While Mabui rubbed her temples in Kumogakure, Kitsuchi and his daughter were passing through the dense forests of the Land of Fire.
"Dad, was Hashirama Senju really that powerful?"
A long-legged, black-haired girl raised her voice as she questioned the burly, simple-looking man beside her.
Kitsuchi had no way of dealing with this daughter of his. He could only keep a straight face and warn her, "We're here to bring your brother back to Iwagakure. Someone knows how he got talked into joining Akatsuki, and the old man was furious."
"Don't go provoking Akatsuki Village either. We still don't know whether it has anything to do with that Akatsuki."
Kurotsuchi waved a hand. "Alright, alright. How many times have you repeated that along the way?"
"What I'm wondering is whether the old man plans to retire or not. The Tsuchikage position should've been handed over to you ages ago, right?"
"And why do we have to bring my brother back? So he can blow up houses back home?"
Kitsuchi sighed, feeling that bringing her along had been a mistake.
Three days later, Konoha was right before them.
Kurotsuchi craned her neck for a look. Konoha's encircling walls were riddled with gaps, cracked like a dried-up riverbed. She burst out laughing. "Even the greatest village in the Ninja World got wrecked this badly."
As the two approached the main gate, they found a dense crowd outside. Carriages and people were packed together, while food stalls and specialty shops lined the walls, their lively bustle rising into the air.
It was even livelier inside the gate. Wealthy merchants, nobles, and celebrities stood in long lines while several rows of Hyuga branch family members activated their Byakugan and inspected everyone leaving the village one by one.
Kitsuchi and Kurotsuchi squeezed their way over