Snowflakes drifted gently through the air.
Goddess Tsunade finally appeared in front of the plaza. As all eyes—those present on and off stage, and countless others watching on television screens—watched eagerly, she slowly stepped out from behind the stage.
Her beautiful golden hair was neatly tied up today, giving her an air of grace and efficiency. She wore a red-and-white Hokage robe, and across the flowing cape were embroidered five bold characters—*Fourth Hokage*.
At this moment, the former Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi also rose to his feet and walked to the center of the platform, facing Tsunade directly.
Anbu Commander Sakumo Hatake quickly stepped forward, holding out a red hat with a prominent kanji character "Fire" marked upon it.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Hiruzen took the hat before solemnly handing it over to Tsunade.
"From today onward, Konoha is in your hands," he said warmly, a smile spreading across his face.
"Master, please rest assured," Tsunade replied seriously, making her promise with equal sincerity. At Hiruzen's gesture, she placed the Hokage hat upon her head.
This was a historic moment.
Snap! Snap! Snap!
Downstairs, camera flashes went off continuously as reporters furiously snapped pictures, desperately capturing this precious moment from every possible angle.
Audience members also stood up, clapping enthusiastically and cheering loudly for Tsunade's formal appointment as the Fourth Hokage.
Faced with the crowd's enthusiasm, Tsunade simply smiled and gave a gentle nod.
Then she walked toward the podium, raising one hand slightly in a downward motion.
The noise from the crowd gradually faded into silence.
Tsunade began her inauguration speech.
Her voice was firm and powerful, gradually picking up speed while remaining passionate yet sincere. With her natural charisma, she perfectly controlled the rhythm of the speech.
Inspired by Tsunade's energy, the atmosphere reignited multiple times during her address, each exciting passage sparking enthusiastic cheers and another round of flashing lights.
Because her content was so captivating, she had to pause repeatedly for applause. Originally scheduled for twenty minutes, the speech ended up lasting twice as long.
"She really is a natural leader and orator," Hiruzen couldn't help but remark admiringly. If he had spoken for more than half an hour, most of the audience probably would've fallen asleep by then.
"The one who should truly stand there delivering this speech was Heiyan. No one could have been more suitable," Fugaku muttered, shaking his head and letting out a heavy sigh.
Beside him, Hiashi kept his Byakugan activated, scanning the crowd intently while even deploying his symbiotic Byakugan simultaneously.
However, judging from his expression of disappointment, he found nothing.
"No sign of Heiyan at all. Just how true were Tsunade's words?" Hiashi deactivated his symbiotic Byakugan and frowned involuntarily.
At this time, Tsunade's speech neared its conclusion.
The most important moment had arrived.
She then took out the unification proposal document and, facing the cameras, displayed to the entire shinobi world the more than one hundred signatures it bore.
Then, Tsunade cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and approached the microphone to address the entire world:
"I hereby declare..."
At this moment, everyone on and off the stage, as well as every viewer watching on television, held their breath. Reporters raised their cameras, eagerly waiting for Tsunade to speak those words.
Suddenly,
a melodious and ethereal tune drifted in from outside the plaza, reaching the ears of the crowd. In the silent setting, it rang out clearly.
"What's going on? Why did the orchestra start playing early?"
The jonin in charge of event coordination furrowed his brow, anger showing on his face as he turned toward the direction of the orchestra, ready to confront them over such a basic mistake.
However, the musicians themselves glanced around in confusion, looking at each other and trying to locate the source of the melody.
It wasn't coming from Konoha's hundred-piece orchestra.
The orchestra's performance of [New World] was majestic and powerful, like surging waves of history, stirring up excitement and passion.
But this unexpected new piece was entirely different—a subtle melancholy filled the tune.
This feeling was like that of a wanderer who had left home for many years. After countless hardships and struggles through life, he finally returns exhausted to the homeland of his memories.
This melody was called [Homeward].
In the Naruto anime, this was the background music played when Itachi, a spy for the Akatsuki, and his partner Kisame first returned to Konoha.
Homeland is not simply a reference to a specific place.
Wherever the people you miss and those who miss you reside—that is your homeland, your place of return.
Everyone has their own homeland and someone they miss. Yet, as simple as it seemed at first listen, its emotional power surpassed even the grandest orchestral arrangements—it could easily pull listeners into its spell.
In an instant, many people in the plaza audience became dazed, lost within the atmosphere created by this song, unable to snap out of it.
That's because within the melody flowed chakra, creating a group Genjutsu effect.
Moreover, the tune of [Homeward] spread through live television broadcast and reached across the entire shinobi world at this very moment.
Although viewers elsewhere weren't present at the scene and thus immune to the Genjutsu, the tune alone was already beautiful enough to touch hearts and bring great sorrow.
Tsunade was the first to snap out of it.
This scene felt familiar to her—just several days earlier, the melody titled [Solitude] (Sūdoku) had echoed across Konoha, broadly affecting its civilians.
"Hmph!"
Frowning deeply, Tsunade let out a sharp shout, channeling her own chakra into sound waves expanding outward hundreds of meters.
This cry immediately woke everyone up.
"What just happened?!"
On the stage, Onoki, Rasa, the Fourth Raikage, and others quickly stood, expressions full of shock and suspicion.
They all realized they had just fallen victim to Genjutsu.
A wave of uproar swept across the site.
Remember, most attendees privileged enough to enter the core area of the plaza were high-level ninja, among whom stood multiple top-tier experts of the ninja world.
Even they had unknowingly fallen into the genjutsu—a truly chilling thought.
After a brief commotion, everyone instinctively looked toward the streets outside the plaza, searching for the source of that eerie melody.
The next second, gasps rippled through the crowd as eyes widened in shock.
On Ichiraku Street, an unfamiliar figure had somehow appeared unnoticed by anyone.
A pitch-black Ox walked slowly toward the plaza. A young man rode it backward, his back to the crowd, hiding his face from view.
He wore a hat atop his head and a white robe adorned with Tomoe patterns. In his hand was a shakuhachi flute, which he played with steady, calm precision.
The tune [Homeward Bound] continued playing, but this time, after being interrupted by Tsunade, the young man no longer infused Chakra into the music—he simply played it straight.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>