The fog lingered the next morning.
It clung to the trees like breath to a cold mirror, thick and silver, blurring the boundary between dream and daylight. Even Kuro, ever alert, walked low and quiet, nose twitching anxiously.
Takeshi stood at the edge of the camp with arms crossed, watching the treetops shift.
"That ambush wasn't a coincidence," he said.
None of them argued.
"They weren't after the carpenter. They were testing you."
He turned to Kaito.
Kaito's expression didn't change, but the wind stirred faintly behind his shoulders.
Rei was the first to speak. "So, what—you think someone sent those guys just to mess with Kaito?"
"No," Takeshi said simply. "Someone sent them to confirm something. And now they have their answer."
Hinata pulled her cloak tighter. "Is it his chakra?"
"No," Kaito said.
They looked at him.
"It's not chakra."
Takeshi nodded slightly. "We'll complete the mission. Then I'm taking this to the Hokage."
"But if this goes high up—" Rei started.
"It already has," Takeshi said. "We're just catching up."
The rest of the journey passed without incident, but the sense of being watched never left them.
When they finally reached the river village, the carpenter thanked them profusely, pressing extra coin into Rei's reluctant hands.
"Stay safe," the man said, bowing. "And watch the water."
Rei blinked. "Huh?"
But the man was already walking away.
They rested in a small inn by the lakeside. Takeshi said little during the meal. Kaito stared into his bowl without eating.
Hinata excused herself early.
Rei leaned back with a sigh. "Can I just say—this is the least relaxing mission we've ever had."
Kaito looked up. "It's our only mission so far."
"Still," Rei muttered. "Between the stitched-mouth creeps and you blasting people with invisible wind, I feel like I missed the sign that said 'Welcome to Level 50 Shinobi Problems.'"
Kaito didn't smile. But there was less weight in his silence now.
That night, something changed.
Kaito dreamt.
He stood on an endless surface of black water.
No sky. No moon. No wind.
Just silence.
Then—ripples.
Something rose from the water ahead of him.
A mirror.
But instead of his reflection, the glass showed another version of him.
Same face. Same eyes.
But colder.
Eyes crackling with silver lightning. A storm in human form.
The mirror-self smiled.
"You're almost ready."
Kaito stepped back. "Who are you?"
The reflection tilted its head. "You."
Then the mirror shattered.
And the water beneath him turned into a spiral of clouds, sucking him down into nothingness.
Kaito awoke with a sharp gasp, drenched in sweat.
Outside, the lake rippled. No wind.
But something moved beneath the surface.
A shape. A flicker.
Two glowing eyes staring up from the water.
And then—gone.
The next morning, Takeshi called them to the lakeshore.
"I've been informed," he said, "that your mission performance has been reviewed. The Hokage is moving you off D-rank rotation."
Rei's eyes lit up. "Wait, wait—are you serious?"
"Your next mission is B-rank."
Hinata's breath caught. "That's… advanced."
"You'll be supporting a Leaf team investigating disappearances near the ancient shrine in the eastern cliffs."
Rei was already bouncing in place. "Finally! Something cool!"
Takeshi held up a hand.
"This won't be a field trip. The last team that went missing included a jonin. We're not just dealing with enemy shinobi. Something older may be involved."
His eyes flicked toward Kaito.
"Something watching."
Kaito didn't speak.
But deep within him, he could still feel the ripple of the dream.
And the voice that whispered:
You're almost ready.