"Enough! We'll leave this matter here for now. No one is to breathe a word of it outside! If you have any objections, come to me first, and I'll discuss them with Lord Ziyan!" Minato Namikaze told everyone present.
At Minato Namikaze's words, everyone wisely held their tongues. They nodded to him, then left Hiruzen Sarutobi's courtyard.
Looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi lying on the ground, Minato Namikaze felt an inexplicable pang of dread for his own future. They were both Hokage, yet now that this man had been killed, no one condemned his killer. Everyone thought he had done the right thing. Would Minato end up like this too?
Kushina noticed something was wrong with Minato Namikaze and stepped forward to tug at his sleeve.
"Minato!" Kushina had just begun to speak when Minato Namikaze interrupted her.
"I'm fine!" Minato Namikaze patted Kushina's hand, reassuring her that he was all right.
In that brief span, everyone Minato had summoned left, leaving only Jiraiya, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina.
Just then, Biwako returned from her outing. As she entered the courtyard, she saw Hiruzen Sarutobi lying on the ground, with Jiraiya and the other two standing beside him.
Jiraiya saw Biwako come in too. His mouth opened as he tried to say something, but not a single word came out.
Yet Biwako's reaction surprised Jiraiya even more.
Upon seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi had been killed, Biwako showed no surprise at all. She calmly walked up to him, straightened his clothes a little, and prepared to lift him into her arms.
"Ma'am!" Jiraiya hurried forward, taking over from Biwako and lifting Hiruzen Sarutobi's body.
Biwako did not argue with Jiraiya and let him carry the body.
"Little Jiraiya! Do you think I'm being too calm?" Biwako asked, her expression betraying neither joy nor