Chapter 394: The Second Hokage, I've Started Making Things Up Too
From the Sasuke who had rushed over, Senju Hashirama learned that the "hidden weapon" he had restrained was actually his younger brother Senju Tobirama's… backside.
Hashirama froze in embarrassment.
At the same time, he worried that if his brother ever found out what he'd done, he'd definitely get scolded again.
So Hashirama begged Sasuke to keep it a secret.
As for why Tobirama's backside had turned into a "hidden weapon", Hashirama didn't think about it.
And so, in a complete reversal of roles, Uchiha Sasuke agreed to help Hashirama cover it up.
Hashirama released his Wood Release, and everything returned to normal.
"..."
Senju Tobirama felt deeply aggrieved.
His older brother had once again gone behind his back and gotten mixed up with an Uchiha.
And then there was Uchiha Sasuke.
He had thought Sasuke might break the curse of the Uchiha clan and become an exception. But in the end, it was still the same.
Chasing power, training his Rinnegan abilities, and willing to do something like this to him.
Where was the moral bottom line?
With a solemn expression, Tobirama returned.
"I've finished confirming everything. Whatever you want to know, I can tell you now."
"That's right. Uchiha Sasuke has awakened the Rinnegan's abilities, specifically, a space–time type. Combined with his original Mangekyō Sharingan's information-gathering abilities, he can perform space–time transfers even more efficiently than Kakashi."
"You can think of it as a Flying Thunder God that doesn't require marking or physical contact, he can swap positions or teleport directly."
"What?"
"The Rinnegan?"
"Second Hokage-sama, we'll definitely keep this a secret."
Shigaraki Tanuki hadn't expected Tobirama to reveal such crucial information so casually. It completely threw him off.
"Um… Second Hokage-sama, how about placing a Tongue-Sealing Curse on me?"
The Tongue-Sealing Curse was a technique used by Shimura Danzō to prevent Root members from leaking information.
It looked like a simple seal placed on the tongue, but in reality, it was far more severe. Forget writing things down, even attempting to communicate through eye contact would trigger full-body paralysis, and could even damage the brain.
"No need. This information isn't a secret. Spreading it can actually serve as a deterrent and promote peace and harmony in the ninja world."
Tobirama had originally planned to use Sasuke's information as bait. Now that his brother and Sasuke had acted without regard for him, he saw no reason to hold back either.
His blade wasn't dull.
If Jiraiya could write erotic novels, and Hatake Kakashi could write bizarre fiction, then why couldn't he fabricate a rumor grounded in reality to lure Ōtsutsuki Isshiki into exposing a weakness?
"Promote peace and harmony?"
Among the younger generation, only Nara Shikamaru seemed thoughtful. The others looked completely confused.
"Sasuke's Mangekyō ability is information-based. That means anyone in the ninja world trying to scheme in secret will inevitably be exposed the moment they reveal even the slightest flaw. No one will be able to manipulate things from the shadows."
"And because of the Rinnegan's abilities, not only will they be exposed, they won't be able to hide, escape, or run. Do you understand?"
Tobirama wasn't wrong.
Revealing Sasuke's abilities did have multiple advantages.
"So that's how it is…"
Everyone suddenly understood.
"You are all the promising youth of Konoha. It's time you learned certain things. Follow me."
With that, Tobirama led them through the corridors to a monitoring room.
He pulled up footage he had "edited."
He hadn't completely lost his integrity. For the sake of the younger generation's mental well-being, he had censored parts of it.
"This is how Sasuke awakened the Rinnegan, through the fusion of Indra's chakra and Ashura's chakra, drawing out its power."
Tobirama explained expressionlessly.
But no one was really listening anymore.
Talk of the Sage of Six Paths, the Rinnegan, or the brothers Ōtsutsuki Indra and Ōtsutsuki Asura couldn't compete with what was right in front of them.
They watched as Sasuke secretly kept Naruto close and forcibly took his power…
Hyuga Hinata's last shred of hope finally died.
"Naruto-kun…"
"…Hyuga Hinata, why are you activating your Byakugan? This is a recorded screen. The Byakugan can't see through images, you'll only see the machinery behind the screen."
Tobirama suddenly let out a small "hmm" and looked toward a girl in the corner.
"Huh?"
Everyone, still in shock, turned to look at Hinata.
Even though she quickly deactivated it, they had already seen it, the characteristic bulging veins around her eyes when the Byakugan was activated.
She really had turned it on.
What exactly had she been trying to see?
It was… thought-provoking.
Beep beep beep,
Noticing everyone's strange looks, Hinata instantly flushed bright red, like a train starting up at full speed, and fainted on the spot.
"No way? Is Hinata actually a closet pervert like Kakashi-sensei?"
Haruno Sakura hurried forward to catch her, muttering a complaint.
Was there anyone normal left in this ninja world?
Either openly bold, or secretly perverted.
"Second Hokage-sama? How could this happen? Why did Sasuke and Naruto turn out like this? Is it because of that reincarnated chakra thing?"
Shikamaru couldn't help but ask.
Once, someone named Shiromo had suggested he pretend to be the "bond-type ninja" to avoid trouble with female ninjas.
Shikamaru knew he had just been pretending.
But now, he had run into the real thing.
He was a bit shaken. He had once thought about supporting Naruto after he became Hokage. Thankfully, that idea had been replaced.
Otherwise, he, Nara Shikamaru, might have ended up as Naruto's "personal assistant" or "life secretary." When there was work, the secretary would handle it. When there wasn't…
Clap.
"Nara boy, your guess is correct. Naruto and Sasuke, my brother Hashirama and Madara, all of them share similar personalities because of the reincarnation of Ashura's and Indra's chakra."
"But at the root of it all lies what happened between the Sage of Six Paths and his younger brother, Ōtsutsuki Hamura, the ancestor of the Hyuga clan's Byakugan."
As Tobirama said this, he glanced at the unconscious Hinata.
He could tell she was actually awake.
In truth, she had regained consciousness when Sakura used a healing technique on her chest, but she didn't dare to wake up for real and could only keep pretending.
"Is it like what was written in that book, that the Sage of Six Paths coveted the tailed beasts and even made the Six-Tails get pregnant?"
Inuzuka Kiba asked, looking utterly shocked.
"No. That's just fiction. Don't take it seriously."
Tobirama's mouth twitched as he firmly denied it.
"The real situation is, the Sage of Six Paths became infatuated with his younger brother Hamura's beauty. Hamura, using the Byakugan's information-gathering ability, noticed his brother's disgraceful intentions."
"To avoid falling victim, Hamura went to their mother, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, to report it. And then…"
(End of this chapter)