A familiar radiance once again blanketed the heavens.
The enormous luminous screen—one that revealed the past and long-buried secrets—slowly unfolded above the clouds.
This time, the first image that entered everyone's sight was a scene of devastation: broken walls and crumbling ruins, scorched earth and drifting smoke. Shattered ninja tools lay scattered among darkened, dried bloodstains.
It was the aftermath of a brutal battlefield.
"It's starting again!"
"Where is it this time? Which village's secrets are about to be exposed?"
"Judging by the scale of that battlefield, this wasn't small!"
Across the shinobi world, people held their breath and looked up.
Outside Orochimaru's Secret Base
Orochimaru, Kabuto Yakushi, and Karin had moved to a relatively open yet concealed spot outside the base. The three of them sat side by side like spectators at a grand performance.
"I wonder whose dirty secrets the Heavenly Screen is going to expose this time!" Karin swung her legs, brimming with anticipation.
Since her own secrets had already been revealed by the screen, she had developed a keen interest in watching others suffer the same fate.
Orochimaru's golden, slit-pupil eyes were fixed intently on the display. His long tongue slid across his lips, undisguised excitement and greed flashing across his face.
"I hope it provides more clues… about power. About its source."
"About this world… I still know far too little."
Each appearance of the Heavenly Screen was, to him, a priceless opportunity to gather information.
Kabuto maintained his gentle, modest smile, seated half a step behind Orochimaru. Hearing this, he softly agreed, "Based on the patterns of previous revelations, Orochimaru-sama, I believe your wish will be granted."
His gaze rested calmly on the screen, analytical as ever.
But in the very next moment—
The image abruptly shifted from the macro view of the battlefield ruins to an intimate, almost warm scene.
A modest but clean and cozy room.
Sunlight streamed gently through the window.
A simply dressed woman with an incomparably warm and kind smile bent slightly forward, placing her gentle hand atop the head of a white-haired child.
The child's back looked small. Reserved.
At the same time, a voice as tender as flowing water echoed from the screen—soothing, affectionate, capable of easing any wound.
"Good child, don't be afraid. From today onward, this will be your home."
Buzz—!
The instant that voice entered his ears, Kabuto—who had been calmly observing with his polite smile—was struck as if by lightning.
He froze.
The smile on his face shattered instantly. Behind his glasses, his pupils constricted sharply. His body began trembling uncontrollably.
An overwhelming surge of shock, disbelief, and emotions buried deep within his heart erupted like a volcano.
"D-Director…?"
The word forced its way out from deep within his throat, hoarse and trembling.
That voice. That figure—
He would never forget them.
Yakushi Nono.
The orphanage director he regarded as a mother. The only light and refuge of his life.
She was the source of all his warmth and kindness—
And the deepest, most untouchable pain and obsession within his heart.
Why… was the Heavenly Screen suddenly showing scenes of Director Nono?
Could it be… that even someone as purely kind as her was connected to some hidden truth worthy of exposure?
An ominous premonition mixed with confusion and surging emotion swallowed Kabuto whole.
He stared at the screen as though trying to engrave the image into his very soul, yet his body felt as cold as if he were falling into an abyss.
Karin was the first to react.
She turned her head in surprise, staring at Kabuto's pale face and trembling body. Pointing at the white-haired child's back on the screen, she blurted out:
"Hey, Kabuto! That white-haired kid… that's you, isn't it?!"
Her tone was filled with the excitement of discovering fresh entertainment.
"No way, no way! Don't tell me this time's main character is you?!"
Karin's thinking differed from Kabuto's—she was convinced he must be the protagonist of this reveal.
Orochimaru's golden eyes also shifted toward Kabuto, his expression turning distinctly peculiar.
He examined his usually calm and gentle subordinate from head to toe, countless thoughts flashing through his mind.
"So it truly is Kabuto…" Orochimaru mused internally, a hint of absurdity creeping in.
"First Uchiha Sasuke. Then Karin. And now Kabuto. Among the so-called 'protagonists' exposed by the Heavenly Screen so far, three of them have direct ties to me?"
The density was absurdly high.
Even Orochimaru found it difficult to dismiss. Did he possess some peculiar trait that attracted these "Heavenly Screen protagonists"?
The screen continued.
Through fragments of dialogue and narration, the information gradually became clear:
The gentle woman was named Yakushi Nono.
She was a medical-nin and the director of an orphanage in Konohagakure.
She had taken in numerous war orphans, providing them warmth and shelter—including that quiet, white-haired child.
"Again, it's Konoha!"
"Why is it always Konoha?!"
"That director seems like a good person. Don't tell me—even the head of an orphanage isn't safe in Konoha?"
Across the shinobi world, discussion erupted instantly.
Time and again, the Heavenly Screen had either exposed Konoha's darkness directly or revealed protagonists originating from Konoha.
Other villages and factions were beginning to view Konoha with growing suspicion, caution—and even morbid curiosity.
Someone shouted loudly:
"I'll bet anything! That kid named Kabuto is definitely this time's protagonist! And judging by the pattern, he'll end up shouting about 'destroying Konoha' too!"
Another person immediately chimed in, "No bet needed! It's obvious. I'm betting he was severely wronged by Konoha. Maybe that orphanage director was killed by them!"
"Isn't that obvious? I bet Danzo had that kind-hearted Director Nono eliminated. Then this Kabuto kid turns dark and joins some villain organization!"
The speculation gained widespread agreement.
After all, the logic was painfully smooth—
A kind guardian dies at the hands of darkness.
The sheltered child falls into darkness for revenge.
A classic descent-into-darkness narrative.
All across the shinobi world, theories ran wild. Almost everyone had already concluded that Kabuto was the next tragic protagonist—and that Konoha would once again be cast as the hidden culprit.
Within Konohagakure, however, a heavy silence hung in the air.
Though unwilling to admit it, reason told them the same thing.
Another dark chapter was likely about to be exposed.
Given the shadowy truths the Heavenly Screen had already revealed about their village, the chances that the kind Director Nono and the child Kabuto had suffered misfortune were painfully high.
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