Because Konoha was being attacked from all sides by the various shinobi villages, the village had become noticeably more subdued.
People were anxious.
Everyone was worried about the front lines.
They desperately hoped for good news.
And feared receiving bad news.
Yet ever since the attacks began, Konoha had received almost nothing worth celebrating.
Then a new day arrived.
At noon, a piece of excellent news spread throughout the streets and alleys of Konoha.
“Great news!
Great news!”
“Last night, the Sand shinobi launched a night raid against Konoha’s camp!”
“Lord Orochimaru fought against the enemy’s Kage-level puppet master, Elder Chiyo!”
“And Konoha chūnin Yagami Yue seriously injured the Fourth Kazekage!”
“The Sand shinobi were defeated and forced to retreat!”
“More than three hundred enemy shinobi were killed!”
The villagers were stunned.
“We actually won a major victory?”
“The Fourth Kazekage was seriously injured?”
“Are you sure?”
“It really was a chūnin?”
“Who is this Yagami Yue?
How could a chūnin seriously injure the Fourth Kazekage?
Are you kidding?
That’s a powerhouse comparable to the Hokage!”
“Incredible!”
“Yagami Yue?
Isn’t that the guy called the Beast’s Blade?”
“Him?”
“When did he become this monstrous?”
“That’s ridiculous!”
One announcement completely ignited the enthusiasm of Konoha.
As the news spread from person to person, practically everyone in Konoha learned about it.
Even the Hyūga and Uchiha clans heard the news.
This time, Yagami Yue had truly become a hero of Konoha.
Konoha was currently surrounded by enemies from multiple shinobi villages and was in an extremely dangerous position.
It desperately needed a hero to raise everyone’s morale.
“Who exactly is this Yagami Yue?”
“What clan does he belong to?”
“I heard he’s the son of that missing-nin.”
“Missing-nin?
Who?”
“The traitor who leaked intelligence to the Sand shinobi three months ago.”
“Yoru Ichirō?”
“What?”
“I don’t believe it!”
“Neither do I!”
“How could someone like that be the son of a traitor?”
The villagers struggled to accept it. This story is hosted at g.com.
How could a hero of Konoha possibly be the son of a traitor?
It was absurd.
Yet while the villagers were discussing Yagami Yue, they failed to notice a woman returning home after buying groceries.
The moment she heard the news, tears welled up in her eyes and slowly rolled down her cheeks.
She was Yagami Yue’s mother.
After her husband died, Yagami Yue had become the pillar of her life.
Ever since Yue had gone to the battlefield, she had worried about him day and night.
For three months, she had received almost no news.
And now—
She had finally heard something.
Her son had become a hero of Konoha.
Carrying joy, pain, and resentment in her heart, she returned home.
But when she arrived, she saw a shinobi waiting outside.
He was holding a thick stack of letters.
“Auntie Maki, these are letters your son, Yagami Yue, sent to you.”
“He’s been extremely busy recently, so I forgot to deliver them to you earlier.”
The smile on the shinobi’s face was filled with insincerity.
It was obvious to anyone who had experienced enough of the world.
Yagami Yue’s mother immediately snatched the letters from him.
She closed the door without another word.
She didn’t even bother acknowledging the shinobi outside.
Then she opened the first letter.
April 3 — To Mother:
I have arrived at the forward outpost.
Life here is pretty good, and it’s safe.
There aren’t any Sand shinobi here, so don’t worry, Mother…
She opened the next one.
April 5 — To Mother:
The captain took me on a mission and we encountered Sand shinobi.
The captain was killed.
I wasn’t there at the time, so I didn’t encounter them.
I’m completely safe, so don’t worry.
I hope you stay healthy, Mother…
…
Then—
May 1:
I accomplished something important and was promoted to chūnin.
I’m very talented with the sword and even received a nickname.
I’ve also made many good friends.
Don’t worry about me.
I hope you stay healthy, Mother…
…
And finally—
June 1:
The war has stopped recently.
I’m completely safe.
Don’t worry.
As she continued reading, tears unknowingly filled her eyes.
They fell onto the paper.
She could almost see her son struggling to survive on the battlefield.
Yet he had been afraid to tell her about the dangers.
Every letter said the same thing.
Safe.
Safe.
Safe.
All so she wouldn’t worry.
But how could she not know how dangerous a battlefield was?
How many families had sent their sons to war, only for them never to return?
She quickly wiped away her tears.
A trace of resentment flashed through her eyes.
But she soon suppressed it.
“I’ll do my best too.”
Then she calmly began preparing lunch.
Everything continued as usual.
…
That day, quite a few villagers came to visit her.
They brought gifts.
Their sons were shinobi fighting on the front lines.
Those sons had written home and told their parents that Yagami Yue had saved their lives.
So those parents had come to personally thank Yue’s mother.
She warmly welcomed them.
Before long, she had become familiar with many of the villagers.
…
Hokage’s Office
Smoke filled every corner of the office.
This was the forty-eighth cigarette the Third Hokage had smoked in the past hour.
On his desk lay Yagami Yue’s updated profile, along with the report detailing the battle against the Fourth Kazekage.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was in a terrible mood.
His heart was filled with regret.
If he had known this would happen, he should never have taken his anger over Konoha’s White Fang out on Yoru Ichirō.
And he certainly should never have used Yoru Ichirō as a scapegoat and branded him a Konoha traitor.
If there were such a thing as a medicine for regret—
Hiruzen would probably have swallowed it without hesitation.
“I never expected Yagami Yue to grow this far.”
“That was the Fourth Kazekage!”
“And that technique…”
“What kind of ninjutsu was it?”
“How could its power be so terrifying?”
“Just how strong has he become?”
“After this battle, it will be difficult for me to do anything to him.”
Yagami Yue’s growth was simply too fast.
He hadn’t even been given enough time to react.
This was extremely troublesome.
And Hiruzen deeply regretted the choice he had made back then.
If it hadn’t been for his son, Asuma Sarutobi—
He wouldn’t have needed to…