The next morning.
Kaede stepped out of the bedroom and entered the living room.
Yuhi Kurenai was preparing breakfast. Noticing Kaede coming out, she was momentarily surprised and said, "Kaede? You're back?"
When outside, she and Rin usually addressed him as "Hokage-sama," but at home, they simply called him Kaede. He always felt it was odd to be called "Hokage-sama" in his own house.
"Mhm. Make an extra serving," Kaede replied, holding up one finger.
Kurenai smiled and turned back to continue preparing breakfast.
"Big brother?"
Kakashi yawned as he opened the door to his room. Seeing Kaede sitting on the sofa, he paused for a moment and asked, "When did you get back?"
"Last night," Kaede answered casually.
Kakashi looked at him and asked, "Did you finish dealing with Kirigakure?"
"Not yet," Kaede shook his head. "I'll be heading back after breakfast."
It had gotten a bit late after dealing with the Land of Earth, so he hadn't gone over. The situation in Kirigakure was still unresolved, there were the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and the peace negotiations to deal with.
Thinking of the Seven Swords, Kaede casually picked up the Kusanagi Sword by his side and tossed it to Kakashi.
Smack!
Kakashi caught it with slight surprise and looked at Kaede in confusion.
Lying lazily on the sofa with his arms spread, Kaede looked at Kakashi and said, "I'm giving that to you. I don't need it anymore."
The Truth-Seeking Ball sword was far superior to the Kusanagi. There was no point in infusing the Kusanagi with Senjutsu chakra or coating it with a Truth-Seeking Orb.
Kakashi paused, glancing between the sword in his hand and Kaede. With a hint of amazement, he asked, "Big brother, has your strength... risen another level?"
Kaede had once told him that if his strength rose again, the Kusanagi Sword would no longer be necessary.
Kaede smiled without answering.
He couldn't help but feel that every so often, Kaede's strength would make another leap. Meanwhile, though Kakashi had been training hard and steadily improving, the gap between them only widened. No matter how hard he worked, he couldn't seem to catch up.
It made him wonder if he was the fake little brother all along.
Kaede was only a year older than him.
At least in the past, he could still somewhat keep up. Now, even if he fought Kaede from two years ago, he wasn't confident he could win, let alone the current version of him.
"Oh, right. Kakashi… Obito is dead."
Kaede thought for a moment, then decided to share the news.
Kakashi, who had been inspecting the Kusanagi Sword, froze in place. He slowly looked up at Kaede. Rin, who had just come out from another room, also paused in her tracks.
Kaede glanced at Rin, then calmly recounted what had happened.
"…That's the gist of it," he concluded. "Obito left his Mangekyo Sharingan to me."
He placed a scroll containing Obito's sealed Mangekyo on the table and looked at Kakashi.
"I don't need this power anymore. Obito probably wanted you to use these eyes, to protect Rin and Konoha."
Kakashi and Rin both fell silent.
Kurenai quietly set the breakfast on the table without saying a word, not wanting to disturb them. She was aware of Obito's situation.
After a long silence, Kakashi stepped forward and picked up the scroll. His eyes showed a mix of emotions before he sighed and muttered, "That guy… always dumping everything on others. Damn bastard…"
Obito's Mangekyo wasn't just power, it was responsibility.
One he couldn't turn away from.
"I don't recommend using it right away," Kaede added, glancing at Kakashi. "You don't have Uchiha blood. Once transplanted, you won't be able to deactivate the Sharingan. That will be a huge strain on your body. My advice, either transplant one eye for now, or focus on increasing your chakra and cultivating a basic Sage Body first. Once that's done, then implant both eyes."
Kakashi froze.
Kaede wasn't wrong. In other words, Kakashi wasn't even strong enough to bear the power Obito left behind. And then there was Rin, now the Three-Tails' Jinchuriki.
Kakashi fell deep into thought.
Was he really a "genius"?
=============
In the end, Kakashi chose to delay transplanting Obito's Mangekyo. He would first increase his chakra level, train in Kaede's Senjutsu, and cultivate the Sage Body.
Only after reaching a point where he could withstand the power of both eyes would he proceed with the transplant, so he wouldn't end up a wreck.
For the next year,
Kakashi entered full-on training mode, but that's a story for another time.
After breakfast, Kaede gave some brief instructions, then stopped by the Hokage's office to check on Konan's work. Leaving a shadow clone to man the post, he sensed the Flying Thunder God seal he had left on Mei Terumi.
With a flick,
He activated Flying Thunder God and vanished.
=============
Kirigakure.
The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, wasn't dead.
Though he had survived, he was gravely injured, all his bones were broken, and he was completely immobile. Fortunately, the genjutsu that had been controlling him was finally dispelled.
After waking and understanding the situation, Yagura, as a Mizukage, quickly made a decision, he appointed Mei Terumi to temporarily take charge.
As one of Kirigakure's elite Jonin, Mei was already highly respected. With Yagura's endorsement, even the Anbu began following her orders.
She quickly restored order to the village.
However,
She was so busy she didn't finish working until the middle of the night. Exhausted, she returned to her room and fell asleep without even changing out of her clothes.
In a clean, tidy bedroom…
Mei Terumi slowly woke up.
Her consciousness returned, and she sat up, rubbing her temples.
"Seriously…"
She had worked late into the night, not just to stabilize Kirigakure, but also because she had been waiting for Kaede. He had said he would "stop by" to resolve things.
Yet she waited all night, and he never showed.
She shook her head.
Standing up, she glanced at her wrinkled and disheveled clothes, then quickly stripped them off to take a shower.
=============
A moment later,
She stepped out of the bathroom in fresh clothes.
A slight flush tinged her cheeks as she looked at Kaede sitting casually on the living room sofa.
"I'm ready," she said.
"Let's go, Hokage-sama."
=============
Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria