Returning to the Village, Turmoil in the Shinobi World

"God, the First Lord and Second Lord have returned!"

"Our Hidden Leaf Village is going to rise again!"

Without question, the entire village erupted. Hashirama Senju was practically a god in the hearts of Hidden Leaf Village's residents. Even across the entire shinobi world, he had been invincible—the towering pillar who had crushed an entire era.

"Big Brother, the village looks much more prosperous than it did in our time."

Tobirama Senju surveyed the surroundings. Compared to his older brother Hashirama, he was actually looking further ahead. Some of the policies he had implemented before his death had been carried out well. That was quite reassuring.

"Yeah. Compared to when I was in office, it really has become much more prosperous. It's rather moving. I never thought I'd get the chance to properly admire the village again after being dead for so many years."

Hashirama Senju looked around like a curious child.

"By the way, where are the Senju Clan members? Is the clan compound still in its original place?"

Tobirama looked at his granddaughter, Tsunade, and asked.

Hearing her second grandfather's question, Tsunade's expression turned bitter. What Senju Clan compound was there anymore...?

"I disbanded the Senju Clan... Years upon years of fighting depleted the clan's strength. After the Third Shinobi World War ended, less than one-tenth of the Senju Clan's combat power remained... So I disbanded all the remaining clansmen and had them become civilians of Hidden Leaf Village..."

Tsunade did not continue. No matter how she put it, as the one steering the clan, she had been terribly unqualified...

"Is that so..."

Hashirama Senju looked somewhat forlorn. Tobirama, meanwhile, furrowed his brows. The more perceptive Tobirama had caught another implication. He knew the Senju Clan's strength very well, but now was not the time to dig into the matter.

It seemed the winds in the village had changed after I died.

"Ugh, it's so noisy. Hey, pretty lady, where's your house? I'm tired."

Uchiha Sen did not like such boisterous scenes. Tugging on Tsunade's sleeve, he clamored for a place to rest.

"Shizune, take Sen and the other two back to the house to rest first. My first grandfather, second grandfather, and I still have some matters to handle."

"Yes, Lady Tsunade."

Soon, under Shizune's lead, Sen and the others left one after another.

"Big Brother Sen, now that the First and Second Hokage have returned, does that mean our Hidden Leaf Village has become the strongest village in the shinobi world in one leap?"

On the way home, Naruto excitedly waved his fists. In his mind, the Hokage were unbelievably powerful beings, and now two had appeared at once.

Zabuza nodded. Naruto's words might have been crude, but they made sense. Choosing to side with Leaf Village had undoubtedly been the right gamble for the two of them.

"Tch, what Hokage? They're all small fry. If I hadn't used up too much of my vital energy lately, I could've taken on ten of them thirty years ago!"

Sen spoke with such swagger, making it sound entirely convincing.

Zabuza stood behind him with a look of utter disdain.

You? Take on ten? Thirty years ago, at best you would've been a ghost—not even a cell!

Naruto could not openly argue with his big brother, but inwardly, he chose not to believe him.

Big Brother Sen looks really strong, but he's still a little behind the Hokage. That's right. But Big Brother Sen buys me meat, so I won't tell the truth. It's a well-intentioned lie.

Elsewhere.

Hokage's Office.

"You've all gotten so old."

Tobirama Senju shook his head as he looked at Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado's aged appearances, feeling deeply emotional. Back when they had been under his command, every one of them had still been a green youth.

Compared to Hashirama Senju, who was fiddling with the crystal ball telescope beside him, the contrast between them was rather stark.

"Hahaha, this crystal ball is so fun! Oh, the Hidden Leaf Village casino has so many more games now! I have to go play a few rounds to my heart's content later!"

"Uh... the First Hokage really is carefree... Hehehe..."

Koharu Utatane spoke with forced politeness.

Tobirama Senju waved a hand and said, "Ignore my brother. He's been like this for a long time. You two, tell me about the village's current situation, as well as the state of the shinobi world. On the way back, our group was ambushed. The attackers knew Little Monkey had died. Clearly, there are some unstable elements within the village."

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado exchanged looks, each seeing a trace of surprise in the other's eyes.

The two of them thought of the same person without even discussing it—Danzo Shimura, who still had not appeared...

Intercepting a Hokage who had yet to take office on the way back—only he would do such a thing. After all, that man's obsession with the position of Hokage...

"Why aren't you two saying anything? Hmm?"

Tobirama Senju looked suspiciously at his two students. It was not hard to tell from their faces that they definitely knew something.

"Teacher... when Hiruzen died, we sealed off the news. At the same time, we secretly arranged for Jiraiya to go out and find Tsunade, bringing her back to the village. During that time, the only outsider who knew about Hiruzen's death was Orochimaru. But ANBU squads had been pursuing him the entire time. We don't know who exactly leaked the news."

Homura Mitokado explained stiffly. Matters without evidence could not be brought into the open. She knew her teacher very well; saying too much would only backfire. Besides, Leaf Village would be changing from now on. The two of them were old too. It was time to go home, hold their grandchildren, and enjoy their retirement.

"Alright, Tobirama. The most important matter right now is making sure Little Tsunade successfully takes over as Hokage. With the two of us assisting her, the village can stabilize in the shortest possible time. As for everything else, we can deal with it later. You're not going anywhere, so what are you in such a rush for?"

Perhaps drawn in by the casino inside the crystal ball, Hashirama Senju looked eager to give it a try.

"Fine. Then I'll trouble you two to arrange the Hokage succession ceremony. Get it done within the next couple of days. Tomorrow, gather all the village's jōnin for a meeting. You've already informed the Land of Fire's daimyo, right? Send another letter saying my brother and I will pay him a visit soon."

"Yes."

The two left to make the arrangements. At Hashirama Senju's urging, Tsunade's hands started itching as well. The two of them looked in unison at Tobirama, who sat in the Hokage's seat.

"Go on, go on. There's no point in keeping you here."

The Second Hokage waved his hand helplessly. Why did he feel like a tool...?

After the two left, Tobirama called out to the empty office, "Someone come out. Bring me every file related to Uchiha Sen."

"Yes."

Half an hour later, Tobirama Senju stared at the files Hiruzen Sarutobi had left behind and sank into thought.

"From these files, that kid really doesn't seem to have any problems..."

For a moment, Tobirama himself became confused. Even the name Uchiha had nothing to do with the kid. He had been despised by every clansman since childhood, relying on relief rations provided by Hidden Leaf Village for food and lodging. After growing up, because of his strange personality, only Naruto Uzumaki, the Fourth Hokage's orphaned son, had played with him.

He had truly begun displaying his strength a little over a month ago... He had allegedly been summoned by Root shinobi and severely injured them.

Little Monkey had discovered his potential and temporarily assigned him to Team 7 for missions. During one of those missions, he had used...

What?!

Wood Release?!

That had to be fake...

Tobirama Senju froze, carefully checking the words on the file again. It was undoubtedly Wood Release, but how could that be possible...?

However, there was another line in small print in the file.

(The subject may be capable of using Wood Release. Witness Kakashi's vision was obstructed by dense mist, so he did not clearly see the incident. Furthermore, neither Zabuza Momochi nor Haku, as parties involved, saw the specific caster.)

That statement was rather thought-provoking. Even those who had been attacked had not seen who cast the ninjutsu. Then there were only two possibilities. First, the caster had been someone else, who had remained in close contact with Uchiha Sen all along. Wood Release ninjutsu on that scale was no weaker than his brother Hashirama Senju's.

The other possibility was that Zabuza Momochi and Haku had concealed the truth. They had seen it, but did not dare speak. And the only person who could make them hide the truth was Uchiha Sen.

It seemed he would have to meet the two attendants beside that kid to confirm it. He also needed to find a way to counter this ninjutsu as soon as possible. Ah, there was too much to do. What a headache.

Outside Hidden Leaf Village.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

As two gusts of wind swept past, Kakuzu and Hidan, who had been wrapped up like dumplings, were freed.

"Alright, we rushed over as soon as we received the news. But what exactly did you two run into? I'm really curious."

Two White Zetsu stood before them, wearing the same annoyingly smug expressions. Who knew who they had learned that from.

"Send word back. The plan to capture the Nine-Tails may have to be delayed indefinitely. The entire shinobi world may even undergo earth-shaking changes. Hidden Leaf Village's First Hokage and Second Hokage have both been revived. Send the news back."

Kakuzu's voice was calm, but the faint trembling in his legs revealed his fear. In that instant, he had felt like a little rabbit being stared down by a lion.

"Got it."

The two White Zetsu said nothing more and sank into the ground, vanishing without a trace.

"Big Brother Kakuzu, should we make a trip to the Fire Temple next? Didn't they say there's a head worth thirty million ryō there?"

Hidan feared neither heaven nor earth, relying on his immortal body to remain fearless.

Kakuzu shook his head. "No. Leave the Land of Fire for now. We'll go to the Land of Lightning and wait for an opportunity to carry out the plan to capture the Two-Tails. Let the boss deal with that hard bone, the Land of Fire."

Kakuzu had already lost his nerve. No matter what, he was never coming here again. Staying alive mattered most. Having lived this long, when it truly came down to life and death, he still chose to be a coward.

"Uh... Big Brother Kakuzu, don't tell me you're scared? I say there's no way we'll run into those two guys again!"

Hidan sounded indignant. At the thought of that kid holding a slipper, both sides of his face still ached.

"If you know how to talk, then talk more. If you want to go, go alone. I'm carrying out the mission."

Kakuzu turned and left without the slightest hesitation.

"Hey, don't be mad! At worst, I swear I won't tell Itachi and the others about you sewing on a second dick, alright?"

Hidan hurried after him, his mouth never stopping for a moment.

Three days later, every nation received news of Tsunade Senju's succession as the Fifth Hokage. At the same time, another piece of news that shocked the shinobi world spread.

Hidden Leaf Village's First Hokage and Second Hokage had appeared in the village and would govern Hidden Leaf Village alongside Tsunade Senju.

Land of Lightning.

The Fourth Raikage A stared silently at the document on his desk for a long time.

Who would have thought that two old bastards buried in the ground for so many years would crawl back out?

"None of the spies the village sent to Leaf Village have sent back any news? We learned something this big through an invitation letter! Are those bastards all getting paid to do nothing?!"

Smack!

Crack!

The Raikage's secretary, Mabui, pursed her lips. There went another two thousand ryō.

"Lord Raikage, compared to that news, shouldn't the more terrifying matter be Hidden Leaf Village's ability to revive the dead?"

"For the entire shinobi world, that would be a catastrophic disaster. Powerful people could be revived endlessly. If Leaf Village wanted to start a war, the balance of the shinobi world would change. It might even be possible for them to unify the entire shinobi world."

"Hmph. Don't worry about that for now. This is an era of peace."

Mabui rolled her eyes. In recent years, her own Kage had been the one most fond of stirring up trouble. He had never stopped coveting Leaf Village's bloodline limits, while also eyeing Hidden Stone Village—the village responsible for killing his father—with hostility.

Hidden Stone Village.

Onoki was similarly stunned. The moment he received the news, he dispatched shinobi to send letters to Hidden Mist Village, Hidden Cloud Village, and Hidden Sand Village. He had no other intention: an alliance.

Leaf Village had dropped a bomb far too loud. The First Hokage had been a mighty figure who pacified a chaotic era... Back then, he had been fortunate enough to visit Leaf Village once...

He had not met the First Hokage, but he had met Madara Uchiha... The First Hokage who could defeat that man was even more terrifying to contemplate.

"But will doing this really help...?"

Onoki sank into thought.

Hidden Sand Village.

As a shinobi from the same era, Granny Chiyo understood very well what the First Hokage represented.

"Haa."

She let out a breath and said, "Thankfully, we're still allies with Leaf Village. We only need to maintain that relationship."

Though she said so aloud, Chiyo's true thought was... that she wanted to use Leaf Village to revive her son and daughter-in-law...

That was the pain of her lifetime.

Ebizō watched the complicated look in his sister's eyes and seemed to understand. The Kazekage was still young; Hidden Sand Village could no longer endure any upheaval.

For a time, Hidden Sand Village, Hidden Cloud Village, and Hidden Stone Village all sent shinobi to offer congratulations.

Leaf Village.

"Alright! Pegasus Meteor Fist! I strike!!"

"Ikki, don't keep thinking about Mother~"

"Shiryu, don't blind yourself~"

Sen bounced around gleefully on the sofa.

Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Jiraiya, and Tsunade Senju were all utterly dumbfounded...

Jiraiya: "I thought he was crazy enough outside..."

Hashirama Senju: "What's so interesting about the wall?"

Tobirama Senju: "There is something seriously wrong with this boy!"