Takahashi Yū had led fifty ninja into battle away from home for nearly a year, spending most of that time fighting the Sand Shinobi in the Land of Wind.
Their ferocity, Takahashi Yū's invulnerable body, and the fact that they invariably appeared in the most dangerous places had earned them the name "Undying Squad" throughout the Shinobi World.
As the Sand Shinobi grew weaker by the day, they also spread information about Takahashi Yū and his unit far and wide.
With Konoha fighting on four fronts, the village also publicized his squad's exploits among the people of the Land of Fire to bolster public confidence.
On the Land of Wind battlefield, Takahashi Yū was the undisputed king of kills, making matters even worse for the already impoverished Sand Shinobi.
Despite suffering tremendous losses and losing almost an entire generation of young people, Sunagakure had originally intended to keep Konoha tied down.
After all, Konoha was fighting on four fronts. Once it could no longer hold out, they could demand territory and reparations as the victors.
Instead, they were the ones who could no longer hold out. If Takahashi Yū kept rampaging, even a three-child policy would not be enough.
The Third Kazekage, hailed as the strongest Kazekage, could do nothing about Takahashi Yū. Although he could protect himself, he could not stop Takahashi Yū from acting as a meat grinder on the battlefield.
Konoha was absurdly powerful at this point in time. Mitokado Homura served as supreme commander on the Land of Wind front. Despite the useless image he and Utatane Koharu presented in the original story, this was Year 39 of Konoha, and Homura, only in his early forties, was in his prime, at the height of his fighting strength.
He was, after all, a personal student of the Second Hokage. He might struggle against the other villages' Kage, but he could still slaughter Jonin like dogs.
Takahashi Yū alone was enough for the Land of Wind front. Meanwhile, Orochimaru and his two companions had kept the Iwa Shinobi tied down in a three-way battle in the Land of Rain. Once the Sand Shinobi withdrew, Takahashi Yū was free to deal the Iwa Shinobi a fatal blow.
Shimura Danzō and Hatake Sakumo were on the Land of Lightning front.
There was little need to elaborate on Hatake Sakumo. His title of Konoha's White Fang had been forged atop piles of corpses, and his Ninja Blade techniques were as fast as lightning.
Shimura Danzō, supreme commander on the Land of Lightning front, was only forty-three that year, full of lofty aspirations and ambition-a completely different man from the obsessive figure in Shippuden. With Konoha's strongest Wind Release, he held off Kumogakure alongside White Fang!
Kirigakure, meanwhile, was playing at beach landings against the Hyūga and Uchiha forces led by Utatane Koharu, barely even making it onto land.
Even with war breaking out on four fronts at the outset, Konoha's Third Hokage could still sit comfortably in the village. That alone showed how powerful Konoha was at the time.
Not to mention that one old monster was still around. Mito Uzumaki, the first Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, had yet to die.
The butterfly effect Takahashi Yū had set off might have seemed immense, but it was still within what Konoha could withstand.
It was nothing like the Third Shinobi World War in the original story, when four nations had also besieged Konoha and fought their way right to its doorstep.
The Third Hokage's leadership, headed by Hiruzen Sarutobi, had caused far too many of Konoha's talented people to wither away.
Leading the group, Takahashi Yū could already see Konoha's walls in the distance, and a flood of feelings rose within him. Apart from the few Uzumaki, every squad member wore a broad smile. They would no longer have to face war in constant fear.
They could not help quickening their pace, drawing Takahashi Yū along with them. That made things hard for Uzumaki Shui Ling. Her feelings toward Konoha were already complicated and her thoughts were in turmoil, yet she still had to speed up with the group.
Dense forest rose around them. The mild climate and varied terrain all marked this as the outskirts of Konoha. A gate resembling the entrance to an ancient walled city drew ever closer to Takahashi Yū's squad, its enormous doors, tens of meters tall, standing open to either side.
The two thick, broad gate doors bore "A" and "Un" respectively. Much like guardian deities at a gate, they served as a warning: evildoers were forbidden entry. Beneath the eaves above were two characters for "shinobi," with Konoha's spiral emblem between them.
Even Takahashi Yū's mood lifted at the sight of the familiar gate, let alone his squad members, whose excitement was written all over their faces. Now, however, they slowed down and began strolling toward it.
The closer they came to home, the more apprehensive they felt.
A ninja wearing a Konoha Chunin vest stood guard on either side of the gate. Judging by their faces and how hairy they were, they were undoubtedly members of the Sarutobi Clan.
One of the Sarutobi guards, who had been bored out of his mind, suddenly glimpsed a group approaching along the distant road. He rubbed his eyes, blinked several times, and checked again. The faint smell of blood that suddenly lingered in his nose further confirmed his guess.
"Cousin, look. Isn't that Lord Takahashi Yū's Undying Squad?" The Sarutobi gate guard pointed at the distant specks.
The older cousin he had called to narrowed his eyes for a look. He, too, caught the scent of the battlefield.
"It really does look like them. Damn it! What are the perimeter patrols doing? They didn't even send word! Cousin, hurry and inform Lord Third. Our heroes have come home!"
After confirming it himself, the older Sarutobi cousin spoke to his younger cousin.
Villagers passing near the gate heard the word "heroes" and craned their necks to look.
The younger Sarutobi cousin raced nonstop toward the Hokage Building, leaping across Konoha's rooftops of varying heights as he shouted joyfully:
"Lord Takahashi Yū has returned in triumph!"
"The Undying Squad is back!"
The villagers in the streets looked up at the shouting, and when they saw that it was a ninja, they were overjoyed.
It was Year 39 of Konoha. Many of its villagers were ordinary people who had survived the Warring States Period, lived through its chaos and the brutal First Shinobi World War, or fled to Konoha as refugees.
The cruelty of war had yet to fade from ordinary people's hearts. Naturally, they were delighted to hear that war heroes like Takahashi Yū and the Undying Squad, whom the village had constantly publicized, were returning.
The more people came back, the less pressure the war placed on them, especially when those returning were widely celebrated war heroes.
The villagers put down what they were doing and, without any prompting, began heading toward the village entrance to cheer for the war heroes who had protected them.
The younger Sarutobi cousin soon reached the Hokage Building, passed through the ground-floor corridor, and darted upstairs. After announcing his arrival, he was soon kneeling on one knee before the desk.
"Lord Hokage, Elder Homura, Lord Takahashi Yū and his Undying Squad have been sighted on their way back. They'll be here very soon!"
Inside the Hokage's office were not only Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, but also Mitokado Homura, who had returned to the village after the fighting in the Land of Wind ended.
At the news, they exchanged a glance. Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his desk and said:
"All right. Thank you for your efforts. Go inform the Shinobi Clans and tell them to join me at the village entrance to welcome our heroes."
With that, Hiruzen Sarutobi waved a hand, dismissing the younger Sarutobi cousin.
"Yes, sir!" The younger cousin left with excitement all over his face. He looked eager to spread the word as quickly as possible, then join the others in welcoming Takahashi Yū's group.
Once the younger Sarutobi cousin closed the door, Mitokado Homura raised his head slightly, a golden glint flashing across his glasses.
"Hiruzen, haven't we taken the publicity a little too far? Even your own clansmen idolize Takahashi Yū. But Takahashi Yū, he..."
"That's enough, Homura. We won't discuss that during wartime. I know." Hiruzen Sarutobi cut him off before he could finish.
Of course Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that Takahashi Yū's Will of Fire was not entirely pure, but what could he do about it?
Setting down the documents in his hands, Hiruzen Sarutobi raised a hand to rub his eyes. Suppress the reputation of one of their strongest fighters while waging war on four fronts? That was courting death, especially when that fighter felt little sense of belonging.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had known from the outset that Takahashi Yū was outrageously powerful, but he had never expected him to be this outrageous. The clan rejects assigned to him had now become their clans' prized favorites.
All because they had close ties to Takahashi Yū.
Countless analyses of Takahashi Yū were now circulating throughout the Shinobi World. The Shinobi Clans were no fools. With members of the Undying Squad serving as intermediaries, any conversation became easier. It was the Hokage's position, by contrast, that was particularly uncomfortable, because Takahashi Yū had never even registered as a ninja or received Konoha's education.
He could not order him around!
Besides, Hiruzen Sarutobi currently had no confidence in turning against Takahashi Yū. It was not as though he had never read the reports on him.
His immunity to ninjutsu alone left Hiruzen at a loss. However powerful his combination ninjutsu might be, could it surpass the combined ninjutsu of a force of over a thousand ninja?
There was something that could threaten Takahashi Yū: the Reaper Death Seal!
Even setting aside the price of casting it, whether he could keep up with Takahashi Yū's speed was a major problem. Besides, Mito Uzumaki was still alive. Would he, Hiruzen Sarutobi, dare go digging through the Uzumaki's Sealing Jutsu?
Ah, it was hard. Being a ninja was hard; being Hokage was harder!
Drawing his thoughts back, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood, walked around the desk, and headed toward the office door.
"Come on, Homura. Let's welcome Konoha's heroes."
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