"Not a problem. It's for the Senju, after all!" After speaking, the Second Elder, an old man with graying hair and dressed in Senju clan robes, slowly rose and headed for the hall's exit.
As he passed Toka, the old man smiled at her and said, "It's normal for a little rascal to get up to mischief. Don't worry. I'll bring him back in a bit!"
"Sorry for the trouble, Second Elder!" Seeing the old man step in, Senju Toka said no more and bowed.
"Mm. Go on and have your meeting. Get them to settle on a unified opinion quickly. All that arguing is giving me a headache. I'd like to retire sooner, too."
"..."
At those words, everyone in the hall lowered their heads.
Although he held only the position of Second Elder, his age and seniority were simply too great.
Even the second-oldest Senju had to call him uncle. Whatever an old man like that said, they could only lower their heads and agree. They really didn't dare talk back!
A moment later!
Inside the Hokage's office.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat smiling behind the broad desk.
He listened as the three advisor elders before him reported on the village's various affairs!
It was his sixth year in office!
Unlike when he had first taken the position, trembling with anxiety and relying on his friends and the Senju to secure the Hokage Position, things were different now.
Over the past few years, under his step-by-step arrangements, Konoha had swiftly emerged from the various postwar crises and regained its vitality. The number of villagers and the number of ninja in particular had both doubled again and again!
Those achievements had made his authority grow stronger by the day!
He had completely secured the Hokage Position and no longer needed to rely on anyone else!
Looking at the documents on the desk, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't help feeling a little pleased with himself.
He hadn't let down Teacher Tobirama's trust!
"Knock, knock!"
The sound of knocking interrupted their conversation.
An Anbu voice came from outside the door. "Lord Hokage, the Second Elder of the Senju Clan is here!"
The Second Elder of the Senju Clan?
Hiruzen Sarutobi was momentarily at a loss, unable to remember who this person was!
Kofu Senju?
It had been so long since he'd seen him that he'd almost forgotten who the Senju's Second Elder was.
He was an old man from his grandfather's generation. No one in all of Konoha had greater seniority than him!
But why wasn't he staying at the Senju Clan Compound to enjoy his retirement? Why had he suddenly come to the office to see me?
Could it be that the incident with peeking into the hot spring last time had gotten out?
Completely at a loss, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't figure out why this man had suddenly come to the Hokage Building!
Seeing her old friend still sitting in the Hokage's chair, stunned, Utatane Koharu hurriedly reminded him, "What are you standing around for? Go greet him! We can't neglect our manners!"
At her words, Hiruzen Sarutobi came back to his senses. He smiled apologetically at his old friend, stood up, and headed for the door.
As soon as he stepped outside, he saw an old man in Senju clan robes being helped along by an Anbu!
Hiruzen Sarutobi hurried forward and took over from the Anbu, carefully supporting the Second Elder as he smiled and asked, "Second Granduncle, it's been so long! What brings you here to see us today?"
The Second Elder let Hiruzen support him and smiled warmly at the Konoha High Command gathered before him. "Little monkey, I'm getting old. Who knows when I'll go down and meet your fathers and grandfathers?"
"I happened to have some free time today, so I came to see you. That way, when I go down, I'll have something to tell them!"
Setting aside what he didn't want to hear, Hiruzen Sarutobi furrowed his brows and feigned indignation as he retorted, "How can you say that? You're sure to live to a hundred and become the first centenarian in Konoha!"
"Haha, a hundred years? That's much too long!" the Second Elder replied with a laugh.
Nearby, when Shimura Danzo saw who had arrived, his heart sank.
It looked like his plan had failed. He'd meant to lure Senju Toka here, so how had he brought this man instead?
"Not too long, not too long. Second Granduncle, you're sure to live to a hundred!" Shimura Danzo didn't have time to lament the trouble with his plan. He forced a smile, picked up the conversation, and hurried to the Second Elder's other side to support him.
In the Shinobi World, where children went to the battlefield at just a few years old, people who lived past thirty were in the minority. Konoha had an old man who had lived from the Warring States period to the present, for more than eighty years!
Even without the Senju name, they still had to treat him with respect out of courtesy!
What's more, this Senju elder had watched the four of them and their parents grow up.
An old man like this was of little use and couldn't bring anyone any benefits.
But everyone got old. If they offended someone like him, their reputations would be dragged through the mud!
How could Danzo, who had always coveted that position, make such a mistake?
Wasn't it just a matter of putting on a smile?
If you, Hiruzen, could put on a show, then I, Danzo, could do the same!
Seeing the two men take up the Second Elder's left and right sides, Utatane Koharu had no choice but to lead the way, while Mitokado Homura alone stood rooted to the spot, wanting to speak but stopping himself.
He wanted to say that his father was still alive!
But saying that seemed like it might offend someone. After all, the others had all passed away!
He opened his mouth, then finally swallowed the words.
After leading the old man to a tea table and seating him, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and asked, "Second Granduncle, aside from coming to see us today, is there anything else you need?"
"Just say the word. We're all here, so we'll take care of it right away!"
He didn't believe the old man would have left the Senju Clan Compound for no reason. Back when Teacher Tobirama's succession ceremony had been held, they hadn't even managed to get the Second Elder to come out!
The Second Elder smiled as he accepted the teacup Danzo handed him. He took a small sip, set the cup down on the low table, and said slowly, "Besides coming to see you today, this old man also came to collect my mischievous little grandson!"
"You asked Toka to come collect him, but she was in a meeting. I didn't feel like listening to it anyway, so I volunteered to come!"
"Collect someone?" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked surprised. He hadn't sent anyone to the Senju today, nor had he arrested anyone from the Senju. Why was the Second Elder talking about collecting someone?
It seemed something else had happened without his knowing!
Hiruzen Sarutobi turned his gaze toward his old friends, waiting for them to answer.
Danzo stood to the side, silently grumbling to himself.
He'd known this was about that matter. Good thing he'd prepared in advance!
So he smiled and explained to them, "Today, Uka was fishing with explosives by the river and blasted one of Sarutobi's ninja unconscious. An Anbu passing by saw it and brought him back. The information came to me, and when I saw it, I thought, 'This won't do!'"
"Before, it was just houses and summoning beasts. This time, he's escalated to people!"
"Luckily, it was a ninja and he was only knocked unconscious. If it had been a civilian, he'd have been either dead or injured. So I had the Anbu notify her and ask her to come here. I planned to complain to Toka and tell her to keep a closer eye on him when they got home!"
Listening to his old friend's explanation, how much of it was true and how much was false?
As long as Danzo could make his story hold together, that was enough.
This wasn't the time to sort it out. They had to deal with what was right in front of them first.
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and said, "Second Granduncle, don't worry. My clansman got blasted because he deserved it. A ninja getting knocked out by a child-I'm embarrassed for him!"
Then he changed tack, furrowed his brows, and said with some concern, "But Danzo is right, too. Luckily, it was a ninja this time. If it had been a civilian, that would have been bad. When you get home, you'll have to talk to Toka. Don't let Uka play with explosives anymore!"
Listening to the two of them singing the same tune, the Second Elder silently curled his lip.
His expression unchanged, he continued smiling warmly at them!
Only after they had finished speaking did the Second Elder slowly say, "Don't worry, I'll talk to Toka. This little grandson of mine is just so unreliable. He loves blasting fish, and somehow things always go wrong!"
"Punish him as you see fit. Make him pay whatever compensation is due. The little guy's quite wealthy. Just let him come home with me later!"
Seeing the Second Elder say this, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately nodded. "Don't worry. I'll have someone handle it right away!"
With that minor matter settled, the Second Elder turned to what he had chiefly come for today.
Changing the subject, he waved a hand and said, "Enough of that. Let's have a chat, grandfather and grandsons. It's been years since I saw you, and look how much you've all grown! Hiruzen in particular-you really do look like your father!"
"I remember he and your mother, Koharu, even dated for a while back then. They almost got together!"
As Hiruzen Sarutobi was thinking about what was really going on with Uka, he jerked his head up, startled by the Second Elder's words.
Looking at his old friends, he didn't know what expression to make for a moment. He could only force a smile and awkwardly echo a few words.
The Second Elder, however, didn't pay it much mind. He was in high spirits.
He pulled Hiruzen Sarutobi close and told him about the first time he'd met Sasuke Sarutobi. Because Sasuke had been cute, he'd picked him up and flicked his balls.
He also shared love-life gossip and amusing anecdotes about the elders of the Shimura, Mitokado, and Utatane Clans during the Warring States period!
The more the four of them listened, the more uncomfortable they became.
They could only force smiles and awkwardly play along.
For the first time, they understood what it meant to feel like every day lasted a year!
After waiting a full two hours!
Inside the interrogation room, Tamaki Nara, wearing a cat-face mask, let out a long sigh of relief!
For two full hours, ever since she'd started feeling uneasy, she'd kept Shadow Imitation Technique ready in one hand and Substitution Technique ready in the other.
She was afraid the boy across from her would suddenly explode and drag her into it, too!
Given the situation at the time, those two techniques were already her best options. If she still couldn't survive, then so be it!
At one point, Tamaki Nara had even hoped that the Nara Clan's intuition would disappear!
That way, she wouldn't have to be so terrified anymore!
Unfortunately, this innate ability couldn't be turned off. After panicking for two hours, she finally received the latest order!
She slowly flexed her stiff fingers, stood up, and said to the white-haired boy, "Uka Senju, someone's come to pick you up. You can leave now. I'll take you out."
Without waiting for Uka Senju to respond, she opened the door to the holding cell.
Seeing this, Uka didn't delay, but he didn't let his guard down either.
His left hand kept gripping the scroll as he followed Tamaki Nara out of the underground floor!
He had been locked up for two hours and still didn't know what had happened outside.
But he hadn't been idle, even though he couldn't use his Golden Finger.
He'd repeatedly analyzed the information he'd gained in both his past and present lives.
In the end, he'd reached only one conclusion!
That was, as long as his aunt was all right, he'd most likely be all right too!
As for whether anything would happen to his aunt?
Heh, she'd fought her way through the Warring States period and survived to the present. The strongest Genjutsu user in the Senju clan wasn't just an empty boast!
Not to mention, his aunt also had a fully staffed squad of Senju shinobi at her disposal!
If Konoha really went after him with lethal intent,
then at least two of the four clans-Sarutobi, Shimura, Mitokado, and Utatane-would have to go down with him!