Location: Konohagakure – Hokage Tower
Time: 48 Hours After the Annihilation of the Hidden Cloud
So, Konoha had gotten news of what had happened to the Cloud. Shit wasn't pretty. Sakumo had sent his men to investigate.
His most trusted ANBU—which of course included Seijuro—were dispatched, though Seijuro himself couldn't go, as he was training in the sage area.
Which sage area, you may ask?
Oh, just the Toads. Jiraiya owed him a favor, after all.
Actually, two now, but oh well.
Getting Frog Sage Mode took no time at all. Even learning their kata didn't take long—it was fairly simple. He didn't get frog summons since he already had the Slug contract, and he mainly went there for Sage Mode anyway.
...And he may or may not have something going with the slugs.
As for his progress purifying Mikoto's bloodline—he was making steady headway. Some black goo had fallen from her eyes multiple times now.
As for what the black goo was? Simple. Impurity.
This was starting to sound like a cultivation story—TL;DR, he was purifying her Uchiha bloodline using that Indra Chakra.
Speaking of which, Aizen didn't summon the full Gedō Mazō, just a part of it. He then used Hashirama Cells to make that chunk return to full size. Jeez, the shit Hashirama Cells, Slug Sage Mode, and Katsuyu's liquid could do.
Truly...
On a less related note—
Seijuro could be seen in front of Nawaki.
"Give me your arms."
Nawaki's brow furrowed...
But then he looked at Seijuro.
"Okay."
Nawaki offered his arms to Seijuro.
Tsunade was nearby. A tiny bit tipsy. Don't question it.
Seijuro took out a needle and injected Nawaki with something.
Nawaki just stood there, wondering what it was.
When Seijuro removed the needle, Nawaki finally opened his mouth and asked:
"So... what was that?"
Tsunade, who was still nearby, gave her brother the most deadpan expression in her entire arsenal.
So he just let Seijuro inject him with something, and only after he got injected, he asked what it was?
"What if it was poison?"
"Seijuro would never inject me with something that would hurt me."
The degree of trust he had in Seijuro said a lot.
Some might say he was naïve... which, let's be honest, he was.
"Do me a favor... use the Snake hand seal and try using Water and Earth for me."
Nawaki nodded.
Then, did as instructed.
As Nawaki completed the hand seal...
From the ground... a tree emerged.
It burst from the earth and shot into the air—about 50 feet high.
The wooden structure was 50 feet tall and 10 feet wide. How nice.
Nawaki stood there, stunned.
Tsunade spit out her drink.
Wood Style.
...
"So I was correct... you had the elements needed, it was just a matter of add—"
Before he could finish, Nawaki hugged him.
Like... really hugged him.
Nawaki clung to Seijuro like a monkey strapped to a rocket—tight, intense, and extremely emotional.
"I have Wood Style," he whispered, voice cracking halfway between disbelief and awe. "I actually—I—have Wood Style..."
His grip tightened, and for a second, Seijuro seriously debated whether he should escape using Flying Thunder God. But alas, social norms—and the fact that Tsunade was watching—kept him grounded.
"...Alright," Seijuro said, arms stiff at his sides, "I get that you're emotional, but this is starting to feel less like a hug and more like a chokehold."
Nawaki sniffled.
Sniffled.
This man was crying.
"I can't believe it... I thought I'd never be more than the 'boy who looked a little like Grandpa.' Everyone always said I had potential, but I could never live up to that legacy. I—I always felt like I was failing him..."
Tsunade stood off to the side, glass dangling between her fingers, now completely forgotten. Her eyes wide. Not because of the Wood Style—which, by the way, still had her speechless—but because Nawaki was crying. In public. To another man.
And not just any man.
"Seijuro," Nawaki choked out, "you didn't have to do this, but you did. You gave me something I thought I'd never have. Thank you... thank you so much, man."
There was snot now. Full-on snot.
Seijuro blinked. Twice.
"...Right," he said slowly, awkwardly patting Nawaki on the back like someone petting a wild animal they weren't sure wouldn't bite. "I didn't do anything big. You already had the affinity. You already possess the man genes. I simply needed to find a way to awaken it."
Tsunade's brow furrowed.
Did Seijuro use Hashirama Cells?
"No, sensei... I did not use Lord First's cells..."
"Then whose did you use? You needed a sample..." she asked, narrowing her eyes.
He looked a bit embarrassed before responding.
"...Well... I used yours."
Tsunade was stunned. Even Nawaki was stunned.
But... she didn't have Wood Style?
"While yes, Sensei does not possess Wood Style, like Nawaki, she possesses the elements required. And Sensei is a medical-nin, also related to Nawaki. By analyzing both of your cells, I figured out what Nawaki was missing... and what Sensei was missing. By using those samples—alongside Lady Katsuyu's liquid—I was able to make it work."
...
Her furrowed brow eased. Okay, at least he didn't take her grandfather's cells.
(He didn't. That was Aizen. What Seijuro said was his actual method of acquiring it.)
"You... took my cells without asking..."
"I apologize, Sensei."
A smile appeared on her lips.
"Hey, sis, don't scold Big Bro. He helped me get Wood Style. Come on, don't be so mad." Nawaki stood in front of Seijuro to defend him.
"Considering I'm Senju and Uzumaki, my lineage is quite exotic... you'll have to pay for that."
Seijuro wondered what kind of bullshittery this was going to be.
"100 million yen."
Holy—nah, that was a scam.
"I... uh... don't have that much."
She burst out laughing. Watching the usually emotionless genius sweat a little was hilarious.
"Don't fret it... it's nothing."
She pulled him close.
By this point, his head was squished against the side of her boob.
"You're a medical-nin, after all. Plus, you didn't dig up my grandpa's grave."
Good to know.
Speaking of which—
"Nawaki, you'll need to learn Sage Mode. Once mastered—since you have the genes—your kids will practically be guaranteed to awaken Wood Style."
...
...
...
So... apparently helping them out had huge benefits. Which included, but were not limited to: full support of the Senju clan, access to their thousands of jutsu, and a subtle hint at... possibly marrying Tsunade.
Possibly.
He'd leave that to the side for now. He had shit to do...
Meanwhile, with the Hokage...
A polite letter had arrived that morning—handwritten in elegant cursive. Perfectly folded.
It simply read:
"Konoha, I hope this letter finds you well.
In light of recent events, and in the spirit of proper bloodline preservation,
I kindly ask that you return any and all Uzumaki scrolls, artifacts, tools, or captured civilians to Uzushiogakure.
I'm sure you understand this is not a request.
Kindly,
Aizen Sōsuke."
Attached was a postscript.
P.S.: I noticed a meteor hanging over your village. Don't worry—it's sealed. For now.
Yeah.
That part in particular got everyone's attention.
Sakumo had personally verified it—he had his sensors direct all their senses upward, and up there, they could feel it...
About forty meteors were waiting to run a train on Konoha, as if just waiting for someone to say "go."
Sakumo pressed his fingers to his temples, then spoke flatly.
"Send everything. All of it. Every scroll, every artifact, every strand of Uzumaki DNA we still have in research. If it has red hair or a chakra coil bigger than its body—it goes back to Uzu."
"But Lord Hokage—" one of the elder advisors started.
Sakumo snapped his gaze to them.
"You want to gamble on the lives of everyone in this village?"
Silence.
He gestured to a folder nearby. The photo on the front was a wide aerial shot:
Kumogakure, reduced to ash.
"The Hidden Cloud had two Tailed Beasts. The Third Raikage. Generations of shinobi.
And all of them died in a single day. The battle lasted five minutes..."
He tapped the meteor photo next.
"And I don't intend to make the same mistake twice."