With the mysterious statue safely wrapped, Kakashi headed back to the bandit camp. As he approached the camp, he was met with a desolate and haunting scene.

The floodwaters had drained away, leaving behind a gruesome sight: headless bodies scattered everywhere, like fish washed up on the shore.

He let out a deep sigh.

Even though the immediate danger had passed, he couldn't just leave these bizarre bodies for innocent civilians to stumble upon.

Cleaning up was an essential part of any mission, no matter how gruesome.

The severed head they'd used to treat Yuma's injury would be enough for study. The rest of these monstrous bodies needed to be disposed of, right away.

He set the statue down and began gathering the scattered remains.

It was a slow and tiring process, but he worked steadily, piling the bodies and their severed heads into a massive, towering bonfire that seemed to stretch up to the darkening sky.

Once the last body was in place, he formed a series of hand seals, channeling his chakra.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

A blast of flames erupted from his lips, engulfing the pile of corpses in a raging inferno.

As the fire crackled and roared, he retrieved the wrapped statue, his gaze fixed on the flames.

The mission had left its mark, draining him both physically and mentally.

Securing the statue felt empty, considering the missing-nin had escaped, and he'd been powerless to save his fellow Konoha ninja from its control.

Now, all nine Kiri Anbu were likely under the same dark influence that had consumed their quarry.

What drove them now? What terrors would they unleash?

And what was this Cthulhu, anyway?

Lost in thought, Kakashi almost missed the funeral pyre burning out, leaving only ashes of the fallen.

With one last glance at the scorched earth, he turned and disappeared into the trees, the statue feeling strangely heavy on his back.

----------

Unbeknownst to Kakashi, his departure didn't go unnoticed.

High in a nearby tree, two figures watched in silence.

"Check it out," one of them said, holding up a severed head that matched their own pale features. "It's your cousin, Zetsu!"

The other figure swatted at the grisly trophy, unamused. "Hardly. If anything, it's your side of the family tree. I'm the good-looking one, remember?"

The head's bearer caught it before it could fall, cradling it with mock-offended look. "Hey, watch it! This is a valuable research sample. No roughhousing with the goods!"

"Why bother taking it in the first place? What if that Hatake kid notices he's one head short? We can't afford to tip our hand, not yet."

The first figure shrugged. "Call it professional curiosity. Besides, Obito's gonna want to see this. Might even crack a smile for once, the miserable bastard."

His companion nodded in agreement. "You're right. Too bad about the statue, though. That would've been awesome to bring back."

The moon cast its glow through the trees, illuminating the figures as they stood there, identical in every way.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Win some, lose some," Zetsu said with a shrug, tucking the severed head under his arm like a trophy. "Let's get out of here. This place is dead."

He turned to leave, but paused, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "Oh, by the way... there's a spider on your shoulder."

The other's eyes went wide with alarm, frantically brushing at his pale skin. "What? Where?! Damn it, Zetsu, you know I hate those creepy little... Wait a second. There's no spider, is there?"

Zetsu burst out laughing, already leaping through the treetops. "Oh man, your face! I can't believe you fell for that again!"

"You prick!" his companion cursed, giving chase. "Just wait till I get my hands on you!"

Their bickering faded into the night, leaving the forest silent once again.

----------

The Third Hokage stood on a platform, addressing the new students of the Ninja Academy.

"Congratulations, everyone, on your acceptance! I hope you'll all work hard to become exceptional ninjas and dedicate yourselves to your studies."

The entrance ceremony was in full swing, just a day after the previous class had graduated.

The village needed new blood badly, especially after the recent war.

But despite his inspiring words, the young students' attention wandered.

They were more interested in sneaking peeks at their future classmates than listening to the familiar speech.

Kagami was no exception. He scanned the crowd, recognizing the clan affiliations - Inuzuka, Akimichi, Hyuga. But most of the kids, like him, came from ordinary families.

To his right stood a girl with long, dark hair. She was smiling and waving at someone in the second row.

Following her gaze, he spotted a familiar face - Itachi.

"Ah, that must be Izumi," he thought, remembering the rumors about her close friendship with the talented Uchiha heir.

As the Hokage's speech finally ended, Kagami looked back at the crowd of departing parents. Among the adults, his brother figure caught his eye.

Though he couldn't hear the words, he could read the encouragement on his brother's lips: "You got this."

With a smile and a nod, Kagami silently promised himself he'd make his brother proud.

----------

Instructor Daiko led the class to the training field, where they'd learn to work together and hone their skills.

"Some of you may have already started learning ninjutsu at home, but here at the Academy, you'll be working as a team. Remember, a strong foundation is key. Give it your all!"

The students lined up, eager to show off their skills with the provided shuriken and kunai.

Most started with the shuriken, but a few, like those from established shinobi clans, went straight for the kunai, their prior training obvious.

Itachi was one of them. With a smooth motion, he launched four kunais, each one hitting the bullseye dead center.

The loud thud of metal on wood drew gasps of amazement from the onlookers.

"Wow, did you see that?"

"He's incredible!"

Kaigo, a boy with spiky hair and a small sickle strapped to his back, scowled beside him.

He had been hoping to wow his classmates with his own skills, but it seemed that wasn't going to happen.

But compared to Itachi's flawless performance, his own scattered kunais looked clumsy.

Kagami, on the other hand, hadn't made a single throw yet. It wasn't because he wasn't trying - he just had no idea how to hold the unfamiliar weapons.

Despite his brother being a ninja, he had never learned the basics of ninjutsu.

His brother had always put it off, saying he needed to focus on recovering from his illness.

As a result, he was a complete beginner, not even knowing his family's signature Konoha-style kenjutsu.

Kagami suspected that his brother had been hesitant to teach him because he wanted to keep him out of the shinobi life.

The worry in Hayate's eyes when he saw his name on the Academy roster said it all.

It made sense. As a ninja, death was always a possibility. The Nine-Tails attack had driven that point home.

Civilians could flee to safety, but shinobi had to rush towards danger.

But for now, Kagami had a more pressing problem. How was he supposed to throw these shurikens?

"First time handling one of those?" a girl asked, interrupting his thoughts.

He turned to see a classmate smiling at him. She had short, brown hair and wore a bright red jacket with white fur trim.

But what really caught his attention were the twin red fang markings on her cheeks, a clear sign she was an Inuzuka.

"Yeah," Kagami admitted sheepishly. "I have no idea what I'm doing."

"Let me show you," she said, demonstrating the proper grip. "You want to hold it like this, keeping your fingers clear of the sharp edges."

Then, sent the shuriken flying. It hit the target with a loud thud, sticking point-first in the center circle.

He mimicked her stance and took aim. To his surprise, his own shuriken flew straight, hitting the bullseye.

The girl grinned. "Nice one! You're a natural!"

Feeling more confident, he reached for another shuriken. And another. Each throw was just as accurate as the first.

Daiko stopped by Kagami's target, nodding in approval at the tight grouping, before moving on to the next student.

He seemed satisfied that Kagami didn't need any more instruction.

"I'm Inuzuka Hana, by the way," the girl said, turning back to Kagami. "And you are?"

"I'm Gekko Kagami. Nice to meet you," he replied.

Hana's eyes widened in recognition. "Ah, that explains it! No wonder you picked it up so quickly. Guess it runs in the family, huh?"

He smiled, choosing not to mention his brother's reluctance to teach him ninja skills.

A few minutes later, Daiko called the class to order.

"Alright, everyone, gather around! Next up, we're doing some basic sparring. I want to see your combat skills. When I call your name, step forward."

The students clustered around their teacher, an excited murmur running through the group.

"First pair: Uchiha Itachi and Inuzuka Hana!" Daiko announced.

Hana grinned as she made her way to the front, clearly eager to test herself against the acclaimed Uchiha prodigy.