I'll Wait for You to Return to the Shinobi World

After Kagami Uchiha and the others had gone far away.

Hashirama Senju the Black Rod's Binding Vow and silently pulled Tobirama up from the ground.

"Tobirama... I told you not to come along, didn't I?"

"First Hokage Lord, Second Hokage also cares about you..."

Hashirama Senju, indicating that Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't need to say anything.

He shook his head and sighed.

"Now look what's happened, we can't even go back to Konoha. What a mess you've made, Tobirama."

Tobirama Senju crossed his arms and turned his head away, utterly unconvinced.

Orochimaru was the one who suffered the most.

He still has a lot of experimental equipment in the Land of Fire...

He dared not ignore Kagami Uchiha's warning.

Right now, Mirror is too lazy to bother with him. If he were willing to expend his energy and some of the Uchiha's fighting power, Orochimaru would never have a peaceful day and wouldn't be able to do whatever he wanted.

"We're really not going back to Konoha?!" Tobirama Senju shouted angrily.

"With my Flying Thunder God..."

"Take a look at your feet before you speak, Tobirama."

Tobirama Senju suddenly realized something and looked down.

A string of Flying Thunder God incantations had already climbed up his ankle.

With Hashirama Senju's reminder, Orochimaru and Hiruzen Sarutobi also realized what was happening and found the Flying Thunder God Mark on various parts of their bodies...

"When..."

"When you were intimidated by the Mirror Boy's chakra."

Hashirama Senju contorted in pain. The most outstanding Konoha ninja of all time...

It has come to the point of mutual slaughter...

Is it because of me...?

The Impure World Reincarnation Body is easy to deal with; just break the marks.

Orochimaru shook his head helplessly. It seemed that only by shedding his skin could he remove this mark. What a hassle.

Minato Namikaze's mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique...

He's even taller than Tobirama Senju!

"Brother... are you no match for Kagami Uchiha either?"

Hashirama Senju: "He is stronger now than Madara was when I last saw him."

"Even in my prime, I wasn't confident I could beat him."

Having witnessed Hashirama prime, Tobirama and Hiruzen were somewhat speechless.

Even the God of Shinobi... said so...

As he spoke, Hashirama Senju glared at Tobirama with displeasure.

"The monkey and he were having a good talk, why did you interrupt!"

"How many times have I reminded you! Don't target the Uchiha!"

Tobirama Senju remained steadfast in his opinion, and just as the old debate was about to repeat itself, Orochimaru spoke up.

"There's no point in saying all this now."

"First Hokage Lord, what do you think we should do next?"

Hashirama Senju pondered for a moment.

He originally wanted to talk to Jing and then return to the Pure Land.

Well...

He couldn't understand Kagami Uchiha's philosophy.

It makes sense, but something feels off.

Most importantly...

The spots will return.

If possible, he wanted to resolve his misunderstanding with Madara face to face and return to the Pure Land with him.

He let out a long sigh.

"On my way here, I saw a scene even more chaotic than the Warring States Era."

"Now the ninjas of the four great nations have gathered in the Land of Lightning, and people in too many places are suffering."

Hashirama Senju's gaze was firm as he looked towards the Land of Wind.

"Since we can't go back to the village, let's build another one."

"Providing shelter to those in need means our trip wasn't in vain."

"At least..."

"At least until the future described by the boy in the mirror is completely changed."

——

——

In the dense forest.

Minato turned to look at Kagami Uchiha.

"Sakumo and I are heading back now. Do you want to stroll back slowly, or should I take you?"

Kagami Uchiha pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "With my chakra reserves, even if I were to be teleported back, you would need two days to rest. I'd better go by myself."

"Okay then..."

Minato hesitated for a moment, then asked the question.

"Kagami, in the future you foresaw, how did Kushina and I die?"

Kagami Uchiha chuckled lightly, "I thought you could hold back."

"Who could stand it when faced with something like this..." Minato smiled bitterly.

"In short, someone took advantage of Kushina's childbirth to cause trouble and extracted the Nine-Tails."

"I don't know what your mindset was, but anyway, you died along with us."

Snap!

Minato grabbed Kagami Uchiha's wrist, his face solemn.

"Don't make it that simple, explain in more detail!"

Even Orochimaru didn't doubt that Kagami Uchiha could see the future, so Minato and Sakumo believed it even more.

Kagami Uchiha organized his thoughts.

"When Kushina was giving birth, Obito, who inherited Uchiha Madara's Summoning Contract, extracted the Nine-Tails."

"It caused the Nine Tails' Rampage."

"I didn't exist in the original timeline, and the Uchiha Clan didn't participate either."

"If Sakumo had died long ago..."

"Minato, you should be able to figure out the general situation, right?"

Minato and Sakumo now know about the Mangekyo and that Obito possesses terrifying strength.

Sakumo repeatedly tried to dissuade Kakashi from continuing the search, but Kakashi wouldn't listen.

The two imagined a future without Kagami Uchiha...

Nine-Tails...

If the Nine-Tails were to rampage, without Kagami Uchiha, what price would Konoha have to pay to survive such a disaster?

"There's still time..."

Minato's gaze was resolute.

"I will absolutely not let Kushina get hurt!"

Kagami Uchiha glanced at him indifferently.

Even if Minato had known beforehand, it wouldn't have made any difference.

The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is most vulnerable during childbirth, Obito's current space-time abilities are practically impossible to defend against.

When Hatake Sakumo first met him, he had just awakened his Mangekyo. Now, Obito has undergone several years of reflection...

You can't guard against thieves forever if you're a thief for a thousand days.

Minato quickly realized that he might not be able to protect Kushina without any problems, and he gripped Kagami Uchiha's hand tightly again.

"This is my lifelong request, Mirror."

"Please, you absolutely have to come back before Kushina gives birth!"

Kagami Uchiha still dislikes physical contact with people, especially men.

He pried open the Minato's hand and said, "I understand, don't touch me."

Their brief stay allowed Kagami Uchiha to detect a strange aura nearby.

Following that strange feeling, Kagami Uchiha flew towards a certain place.

Minato and Sakumo exchanged a glance and followed to see what was going on.

Kagami Uchiha stopped in a forest and placed his hand on the ground.

"Jing, what's wrong?"

Kagami Uchiha's senses penetrated deep underground, and he discovered a Toad in a crevice in the rocks.

In the Shinobi World, besides Minato Namikaze, only that man is skilled at using Toad.

Wisps of black mist seeped into the ground, Binding Vow the palm-sized Toad and dragging it out.

"It hurts so much!!"

A man's voice came from inside the Toad's belly, and a hand emerged from the Toad's mouth.

Their entrance was very similar to Orochimaru emerging from a snake's mouth; it's unclear who copied whom.

Soon, Jiraiya's tall figure appeared in front of them.

"Jiraiya- sensei!"

Minato was overjoyed, as he hadn't seen Jiraiya since their parting three years ago.

Even Kagami Uchiha was slightly moved. He was still satisfied with Jiraiya's decision to remain neutral.

"Tsk, you lecherous old man, you still can't shake your voyeuristic habit."

Jiraiya chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

"Don't say that. I just arrived and I'm worried about my beloved disciple."

"Brother Sakumo, you're here too, haha..."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Jiraiya's expression turned serious.

"Jing, I've come to tell you something."

"Based on the intelligence I've gathered..."

"Those Shadows of the Land of Lightning are developing a terrifying weapon of war!"