Outside the First Hokage’s residence, Konoha shinobi had surrounded the entire estate.
Every one of them wore a cold, serious expression.
At this point, even a bird attempting to fly inside might have been blasted out of the sky by ninjutsu.
Inside the residence, aside from the unconscious Hashirama Senju, only three people remained.
The first was Sora, who had already returned to his aged appearance.
The second was Hashirama’s younger brother—
Tobirama Senju.
White-haired.
Broad-shouldered.
And visibly tense.
The third was Hashirama’s wife, Uzumaki Mito.
Her long red hair framed the mystical mark on her forehead.
Mito wasn’t only a master of sealing techniques.
Her medical ninjutsu was also the best in the village.
After more than an hour of careful examination and treatment, Mito finally let out a small breath.
“How is my brother?”
Tobirama immediately asked.
“The injuries aren’t serious.”
Mito’s expression remained calm.
“He should recover in a few days.”
Tobirama slowly exhaled.
“That’s good.”
Konoha had only recently been established.
If Hashirama collapsed now, the consequences would be disastrous.
Sora glanced at the unconscious Hashirama.
Then he looked at Mito.
Although Sora knew nothing about medical ninjutsu, living for a hundred years had at least taught him how to read people.
Mito was pretending to be calm.
Which meant…
Hashirama’s condition was probably worse than she was letting on.
Sora sighed inwardly.
Then he stretched.
“You three kids can stay here.”
“I’m not much help anyway, so I’m heading home.”
“If you ever have time, come by and drink some tea.”
With that, Sora started walking toward the door.
“You—”
Tobirama instinctively called after him.
Earlier, everyone had been too focused on Hashirama’s condition to ask Sora what had actually happened during the battle.
Now that Tobirama knew his brother wasn’t about to die immediately, countless questions surfaced in his mind.
But before he could ask them—
Mito raised a hand.
She gave Tobirama a slight shake of her head.
Then she turned toward Sora respectfully.
“Elder Hatake.”
“Thank you for everything.”
Sora didn’t even turn around.
He simply waved one hand.
“Nothing worth mentioning.”
And then he left.
Outside the First Hokage’s residence, a large number of people had gathered.
Their expressions varied wildly.
The Uchiha looked uneasy.
The Hyūga appeared comparatively calm.
The Senju were visibly anxious.
There were also members of the Sarutobi clan and several others.
The moment Sora appeared, many of the older shinobi stared at him in shock.
Confusion followed.
Wasn’t he dead?
Why was a dead man walking around again?
The Hatake clan head quickly approached him.
“Great-Uncle, how did you—”
“We’ll talk when we get home.”
Sora glanced around at everyone nearby.
Then he raised his voice.
“All right, everyone.
Disperse.”
“The Hokage only suffered some minor injuries.”
“Stop acting like the sky is falling.”
He shook his head.
“You kids are always so impatient.”
“Why can’t you learn to be mature like me?”
“…”
“…”
The previously tense atmosphere instantly became strange.
Quite a few of the people standing there were already in their fifties or sixties.
Anyone else calling them “kids” would have sounded like they were deliberately insulting them.
But then they remembered—
the man saying it was a hundred years old.
How exactly were they supposed to argue?
Since Sora had personally announced that the Hokage was fine, most of Konoha’s elites gradually relaxed.
Everyone had responsibilities of their own.
After leaving behind a few representatives and exchanging some polite words, the crowd began to disperse.
Several Hatake remained behind.
Then the clan head and the others escorted Sora back to the Hatake compound.
…
Inside the First Hokage’s residence, Tobirama looked toward Mito.
“Sister-in-law, why didn’t you ask him what happened?”
“My brother and Madara must have fought an enormous battle.”
“Hatake Sora was just an ordinary man.
How could he possibly have appeared there?”
“And why is he alive again?”
Tobirama’s eyes narrowed.
“What if he and Madara were involved in some kind of scheme?”
Mito shook her head.
“Everyone has secrets.”
“We shouldn’t investigate every secret a person possesses.”
She looked toward Hashirama.
“When I examined him just now, the only foreign chakra remaining inside his body belonged to Madara and the Nine-Tails.”
“There were also traces of toxins.”
“But I sensed no hostility from Elder Hatake.”
She paused.
Then her expression became much more serious.
“And…”
“Hashirama’s injuries are actually very severe.”
Tobirama’s face immediately changed.
“What?”
“I only stabilized his condition for now.”
Mito continued quietly.
“I deliberately had Elder Hatake carry the message outside that Hashirama’s injuries were minor.”
“We need to stabilize the clans inside Konoha.”
“And more importantly…”
“We need to keep the other villages from learning the truth.”
Tobirama’s eyes turned cold.
“Mito, leave five of the most trustworthy elite jōnin here.”
“Everyone else should withdraw.”
She nodded toward him.
“You should work from here temporarily as well.”
Tobirama gave a firm nod.
“Fine.”
“I’ll protect my brother.”
“You focus on treating him.”
His gaze turned icy.
“Anyone who comes here looking for trouble dies.”
Despite the ruthlessness in his voice, worry remained deeply buried in his eyes.
…
“Basically, my coffin lid got smashed apart.”
“So I figured I might as well live a few more years.”
“Then I noticed someone lying nearby.”
“When I saw it was little Hashirama, I carried him back.”
After returning to the Hatake compound, Sora casually explained the situation to the clan head.
The Hatake clan head stared at him.
“Really?”
He clearly didn’t believe a word of it.
“With your physical strength, there’s no way you could have carried Lord Hokage all the way back.”
Sora smiled mysteriously.
“You might not believe me even if I told you.”
“I died once.”
“And somehow, it feels like I was reborn.”
He stretched his arms.
“I’m full of energy now.”
“…”
The clan head remained speechless.
Sora patted him on the shoulder.
“Little Suiin.”
“All these years, and you still haven’t cured that habit of sticking your nose into everything.”
“All right, all right.”
“Coming back from the dead is exhausting.”
“I’m going home.”
And before the clan head could continue questioning him—
Sora escaped.
Hatake Suiin remained where he was, filled with doubts.
But Sora’s seniority in the clan was simply too great.
And when Suiin had been a child, Sora had treated him very well.
Even now, despite already being over sixty years old himself, Suiin still deeply respected his great-uncle.
Eventually, he could only sigh.
“Forget it.”
“At least he’s alive.”
Thinking about it that way, a faint trace of happiness appeared in his heart.
…
Sunagakure
“The report from Fujiichirō says that the Hokage fought Madara Uchiha last night.”
The First Kazekage looked around at the others gathered before him.
“News from Konoha says the Hokage was injured.”
“They claim the injuries aren’t serious, but we haven’t confirmed that yet.”
“What do you think?”
One man answered,
“Our information is still incomplete.”
“I believe we should wait and observe.”
Another shook his head.
“Even if the Hokage really died, Konoha would still have the Hyūga, Uchiha, and Senju clans.”
“They aren’t opponents we can defeat easily.”
Someone else spoke.
“What if we cooperate with Iwagakure and Kumogakure?”
“The Land of Fire is rich in resources.”
“If Konoha were destroyed, the rewards would be enormous.”
“I disagree.”
The arguments continued.
…
Kumogakure
“Father.”
“The Hokage has been seriously injured.”
“This could be our opportunity!”
“His survival hasn’t been confirmed yet.”
“Keep waiting.”
The older man’s eyes hardened.
“But if we confirm that he really has died…”
“Then we strike with overwhelming force.”
…
Iwagakure
“Don’t hold anything back.”
“Send our best scouts into the Land of Fire.”
“Find out exactly what happened.”
“Immediately!”
…
While Konoha attempted to conceal the true extent of Hashirama Senju’s injuries—
the rest of the shinobi world had already begun to stir.
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