October 24, Konoha Year 12.
The Uchiha Clan was filled with celebration.
Uchiha Kagami, the Uchiha Clan’s number one genius and student of the Second Hokage, was getting married.
Mito brought Shanks, Tsunade, and Senju Mokuma to the Uchiha compound.
To be honest, this was Shanks’s first time visiting the Uchiha compound.
If not for Kagami’s wedding, he probably would never have come to this clan full of people who this clan full of people who looked down at everyone..
Or maybe he would come for a stroll after the clan was wiped out in the future.
“Uncle Hiruzen, congratulations, congratulations!
You look so handsome today.
Bring me two pretty girls—ow!”
Shanks had just seen Hiruzen Sarutobi greeting guests at the entrance and could not resist teasing him.
Before he finished speaking, Mito slapped the back of his head.
If not for Lady Mito being right here, I would beat you to death.
Hiruzen’s face darkened.
“Today is a happy occasion.
Don’t speak nonsense,” Mito scolded.
“Hiruzen is still your captain.
Show some respect.”
“Lady Mito, please don’t say that.
You’re too polite.
Please, come inside.”
Hiruzen quickly made way.
After Shanks and the others entered, most of the guests had already arrived.
Mito’s group was among the last.
In Shanks’s words, that was called presence.
The more important your status, the later you arrived.
The Uchiha clan head had come with the young clan heir.
In other words, Uchiha Fugaku’s grandfather and father were both present.
The Uchiha clan head was chatting and laughing with Tobirama and several other clan heads, looking as if he could point at the world and discuss its fate.
As for the young clan heir, the future grandfather of the second male lead, he had his chin raised and his eyes aimed toward the sky.
He stood behind his father like a guard and did not bother chatting with anyone.
The Ino-Shika-Chō clans had only sent their clan heads.
The Hyūga Clan was the same.
Right now, the Second Hokage was in power, and everyone could see that Tobirama did not like the Uchiha.
There was no need to get too close to them.
They personally attended this wedding only because Kagami was Tobirama’s student.
When the Uchiha heir had gotten married before, they had simply sent gifts and not come in person.
Hatake Sakumo, however, came with his father.
Sakumo’s relationship with Uchiha Kagami was fairly good, and his father was a loyal supporter of the Senju Clan, so there was no issue with them attending.
Everyone knew that since the Warring States era, the Hatake Clan and the Senju Clan had practically worn the same pair of pants.
“Sakumo, what did you give Brother Kagami?”
Shanks was very curious.
Last time, he and Hatake Sakumo had wanted to give Kagami a red envelope from their S-rank mission reward, but Sakumo had refused, saying money was too vulgar.
“I gave him a chakra blade that I asked my father to help forge,” Sakumo said calmly.
“Damn!
Is the Hatake Clan that rich?”
Shanks nearly jumped up.
Special chakra-conductive metal was far rarer now than it would be several decades later.
Basically, only the Land of Craftsmen could forge one blade from it every year, and some years there might not even be one.
It was the kind of thing money could not always buy.
Shanks’s shout startled the people around them, causing the conversations nearby to pause as everyone looked over.
Several veins jumped on Tobirama’s forehead.
Shanks realized he had lost his composure and lowered his voice.
“Then what did your father give?”
“A purple jade Buddha statue.”
Fine.
Sakumo’s father was more normal.
“What about you?” Sakumo asked curiously.
“You didn’t really give a red envelope, did you?”
“Hahaha!
How could that be?”
Shanks laughed awkwardly.
In truth, he really had given a red envelope.
Inside was all the money he had saved over the past few years from gambling with Hashirama, along with all the mission money he had earned recently.
In other words, starting today, Shanks had become poor again.
Normally, he could only ask Mito for a little spending money.
Every year, the Land of Whirlpools sent Mito gifts, including Shanks’s living expenses.
One was the clan head’s older sister.
The other was the son of her own younger brother.
The support that should be given was still given.
But Mito always said she was saving it for Shanks’s future marriage proposal.
So the money Shanks could actually get from her was pitifully little.
“Being a clan heir really is nice,” Shanks said sourly.
“A chakra blade, just given away like that.”
“If Shanks wants a chakra blade, Auntie can give you one too,” Mito teased.
“But then you won’t have spending money for the next ten years.”
“Tch.
I have money.
Tomorrow I’ll go to Second Uncle and take an S-rank mission.”
“Wow!
I want to go too!
I want to go too!”
Tsunade, who was sitting on her father’s shoulders, immediately started making noise.
“Haha, little Tsunade can’t go yet,” Mokuma said gently.
“Train hard.
When you grow up, you’ll be able to take one.”
“Your Tsunade will take plenty of S-rank missions in the future,” Shanks muttered.
“But the rewards won’t be enough for her gambling losses.”
“Why are you arguing with a child?” Mito gave Shanks a sideways glance.
That night, after the wedding ceremony ended, several clan heads left.
The Uchiha clan head also left with his son.
Mito needed to go back and take care of Hashirama, so she brought Tsunade and Mokuma home as well.
Only Shanks and the younger generation stayed behind to eat, drink, and make noise until late into the night.
The next day—
Bang!
The Hokage office door was habitually blasted open.
“Second Uncle, give me any S-rank mission.
I have no money to eat.”
Shanks had not even entered yet, but his voice arrived first.
“You cannot accept S-rank missions yet.
Your strength is still insufficient.”
Tobirama’s face darkened.
“Why?
Haven’t Sakumo and I already done them?”
“Only jōnin can accept S-rank missions.
Last time, Hiruzen accepted the mission, and yours was a special S-rank mission.
Normal S-rank missions usually involve assassinating at least two elite jōnin-level targets.”
“Tch.
In a few years, I’ll assassinate the Kazekage for you.”
“Say that when the day comes,” Tobirama said.
“For now, I have an A-rank mission for you and Hatake Sakumo.
Hiruzen has other matters and can’t go.
Find Hatake Sakumo and bring him here.”
“Got it.”
Shanks left the office.
At the Hatake compound, Shanks knocked on the door.
Bang, bang, bang.
The person who opened it was the Hatake clan head.
“Uncle Hatake, why are you opening the door?
Where’s Sakumo?
How unfilial.
He’s actually making his own father open the door.”
“…”
The Hatake clan head really could not understand how his son’s personality had somehow become compatible with Shanks.
“Sakumo is meditating in the quiet room.
Go find him.”
The Hatake clan head still had his usual expression.
“Okay!
Sorry for disturbing you.”
Shanks entered the quiet room and saw Hatake Sakumo truly sitting in meditation.
Judging from his posture, he had been sitting there for a long time.
“What is it?”
“You sensed me?” Shanks asked.
“No.
You knocked on my door, and I heard you talking to my father.”
Sakumo’s eyes remained closed.
“…”
“Does using my method to meditate really work?” Shanks quickly changed the topic.
“A little.
At least it lets me keep calm at all times.
After meditating, training becomes more effective.
You can try it.”
“No thanks.
I have shadow clones for training.
No need to make it that troublesome.”
Shanks looked extremely smug.
“…”
Hatake Sakumo did not want to speak.
“Oh, right.
I almost forgot.
Second Uncle told me to bring you to the Hokage building.
There’s a mission.”
“Captain Hiruzen isn’t going?”
“Second Uncle said he has something else to do.
So the A-rank mission reward is split between just the two of us.”
Shanks’s eyes practically turned into money symbols.
“Are you that short on money?” Sakumo asked when he saw Shanks’s expression.
“Who isn’t short on money?
You think everyone is like you, heir of a big clan?”
Shanks rolled his eyes at him.
“Let’s go.”
The two soon arrived at the Hokage office.
“This mission is for you to go to the Land of Rain and receive an important piece of intelligence,” Tobirama said with a stern expression.
“No matter what happens, you must bring that intelligence back.”
Then his voice cooled.
“And while you’re there, kill the person handing over the intelligence.”
“Understood.”
After answering, the two vanished from the Hokage office.
Tobirama sighed.
“If Big Brother could only hold on a little longer.”
He knew the current situation well.
For a long time, Hashirama had not appeared in public.
Even though Tobirama had sealed the news as tightly as possible, the other villages could already guess that Hashirama would not last much longer.
After all, even Uchiha Madara was “dead.”
It was impossible for Hashirama to be completely unharmed.
The only reason the other villages still did not dare start a full war was because they were afraid Hashirama might appear at their village gates before dying and grow a forest there.
Everyone had lived through the era of the God of Shinobi.
They all knew how terrifying that would be.
“The Uchiha Clan still hasn’t given up.
It seems the plan must be accelerated, or there will be even greater trouble later.”
Tobirama seemed to make a decision.
Outside, Shanks and Sakumo had already left the Hokage building.
“What is Second Uncle doing?
That person worked so hard to bring us information, and now we have to kill him?”
Shanks could not understand it.
No matter how he looked at it, Tobirama did not seem like the kind of Hokage who would burn the bridge after crossing it.
“There may be some reason we don’t know,” Sakumo said.
“Don’t overthink it.
Let’s complete the mission quickly.”
Sakumo could not understand it either.
But he had been influenced by his father since childhood.
The Hokage’s decision could never be wrong.
The Hatake Clan’s loyalty training was truly excellent.