CH_66

With the help of advanced medical ninjutsu, Tōji only needed to rest until the next morning before he was fit enough to head back to Konoha.

Haruka still had to follow the medical unit into the Land of Grass, so she'd left the same day she finished treating him.

Since Kenji's squad wasn't traveling with anyone else, the journey back was relatively relaxed—partly because both Tōji and Kenji were still recovering from serious injuries.

It took them two days and one night to finally reach Konoha.

With the setting sun at their backs, the four of them walked up to Konoha's main gate. Their long, stretched shadows pointed to an empty welcome—no one was there to greet them.

After all, they weren't part of a major returning force. News of their squad's return wouldn't have reached the village.

"How about I treat you all to dinner before we head home?" Back in the village, Kenji had regained the youthful energy of a man in his twenties.

"Sounds great! Thanks, Captain Kenji!" Whether it was Natchi, Tōji, or Neru—they all felt genuinely happy, like the eleven- or twelve-year-olds they really were.

…This was Konoha. The village gave them a sense of safety. The moment they passed through the gate, they could shed the "maturity" that didn't belong to them.

The group's chatter—which had been sparse and intermittent during the journey—now turned lively and cheerful. Even Neru seemed much more animated.

But when Tōji and the others started paying attention to what the passersby were saying on the streets, they realized the talk was anything but ordinary!

"So that Hatake kid was Lord Namikaze's student…"

"Who would've thought—that man actually took a kid like that as his student…"

"But he's different from his deadbeat father, isn't he? He's a little hero of this war…"

"No kidding—they say he even got one of the Uchiha's Sharingan eyes…"

"I wonder if the Uchiha will try to take that eye back…"

"Looks like not many Uchiha came back from the battlefield either…"

"They're luckier than the Sarutobi clan, though—I heard Lord Third's family barely has any shinobi left…"

"Whoa, no way—is it really that bad…"

"The Hokage must be stressed out right now. I heard Lady Tsunade officially retired and left the village a while back. That's huge news, hey! My own kid saw her leave the village."

"Lady Tsunade? Couldn't she just be on a mission…"

"She's not even on the battlefield—what mission could be more important than fighting a war…"

"Shh! Keep it down—you can't just talk about this stuff. There's a shinobi passing by…"

"Ahahaha—so anyway, has your granddaughter learned to walk yet…"

"I heard a lot of the major clans have been called in to discuss the next Hokage candidate…"

"Shh…"

"What's there to be afraid of? It's not like I'm making things up. I heard Lord Orochimaru—who was the top candidate—has gone missing recently. Any of you heard anything about that?"

"Lord Orochimaru—the Hokage's own disciple—he'd be the perfect fit for Fourth Hokage, wouldn't he…"

…

Tōji and the others had planned to enjoy a hearty meal, but everywhere—on the streets and in the little restaurants—all anyone talked about were those big-ticket rumors.

Aside from the fact that no one mentioned Jiraiya at all, every major figure was being discussed. Even the war outside the village was being overshadowed by this gossip.

『Tsunade probably left in a fit of anger—and most likely made a grand exit.』

『Orochimaru has probably gone underground. Danzo must be pushing hard to hype Orochimaru up, directing all the attention onto him.』

『The news about Kakashi and Minato is likely being strategically leaked by the Hokage faction—to push Minato into the Fourth Hokage seat.』

As they listened to all the big talk around them, the four members of Kenji's squad started whispering among themselves.

"Captain… is the Hokage really stepping down?" Natchi cut straight to the most important question…