"Minato! Wait!"
Nawaki came panting down from a pile of rubble and stopped Namikaze Minato, who was about to head home.
"I remember you took part in the Chunin Ninja Exams! You were at the venue, right!? The aftershocks of the battle came from there! The Anbu sealed off the scene right away!?"
"Do you know what happened!?"
Minato was a little overwhelmed by the barrage of questions. He raised a hand and pressed it downward, signaling for Nawaki to calm down.
"Nawaki, slow down. I just finished giving a statement to the Anbu Ninja, and I was about to go home."
"Perfect! Tell me everything!" Nawaki leaned closer, his face alight with excitement, completely missing the exhaustion that still lingered on Minato's face. "I heard the Third Kazekage died in our village! Is that true? Was it Lord Hokage? They say that Hiroki took them all on by himself—"
Just then, someone ambled out of the alley beside them, still wearing Uchiha Clan clothes.
It was Uchiha Yoshihiro. He kept his head down, scuffing his toes against the ground. He looked like he wanted to come over but didn't dare, though his ears were perked up.
Minato sighed. He looked at Nawaki, who was practically buzzing with curiosity, and Yoshihiro, who was pretending to pass by. He figured it probably wouldn't stay secret much longer anyway.
Besides, there was no need for the Anbu to hide what had happened.
Too many people had seen it. More importantly, Ōnoki had fled with his people! It was obvious the Tsuchikage wouldn't keep the information secret for Konoha.
But there was no need for Konoha to keep Hiroki's abilities secret anymore, either.
His combat ability had already made him the clear frontrunner to become the next Hokage. No one could surpass Hiroki