Konoha's streets had never been so "lively."
This liveliness came neither from merchants hawking their wares nor from children playing.
It came from a... deathly silence, mingled with awe, bewilderment, and sheer terror, enough to freeze the very air.
Everyone's eyes were like iron filings drawn to a magnet, fixed firmly on that bizarre group of four.
Leading the way were their beloved Fourth Hokage, Lady Tsunade,
and her legendary husband, Uchiha Shinichi.
That was perfectly normal. The villagers were already used to this "heavenly couple" taking the occasional stroll and flaunting their affection before the entire village.
But the two following behind them...
"I... am I seeing things? That grinning guy... isn't that the first face carved into Kage Rock?"
An apple seller's apples rolled across the ground, and he didn't even notice.
"The one beside him... the white-haired one... my god, Grandpa said the Second's stare could freeze people solid... he was telling the truth!"
A young ninja instinctively snapped his legs together and stood at attention.
Hashirama Senju was like an old farmer visiting the city for the first time, brimming with curiosity about everything.
"Oh, oh, oh! Look, Tobirama!
That big round sign belongs to the Akimichi Clan's barbecue restaurant, right?
It smells even better than it used to!"
"Wow! That little girl is from the Hyuga Clan, isn't she?
What a beautiful Byakugan!
She's much more talented than that Hiashi kid was back then!"
He enthusiastically waved at every dumbstruck villager, flashing a hearty smile dazzling enough to blind them.
Tobirama Senju, meanwhile, was the complete opposite.
He was like a walking precision instrument. His scarlet eyes were scanners of the highest accuracy, coldly dissecting everything in his field of vision.
``` [Commercial district: 372 percent more prosperous than during wartime. Civilians are well dressed,