Konoha's Golden Age.
Kaze had Tsunade (Yellow) on his left and Jiraiya (Azure) on his right like loyal companions at his side as they arrived at Shikkotsu Forest.
The bizarre, twisted landscape made even seasoned ninja like Tsunade and Jiraiya express their unease.
"So *this* is Shikkotsu Forest…" Tsunade murmured.
Although she had signed a summoning contract with Katsuyu, she had never visited the place on the urgent advice of the Slug Sage.
Now, she finally understood why.
"Guess Mount Myoboku still has better scenery after all," Jiraiya mumbled quietly.
"Lord Jiraiya, I'd advise you to watch your words carefully, or I'm afraid you won't make it out of Shikkotsu Forest alive," Kaze cautioned gently.
Jiraiya instinctively shivered as if a cold wind were closing in, and wisely kept his mouth shut.
Under Kaze's guidance, the three reached the edge of Shikkotsu Forest, arriving at a village built by *the dead*.
"Lord Kaze, you've arrived!"
A few villagers working by the entrance spotted Kaze, immediately rose to greet him, and escorted the trio into the village.
Inside an elegant little villa, Kaze and his companions met their target for this visit—Tobirama Senju.
"Grandpa Tobirama!"
At the sight of Tobirama, Tsunade's eyes instantly glistened with tears, and she rushed straight into his arms.
"Little Tsunade."
He gazed at her with deep affection and gently patted her back.
Jiraiya let out a quiet breath of relief from the sidelines.
On the way here, he had worried Lord Tobirama might be difficult to deal with, just like the rumors suggested.
But now, it seemed that Lord Tobirama was quite kind-hearted after all. Guess you really shouldn't believe everything you hear!
"Grandpa, this is my boyfriend, Jiraiya," Tsunade said after a while, stepping back from Tobirama's embrace, tidying up her golden locks, and gesturing toward Jiraiya beside her.
"Lord Tobirama, it's an honor to meet you! Hope we get along well!" Jiraiya hurried forward, scratching his messy hair, his face breaking into a nervous grin.
"Jiraiya… Hmph!"
Tobirama eyed him up and down, then lifted his chin with disdain and gave a sharp snort.
Then he turned to Tsunade beside him and chided reproachfully, "Tsunade, how could you choose such an idiot for a boyfriend?"
Jiraiya: "???!"
His smile froze mid-air—it was not how he'd rehearsed this moment at all!
His original plan had been to win Tobirama's favor, and once the mood was right, smoothly ask for permission to marry Tsunade.
Yet before his plan could even get off the ground, it was already dead in the water—what exactly went wrong?
Under a significant look from Tsunade, Jiraiya gritted his teeth and tried again.
"Lord Tobirama, do… do you perhaps have some misunderstanding about me?"
(Please, just give me a chance to explain~)
"Misunderstanding?"
Tobirama snorted coldly, pulled a book from within his robe, and flung it forcefully at Jiraiya's chest.
"Then explain this!"
Jiraiya caught the falling book before it hit the ground, grabbed it, glimpsed the cover, and immediately began to sweat profusely.
This wasn't some carefree work he'd written back in his callow youth… or rather, before he'd truly matured, right?
How did this book end up in Lord Tobirama's possession?!
"Kaze! Wind!"
Jiraiya instantly figured everything out.
He shot an angry glare to the side, only to find that Kaze had already disappeared without a trace.
"But Lord Tobirama probably didn't know in advance that Tsunade and I were coming, right? Then why bring that book with him on purpose?"
As Jiraiya looked at Tobirama's cold sneer, he felt like he was starting to understand something else…
Well, since things have come to this point, maybe playing dirty isn't such a bad idea?
Maybe the difference between him and Lord Tobirama wasn't as vast as he'd imagined.
...
Valley of the End.
Kaze, sensing the situation was turning bad, immediately fled here to check on how Itachi was doing.
The small wooden cabin from those days, once perched atop the hill, had been lovingly renovated by Hashirama and Madara into a two-story Western-style cottage.
There were even fruits, vegetables, and flowers planted outside, evoking the feeling of "plucking chrysanthemums beneath the eastern hedge, gazing calmly at the southern mountains."
Beyond the cottage was a training ground artificially carved out.
Right now, a tiny figure was rigorously sparring with its own clone, fully focused on training.
As if sensing Kaze's gaze, the two figures simultaneously halted their fight and turned to look in his direction.
Poof!
One of the figures suddenly vanished, while the other landed before Kaze, slightly bowing. "Uncle-in-law."
"It's been a while. You've grown taller again, Itachi," Kaze said with a smile as he ruffled Itachi's hair.
Itachi usually disliked physical contact.
But if it was Kaze, it didn't bother him… Not that he could avoid it anyway!
After ruffling Itachi's hair twice, Kaze pulled his hand away and looked around. "Only you today? Where are those two elders?"
With calmness, Itachi replied, "The two elders went boating in the middle of the lake. They should return by mealtime."
"Tsk tsk," Kaze clicked his tongue a few times without saying anything else.
Those two had fought their entire lives; it was understandable they'd want to enjoy themselves a little now.
Chatting with Itachi for a bit.
Feeling a bit bored, Kaze let his gaze wander toward the colossal stone statues standing opposite each other on either side of the valley. Suddenly, a mischievous grin spread across his face.
[Earth Release: Exchange Ground Technique!]
He clapped his hands, and the two colossal statues, as if sprouting legs, began to move slowly.
RUMBLE... RUMBLE...
With an earth-shaking roar, the two statues drew closer and closer, nearly about to stick together.
"Hehehe… Should I make them hug each other…"
Kaze chuckled to himself like an idiot, while Itachi beside him stood speechless at the unfolding spectacle.
A single technique capable of altering the landscape—this… this…!
"No wonder Aunt said Uncle-in-law is the strongest. With power like this, he might've already surpassed human limits!"
Meanwhile, not far away at the azure lake, aboard a small boat.
Madara lounged on the deck with a leaf in his mouth, soaking in the gentle breeze.
Hashirama sat at the stern rowing while they exchanged jokes and banter cheerfully.
Suddenly, the tremendous disturbance caused by Kaze reached their ears, startling Hashirama.
"What's going on? Could those be enemies? I hope Itachi's not in trouble."
Madara stayed lying down, smirking lazily as he spoke.
"Relax. This must be Kaze messing around with sword-making again. No need to worry about it."
Still, despite saying that, the two turned their boat around and headed back.
"Hehe, that should do it!"
On the other side, Kaze had already finished his work, feeling extremely satisfied with his masterpiece.
The once-opposing stone statues now stood side by side.
However, if one looked closely, they would notice Hashirama's statue had been placed half a step behind Madara's.
But that wasn't all—Kaze had also pulled a little prank on Madara's statue.
Once the lake water rose with the tide, a certain part of Madara's statue would spray water out into the lake.
Just imagining it was funny enough … Hehe, you get the picture.
"Hey, Kaze brat, what are you doing here?"
Just as Kaze was caught up in his imagination, a figure leapt from the lake's surface, executing a flawless 720-degree flip mid-air before landing solidly in front of him.
So damn graceful! Too damn graceful!
"I came to visit Itachi and the two elders," Kaze said with a grin.
"Also, I'm getting ready to summon the Ten-Tails soon. Would the two elders like to come and witness it in person?"
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