The late afternoon sun streamed through the windows of the lavish apartment shared by Alice, Jada, and Margaret.
William was the only male present among them since Jasper and Alexander were off on their own missions.
Although everyone had gathered numerous times to discuss recent events, the return of Hiruzen merited a deeper conversation.
Alice settled herself comfortably on the floor, sitting cross-legged as she reached for Margaret's hair, admiring its beauty.
"You know, Marge," she said, brushing through the silky strands, "you should let me braid your hair."
"No way, mom!"
"At least let me brush it."
She then got up to grab a hairbrush from a nearby shelf and began working through the tangles. Margaret didn't protest, finding it pleasing that Alice was like the mother of the group—hence the constant use of that nickname.
William was seated at the edge of a table, resting his elbows on his knees.
"It's crazy to think about it," he began, glancing at the girls. "Hiruzen's back, so now everything feels like it's about to change in Konoha."
"Ugh!" Margaret said with disgust. "Did you just call it 'Konoha'?"
It was clear that when it came to English and Japanese phrases, not all Naruto fans agreed on the same thing.
"If Hiruzen had survived," Jada said while on the couch, "he would have definitely continued to lead the village."
Alice, pausing her brushing momentarily, chimed in and said, "Hiruzen was all about tradition and the philosophy of being a Leaf ninja, right? I think he believed in guiding the younger generation or something."
"Your point?" William wondered.
"He can help us get stronger."
Margaret smiled gently, leaning back into Alice's careful strokes. "I'm already strong enough!"
"Are you strong enough to take on the Akatsuki yourself?" Jada teased.
Margaret pondered the question by looking to the side.
But before she could answer, Alice interjected, "Wait, we're not actually thinking of involving Hiruzen in more conflicts, are we? And what about Konohamaru?"
"The grandson of the Hokage trained by Hiruzen himself," William said, reminiscing. "What a story that would have been."
"We sort of screwed up, though," Margert reminded, "since Konohamaru barely knows Naruto now."
Their conversation in the room was soon filled with 'what-ifs' and possibilities of now having Hiruzen return.
"And you know," Alice said, resuming her strokes, "Hiruzen wouldn't have just stopped at training; he would have ensured that everyone understood the 'Will of Fire.'"
"Sometimes you sound like a record player," Margaret teased. The comment made Alice pull on a heavy knot. "Ow! Okay, I'm sorry! Haha!"
William couldn't help but ask, "It's not like we need him around, right? I mean, we have Tsunade as the Hokage, and she's doing an okay job."
Jada sighed, considering the vital role Hiruzen had played in the narratives. "At least he's okay with Tsunade leading."
"To think we actually tried to get Jiraiya to do it," Margaret scoffed. "He was way too much of a pervert."
William defended. "No he wasn't; he was—"
"Purr-vert!"
As the group collectively reminisced about potential scenarios that could unfold, Alice couldn't help but smile at everyone's enthusiasm. Mainly on account of how gloomy things had gotten after she failed to retrieve Sasuke.
At least their efforts in helping the ninja world were paying off with Hiruzen's revival.
Suddenly, a messenger bird flew through the apartment window.
Margaret squealed in fear as the little creature flapped its wings, circling the room before settling on the coffee table. She wasn't exactly fond of birds—in fact, she preferred to keep her distance.
"Who left the window open?!" she cried. When William tried to touch the bird, it hopped near Margaret's lap. "Get it away from me!" she screamed, clutching Alice's arm.
"It's just a messenger bird," Alice said, half-laughing. "It won't hurt you, Marge."
"You tell it that!" she retorted as the creature fluttered some more around the room.
"I've never seen one come here before," Jada said, eying it. "I mean, we don't usually get messages like this."
"I wonder who it's for," William asked, still trying to catch it.
After Alice finally calmed Margaret down, the messenger bird sensed her calmness and allowed itself to rest on Alice's shoulder. She then carefully retrieved the letter from its talons and began clanking over the contents.
"Jada, this letter's addressed to you."
"Me?!" Jada was clearly surprised as she was handed it. "No one's ever sent me something via a messenger bird before."
William's expression transformed into an unmistakable show of jealousy, having thought it was some sort of secret love letter. The moment wasn't missed by Alice and Margaret.
Everyone knew Jada had garnered quite a bit of favor in the Leaf Village. So the idea of a love letter was not entirely out of the question.
"It's from Hoshikaze!" she announced.
"Hoshikaze?" Alice repeated, intrigued. She had only heard about him from everyone after they returned from the tournament. "Don't you think it's a little creepy that he knows where you live?"
"I think it's romantic," Margaret said, daydreaming.
She only said that to spite William, which was working.
"I don't know," Jada admitted. "He might have read the tournament records and thought William lived here or something. I mean, it was pretty obvious that we were from the Leaf Village."
William crossed his arms and lowered his head, pretending to be dismissive. "I guess I'm famous now."
"You're not, though," retorted Margaret.
"What makes you say that?!"
"Because," Alice answered, "the letter said that in the event it arrived in the wrong hands, it's to be delivered to Jada Uchiha in the Leaf Village."
"What else did it say?!" he urged.
Clearing her throat, Jada began to read aloud: "Dear Jada Uchiha, I hope this letter finds you well. I would like to extend an invitation for you to meet with me at the outskirts near the Land of Hot Springs in eighteen days to train you. Regards, Hoshikaze."
Excitement filled the room as William begged, "What the heck is going on?!"
"I… um," Jada sheepishly admitted, "I asked him if he would consider being my teacher after the tournament."
"What?!" the others asked in unison.
"I didn't think he'd send a letter like this, though!"
"Was Hoshikaze really that skilled?" Alice asked.
"He was alright, I guess," Margaret answered. "I mean, I could have taken him after Fū."
"You're not actually gonna go," William asked, "are you?!"
"I sort of have to," she answered, already taking travel time into account.
"Do you want any company?" Alice offered. "I don't mind tagging along just to make sure you're okay."
Before Jada could respond, William interjected, "I'm coming too!" The assertive tone caught everyone off guard. So the girls gave him quizzical looks. "I mean to act as support!"
"Thanks, Will," Jada said, scratching her head a little. She still remembered what Naruto had claimed about William supposedly liking her. But William hadn't shown any interest since, making her think otherwise. "Means a lot."
"O-of course!" he stammered, hoping that his cheeks weren't red.
They were.
The room soon agreed that, since he was usually always with Naruto, the boy couldn't come due to safety concerns.
"Okay then!" Alice clapped, ending the meeting. "You two do your thing while Marge and I will talk with Hiruzen later."