Orochimaru did a quick mental tally. In the world of Naruto, setting the Ōtsutsuki clan aside, there were only a handful of people who could beat Kaido. Other than Madara Uchiha, the only real one was Hashirama Senju.
But the problem was, both of them were dead.
Nagato also had the ability to fight Kaido, but whether he could actually win was another question.
If Nagato were in his prime, then yes, he could definitely fight Kaido.
But the current Nagato was far too weak.
More importantly, the Rinnegan he used wasn't even his—it belonged to Madara Uchiha—so there were many special abilities he simply couldn't use. Taking on Kaido would be a stretch.
And his relationship with Nagato wasn't exactly good, so Nagato wouldn't help him anyway.
So who else could help him?
Right then, a spark of inspiration flashed through Orochimaru's mind. He turned to Tsunade and said, "Saving the ninja world is clearly our duty, but relying on just the few of us would be troublesome. Perhaps we could summon the First and Second Hokage."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and immediately saw through him. She let out a cold laugh. "You're planning to use Edo Tensei on my grandfather and granduncle so they can hold Kaido back for you."
Orochimaru didn't deny it. Instead, he asked, "Don't you want to bring them back? If the First Hokage were revived and his strength pushed even further, he could absolutely stand against the Ōtsutsuki."
Tsunade had to admit that Orochimaru had a point. Her grandfather's strength really had been monstrous, second only to the Sage of Six Paths.
If he grew even stronger, he might really be able to fight the Ōtsutsuki.
Seeing that Tsunade was wavering, Orochimaru pressed on. "Didn't the Second Hokage leave behind Edo Tensei precisely for a moment like this?"
Kabuto understood what Orochimaru was doing and joined in. "Lady Tsunade, we know you don't want to disturb the souls of the dead, but we can ask for their opinion."
"If the First and Second Hokage both refuse, we can simply release Edo Tensei."
Rowan rolled his eyes. "That's a meaningless thing to say. Hashirama might refuse, but Tobirama definitely won't. You're banking completely on Tsunade here."
Orochimaru chuckled. "We're doing this for the sake of the ninja world."
What was Tsunade supposed to say? That she didn't want to see her grandfather and granduncle again?
There was no way those words could leave her mouth.
And if her grandfather and granduncle really could return, the pressure on her shoulders would lighten too.
Besides, even if she refused, would Orochimaru actually give up on this plan?
Of course not.
She knew him far too well.
The moment Orochimaru saw that Tsunade had gone silent, he knew she had tacitly agreed.
"Then there's no time to waste. Let's move immediately."
Orochimaru stood up at once and returned to the ninja world through the door. Kabuto followed right behind him, and Tsunade more or less gave in.
A day later, Rowan and the others arrived at one of Orochimaru's secret bases.
Orochimaru had been studying Edo Tensei for a long time, and he had already obtained Hashirama Senju's and Tobirama Senju's cells back before he defected from Konoha. Reanimating the two of them was no problem at all.
After a great deal of setup, the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju, and his ever-present sidekick, Tobirama Senju, returned to the world in Edo bodies.
The instant they opened their eyes, they saw Tsunade, Orochimaru, Shizune, Kabuto Yakushi, and Rowan.
"Tsunade? Isn't that little Tsuna?"
The moment Hashirama opened his eyes, he saw a busty blonde woman with an emotional look on her face.
Looking more closely—wasn't that his granddaughter?
Well, damn. He never expected that after being dead for so many years, he'd get to see little Tsunade again—and she'd grown up into such a beautiful woman.
But wait a second. Since he was dead, how was he suddenly seeing Tsunade at all?
"Don't tell me you died too?" Hashirama blurted out, having arrived at what seemed like the obvious possibility.
Tsunade, who had been feeling emotional just a second ago, instantly went dark-faced. All the emotion vanished on the spot.
Seriously, who could stay moved in a moment like this? She finally gets to see her grandfather again, and the first thing out of his mouth is him cursing her to death.
Rowan had to admit: that was very Hashirama. The guy really was a lovable idiot.
"Calm down, brother."
Tobirama had already realized something was off. "Tsunade isn't dead. We've been summoned back to the ninja world."
Hashirama froze, then immediately sensed that this really wasn't the Pure Land, and his body didn't feel right either.
"I knew it. This is your doing again, Tobirama. I told you not to toy with the souls of the dead, but you never listen—"
Seeing that his older brother was about to start lecturing him again, Tobirama decisively changed the subject.
"Little Tsunade, why did you summon us? Did something happen to Konoha?"
That, after all, was why he had left Edo Tensei behind in the first place—so later generations could summon him in a true crisis.
The moment he heard that Konoha might be in trouble, Hashirama forgot all about scolding Tobirama and quickly looked at Tsunade.
Even though he was dead, there were still some things he could never let go of.
Konoha was one of them.
Tsunade shook her head. "It's not Konoha, Grandfather. Granduncle. The problem is with the ninja world."
Tobirama looked surprised. "The ninja world? What happened to it?"
Wasn't it always a mess?
Tsunade glanced back at Rowan.
Rowan nodded, picked a random door, and brought Hashirama and Tobirama back to his own world.
There was no helping it. If they didn't pass through that door, they wouldn't be able to understand the Naruto manga at all.
Mainly because the manga was written in English.
Only after passing through the door would they be granted that language-comprehension buff, letting them understand the manga—
and even read English.
That was one of the stranger aspects of Rowan's power.
"What? The Uchiha were wiped out?"
Hashirama was stunned the moment he opened Naruto. The Uchiha clan had been one of the great clans of the ninja world, just like the Senju—an ancient family that had endured for a thousand years. How did they get annihilated not long after joining Konoha?
"Who did it? Who could wipe out the Uchiha inside Konoha itself?"
Hashirama instinctively turned to look at his younger brother.
Tobirama immediately said, "Don't look at me. I never laid a hand on the Uchiha clan."
Sure, he never stopped talking about the "evil Uchiha," but he also knew full well that the Uchiha could fight. They were an incredibly sharp blade.
A man like him would never destroy a blade like that.
He wasn't the sort to hack off his own arm.
Even when an Uchiha hawk like Setsuna tried to overthrow Konoha, Tobirama hadn't killed him. He just threw him in prison to reflect on his actions.
In truth, he was curious too. Why had the Uchiha been wiped out?
After all, when he died, the Uchiha clan had still been thriving.