Several days later, Tianyi returned to the gates of Konoha.
Standing before the towering wooden gates, he glanced up at the statues on the distant Hokage Rock, then closed his eyes.
He activated his Magnet Release Sensory at full power. Invisible waves spread outward from him, penetrating streets, buildings, and layer upon layer of walls.
A moment later, he opened his eyes and nodded. In the Hokage Office. Perfect.
"ANBU on duty, come out!"
Three figures landed silently beside him and dropped to one knee. "Squad leader!"
Tianyi took a scroll from inside his clothes and handed it to the lead ANBU.
"Inform Lord Hokage that I have returned. On my way back, I encountered ninja attempting to assassinate me. I killed them all.
"Now I have a score to settle. Give this to Lord Hokage."
He took out another envelope and handed it to another ANBU, his voice calm.
"Go to the Uchiha Clan and deliver this letter to Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku."
"Deliver this letter to the Naku Clan. He knows what to do!"
The ANBU accepted the envelope and bowed his head. "Yes!" His figure flickered and vanished into the night.
Tianyi shot into the sky. Boom! A ring of air burst outward as he accelerated past the speed of sound.
Like a bolt of white lightning, he flew straight toward the Root Base.
Inside the Hokage Office, Konoha's F4 sat around a table.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura were discussing the specific terms for negotiations with the Hidden Cloud Village.
The Third Raikage had died in battle, the A-B Combo had been captured, and the Hidden Cloud Village had suffered a crushing defeat. This was Konoha's greatest victory in decades.
Their discussion centered on how to leverage that victory to secure the