Three Years

After the Eastern Front received the news, they swiftly dispatched reinforcements, and Senju Rei summoned a large number of Slugs to prevent the ninjas' injuries from worsening.

Because the betrayal of the Fujiwara Clan caused such severe losses, the Eastern Alliance faced an immediate crisis of trust, with many of the ten smaller clans preparing to relocate to other nations.

For them, between fighting Uchiha ninjas and guarding against betrayal from their own leadership, who would be willing to risk their lives? They feared they wouldn't even know how they died in the end.

Senju Meima approved their requests one by one, appropriately collecting a "protection fee." As a major clan, it was already generous not to bully these smaller clans; furthermore, they had saved their lives and livelihoods just yesterday, so it was only natural that these clans pay for the burial expenses of the fallen Senju clansmen.

After the battle, the Tekka Clan provided a large quantity of melted ninja tools. The material of the tools was fine, but it would take time to reforge them.

After completing this task, the Tekka Clan became a caravan and left the Land of Fire. With their clan leader and First Elder dead, plus the sacrifice of their clansmen, they no longer had the strength to seek revenge and had to move far away to accumulate power first.

The Hayate Clan and Mizukumo Clan still retained some strength. Beyond their grief, the clansmen were more driven by a desire for revenge. After the men, women, and children were screened, they became vassal clans of the Senju, relocating to the walls of the Senju Eastern Front to stay with the Baiye Clan.

After the nearby clans left, the Xiongli Clan, fearing an Uchiha attack, also abandoned their territory and headed for the Land of Earth.

A single night raid by the Uchiha had destroyed the foundation of the alliance of small and medium-sized clans.

After Hiugo finished disposing of the enemy corpses, he rested for a day; thanks to his own powerful recovery ability, he was already fine.

In the days that followed, the Eastern Front became much quieter. Having experienced the Uchiha night raid, Senju Butsuma no longer demanded that Senju Meima attack the Uchiha, instead ordering a period of recuperation.

The Uchiha side was much the same. They had achieved good results in this night raid, but they were still at a stalemate with their arch-rivals, the Senju, with losses being roughly one-to-one.

Needless to say, the Kaguya Clan entered a one-year truce with the Senju.

This long-lost quiet life was enough to allow some people to break through and grow.

When Hiugo perceived that his Wood Style breakthrough required physical growth, he recalled his previous predicament of having no chakra and decisively went to learn other Five-Nature ninjutsu. With his Three-Tomoe, learning ninjutsu was not difficult at all.

Time flew by, and three years passed in the blink of an eye.

The Kaguya did not launch another war as soon as the time was up as expected; instead, they turned their gaze toward the Land of Water, focusing on helping other clans suppress the Hozuki Clan.

When Senju Meima received the message passed on by Hozuki Shingetsu, he remained calm and collected, completely ignoring how this former "teammate" kept talking about money—the amount was neither more nor less than the exact "sum" from their previous transaction.

Hozuki Shingetsu was so angry he nearly turned into "boiling water," but in the end, he was helpless. The Land of Water was not as wealthy as the Land of Fire; he barely had enough for himself, let alone money to pay others.

Although the Uchiha Clan had some friction during this period, it only occurred within the "former Eastern Alliance" territory; they rarely crossed beyond this area. Because they had won the war against the Fuma and Hatake clans for Chakra Metal, they had obtained a decent batch of supplies.

In the second year, at the age of seven, Hiugo broke through to become a Jonin. To celebrate, Senju Meima directly handed over the three clans he had previously subdued to Hiugo for management.

This was a test. If Hiugo had the ability to command, he could try commanding a portion of the Senju forces later; if he lacked the ability, it was a good opportunity for training. Since it wasn't Senju clansmen dying, there would be no so-called stain on his record.

During this time, news also came from the clan territory regarding his younger brother, Senju Itama. While executing a mission, his left leg was blown off by an Explosive Tag, leaving him crippled.

Although certain results still occurred, it was already much better than the original outcome where they hadn't even found a complete corpse, which convinced Hiugo that the future was not unchangeable.

Once the three years were up, Hiugo was arranged to return to the clan territory to live for a while. According to their previous agreement, he could stay in the territory to develop, but since he already had his own power in the East, he couldn't just stay away.

Upon returning to the clan territory, he happened to run into Tobirama. Three years had passed, and Tobirama had also broken through to Jonin. The immaturity in his eyes had faded, and his entire being radiated a sharp aura.

However, his expression remained as cold and aloof as ever, and he still wore that white helmet that limited his good looks.

The two hadn't seen each other in a long time, so they found a spot to chat.

"How are things on the Hyuga side? You should have met that brat Hyuga Ruri by now, right?"

Hiugo asked while sipping tea.

"We have friction occasionally, but battles aren't frequent. As for Hyuga Ruri, I've beaten him every time I've seen him these past few years,"

Tobirama said flatly, as if he weren't talking about a rival, but a small child.

"Fight, rest, fight again. I've fought both the Kaguya and the Uchiha in succession, but my foundation is good, so I haven't developed any lasting issues."

"That's good."

"What about Big Pillar? Now that we're back, he hasn't come to see us."

"I don't know. Perhaps Father has him tied up with taijutsu training."

That makes sense. Hashirama is eleven now; he can truly begin training in taijutsu. I wonder if that legendary "big blade" will be forged in the future? Big Pillar did use it to clash against the Uchiha Gunbai.

"I feel like I've forgotten something."

Hiugo frowned. After three years of fighting and killing, he felt a bit muddled.

"Master Tobirama, Master Hiugo; the Clan Leader asks you to attend the clan meeting."

A Senju Genin ran over to say.

The two looked at each other and jogged forward. The clan meeting was where future decisions were announced; as long as one's strength reached the Jonin level, they were qualified to participate, regardless of age.

When the two arrived, there were two empty seats next to Hashirama. After they sat down, Senju Butsuma said with a gloomy face: "The Hagoromo Clan has openly torn up our alliance, causing our clansmen to die in vain, and then begged for protection from our arch-rivals, the Uchiha Clan. We must settle this debt; otherwise, they will truly think the Senju are easy to bully..."

Hearing this, the Senju clansmen present involuntarily released their chakra, their faces filled with anger.

The Senju Clan was gentle most of the time, but that was on the premise that others treated the Senju as "friends" rather than fools.

The Hagoromo were not a large clan; to dare to tear up their agreement and turn against the Senju, there must have been a great benefit involved.

Regarding this clan, Hiugo's only impression was a corpse floating on the water during one of the meetings between Madara and Hashirama in the anime...

"So that's it, has it already reached this point?"

Hiugo had no intention of meeting Madara and becoming "brothers." If nothing else, he had already given Izuna a "chilling heart" years ago.

In the eyes of a brother-complex, giving him a cold, heart-piercing blow is no different from seeking death, and then becoming "sworn brothers" with him? Heh, I would even believe he could awaken the Mangekyo out of sheer rage.

As for whether they would recognize the other as an enemy, that is actually not the case. Whether it be Uchiha or Senju, both are deeply proud at heart and would not keep a portrait of a child in their clan grounds to tell them, "This is so-and-so, you must kill him." Furthermore, ninjas are all masters of disguise; remembering appearances is somewhat useful but not critical. The only thing that matters is retaining the memory of a target's Chakra signature after meeting them.

Senju Butsuma arranged the battle deployments, which naturally did not include the clansmen who had just returned from the battlefield.

Hashirama, Tobirama, and Hiugo did not speak during the clan meeting; generally, there were no objections to the decisions made by Senju Butsuma for the clan.

After the clan meeting concluded, the three youths went together to visit Itama.

The leg that Itama had blown off was replaced with a wooden prosthetic of the same shape. When he saw Tobirama and Hiugo, he walked toward them step by step, startling the two so much that they hurriedly stepped forward to support him. Afterward, the brothers began to recount the experiences they had endured over these years...