Aren't We Just a Background Clan?

"Tobirama! Keep your temper in check. Can't you see there's a child here?"

Only when his big brother said that did Senju Tobirama notice the white-haired boy in the room.

He shot Kumonaka Torikaze a look, and Torikaze understood what Senju Tobirama meant.

He immediately stepped forward and accepted the envelope Senju Hashirama held out to him, putting it away. "Lord Hokage, Lord Tobirama, I'll take my leave now."

Senju Hashirama smiled. "Sure, go on back. Make sure you grow up well, carrying on your father's will!"

Kumonaka Torikaze nodded, then turned and left the Hokage Office.

The instant he closed the office door behind him, loud voices erupted from inside.

"Uncle, do you know why Lord Tobirama is so angry?"

The Senju clan member scratched his head. "Seems like one of Lord Tobirama's plans failed, but I don't know the details. It's not something we'd be privy to anyway."

????

So it was you, you old fox, pulling the strings all along! And you even gave me that look? Pah!

Although he'd found the culprit, he had to keep his cool. He put on an innocent smile. "Thanks, Uncle. I'll head back now."

After leaving the Hokage Building, he could finally complain out loud. "Why, you second Hokage! Just wait another thirty years, and I'll show you what it means when a whole village of kids picks on an old man who can't even fight back!"

"Of course, now definitely isn't the right time. He could hit me with Water Release: There's a Mop in the Water! and send me straight down the drain."

As if anyone could just make water appear out of nowhere!

"Let's go home first and see what's in Dad's will."

With that, he headed for the Kumonaka Clan compound.

"Big Brother! My plan failed! The spy died on the way here! It had to be the wicked Uchiha Clan!" Senju Tobirama said furiously in the Hokage Office.

Hearing that, Senju Hashirama rubbed his forehead. "What does this have to do with the Uchiha Clan? And this sort of thing isn't exactly conducive to peace."

"Hmph! I'm just preparing for the future. Besides, it was Kumogakure that sent the spy. I was only taking advantage of the situation. I didn't expect someone to ruin it! Just wait until I find him!"

Senju Tobirama had accidentally learned that Kumogakure had already dispatched a spy to Konoha.

He'd planned to capture and interrogate the spy as soon as he entered Konoha, to obtain information about Kumogakure. But in the end, the plan had failed.

Watching his younger brother fly into a rage, Senju Hashirama could only say helplessly,

"Well, if that's the case, go ahead and do what you think best. I trust your judgment."

Hearing his big brother say that, Senju Tobirama finally calmed down.

His big brother was too idealistic. The peace they had now was only because the great ninja villages were intimidated by Konoha's strength.

If anything happened to his big brother, they'd probably all attack Konoha at once!

"By the way, which clan was that white-haired boy from?"

"He's from the Kumonaka Clan. I noticed he's already extracted Chakra, and he has more than an average ninja."

Senju Tobirama nodded. He'd taken a close look at Kumonaka Torikaze the moment he saw him.

The Chakra within that little body was already on par with the village's top shinobi.

With proper guidance, he'd definitely become one of Konoha's future pillars!

"Looks like the Kumonaka Clan is about to rise again."

"Yeah," Senju Hashirama said seriously.

"If Kumonaka Yama hadn't failed to master the secret Cloud Release technique of their clan, the Kumonaka Clan probably wouldn't have joined Konoha at all."

"That's the downside of a technique passed down through only one line of the family. Big Brother, what are you thinking of doing with the boy?"

Senju Hashirama thought for a long time. "He's talented. I'm considering taking him on as a student, but I still want to observe his character first."

"Then let's do that. If he has both talent and a good character, we'll take him on as a student."

"Achoo!" Kumonaka Torikaze, on his way home, felt his ears burning.

Then he sneezed. "Who's talking about me behind my back? Could it be the Hokage?"

Kumonaka Torikaze, of course, had no idea what they'd discussed in the office.

But he didn't think the First could have failed to notice the Chakra in his body. On the contrary, that was exactly what he wanted.

There was no better way to live a quiet life in Konoha than to have the title of Hokage's student.

Just look at those two old background characters, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.

Sure, they were a little senile and had made a complete mess of Konoha, but they weren't ambitious!

They simply weren't very capable. Even so, they'd lived peacefully all the way into Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.

Even the head of some powerful clan would have to address them as elders.

That was why Kumonaka Torikaze had chosen to show off just a little in front of Senju Hashirama.

Still, leaving Konoha Village in the hands of people with so little ability was probably just a desperate measure on Tobirama's part.

Hiruzen had been worthy of the title Shinobi Hero when he was young, but the old Third Generation was truly hard to praise.

He kept walking and grumbling until he soon reached a sprawling manor.

A white crane flying through layered clouds was carved into the buildings throughout the manor.

It was the Kumonaka Clan's crest, the Unchu Crane Emblem.

The compound was quite large. He'd heard that his grandfather, Kumonaka Torifu, had secured it for the clan.

The old man had passed away as early as Konoha's third year.

With no servants, the enormous manor felt rather deserted.

But Kumonaka Torikaze was used to it. Even when his parents were alive, there had only been three people in the house.

It wasn't much different now.

He went inside, found a place to sit, and opened his father's will.

He was curious what it said, and why his father had specifically instructed him not to read it until he was six.

He unfolded the letter carefully. The first thing he saw was his father's hopes for his future, along with greetings and apologies.

'Torikaze, you're six years old this year. Have you grown any taller? Forgive your father for only being able to see you this way.'

As he read the will his father had left behind, there wasn't a single mention of love between the lines, but Kumonaka Torikaze could clearly feel his father's deep affection.

"Old man, it must've been hard for someone as bad with words as you to write so much."

In Kumonaka Torikaze's memories, Kumonaka Yama had always been a man of few words.

He'd seldom spoken, whether to his son or his wife.

Kumonaka Torikaze read quickly. It was the first time he'd learned that his father had such a sentimental side.

He might have been taciturn, but he'd loved his wife and child no less.

Suddenly, the words of advice came to an abrupt stop.

The final paragraph made Kumonaka Torikaze rub his eyes in disbelief, but the words were still perfectly clear.

'Torikaze, there's a hidden door in my room.'

'Take down the painting covering it, and you'll find the secret technique our Kumonaka Clan is most proud of—Cloud Release!'

'If you can master it, the Kumonaka Clan will rise again!'

Certain his eyes weren't playing tricks on him, Kumonaka Torikaze froze.

???

"The Kumonaka Clan's technique? Cloud Release? Aren't we just a background clan with a tiny bit of money? Is that not how this works?"