"Now that I see you're full of life, you're definitely fine, and I can finally relax."
Torifu smiled. "Sorry to make you worry, but you should know my strength; there won't be any danger."
Naori also nodded and said, "Do you know? Now the entire Konoha, every street and alley, is discussing you! How are you even going to go out?" Previously, when Naori and Torifu went shopping together, villagers would often greet them, and Torifu's popularity was clearly a bit higher than Naori's. Each time, just greeting people took a lot of time. Now, Torifu's heroic deeds had suddenly spread throughout the village. He imagined the villagers' enthusiasm would only grow stronger.
Torifu smiled. "It's fine. A while ago, I learned the Chakra Concealment Technique from the Aburame Clan, and I modified it. It works very well." He asked, "Do you want to try it?"
"Of course!" Although Naori wasn't as troubled as Torifu, this Ninjutsu would certainly be useful during missions. There was no harm in learning it.
Naori and Torifu had just started learning when several more people arrived at Torifu's house.
"Is our little brother Torifu home? We're here!"
Torifu and Naori recognized Hiruzen's voice, so they came out of the room.
"Hiruzen Nii-san, why are you all here?"
"Hehe, it's our lunch break, and we heard the explosive news in the village, so we came to see you, our great hero."
Hiruzen's group consisted of five people in total. Akimichi Torifu hadn't come for some reason, perhaps he was on a mission.
"Oh, stop teasing me. Come on in and sit down."
Kagami saw Naori there and was a bit curious. "Naori, did you just arrive too?"
Naori shook her head. "I've been here for a while, learning Ninjutsu with Torifu. Then you all arrived, so I can't learn anymore now."
Kagami just scratched his head and said nothing. It wasn't the first time for them to be at Torifu's house, so they weren't particularly reserved. They casually sat on chairs or on the bed and began to chat.
Koharu was the first to speak, asking gossipy, "Torifu, tell us the details! Were the Kumogakure people formidable?" Speaking of which, Hiruzen and the others hadn't really had any contact with Kumogakure. They had only seen some of the Nidaime Raikage's strength years ago at the Five Kage Summit. It was truly regrettable that he was now dust.
Torifu considered it with a slight seriousness, then said, "I felt their strength was fairly average, or perhaps they hadn't fought in too long." However, what they were asking and what he was answering were completely different things. Koharu wanted to know about the strength of ordinary Kumogakure ninja, specifically those nine thousand ninja. After all, anyone would be shocked to hear that their friend suddenly killed over nine thousand people, right?
But Torifu thought Koharu was asking about Kinkaku and Ginkaku's strength, which was why he said "average." Those nine thousand ninja didn't even touch Torifu's clothes; it was practically pure slaughter. Torifu had no idea how strong they were; they were just very weak, that's all. A few Ninjutsu and only two thousand or so were left. How was he supposed to know their strength?
Koharu nodded after hearing this. According to Torifu, the Kumogakure ninja were about the same as Konohagakure's, perhaps a little weaker. Then just how strong was Torifu? Could he possibly kill nine thousand of her? That scene was truly unimaginable.
Danzo, Kagami, and Hiruzen all clicked their tongues slightly upon hearing this. Although Torifu was much younger than them, his strength was already on a completely different level. They truly wondered how Torifu had cultivated; he was such a prodigy. If it was about family background, they were all from great clans too. Could it be that the Kumotsuru Clan's bloodline was truly that powerful?
They then asked Torifu to recount what happened during the battle and his insights from it. Torifu really didn't know what to say, so he picked and chose, telling them a few things. Most of it was fabricated, but Hiruzen and the others kept nodding, looking like they were learning.
At mealtime, Torifu simply cooked a few small dishes, and everyone ate together. They had originally planned to eat out, but the current situation outside was truly not suitable. However, during the meal, Amado remained in his room and didn't come out. Torifu called him several times, but seeing that he still wouldn't come out, he didn't continue. He figured Amado was already immersed in alarm clock creation, unable to extricate himself.
"What? Amado still not ready?" Torifu waved his hand. "Don't mind him. I'll take him some bread to school this afternoon."
When Torifu said this, Hiruzen and the others naturally didn't say anything more, but Naori still asked curiously, "What new little gadget is Amado messing with now?"
Torifu pointed to the clock on the wall. "That thing, its smaller version."
Everyone was confused. Although they had noticed this strange object long ago, they hadn't paid much attention to it, assuming it was just a collectible of the Kumotsuru Clan. Now, it seemed it wasn't.
Before they could even ask, Torifu proactively introduced it, explaining that it was a device that could tell the current time, called a clock. He then explained its operating principle and how there were a total of twenty-four hours in a day. This brought immense shock to Hiruzen and the others; such a thing existed in the world!
"Torifu, isn't this a family heirloom of your Kumotsuru Clan?"
Torifu shook his head. "Of course not; I made it myself a few years ago." Torifu felt very guilty when he said this, because the clock was bought with Peace Points. However, everyone's attention was on the clock, so they didn't notice anything unusual about Torifu.
"You said Amado is making something like this? Can he sell me one?"
Torifu smiled. "It's not certain if it will work yet. If it's successful, I'll give each of you one." Hearing this, Hiruzen and the others smiled. This was the first time they had seen such a novel invention, and the fact that it could tell time and even set alarms was truly amazing. So much so that they even suspected Torifu was exaggerating. They believed he killed nine thousand people, but this never-before-seen item felt somewhat fantastical.
After eating their fill, Hiruzen and the others had to return to work. Ever since Tobirama became the Hokage, Hiruzen and the others had suddenly become very busy. Each of them held multiple positions; besides being guards, they also served as ANBU captains and other roles. Among these people, only Torifu and Naori were the most relaxed. If they didn't have missions, they basically stayed at home. After all, their teacher had already retired, so they didn't have to hold public office. They also had more money than they could spend at home, so they naturally didn't need to go to work at the Hokage Tower.