Chapter 11: The Village and the Clan — Konoha and the Senju
"So you really did come to save me?"
Even Tobirama sounded uncertain now.
But Senju Morin answered without the slightest hesitation.
"I came to bring your body back."
"You are an elder worthy of respect within the clan. The blood of the Senju must not be defiled. I will not allow you to rot in the wilderness, nor to become experimental material for Kumogakure after death."
"Utter nonsense."
Tobirama's assessment was as sharp as ever.
"You didn't come for my corpse. You came for the seat of the Third Hokage."
"Heh… cough, cough. Even if I issue orders, it won't change the fact that Hiruzen and the others failed to protect their Hokage and fled back to Konoha alone."
"As long as you return with my body, you'll become the most dazzling hero."
"No wonder you abandoned your mission the moment you heard the news and rushed here. For you, this is an opportunity of a lifetime. There's no way you'd let it slip."
"You started planning this the moment I refused to take you as my disciple, didn't you?"
"Yu, Shin, Genma, Munetsugu, Makoto, Enji, Gennosuke… even Tao has made jōnin by now, hasn't he?"
At that, Tobirama actually smiled—an inscrutable, almost amused expression.
"You really are frighteningly meticulous."
His gaze shifted to Uzumaki Chizawa.
"Was he part of your plan as well?"
"No. Chizawa is my true friend. In fact, it was because of you that we even met."
Morin spread his mouth into a broad grin—one that Tobirama found deeply irritating.
"Do you remember? Back when Lord Hashirama was still alive, you invited shinobi from the Land of Whirlpools to visit Konoha. Chizawa came with Uncle Chihaya…"
From Tobirama's expression alone, Morin could tell—
Tobirama hadn't noticed a child like Chizawa at all back then.
"You certainly know how to seize an opportunity…"
Tobirama was genuinely speechless.
His brother still alive?
Inviting the Uzumaki to Konoha?
How long ago was that?
How old had Morin even been back then?
Was this brat precocious beyond reason—or simply born a schemer?
And how many of his words were even true?
Could two children really become "true friends" from a single meeting—friends worth risking one's life for?
More likely, Morin had used missions as excuses to visit the Uzumaki clan repeatedly, cultivating ties again and again in secret.
At last, Tobirama's faint smile faded. His face returned to its usual cold composure.
"Must you really fight for it?"
"Unless you personally return to Konoha, the Third Hokage will be me."
Morin answered just as solemnly.
"If the Senju produce three consecutive Hokage, will any other clan ever have a chance?"
"Would that Konoha still be a new shinobi village—or merely an expanded Senju clan?"
Tobirama's expression stiffened.
"In my view, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing."
Morin smiled instead.
"All the efforts my brother and I made will be wasted because of your selfishness."
"Your efforts—and Lord Hashirama's?" Morin countered coldly.
"Efforts to dismember the Senju clan?"
"In my eyes, I'm correcting your mistake and his."
"I'm restoring your reputations, pulling the Senju back from the edge of annihilation, and placing our people on solid ground once more."
"Our people?" Tobirama echoed quietly.
"And the countless Senju who sacrificed themselves for this—do you truly care nothing for them?"
As if realizing something at last, Tobirama's tone grew calm.
"No one dies for nothing," Morin replied evenly.
"I will care for every clansman to the best of my ability."
"I will teach them, temper them, and drive them forward—until the Senju become the undisputed foremost clan, not one surviving on hollow prestige."
"The future Senju will grow into a towering tree that pierces the heavens."
"Its vast canopy will not only overshadow Konoha—
it will shelter Konoha from wind and storm alike."
Sensing the unshakable resolve and iron will within Senju Morin, Senju Tobirama completely lost any desire to continue the discussion.
He closed his eyes and leaned back silently.
Motionless.
Morin didn't rush him.
He simply sat down on the ground as well.
The two Senju waited together—
waiting for Tobirama's final breath.
The eerie silence didn't trouble either of them.
Morin even felt faintly amused, humming quietly to himself, swaying his head in a way that only made Uzumaki Chizawa grow more uneasy by the second.
Noticing Chizawa's discomfort, Morin casually sent him off to collect the Sage of Six Paths' tools belonging to Gold and Silver brothers.
After Ginkaku's death, Kinkaku—likely for convenience in battle—had only kept the Seven-Star Sword and the Banana Fan, the latter capable of unleashing attacks of all five chakra natures.
As for the Crimson Gourd, the Golden Canopy Rope, and the Amber Purifying Pot, it was unclear whether they hadn't been brought at all or had been discarded somewhere along the pursuit.
Fortunately, for the Uzumaki—masters of chakra perception—objects containing such vast chakra reserves were not especially difficult to locate.
Time passed.
One minute?
Three?
Ten?
Eventually, Uzumaki Chizawa returned as well, carrying a massive scroll.
Following the traces of battle and residual chakra, he had easily found Ginkaku's corpse—and the Golden Canopy Rope and Crimson Gourd scattered nearby.
The Amber Purifying Pot was still nowhere to be found, but Morin was already satisfied with the haul.
Tobirama's final breath was lingering longer than expected—but Morin could afford to wait.
He had waited more than twenty years already.
What was another twenty minutes?
Suddenly, Tobirama seemed to recall something.
"Do you plan to marry Tsunade?"
"I plan to marry an Uzumaki," Morin replied immediately.
"Tsunade isn't even ten yet. She's not suitable for me."
A decisive refusal.
Tobirama closed his eyes again.
That bastard.
Even though he'd gotten the answer he wanted, Tobirama still felt like cursing.
That damned bastard.
Because he understood Morin's meaning instantly.
Tsunade is too young.
Which really meant—
If Morin chose Tsunade, he'd have to wait years.
Marrying Tsunade would bring no immediate benefit—no timely power, no political leverage.
By contrast, once Tobirama and Hashirama were gone, Uzumaki Mito—Hashirama's wife—would be Konoha's strongest, most respected, and most influential figure.
Marrying an Uzumaki was unquestionably the most valuable option.
Come to think of it, compared to the Senju's long tradition of in-clan marriages for "blood purity," combining with Uzumaki blood might actually produce even more gifted descendants.
And beyond that—
It would formalize ties with the Uzumaki clan, drawing them closer and securing more manpower and influence for Morin's future struggle against Hiruzen and the others.
Just look at that Uzumaki brat over there—his mouth was practically grinning crooked with delight.
Another ten minutes passed.
Senju Tobirama finally went still, as though he had simply fallen asleep.
Yet Morin remained seated, unmoving.
Though their exchange had seemed calm, even cordial—
Morin knew better.
Their views had irreparably diverged.
Once he became the Third Hokage, even if he didn't outright reject Tobirama's policies, he would revise them on a massive scale—
overturning at least eighty percent of them.
Under Morin's leadership, Konoha would become a shinobi polity centered on the Senju clan.
And that was never the future Hashirama and Tobirama had envisioned.
Still—
Tobirama was too weak now to leap up and beat him senseless.
But what if this sinister white-haired old fox had one last trick?
Pretending death—
creating an opening—
slapping a Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tag onto him?
That would be anything but amusing.
After all, from the Warring States Era to the present day, every shinobi who underestimated Senju Tobirama had died horribly.
Morin had no intention of joining their ranks.