[Uchiha Clan Grounds]
[Orochimaru's Basement]
"Father...", Hanabi murmured.
Then she slowly opened her eyes.
Hinata, beside her, also opened her eyes.
"Has Father already left?"
Hinata shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either.
Neither of them knew how long they had talked, nor when they had fallen asleep.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Footsteps approached, and Rengoku walked in.
"Worried that you'd be upset, Orochimaru had Hiashi leave while you were asleep."
A trace of sadness appeared on both Hinata's and Hanabi's faces.
Still, they had eased the longing they had been carrying. That alone was already very good.
"The Chunin Exams will be in two days. Hanabi, work hard."
Now that Hanabi had recharged emotionally, she had recovered considerably.
She stood up and answered with determination:
"Yes, Clan Leader! I'll work hard!"
Rengoku smiled, then turned to Hinata.
"Hinata, you're already a Chunin, but you still lack experience. During this Chunin Exam, you, Naruto, Sasuke, and the others will all serve as exam proctors."
"Ah! Me? Can I really do it?"
Hinata had become a Chunin several years ago, but because her leadership ability was lacking, she had remained a Chunin ever since. Neji was already a Jonin now, yet Hinata was not even a Special Jonin.
This was also meant to give Hinata some experience.
Most of the people who came out of the Uchiha Kindergarten were Special Jonin.
Only Naruto, Hinata, and Sasuke were still Chunin.
As for Hinata, there was no need to explain. Naruto usually had to hide his strength, while Sasuke's development was very balanced and had only just reached the threshold of Special Jonin.
Of course, now that Sasuke had awakened the Mangekyo, his strength could no longer be measured that way.
Rengoku patted Hinata on the shoulder.
"This has already been decided. The exam procedures will be explained to you tomorrow. This is also an assessment for you."
"Yes! I'll do my best, Clan Leader!"
Seeing how much Rengoku trusted her, Hinata agreed.
———
[Several Days Later]
The Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, openly left Konoha with several guards and headed for the Stone Mine Cave at the border.
This Namikaze Minato did not use the Flying Thunder God Technique. Instead, he traveled under the watchful eyes of scouts along the route.
Many of those scouts could not tell whether this Hokage was real or fake.
They would only know once he met with Iwagakure and saw whether Onoki could identify him.
Minato traveled extremely quickly and barely rested along the way.
Many scouts could not keep up with his speed and could only take turns tracking him in stages.
Minato's group reached the Stone Mine Cave in only half a day.
Because there had once been a mine there, a small village had developed nearby to provide miners with daily necessities.
However, the mine had already been exhausted, and the village had been abandoned.
Before Minato arrived, Deidara and Kurotsuchi were already waiting at the village entrance.
"Welcome, Lord Hokage!"
Deidara exaggeratedly performed a salute, then secretly winked at "Minato." He knew exactly who the person before him was.
"Minato" laughed, "Let's go. Take me to see Onoki. You all stay here."
The members of the Fourth Hokage's guard unit, Genma Shiranui, Raido Namiashi, and Iwashi Tatami, were the least noticeable people.
It wasn't because the Fourth Hokage had died early.
It was because they had never really done the work expected of a Hokage guard unit.
After all, Namikaze Minato was the fastest person in the ninja world. Anyone capable of threatening Minato was someone those guards could not defeat either.
Besides, the person who came was not Minato.
"Minato" had already sensed that a large number of Iwagakure shinobi were nearby.
But they were not targeting Minato. They were simply Onoki's guards.
Deidara casually turned around and led the way.
Kurotsuchi beside him remained silent.
After all, the person before her was the Fourth Hokage.
The group entered a building.
Onoki was floating in the air with his hands behind his back. Beside him stood Akatsuchi, who looked like a wall, along with another Iwagakure Jonin.
When they saw Minato enter, scrutiny flashed through their eyes, and their bodies tensed.
After all, the relationship between Iwagakure and Konoha was not exactly good.
"I didn't expect the Fourth Hokage to come in alone."
Even Onoki had not expected that the other side would leave the guard unit behind.
"Minato" shook his head, "I am not the Fourth Hokage."
Onoki frowned.
He had already received reports that this Fourth Hokage had not used the Flying Thunder God Technique during the entire journey.
Now he was personally admitting that he was not Minato.
"What is Konoha trying to do?"
Onoki was not angry. He simply asked in a deep voice.
After all, the other side had traveled thousands of miles to get here. They could not have risked their lives just to make fun of him.
"I felt that the Fourth Hokage couldn't make the decision, so I came instead," As he spoke, "Minato" dispelled the Transformation Technique with a puff.
A man who was like a nightmare appeared before Onoki.
"Uchiha Rengoku?"
Onoki's pupils shook, and he drifted backward several meters without realizing it.
Aside from Deidara and Kurotsuchi, both Akatsuchi and the other Jonin looked at Rengoku with full vigilance, and a trace of fear flashed through their eyes.
Deidara wore a smile. He had known from the beginning that it was Rengoku.
Kurotsuchi was only somewhat nervous and curious. Back then, she had also been imprisoned in the Uchiha clan grounds for a period of time.
Although Rengoku's battle record was terrifying, she was not afraid of him.
There was no special reason.
That was simply how she felt.
What Rengoku said was correct.
When a new Hokage was in office, most of a former Hokage's authority would be transferred away.
So when he said the Fourth Hokage Minato could not make the decision, it was naturally because Rengoku, the Fifth Hokage, was here.
He looked at Onoki, who appeared ready to face a great enemy, and waved his hand.
"Alright, Onoki. At this distance, if I decide to attack, you won't be able to escape."
Onoki looked a little embarrassed.
Still, having lived nearly eighty years, he quickly adjusted.
"Cough... I didn't expect the Fifth Hokage to have returned."
A smile that wasn't quite a smile appeared on Rengoku's face.
"So? Surprised? Unexpected? Happy?"
Onoki: "..."
'Happy my ass!'
If Onoki still had any other thoughts before, learning that Rengoku had returned to Konoha made him completely behave himself.
"Since you've come back, why even form an alliance? You're enough by yourself."
There was a probing tone in Onoki's voice.
During the previous ninja war, Rengoku's Warrior God Susanoo had chased nearly ten thousand Sunagakure shinobi and cut them down.
Four to five thousand Sunagakure shinobi had died at Rengoku's hands.
If Rengoku simply stepped forward and called for action, there was a chance Sunagakure would surrender immediately.
Rengoku raised a finger and shook it, "If I do everything myself, the others in Konoha won't get any training."
"If Sunagakure surrenders right away, how am I supposed to conquer the Land of Wind?"