In truth, Kaito's body was only twenty years old. That wasn't really old at all.
But in the eyes of Kakashi and the others, Kaito was someone from the same generation as the Fourth Hokage. By that reckoning, his age should have been close to forty. And yet, his face looked as if he hadn't even reached twenty.
They were genuinely curious what exactly Kaito had been doing all these years. After all, he didn't know Tsunade's Strength of a Hundred Seal. So how had he managed to remain "ageless"?
In Kakashi's mind, one person came to the forefront—Orochimaru.
Before Orochimaru left Konoha, Kaito had been very close to him. During the period Kaito disappeared, it was highly likely that he had been with Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's repertoire of jutsu was vast and varied. Though his age was not young, he still looked far younger than Jiraiya, who was also one of the Legendary Sannin. Maybe Kaito had learned something from him?
Kakashi's analytical ability was, without doubt, sharp. At the very least, he correctly guessed who Kaito had been with during his disappearance.
But he was wrong about Kaito's secret of not aging.
Because Kaito's body had evolved into that of an Ōtsutsuki, and with the presence of the special Ten Tails within him, he had already gained eternal life. Physical aging simply no longer applied to him.
Kakashi, of course, didn't know any of this. Thinking that Kaito might be aligned with Orochimaru, his expression darkened as he asked,
"Kaito-senpai, where have you been all these years? Could it be… you were with Orochimaru?"
"More or less. He did help me out quite a bit."
"Then you and him…"
Kakashi trailed off. Orochimaru was a bona fide rogue ninja. If Kaito was connected to him, Kakashi genuinely didn't know how to respond.
"Hmm?"
Kaito narrowed his eyes and said,
"Kakashi, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Sensing the tense atmosphere from the doorway, Naruto quickly hurried in, carrying Sasuke on his back.
"Kakashi-sensei! Orochimaru's already been handled by Kaito-senpai. He's hanging at his waist right now!"
"Nani?"
Kakashi immediately looked toward Kaito's waist—and sure enough, there was a small white snake, the form Orochimaru had taken.
Orochimaru raised his head and shot Kakashi a disdainful glare, full of contempt.
Sakura, who followed Naruto inside, confirmed Naruto's words.
But before Kakashi could fully process the situation with Orochimaru, his eyes shifted to Sasuke lying limp on Naruto's back.
This time, he completely lost his composure. He jumped up from the bed with such speed that no one would have thought he was an "injured man."
Naruto carefully laid Sasuke down on the bed, shaking his body, trying to wake him up.
But no matter how much he shook him, Sasuke showed no signs of regaining consciousness. Kakashi couldn't hold back his worry and asked,
"What happened to Sasuke?"
Naruto glanced at Kaito and said,
"Kaito-senpai knocked him out…"
The moment he said this, everyone's eyes turned toward Kaito. Kaito, however, looked utterly indifferent. Kakashi was about to press for more details when Sai suddenly entered the ward.
Naruto's face lit up with joy.
"Sai? You came too?"
But Sai didn't have his usual smile. His expression was complicated as he glanced at Naruto, then shifted his gaze toward Kaito, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Kaito's eyes were on him too, making Sai feel an overwhelming discomfort, as if every layer of himself had been stripped bare.
Though Kaito hadn't activated his Mangekyō, Sai still felt as if he had been completely seen through.
After a brief silence, Kaito suddenly stepped forward, standing before Sai. His tone was calm as he said,
"Stick out your tongue."
Kaito's voice carried an almost hypnotic force. Sai froze for a moment, then truly extended his tongue—revealing the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal.
But doing so also triggered the curse itself. An intense wave of paralysis instantly surged through his body.
This time, the Curse Seal's backlash was far stronger than when Danzō had deliberately activated it. Sai collapsed to the floor, convulsing in agony, his life force fading rapidly.
Everyone was shocked.
"Naruto shouted urgently, "Sakura! Help him!"
Sakura had been frozen in place, but Naruto's cry snapped her out of it. She rushed to Sai's side, crouched, and began examining him.
But as she did, her expression darkened further and further. Rising slowly to her feet, her voice was heavy as she declared,
"Sai's body has already been destroyed by chakra. There's nothing I can do."
That was practically a death sentence. After all, Sakura's teacher was Tsunade herself. In terms of medical skill, she likely surpassed every doctor in the hospital. If she said it was hopeless, then it truly was hopeless.
Ino asked hesitantly,
"Sakura, what if Tsunade-sama were here…"
"Even Tsunade-sama couldn't save him. He doesn't have much time left."
With that, silence fell over everyone. None of them had expected something like this. A living person's life had been cut short, just like that.
Only Naruto refused to give up hope. His eyes turned toward Kaito, filled with desperate expectation. To him, as long as Kaito-senpai hadn't spoken, there was still a chance!
He rushed to Kaito, and to everyone's astonishment, dropped to his knees and pleaded,
"Kaito-senpai! Please save Sai!"
With a casual wave, Kaito used an invisible force to lift Naruto back up. Naruto tried to kneel again, but Kaito shot him a sharp glare.
"Enough! Stop throwing yourself at other people's feet. Got it?"
Naruto's action had reminded Kaito of that moment in the anime when Naruto knelt before the Raikage. Even then, he had found it infuriating—because in his eyes, the Raikage wasn't worthy of such respect.
Naruto, not understanding Kaito's true meaning, froze in fear for a moment before nodding blankly. Whether he truly understood was another matter.
Kaito sighed helplessly, then crouched down, pressing his hand against Sai's chest. He infused him with Yang Release chakra.
Everyone watched in confusion. But Sakura suddenly recalled the time Kaito had saved Naruto. Back then, Naruto had been in critical condition, yet with just one press of Kaito's hand, he had recovered instantly.
Though Sai's condition was even worse than Naruto's had been, Sakura had a strange certainty—Kaito could really save him!
And sure enough, her feeling proved correct.
The moment Kaito lifted his hand away, Sai's eyes snapped open, and he sat bolt upright, looking for all the world like someone rising from the dead.
Ignoring the stunned gazes all around him, Kaito looked at Sai, who was still dazed, and said flatly,
"Alright. Now tell me—what did Danzō send you here to do?"