"So the one who was cowardly... was me all along?"
Tobirama wore a bitter expression. He had never imagined that he was the source of the cowardice!
"Strictly speaking, this wasn't cowardice."
"Tobirama had the courage to face death, so he certainly wasn't a coward. As Hokage, he had simply weighed the pros and cons in a desperate situation and chosen the course that would cost the village the least at that moment."
"But often, a short-term compromise only makes the price you have to pay in the future even greater..."
Natsu Yuu wasn't some master strategist, either.
But he understood the simple principle of "strike one hard blow to deter a hundred more."
If Tobirama had been ruthless enough to lead the six, including Hiruzen, in a fight to the death—
Even if they had all died, as long as they'd wiped out the Kinkaku Force, how would Kumogakure have dared look down on Konoha afterward?
And if they'd been lucky, perhaps Hiruzen or Danzo would have survived.
At least they wouldn't have lost the courage to fight to the death, as long as their spirit remained intact.
In the decades that followed, the Third Hokage who succeeded him wouldn't have curled up into a defensive strategy. He would have done everything he could to destroy Kumogakure!
Instead, it was that moment of cowardice and compromise that made Kumogakure despise Konoha even more, forcing Konoha to pay an even higher price afterward...
"Sir, you don't need to comfort me."
"Compared to the man I used to be, I've truly lost too much of my edge."
Compared to Tobirama at the end of the Warring States period, the Second Hokage now was like a stone worn smooth, with all its sharp edges gone.
Even at the First Kage Summit, Tobirama had been far more forceful than he was now.
He really had relied on his Elder Brother too much!
Fortunately, he still had a chance to make things right! He hadn't died here today, so everything could still be rewritten!
Hiruzen and the others wouldn't lose their fighting spirit because of his death, either.
Kumogakure, was it?
Just you wait.
Next time, I'll make you pay back a hundredfold!
Tobirama reflected grimly. He clenched his fist, and a fierce determination rose in his heart!
Natsu Yuu was very pleased.
It hadn't been for nothing that he'd gone to such lengths to provoke Tobirama.
He wasn't worried that Tobirama wouldn't be ruthless enough. He was only worried Tobirama would be as honest and compromising as Hashirama...
This battle, combined with his own verbal assault,
should have been enough to stoke Tobirama's anger and fighting spirit, giving him a solid foundation of conviction as he set out to Unify the Shinobi World!
"Thank you for your advice, sir. I'll remember it."
"What are you planning to do next?"
"I need to return to the village immediately. This great war—or rather, the First Shinobi World War—hasn't completely ended yet. I need to get back and make arrangements as soon as possible!"
"I can send you on your way."
Natsu Yuu's World Teleportation was far more powerful than the Flying Thunder God Technique. With or without a mark, he could teleport anywhere, and nothing could interrupt it or interfere with it.
The only drawback was its limited number of uses...
And Tobirama had recovered very little Chakra. He might not be able to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to get all the way back to Konoha.
"Thank you for the kind offer, sir, but there's no need. I still have to catch up with Monkey and the others, who broke through the encirclement..."
There wasn't much point in Tobirama rushing back to Konoha right away. It would be better to catch up with Hiruzen and the others.
If he could save Kagami Uchiha, then relations between the village and the Uchiha Clan might improve greatly in the future.
The Uchiha Clan's dismal state thirty-four years from now was right there for all to see.
If Kagami died,
who knew how long it would take for another Uchiha with the mindset of a Hokage, free of narrow clan loyalties, to come along?
Tobirama had to hurry and save Kagami!
"Fine. Do as you like. Just don't go and get yourself killed again."
"Then, sir, next time..."
"Take care of your village first. I'll come find you again next time."
With that, Natsu Yuu activated World Teleportation and vanished on the spot.
Tobirama Senju was left staring in astonishment.
Were all so-called Sages this decisive?
Tobirama shook his head, casting aside every stray thought.
Although everything that had shocked him today surpassed what he'd experienced in the first half of his life combined, none of it mattered.
Surviving and changing the future with his own two feet on the ground—that was what mattered most to him! It was his greatest gain!
Tobirama quickly gathered his things and set off, chasing after Hiruzen and the others.
He wondered...
Can't find the book title? Try searching for the author instead. Maybe it was just renamed!
The moment those boys saw him return alive, they'd be just as astonished, wouldn't they?
Natsu Yuu returned to World Number One.
Hashirama Senju, who had been sent back ahead of him, was in the Hokage's Office, eagerly explaining his fantastical experience to Tobirama.
During the hour or so that Elder Brother Hashirama had been gone,
Tobirama in World Number One had nearly gone mad with worry.
His Elder Brother Hashirama, who had only recently become Hokage, had been abducted right before his eyes by a stranger in the Hokage's Office, and had vanished without a trace.
If word of this got out,
the entire Konoha might fall apart in just a few days!
He wouldn't even know how to explain himself if that lunatic Madara came demanding his Elder Brother.
Thankfully, his Elder Brother had returned in time.
But then,
after Hashirama told Tobirama about his trip through time, Tobirama was even more incredulous. He even wondered if his Elder Brother had gone crazy.
Traveling to the future, and nearly getting killed...
How could that be possible?
But Hashirama's account sounded so vivid. He even swore he'd seen it all with his own eyes, and that it hadn't been an illusion.
Tobirama couldn't help but hesitate.
There were two possibilities:
Either his Elder Brother had fallen victim to an illusion of unimaginable sophistication,
or everything he'd said had really happened.
The latter possibility was utterly inconceivable, but considering the chances of his Elder Brother being deceived by an illusion were even lower, it wasn't impossible that the latter was true.
Still, it wasn't easy for Tobirama to believe something he hadn't witnessed himself.
Hashirama was still excitedly describing everything.
And when Tobirama heard that Madara would soon leave the village, then eventually attack Konoha with the Nine-Tails and die at the hands of his Elder Brother Hashirama—
Tsk...
The story suddenly seemed several times more credible!
No wonder the wicked Madara Uchiha had been showing his face less and less lately. So he was plotting something wicked!
"Elder Brother, why exactly does Madara want to leave the village?"
Hashirama was taken aback.
"Right! I still don't know why Madara wants to leave the village! No, I have to go ask him right away..."
"Tobirama, I'll tell you when I get back."
"Also, in a few days, I should find you a wife. You can't stay single forever, Tobirama!"
Tobirama stared at him, baffled. "???"
He wanted to ask something else,
but Hashirama had already left the office and headed for the shrine, the Uchiha Clan's forbidden grounds.
"Madara, I'm here!"
In the underground chamber beneath Naka Shrine, Hashirama found Madara, who had arranged to meet him.
"Hashirama, you're late..."
"Hahaha! Something unusual came up and held me up for a bit."
Madara rolled his eyes at Hashirama, but didn't make a big deal of it.
He pointed to the mysterious stone tablet inside the chamber and got straight to the point:
"This is a stone tablet passed down through the Uchiha generations. We've never shown it to outsiders."
"It's very unusual. You need ocular power to decipher it."
"What I've deciphered so far is this: A deity, seeking peace, divided Yin and Yang into two opposing forces. When they interact, All Creation can be achieved!"
"This is the truth that leads to all things in the world!"
"In other words, when two opposing forces unite and support one another, they can bring about true happiness and peace!"
"However, there's another way to interpret this..."
"Unfortunately, the Uchiha and the Senju could never unite. Hashirama, do you think I don't know anything? After you, that fellow Tobirama will probably inherit the Hokage Position. By then, sooner or later, the Uchiha Clan will be..."
Before Madara could finish,
Hashirama suddenly cut him off:
"Madara, I've decided! You'll be the Second Hokage!"
Hashirama declared solemnly.
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