"..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen, Tsunade, and the others fell silent. Only they knew how immense the shockwaves had been in their hearts. After months of working together, they had come to understand Saigoji Youmu's true character. Neither Hiruzen nor Tsunade had ever imagined that Youmu—ever so casual and indifferent—could one day speak so gravely.
"Could it be that there are some little-known secrets in the ninja world?"
That thought echoed in their minds.
After a moment, Hiruzen took a deep breath and his gaze grew resolute.
"Okay, I believe you. But if you find that you can't handle it, then when the time comes, you must tell us."
Hiruzen's words were not an expression of mere loyalty or friendship—they came from a hunch. Saigoji Youmu was their main line of defense against the shadowy forces lurking in the dark; if anything happened to him, Konoha would soon face catastrophe.
"Hehe, don't worry," Youmu replied with a confident smile. "I've already taken note of it—so all their calculations will be for nothing."
Outside the Hokage Building
" Youmu..."
After a brief hesitation, Tsunade halted Youmu, who was about to leave.
"Um?" Youmu turned to face her.
"What's the matter, Tsunade?" he asked.
"That person is dangerous. Do you really not need help?" Tsunade's tone was laced with genuine concern. "You..." Youmu looked her up and down with a bemused expression. 'With Tsunade's personality, how could she care so much about someone?'
"Why are you staring at me like that?"
Tsunade's eyes flickered, and a faint blush appeared on her cheeks as memories of her brother Senju Nawaki's weird expression from earlier that morning—and the teasing that had followed—drifted through her mind.
The atmosphere shifted subtly. Next to them, Orochimaru gave Jiraiya a knowing wink. Jiraiya, however, was too absorbed in watching Youmu and Tsunade to notice. His eyes flitted between them as if watching a performance. In truth, Jiraiya harbored his own thoughts about Tsunade—dreams of taming her fiery spirit—but he knew any such hopes were futile. Now, he was more curious about who might ever manage to do so.
"Fool," Orochimaru muttered under his breath. Finding Jiraiya's musings unreasonable, he chose not to dwell on it and slipped away quietly.
"Take it easy, Tsunade," Youmu said, reaching out to hold her hand.
"I'll be fine," he replied, though she looked a bit flustered.
"Whenever I'm away too long, you can go gamble. If you win, then something's definitely wrong with me."
"You bastard!" Tsunade exclaimed, her body trembling like an electric shock as she quickly withdrew her hand.
"Are you cursing me for never winning any money?"
"Hahaha, I didn't mean that," Youmu laughed, then turned and left.
Left alone, Tsunade slowly spread her hands. In them lay a delicate and gorgeous ice crystal ornament, its beauty belying the extremely powerful, seemingly unmelting energy it contained. Holding the ornament, Tsunade felt a rare sense of inner peace.
"Oops, Tsunade, looks like you're about to fall," Jiraiya remarked in a strange tone.
"Come on, hang in there!"
Crunch!
Tsunade's hands clenched into fists as she fought her irritation. With Youmu now gone, she felt it was time to vent her frustration.
"No, Tsunade, I was wrong."
"No need to explain—just go to hell!" she retorted with a sigh, her emotions briefly flaring.
Inside the Hokage's Office. Sarutobi Hiruzen stood by the window, stroking his beard in satisfaction. "There is still hope," he murmured to himself.
Later – The Land of Thunder. At one of the outposts of Cloud Shinobi Village, a Cloud Shinobi—his body stained with blood—staggered toward a door. With great difficulty, he raised his hand. Just as his hand was about to make contact, his body went limp, and he collapsed to the ground.
"Um?"
Alerted by the commotion, several Cloud Shinobi opened the door to check on the situation outside.