Hokage's Office.
"Phew…"
Link lifted his head groggily, yawning as he glanced at the time—past four in the morning.
(Darn that old Six Paths geezer, invading my dreams…)
(Wait, can the Sage of Six Paths actually appear in dreams…?)
He felt uncertain. Never mind the details—chatting with someone in his dream had somehow banished his fatigue. Yesterday night, the three of them had made such a big commotion that even Tobirama was alarmed.
Although "First" Hashirama specifically stated he chose an uninhabited direction for their "experiment," the sudden terrain changes risked collateral effects, so Konoha had to mobilize collectively:
Sensory ninja went along the newly created coastal bay searching for survivors,
Earth-Style ninja reinforced the seaside cliffs to prevent tsunamis from surging into the village,
The Anbu went out to patrol the borders, and patrol teams roamed all night within the village,
The two advisors and Shikaku Nara immediately went to explain things to the Daimyō,
"First" Hashirama was dispatched to plant trees along the coastline, preventing further collapse of the blasted shores.
Naturally, Link couldn't escape responsibilities, either. He had some of his shadow clones help, plus a few "Eight Gates" shadows keeping watch around the village. During the current chaos, if some clueless enemy tried attacking, it would turn into a joke.
After all, Konoha's list of foes was hardly limited to the other four large villages; plenty of small countries bore grudges, and the past wars and missions left no shortage of lingering vendettas.
Besides that, he had to remain in the office as a kind of "human stamping machine," approving documents and addressing emergencies at once.
Thanks to the Net, if he was uncertain about anything, he could consult the two advisors remotely.
Finally, out of nowhere, he felt exhausted, dozed off at his desk—and then dreamed of the Sage of Six Paths.
(Things might get troublesome from here…) Link thought, rubbing his face.
If it had happened at some other time, so be it. But having such a "boom" during the Chūnin Exams—when so many VIPs and Daimyōs were present—could easily turn into a political incident.
An explosion that nearly swallowed Konoha sounded terrifying. Within an hour of it going off, the nobles and daimyō had demanded to leave, and only because the village was sealed off from the blast zone did Link manage to grant permission for them to depart en masse.
The Chūnin Exams essentially existed so ninjas could show off to prospective "clients." If all those moneyed patrons were fleeing, tomorrow's exam might not even proceed.
Rank promotions were one thing, but what if allied nations got nervous or it triggered a war?
The Second World was still planning how to strike down Kaguya, and the Main World was already swirling with war clouds. Ridiculous.
(They probably won't start fighting in just a day or two. Maybe in a couple days, I'll ask Utakata or Sasuke to come and attend the Five Kage Summit—give a heavy display of force…)
Link massaged his temples. How can we achieve peace if we're stuck dealing with all these parasites?
The Second World was busy, too. Gathering all of the ninja world had unveiled countless new issues and conflicts; Tobirama and Tsunade couldn't leave for long, only popping over occasionally to see how things were. They simply didn't have time.
Preparing to fight Kaguya or coordinating with the "Final-Chapter" world both required time and manpower.
Once they finally formed a team to attack, and "First" Hashirama was sent over, that would leave the main world with Link as the biggest figure in charge.
"Lord Sixth Hokage."
An Anbu landed with a swish, placing another stack of documents on the table.
Link pinched the angry veins around his eyebrows, easing his mental fatigue. He threw the memory of the Sage's "dream visit" aside and continued working.
Who cared about the Six Paths or Seven Paths, day-to-day life still had to go on.
Tomorrow he had to make time for the original plan: together with Tobirama, he'd summon Uchiha Obito and see what they could glean.
Because if they were fighting Kaguya, a master of space-time jutsu, then aside from Flying Thunder God, the next best jutsu was Kamui.
They had to prepare thoroughly before dispatching the "Anti-Kaguya Squad."
He just wasn't sure how effective Kamui would be without any "Six Paths–power" boost. Could it even faze Kaguya?
(Never mind. Worst case, I'll check out Dragon Ball or some other world to recruit a big name. Haha…)
Link shook his head, stamping another document.
He'd always stuck to the Naruto worlds out of caution, worrying that a misjudged crossing might dump him into "Warhammer 40K" or some such.
That would be a fate worse than death.
If even the synergy of Final-Chapter Naruto–Sasuke plus a "Sage-powered" First Hashirama couldn't handle Kaguya, then as a final fallback he might indeed go scrounge up someone from another series. But hopefully they could manage.
He was drawn from his thoughts as a figure emerged from the shadows behind him, an Anbu who leaned in to whisper a few words.
"At this hour…?"
He hesitated, noticing the documents were mostly stamped. Closing the stack, he said, "Alright. Send him in."
Knock, knock, knock~
Before long, the office door rattled.
"Come in," Link called. As the door opened, a robed Sasori of the Red Sand stepped in.
…
The next day at noon, Konoha's front gates.
"Lord Sixth Hokage, then we shall meet again in the Land of Iron, one week from now."
Wearing a wide-brimmed hat and face mask, the Fourth Kazekage inclined his head slightly, then led a dozen Sand shinobi off toward the Wind Country. Among them were over half of the same infiltration squad who had tried stealing Konoha's intel earlier.
Gaara and Kankurō waved goodbye. Temari stood with one hand on her hip, the other hand raising a forefinger, smiling.
(I owe her a date, huh…)
Link grinned back, returning their waves. Then he took off his hat and robe, handing them to an Anbu to deliver back to the Hokage's office, before heading straight to the lab.
"How's it going?" he asked.
"That fellow's a genius, too," Tobirama remarked, referring to Sasori of the Red Sand. Early that morning, Sasori had come to the Hokage's office to defect from Suna. Indeed, if one could betray one's village once, one could do so again. Perfect demonstration.
He exposed how Suna and Iwa had been secretly colluding, then proposed "cooperation" on research into the Five Elements Seal.
So Link passed him off to Orochimaru.
They happened to be researching ways to harness natural energy to fight Kaguya. A talented puppet user might yield breakthroughs.
It seemed promising enough.
~~~
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