When Sen returned to Konoha.
The whole village still looked like a mud pit that a dozen wild boars had torn through.
Vast stretches of rubble lay everywhere, the shattered walls covered in black scorch marks from burning gunpowder.
A strong wind blew.
The air still reeked of burnt plastic and rotting dead rats, making everyone rub their noses.
The heat made the place feel like a giant, stifling oven.
Several Konoha masons and carpenters were stripped to the waist, their bodies streaked with black mud where sharp rubble had scraped them.
They were grunting as they shouldered a heavy cedar beam covered in splinters.
"One, two, lift!"
Clang!
The cedar beam was too heavy. One young carpenter's palms were slick with sweat, and his grip slipped. The timber slammed into the ground, sending up a cloud of white plaster dust.
The old Third Hokage stood on a broken stone slab nearby.
His forehead gleamed with sweat.
From a distance, he spotted Sen's garish outfit and the enormous beach bag slung over his shoulder.
Those cloudy old eyes of his.
Instantly.
Lit up as though he had spotted a flame in the darkness.
"Sen, my boy! You're finally back!"
The old Third Hokage bounded off the slab in two steps. His aging legs slipped on the broken tiles, and he nearly landed face-first.
Sen tossed his beach bag onto the ground in annoyance.
"Don't rush me, old man."
"Have you got the wages and material costs we agreed on ready?"
"Of course! I've already spoken to the finance department!"
The old Third Hokage thumped his chest and stuffed the crumpled leave request into his trouser pocket.
"Two hundred million ryō for the construction! As soon as the houses are up, it'll go straight into your account!"
"Two hundred million ryō?