Madara! Hashirama!!

The old Hokage, practically covered in death flags, left Konoha without a sound.

Other than Mito Uzumaki, Tobirama Senju, and Toji, not even his son Takayuki knew why his father had disappeared.

That had been part of his consideration as well.

If the villagers learned that Hashirama had gone to duel Madara Uchiha, once the news spread abroad, the hard-won stability and peace would likely be shattered again.

When the sun rose the next day, the villagers quickly noticed something was amiss.

The man seated in the Hokage's chair had changed from Hashirama Senju to Tobirama Senju.

Tobirama announced to the public, "The First Hokage has left the village for training and will be away for some time. During his absence, I will handle the Hokage's affairs on his behalf."

At first, there was plenty of private discussion.

How could someone become acting Hokage so casually? What if there were some sinister circumstances behind it?

It was not until Toji personally stepped forward to confirm that the matter was true that the quietly brewing rumors were suppressed.

Toji's reputation and standing in Konoha were beyond question. He could be called the most trustworthy man around. Since even he had testified to it, the First Hokage must indeed have left such an order.

Even without the First Hokage, the village continued operating as usual.

Toji requested a day off from Tobirama, saying only that before officially taking up the role of Hokage's aide, he needed to make a round of personnel adjustments at Gospel Hospital.

Tobirama did not suspect anything and readily approved the leave.

In truth, Toji had already made preparations in the underground laboratory the night before.

He used Parasite Seed to regain control of a Chunin test subject, then projected his five senses onto it and left Konoha