"Is it really the Fourth Hokage-sama?"
Minato looked at the two Konoha shinobi in front of him and nodded with a gentle smile.
"Ah. That's right. It's me."
Nearby, Hashirama Senju frowned slightly.
"The Fourth Hokage?"
He turned his head and glanced toward Hokage Rock in the distance. After looking carefully at the statue there, he nodded.
"Ah… it does look like you really were Hokage."
Then he looked back at the man standing before him.
Minato hesitated for a moment before asking cautiously,
"Then… are you the First Hokage?"
Hashirama blinked in surprise and turned around.
"Huh? How do you know I'm the First Hokage? Do you actually recognize me?"
Minato suddenly didn't know how to respond.
After a brief pause, he asked helplessly,
"Are you really the First Hokage-sama? I didn't expect even you to be resurrected…"
Now Hashirama looked even more surprised.
"How do you know I was resurrected?"
Minato sighed.
"Well… since I've been resurrected myself, it's only natural that others could be revived too."
"But… why were you resurrected, First Hokage-sama?"
Hashirama's expression turned a little awkward.
If he had to say the reason, it was probably because Shigure had used him as an experimental subject and revived him rather casually.
But that wasn't exactly something he wanted to explain out loud.
"You don't need to worry about that," Hashirama said, waving his hand. "What I want to know is how you suddenly came back to life."
"The Mizukage of Kirigakure resurrected you at a time like this… could it be to seek Konoha's help?"
Hearing that, Minato began to realize that the current ninja world was probably far from peaceful.
"…Probably not."
When he left Kirigakure, the Mizukage hadn't mentioned anything about asking Konoha for assistance.
Hashirama looked puzzled.
"What exactly is going on?"
He shook his head and gestured forward.
"Let's walk while we talk."
Then he turned to the two stunned Konoha shinobi.
"You two, hurry back and inform Tsunade that the Fourth Hokage has also been resurrected!"
"Also?"
The word immediately caught Minato's attention.
"Who else has been resurrected?"
Hashirama pointed at himself with a grin.
"Me, of course."
"Oh."
Minato had originally thought many famous figures might have been revived.
If it was only two people, however, then the impact on the world probably wouldn't be too significant.
As the two walked back toward Konoha, Hashirama briefly explained the current situation in the ninja world.
Kirigakure was confronting three major villages—Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure.
The two sides appeared to be on the verge of war, although no large-scale conflict had started yet.
Exactly what had triggered the situation was still unclear.
Minato frowned.
"Konoha isn't involved in the war?"
He found it strange.
A conflict between great ninja villages would normally drag every major power into it, yet Konoha seemed to have stepped away from the situation entirely.
Hashirama nodded.
"Originally, we were going to participate."
"But because of a gambling agreement, Konoha withdrew from the war."
Minato looked confused.
"A gambling agreement?"
Hashirama scratched his head.
"It involved Konoha's Eight Gates specialist, Might Guy. He challenged the Mizukage."
Minato's eyes widened.
"What?! Guy-sensei challenged the Mizukage?"
"…Did he open the Eighth Gate?"
Hashirama nodded seriously.
"Of course he did."
Minato took a sharp breath.
"And he still didn't defeat the Mizukage?"
Hashirama shook his head.
Minato felt a chill run down his spine.
Even Might Guy, after opening the Eighth Gate of Death, had failed to defeat the Mizukage.
That meant the man who had resurrected him possessed terrifying strength.
"To think the Sixth Mizukage could be this powerful…" Minato murmured.
"He might already be at the very peak of the ninja world."
"But if that's the case, why would the three great villages still dare to start a war against Kirigakure?"
Hashirama smiled faintly.
"Because of the tailed beasts."
Minato frowned.
"The tailed beasts?"
"What about them?"
Hashirama replied calmly,
"Except for Konoha's Nine-Tails, every other tailed beast has already fallen into Kirigakure's hands."
Minato stopped walking.
"…What?"
He stood there in shock.
All the other tailed beasts had been taken by Kirigakure?
That was an enormous matter.
If that were true, it was obvious why the other villages were preparing for war.
At least Konoha's Nine-Tails was still safe.
Wait—
Minato suddenly froze.
His expression changed drastically.
He slowly raised his head and looked at Hashirama.
Hashirama noticed the shift in his expression and frowned.
"Your face doesn't look right."
"What's wrong?"
Minato looked at Hashirama Senju and spoke slowly.
"When I sealed the Nine-Tails, its power was too great for Naruto to withstand at the time. So I sealed only half of the Nine-Tails inside Naruto."
"The other half… of the Nine-Tails' chakra was sealed inside my own body."
Hashirama nodded at first.
"I see… so that's how it was."
But halfway through speaking, his expression suddenly changed.
Minato had just come from Kirigakure.
Which meant…
The Nine-Tails chakra sealed within Minato's body was most likely already—
"The Nine-Tails chakra inside you… it couldn't be…"
Minato nodded quietly.
"That's right. It has already been taken by the Mizukage."
Hashirama fell silent.
At this moment, the Mizukage of Kirigakure could practically be said to possess all nine tailed beasts.
Every tailed beast had fallen into his hands.
This situation was extremely dangerous.
Even without thinking too deeply, Hashirama could tell that the Mizukage's actions definitely weren't without purpose.
Someone who gathered all nine tailed beasts was undoubtedly planning something earth-shattering.
The problem was—
No one yet knew what Shigure intended to do.
Minato's expression grew complicated.
Seeing this, Hashirama smiled faintly, trying to ease his mood.
"No matter what the Mizukage plans to do, it's not something you can stop right now."
"Let's return to the village first."
Minato nodded.
Indeed, whatever came next could be dealt with later.
Right now, there was only one thing he wanted to do.
"Actually… I'm not going to see Tsunade first."
"I want to meet Naruto Uzumaki."
Hashirama blinked.
"What do you want with that kid?"
Minato smiled softly.
"He's my son."
Hashirama froze.
"Your… son?!"
Now that he thought about it, the two really did resemble each other.
No wonder Minato had rushed back to Konoha the moment he revived.
His son was here.
Hashirama laughed.
"Alright, go see him first."
"After that, you can meet Tsunade."
Naruto was a jinchūriki, yet his father was the Fourth Hokage.
Just imagining what Naruto must have gone through while growing up made the situation clear.
Meanwhile, in Kirigakure.
Mei Terumī had summoned the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
"Shigure won't appear for quite some time," Mei said seriously.
"Unless Kirigakure faces destruction, he won't come out."
"So during this period, the seven of you must take responsibility for guarding the village."
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen readily accepted the task.
After arranging their duties, Mei rubbed her forehead with a troubled expression.
"But we still don't know whether the three major ninja villages have begun preparing for war."
"We need to send shinobi to investigate."
Standing beside her, Ao frowned.
"If we send ordinary teams out now, they may encounter serious danger."
Mei nodded.
"Exactly. That's why we must send shinobi strong enough to ensure they can return safely."
After a brief pause, she gave the order.
"Summon the clan leaders of all Kekkei Genkai families."
Soon, the leaders of Kirigakure's major bloodline clans gathered inside the Mizukage's office.
Mei quickly explained the situation.
Investigating the movements of Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Sunagakure was clearly a dangerous mission.
The room fell into silence.
Then suddenly, Uchiha Fugaku stood up.
"The Uchiha clan has only recently joined Kirigakure," he said calmly.
"We haven't yet made any real contributions to the village."
"So let the Uchiha handle this mission."
His gaze swept across the room.
"Even if sacrifices must be made, it doesn't matter."
"We will definitely uncover the true movements of the three great ninja villages."
(End of Chapter)
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