The sea was calm, and the bridge stretched like a ribbon of stone across the waves. Two years had passed since Gato's corpse had sunk into the dark water, and Wave Country had changed so much that old fishermen joked they barely recognized their own harbor.
Stalls lined the main square, bright with cloth awnings. Children ran through streets that had once echoed with boots and whips. Merchants unloaded cargo from ships without the shadow of extortion hanging over them. The smell of grilled fish and warm rice had returned, not the stink of rot and fear.
And everywhere, the presence of the Eclipse Order was felt.
Men and women in black uniforms patrolled openly, swords at their hips, heads high. They weren't thugs—they moved in disciplined pairs, boots in rhythm, eyes sweeping like true soldiers. When they passed, villagers nodded in respect. Some whispered blessings. Others gave nervous glances, remembering that these guards answered not to the daimyo, not to a distant Kage, but to the Order itself.
At the center of it all was the figure people recognized most: a tall man with snow-white hair and a blindfold tilted across his face. He strolled the streets with his hands in his pockets, humming cheerfully, often buying dango from vendors and chatting idly with children. To Wave, he was the "protector," the man who had stood against the Nine-Tails itself and laughed.
Gojo Satoru. The face of the Eclipse Order.
Behind him, less seen but no less feared, was Zabuza. The Demon of the Mist no longer needed to hide in fog or prowl like an outlaw. When Eclipse soldiers drilled, Zabuza walked the line, massive cleaver resting on his shoulder, his stare alone enough to silence a recruit's trembling. Villagers who had once prayed never to see him now whispered that his presence meant no bandit dared step foot on their shores.
Then there was Haku—polite, soft-spoken, moving with grace through markets and council meetings alike. To merchants, he was the diplomat who listened. To emissaries, he was the polite face of Eclipse who made sure treaties were signed and goods moved safely. No one doubted his loyalty to Zabuza. Few suspected the steel hidden behind his smile.
And somewhere in the taverns and training fields, when the sun was highest, a quiet, golden-haired man turned recruits into soldiers. Escanor. To villagers, he was nothing but a gentle tavern keeper who served wine at night. To Eclipse soldiers, he was the "Lion General" whose drills left them broken, reshaped, and stronger than they had ever believed possible.
Above them all, though the world rarely saw it, stood Ren.
He was no longer the trembling child who had hidden during the Uchiha purge. At ten years old, his eyes burned with the steady fire of the Sharingan, three tomoe spinning whenever he called them forth. He had trained under Gojo's cursed energy lessons, refined his body under Zabuza's merciless drills, and learned to weave fire magic into the Uchiha clan's Fire Style until his flames moved like threads of his own will.
When he stood in Eclipse headquarters, soldiers saluted him as Gojo's heir. When he stood before his inner circle, none doubted he was their true master.
The Eclipse Order had become more than a rumor. It was a power, recognized and feared.
The day the Mist emissaries arrived, the harbor was alive with banners and salt wind. A delegation stepped off a sleek vessel, armored shinobi at their flanks.
"Kirigakure extends its hand," their leader announced, presenting a scroll with Mei Terumi's seal. "Wave's prosperity benefits the seas. Mizukage-sama recognizes Eclipse Order's role in maintaining stability."
Merchants cheered, seeing another sign that Wave's future was secure. Soldiers straightened, proud. Ren, standing beside Gojo in the crowd, narrowed his eyes. Mei was clever. By acknowledging them openly, she made Eclipse Order's shadow into Mist's shield.
Then it happened.
A scuffle broke out at the docks—bandits trying to slip through during the celebration. Soldiers moved to intercept, but before they reached, Haku stepped forward. His hands blurred through seals, and a lattice of glistening ice needles formed in the air before shattering into the ground at the intruders' feet.
The bandits froze, pale with terror, before surrendering.
The emissaries froze, too, but for a different reason. Their whispers cut sharp through the salt wind.
"Hyōton…"
"Ice Release. The Yuki clan…"
Ao's Byakugan would have confirmed it, but even without him, they knew. The kekkei genkai of the Yuki, a bloodline they had believed extinguished, had just manifested on Wave's shores—and not under their control.
Haku bowed politely, returning to Zabuza's side. Villagers cheered. The emissaries' eyes were harder to read, but Ren caught the flicker of realization there.
They would carry this back to Mei.
In Kirigakure, days later, Mei Terumi read the report with calm, practiced eyes. Ao stood stiffly at her side, his Byakugan eye glowing faintly beneath his patch.
"A survivor of the Yuki clan," Mei murmured. "So the bloodline lives after all."
Chōjūrō shifted nervously beside her. "Mizukage-sama, should we demand his return? He belongs to Kirigakure."
Mei leaned back, tapping her nails lightly against the desk. "Belongs? To who? The village who hunted his clan to extinction? The village that turned bloodlines into scapegoats?"
Chōjūrō flinched, but Mei's tone remained smooth.
"No. We will not drag a child back in chains. The Eclipse Order would resist, and Wave would burn. That would serve no one."
Ao frowned. "Then we do nothing?"
Mei's lips curved faintly. "We do politics. We let the world believe Wave is under Mist's wing. If Eclipse Order guards their docks, then it is Kirigakure's prestige that grows in trade negotiations. Let the boy keep his loyalty where he wills. His existence strengthens us simply by being seen."
She rolled the parchment closed. "For now, Wave is a jewel the sea has delivered into our hands, and I will not drop it."
Ao bowed, silent. Chōjūrō swallowed, unsure, but said nothing.
Mei turned her gaze to the misty horizon beyond her window, and for a moment, her eyes softened. "A Yuki lives," she whispered, too quiet for the others to hear.
Back in Eclipse headquarters, the inner circle gathered around a heavy table.
"They're using us," Zabuza growled, arms crossed. "Mist is telling the world Wave belongs to them."
Gojo leaned lazily in his chair, blindfold tilted. "I mean, let's be honest, people were going to think that anyway. You, Mist rogue. Haku, Mist bloodline. Mist ships at our docks. It's the easy story."
Escanor sat quietly, pouring tea, his presence warm even in silence. When he finally spoke, his voice carried the calm weight of noon. "Legitimacy is often more dangerous than blades. If Mist grants you recognition, the other villages must treat you as real. That is a weapon, too."
Ren tapped the table, crimson eyes steady. "Exactly. Let Mei claim prestige. Let her tell the world Wave is under her shadow. In truth, Wave answers to us. And if the world thinks we are Mist's guard dogs, then they will not see the leash we hold around their throats."
Gojo whistled low. "Cold, Boss. I like it."
Haku's gaze dropped, his expression troubled. "If they claim me as Mist's, then one day they will expect me to act in their name."
Ren turned to him, voice softer but no less firm. "And you will. On the surface. You will wear their headband when it suits us. You will walk into their halls and speak with their voice. But your loyalty remains here. Eclipse Order is your home."
Haku bowed his head, the weight in his chest easing. "Always."
Ren's tomoe spun once, reflecting firelight. "Good. Then the next stage is set. The world may think we are Wave's guard, Mist's shadow, or Gojo's show. But the truth is simpler. We are the chain that will bind them all."
The room was quiet, save for the crackle of the brazier. Even Gojo didn't joke.
That night, Ren walked with Haku along the finished bridge. Lanterns swayed in the breeze, their light dancing on the water below.
"The Mist saw your power," Ren said. "They will never forget it. That means you have a role to play. One day, you'll enter Konoha not as Eclipse, but as Mist. They will open their gates to you because of your bloodline, and through you, Eclipse will see everything inside."
Haku stopped, staring at the boy beside him—the boy with the eyes of a man, the boy who carried himself like a leader older than any daimyo. "And you, Ren-sama?"
Ren's lips curved faintly. "I'll be watching from the shadows. Always."
The wind carried the sound of waves against stone. Behind them, Wave slept in peace. Ahead, the world sharpened its knives.
Eclipse Order was no longer a rumor. It was a power—and the world had just begun to take notice.