Danzo panted heavily, his lone eye gleaming with an even more sinister, crazed light as he began to consider a new, more extreme plan.
Konoha's crisis had been temporarily resolved, but the undercurrents hidden beneath the surface of peace had become even more turbulent and unpredictable with Neji and Tsunade's sudden emergence.
A new era, accompanied by the radiance of Senjutsu and the brilliance of crystal, along with countless unresolved grudges and conspiracies, was about to begin.
The smoke of the Konoha Crush Plan had not yet fully dispersed. The air still reeked of scorched earth and blood, but more than that, it carried the lingering tremor of surviving a disaster and uncertainty toward the future.
As the godlike forms of Mystic Crystal Wisdom King and True Several Thousand Hands slowly faded away, revealing Neji and Tsunade beneath them, the surviving Konoha ninja fixed complicated gazes on the pair.
Awe, gratitude, fear, anticipation... all manner of emotions intertwined.
Tsunade stood atop the shattered Hokage Rock, her long golden hair stirring in the breeze. The lotus Senjutsu mark on her forehead shone brilliantly. She looked down at the devastated village, and a trace of sorrow flashed through her green eyes before determination replaced it.
She took a deep breath. Her voice was not loud, yet it rang clearly across the ruins of the battlefield, carrying unquestionable authority:
"Every Konoha ninja, heed my command!"
The moment her words fell, the still-chaotic scene instantly quieted, and every gaze turned toward her.
"From this moment on, I, Senju Tsunade, will serve as acting Hokage and handle all postwar matters!"
She did not ask for anyone's opinion. She simply announced it.
Her overwhelming presence and the absolute power she had just displayed made the declaration utterly convincing.
Jiraiya stood to one side, opening his mouth