he also still alone to this day?
Thinking of this, Minato's brow unconsciously furrowed.
It had been over a year. Since he relinquished his position as Captain General of the Anbu and left Konoha, Takuno had vanished as if evaporated from the world, with not a single bit of news returning to the Village.
Worried about his safety? Not really.
The strength Takuno displayed during that turmoil between the Uchiha and the Village was enough to make Minato certain that the people or things in this world that could truly threaten his safety were few and far between.
What he was more concerned about was, where exactly was the senior now? How was he living?
It's just... regarding the matter of Takuno finding a partner, Minato held no expectations either.
That temperament was even more aloof than Kakashi's.
His thoughts shifted again. Minato's mind conjured up the image of his own perpetually unreliable teacher, Jiraiya, wandering the world.
One of the legendary "Sannin," famed throughout the Shinobi World, writing about all the romance under the sun, yet wasn't he himself still single?
Minato couldn't help but click his tongue, a sense of absurdity arising.
How come all these Shinobi close to him, whether seniors or young students, kept such a respectful distance from the matter of marriage?
Was this some strange curse? He touched his chin in confusion. It couldn't possibly be influenced by him, could it?
He, Minato, had married young at twenty, and he and Kushina were a model of a loving couple!
Minato shook his head, temporarily dispelling these unsolvable questions from his mind.
He turned his gaze back to the desk and continued working.
However, what Minato would never know was that Takuno, whom he had just categorized into the 'eternal bachelor' group, was only single in appearance.
Long before meeting Fubuki Kakuyoku, he was no novice in matters of the heart.
For Takuno, emotional bonds were a luxury and troublesome; he had always kept them at arm's length.
But as a normal man, physiological needs had to be relieved when necessary. He had his own ways of resolving them and would never shortchange himself.
And now, he had even married the Queen of Rōran, Sara, stepping into another stage of life.
It was just that all this, Takuno was destined not to reveal a single bit to Minato, or anyone in Konoha.
...
On the cold lunar surface, a massive laboratory emitted an faint blue chakra glow.
And Takuno, whom Minato was thinking of, was inside, continuously injecting his own chakra into the creature before him—the Mini Ten-Tails.
At this moment, the Mini Ten-Tails had already completed devouring the chakra of the Ichibi to the Eight-Tails.
Of the nine terrifying eyes on its head, eight frightening eyes were open. Only the one symbolizing the Nine-Tails chakra remained stubbornly closed.
Takuno gazed at this scene, unhurried. On one side, he controlled its absorption of the Nine-Tails' power, while on the other side, he himself was also absorbing the power of the Golden Tenseigan.
If he were in a hurry, he could even make the Mini Ten-Tails absorb the power of all nine Tailed Beasts in an instant.
Although those from the Akatsuki needed several days to absorb one Tailed Beast using the Sealing Jutsu Phantom Dragon Nine Seals, Takuno was different.
His power supporting the Phantom Dragon Nine Seals was incredibly simple. Under the support of his chakra, it was impossible for the Mini Ten-Tails not to absorb quickly.
But Takuno had consumed such a long time because, while controlling the Mini Ten-Tails to absorb Tailed Beast chakra, he was also researching the changes in its own power after absorbing each portion of Tailed Beast power.
After all, the powers of the nine Tailed Beasts were different; they possessed completely different natures.
What kind of changes would occur when they fused? Could it provide a reference for his future path towards Kekkei Mora?
Takuno wasn't sure either, but that didn't stop him from wanting to try.
This was truly a very rare opportunity. If missed, once the Mini Ten-Tails was sealed within his body, there would be little chance to try again.
By that time, the Mini Ten-Tails' power would already be in a fused state, but what he wanted was the process of change.
So for this person pursuing the pinnacle of power, these past few months could even be said to be the only time he completely set aside his own systematic *Cultiv*, devoting himself entirely to research.
The harvest was also remarkable! Takuno faintly glimpsed the fusion process of Kekkei Mora!
Of course, apart from this.
He also assigned some tasks to his Shadow Clones, either conducting research not involving core power growth or meticulously refining and polishing his existing chakra natures.
Compared to his previous training that sought qualitative changes and breakthroughs, this kind of training was like a drop in the bucket; the difference in effect was like clouds and mud.
Apart from that, this nearly year-long period was not without gains.
The most significant gain was that the Ocular Power of his Tenseigan had once again experienced an astonishing surge!
It was just that the source of this surge did not stem from his own efforts, but...
He had almost completely drained the remaining energy of that massive Golden Tenseigan on the moon.
He deliberately retained a small portion of core energy, solely to maintain the operation of the intelligent puppets on the moon.
If not for that, that once glorious, massive Golden Tenseigan would have likely long since dissipated into nothingness.
Even so, the remaining size could no longer be called 'massive.'
This completely absorbed, vast energy pushed the Ocular Power of Takuno's own Tenseigan to an unprecedented height.
He clearly perceived that the power contained within his Tenseigan now, in terms of purity and vastness, had already surpassed his three-tomoe Rinnegan!