Chapter 626: Senju Hashirama – Onoki, Have You Gotten Shorter?

"Ahem! Of course not, it was just a little misunderstanding."

Even an idiot could tell they had just made a fool of themselves. Onoki cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to smooth things over.

Misunderstanding, my ass!

Onoki, you sneaky old bastard!

You actually thought Cloud Village was planning to assassinate you? I swear, I want to punch you right now!

The Third Raikage's eye twitched, but he had no choice but to go along with the excuse, forcing an insincere smile as he added,

"Because of Konoha's… unique circumstances, we couldn't allow guards into the office. That's what caused the misunderstanding."

At least they hadn't actually started fighting. If fists had been thrown, Cloud Village would have been in deep trouble—no amount of explaining would have convinced anyone it wasn't a setup.

Despite his attempts to sound neutral, a hint of frustration seeped into the Third Raikage's tone.

But Takuya wasn't about to take the blame for this.

"It is related to Konoha, but I wasn't the one who made that call."

He casually tossed the problem right back to the Raikage.

"If you want answers, you should ask him."

"You stay here," Onoki ordered his guards.

Since it really was just a misunderstanding—one that he had started, no less—Onoki didn't press the issue.

If the rule was that no guards were allowed inside, then so be it.

Better to just go in and see what this was about rather than stand around outside and risk becoming a laughingstock.

"You guys stay as well," Yagura told his men.

"Please, this way."

With no other choice, the Third Raikage played along.

And honestly, it wasn't like he could shift the blame onto Senju Hashirama, either.

As they stepped inside the office, Yagura couldn't hold back his curiosity any longer.

"Takuya, what's going on with Konoha? Why aren't even the guards allowed inside?"

"You'll see soon enough."

Takuya shrugged.

"Just take a deep breath and prepare yourself—you might be in for a shock."

Onoki and Yagura, both puzzled, followed the Third Raikage into the office.

And the moment they stepped inside, they froze.

Sitting in chairs before them were two men in old-fashioned armor—both of them radiating an unmistakable presence.

This…

Onoki narrowed his eyes.

Yagura, looking completely lost, turned toward Takuya.

Takuya grinned.

"Look familiar?"

Yagura nodded hesitantly.

"Every time you visit Konoha, don't you see those faces carved into the Hokage Monument?"

"You mean the First Hokage?!"

Yagura's voice shot up several octaves.

It wasn't that he was prone to overreacting.

It was just that Takuya's "hint" was absolutely insane.

The First and Second Hokage had been dead for ages.

So why the hell were they sitting here, alive and well?!

Wait—something wasn't right.

They didn't look like living people. Their skin had cracks, their armor was ancient…

Something was definitely off.

"That's right, it's me."

Senju Hashirama stood up, smiling warmly.

"Hello, young Mizukage. And young Tsuchikage—"

He paused mid-sentence.

He had been about to call them both young men.

After all, compared to him and Tobirama, they were practically children.

But then he looked at Onoki.

And it hit him.

Onoki was old.

A fully grown man calling an elderly Onoki young just sounded… weird.

"Hello, Tsuchikage. I remember back then…"

Hashirama gestured with his hands, trying to recall Onoki's height from the past.

But something felt off.

Because after comparing, he realized—

Onoki was even shorter now.

I knew it! I always said Onoki was a shorty, but he never believed me!

The Third Raikage stood with his arms crossed, doing his best to suppress his laughter.

Yagura's expression also turned a little strange.

"Enough, Big Brother!!!"

Senju Tobirama looked like he wanted to bury his face in his hands.

Could you be any more embarrassing?

After shooting Hashirama a warning glare, Tobirama stepped forward.

"Greetings, Tsuchikage."

"Lord First Hokage, Lord Second Hokage."

Onoki, suppressing the urge to curse, forced out a strained smile.

Given who they were, they absolutely deserved the title of Lord.

By now, Onoki and Yagura understood why the Third Raikage hadn't allowed any guards inside.

It was about secrecy.

The First and Second Hokage had likely been revived for the sole purpose of fighting Uchiha Madara.

A hidden trump card.

Now that Onoki and Yagura were here, discussions could finally begin in earnest.

As for Rasa…?

Eh. He was too slow, and besides, he didn't have much say in these matters anyway.

Everyone took their seats.

Takuya, as always, sat far away from Hashirama and Tobirama, choosing to sit next to Yagura instead.

"Takuya, what's up with that?"

Yagura glanced at the noticeable gap between him and the Senju brothers.

"Shouldn't you be sitting over there?"

"What for? I'm just here as an extra. The Five Kage Summit will be led by the First and Second Hokage.

Rasa isn't here yet, so it doesn't really matter where I sit."

Takuya answered with a casual smile.

"I see."

Yagura found the response reasonable enough and didn't question it further.

Instead, he started chatting with Takuya.

"Honestly, I nearly had a heart attack when I saw them. These two are legendary figures—why are they suddenly back?"

"You think you're surprised? I was stunned, too."

Takuya leaned in and lowered his voice.

"It was Orochimaru's doing. You know how that guy is—obsessed with immortality and forbidden jutsu.

So he ended up reviving them with Edo Tensei.

The problem? He thought he could control them."

Yagura's expression twitched.

Orochimaru had always been reckless, but this?

That was a whole new level of insanity.

Takuya continued.

"But the moment they were revived, he realized—he was screwed."

"He couldn't control them?"

"Nope."

Hashirama broke free purely through his absurd strength.

Tobirama, on the other hand, used his deep understanding of Edo Tensei to break the control himself.

Leaving Orochimaru standing there, completely dumbfounded.

I bet he's still regretting his life choices.

Back when he first experimented with Edo Tensei, his main problem was the quality of his sacrifices.

So this time, he had upgraded—using White Zetsu as offerings.

Only to find out he had completely shot himself in the foot.

Now, he had revived two of the most powerful shinobi in history—without any ability to control them.

Orochimaru really had a talent for causing trouble.

Yagura, processing this information, could only give a slow, approving nod.

"That takes some real guts."

Even robbing a grave wouldn't be as insane as what Orochimaru had just done.

"Everyone!"

Tobirama's sharp voice cut through the murmured conversation, bringing the focus back to the meeting.

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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read the rest of the Chapter at Patreon com/ Emik01. 

DO NOT FORGET POWER STONE AND CHATTING