For the first time, the numerous documents that had always filled the Hokage's Office had been cleared away completely. The leaders of every village and the clan heads from within those villages had gathered in this room, neither too large nor too small.
Two desks stood by the window. Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara faced the assembled crowd, while the young figure at Madara's side was particularly conspicuous.
Rikusei stood in the solemn, stifling atmosphere with a headache. In the days since capturing the Two-Tails and returning to the village, before he had even fully grasped the Will of Fire at school, Tobirama had dragged him here without further discussion.
On the way, Tobirama had told him about the daimyo gathering in the Daimyo City of the Land of Fire for a meeting. Today was the day they would arrive in Konoha.
The breeze blowing in through the wide-open glass window behind him brushed against his collar. Cool air flowed down his neck and along his spine, clearing his thoughts.
He knew why such a grand scene had come about.
While the leaders of the various villages waited for village funding, rumors that the Shinobi Alliance intended to abolish the nobility had also spread throughout the Shinobi World.
Shinobi were no longer like the ninja clans of old, whom nobles could make slaughter one another simply by issuing commissions.
Even setting Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama aside, the shinobi now possessed Tailed Beasts capable of instantly destroying an entire city.
This was not a test. It was a life-or-death struggle.
Rikusei stood where he was without expression, fearlessly meeting the many scrutinizing gazes directed at him.
With a creak, the door opened, bringing life to the stifling air. The crowd neatly made way for Tobirama, who held a stack of