[Konoha, Year 50]
Minato, who had still been clinging to a sliver of hope, now understood completely.
It wasn't losing the ability to serve—it was death.
The Sky Screen had made it blatantly clear: he would die in the Nine-Tails Incident, which would indirectly lead to the Kumogakure negotiations, the Uchiha massacre, and other events.
Minato took a deep breath and told himself not to panic. Perhaps the Sky Screen would later reveal who the enemy was.
Based on his deductions, the enemy had specifically chosen the time of Kushina's childbirth, which meant they clearly lacked sufficient strength and had to rely on the Nine-Tails to throw Konoha into chaos.
Now, there was still time!
All he needed to do was prepare.
Minato firmly believed that as long as he survived, the subsequent Kumogakure negotiations, the Uchiha massacre, and other such events would never happen.
---
[Konoha, Year 60]
The elderly Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, listening to the Sky Screen's criticism of him. A bitter smile appeared on his aged face.
"Forget it…" he muttered to himself.
"I can't blame anyone for this. It really was my fault."
After all, at that time, the civilians needed protection, the children needed protection, and Konoha's future needed protection.
And an aging Hokage… perhaps it truly was time for him to leave the stage.
He remembered that day—when Hizashi had walked calmly into the Hokage office and said, "I am willing to die in my brother's place." At that moment, what Hiruzen felt wasn't relief, but a deep sense of powerlessness.
As Hokage, he couldn't protect his own people—and had to rely on someone's life to resolve a diplomatic crisis.
The office door was pushed open, and Danzo walked in, leaning on a cane.
His face bore a look of undisguised mockery.
"See that, Hiruzen? Even the Sky Screen said it—if you had been a bit tougher back then, Kumogakure wouldn't have dared to act! But you chose compromise, trading Hizashi's life for temporary peace—and what was the result? What did you get? You got everyone's alienation, and no one came to save you when you died!"
Hiruzen didn't argue. He simply looked calmly at Danzō and then said:
"You're right, Danzō. On that matter, I did handle it incorrectly."
Danzō froze. He hadn't expected Hiruzen to admit his mistake so readily. The rest of the criticisms he had prepared suddenly got stuck in his throat.
"But do you know, Danzo?"
Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and slowly exhaled the smoke.
"Even if I had to do it all over again—at that point in time, faced with the mess left by the Nine-Tails Incident and a covetous Kumogakure… I would still make the same choice."
"I am the Hokage. The Hokage's first duty is to ensure the village's safety. And at that time, the risk of going to war was simply too great."
There was no right answer to this matter. As Hokage, one could only choose between bad and worse.
'Danzō… You've always wanted to be Hokage. But are you prepared?'
'Prepared to make the choices that will keep you awake at night?'
'Prepared to bear the responsibilities that will make your name cursed by future generations?'
But in the end, Hiruzen didn't say any of that to Danzō.
---
[Same timeline, in the forest outside Konoha]
Hyūga Neji sat under a large tree, leaning against the trunk, looking up at the Sky Screen.
When he saw the scene of his father calmly walking to his death, his body began to tremble violently.
Neji would never forget that day. His father had gone to die in his uncle's place. To die for the Hyūga Main House, and to die for the Hokage's compromised decision.
"Caged Bird…"
Neji whispered the words, his fingers unconsciously touching his forehead.
"Father…"
Tears streamed down Neji's face, but he made no sound. He bit his lip hard, not caring even as he drew blood.
Just then, a large hand suddenly landed on his head.
Neji looked up and saw Might Guy crouching in front of him. His always-hot-blooded Jonin instructor wore an unusually gentle expression on his face at that moment.
"Neji."
Guy's voice was soft.
"I know you're in pain right now. I know you're angry."
Neji turned his head away, not wanting Guy to see him crying. But Guy's hand didn't move away; he simply gently ruffled Neji's hair.
Guy continued, "You want to hate—hate Kumogakure, hate the Hokage, hate the Hyūga Main House, even hate this unfair world. That's normal."
Neji's body went rigid. He had never expected Guy to say something like that.
"But Neji…"
"Hate won't change anything. Your father is dead, that's a fact. But how you live in the future—that depends on the choices you make."
Neji finally turned his head to look at Guy, his eyes red.
"Guy-sensei, Do I even have a choice?! I'm from the Branch House; from the moment I was born, I was destined to live and die to protect the Main House! Just like my father!"
"No."
Guy firmly shook his head.
"No one is destined to be anything. My father was just a Genin, he never made it to Chunin his whole life. In the end, he died protecting his people. In many people's eyes, his life was a failure. But to me, he was the greatest Shinobi."
He gripped Neji's shoulders, looking the boy straight in the eye.
"Neji, your destiny is not determined by your birth, nor by the curse mark on your forehead. Your destiny is determined by the choices you make. You can choose to resent, or you can choose to surpass."
"You can choose to be bound by the Caged Bird for life, or you can choose—even with the Caged Bird—to fly higher than anyone else."
Neji was stunned. Looking at Guy, at those eyes burning with fire, he suddenly felt something in his chest loosening.
"Guy-sensei…"
Neji's voice trembled.
"I'll teach you," Guy said, flashing his signature wide grin.
"I'll teach you Taijutsu. I'll teach you the Eight Gates. I'll teach you how to become so strong that you can protect the people you want to protect—instead of being forced to protect people you don't want to."
He stood up and extended his hand to Neji.
"But the prerequisite is that you have to choose it yourself. Choose to break free. Choose to fly. Are you willing, Neji?"
Neji looked at Guy's outstretched hand, at those sincere eyes. He thought of the images on the Sky Screen of his father walking to his death, of his father's final smile, of the oppressive life he had lived all these years in the Hyūga Branch House.
Then, he reached out and took Guy's hand.
Guy pulled Neji to his feet with a firm tug, then gave a thumbs-up, his teeth flashing with a gleam of light.
"Alright! Then we start today! Five hundred laps around Konoha! If you can't do it, then two thousand push-ups!"
Neji: "...."
But he didn't complain, he simply nodded and began to run.
---
[Somewhere in a future timeline]
A blond-haired boy pointed at the Sky Screen and shouted loudly:
"Is this what Mom looked like when she was little? She's so cute!"