Unlike what was happening over at Mito Uzumaki's place, things were far more cheerful here with Tsunade.
When she asked where the fireworks came from, Uchiha Hikaru kept dodging the question with vague answers.
In the end, though, Tsunade outmaneuvered him.
Uchiha Hikaru looked helplessly at the girl tightly clutching the corner of his shirt. He raised his hands in surrender.
"Alright, alright, you win."
"As for where the fireworks came from, I really can't tell you now. It wouldn't do either of us any good."
"How about this—we make a promise."
Tsunade's eyes lit up at the word promise. She had never made one with anyone before.
After thinking it over for a moment, she nodded.
Seeing her agree, Uchiha Hikaru continued:
"Here's the deal: if you still haven't figured out the secret behind the fireworks by the time you graduate from the Academy, I'll tell you then."
"And as compensation, I'll take you to see them every year until then. Deal?"
At first, Tsunade hesitated—waiting until graduation felt like a long time.
But as soon as she heard she'd get to see them every year, her head started nodding like a little chick pecking rice.
Uchiha Hikaru chuckled softly at the sight.
That laugh made Tsunade a little embarrassed, and her nodding slowed to a stop.
She looked away awkwardly, then quietly said:
"Thank you, Hikaru."
Uchiha Hikaru wisely chose not to ask what she was thanking him for.
Even a dense guy like him knew better than to ruin the mood.
He turned around and crouched down, signaling for Tsunade to climb on. It was time to head home.
Her face flushed red, but she obediently climbed onto his back.
The two walked in silence the whole way.
Or perhaps, everything that needed to be said had already passed between their hearts.
In that moment, their bond became unshakable.
When they returned to the Senju compound, Mito Uzumaki was seated squarely in the center of the living room.
Uchiha Hikaru instinctively shrank his neck at the sight.
He hadn't told anyone before pulling his stunt, and honestly, it had caused quite the scene.
A massive amount of chakra had gathered above Konoha. Anyone who didn't know better might've thought the village was under attack.
The only reason he'd made it home and not the interrogation room in the Anbu headquarters was probably because of Mito Uzumaki's intervention.
Knowing he was in the wrong, Uchiha Hikaru could only flash an awkward smile.
Mito Uzumaki shot him a not-so-pleased look, then turned to Tsunade behind him, and let out a heavy sigh.
What could she do? One was her biological granddaughter, the other her adopted grandson.
They were both her heart's treasures. She couldn't bring herself to scold either of them.
So, she said with a tone full of meaning:
"Hikaru, if you ever plan to do something like this again, it'd be better to let me know beforehand."
"I still have some influence in Konoha. Giving a heads-up about this kind of thing is easy enough to arrange."
"Just this once. Don't make it a habit, understood?"
At that, Uchiha Hikaru turned into a nodding chick himself.
But then, something occurred to him.
After hesitating for a moment, he added:
"Then in that case, I'd like to report in advance—there'll be a fireworks display at this time every year from now on."
Mito Uzumaki nearly lost her composure, but when she saw Tsunade's hopeful eyes beside him, she relented and agreed.
After that, she said nothing more and let the two go rest.
In truth, Mito Uzumaki was extremely curious about how Uchiha Hikaru had pulled it off.
The scale of chakra in the sky over Konoha wasn't something a child should be capable of.
Even compared to her own chakra, it was no less powerful.
And more than that—the Fire Style mastery behind those fireworks was astounding.
Even Uchiha Madara in his prime couldn't hold a candle to it.
The fireworks, formed entirely of flame, varied in shape and temperature.
That level of mastery… It was something no human should be capable of.
But since Uchiha Hikaru didn't want to talk about it, Mito Uzumaki didn't press him.
She saw the big picture—among shinobi, combat was a battle of information.
Take Hidan, for instance. His immortality caught Asuma Sarutobi off guard and got him killed.
But with the right intel, Shikamaru took him down with precision.
Or Jiraiya—his intelligence gathering helped Naruto Uzumaki defeat Pain.
Of course, that's all true for ordinary shinobi.
When it came to battles between people like Uchiha Madara and Hashirama Senju, they were practically piloting mechas.
Even if you had intel, what could you do?
Could you handle a Susanoo the size of a mountain? Or the True Thousand Hands that snatched the Nine-Tails like a toy?
Mito Uzumaki didn't know the full extent of Uchiha Hikaru's strength.
But keeping a shinobi's technique secret was a way of protecting them.
And the best way to protect a secret… was to make sure only the person themselves knew it.
So, as long as Hikaru chose not to reveal it, she wouldn't interfere.
Her approach also influenced Senju Yosuke, who didn't press further either.
And so, the incident that started with a bang ended quietly.
The next morning, after breakfast, Uchiha Hikaru, Tsunade, and Orochimaru headed to school together.
When they arrived, they found the other students already deep in discussion about the fireworks from last night, trying to guess who had done it.
Some with Sensor Ninja in their families were whispering quietly to one another.
Uchiha Hikaru and Tsunade exchanged a glance, both with a smile in their eyes.
But with perfect mutual understanding, they didn't join the others in talking about it.
Orochimaru's pale face showed a flicker of confusion.
'Did I miss something? It feels like they're hiding something from me…'
Suddenly, a hand clapped down on his shoulder.
Jiraiya, as boisterous as ever, bounded over and immediately got in his space.
Physically, too—because Orochimaru, startled, reflexively flipped him over his shoulder.
Things escalated quickly from there:
Jiraiya challenged him to a fight, charged in, and got knocked flat.
Uchiha Hikaru and Tsunade laughed heartily from the sidelines.
But when it was over, Hikaru stepped in to mediate.
"Alright, both of you were at fault. Let's not keep fighting."
Orochimaru thought about it and agreed—he had overreacted and struck first.
So, he turned to Jiraiya and apologized.
Jiraiya, still a little defiant, looked annoyed—but after hearing Orochimaru apologize first, he begrudgingly followed suit.
Watching the whole thing made Uchiha Hikaru sigh inwardly.
If Uchiha Madara hadn't survived, and if these two had even a drop of Ōtsutsuki blood in them…
Then maybe this generation's Indra and Asura would've been Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
Their dynamic was eerily similar to that of Sasuke and Naruto in the future.
But thankfully, that wasn't the case—otherwise, the shinobi world might've lost a brilliant scientist.
Nonō Yakushi had already arrived, sitting quietly in a distant corner of the classroom, watching everything unfold.
But her eyes looked distant—her thoughts clearly far away.
'The fun is theirs… I have nothing.'
With that thought, Nonō Yakushi slowly closed her eyes.