Summer, Year 10 of Konoha.
The vicious fire stirred up by that couplet had not faded when its words were scraped away. Instead, it seeped into the cracks in the ground and mingled with the sweltering air, weighing on people's hearts until even their breathing carried an edge of agitation.
The clan schools restrained themselves on the surface. During Will of Fire lessons, teachers no longer dared openly announce, "This period is for self-study."
But the children's hearts seemed branded by that couplet. The way they looked at the Ninja Academy, and at companions from other clans, had subtly changed.
The adults met and talked in private more frequently. Whenever the Hokage's orders were passed down, they seemed to pass through a layer of gauze, their implementation limp and ineffectual.
Tobirama Senju's expression grew darker by the day. Anbu reports piled ever higher, yet useful leads grew fewer and fewer.
Toyotomi Yinglang was even harder to get a grip on. His replies were filled with empty phrases about understanding the village's difficulties, making proper arrangements, and gradually adjusting, without a single concrete action.
The sound of recitation still rang out from the Toyotomi School, and the fragrance of Toyoda Sake could be smelled several streets away, yet Tobirama Senju could find no fatal weakness to seize upon.
This stifling frustration and these undercurrents reached their peak at an informal "Postwar Reconstruction and Border Defense Coordination Meeting" late that summer, attended by leading figures from every clan.
Smoke filled the meeting room, and the atmosphere was heavy and oppressive.
The discussion had stalled over reinforcements for border outposts and the allocation of supplies. The clan representatives bickered and passed the buck, dwelling on their own difficulties while covertly accusing others of taking advantage.
In the past, they had still shown some