Elsewhere, Kazan and Tobirama Senju had arrived in the Land of Fire.
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire welcomed them warmly, treating them to the highest standard of hospitality.
"Just as I expected, you became Konoha's Hokage in the end."
"The village needs me, so I'll take responsibility for a while. Once things settle down, I'll find a successor."
"You'd be better off not looking," the Daimyo of the Land of Fire said with a smile. "No one suits that position better than you."
Kazan might have been domineering and unbound by rules, but he was forthright and generous, saying exactly what he meant. That made him easy to get along with.
As a daimyo, he was surrounded by either schemers or sycophants.
He rarely met someone like Kazan. Even on the verge of becoming the leader of a village, wielding immense power, Kazan remained true to himself. He had not changed in all these years.
He had always been that genuine.
"You've been quite active lately, though, Kazan."
After returning, the daimyo had heard that Kazan had pursued Madara Uchiha for five days and five nights, turning the shinobi world upside down and dragging many shinobi villages into the turmoil.
As a result, letters of complaint from the daimyo of the Land of Demons, the Land of Lightning, and other nations had landed on his desk.
"That's the second reason for our visit," Tobirama Senju interjected.
He was not familiar with the current daimyo, who was not the same man who had held the position during his tenure as Hokage.
"Lord Second Hokage, what do you mean?"
"Madara isn't dead yet. The war isn't over."
The daimyo fell silent.
He had been present when the battle erupted in Konoha that day. Though he had been evacuated in time,