Hiruzen tapped his pipe against a pillar. Sparks fell into the snow with a hiss.
"The old rules won't protect anyone. All they can do is keep me sitting safely in the Hokage Building while I watch people outside die one by one."
He paused and looked up at Minato.
"Minato, don't look back."
The old man gripped his pipe. "Take big strides forward."
Minato nodded and strode into the sunlight.
Ye spat out the dry grass in his mouth and sauntered after him. As he passed Hiruzen, he raised an eyebrow. "Well, old man, had an epiphany?"
Hiruzen shot him a glare and couldn't be bothered to answer.
Ye only shrugged, slipped his hands back into his pockets, and kept strolling over the gold bricks.
"Ye."
Kakashi closed his battered little racy novel, walked over, and handed him a note.
"ANBU just picked this up from the Black Market. The Four Great Ninja Villages have pulled all their ANBU back toward the borders. They're afraid we'll attack them outright."
Ye skimmed the note and sneered.
Afraid?
Now they're afraid?
They were plenty arrogant when they brought tens of thousands of troops to my doorstep.
They smashed someone else's windows, and now that things look bad, they think they can just run?
Without even saying sorry?
Not a chance in hell!
Ye straightened and rolled his neck with a series of sharp cracks. He stared at the four locations marked in red on the report, eyes bright with the thrill of an imminent raid.
"Tell everyone to catch their breath where they are. We'll rest for half a day."
Ye tucked his hands into his coat pockets again and grinned in a way that made the skin crawl.
"After dark, we're going to their homes to collect what they owe!"