Dawn had barely broken. Thick white fog hung lifelessly over Konoha's huge iron gates, which had been blasted crooked.
Sen walked over broken bricks and shattered tiles, his black leather soles squelching through filthy puddles.
Two rough, splinter-covered black wooden vines rested heavily across his broad shoulders.
Naruto and Sasuke dangled upside down beneath them, swaying with his steps like freshly slaughtered pigs that had yet to be drained.
The Chunin guarding the gate leaned against a torn sandbag, rubbing yellow crust from his eyes. When he recognized the approaching figure, his kunai clattered from his hand.
"Holy mother! Lord Sen! Who are those two muddy little beggars on your shoulders?"
Sen stopped and let out an earth-shattering yawn, exhaling a stale breath that smelled of dirt.
"Beggars? Are you blind, you idiot? These are our village's great saviors who just saved the world."
No sooner had he spoken than Sasuke's head struck the iron gatepost with a solid thunk.
He sucked in a sharp breath, the pain wrenching him out of unconsciousness.
His head buzzed, blood surged toward the top of his skull, and his swollen eyes ached.
"Sen Senju... I'll kill you... put me down!"
"Put you down? Sure thing. I'll be merciful and find you a nice auspicious spot."
Sen grinned broadly, showing a mouthful of white teeth, his smile radiating the thoroughly rotten air of a thug.
He strode straight toward the towering Kage Rock in the center of the village.
On the way, he passed the Ichiraku Ramen Shop. Its sign had been blasted apart until only the character for "noodles" remained, swinging in the cold wind.
Up on Kage Rock, the First's great stone nose was still fairly intact, not completely blown to pieces.
Sen stamped his foot hard, and thick green Wood Vines