The Chunin guarding the Hokage Building froze when he saw Takuma. The boy before him was covered in blood, his jacket riddled with tears and caked with dust, bits of gravel caught in his hair. But his eyes were clear and his stance steady. He didn't look like an injured person coming to beg for help.
"I'm Mori Takuma. I have urgent information to present to the Lord Third."
The Chunin guard hesitated, then nodded and turned to report inside.
Less than three minutes later, Takuma was shown into the Hokage's office.
Takuma wasted no time. He placed the map and communication scroll on the desk, then began his report.
"He said, 'You're the one from that experiment.'"
The Lord Third's expression shifted ever so slightly when he heard this. If Takuma hadn't been watching him, he wouldn't have noticed at all. The Lord Third didn't ask about the remark. Instead, he unfolded the map and studied the marked locations.
"Seven marked locations," the Lord Third said in a low voice. "Three are sensory nodes in Konoha's barrier. These locations are classified intelligence, accessible only to those of Jonin rank or higher."
Takuma's heart tightened. That meant either there was a leak inside Konoha, or the enemy's surveillance skills were precise enough to let them deduce the barrier nodes.
"What about the other four?" Takuma asked.
The Lord Third turned and sat down. "The abandoned mine was an iron mining site that was sealed off after the war. Few people go there. The ancient battlefield ruins were a battlefield from the Second Shinobi World War. The area is vast, the terrain complicated, and it's suitable for hiding people. The trade-route relay station is still in use, with merchant caravans coming and going every day." He paused. "The last one... the Old Root Monument. Not many people know about that place."
"What is it?"
"Before Root was disbanded, Danzo set up an entrance to an underground training ground there." The Lord Third made no attempt to hide it, his tone as casual as if he were teaching a history lesson.
Takuma fell silent for a moment, then said, "Lord Lord Third, I'd like to take part in the investigation."
"You're currently a one-man squad. By regulations, you can't take on missions above C-rank. I'll have Anbu handle this."
Takuma didn't argue. But he didn't give up on asking questions entirely. He simply approached it from another angle.
"What if I run into someone like that again?"
The Lord Third glanced at him, the corner of his mouth twitching almost imperceptibly, like a bitter smile. "Then try to take them alive. Just one will do."
The Lord Third stood, took a neatly folded dark blue haori from the coat rack, and came over to hand it to him. The fabric was ordinary, but a thin layer of chakra-conducting fibers had been sewn into the lining. Tenten's shop sold them, but they were expensive.
"You said that man recognized your bloodline before he died." The Lord Third put his pipe back in his mouth. "The Senju Clan's name still carries weight in the Shinobi World. Though few of us remain, outside forces have never lost interest in the Senju Bloodline. There are basic sealing formulas sewn into the lining of this haori to conceal your chakra signature. Wear it at all times. Don't take it off."
Takuma accepted the haori. It was much lighter than he'd expected. He unfolded it and glanced at the plain dark blue fabric. Its simple style wouldn't attract attention.
"I don't have Wood Release from the Senju Clan," Takuma said.
"Do you think those people want Wood Release?" The Lord Third looked at Takuma through the smoke. His voice was soft, but carried a certain weight. "They want potential."
"Lord Hashirama's Wood Release was powerful not because of some ninjutsu technique, but because he himself had the physique and will to bear that power. The Senju Clan's bloodline represents that potential." The Lord Third walked to the window and gazed out at the bustling streets. "There will always be people who want to replicate that potential. Don't become anyone's test subject. That's the best way to honor your ancestors."
Takuma draped the haori over his shoulders and fastened it at the front. "Thank you, Lord Lord Third."
"Go. Come to me anytime if something happens."
Takuma left the Hokage's office and walked down the corridor. At the stairwell landing, he nearly collided with someone.
Silver hair, a mask covering half his face, and a copy of Icha Icha Paradise in his hand—the book he never seemed to finish.
"Yo." Kakashi's eye curved as he spoke in a lazy voice, but he made no effort to hide the way his gaze swept over Takuma from head to toe. He noticed the bloodstains and tears on Takuma's clothes, as well as the obviously ill-fitting haori.
"A kid from the Senju Clan?" Kakashi said.
Takuma couldn't help thinking, How does this silver-haired guy know everything? I hardly ever interact with him. Team 12 is so forgettable that even my classmates are about to forget I exist, and yet Kakashi opens with Senju.
"Senpai Kakashi." Takuma nodded in greeting, doing his best to keep his voice calm.
"I heard you took out a whole reconnaissance squad by yourself." Kakashi sounded as if he were just chatting about the nice weather.
"...I got lucky."
"Luck is part of strength." Kakashi closed his book and looked at him with the one eye visible above his mask. "The Lord Third gave you that haori?"
Takuma glanced down at the haori he was wearing. "You know this garment?"
"That belonged to my teacher."
Takuma froze for a moment.
The haori worn by the Fourth Hokage. The Lord Third had handed it to him so casually without saying a word. Suddenly, the light garment felt much heavier.
Kakashi noticed the change in his expression and patted Takuma on the shoulder.
"Wear it well. My teacher didn't leave much behind. Better to put it to use than leave it gathering dust in a cabinet." He opened Icha Icha Paradise again and walked past Takuma, his voice fading into the distance. "Don't die too soon, kid from the Senju Clan."
Takuma said nothing more and headed toward the Tenten Ninja Tool Shop.
Danzo's Root, the reconnaissance by an unknown force, the Lord Third's unspoken concerns, and Kakashi's parting warning—"Don't die too soon"—all swirled through his mind.
"Welcome—oh, why are you in such a state again?"
Tenten stood behind the shelves, holding an inventory ledger. When she saw him covered in blood, she froze, then set the ledger aside and hurried over. She grabbed his sleeve and checked him for any wounds that were still bleeding. Once she saw that apart from a few holes in his clothes, he was unharmed, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Takuma took out the Scarred Man's katana. A faint blue chakra afterglow shimmered along the blade, and unfamiliar forging patterns were etched into its surface.
Tenten's eyes lit up when she saw the katana.
"A Chunin-level swordsman's weapon. The blade can conduct chakra, and the ground it cut is still cracked." Takuma laid the katana across the counter. "Can you tell me how much it's worth? Also, I need to restock my shuriken and Explosive Tags."
Tenten put the katana behind the counter, pulled a new Sealing Scroll from beneath the shelves, and began packing items into it. "Fifteen shuriken, five Explosive Tags, and two smoke bombs. That should last you a while."
Takuma watched her briskly write out the list on the Sealing Scroll, then pack the tools away one by one at a dizzying speed. He couldn't help laughing.
Tenten looked up and glared at him. "What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing. It's just that every time you pack supplies for me, it feels like you're preparing my trousseau."
Tenten's face turned visibly red. She nearly flung the smoke bomb in her hand at him. She drew a deep breath and gritted out, "This is to make sure you come back alive and keep paying me back. What you owe for the ninja tools, plus today's batch, is enough to keep you working at my shop for three years."
"Deal." Takuma took the Sealing Scroll and stood up.
Tenten stared at him for two seconds, then turned away to straighten the shelves. "...Don't die."
"I won't." Takuma reached the shop entrance and glanced back before pushing the door open.
Tenten was crouched in front of the shelves, sorting through boxes of ninja tools. Her hair had fallen from behind her ear, covering half her face. He couldn't make out her expression.
Takuma stepped outside. The bell rang again, and the wooden door shut, blocking out the evening sun.
The shop fell quiet. Tenten stood up and walked to the counter. She picked up the blue-glowing katana and gently ran her fingers along the blade. It was cold, its forging patterns finely crafted. A good sword.
She put the katana in a private storage box behind the counter. She didn't price it or put it on display.
There was one other thing in the box: a neatly folded IOU bearing Takuma's crooked signature.
Before you continue