What? The Senju Clan Was Gone?!

"Um, First Hokage, Second Hokage-sama, could you tell us how you came back to life? And who exactly is this gentleman?"

Minato voiced the biggest question on his mind.

After Natsu Yuu gave his approval, Hashirama and Tobirama didn't hide anything.

They briefly explained who they were and what had happened.

Naturally, such an outrageous story about crossing through time and space shocked both Minato and Hiruzen.

But compared to Hiruzen, Minato was a little more composed.

After all, a few years ago, when Minato had gone to [Rōran] on a mission, he'd encountered what seemed to be future Konoha shinobi who had traveled through time.

So he was a little more open to such miracles.

Perhaps witnessing the excellence of future Naruto firsthand was why Minato had dared to make the hard choice to die alongside Kushina.

The self-proclaimed [Sage of the Dao Path], Natsu Yuu, shocked Minato and Hiruzen even more.

But given Hashirama and Tobirama's presence, along with those unfathomable [Rinnegan], the two could only tentatively believe Natsu Yuu's claims for now.

Even if it were all a lie, someone capable of bringing the [God of Shinobi] through time and space was terrifying in his own right!

He was no one Konoha could afford to provoke!

"Monkey, it looks like the village only recently ended a major war?"

"That's right. It was the [Third Shinobi World War]. The casualties were enormous, and the fighting was brutal..."

Hiruzen couldn't help lamenting.

The war had been far too cruel. Countless outstanding Konoha shinobi had died, nearly breaking Konoha's backbone!

The White Fang had killed himself, the Konoha Sannin had gone their separate ways, and Might Duy had died in battle.

Konoha had lost five Kage Level fighters alone, not to mention the countless casualties among its lower- and mid-ranking shinobi...

If the [Yellow Flash], Minato Namikaze, hadn't appeared out of nowhere and crushed the other four villages, the [Third Shinobi World War] might have wiped Konoha off the map!

"Is there no era without war? Tobirama, was our Tailed Beast Deterrence System really a mistake?"

After witnessing the [Nine-Tails' Rampage] firsthand and hearing about the brutality of the [Third Shinobi World War], both Hashirama and Tobirama began to question the viability of the [Tailed Beast Deterrence System] from the bottom of their hearts.

"Brother, let's discuss that later. I need time to think it over, too."

Tobirama changed the subject, then turned back to ask Hiruzen another question.

"Monkey, who's the current head of the Uchiha Clan?"

"Fugaku Uchiha."

"How many of them are left?"

"About a thousand. Only a few hundred are shinobi..."

"What about the Senju Clan? Who's their current clan head? How many of them are left?"

Hiruzen immediately broke into a cold sweat and answered through gritted teeth:

"The Senju Clan's shinobi suffered heavy losses in the first two Ninja World Wars..."

"The Second and Third Ninja World Wars? Those people never let up, did they? Can't they live without war? Monkey, how many casualties did our clan suffer?"

"Well..."

"Who's still alive? Don't tell me not a single member of the [Senju Clan of the Forest] is left..."

Tobirama flew into a rage. Chakra erupted from his body as killing intent surged outward.

"Hashirama-sama's granddaughter, Tsunade, is still alive!"

"Tsunade? Who's that?" Hashirama was confused.

In the Year of Konoha's Founding in World 1, Tsunade hadn't been born yet.

"Brother, she's your granddaughter from the future!"

"Oh! A granddaughter! Hahaha, she must be adorable, right? No, after all these years, she must be a beautiful woman by now! Hiruzen, can you bring her over to see me?"

The sweat on Hiruzen's forehead grew even heavier.

"Um... she isn't in the village right now."

Hiruzen had no idea how to explain that Tsunade's lover and younger brother had both died in battle, leaving her emotionally shattered and causing her to flee Konoha.

"She's not in the village? Did she go on a mission? What a shame!"

Hashirama didn't suspect anything; he was merely disappointed.

But sharp-eyed Tobirama noticed Monkey's unease again. He didn't call him out on it just yet.

He'd find a chance to speak with Hiruzen in private later.

After that,

Tobirama kept grilling Hiruzen for information, asking questions and cursing as he went.

Fortunately, this was Hiruzen thirty-four years later, and Tobirama's Chakra hadn't recovered yet.

Otherwise, he'd have gone from cursing Hiruzen to hanging him up and beating him.

Meanwhile, Hashirama, the number-one fool, was happily chatting with Minato, the number-four fool.

According to Tobirama, the two seemed to share a certain quality.

Even though Minato had learned Forbidden Jutsu that Hashirama himself had invented, this Fourth Hokage seemed more like Hashirama's spiritual successor than his own.

How strange!

Unfortunately, this "harmonious" scene didn't last long.

Hashirama suddenly felt a repulsive force welling up around him, squeezing in from all sides.

"What's this? What's happening?"

Natsu Yuu glanced at the system and understood.

"Hashirama, your time in this world is almost up. Don't resist. Go back for now. You'll have another chance to meet again."

As the leader of a faction bound to [Naruto World 1], Hashirama could originally stay in World 4 for an hour.

But because he'd just subdued the Nine-Tails, his remaining time had been cut by a large chunk.

They didn't belong to this world, and using powerful techniques would only make this world reject them faster.

If Hashirama went all out, he could probably stay in another parallel world for only a few minutes.

Natsu Yuu, however, was protected by the system's concealment and could stay indefinitely without any trouble...

"Huh? But I..."

Hashirama was clearly reluctant. He still had so much he wanted to talk about with Fourth Hokage Minato.

They hadn't known each other long, but Minato had left a deep impression on him. He was almost exactly what Hashirama had hoped the future Hokage would be like.

Minato's advocacy of the "Will of Ninja Love" had especially struck a chord with him.

He'd almost caught up to Madara in Hashirama's heart.

Despite his reluctance,

Hashirama wouldn't resist after Sage Natsu Yuu promised he could come back again.

He immediately relaxed and let the world's repulsive force take effect.

With a whoosh, Hashirama vanished from the spot and returned to Naruto World 1.

Hashirama's sudden disappearance alarmed Minato and Hiruzen even more, erasing the last trace of doubt they had about Natsu Yuu.

"Sir, Brother...?"

"Don't worry. He's just gone back."

"What about me?"

"You can stay for about half an hour. Of course, I can send you back now if you'd like."

Tobirama paused to think.

From a rational perspective, he wanted to stay and gather as much information about the future as possible.

But emotionally,

with his brother gone, Tobirama couldn't help feeling anxious. The overwhelming sense of security he'd had before vanished, and his tone wasn't as forceful as it had been.

Just then,

a commotion broke out in the distance. It seemed more Konoha reinforcements had arrived, and Hiruzen's Anbu were trying to stop them.

Everyone had seen Minato take the Nine-Tails away, and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen, had followed him.

Worried about the outcome of the battle, they'd hurried over. Now their own people were blocking them, and an argument was bound to break out.

Besides, there seemed to be quite a few of Danzo's Root shinobi among them.

"Second Hokage-sama, I..."

"Go. The village was just ravaged by a Tailed Beast. You need to direct the relief efforts."

Tobirama replied briskly.

Hiruzen finally relaxed a little. He'd been sweating buckets all night, and now he could finally ease up.

He quickly withdrew and hurried off to direct the rescue efforts.

"Fourth Hokage, you did well, too!"

"It's a blessing that you've carried on my techniques so well. Lead the village properly, and figure out how to deal with that Uchiha named Obito as soon as you can."

"We'll talk about the rest when I come back with my brother next time."

Tobirama patted Minato on the shoulder, his words heavy with encouragement.

Apart from being a little too sentimental, he was very satisfied with Minato as the Fourth Hokage. He'd also backed Minato several times already, so Hiruzen was unlikely to restrict Minato's authority going forward.

"Understood. I'll follow your instructions, Second Hokage-sama!"

Minato promised resolutely.

For him, it was already the best possible outcome that the crisis had ended safely that night.

It was all thanks to Natsu Yuu and the others!

And setting everything else aside, he deeply respected the Second Hokage. He wouldn't disregard his advice.

Finally, Tobirama turned to Natsu Yuu and made a respectful request:

"Sir, sorry for the trouble, but please send me back, too. There are still plenty of matters I need to take care of back home, and I haven't killed that beast Ginkaku yet!"

At the thought of Kinkaku and Ginkaku, Tobirama gritted his teeth in hatred.

He couldn't wait to get back and kill the still-living Ginkaku, once and for all!