Chapter 176: Whispers in White
-23 months earlier –
The scent of disinfectant hovered like an invisible veil in the room.The light filtering through the window was pale, muddied by the morning fog. The sky above Kirigakure never really changed. It was always the same: gray, liquid, suspended.
Ren lay in a hospital bed, his chest wrapped in bandages, one arm in a sling, the other resting limply atop the sheet. His eyes were open, fixed on the ceiling. He hadn't spoken for several minutes.
The room was silent, save for the soft drip of the IV and the low hum of a monitor.
Ao sat in a chair beside the bed. Arms crossed, expression unreadable. He watched the boy with eyes that shifted between compassion and scrutiny.
"Ren, your mother's worried. She says you seem distant, like a stranger. I told her it's the trauma for now. But tell me what happened — the truth."
I'm sorry, but i have fragmented memory... i could explain this to Ao avoiding meaningless suspicious?
Finally, Ren spoke. His voice was hoarse, worn down by fever and days of silence.
"I feel… like I'm two different people."
Ao didn't reply immediately.
Ren squinted slightly."Like I lived something… that I don't remember. But it's there. Inside me."
Naruto… he thought. Was that his name? Is it mine? Is it… in the past? Why do I remember things I shouldn't know?
He shook his head slightly. Pain made him stop.
Ao leaned forward, raising an eyebrow."Kid, are you delirious from the fever?"
Ren gave a faint smile."Maybe. Or maybe not."
I don't know if I can trust Ao, but from what I remember, he was the one who discovered Yagura was under Obito's control. And he was also a valuable aide to Mei.
A long silence followed.
Then Ren turned serious again.
"Ao-san… can I ask you something?"
"Speak."
"During the exam…" Ren said slowly. "That ANBU. The one who… tortured me. He wasn't acting alone."
Ao clenched his jaw slightly.
"He said it was under orders. From the Mizukage. But I doubt that…"
Ao folded his arms."Are you trying to accuse someone?"
Ren shook his head."No. I want you to think."
A short pause.Then, more quietly:
"What if the one who gave the order… had been manipulated?"
Ao didn't move.
"Manipulated how?"
Ren slowly turned his gaze toward him.
"High-level Genjutsu."
The silence deepened. Even the IV's dripping seemed to stop.
"And who do you think could've done that?" Ao asked, voice lower now.
Ren didn't answer. Not directly.
Though I need to understand what really happened to me, I have to choose my words carefully.
"I don't have proof. But you… you have a tool. One that might see it, if it's still active."
Ao slowly lowered his chin.
"My Byakugan."
Ren nodded.
"If there really is someone… under illusion… they might not even know it themselves. But you would. You can see if something's wrong."
Ao stood. He turned toward the window.The fog was still there — as thick as ever.
His voice became clearer, more direct.
"Let's say you're right. Let's say someone… is acting from within."
A moment.Then he turned back to Ren.
"Then you'd be more important than you seem."
Ren closed his eyes for a second.
Or maybe… I already was.
Ao sat down again.
His gaze had changed.
It was no longer that of a soldier visiting the wounded.It was the look of a man beginning to suspect something he didn't want to believe.
"You… you're just a kid," he said slowly. "You've always been known for your maturity despite your age, but you talk like someone who's seen far more than he should. As if… you know how these dynamics work. From the inside."
Ren opened his eyes.The ceiling was still there.
I'm sorry, Ao. That's the most I can give you right now.
"I don't know," he said.
Ao stared at him.
Ren wasn't lying.But he wasn't telling everything either.
"You mentioned high-level Genjutsu," Ao continued. "Do you know how many shinobi — even veterans — can actually identify them? Almost none."
Ren nodded, without looking at him.
"That's why you're the only one who can."
Ao pressed his lips together. His Byakugan was powerful. He knew it. Everyone knew it.
But to use it against someone inside the village? To investigate… who? A council member? A trusted aide of the Mizukage? The Mizukage himself?
It was dangerous. Uncomfortable. Deadly.
And yet…
"You want me to doubt the entire chain of command — for a hunch?" he asked at last.
Ren turned to look at him. There was firmness in his eyes. But also weight. Like he understood what he was asking.
"No. Not for me. For Kirigakure."
If I'm in this village now, there must be a reason. Maybe I can change the past.
Ao remained silent for several seconds.
For now, don't speak of this to anyone.
Then he stood. Turned toward the door.
"Heal. Quickly."
He took two steps, then stopped.
Without turning, he said:
"If you're right… I'll know."
And left.
Ren remained alone in the room.
Silence fell again, like a curtain dropped too suddenly.
But in his eyes, for the first time——a spark lit.
[ I was wondering, that sometimes in all novel everything goes smooth, but what if some Handicap appear? What if a novel doesn't follow the normal logic? My goal, as always is to find new path to write, i hope you are enjoing it althought lately i'm releasing fewer chapters :)
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